Galleria's predecessor already lays the groundwork: a vast legion of puppets to mold and dungeons riddled with traps and breakable walls. Rougher than its successor, but the dark writing and sharp difficulty leave a lasting mark.
Your verdict
Category
RPG1 player16+
Description
An enchanted tome leads an army of puppets through the cursed depths beneath Refrain. Published by NIS America, released worldwide in 2018. Dozens of puppet covens, varied classes, first-person exploration, breakable walls and buried treasure under a dark atmosphere.
Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
MAX
Story
★★★★★
"Masterful"
The series' first entry, this dungeon RPG follows a stooped witch, Dronya, and her living grimoire, sent to comb the cursed depths beneath the town of Refrain. Nippon Ichi's art direction mixes a gypsy caravan, a rainy village and an oozing labyrinth, animated by a troupe of puppet-soldiers you craft and sacrifice.
The soundtrack plunges into a harsher gothic than its sequel, cut for the oppression of the labyrinth: dark organs, low choirs, anxious strings and dull percussion that weigh with every step in the depths. The themes of the witch and her lair mix mischief and menace, while the battles rise into a martial, incantatory tension.
A puppet sent to explore the underground of a town haunted by a sleeping witch: the stage is set for a descent where every step may be your last. Beneath its guise of a simple dungeon-crawler hides a devious tale shot through with manipulation, secrets and a mordant humour. This unapologetic darkness, paired with well-placed revelations, gives the exploration a bitter flavour that genre fans relish to the full.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"Pleasant"
Addictiveness
"Captivating"
Difficulty
"Difficult"
Lifespan
"Massive"
Leading a coven of puppets to the depths of Refrain means patiently mapping trapped labyrinths where every wall might hide a passage. Pact customisation, a difficulty that rewards planning and alternate endings invite you to start over stronger. Its name as a generous dungeon-crawler rests on this progression loop, forever rekindled.
Technical info
💾3 GB📅18/09/2018
Published by NIS America
Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk (Nintendo Switch) price, value & rarity
This dungeon RPG lets you craft puppets and split them into covens, turning each major fight into martial arithmetic: who strikes, in what order, with which boosts. The deep guardians punish improvisation and reward optimization. Refrain builds its tension spikes on strategy far more than reflex.
