Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity
- July 11, 2018
- Ankake Spa
- 2h median play time
While Scarlet Curiosity is certainly geared towards fans that already know a little bit about the Touhou lineage, those looking for a fun little diversion until Ys VIII reaches North America won’t be disappointed.
Get on SteamIn "Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity," players explore a mysteriously expanded Scarlet Devil Mansion and battle strange creatures as Remilia Scarlet or Sakuya Izayoi. The game features side-scrolling action with RPG elements, including experience points, leveling up, and acquiring new abilities. The story revolves around Remilia's insatiable curiosity, which leads her to a surprising discovery that changes everything in the Touhou universe.
PC
Playstation 4
Playstation 5
Steam Deck
Windows
PlayStation
Reviews
- Fun and engaging gameplay with a mix of action RPG and bullet hell elements.
- Great music and visuals that capture the essence of the Touhou series.
- Two playable characters, Remilia and Sakuya, each with unique abilities and playstyles.
- Repetitive gameplay and level design, leading to a lack of variety in encounters.
- Some technical issues, including optimization problems and awkward camera angles.
- The story is considered weak and typical for a Touhou game, lacking depth and engagement.
- story50 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game's story is generally considered simple and typical of the Touhou universe, featuring two playable characters, Remilia and Sakuya, who embark on a quest to investigate a mysterious incident at the Scarlet Devil Mansion. While some players appreciate the fun and engaging elements of the narrative, others find it lacking depth and originality, with minor differences between character storylines and a somewhat uninteresting plot. Overall, the story serves as a backdrop to the gameplay rather than a focal point, appealing primarily to fans of the Touhou series.
“The story was actually pretty fun once I got towards the end of it.”
“I totally recommend this game to any new Touhou players or people who want to experience a really good Touhou story.”
“The 'east-like' compositions of melody in its songs, the farcical story of an immortal vampire and her maid looking to solve a problem for the sake of putting boredom to rest - I'm only into a couple of hours of gameplay; but seeing its overall content on the web made me confident that the game is pretty much worth the price if you're a fan of Touhou.”
“While there are two playable characters, the differences between both playthroughs are quite minor, and you won't be missing out on a lot if you don't do it story-wise.”
“The story, in particular, is kind of a bare bones 'an incident occurred' sort of Touhou story and doesn't do anything particularly new or interesting with the characters or setting.”
“It's not very long and the story isn't interesting; it's basically just gameplay.”
- gameplay49 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The gameplay is a mixed bag, featuring a blend of action RPG mechanics and bullet hell elements, with some players appreciating the smooth controls and character variety, while others criticize it for being overly simplistic and repetitive. Level design offers enjoyable encounters and unique visuals, but many find the gameplay lacks depth and challenge, often feeling janky or bland. Overall, it appeals primarily to Touhou fans, providing a casual experience with decent mechanics, though it may not satisfy those seeking a more complex or engaging gameplay experience.
“The gameplay is fairly dead simple (though challenging), the maps aren't the most visually interesting (with some exceptions) and the music, while great, are largely just arrangements of ZUN's original compositions from the main Touhou franchise.”
“The technical elements of the gameplay are pretty much that this is a platformer where you fight stuff, you level up, you equip weapons and armor and other equipment to boost the stats of Remilia Scarlet or Sakuya Izayoi, and you just get through the story and meet your favorite Touhou characters along the way, fighting them in some boss battles that can be pretty intense, especially if you have the bullet hell mode enabled.”
“You get the best of both worlds when it comes to the RPG leveling/grinding mechanic as well as bullet hell mechanics.”
“Gameplay is bland, janky, and boring.”
“The gameplay is very repetitive, the maps are essentially the same.”
“Initially I enjoyed playing for a while, mainly due to the simplicity of the gameplay, but it quickly became horribly repetitive as it felt like every stage was just a rehash of every other stage I played (aside from the ending bosses).”
- music43 mentions
- 65 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised, with many reviewers highlighting its quality and the impressive remixes of original Touhou compositions. While some feel that certain arrangements stray too far from the originals, the overall soundtrack is described as beautiful, atmospheric, and a significant draw for fans of the franchise. However, a few critiques mention that the music can become repetitive in longer play sessions.
“The music is great and the art is beautiful.”
“As one would expect of a Touhou-related game, the soundtrack is nothing short of beautiful and breathtaking.”
“Great OST of remixed songs we know and love, nice graphics for the most part and a story that's typical of the Touhou universe.”
“Music's a letdown though, it's filled mostly with the kind of remix that isn't bad but just makes you want to hear the original instead.”
“And surprisingly the music in the game is bad and forgettable too.”
“The music sounds like old elevator music from the late 70's or early 80's.”
- graphics33 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the charming art style and creative level designs, reminiscent of older anime games and GameCube-era visuals. While some note that the graphics are not groundbreaking and can suffer from issues like plastic-looking characters and excessive bloom effects, overall, they are considered decent to good, enhancing the gameplay experience. Many reviewers rate the graphics around 7/10, highlighting their appeal despite some technical limitations.
“The graphics and textures of the game, the character models, the whole presentation overall, they are all so beautiful and fascinating.”
“What a great action RPG with visuals far exceeding my expectations.”
“The graphics are charming.”
“Graphics aren't the best, but it's to be expected since this game was made for a non-Steam platform before it was ported.”
“Graphically, it's really pretty, but the characters look quite plastic, and the intensity of the background combined with the small model sizes for the fairy foes can make some areas really hard to see.”
“It's not a graphically intense game, and the graphics remind me of something out of the GameCube era.”
- grinding10 mentions
- 10 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 90 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while some enjoy the grind and find it fun and engaging, others note that it can feel repetitive and time-consuming. The game doesn't heavily rely on grinding, with some players only needing minimal effort to reach high levels or complete achievements. However, certain characters, like Remilia, can make the grinding process quicker and more efficient.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“Great fun, though it can feel repetitive and grindy at times.”
“The game doesn't really require grinding but I had to do maybe 10 minutes of it for the final boss.”
“Grind - 5/10 (0 being minimal grinding and 10 being maximum grinding)”
- optimization4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The game has received mixed feedback regarding optimization, with many users noting significant performance issues such as frequent crashes and low frame rates, particularly on mid-range hardware. While the gameplay is generally enjoyable, the unoptimized nature of the game, especially in larger levels, detracts from the overall experience.
“Runs smoothly.”
“The game overall is fine, nice to play and stuff, however the game is very unoptimized (also locked to 60fps).”
“The game overall is fine, nice to play and stuff; however, the game is very unoptimized (also locked to 60fps).”
“The final story level (not counting the post-game labyrinth) is huge, with crisscrossing paths, which makes it very unoptimized.”
“Crashes every ~20 minutes, bad optimization (30 fps on medium on GTX 970m); the game is nice though.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
While the initial playthrough offers a high level of enjoyment, particularly with the easier character Remilia, the game's replayability diminishes afterward. However, switching between characters Sakuya and Remilia does provide some variety and encourages multiple playthroughs due to their distinct play styles.
“The game provides a unique experience with each character, encouraging multiple playthroughs to fully appreciate their distinct abilities.”
“Your first playthrough will be the most fun you have; then after that, the game kind of just falls flat in terms of replayability.”
“Switching between Sakuya and Remilia offers a fair share of replayability due to their differences in style.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is noted as amusing, particularly with the inclusion of stock elevator music commonly found in memes and funny videos; however, some users feel it doesn't justify spending money on the game.
“It's funny, though I wouldn't spend money on this.”
“It has the classic stock elevator music used in memes and funny videos.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highlighted by superb atmospheric music and a unique blend of cutesy fantasy and vampire themes, making it one of its strongest aspects.
“Superb atmospheric music is a plus.”
“Ultimately, its strongest aspect is the style and atmosphere, which is that of a cutesy fantasy-cross-vampire flick.”
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
While the controls and boss battles are well-received, the reviews do not provide significant insights into character development, focusing instead on gameplay mechanics and character aesthetics.
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players report that the game evokes strong emotions, with some expressing that it brought them to tears of joy, highlighting its impactful storytelling and character development.
“Made me cry out of joy.”
Critic Reviews
I can do evil all by myself: Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity review
Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity is a magnificent game that has taken me completely by surprise with its quality. A mix of 2D and 3D platforming, RPG, and adventure gaming blends with a gorgeous art style to form this hidden gem just waiting to be uncovered. All the while familiar and unique, Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity is a game that all should give a chance, enjoyable by the most hardened veteran gamer down the most green of newcomers.
90%Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity Review - Paint it Red
Scarlet Curiosity is a good, if short, RPG-Brawler that makes decent use of the setting that ZUN has created for the Touhou series. However, repeated enemies, generic looking stages, and the inability to block attacks from the beginning are a bit grating and prevent the game from reaching its full potential.
70%Touhou: Scarlet Curiosity Review
76%
