Screenshots & trailers
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (OpenCritic) | – | 69 | 22 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 82% | 76 | 64 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 100% | 97 | 0 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 1 reviews sampled · 1 total reviews in window · weighted 0.9 up / 0 down · computed 3h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (21)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 70
“Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord’s humorous script and diverting tactical battle system make it a promising entry for a young series. The game lacks depth in its story and variety in its gameplay, but this nearly 40-hour experience is still worth the time of those who are looking for a casually enjoyable game.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is a well-rounded tactical RPG that stands on its own offering a thoroughly fun experience with many anime tropes for better or for worse.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“The game has incredible music remixes, and the battle system is downright Fun. This Game would be better if they had English Dubs to curb the required reading.”
read full review ↗ - 50
“Like the first two games, Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is flawed, tonally inconsistent, and a massively repetitive grind. Re-treading this story for the third time and jump to an entirely different and less enjoyable gameplay system has made it even harder to recommend this game in spite of it's flaws. There is charm, and there are moments, and diehard Compile Heart fans might be able to push through and enjoy them, but I suspect that the people this game will truly speak to are few and far between.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“To be honest, I had a hard time coming to a conclusion for Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord. I liked the battles, loved the music and disliked the banter between the characters. I mean, I really don’t want to read all about Harley wanting to do a body check to research the Fairies, about Eryn losing her panties during the night and if Fang found them and so on. It might be comedy to some, but not my kind of humour and I even found it off-putting. The story was interesting, however, and the battles made up for it. I liked the turn-based strategic battles and all the special stat-raising possibilities there are to make the battles as interesting as possible. The glittering colours on the battlefield from Aria’s songs weren’t to my liking; I found it hard to discern the characters and where to place their attack. But the idea of adding music as a tactic is nice.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is a good sequel to the series that manages to make the experience even more fun than in the past, albeit with a change of genre that may not please many.”
read full review ↗ - 70
“At its core, Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord feels like a different take on the Neptunia formula. For this reason, fans of the franchise will absolutely enjoy this adventure. For everyone else, it’s a good strategy RPG with amusing dialogue. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it’s still a lot of fun. Especially if you take the time to do all the optional content.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Fans of Fairy Fencer F should get in on this title and get in now. Drink deep of this lore and excellent scripting before it becomes bloated with extra noise, and enjoy it as such. If you’re scared by the change in approach, don’t be: a good IP can wear any hat as long as it fits. Refrain Chord wears the helmet of SRPG well, and players will honestly feel so much better being able to enjoy this new storyline without also wondering when their console/PC is about to crash.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“While Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is a very basic Strategy game, I had a lot of fun with it. I know this is mostly because of these characters and setting, but I think this would be a great starting point for newcomers to the series as well. The combat is fun, graphics look nice and music is exceptional. I played about 40 hours to get an ending on this one, and there are more things I have left to explore. I feel like this one is well worth the $49.99 asking price; it may not be anything fancy, but it’s good food for the fans.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is an interesting alternate version for Fairy Fencer F, offering a tactical gameplay with great variety in options for the player to customize the team and deal with the obstacles. Unfortunately, its biggest unique element, the combat muses, also ends up as a big limitation to the area designs, making the repetition feeling stronger. Add in the little graphic polish and the disconnections between plot and gameplay, and what we get is a game that had potential to be much better but is still worth it for fans of the genre.”
read full review ↗ - 75
- 80
“Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is a sequel game to the original Fairy Fencer F but with a totally new combat system. It is a competent strategy Role Playing Game and not overly difficult. The music mechanics make it stand out and a joy to listen to. The relationship between characters is not really explored as heavily as the first game.”
read full review ↗
RPGamer
Siliconera
CFG Games
TheSixthAxis
LadiesGamers.com
CrazyGameCommunity.it
Infinite Start
WayTooManyGames
oprainfall
NintendoBoy
RPG Fan
The Outerhaven Productions…and 9 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
No patch announcements found on Steam yet.