A very sweet game, fun to play, emotionally devastating.
I cried like a baby. Apart from the emotional story, if you like pixel art/pixel games in general, you should check this one out.
A game that, despite it's flaws, packs a serious emotional punch and deserves to be played.
Completing this game was difficult for me, since the first half was a bit disappointing. The first 2 "substories" (out of 5) were interesting, but a tad overdramatic and didn't elicit the emotions I was hoping for. The gameplay felt a little grindy, with time being wasted on walking back and forth between locations and doing very little interaction with the world. I ended up stopping for about 2 months halfway through the third character story, since it just didn't feel like it was worth my time.
It took me a while to find the motivation to continue past that point, but I'm really glad I did - the endings of the last 3 character stories were heartbreakingly emotional, managing to make me cry during reveals I'd already put together beforehand.
Rakuen is far from perfect, but there is definitely a lot to admire in the end.
Completing this game was difficult for me, since the first half was a bit disappointing. The first 2 "substories" (out of 5) were interesting, but a tad overdramatic and didn't elicit the emotions I was hoping for. The gameplay felt a little grindy, with time being wasted on walking back and forth between locations and doing very little interaction with the world. I ended up stopping for about 2 months halfway through the third character story, since it just didn't feel like it was worth my time.
It took me a while to find the motivation to continue past that point, but I'm really glad I did - the endings of the last 3 character stories were heartbreakingly emotional, managing to make me cry during reveals I'd already put together beforehand.
Rakuen is far from perfect, but there is definitely a lot to admire in the end.
Rakuen is a touching indie adventure game with an emotionally charged story, complemented by a beautiful soundtrack, explores themes of friendship and compassion. The game's hand-drawn art style and integrated puzzles add to its overall charm, making Rakuen a short but emotionally resonant experience for those who appreciate narrative-driven games.
Trop long pour son propre bien.
this game is so beautiful and emotional and you can tell that there was so much love put into making it I sobbed like 10 times when playing through it and the ending physically crushed my soul
I did love certain aspects of the story and at parts I had lots of fun but I just didn't enjoy it as much as I had hoped, unfortunately. Really pretty game though.
I was so lucky this game could run on Mac, thanks Laura Shigihara. Also this game has done permanent psychological damage to me. I can't remember the last time I cried so much, and it's only 8 hours! I'm not used to games without combat, but it was short enough where it didn't lose my attention.
This game is super cute, I love the art, and I love that it's made by Laura Shigihara, but IT'S JUST NOT INTERESTING. NOTHING FUCKING HAPPENS.
Cuando creía que no podía un juego hacerme emocionarme como nunca después de haber jugado To the Moon, apareció este y se convirtió en mi juego favorito de lejos
Ruined my life 10/10
Uno de los juegos más emotivos y bonitos que he jugado. Si durase menos sería incluso mejor.
Rakuen è un gioco di cui comprendo le recensioni negative, purtroppo ogni singolo aspetto del gameplay è tedioso. C'è poco da fare, i puzzle so stupidi e lenti nella risoluzione. Sei disperso spesso, non capisci bene che fare e vai a tentoni in un mondo che graficamente tutto sommato è sufficiente ma niente di eccezionale. E allora perché mi schiero tra gli estimatori? Perché...ho un finto rapporto conflittuale con mia madre e siccome il gioco tocca bene varie sfaccettature di questo tasto dolente non posso non riconoscere una buona scrittura che mantiene tutta la baracca
esse jogo é muito especial pra mim, foi uma experiência muito marcante e até tranquilizante pra mim, preciso rejogar para pegar todas conquistas hehe
I really can't remember the last time I got this emotional for any form of media. Recent events in my personal life make many of these stories so heartwarming and relatable that it hurts.
Review in progress:
The gameplay is ass. Press the button next to every sprite until something happens. Insert key card. Move boxes. Why not just make it a visual novel at that point?
The story makes no sense. Why are there no security cameras in the hospital?
I can't get the game to run with the build that has controller support. Most of the time, it just crashes.
The gameplay is ass. Press the button next to every sprite until something happens. Insert key card. Move boxes. Why not just make it a visual novel at that point?
The story makes no sense. Why are there no security cameras in the hospital?
I can't get the game to run with the build that has controller support. Most of the time, it just crashes.
sobbed my eyes out 😁👍 i will be thinking abt this game for the next week tbh
Pros:
- Rakuen’s story has a gut punch, as you gradually learn about the other patients and their pasts culminating in an ending that’s not hard to see coming but I’m sure most would be affected by
- Great music from Laura Shigihara
Cons:
- I wanted to like how this actually plays more but it’s… pretty simple for most of it. Similar to say To The Moon, it’s a game without combat where you walk around talking to characters with very light puzzles or basic fetch quests to break it up. This would be fine, but Rakuen also goes on for 10 hours or so and it wore thin by the halfway point. Still, very much worth it for the story
- Rakuen’s story has a gut punch, as you gradually learn about the other patients and their pasts culminating in an ending that’s not hard to see coming but I’m sure most would be affected by
- Great music from Laura Shigihara
Cons:
- I wanted to like how this actually plays more but it’s… pretty simple for most of it. Similar to say To The Moon, it’s a game without combat where you walk around talking to characters with very light puzzles or basic fetch quests to break it up. This would be fine, but Rakuen also goes on for 10 hours or so and it wore thin by the halfway point. Still, very much worth it for the story
This review contains spoilers
we gotta cure cancer bros