Sword Reverie
- January 21, 2022
- Isekai Entertainment
- 5h median play time
Get on SteamIn "Sword Reverie" , players enter a fantasy world as a Hero summoned to prevent war with Elementals. Using motion-based abilities and physics combat, they battle enemies and explore the world with companion Stella, unlocking new abilities and crafting weapons to defeat the Elemental Lords. The story follows tensions between Humans and Elementals, with the last Guardian's daughter assisting the Hero to uncover the mystery behind her father's murder.
PC
Virtual Reality
Windows
Oculus Rift
Reviews
- The game has a beautiful art style and immersive environments that make players feel like they are inside an anime.
- The voice acting and music are well done, enhancing the overall experience.
- The crafting system adds depth to gameplay, allowing players to upgrade weapons and explore different elements in combat.
- The combat feels repetitive and lacks impact, with many players finding it too easy and unengaging.
- Movement is slow and tedious, with no sprint option, making exploration feel cumbersome.
- The game is currently unpolished, with issues such as graphical glitches, lack of enemy variety, and a linear storyline that may disappoint those expecting a more open-world experience.
- graphics80 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players expressing disappointment in their quality, describing them as bland, sparse, and glitchy, especially for a VR title. While some appreciate the art style and find it nostalgic or fitting for the game's aesthetic, others criticize the lack of detail and variety, noting performance issues that detract from the experience. Overall, the visuals seem to fall short of expectations, particularly for a JRPG, with calls for more graphical options and improvements in future updates.
“First, the game is super fun, the graphics are great, the voice acting is awesome, and the spell casting is incredible.”
“Graphics make you feel like you are inside an anime.”
“Really enjoyed the game's visuals and environment.”
“The graphics are kind of a let down, looks very bland and boring for an anime VR game; even VR Chat has better textured models.”
“The graphics are low quality, characters move without walking, and it just seems more like a proof of concept than anything else as it sits currently.”
“The graphics are awful even on ultra.”
- story65 mentions
- 28 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The game's story has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it lacking depth and engagement, describing it as linear and repetitive, while others appreciate the voice acting and aesthetic. Many feel that the story is not the primary focus, overshadowed by combat and gameplay mechanics, though some note that it has potential for improvement and could benefit from more interactive elements and side quests. Overall, while the narrative has its moments, it often feels underdeveloped compared to the gameplay experience.
“The story was pretty nice and fully voiced.”
“The story is good and will keep you interested.”
“It feels like you're part of the story instead of just reading walls of text.”
“This is not a bad game, but the devs need to work much harder on the story and variation of opponents.”
“The story doesn't seem to be the focus of the game; instead, it's 95% swordplay.”
“Maybe a cutscene or intro of being isekai'd or something... the story is kind of lacking oomph right now.”
- gameplay48 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it linear and repetitive, lacking depth and meaningful interactions, particularly with NPCs. However, others appreciate unique mechanics, such as elemental changes and swordplay, and enjoy the aesthetic and level design. Overall, while some aspects are praised, many feel the gameplay could benefit from additional complexity and features, like a sprint mechanic.
“The element mechanic is interesting.”
“Very unique sword gameplay, changing elements feels very intuitive.”
“Love the art and the gameplay is sick.”
“The gameplay is decent, but it doesn't look like it will get more complex than waving my arms around wildly, and for an anime JRPG, it just seems like a waste of time to me.”
“The NPCs that accompany you seem to do 0 damage to enemies; they don't take damage, they pretty much just play an attacking animation but add nothing to the gameplay.”
“Gameplay is boring in the current state.”
- music34 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received high praise for its immersive quality and ability to enhance the overall experience, with many users highlighting the soundtrack as a standout feature. Reviewers appreciate the musical score during combat and its contribution to the game's atmosphere, describing it as both beautiful and engaging. Overall, the music is considered a significant strength of the game, complementing its visuals and gameplay.
“The soundtrack is another great addition that provides more immersion into the game world.”
“The music and environment were gorgeous.”
“I really like the musical score in the game.”
“When in the game it sounds like the music of the hall is being played from inside the room, not 2 inches from your ear.”
“Music?”
“A+ music, b visuals, b gameplay, but a+ level design.”
- grinding12 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 83 % negative mentions
Players have mixed feelings about the grinding aspect of the game; some find it manageable, while others feel it becomes tedious, particularly due to slow map navigation. The game leans towards repetitive gameplay rather than story, which may not appeal to everyone. Overall, the grinding experience seems to vary significantly based on individual playstyles.
“My biggest complaint is that moving around the map is so slow and tedious.”
“It makes exploring the maps more tedious than fun.”
“A JRPG that doesn't focus on story, and more on repetitive, grindy gameplay.”
- optimization10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with players reporting poor performance and motion sickness, particularly at higher graphics settings. Many feel that the game appears unpolished and lacks significant improvements since its initial trailer, suggesting that a more linear open world design could enhance performance without sacrificing content density. Overall, the current state of optimization is seen as a major drawback.
“Lowering the graphics settings fixed performance and motion sickness.”
“It can make things way better with little performance impact if used correctly.”
“Personally, I would have considered the more linear open world approach so you could have high density forests with little performance impact. For example, if you had a forest, you could have three pathways through said forest packed full of content, and they're also acting as an occlusion area for the rest of the world not having to be loaded.”
“Performance is bad given the quality of the graphics and it's making me motion sick.”
“Compared to the old trailer, it feels like the devs have done nothing to the game in the last year - it's greatly unpolished, unoptimized, and boring.”
“Personally, I would have considered a more linear open world approach so you could have high-density forests with little performance impact. For example, if you had a forest, you could have three pathways through said forest packed full of content, and they would also act as an occlusion area for the rest of the world, not having to be loaded.”
- humor8 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by the amusing visual gags, such as the exaggerated size of weapons compared to the player's small hands, and the entertaining ragdoll physics of enemies being flung away. Players find these elements to be some of the most enjoyable aspects, contributing to an overall lighthearted and funny experience.
“The magic is really fun and funny to see the enemies ragdoll and fly away; it's probably the best part of this game.”
“Your hands are ridiculously small, which looks hilarious on the ginormous weapons you're carrying.”
“Swords are hilariously large, and the player's hands are hilariously small.”
- stability6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, the game is enjoyable but has some stability issues, including minor bugs and glitches, particularly in the menus. However, players report that these problems are generally manageable and can often be resolved with a simple reset.
“Fun game, though buggy.”
“Some buggy menus, nothing a reset couldn't fix though.”
“No major bugs or glitches as far as I could tell.”
- monetization5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate a mixed perception of the game's monetization, with some players feeling frustrated by what they perceive as a cash grab, while others acknowledge the effort and dedication behind the game's development, suggesting that it may not be a straightforward attempt to exploit players financially.
“I'm kind of mad at the cash grab this game is.”
“I'm kind of mad at the cash grab this game is.”
“I'm kind of mad at the cash grab this game is.”
- character development2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The reviews highlight a strong appreciation for character design in the game, indicating that the visual and musical elements contribute positively to the overall experience. However, there is no specific mention of character development or growth within the narrative.
