Touhou Genso Wanderer Reloaded

The roguelike procedural generation in Touhou: Genso Wanderer Reloaded often generates terrible flaws, horrible stages, and difficulty levels all over the shop - when the difficulty spikes, the challenging nature often just results in repetitive and frustrating grinding. There is far too much dialogue to read through, meaning huge gaps between actually being able to play… It's hard to find much to like here. It will certainly interest Touhou fans who get to enjoy some of their favourite characters, but for casual fans and those new to the series, all they are getting is a rather monotonous dungeon crawler.

69%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

grinding, replayability

94% User Score Based on 405 reviews

Critic Score 49%Based on 4 reviews

Platforms

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About

Touhou Genso Wanderer Reloaded is a roguelike RPG set in the Touhou Project universe. Traverse procedurally generated dungeons, defeat powerful bosses, and collect items to aid you in your journey. This updated version includes new characters, story content, and balance changes from the original game. Cooperate with a friend in local split-screen multiplayer for an added challenge.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Touhou Genso Wanderer Reloaded screenshot

+17

94%

Audience ScoreBased on 409 reviews

story24 positive mentions

grinding31 negative mentions

The game features a rich variety of characters and a deep crafting system, allowing for extensive customization and progression.
The art style and music are highly praised, contributing to an enjoyable and immersive experience.
The game offers a lot of content, including numerous dungeons and side stories, making it highly replayable.

The difficulty spikes can be frustrating, with some bosses being unbalanced and reliant on RNG, leading to repetitive grinding.
The interface can be cumbersome, particularly for newcomers, with a large minimap that obstructs gameplay and a complex inventory system.
Players start from level 1 upon death, which can be discouraging and lead to a feeling of lost progress, especially in longer dungeons.

story
146 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
79%
4%
The game's story is praised for its high production value and engaging writing, presented in a visual novel format that includes fully voiced characters and detailed scenes. While the main story arc is considered strong, some players feel that subsequent arcs lack the same level of interest, and the reliance on prior knowledge of the Touhou series may limit accessibility for newcomers. Overall, the narrative is described as lighthearted and enjoyable, with a wealth of side stories that enhance the main plot, though some players express frustration with gameplay mechanics that detract from the storytelling experience.
- “The story is easy to follow even if you're like me and totally unfamiliar with the source material.”
- “The story is very amazing, graphics are great, the characters are unique and have their own playstyles.”
- “The several side stories also give more connections and references to the main story arc, and having the creator thought of this is a very nice and impressive touch.”
- “After the first main story arc, the main story feels to get less interesting.”
- “The most underwhelming story I found is going to the 3rd main story arc.”
- “Notably, the story doesn't quite stand up on its own, relying on prior knowledge of the characters you meet.”
gameplay
86 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
69%
3%
The gameplay is a complex blend of dungeon-crawling mechanics with roguelike elements, featuring a variety of characters and unique mechanics that enhance strategic play. While the game offers a rich crafting and upgrade system, many players find the learning curve steep and the lack of clear explanations for certain mechanics frustrating. Overall, it provides engaging gameplay for fans of the genre, but may not appeal to those unfamiliar with dungeon crawlers or the Touhou universe.
- “The mechanics are the most complex of any roguelike I've ever played, and the sage orientation displayed a plethora of puzzle-solving options.”
- “Stellar soundtrack, a fun story with some hilarious moments, really fun gameplay with loads of characters to choose from, and a deep crafting and upgrade system that's based on putting and removing seals on your pieces of equipment.”
- “Gorgeous visuals, fantastic characterization, attention to detail, myriad clever references, engaging gameplay that is harder yet (mostly) feels more fair than other mystery dungeon games I've played, this game has everything going for it and very little against.”
- “The lack of specific descriptions against certain enemies and/or dungeon mechanics can really demotivate or frustrate you when it gets you, and can even force you to start over or have you quit the game.”
- “The game is extremely well made, especially the voices and art, but it has gameplay that is very, very difficult to learn; it doesn't matter if you use a gamepad or keyboard. The developers seem to be aware of this and included lots of tutorials and challenges to try before advancing in the adventure; this part is not too fun, as there are a lot of things to memorize, and Reimu controls very stiffly.”
- “This game is not bad, but it is frustrating at times and has potential if developers enhance the gameplay experience based on feedback. However, if you are a Touhou fan interested only in the story, I recommend watching walkthroughs on YouTube unless you love to play dungeon crawler games.”
music
65 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
37%
5%
The music in the game has received overwhelmingly positive feedback, with many praising its high production value, catchy remixes, and original compositions that enhance the gameplay experience. Fans of the Touhou series particularly appreciate the soundtrack, noting its ability to fit various scenarios and its overall quality, making it a significant highlight of the game. While some critiques mention that certain sound effects can overshadow the music, the consensus remains that the soundtrack is exceptional and worth the investment.
- “The music is wonderful and alone worth buying the game.”
- “Music so amazing to hear as well in this Touhou fangame, it uses remixes of the originals, fitting in most scenarios while also having some originals of their own.”
- “It has the production value of full budget games and is extremely well made, everything from the music to the voice acting just drips personality.”
- “In the past, I've stated that the soundtrack isn't as notable compared to other Touhou games; only a few remixes really stand out.”
- “Average music.”
- “Not that it matters much because you will constantly hear the 'crafted' noise from the nitofusion device if you know what you're doing. While it's true and annoying that the nitofusion sound effect overrides the music, I think the music is actually exceptional, even for Touhou standards being extremely high.”
graphics
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
36%
7%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful art style, rich character designs, and vibrant colors, contributing to a charming and engaging visual experience. Many reviewers highlight the high production value, noting that the visuals are comparable to full-budget games and run smoothly even at high resolutions like 4K. While some may find the chibi art style overly vibrant, the overall consensus is that the graphics enhance the gameplay and storytelling, making it a standout feature of the game.
- “The graphics of the game are amazing: the art style for the characters is rich and absolutely gorgeous, and the equipment design and effects vary and truly show off their uniqueness.”
- “Gorgeous visuals, fantastic characterization, attention to detail, myriad clever references, engaging gameplay that is harder yet (mostly) feels more fair than other mystery dungeon games I've played; this game has everything going for it and very little against.”
- “The art is really top notch, and I was surprised to see that despite the game having no graphics settings, it ran in my desktop resolution of 4K and that the art was high enough resolution to look really good in 4K.”
- “Why not just do away with all of the fancy graphics and have just the mini-map?”
- “Graphics are fine.”
- “This review will cover multiple parts of the game, from graphics/interface to the entire story itself and even a bit of the DLCs.”
grinding
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The grinding aspect of the game is heavily emphasized, with many players noting that it can be extremely tedious and time-consuming, often requiring over 1000 hours to fully explore its content. While some enjoy the weapon farming and the challenge of improving equipment, others find the repetitive nature of grinding to detract from the overall experience, making it feel more like a grind-focused game rather than a true roguelike. Additionally, the game's save system can exacerbate frustrations, as losing hard-earned items is irreversible.
- “My first criticisms regarded the grinding and repetitiveness.”
- “It's just tedious, with other games it is all about getting ready for a super boss that'd take the best of the best knowledge to defeat it.”
- “The roguelike procedural generation in Touhou: Genso Wanderer Reloaded often generates terrible flaws, horrible stages, and difficulty levels all over the shop - when the difficulty spikes, the challenging nature often just results in repetitive and frustrating grinding.”
humor
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its humor, featuring cute and funny writing, hilarious character interactions, and amusing visual novel segments. Players appreciate the blend of creative storytelling and comedic moments, particularly those familiar with the Touhou fanbase, while also noting the engaging gameplay and impressive soundtrack. Overall, the humor is a standout aspect that enhances the game's appeal, making it a recommended choice for fans and newcomers alike.
- “If you want a game with a great story, funny dialogues, great graphics, a lot of characters to choose from, and even difficult late-game dungeons, then this game is a recommended grab!”
- “It has great dialogues between the characters, impressive cut scenes, and absolute humor.”
- “I love how the game is both creative, funny as hell, and addictive as hell.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
38%
38%
The game offers high replayability due to its variety and randomized dungeon mechanics, appealing especially to fans of the Touhou series. With a wide selection of playable characters and the potential for infinite replay value, it stands out as a strong choice for roguelike enthusiasts.
- “Short, but highly replayable randomized dungeon dives.”
- “I love the variety that this game provides; the replay value is quite high if you really like Touhou.”
- “I think this game potentially has infinite replay value and could be the main game for any roguelike aficionado.”
- “I love the variety that this game provides; replay value is quite high if you really like Touhou.”
- “Almost every Touhou character is here, and a bunch of them are playable.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development in the game is criticized for being minimal and unimportant, overshadowed by a contrived interface and derivative mechanics, despite the appealing hand-drawn visuals and high production values.
- “The beautiful hand-drawn presentation and high production values are hindered severely by a contrived and intrusive interface, unimportant dialogue with very little character development and derivative mechanics.”