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This is a condensed version of the full article which can be found on my Main Blog Here. Beyond The Screen Directly addressing the nature of the medium and the player has a long tradition within video games as a means of introspection and entertainment. The Meta Fiction genre is something visual novels have dipped their toes into over the years with varying degrees of commitment to its use. This manifests through everything from playing with the games systems, jokes by characters about the nature of the game they are part of to the game directly talking to the player. Each approach offers something subtly different to the experience while overlapping in surprising ways. Despite the limited design space available for many visual novels, they have found ways to integrate this genre into almost every part of their structure. Let’s break the fourth wall and find out how all these elements work in practice. And There Goes The Fourth Wall Of course the first and most immediately recognisable way a visual novel can lean into the Meta Fiction genre is to address the player directly. This breaking of the fourth wall takes the player’s established role as an observer to events and recontextualise them as a participant on the same level as the characters they have been watching. Immediately the player is drawn into the story in a personal manner as the game pulls them in by responding to the player’s presence and engaging in a form of dialogue with them. It also draws the fate of the cast closer to the player since it is another avenue through which the characters can present their humanity and appeal in order to create investment in their plight. A major part of the strength of using the Meta Fiction genre in this manner is the tension it gains through the way it points the narrative threat directly at the player. Obviously this is a fine line to walk as everyone playing a game is aware of its inherently fictional nature and so it is difficult to feel any danger from something so distant for them. However, through not losing sight of its core tone, a visual novel can make the tension from the fourth wall breaking appear to be a natural extension of the already established narrative. When utilised in this way it can give some much needed spice to what might otherwise be a standard title and leaving the player with an exciting and memorable experience. The poster child for shattering the fourth wall would have to be Doki Doki Literature Club and the creative ways it keeps the Meta Fiction fresh throughout its entire playtime. Much of the plot centric drama stems from these meta elements as the situation degrades with the player becoming the focal point of everything that is going on. When it addresses the player directly it often does so in a way where it is unclear if the character is talking to the protagonist or the player creating a sense of unease where the boundary between the two becomes unclear and there is still an uncertainty about what is going on. Once the fourth wall has finally been completely shattered the game maintains a playful sense of danger where it threatens the player in a tongue and cheek way. This acknowledgment of the fundamentally silly nature of Meta Fiction allows the player to invest themselves in the experience by alleviating the friction between the presented danger and the reality for the player. AI: The Somnium File – nivarnA Initiative takes a more structural approach to its Meta Fiction genre. Its defining meta moments are entirely player facing and have little influence on the characters and so it has to deal with them in specific sections where the game turns and openly talks to the player about the plot twist it is revealing. The benefit of this method lies in the way it can preserve the central plot and character and prevent them from losing their sense of being part of separate world while still having the flavour of Meta Fiction. Of course this runs the risk of creating too much of a division between this meta twist and everything else the player has experienced which could leave them feeling cheated by something they could never have seen coming. For The Sake Of A Joke Rather than making the fourth wall breaking a plot element that the player has to take seriously, many visual novels simply uses it as a cheeky wink to camera to get a laugh. They focus on the silliness inherent in the Meta Fiction genre as a source of comedy with a self aware irony underlying it. This is often an accompaniment to a game which already prides itself on its absurd and over the top tone so the meta jokes feel right at home in its chaotic nature. They offer another axis for the comedy to play on and help keep it fresh for the long duration of an entire visual novel. It is not as simple as slapping in some fourth wall breaks and call it a day since this runs the risk of coming across as self indulgent. Balancing the presence of Meta Fictional elements requires a sense of timing as to where and when to place them so they come across as a natural extension of what is already happening in the scene. Using them too frequently is another issue often encountered by this kind of visual novel with the temptation being to fall back on them whenever there is a gap they could fit into resulting in them becoming predictable and thus lose their intended impact. As such delaying their use has the best effect to keep the player from being able to predict exactly when one is coming and making the surprise when they do appear all the more entertaining. Looking at Ren’ai x Royale reveals how intermittent use of meta elements can be leveraged to enhance an existing atmosphere. The overall light tone lends itself to being malleable when it comes to its contents as the player will likely accept it within their understanding of the game’s world rather than being drawn out of the experience. Nevertheless, there is an effort to not overuse the meta jokes in order to still make them feel special and not run the risk of straining the tone by pushing it too far. On the opposite end of the spectrum sits Lamunation which pushes meta fiction as humour to its absolute limit. Fourth wall breaking meta jokes are a common occurrence throughout and it relies of the constant stream and variety of its absurd brand of humour to keep things fresh while not giving the player enough time to think too deeply about the implications of the meta elements. What results is a frenetic title which understands its brand of comedy will not be for everyone since Meta Fiction can alienate certain audiences who prefer when things are played straight. The meta elements are in many ways a form of silly glue to bind the other out there ideas Lamunation utilises and provides a sort of passive justification for their inclusion through these self-aware nods. Engaging With Player Perceptions Beyond the winks to camera and fourth wall breaking there is a version of Meta Fiction far more interested in mechanically linking itself to the world beyond the visual novel. This involves playing with how the game is being engaged with and highlighting its edges and point out its own restrictive nature. One of two extremes can be achieved through this approach, either it creates an immersive blurring of the lines between the game and reality or a complete breaking of the game as a believable self contained world in order to sell certain plot elements. The first can be seen in action in Hate Plus through the system where the player can only progress one in game day before they must wait twenty-four hours of real time which matches the amount of time passing in the narrative. Linking the passage of time helps create a sense of the game’s world as something reflecting parts of our own and operates on a familiar and tactile axis. It is also a relatively indirect method of communicating this feeling as it draw attention to the artificial nature of the game but not a way that demands the player remains focused on this aspect and instead lets them smoothly transition in and out of this mechanic. Conclusion Fiction exists in its own space within our minds, one separate from the real world and yet alive so when a visual novel steps over that divide it can leave quite an impact. Meta Fiction as a genre comes in many forms and provides a unique avenue to engage with the player. A simple smashing of the fourth wall can give a scene a sense of tension whereby the player themselves feels threatened and in the same position as the characters. It can also engage on a mechanical level by relating the actions it requires of the player to the real world or giving them the ability to mess with its files. This does not have to be used for serious purposes and a lot of titles like to commit to a Meta Fiction element as another angle of humour to add to their own brand of comedy and surprise the player. A genre like this is hard to recommend including in a visual novel given the way it warps the entire structure and experience around it. However, if it serves your narrative and tonal aims it may well be worth integrating on a foundational level.

Because I see the word 'San Shimai' in GL VN Affection with said word remind me of very old VN Three Sisters Story, I made the parody of another old VN localized by JAST, The Sagara Family, by changing 'Sagara' into 'Viscotte' with Viscotte is from the family in Affection, so we have 'The Viscotte Family' as the title. For this week, the main highlight is the updates from Sekai. Other than that, we also have the aforementioned Affection release along with the announcement of the exact release date for several VNs. Overall this week is another below average one, and let's see what I can write in regard of it. Kagura Games announced they'll localized a nukige called Summer Days in the Joyful Countryside with the nukige is from Orcsoft. The VN itself is about an adult who manage to enjoy having sex with his three nieces, and while I don't think the uncle is handsome he definitely is quite capable in the other stuffs (Besides being handsome is not really main requirement to be nukige MC anyway). Speaking of nukige from Orcsoft, we have Cherry Kiss manage to release Succu-Mama on time, and once again the nukige is about the MC who have sex with his new tep mother who turned out to be a succubus. Forgot to mention that Kagura Games already have the exact release date for Yoru ga Kuru, in which they'll release it on May 31st later. We also have the exact release date for two otome VNs, with PQube will release Bustafellows 2 on July 17th later (Also will be available on Steam) and Aksys Games will release Uchronia on September 30th later (Only on Switch). For the updates from Sekai, we have Wagahigh FD is fully translated and they preparing Harvest Festa for the release with they already edited 90% of it. For the rest of the updates, it's on the engine work with Chiisana Kanojo is 30% done along with it already three quarter edited and Amairo Chocolata 2 is 20% done. There's also some question in regard of Harukuru 18+ version with the employee mention they find some difficulties on the engine working, so it should be very obvious that the plan to release it on Q1 of 2025 is no longer possible. Speaking of 18+ version, currently the team who translate Kiminozo 18+ version already finished with the first pass which according to them is the hardest part. For the next plan, they'll do the editing and playtesting before releasing the patch. Lastly, we have GL VN Affection released suddenly, and for a bit of history the developer want to make use of the fan translation that they find it online. While at first they find some difficulties on it, with they now be able to release the English version of it obviously they manage to find a way to translate their VN. For Affection, it's about Saya who felt like she can't find a place to where she belong find a job as the maid through her former teacher's acquaintance, and she works in a mansion belong to Viscotte family which consist of three sisters that are younger than Saya. Slowly, Saya find herself to be able to smile after she find herself knows more about her masters. Go get Affection in their Itch.io (It's available for free, although you can donate the developer) if you want to play some GL VN, and have fun. That's all for what I can write in regard of this week, and see you next week.

A spoiler-filled discussion about the h-game Demons Roots! It was fun getting to dive into the big picture after MR recently finished it, so check it out!

Hello, Thanks for the reply. This seems to be what I was looking for, but I don't know how to use it. What file do I run?

Not too sure of the following but I've come to believe that Japanese being bad at English isn't the only explanation when it comes to their bad EN translations. I'm quite sure they also tend to choose wordings that feel 'badass' to the Jap hears (and probably ONLY to the Jap hears lol). I mean... "I....... AM.......ATOMIC !!!!!!" anyone ? lol Anyway, if you exclude quite a lot of Nukige, most VN can at least enjoy the pride of not getting a 3 Jap sentences titles like LNs, which can lead to even more funglish titles.

Hello, everyone! This month's release adds two lovely new CGs for the scenes introduced in April. Those weekend scenes were a lot of fun to write and the illustrations really do a lot to bring them to life. I'm really happy with how they turned out; the second one in particular~ On the writing front, Copycat is inching ever closer to its dramatic conclusion, with the new script taking us right up to a critical decision for Kyou. No further than that, I'm afraid, but I have a good idea for how at least one of those paths will end and I'm hopeful of getting its conclusion written in time for the June release. Like always you can find this month's release in PC, Linux, Mac and Android versions on my SubscribeStar, Patreon or itch.io pages. I've also linked the most recent flowchart guide on the latest public news post on SubscribeStar. So please enjoy the latest release, and I'll see you next time What's New WRITING: Partially written day 7 of the Copycat storyline, up to a decision pointART: Added two new CGs for the Copycat storylineWord count is now around 456,000LOCALIZATION: Various edits and corrections to the existing Spanish scriptSome typo and grammar corrections

Hi Everyone, I have more cool music tracks to share with you. Free to use, as always, with attribution: Dreaming of Puzzles_LoFi Light Puzzles 12_LoFi Candy Smash_LoFi More Puzzle Madness_LoFi Cryptic Clues_LoFi The Bubble Gum Factory_LoFi Quirky Construction_LoFi Glistening Puzzles_LoFi You can listen to them and download them here: https://soundimage.org/puzzle-music-7/ Ogg GAME MUSIC MEGA PACK If you happen to be using any of my thousands of free Mp3 music tracks, please be sure to check out my Ogg Game Music Mega Pack. It enables you to download all of my 1100+ game music tracks at once in higher-quality Ogg format. It's a huge time-saver, plus Ogg tracks sound more rich and loop better in game engines. Here's the link: https://soundimage.org/ogg-game-music-mega-pack/ Enjoy, stay safe and keep creating!

The Key to Us. Genre: Visual novel, otome, amare, BxG, GxG, BxB, psychological horror Rating: +17 Developer: HoneyBunny VNDB: https://vndb.org/v55319 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Story: In a colorless world, three protagonists live their empty routines, trapped in an existence that brings them neither joy nor pain. They have no dreams, ambitions, or the strength to change their lives. But all of that is about to end. Each path is a dive into the unknown, where the line between passion and terror dissolves. Is there a way out? Or, deep down, was this always the only way to feel something real? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Protagonists: Love Interests: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Game features: 3 MCs 3 Love Interest 2~3 hours of full gameplay (60k words) 7 endings Original backgrounds, sprites and CGs CG Gallery This game also features self-voicing, ALT text for images, and audio description/subtitles ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Screenshots: ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The game is available to download for FREE at Itchio!! Itch.Io Twitter BlueSky Instagram Tumblr

https://github.com/HOKORISAMA/AILSOFT-AIL-Engine-Tools/

Exactly. And the original japanese titles feels a lot more dramatic and charming to me tbh. I don't know why they would translate them...

Sometimes I want to say to the people who translate the titles... 'You do realize there was no need to translate the title, don't you? The translation wasn't even remotely correct and reads awful, so why did you do that?' I mean, for anime, Shingeki no Kyojin turns into 'Attack on Titan' when 'The Charge of the Titans' or 'The Blitz of the Titans' would have been a much better and more dramatic title. A lot of it is apparently the Japanese side doing the translation, and most Japanese have no idea of what good English sounds like...

Yeah, I could get how annoying this would be...

I am trying to translate a game but I don't known how to extract this file properly In the image under I managed to extract it with Garbro but the text is all jumbled and does not make sense I think it has encryption but I don't know how to decrypt Here is the script file https://mega.nz/folder/guEnmKzT#9oU4RQ6nmUO0Z1BCa-irww

Translated VN names are often catastrophes anyway... Bokuten's English title is one of the least abominable ones out there. I sometimes hear a game I played in the past is getting localized, but when I see the translated title, I go 'Uh... which game is that again?' lol

Now it makes sense... Thanks a lot for explaining that!

It's the nickname of the game from the Japanese audience and may have come from the development team, I can't remember. But it's sourced pretty obviously from Boku ga Tenshi ni Natta Wake. MangaGamer likely left it on so when people searched for it by its most popular nickname - Bokuten - the English version would still show up, while it wouldn't show up under just "Why I Became an Angel". This one DOES actually share its nickname with another VN though - Boku wa Tenshi Janai yo - but that is not a popular VN, so I doubt anyone is talking about that bokuten when it gets mentioned. A lot of the development teams even announce an "official" shortened name for the fanbase to use when talking about a visual novel. Tons of VN's have shortened names like this that you don't often see in their English titles though. Like Love, Elections, & Chocolate's shortened name is Koichoco from "Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate", Nukitashi is shortened from "Nukige Mitai na Shima ni Sunderu Watashi wa Dou Surya Ii Desu ka?" cause no one in their right mind would constantly refer to it that way, and they used that for the English title. Uso kara Hajimaru Koi no Natsu got shortened to its nickname "UsoNatsu" for the English title as well, and with ones that aren't in English they still get shortened, Ushinawareta Mirai o Motomete got shortened to "Waremete", all the Sono Hanabira ni Kuchizuke o titles got shortened to Sonohana but kept their full translated titles in English of "A Kiss for the Petals". The short names are useful to talk about stuff quickly, but it can definitely be confusing if people use different nicknames to talk about the same visual novel, or if nicknames get too close to one another.

I want to read this VN since a pretty long time, but I still don't got the time to. Anyway... Why is the english version called "bokuten"? I just want to be sure that its not different from the original one. And could you guys please tell me what does "bokuten" stands for? without spoilers if possible. Thanks!

More fantasy texture images to share with the community! I'm really enjoying creating these...I feel like the Mad Texture Maker! So this week's textures are seamless fantasy stone textures. You'll find them on my STONE-Fantasy-Tile-able page: https://soundimage.org/txr-rock-stone-fantasy/ Ogg GAME MUSIC MEGA PACK If you happen to be using any of my thousands of free Mp3 music tracks, please be sure to check out my Ogg Game Music Mega Pack. It enables you to download all of my 1100+ game music tracks at once in higher-quality Ogg format. It's a huge time-saver, plus Ogg tracks sound more rich and loop better in game engines. Here's the link: https://soundimage.org/ogg-game-music-mega-pack/ Enjoy, stay safe and keep creating!

Hi!

I know a manga where the protagonist uses sword and shield Sicon of Light does, but it's been dropped or forgotten for ages, I believe, and half the chapters were jumbled up for some reason midway so you'll need to skip a few chapters as they're copies Alternative name is Shen Yin Wang Zuo Great story decent storyline, arts old but... it's still a good read Just so you know if you go by the English spelling don't try to shortcut or accidentally misspell and even if you don't just know Child of Light is a different Manga about a kid with magic, not the same thing as Sicon but it usually shows up with Sicon due to name similarities.

Welcome to Fuwanovel, and no much to say other than feel free to ask for VN recommendations if you want to. I hope you'll have fun in here.

Hi all, I've been into VN's for a while now and have lurked on a few topics here before. Figured it was time I made an account. Jo from Seminole,FL

In terms of stuff that was considered at least notable in non-moe focus circles, besides several already mentioned after 2020 there is Hira hira hihiru Tsui no stella Black Sheep Town Meikei no Lupercalia For the people that can get into ye olde darke BL there's also Ooe (very recent) and Slow Damage.

Sadly, in terms of games being made, the numbers started steadily decreasing back in 2019 and Covid pretty much killed the industry in Japan. As for VNs made between 2015-2020, there were a pretty good number of excellent releases. However, there is very little worthy of note made after 2020.

For this week title, because we have Kiminozo Restoration project along with Sousaku Kanojo translation project, I combined both with 'Rumbling' is from Kiminozo English title (Rumbling Hearts) and 'Romance' is from Sousaku Kanojo full title (Sousaku Kanojo to Ren'ai Koushiki with Ren'ai mean romance), so for the title we have 'Rumbling Romance'. Anyway, for this week we have both Mangagamer and Frontwing announced the same exact date for their respective VNs release, Raillore and Perennial Dusk. That said, my biggest attention is toward Kiminozo Restoration project though with the goal is to technically restore the removed sex scenes in the English version. Overall, this week is another below average one, and let's see what I can write in regard of it. Forget to mention we also have the releases, although I'm not quite interested with those. For the first release, we have Kagura Games released the VN with pixel graphic Amaoto ni Michiru Yoru with the premise we have the MC was randomly came into the bar at the middle of rainy night with he see a cute girl who soon proved to be very good conversation partner. Shiravune manage to release Beastkin Training, and feel free to get the game if you want to play as the one who train a haughty noble beastwoman. We also have more important news from Shiravune, namely they formed new brand called Co-Fun Games that will be focused on the doujin games (ie RPGMaker games), and hopefully it slightly make Shiravune job to localize VNs easier now that they have their sister brand to take care of their increasing RPGMaker games backlog (At 10 with another 10 coming later) even though I know RPGMaker games has cheaper cost to license. Like I say beforehand Mangagamer planned to release Raillore, which is good because as we know it was banned by Steam with Mangagamer's employee show some suggestive CG which may influence the reviewer, and you can wait until 29th later if you've been waiting for Raillore even though you can't get it from Steam. You can wait until that date if you've been waited for Perennial Dusk in which it's the new VN written by Irotoriddori's writer, and it'll be available on Steam. From Shinzou translation, we have Dekinai is at 13% edited and Sousaku Kanojo is at 47% edited. Lastly, we have the project with the goal to restore the sex scenes in Kiminozo that was removed in the translated version, although in this case it's more like translating the version that contain the sex scenes because the team find the difficulties to insert the removed scenes (At around ~15% of the script) into Steam version. For the progress, currently the team was almost done translating all of the scenes with they now doing the editing work as well, and more importantly they planned to release the patch in the near future so let's see if we can see the team manage to do so. That's all for what I can write in regard of this week, and see you next week.