Mirror Game Review: KAGAMI WORKS' $1.99 Match-3 Visual Novel

In short

What it is: a short match-3 game with visual-novel scenes between battles and choices that decide each character's ending.
Who it's for: players who want a cheap, casual puzzle game with anime-style art and Japanese voice acting.
Price: $1.99 on Steam (regular price, September 2026). Paid DLCs are $1.99 each; two small ones are free.
Platforms: Windows and Mac, plus Steam Remote Play on phones and tablets.
Big pro / big con: "Overwhelmingly Positive" from nearly 84,000 reviews at a tiny price, but it is short and simple, and extra content is split into DLCs.

What is the Mirror game?

It is a match-3 puzzle game combined with a visual novel, released on Steam on April 19, 2018 (its Steam news feed has patch notes from as early as November 2017). The developer is KAGAMI WORKS and the publisher is Paradise Project. The premise: a magic mirror is tied to the fates of many women, and whoever holds it can step into their worlds.

The quick answer for buyers: at $1.99, it is one of the cheapest well-reviewed adult games on Steam. It is not a long or deep visual novel. Think of it as a polished puzzle game with a story wrapper.

It is also one of the most reviewed adult games on the platform. The Steam summary reads "Overwhelmingly Positive" across 83,945 user reviews as of September 2026, with about 96% of them positive.

Gameplay

Every encounter is a match-3 battle against the character. You swap tiles to build combos, which deal damage, while she fights back. Win, and the story moves forward; lose, and you try again.

A match-3 battle: the tile board on the left, the opponent on the right and consumable props along the bottom

The key systems

Match-3 combat. Chains and combos matter, and the game counts your hits on screen.
Props. Consumable items give tactical help in a tight battle. The store page is blunt that props "can always save your life".
Character screens. Each woman has her own page with skills and progress, which you revisit as you unlock more.
Choices. Between battles, story scenes offer decisions, and those choices decide how each character's story ends.

A character screen for one of the heroines, with skill icons around her portrait

How hard is it?

Not very. It is a casual game, and players commonly describe it as short and simple next to full visual novels. That is the trade-off for the price: a few relaxed evenings, not a long campaign.

Story

The magic mirror connects you to a series of women from very different settings. The store page names two of them: a dark-elf noble with a rebellious streak who robs the rich to help the poor, and a shrine maiden who keeps Kyoto safe and has vowed to serve the gods for life. The base game and its DLCs refer to 12 main characters.

Each character's route is short. The writing is light, and the choice system is there to give each route more than one ending. Steam's content descriptors include nudity and adult-only sexual content, and all characters are adults.

Main features

Match-3 battles combined with visual-novel storytelling
Choice-based endings for each character
Japanese voice acting (Steam lists full audio in Japanese)
Wide language support: Japanese, Traditional Chinese, English, Spanish, Russian, Korean, Thai, Brazilian Portuguese, Ukrainian and Turkish
Steam features: Achievements, Trading Cards, Steam Cloud and Remote Play on phones and tablets
Very low requirements: a 1.2 GHz CPU and 2 GB of RAM

Visual style

The art is glossy anime-style 2D with a dark red and purple interface. Characters are drawn large beside the board, and CG illustrations reward progress. The production quality is well above what the price suggests, which goes a long way towards explaining the review count.

Platforms and how to get it

Steam is the only official store we could confirm. It lists Windows and macOS; there is no Linux build. Steam Remote Play also lets you stream it from your PC to a phone or tablet.

What the Mirror Steam version contains

The base game with its adult content. There is no patch to hunt for: Steam lists the adult-only sexual content descriptor for the base game itself, so what you download is the full release. We found no official patch, and none appears to be needed. For more games like that, see our list of adult games on Steam.

Mirror DLC

All DLC is optional. Prices are regular Steam prices, September 2026.

DLC	Price	What it adds
Mirror: The Lost Shards	$1.99	4 more characters, with more CGs and stories
Mirror: Enchanting Reflections	$1.99	48 CGs not shown in the game, 4 per character
Mirror Cosplay Album	$1.99	A cosplay photo album
Mirror OST	$1.99	The original soundtrack, lossless
Mirror: Songs of the Maidens	$1.99	12 songs, one per main character
Mirror Ringtone	Free	Ringtones from the game's music
Mirror Emoji	Free	48 emojis of the 12 characters

Only The Lost Shards and Enchanting Reflections add game content. The rest are extras.

Mac notes

Steam's minimum for Mac is OS X 10.6 or later, which is very old. We could not confirm how the game behaves on current Apple Silicon Macs, so check Steam's refund window if you are unsure. Our guide to playing adult games on a Mac covers general setup.

Is Mirror free?

No. It costs $1.99 on Steam (regular price, September 2026). The developers did give away 480,000 copies in a limited promotion in January 2020, but that was a one-off; it is a paid game today. Two DLCs, Ringtone and Emoji, are free.

Is it safe to download?

Buy it on Steam, which is the only official source we found and handles installs and updates. At $1.99, there is no good reason to risk an unofficial copy: we cannot vouch for what is inside those files. Our explainer on whether Steam adult games are safe covers what Valve does and does not check.

Mirror latest version and updates

The last update we found in the Steam announcements is Ver 3.31, posted on January 22, 2019. Since then the news feed covers free DLCs (2019), the January 2020 giveaway, a Kickstarter for a sequel in 2020, and Mirror Party, a spin-off minigame collection (2021). Treat the game as finished.

Mirror 2: Project X

The sequel came to Steam in January 2022 as a separate game. We have not reviewed it, and it has its own store page.

Screenshots

Pros

Only $1.99, with a huge and very positive review base
Adult content included in the Steam build, no patch
Polished art and Japanese voice acting
Choice-based endings add replay value
Ten languages and low requirements

Cons

Short and simple compared with full visual novels, per many players
Extra characters and CGs are sold as separate DLCs
No Linux build
No updates since 2019

FAQ

Is Mirror uncensored on Steam?

Yes, as far as Steam's own labels show: the base game carries the adult-only sexual content descriptor, and no official patch exists or appears to be needed.

What does the Mirror DLC add?

The Lost Shards adds 4 characters and Enchanting Reflections adds 48 CGs, both $1.99. The other DLCs are music, a cosplay album and two free extras.

Is there a Mirror game Mac version?

Steam lists macOS support, with OS X 10.6 or later as the minimum. We could not confirm behaviour on the newest Macs.

How long is it?

The store does not give a playtime. Players generally describe it as short, especially without the DLC.

Is Mirror 2: Project X a DLC?

No. It is a separate game on Steam, released in January 2022.

Is Mirror worth it?

At $1.99, yes, if you like match-3 puzzles and anime-style art. It is short and light, so do not expect a full visual novel. Add The Lost Shards if you want more characters.

Final verdict

This is the definition of a cheap, easy recommendation: a polished match-3 game with attractive art, voice acting and a light story, for less than the price of a coffee. Its limits are length and depth, and the DLC model nickels and dimes the extras. If you want match-3 dates with more structure, read our HuniePop 2: Double Date review; if you prefer a real RPG in a similar art style, our Sakura Dungeon review is the next stop. You can also browse adult visual novels or every game we cover.

Mirror Game Review