Customer Ratings & Reviews

Shining Resonance Refrain is a Action JRPG, similar to the Tales series of games. The combat is simple, but there are a good amount of character that you can control in battle, each with a unique fighting style that you can try out. The story is basic, but its done well enough that I enjoyed it. There are dating mechanics in the game, the main character can date his party members and this will give bonuses in battle. The biggest draw for me towards the game was all the dragons. The story is centered around dragons and the main character can transform into a dragon at will. I really like those aspects of the game and it keeps me playing.

It's not the greatest, nor is it the worst I've played. Shining Resonance Refrain feels like it's close to being an exciting game but doesn't quite make it. The environments are very colourful at least, which is a plus for me. The battle system is in real time. You get to control any character you like on your team, so there's a bit of variety there. Unfortunately, field enemies aren't very strong and they don't offer much EXP. That being said, I was surprised by the difficulty spike when I encountered a boss in the second chapter, who literally stomped one of my characters to their doom. The grind isn't really worth going for because field battles only take a few seconds to complete and it becomes a tedious chore. The characters don't feel unique or interesting. For me, it may be because there needs to be more conflict. Sometimes it feels like they're just there to fill up space. The music isn't very memorable, but it's not jarring either. Again, I feel like average is the best way to describe this game. I really wish it was more exciting and compelling but it just falls short of that.

If you're a fan of .hack series game play or secret of mana with some good story then look no further. while the story, in my opinion, is overwhelmed with cut scenes of both in game movie and side script, it does deliver it in a fabulous way. so much so that at times i'd find myself reminiscing to some old style Tales series and that is something I won't complain about. Fun and engaging, recommended if you're looking for another RPG to own on your switch.

Another great jrpg on the switch. Fun combat and a good story alongside a lot of content for your money.

I like it, the combat is fun, the story is neat and the music is great.

Shining Resonance has a good number of things it does alright. The story is decent and at times even great. The graphics are eye catching. The real time combat is fun and keeps you involved. However I wouldn't rank this one higher than the other truly exceptional RPGs on the Switch (Octopath Traveler, Zelda Breath of the Wild, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, etc).

First of all the product itself. The launch edition has a really cool metal slipcase probably the only one of it's kind. We have had metal steelbooks sure but not a metal slipcase. Really cool. There is also a free japanese voice pack in the E-Shop you can download. Story - Pretty generic honestly, like PS2 Era JRPG storytelling. Have an evil kingdom who is doing evil stuff against the good kingdom... Insert main character here.... He goes on an adventure to save the kingdom from evil kingdom and bam there is your story. The lore is pretty intresting but the story itself just holds it back. It never gets into that level of final fantasy or tales games story telling. Gameplay - Plays out like a tales game, you can turn into a dragon! Which is awsome. There is like a FF7 materia system going on there for your wepons. No fast travel unfourtuntly, but not that bad as the maps themselfs are easy to run across. There is a random dungeon you can do for grinding. There are side quests but all those are is the basic "Kill this" or "Collect this" and thats it, nothing more meaningful than that. I guess the best part of the game is that you can date all the girls and you won't get punished for it. For those who are confused by original mode and refrain mode... Basically original mode is just the original story while in refrian mode you get 2 playable characters that are like villian characters.... Thats about it. So I just went with refrian mode to date the evil chick. Sound - Pretty good since one of the focuses of the game is about music, since all your party members items are actually instruments. So at least for sound is 5 out of 5 Graphics - It's like in between PS2-PS3 era anime style graphics. Not that bad seeing as it was a PS3 port from japan only. Conclusion - It's worth getting if only go play once, it's only like 49.99 anyways not even full priced. For a PS3 port it's pretty decent, at least until we get octopath traveler soon and that tales remaster for the switch.

I've play Tales of Vesperia (awesome game!) and saw a little bit of it while thumbing through the screens for Shining Resonance. Gameplay is like Tales: hack and slash with the main character and command options to control the others in your party. Graphics are great for an RPG and is probably one of the better redeeming quality of the game. The main reason for docking stars from the rating was the presentation of the story and game mechanics. Dialogue is just a picture of one or two characters with text and the introduction feels longer than it needs to; I wished I could have scrolled though the text quicker but wasn't given that option. All the mechanics of the game are thrown on too quickly and you feel a bit overwhelmed. (How do you trigger a resonance again?) To be honest I wasn't able to put much time into the game so far (about 2 hours) but I try to finish all the games I buy and will probably come back...someday.

While it doesn't compare to the heights of, say, the Tales games or Dragon Quest, Shining Resonance Refrain is an engrossing RPG with unique mechanics that can offer up a rather unique experience among anime RPGs. I don't think it's quite worth $50, but if you can snag it for $25 or less, I think it's worth it.

The games is good, but with so many similar RPGs game out there it would be hard to compare and say this stands out from other games. Overall the game has unique features that differentiates itself with other RPGs and the musical score in this game is great.

I waited months to decide whether this was worthwhile to play, since I didn’t enjoy the Free Demo on the switch but this is one of the in-depth, enchanting, artistic RPGs I have played this year. It was very much worth the investment.

Shining Resonance Refrain is the kind of game that can put on a solid performance, but it’s also abundantly clear that it doesn’t quite have the pipes to hit the high notes; it’s a good game, but not a great one. A fascinating setting, live action combat system, and eye-catching cel-shade visuals are all balanced by a slightly dampening feeling of mediocrity that never seems to go away. Fans of RPGs will find plenty to love here, it’s a well-rounded, content-rich game that understands its audience well, but it’s also a very safe RPG. We’d ultimately give Shining Resonance Refrain a recommendation, especially if you’re a newcomer looking for a good RPG to show you what the genre is all about, but veterans may be a bit disappointed with the final product.

Sega once a powerhouse in it's own right proves with this game that it still has it. If you like RPGs like I do, then this title will keep you busy with a good story and gameplay. Good job Sega!

This isn't the type of game that will blow people away with its graphics, story, or gameplay. No. It's more of a standard run of the mill JRPG with cheesy dialogue, music that isn't on par with the huge production beautiful goodness of other larger games, combat that doesn't feel different then what we've seen in the genre for years, visuals that get the job done but aren't going to impress, and a story that moves the game forward but won't make you remember the game for years to come. If you're new to the genre or already don't have favorable views of the genre, this won't be the game to get. However, it's still an enjoyable experience that any JRPG fan can deprive some pleasure from.

A fun and interesting action RPG for the Switch. I enjoyed the story, characters and combat. While nothing groundbreaking, it is fun and enjoyable from beginning to end.

This is a solid RPG if a bit linear. The combat itself is interesting with a unique spin on things worth trying out with the dragon. Some light grind to advance.

Role playing game with an action twist. If you're not a fan of slower turn based combat this might be for you. Very good game great story and great gameplay.

A resurgence of a long-missing jrpg franchise in the West and is a perfect fit for switch gamers looking for a fun, albeit obscure, music-themed action rpg.

Love the action based part of the game. Relationship levels and dating some characters are sometimes plot blocked. You can date Everyone (including your guy friends, those aren't romances tho). Gear isn't changed so much as you find and unlock different music and tuning strengths that buff different elemental attacks, attack speed or even critical chance. Errand hand ins are one of the best ways to get rarer items. Buy a flower every chance you get. Money is easy. Costumes are reusable key items... I'm just loving this game to bits. Reminiscent of the tales of games, which I love

The story is based on dragons and has a good selection of characters that you can control in battle. Overall, it is a good action rpg game.