Leaderboard

I'd say it's a sort of catharsis on an entirely different level. It makes you aware of certain things. It also reminds you that kidnapping and rape are - indeed, obviously - horrible and not really a subject matter for silly joking (sorry, AliceSoft). I guess it's the reason why majority of people I knew actually dropped it - they couldn't get past the point, where it becomes apparent the "rape" part is not a joke. It reminds you, it is not something you should be enjoying, as opposed to majority of darker/edgier eroge. That aside, even on a sliding sociopathic scale, Shinichi (Shinji?) makes for an incredibly interesting character, you're actually - somehow - able to relate with, if the topics mentioned within the story aren't completely oblivious to you. Feeling of social isolation, sense of loss, lack of drive towards your very own life and future, complete rejection that leads to non-existence... yet, those things are something we're not able - as human beings - to fight against. We want to love and be loved by others. It's what makes our lives fulfilling and worth living for. Everyday, we strive to build our perfect utopias, mostly unaware of the fact our freedom ends where it starts for someone else and only end up hurting them in the process. Even though, it is something we cannot influence; it's an integral part of us being a part of this society, whether we like it or not. Doesn't make a difference Mitsuki isn't any less interesting, nor important; albeit her role is designated more to one, who makes the protagonist "whole". It's an apparent theme throughout the whole game, whilst the different endings cope with different outcomes of our couple (no pun intended) coming to terms with their own existence and place in this peculiar relationship. I daresay, this is actually their best game so far, mostly because of the themes they chose; it's propably even better than Maggot Baits and Euphoria, considering how disconnected they feel in regards to our world and reality. This is, mostly because of it's presentation - which not only plays a tremendous role, but remains perfectly executed. I have yet to see a visual novel, that is *so close* to being the defining factor of it's own genre and remaining - even despite it's gritty, twisted premise - so artistically pleasant.

I would have to say as of the moment you were exactly right. I decided to randomly buy a vn from the suggested ones here and this one happened to be on sale so I decided to try it. I've spent the last 8 or so hours straight slowly reading to Chapter 4 which is not something I can say has happened in quite some time. I've heard a lot of good things about it but for whatever reason never got around to trying it. Now that I finally have as it's quite enjoyable so far. Thanks all for the recommendations; I might get to some of the others after, as this one will likely be done with soon. I think Fata Morgana has indeed rekindled my interest in the medium though so thanks.

My what?

I once dreamed something about making a blood pact with a demoness. Does that count? PS: It was H.

The House In Fata Morgana is exactly what you're looking for. I've also been in a major slump in terms of interesting VN releases in the last year, and Fata Morgana was the game that made the whole medium feel potentially incredible again. It is my favorite VN now. Fata Morgana is one of the very few VNs I have seen that completely discards the regular VN conventions and Japanese culture. There is no slice of life, there is no main heroine used as a marketing push. No slapstick humor. An art style that COMPLETELY deviates from anime art (perhaps you can make a case for exeggerated eyes, but the sprites are, on the whole, far more realistic, detailed and expressive than I am used to). 60 or so BGMs, at least half of them vocalized. A subject matter that majorly deviates from any common genre to become its own thing. 30 hours or so to boot. Its only flaws are no voice acting (though this one's open to discussion, I think it contributed to the game's atmosphere) and the 4:3 aspect ratio (the game was released in Japanese in 2012, though the translation was released this year). It's nigh-incredible on every front. Can't recommend it enough.

Regardless of how you feel about the arrival of 2017, here it is!!!

I think one of the reasons why this game is so good and connects with the people who like to read a well-written story is that Natsu no Kusari is not trying to sugarcoat anything. Shinji is a bastard. The game never glorifies what he does and even in the instances when he succeeds, there is a bitter aftertaste for the reader to stomach. That may not seem like much, but it's really fundamentally different than 99% of all the other eroge out there which are constantly trying to pander to the reader. For example, usually if you have a villainous protagonist, there is some kind of dark desire the reader has and the game wants to satisfy. (And there is nothing wrong with this as this is fiction and having some dark fetishes is perfectly normal.) In a normal corruption eroge, even though the reader knows it's wrong to do the things shown in the story, the corruption of the heroine is in the end shown as something glorious, a feat worth praise. And the evil protagonist, although without a doubt the reader knows he is a bad person, is looked upon with envy and respect. And the reader might even wish he was as awesome as he is. But none of this is in Natsu no Kusari. Even though the game knows that the majority of its players will identify with the protagonist, it doesn't give us the satisfaction of enjoying the torment of the girl or putting ourselves in Shinji's shoes. We only get a reason, no justification for having these feelings, the feelings of being social outcasts, not being able to find our place in society or even happiness, even though the game definitely understands why we are thinking like that and why we can relate to Shinji's line of thought. When I'm thinking of the best game 2016, there is no doubt in my mind that it's Natsu no Kusari. For telling a story without compromises alone, even though the reader might, no, certainly will find this off-putting, it deserves this title. There is no reason to force you to read something that you will obviously not enjoy. Natsu no Kusari is a very good game, but even the best story can't make you enjoy something that is conceptually repulsive to you.

https://vndb.org/v933 horror, occult https://vndb.org/v16796 surrealism, madness https://vndb.org/v17863 horror, denpa https://vndb.org/v3660 horror, mystery https://vndb.org/v6411 occultism, mystery https://vndb.org/v6475 madness, denpa https://vndb.org/v2567 drama, mystery https://vndb.org/v5047 gore, horror, fucked up in general https://vndb.org/v37 horror, denpa https://vndb.org/v9196 surreal, mystery https://vndb.org/v4703 ???? https://vndb.org/v1912 surrealism https://vndb.org/v235 the mother of all denpa vns

Weakling It's kind of amusing, since we're so used to rape no one gives a damn when it's used as a lousy plot device; everyone just rolls their eyes, when it happens. But give them a well thought-out vn, which actually portrays rape as-it-is and people suddenly get offended. Actually, maybe for the better. After all, if you got offended, it must had mean the story left you with a desirable impact, regardless whether you liked it, or not. I don't think I actually read that many vn's this past year, to actually have any sort of solid candidates. I'd say VA-11 HALL-A might prolly be the best game I had the chance to interact with (even though it's not a 100% vn, YMMV); the biggest (positive) surprise goes exactly to Natsu no Kusari, while the weakest link would be Inochi no Spare; I had a better initial view of that visual novel in the beginning, but once I got into it, I couldn't believe how absurd it actually is; we're literally talking about legally consented medical homicide; what sane parents would actually do that to any of their children? Sacrifice one, so another may live? Or better, perhaps - give birth to one to save another? It not only doesn't make sense; there's literally no actual ground for the events portrayed in the story to be based upon. That said, art was gorgeous, but that alone can't save the writing. I have a feeling AkabeiSoft3 is starting to get overboard with their latest projects; I still have Gusha no Kyouben to read, but regardless of it - almost all of their games have been more or less a huge disappointment to me. I actually feel offended, because there's no way any self-respecting writer would drop down that kind of shit and expect to be treated seriously by their readers. I - for one - couldn't. The more astonishing it was considered one of the very best japanese releases of 2016. It seems like there's really not much to chose from nowadays - you either get all the garbage tier charage/moege with no actual plot, or pseudo-intellectual stories that try to sound better than they really are, with end results being no less than insulting to any person with a slightest bit of intelligence.

Just started playing/reading The House in Fata Morgana and I have to say after 3 chapters in I am pleasantly surprised and am quite enjoying this visual novel thus far.

That's awful, so sorry to hear that.

well with the new year coming to a close for my side of the world, i was wondering what was your guyss best vn of the year and what was your worst? lets try to restrict this list to only vns that came out this year, not ones we've played. my best would have to go to Kyonyuu Fantasy. im actually kind of shocked by this. this vn isnt my vn of the year because i think it stands out above all other vns this year but its my favorite of the year because its the only one ive read that had a compelling story. this is really frightening to me since i really didnt expect this to be my vn of the year, but with the rules i placed on this thread, it is. i need to read more in the coming year and get caught up on my evil backlog. my worst would have to be natsu no kusari. all fault lies on me for this one since i knew exactly what i was getting in. i didnt get far in this vn before uninstalling it from my pc. i only got it because clock up had made it. its pretty much about a young man who has kidnapped some girl and he rapes her in his basement. yup, knew that before going in but i love clock up so i gave it a shot. welp, those are mine, what are yours?

This little hooker took my job. He's pretty sexy though, even though I have been busy as hell and haven't been able to give him the proper love he deserves. FuwaReviews/5 (which is FuwaReviews/10 when you use the proper scale).

I really enjoyed that as well. Make sure to watch the BD version too instead of the heavily censored TV broadcast material.

I recommend Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance. Watched this a couple of days ago. It is well animated and voice acted, has a strong protagonist and the gags are cute and well timed (including the twists). For a harem anime, it had a perfect balance of serious moments that made me teary eyed and a likeable mc.

I bought very few things tbh. - Akiba's Trip - Conception II : Children of the Seventh Star - Phantom Breaker: Battle Ground (with the Makise Kurisu DLC ofc) - Age of Empires II HD (for the nostalgic value) - Muv-Luv (which was actually a gift from @mitchhamilton)

My best one would be either: - 11Eyes or Steins;Gate 0 The worst one - Any of the Sakura series demon spawn that I've read during 2016

It's worthy to note, at that point it makes it obvious what points Natsu no Kusari makes; that we're all slaves. There is no escape - we can't live outside society and Shinichi is completely aware of that. In fact - he's aware of that to such an extent, it literally hurts his very own existence.

Ever since Steve left you haven't been quite as salty, so I had to subtract one. But I really liked your on Little Busters. I hate that VN.

Certainly. Because when i read, the protagonists are so dumb, but if i was in their place, everything would go smoothly

Buckle up kiddo, you're in for quite the ride

Please define what you mean by ancient Japanese... Japan has been around as a country in one form or another for over fifteen hundred years, but so far the VNs covering its history only go back to the 1500's. This is only natural, since the long peace after the Sengoku era was conducive to the leaving of records and documentation of past events, without the usual whitewashing and erasure of old history documents that tends to occur otherwise.

A miserable pile of secrets! Anyways, you pretty much saved my interest in VNs by gifting me Fata Morgana which became my favorite VN, so thanks Bats. That alone nets you a 10/10 (the rating I give to Fata Morgana).

Sorry, I was gone for a day and couldn't reply. But thank you for your help. Although Symphonic Rain sounds really good, and I do plan to get around to it soon, it also sounds like a slower burn, which isn't really what I'm looking for right now. So I'll be reading KnS next, and again, thank you for your help!

Better than a nonexistant trash loli.

Confession : i'm in love with a real human being.

Heh, "crack"

Best I Played : I/O Best 2016 release : VA-11 HALL-A Worst 2016 release: The Leisure of Grisaia (too short) Worst I played: Da Capo (average VN and two or three awful routes)

this is what would happen with intelligent neko girls in our vns. world domination i tell you!

Review: solidbatman Pricing: free, regrettably Amount: way, way too much sometimes Ingredients: Salt, Quinine, Space Anime, Chili Extract, Hatred Nutritional information: not conventionally present, but stamped with unhealthy all over Additional packaging info: Made in the United Salt of America Environmental factors: Tried in multiple settings, like fuwa forums and his own discord chat. The solidbatman experience is not entirely unpleasant, but I can only recommend it to those with specialist tastes. Even then, you will spend an uncomfortable amount of time cringing whenever he does something stupid. At his best, solidbatman can be entertaining, with scintillating wit; however, most of the time he just comes off as salty and unable to handle people liking what he does not. All in all I will rate solidbatman a 7/10, polarity -3 / +2. He does not, IMHO, deserve a position in the hallmark of great people, but he's cool enough to be around that I usually don't regret it.

I'm currently having my very first hangover. Happy new year everyone!

Keep reading, I found that my opinion changes after every chapter read. Personally I didn't like Mamiya after rabbit hole 2 but he turned out pretty good in the invention chapter. Just don't forget to read Tsui no sora 2 - get a walkthrough for it if you have trouble getting to it.

I can't really give a very trustworthy answer here, since of the two I've only played Symphonic Rain, but that game really struck a chord with me. It has one weak route (Lise) and one highly divisive route (Fal), but the last two routes are fantastic and extremely memorable, and Torta and Fal both remain among my favorite VN heroines to date. The art in Symphonic Rain is also totally unique (or at least, I've never seen anything else like it). It was actually a bit off-putting at first, but after an hour or two getting used to it, I think it's really lovely; the character sprites are particularly adorable. Heck, once I got the hang of the mini-game (and the fact that it wants you to be way more precise with the timing of hitting notes than, say, Guitar Hero or Rock Band games), I even really enjoyed that part of the game. The game looks like a straightforward charage at first blush, but it's really got a lot more going on than that, and it plays its cards extremely well with the way the later routes are set up. Bottom line, I'm a big Symphonic Rain fan, and I suspect you'd enjoy it. Even if you don't play it now, do pick it up soon.

I edited my comment with more thoughts. On KnS, I'd suggest you to read Cartagra first, since its events are prior to KnS's and influence deeply Kara no Shoujo 2.

KNS is still gonna win, but now I kind want to look into this "symphonic rain".

I really think Kara no Shoujo is going to "win" here because it is way more famous than SR. Both are great, but I think Symphonic Rain really deserves attention and care, since it is a great novel, both story and character wise. All three routes are meaningful in some way, but the true route adds a lot more to the story, changing completely how you see the whole game, which is a great feature, and in my opinion, the whole game makes it worth it the reading. And don't forget the amazing songs [both from the skippable gameplay sections and OST] and the wonderful art Edit: to complement my post: Symphonic Rain is a novel with huge focus on music and love, whereas you are a music student preparing to the final presentation. You live in a city where it is always raining and gets to know 3 different main heroines besides the True Route, which is focused on your "magical" companion, a small fairy-girl. There are some gameplay segments, where you have to play the songs with your keyboard [but you can set the game to play it by itself]. One of the best things for me in this game is how everything is connected, all routes are important to the character development and to the story. Oh, and there are also the plot twists, which are a lot!

KNS, I have no clue what that other one is but KNS is a god dammed masterpiece.

Volume 3 when? I need my naked nekos man, I don't want some lame anime version. (Insert less creepy comment here)

Oops, I did forget to add that one. Thanks for so meanly pointing it out, Jun Edit: To think I'd be criticized by someone who hasn't even watched Chihayafuru.

Right after the first episodes of Naruto first came out, I spent hours making hand symbols.

I cannot stand being told off or disappointing people. One of the comments that has affected me the most and made me sad is as follows: The person who wrote this will remain anonymous, but I hold no ill feelings against whomever said it. I also had no idea I was sarcastic until people on the forums started pointing it out. I knew I was at home, hadn't even noticed the transition onto the forums.