Rose & Camellia Collection

Rose & Camellia Collection gets away with a lot of its technical imperfections simply because of the strength of its concept and its solid presentation. The music and art style will keep you interested for at least a few hours – which is all it will take to complete the story mode. However, the bizarre anime logic can't distract you from the frequent loading screens or the frustratingly imprecise controls. This one is worth picking up, but only if you catch it on a good sale.

Rose & Camellia Collection is a game that embraces its absurdity and delivers a unique experience to the Switch. It is definitely charming overall and enjoyable enough while it lasts. However, the creativity in concept doesn’t necessary translate to creativity in gameplay, and too many fights play out in pretty much the same way. Add in some imprecise controls and limited content and it winds up being a less enjoyable experience than it could have been. For players seeking a quirky, short-lived adventure filled with aristocratic slap battles, this collection may provide a few hours of entertainment. The $20 price tag does seem a bit steep for what it is, though, so it might be best to wait for these aristocrats to put on an estate sale.

I did not enjoy the Rose & Camellia Collection very much. The gameplay was not universally interesting, and while the concept is fairly novel, there is little depth here, either in the story or the combat. This would be fine for a cheaper experience, but coming in at such an expensive price point seriously hinders my ability to recommend it. While there are some decent pieces here, I do not recommend checking this one out.

Experiencing Rose and Camellia Collection is like having a multicolored flower that only lasts a day. It’s wacky and novel, but ultimately, there just isn’t enough life there to sustain it. Still, for that one brief moment, it can hold your attention with its own awkward aplomb.

Definitely a solid way to spend an afternoon or two, but you’ll probably get more desire to keep coming back with friends and family around, than playing versus the computer opponents over and over again. A title where the silly premise is a lot more appealing than the actual game.

Rose and Camellia Collection offers a glimpse into an intriguing yet tragically under-developed world that has moments of great humour, but teases a much better game than it is. It is brief, inconsistent, and relies on its one unique (and undeniably fun) mechanic far too much to feel complete.

Despite its shortcomings, Rose & Camellia Collection is a unique title to own and one you will want to play with friends in local multiplayer. I mean, who DOESN’T want to have a virtual slap battle? Just keep the wonky controls and steep price point in mind.

"Ninjas, robots and red cheeks."

In short, Rose & Camellia Collection doesn't have much to offer beyond a quick laugh, and that's just it - a QUICK laugh. 👋

Ultimately, due to its short running time and unchanging gameplay, the anthology isn't worth purchasing. But it is worth experiencing, at least once. It's too weird, absurd, funny, and different to ignore, even if the games within don't stand on their own.