Symphonic Rain
Developer KOGADO STUDIO
Symphonic Rain (シンフォニック=レイン, Shinfonikku Rein) is a Japanese musical visual novel developed by Kogado Studio and first released as a limited-edition version on March 26, 2004, for Windows as part of a series of "music adventure" games done by its Kuroneko-san Team; the regular edition followed on August 27, 2004. The game is rated for all-ages, and contains themes which revolve around romance and relationships. The… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
136 reactions from 2 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky) · newest Oct 5, 2026 · last updated Oct 8, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
115 positive · 15 negative
95% range 82–93%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 115 | 15 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 0 | 0 | 0 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
6 newer reactions are still waiting for a label.
What people are saying
Summary pending — the reactions are listed below.
Reactions
60 of 136 · most liked firstA superb melancholic VN about music, love and even a bit of faith. I was so invested into the plot I had played nonstop until the wee hours of the morning, which to me is enough a sign of a good game. Each character has more to them than initially meets the eye, and there were moments where I was taken aback at some of the twists the game threw at me and its characters. In retrospect, a few of them seem obvious, but as I was going through the game, they did not occur to me despite feeling this…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Dear Chris, is it still raining over there? Symphonic Rain's story is about Chris Velding, a 17-year-old Fortelle student in Piova, a city famous for its School of Music and endless rain. Having only a few months left for his staged performance, which is part of his final graduation test, he needs to find a vocalist partner to be eligible for it. Throughout the visual novel you're confronted with different themes depending on the partner/route you've choosen. Be it helping a timid, shy girl…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game probably had the biggest emotional impact on me. The music and story blend so well they are inseparable. The art style might turn some people off, but if you are even remotely interested in music game or virtual novel, I hope you give this game a try.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I cannot recommend this highly enough whether you are completely new to visual novels, an intermediate reader that liked stuff such as CLANNAD, Katawa Shoujo, Narcissu, etc..., or an experienced reader. Wherever you fall on the spectrum you owe it to yourself to check this out. This visual novel is very accessible to those not familiar with the medium, yet offers an experience that even seasoned readers would enjoy. So why should you play this? In brief: Every character is deep,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really really want to give this game a good review. ...but I can't. ...Because the translation completely butchers it. To understand why I think so, let's do a quick compare and contrast with the old fan transation with two examples from early on in the game: Here's the steam translation version of a scene: "I'd step in before it got to that though." "Can I ask what 'stepping in' means perchance?" "...Perchance?" She said this with an utterly disgusted look.... Here's a paraphrase of the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Pretty good visual novel. I only read 1 ending and speedran the rest but considering I used autoclicker and still clocked up 3 hours, it's fair to say, this visual novel isn't the shortest. The story isn't very memorable (part of the reason why I couldn't be asked to read rest of the endings since I took a 4 months break from this game and couldn't remember a damn thing) but it's still well-written. Also the artistic style is nice. However, if there was a one thing I really didn't like, it…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is really different from other VN. Usually, the protagonist arrive, meets some really cute heroines (with some busty heroine, panty shot), do 2-3 scenes, fall in love and succeed as a couple/musician... and live happily ever after. But, here, there is no busty heroine, no panty shot, just "real" charachter with their own ambition. The "drama" of each story does not feel forced... because they are justified. There is also no miracle to save the day at the end. And most of the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →tl;dr: Overall the story is bitter-sweet and subtle, and the characters have a good amount of depth to them for routes lasting about 6-8 hours each. The music is charming and fits the characters well. There are some drawbacks, but they're minor and don't detract substantially from the main game. If you're on the fence about the game, check out some YouTube videos of the music and mini-game. If you don't like the music, you're probably not going to enjoy the game, but if you do enjoy the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This VN is perfect.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It is my favorite visual novel. But I've played it somewhat 15 years ago, and I can tell it didn't age well. Don't get me wrong, I still love it for the vibe and romance. And I also like all 3 girls very much, especially Torta. No one deserves happiness more than her. But playing it now, when I'm almost 40, I can see just how flawed it is. For the music lover and past musical student like me it holds the very special place in my heart, and that will probably never change, but I wish they've…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →As good as Dark Souls 2
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I read one route and it had absolutely no resolution. This was the "good ending" and it ended with inexplicable angst; there didn't really seem to be any reason why it ended that way other than as a middle finger to the reader. The character's reasoning is deliberately left unexplained to the reader. I researched a bit and apparently only one ending is actually positive and it's not one of the three available to you at the beginning. I can handle a bit of angst but not when it's just there for…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It is hard to find a shortcoming to this visual novel by Kogado. Every single component not only is well made on their own, but are also wonderfully put together as a single composition that is wonderful to read, look at and listen to. ARTWORK: The characters are simply yet beautifully drawn, and there is a fair number of CGs available. They do have a strong innocent childish appearance, that fits not only with the magical aspect of the story, but also provide a well needed contrast in a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you're reading this review, this is the VN you've been looking for. Emotional, meaningful, and thought-provoking, don't rate this VN by your first impression (like me)- you shouldn't underestimate Symphonic Rain. The dated animation may make you think this is childish, but make no mistake, this is a mature story that is well worth your time. Every route is well-built, and the main characters are undeniably human. Symphonic Rain will remind you that everyone is really broken- but how we deal…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I don't have the words to describe how much I love Symphonic Rain, but I'll try anyway! This game's music, storytelling, and art come together beautifully to tell a touching story in an immersive way. Symphonic Rain's characters are charming and quite deep. The game's dialogue is well delivered (in Japanese), is well translated (in English), and feels very natural. The character and background art really grew on me and provide the perfect backdrop to the game. I won't go into detail about the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Symphonic Rain is a visual novel that stands out with its premise and presentation. The setting takes place in a town that is constantly raining, so the atmosphere is calm but melancholic. This is accompanied by a soundtrack that sucks you into the world and perspective of a gloomy music student. The main character and heroines are very interesting with each of them having their own motivation for what they are trying to achieve, and each of the routes feeling connected thematically. The…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A good visual novel with extremely good music. I really love the music written by Ritsuko Okazaki. Phorni is CUTE
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Ah, the memories! More than 10 years ago, I fell in love with Symphonic Rain's soundtrack. The soft, sentimental melodies and lyrics were both beautiful and at the same time strangely compelling. I like to think that gentle and thoughtful nature Ritsuko Okazaki, the singer / songwriter who penned these pieces, really shines through in her work. Oh, and I hear that the visual novel is pretty good too...
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Piova Communal School of Music is a famous location for budding musicians in Piova, the city of endless rain. With a constant cloud overhanging the sky, Chris Vertin has spent almost three years here writing letters back and forth to his hometown and childhood sweetheart Arietta, a promise he made before he left was that he would return when his table drawer was full of letters; a date that is rapidly approaching. A music prodigy and general wallflower, Chris is a third-year student with a…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Not my cup of tea. None of the side-routes were particularly memorable and the true end alone didn't justify the 35 hours I spent reading this.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I never heard about this Visual Novel but I'm glad I buying it and play too. I felt Symphonic Rain as a visual novel had great music and story design, alongside one of the most unique play elements in a novel to date that while not perfect, lends itself to a great experience even with its slower pacing. The excellently written story, deep character building, Unique piano playing mechanic, multiple endings, older style hand drawn art, excellently orchestrated soundtrack and minimalistic…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Sorry to say, but it couldn't keep me hooked. The problem is actually the music element. The mini game is clunky, too difficult (using the keyboard is just a joke here, and it's not even using real notes. Just random keys) and doesn't really add to the game. And worst of all: The mini game blocks ALL inputs. So when the mini game is loading/playing, I can't use ANY keys, except for the ones to control the game. I can't even use my keyboards volume keys or the ESC key, ALT+F4 or anything. It's…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Finding this novel was pure luck. I actually just bought it on a whim (and gifted it to a friend) without even looking into it in further detail (unlike what I usually do when buying a game with my money), just for something during the summer. I didn't even know there was a minigame feature in the novel. That was how oblivious I was. My random decision paid off. And now I have a slight temptation to drop a good number of my other visual novels now, because it was just that good! Now my…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Cried my heart out. 10/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the best visual novel I ever read & play. Especially when you can analyze the lyrics and melody of each character song. My process: - Play normal bad end first (don't care about ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ & also being bad) - Then Fal -> Lise -> Torta for better experience (plot & lore) Phorni is cute
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →What a great VN! Don't let the childish art style deceive you. This is a very mature emotional rollercoaster, full of surprises.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Do you believe in fairy tales? Symphonic Rain is a really great visual novel. It's mostly mundane and slice of life, at least on the surface. There is a lot going on behind the scenes and while there are some clues, it doesn't really come together until the very end. One very big plot point requires a little suspension of disbelief, but this same reveal also relies on the concepts of love and faith. Its bright and sweet, subtle and wholesome on the surface, but is truly quite dark beneath its…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Everything did not turn out like I expected.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →EDIT2: For the love of god, if you get this game, PLEASE make it to the hidden endings, to say any more is to spoil it. It makes the game THAT much better! Okay... WHAT THE F**K THE FEELS MAN THE FEELS Whoever wrote the script did a very good job of MAKING ME FEEL ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ BAD The art's a a bit weird, but that's pretty easy to get past. The music in this is very high quality, probably one of the highlights of the game. I've finished two of the three characters' endings, and I haven't quite…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good Story Good Music Good Challenge long play time recommended to buy
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →超级想重温“魔法花园芙萝蕾”和“小魔女帕妃2”!工画堂赛高! "Flore in The Flower Garden" and "Little Witch Parfait 2" were my favorite games in my childhood. Want to play them again on PC!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Symphonic Rain is one of the first 3 visual novels I ever read, back when it was fan-translation where you had to edit your computer registry to get it to work. Thank god the Steam version exists as I think it's by far the best way to experience it now. I personally think it's the best romance nakige / emotional visual novel I've read, way better than every Jun Maeda / KEY visual novels. I quite like how unique the setting is, there's not many anime or visual novel settings that take place in…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I just got done with the game and achieved 100% completion. It has a lot of elements that make it more unique than just your traditional VN. I'll make this short and sweet (without spoilers) so you can make an informed buying decision and find out if Symphonic Rain is up your alley. Story: the story follows Chris Vertin, a talented Fortelle player that attends Piova which is a music-centered school in Italy. His finals are coming up and he has limited time to find a singer to complete his last…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a good story! Trust it, and give it a shot!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This VN is perfect.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This was an amazing read, I came into this thinking it'd be a simple romance VN but no, the story goes so deep and it hits you right in the feels. I wish I could experience everything all over again.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Masterpiece the music is beautiful, The story is relaxing. Fun experience
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"Do you have a singing partner yet?" "Do you have a singing partner yet?" "Do you have a singing partner yet?" "Do you have a singing partner yet?" "Do you have a singing partner yet?" ... also it's raining constantly for some reason. That's it. That's the whole game. I managed to complete one route, and it was incessant. The town, people, and conversations are duller than my personality and flatter than my pate. After completing the first route and realising this was a route game, I…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game has some of the most beautiful vocal music I've heard. It also has a great setting, in a rainy town in Southern Italy, with accompanying Italian girls as heroines. Charming art for its age, a great OST composed by Okazaki Ritsuko, god rest her soul, and a thoughful story that isn't what it initially seems makes this a great VN.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Game could have used some heavy editing -- there are too many story days when almost nothing happens. Also, this being a VN, it is par for the course that there will be multiple routes and lots of repetition. My "first" main story was incredibly boring (your order might be different from mine), with a very unsatisfying conclusion. The other two stories (which seem to be "side stories" in a sense) are a lot more interesting and dramatic, with some surprisingly dark moments. After you finish 3…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Played this game maybe nearly 10 years ago. This game is one of the first visual novel games I played back then, and it's no doubt one of the best visual novel games I have ever played. Story, characters, music, I love everything about this game. After all this time, as I just finish this game once again, I still find it as emotional as the first time.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I didnt know a lot about the game when I picked it up and I wasnt really sure what to expect of it. Now though I can say that in my opinion Symphonic Rain is a masterpiece and definetly one of the greatest VN I have ever read. I would absolutely recommend going in with as little informaton about as possible because it was probably due to my blind playthrough that allowed the story to suprise and engage me like it did.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Symphonic Rain is an all age school romance VN with some relation towards music. It has an in built music minigame that is very fun yet challenging if you are foreign to the concept. Do not be fooled by the simplistic art, what lies underneath is deeper than what most other VNs be it of this or other genres can ever offer to you. It would be too much of a spoiler to reveal some things, but I can say that Symphonic Rain does bring out the beauty yet ugliness of certain types of realities. I can…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This visual novel has a rhythm minigame which is incredibly bad. The FPS is so low during the minigame that my eyes begin to hurt. What is more, the minigame has a big problem with syncing the player input with the background music. About the story: I've completed only two endings, the story is not bad, but I was not impressed.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I got this vn and after doing 1 girls story I was like WORTH IT. The music the characters everything about this was amazing i'd recommend this to any fan of vns.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Note: I played the fan translation a long time ago, but I replayed this VN before this review. I got all of the good endings, but none of the bad ones. As I absolutely fail at rhythm games and set it at autoplay, I can't review the rhythm game aspects and will review it as a visual novel. Where to start? Well, let's start with the most technical aspects and go on from there. Art: Character art is a hit and miss and a bit on the overly moe side. However, the backgrounds are very artistic and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →to play a VN with RPG elements lol. I love VNs with gameplay elements, so I specifically looked up VNs with gameplay. A non explicit example is Symphonic Rain, because its a VN with a rhythm game in it. And in that case, I don't necessarily focus on the sexually explicit material if that makes sense
unlabelledView post →I was interested in grabbing Symphonic Rain on Steam but its Winter Sale price is higher than the sale price it was last week. For anyone else who missed it like me, it's currently even cheaper right now on Fanatical, at 81% off ($7.59)! www.fanatical.com/en/game/symp...
unlabelledView post →Symphonic Rain is a visual novel that unfolds with the gentle pacing of a melancholy song, taking place in the perpetually rain-soaked city of Piova and focusing on the quiet emotional world of Chris Velding, a music student approaching graduation. Rather than presenting high drama or elaborate worldbuilding, the game crafts its atmosphere through subtle interactions, small routines, and a sense of delicate fragility that lingers in every scene. Chris’s life at the music academy, his…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'm so glad this managed to be one of the first VNs I've ever read together with Katawa Shoujo, having such great novels introducing me to a genre that I would have otherwise overlooked for who knows how longer is been such a refreshing experience, and again I'm so glad that I discovered Symphonic Rain completely out of the blue, knowing absolutely nothing about it made the experience something worthwhile to say the least. Symphonic Rain took a while for me to properly get into due to the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The tone of this game is melancholic and cynical. The dreary atmosphere may make the game across as dull for some. For me, I played it on slower days when I needed something more digestible. Once I finally managed to get through the slower slice of life moments, I found that this is a deeply character-focused narrative about interpersonal conflicts. The characters each have hidden depths; some that may be a turnoff for some. It's not a wish fulfillmenty romance game; you're not going to get the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →it's raining after all
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A hidden gem of a visual novel that doesnt get enough attention for how good it is. Story is kind of a period piece set in Italy with the main focus being music, with some beautiful tracks troughout the story. Interesting to note is that the characters are very down to earth, with a story that practically has no anime tropes you might see on other VNs, so its definitely set it apart from the rest. The game has various rythm minigames sprinkled troughout the story, and they are actually quite…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After completing the visual novel, I felt very relaxed. The music is performed very well, I can listen to it many times without getting bored. As for the story, the beginning is very natural, the sound gives me many different emotions. Once the pieces are achieved the story becomes very engaging and opens up to a satisfying ending for me. This visual novel is worth playing and relaxing. Story: 8.5/10 Music: 10+/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →My impression when I got the first ending (a bad one): "WTF! The story is ridiculous!" My impression when I finally achieved the Grand ending: "I will never uninstall this VN." It is that good. I will never uninstall it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love the unique art style, but ultimately the story is flat and the characters lack any depth. It's boring.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I think that this VN was amazing and i recommend others to play it if they want to enjoy stories that will surprise you and make you cry. I thought that overall this VN has a amazing soundtrack and i believe i will listen to these songs from time to time now. The music minigame was tedious however, and i believe a better system could have been implemented. This game nearly and did make me cry in the end. I thought the characters were great to with my favorites being Arietta, phroni, and lise. i…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The remake of a classic with higher resolution and new character sprites. Main plot remains unchanged (I doubt any change is necessary though). Fascinating story with big plot twist, so you don’t want any spoiler if possible. It could be difficult to avoid, as the original has been there for 15 years. This is NOT your typical school melodrama. The best part of the game is its music, one of a kind posthumous work of Okazaki Ritsuko. I was completely bewildered by those character songs when I…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A brilliant story, what I love the most about this visual novel is its ambience and surprisingly realistic messages about life and human relationships. When the grand ending over I put on satisfied smile for one of the unique and unforgettable experience.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is art. Worth to read into every details.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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