Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

Super Columbine Massacre RPG! adopts a retro 16-bit role-playing structure while tackling one of the most sensitive and controversial events in modern history. The game is divided into two distinct acts, each built around a different set of gameplay mechanics. In the first act, players begin in Eric Harris’s bedroom, gathering equipment and filming a farewell video before heading to Littleton High School. These opening sequences combine exploration, item collection and a real-time stealth segment during which you plant bombs without alerting faculty or students.

Once the bombs fail to detonate, the core of the first act shifts into turn-based combat. You form a party of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold and are forced to confront security guards, staff and fellow students in battles that do not permit retreat. Combat emphasizes careful resource management—items like a Marilyn Manson CD or a Doom CD provide buffs, while ammunition is scarce. Optional side-quests scattered throughout the school reward you with experience points, though they also extend the harrowing narrative.

The second act transports Dylan Klebold into a hellish rendition of the afterlife, where MIDI versions of period-appropriate metal and alternative music underscore the action. Here, you navigate demon-infested corridors reminiscent of classic 1990s shooters. The gameplay pivots back toward quest-driven progression, as you seek to reunite with Harris and ultimately challenge Satan himself. While traditional RPG elements like leveling up persist, this act leans more heavily on combat arena battles and boss fights, culminating in a climactic showdown that echoes the game’s surreal tone.

Graphics

The visual presentation in Super Columbine Massacre RPG! is deliberately reminiscent of SNES-era JRPGs, using pixel-art sprites and tile-based environments. This nostalgic aesthetic creates a jarring yet purposeful contrast with the subject matter, forcing the player to reconcile a familiar game style with extremely disturbing events. Character sprites are simple but expressive, and the school’s hallways, classrooms and exterior spaces are rendered in muted colors that convey a bleak atmosphere.

Interspersed with pixel art are actual photographs from the Columbine tragedy, which appear in cutscenes to punctuate key narrative beats. These real-world images introduce an unsettling layer of authenticity that disrupts the comfortable illusion of a 16-bit RPG. The effect is occasionally disorienting, as players are pulled out of the retro game world and reminded of the real human cost behind the events being portrayed.

On the audio front, the game employs MIDI renditions of late ’90s alternative and metal tracks, including Doom-inspired compositions during the hell sequences. While the music is not high-fidelity by modern standards, it successfully evokes the era’s underground scene and amplifies the game’s oppressive mood. Sound effects for footsteps, weapon fire and combat animations are sparse and utilitarian, further underscoring the somber tone rather than providing high-polish production values.

Story

At its core, Super Columbine Massacre RPG! is an unflinching recreation of April 20th, 1999. Dialogue is lifted directly from Eric Harris’s diaries and various audio recordings, lending a chilling realism to interactions between Harris and Klebold. Players witness firsthand the preparation, the planning and the twisted worldview that drove the two protagonists, often feeling a deep discomfort at inhabiting their perspective.

The narrative unfolds in two acts that mirror the real-life chronology before diverging into a fictional representation of hell. The first act is relentlessly bleak: you go from planning the attack to executing it, all while making gameplay choices that affect how much you learn about the pair’s motivations. When Harris and Klebold take their own lives in the library, the impact is immediate and uncompromising, leaving little room for reflection.

In the second act, the game veers into surreal horror-fantasy. Separated from his partner and supplies, Klebold’s odyssey through hell is peppered with quests for celebrity spirits and battles against demons. This supernatural twist lends a bizarre afterlife commentary on violence and infamy. Though the tone shifts dramatically, the game remains grounded in its commentary on media sensationalism, fanaticism and the psychology of mass violence.

Overall Experience

Super Columbine Massacre RPG! is not a comfortable game, nor is it intended to be. Its use of 16-bit RPG conventions to depict a real-world massacre is provocative and deeply unsettling. Players looking for a lighthearted retro adventure will be shocked by the game’s unfiltered portrayal of violence and death. Likewise, those seeking a serious historical simulation will find the surreal second act detracts from a strictly documentary approach.

The game’s strengths lie in its willingness to challenge players’ expectations and force them to confront difficult questions about media, memory and the glorification of violence. Its low-fi presentation belies the emotional impact of its subject matter, creating a dissonance that lingers long after you finish playing. While the mechanics themselves are serviceable, it is the ethical and emotional weight of the content that leaves the strongest impression.

Given its controversial nature, Super Columbine Massacre RPG! is best suited for a mature audience prepared for intense thematic material. It occupies a unique niche in indie gaming as both a historical artefact and a piece of performance art. Though it may never enjoy mainstream acceptance, it stands as a stark example of how the medium can be used to provoke reflection—however uncomfortable—on real-life tragedies.

Retro Replay Score

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