Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

The best thing about Immaterial and Missing Power is that it does not ask you to choose between a fighting game’s direct attacks and Touhou-style projectile patterns. Punches, kicks, special attacks, and Spell Cards all matter, but the real spark comes from movement. Being able to dash or fast-jump through, or even erase, incoming projectiles changes how you read danger. A wall of shots is not automatically a cue to retreat. Sometimes it is your route in.

That makes the game especially inviting if ordinary 2D fighters leave you wishing there were more to manage at range. You are not merely waiting for an opening after a special attack. You are judging whether you can graze through a pattern and force the other fighter to react. It is a strong fit for anyone who enjoys projectile-heavy Touhou action but wants the immediate pressure of a one-on-one match.

Story battles add a worthwhile complication. Successive enemy Spell Cards include strong attacks reserved for those encounters, so solo play is not just a string of two-player battles with dialogue in between. That can also be where frustration sets in: an enemy-only Spell Card can demand more careful movement than a straightforward exchange of blows. Still, the game’s core idea is good enough to make that resistance feel purposeful rather than arbitrary.

Graphics

In the library battle scene, a blue-and-white maid-like fighter and a purple-clothed opponent stand out clearly against dark brown bookshelves and a deep red carpet. Stacks of books and candles crowd a white-covered table in the middle of the arena, giving the room a pleasantly busy backdrop without burying the fighters. Small red-and-white projectiles cut across the scene, and the pale costumes remain easy to pick out against the darker room.

Story

The setup has a nicely off-kilter Touhou feel: spring has passed, the cherry blossoms are gone, yet banquets continue every three days. Each gathering brings a growing sense of supernatural unease, and nobody has stopped the festivities. With another banquet only three days away, the cast goes looking for the cause.

It is a compact premise, but it suits a fighting game well because every confrontation can feel like part of an investigation rather than a random excuse for a match. ZUN wrote the pre- and post-fight dialogue, and that gives the story mode a more authored shape than a bare arcade ladder.

Do not come in expecting a sprawling role-playing plot. The draw is the recurring-party mystery and the chance to see its characters trade words before and after battles, with the escalating Spell Card encounters carrying much of the dramatic weight. That is enough to make a run feel like more than a detached series of fights.

Overall Experience

Immaterial and Missing Power stands out because its projectile play affects the fight at a fundamental level. Grazing through shots is not a decorative Touhou reference. It gives you a reason to challenge ranged pressure, and it creates a different kind of push and pull from a typical 2D fighter. Once that starts to click, the game’s confrontations gain a satisfying mix of nerve and aggression.

Its story mode is the better choice when you want unusual enemy Spell Cards and a light mystery connecting the bouts. Versus play is the better place to appreciate the central movement idea on its own terms. Either way, the game is most rewarding when you stop treating every projectile as a barrier and start looking for the line through it.

This is an easy recommendation for Touhou fans who want to see the series’ projectile sensibility translated into direct combat, and for fighting-game fans curious about that translation. For a closer explanation of the grazing system and story-only Spell Card battles, Twilight Frontier’s official game overview is useful reading. The payoff is a fighter with a clear identity, a compact but engaging story framework, and enough tactical tension to make each approach feel earned.

Retro Replay Score

8/10