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Even in Japan, VNs have only really exploded beyond ero-fans in the past decade and a half. In previous decades, 'serious' VNs were a rarity. However, the relatively recent (the last fourteen to fifteen years) expansion of the plot-focused side of the industry is slowly altering the way they are seen, both over here and over there. As the thread author states in the video, VNs will never be other than niche, precisely because more people are functionally illiterate (they can't sit down and read a book and feel that it is enjoyable) than ever before. Anime fans that never get beyond dubs are classic examples of this type of person... they don't want to read subs, so they live with sub-par English voices instead. You have to be introduced to reading for fun pretty early, if you want to be able to enjoy it. With more and more kids raised by their televisions, I doubt this trend will reverse itself anytime soon. (incidentally, studies have shown that the human brain's cognitive functions develop faster the more you actually read, rather than watching videos or listening to lectures) I started out as a speed-reading bibliophile... and so becoming a VN-lover was just a natural step, once I was introduced to them. I've watched the fanbase and market for VNs expand rapidly over the last five years here in the West, but I've yet to meet a person who started their otaku life as a VN fan, who was born in the West. Almost everyone enters into otakudom through role-playing games, anime, or manga. So, it is only natural that VNs would be the weakest branch of the otaku tree here. Like the author says, the biggest barrier besides the reading aspect (which is ultimately the biggest one), is the sexual aspects. One of the most ironic things about the VN industry is that better than 90% of the best VN plots come out of the eroge (VNs with erotic content) part of the VN medium. This sometimes gets me to thinking about whether good writers just want to write about sex... or good writers are using the sex to get people to pay attention to their writing. Another barrier is that, unlike manga and anime, there are relatively few VNs that appeal to both genders. Otome games are basically unplayable to the average guy, outside of a few truly excellent entries, and only the best male-oriented VNs are enjoyable to both sexes. For the otome game side of things, the issue is really, really simple... DIDS (Damsel-in-Distress-Syndrome). Almost every otomege I've tried has had this fatal flaw, where the protagonist spends most of her time either afraid of the guys, looking to be saved by the guys, and/or actually being rescued by the guys. Since I grew up respecting women as equals, this pisses me off when I have to deal with it - especially when the female protagonist is otherwise capable and strong-willed. The reason behind this seems to be that otome games get the same treatment as romance novels as a genre over there. Who takes romance novels seriously as a genre here? There is a reason why most of them sell for less than the other genres, whether in paperback or hardcover. Another problem blocking growth of the market is translator burn-out. Fantranslation is an incredibly thankless job. If you do badly as a group, people bash you for your horrible translations, and if you do well, you get other translators nitpicking about your mistakes. Not only that, but you are basically giving up dozens of hours of your time for free. Volunteer spirit only takes you so far, and the appreciation of the community starts to feel empty after a surprisingly short time. Even passion eventually burns out entirely. In my case, what was left when all of the above occurred was the simple fact that I want people to be able to see what I've been seeing for the past five years, as I've delved into the depths of the VN abyss. I don't like people... but even I want to be able to share my passions on occasion. Since I've spent most of my free time on niche hobbies for the past twenty-two years, that's definitely been lacking overall, but with untranslated VNs, it has gone to another level. Now that I've ranted, a few serious thoughts. VNs in the US will ALWAYS be balanced on the precipice, for several reasons. 1. Erotic content: A society influenced by Christianity or Islam is inevitably going to be prudish... and democratic political parties are always looking for the next social lever to use at the bully pulpit 2. Piracy: The entire medium's growth in the West beyond nukige is due to fantranslators making patches, thus resulting in mass piracy. Since game piracy is seen as a big issue and the government is always looking for a new criminal issue to distract people, all fantranslators are taking a risk to a greater or lesser extent by working on such projects. 3. Niches tend to narrow when times are hard 4. For those who aren't in the last stages of Otakuitis (the disease that causes one to become an otaku and grows worse as one indulges the accompanying impulses), VNs are difficult to get into. As such, if there was a movement to get VNs out of Western markets, there is a good chance no significant opposition would even be put up by the otaku community. 5. Most bibliophiles, those most likely to enjoy VNs, would rather read actual pure-text literature. These define both the limits and dangers that will always keep the medium on the precipice in the West.

For all my fapping to h, I am a bit tired of just how formulaic they are. I figured I'd make one of them bingo thingies for h scenes. Feel free to suggest replacement standard phrases for defloration / simultaneous orgasm.

The title of this thread might be confusing so allow me to explain. What, if anything, do you find to be a common trait when it comes to reading visual novels? This can relate to comedy, action, themes, or anything really. I seem to notice a lot of trends when I read visual novels so I wanted to ask what everyone else thought about it. Keep in mind, I didn't use the word "stereotypes" here because while these are common trends, I'm not aiming to criticize any novel. That being said, what do you think? Here are some examples (putting aside the obvious) that I feel I have noticed: The line, "It can't be helped." This is common in a lot of VNs (and anime) I feel. Masochism and sadism. Every single VN I play somebody (either the protagonist or one of the heroines) mentions this in some form or another I feel. It's interesting to see that this is a big thing for a lot of games. Complete heterochromia iridis. A lot of characters exhibit this trait in VNs and anime I feel, though not all.

Apparently in Japan it is proper sex etiquette to clean up afterwards.

Well I've preordered since I like the series and Kaede's route was my favorite in the original game. I'll admit the series isn't even close to my top tier list, but to me it does enough right for me to appreciate it for what it is: a simple moege with fantasy elements.

http://www.foolmaker.net/game/a/ichapuri.html thts the walkthrough if you want~~~ http://sagaoz.net/savedata/a/02i.htm search there if you want 100% save

仕方ない, usually translated as 'it can't be helped' is a statement of resignation in Japanese that is so common at all levels of Japanese society that it is impossible to avoid. It can refer to taxes, work, natural disasters... or your friendly neighborhood extreme nationalist chapter/Emperor worshipers. Just give up, it is everywhere. *Stupid/normal/average protagonists who are beloved for no apparent reason from the beginning. *tsundere *lolis in VNs up to a few years ago *kyonyuu (massive breasts) in newer VNs *donkan (dense) protagonists *DIDS (damsel-in-distress syndrome)

An M is a Masochist and an S is a Sadist, and hard means you're into the harcore stuff, as opposed to soft.

I just like showing my appreciation for such an amazing guy. I don't know... Don't hurt me. >_<

Probably a little late on this, but you guys post too goddamn fast. On the subject of Chris' route, I kept hearing a lot of bad things about it. Honestly, it was my favorite route that's translated so far (followed closely by Wanko, ofc.) Everyone who's talking about the , I'll agree that it was kind of weird, but It even mentions the VERY NEXT SCENE how happy she looked the next morning. I highly recommend doing Chris' route, but I may be in the minority here.

Had a problem with flash a while back. https://forums.fuwanovel.net/index.php?/topic/3618-site-issue-media-bbcode-tag-cant-set-flash-size/ There you go. Just don't use sounds for the swf and we're all good. :3

Ah okay thanks!

Updated!

Sorry I'm late, enjoy your stay!

Batman said this in his introduction post.

Day 10 videos are uploaded! In addition, I have re-uploaded some previous day 4 videos (videos 3 and 4) due to them having some issues. They should be fixed now! Keep an eye out for the recap coming soon. It's going to be a big summary!

Welcome and bienvenue to fuwa! i wish you good luck for your dream.

Ahh fellow bassist, welcome to the forums!!! XD

Anime group is well on its way into the official round 9 finish. It's almost party time!

Upon recent return to Fuwa, I thought I should update this thread with what our group has been up to. Although I reflected this in the original post above, here is the list of changes that my anime group has gone through: 1. As said above, we have increased our party base from its original 3 members to 5. We welcome the newcomers to our group and hope their choice of anime will be enjoyable as we tackle 5 shows per round going forward. 2. After round 9, we are celebrating our 1 year anniversary. Our group has come a long way since it started out, and has changed a lot since then. To celebrate we will probably host a party with food and drink (probably cupcakes) as well as dress up as our favorite characters in cheap cosplay outfits. The latter idea is more for the fact we are giant nerds and want to make fun of each other. Also, we plan to discuss the 3rd season's Oscar results as well as talk about what we enjoyed most from the group and what we can improve on going forward. 3. As said above, to celebrate the anniversary, we will be starting a bonus round of anime before we head into round 10. This round will be a catchup round, which we will watch a series of OVAs/movies from previous shows in previous seasons. This is more for enjoyment than anything, but it's a good chance for us to relive some of the great moments in previous months. 4. My friend, in addition to running the surveys for the Oscars, has now begun posting weekly updates via email that keep our group up to date on what has went on in previous weeks of anime. Here is an example of the most recent email update. Please note I changed some names to protect my friend's identities: -------------------------------------------------- Anime Night Weekly (4/6/2014 - 4/12/2014) (Anime Night Weekly is a weekend review of the latest anime viewings, a look ahead to next week, and a few organizational notes.) Weekly Wrap Up: (What happened this week, any action items, and what will happen next week.) This Week: Friday: We watched two episodes of Heaven’s Lost Property, four episodes of Welcome to the NHK, and five episodes of Gankutsuou: The Count Of Monte Cristo. Both NHK and Gankutsuou are now finished, and the last round of Season 3 can begin. Action Items: Shirts! If interested, think of shirt designs. Spencer and I will handle the ordering. Next Week: Friday: My place at 7. We want to officially start Season 3’s third round. Anime Progress List: (A list of active rounds, what was chosen by whom, and how much process has been made.) Season 3: Round 3 New Challengers Spencer Another 2 (of 13) Friend 1 Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 1 (of 26) Friend 2 Kaiba 1 (of 13) Friend 3 Code Geass 1 (of 26) Friend 4 Heaven’s Lost Property 6 (of 13) Season 3: BONUS ROUND @ The Movies Past Seasons and Rounds: Season 3: Round 2 The Golden Age Spencer Kanata no Kyoukai 13 (of 13) Friend 1 Gankutsuou: The Count Of Monte Cristo 24 (of 24) Friend 2 Welcome to the NHK 24 (of 24) -------------------------------------------------- 4. Last but not least, we are starting to make t-shirts. We are throwing a lot of ideas out for the designs. I'll try to keep people updated on the final decision going forward. In addition, I have moved round 9 and on into a different post in order to reflect the change of watching 5 anime in 1 round. That post is located above and will continue being updated as per usual. Enjoy!

Round 9 25. Another - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (12 episodes) 26. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Watched - English Dub (26 episodes) 27. Kaiba - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (12 episodes) 28. Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - Watched - English Dub (25 episodes) 29. Sora no Otoshimono (Heaven's Lost Property) - Watched - English Dub (26 episodes) End of 3rd season - Anime Oscars III Round 10 30. No Game, No Life - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (12 episodes) 31. Kill la Kill - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (24 episodes) 32. Usagi Drop - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (11 episodes) 33. Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 - Watched - English Dub (25 episodes) Round 11 34. Haiyore! Nyaruko-san - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (24 episodes) 35. Anohana - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (11 episodes) 36. Tsuritama - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (12 episodes) 37. Kuroko no Basket - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (25 episodes) Round 12 38. Love Live! School Idol Project - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (26 episodes) 39. JoJo's Bizzare Adventure - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (26 episodes) 40. Zankou no Teroru - Watched - Japanese (Subtitles) (11 episodes)

Updated for our anime group!

Oh I almost forgot! If you have any interest in taking the surveys, feel free! Keep in mind some of the questions may be spoilers, but for the most part are pretty straightforward. If I notice enough people have done it, heck I can post them up sometime as well! 1-9, 1 being the best, answer all of the questions or some, your call. Season 1: Part 1: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VJBPWY2 Part 2: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VQLFMWT Part 3: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/389MGYC Season 2: Part 1: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HL86DZP Part 2: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HLLFXLH Part 3: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HLVKTTX