Clephas

Alya-san- This season's cute rom-com anime. Wistoria- A surprise in that it was good despite being a tropey magic school fantasy. Presentation was excellent. Isekai Shikkaku- Excellent parody of isekai anime in general. Protagonist is hilarious. Hazurewaku- The novel is awesome, and the anime does a good job of portraying the relatively early parts of the series. Ore wa Subete wo Parry Suru- Kanchigai fantasy anime. While it was funny to watch at first, it kind of feels excessive in restrospect. Shinmai Ossan Boukensha- Another surprisingly good anime. Protagonist and his teacher's interactions are hilarious. Maougun Saikyou no Majutsushi- A human child is raised by a demon lord of the undead and poses as a lich while doing his best to temper the demon side's bad habits and ensure they win the war with humanity. Isekai Yururi Kikou- A good soft homey story with an isekai'd guy essentially raising two children while playing at being an adventurer.

It isn't really an issue if you can read a VN quickly enough, but I can see how the skip function might be an engrossment-breaking tool for the majority of people, who can't read a line a second, lol.

Umm... Kvan's assessment of this season is pretty off the mark, so you might as well ignore him (since he probably only watched one episode or none of most of the series he gave a 5 rating). Kimetsu no Yaiba: Hashira Geiko-hen- Basically a leadup to the final arcs of the series, the sheer drama of the last episode alone would have been worthy of a 9, not to mention the incredible animation quality, with huge attention paid to every detail and every scene timed perfectly. Dainanaoji- The black horse of this season, an anime that was immensely fun to watch, despite me initially dropping it due to the animation style. The protagonist was a commoner in his previous life, lacking talent for sorcery, but he was obsessed with sorcery to the point of madness, and he managed to make something of himself to a point, before he was essentially murdered by an aristocrat that didn't like an uppity commoner studying magic. He is then reincarnated as the seventh prince and younger brother of his best friend from his previous life, in a body with immense magical talent. Of course, he uses this as an excuse to study sorcery to his heart's content, while dealing with his obsessive maid/bodyguard and his overbearingly affectionate older brother. Lots of amusing combat scenes (I say amusing because Lloyd's attitude makes it so, with some of them being badass as well). Lv2 Kara Cheat- A merchant boy from another world gets transported to another isekai, whereupon he is rejected and exiled by those who summoned him for being low-leveled and without skills. However, he manages to level by accident soon after his exile, gaining access to all magic and becoming infinitely powerful... only to settle down and start a slow life, with his adoring demon-wolf girlfriend (eventually wife), a group of female adventurers, and with occasional visits from members of the demon army. Generally it is a comedy sol more than anything else, though there are some nice brutal slapdowns when people cross certain lines. The opening song alone is worth watching a few times for laughs. Madome- Basically a cute romance fantasy where the protagonist impulsively buys a high elf slave at an estate sale for another sorcerer when he falls for her at first sight. His inability to express his emotions toward her and her devoted service to him as a maid make for lots of romantic cuteness for those who like that kind of thing. Oh, and there is also action scenes and some dark aspects, as well, lol. Re:Monster- Evil-natured protagonist gets reincarnated as a goblin and goes all devouring and evolving monster power fantasy without the sol of Slime. Generally enjoyable to watch once, but not really worth re-watching most of the episodes, sadly. Tensei Kizoku, Kantei Skill de Nariagaru- Basically a 'warring states reincarnation fantasy' where the protagonist is reborn into a crumbling empire in an isekai to a loving set of parents of a minor noble family, with the ability to see others' talents and abilities. His essentially good nature and desire to do the best for his people results in him earning a following. This series is more watchable if you watch it with the second season, as the first season is mostly setup and companion-gathering. The New Gate- My guilty pleasure of the season, a relatively low-quality (animation-wise) series about a guy who was in an SAO-like situation getting transported into the game world's future instead of going back, whereupon he gets to see the results of the NPCs gaining self-awareness and creating their own history. It has some seriously good emotional moments and a few good action scenes (for average quality anime), but the company animating it obviously put most of the budget into Schmee's character design, so the combat animations are lacking sometimes. Kami wa Game ni Ueteiru- Basically a world where people can compete in gods' games for the fight to make a wish of the gods. The protagonist is a serious talent who gets teamed up with a crazy former goddess. A decent watch at best, if you like puzzles. Dekisoko- Probably the only series I agree with Kvan about. Basically trash, low-quality anime. Story-wise it has good aspects, but it is told poorly and the animation quality was lacking to bring the story to life. Code Geass- Easily the worst and most nonsensical Code Geass sequel/side-story I've ever seen. Pretty much just a money grab. I loved the original series, and I liked Boukoku no Akito a great deal. However, this one felt pretty trashy, quality-wise. Given that the Geass takes different forms based on the individual, someone ending up with a near-carbon copy of Lelouch's Geass was a ridiculous idea, and the antagonist stretched the limits of suspension of disbelief, even for an anime, especially given that... I also don't like that they used the movie canon rather than the original series canon, lol. Generally speaking, this season was one of the best in recent years, even if the only real stand-outs were Karasu (given general critical acclaim, since I didn't watch it), Dainanaoji and Kimetsu No Yaiba in absolute terms. It is more like the average-quality of its middle of the road series was much higher than usual, as I usually drop at least two-thirds of the series I watch halfway through the season, whereas I finished almost everything I started this time.

1) Aoi Tori- I only put this one above Karenai Sekai because its production values are significantly better and individual characterization is slightly better. As nakige with utsuge elements go, this is one of the top five of all time. It shows off the mix of Purple Soft's specialties, in creating a grim and solemn atmosphere, massively erotic H-scenes, tear-jerking storytelling, and powerfully-impactful characters who burn themselves into your memory. I also was surprised to see this in any way put below Mashiro-Iro Symphony as it is a generic sol game. 2) Karenai Sekai to Owaru Hana- Easily one of the best tear-jerker VNs ever made. The tragic cost of the heroines' continued existence and the protagonist's willingness to sacrifice for them are the topmost reasons to like this as a tear-jerker. However, the lack of a distinctive path for each of the heroines makes it fall below Aoi Tori overall. 3) Hatsuyuki Sakura- Mostly a sop to Saga Planets Golden Age. While the setting is internally inconsistent and the heroine paths are of massively varying quality, it is still a memorable game for me. 4) Irotoridori no Sekai- Favorite's fourth-best work, after Sakura, Moyu; Hoshizora no Memoria; and its sequel Irotoridori no Hikari. Still, it was nice to see the localization actually appear. 5) Gin'Iro Haruka- This company consistently produces the same game with different characters, yet manages to do it well despite that. This game's high point is the massive scale of the heroine paths, which no other company ever did for an SOL game. If you invested emotionally in one of the heroines, her path almost definitely satisfied, something most SOL games fail at massively. 6-10) More or less the same.

Thread locked because it doesn't look like any kind of constructive conversation is going to come out of it. Please do not replicate or continue this thread elsewhere.

You're missing the point. Those rules pre-date your posts on vndb, thus you are the one at fault. Unlike X, where there are hidden rules (basically anything Elon Musk doesn't like gets pushed down, and anyone who opposes him directly loses their verification), the rules are clearly stated. You made the choice to ignore them so you could 'make a point'. There was no conspiracy against you, nor was there a mysterious hidden agenda that you were exposing. You simply don't like certain viewpoints and decided to go out of your way to make a mess.

From vndb's discussion board rules. 1c. Hate speech, racism, discrimination and anti-LGBTQ sentiments are unwelcome here. Of course, considering the nature of this database, it's fine to discuss these topics in the context of visual novels, but VNDB is not the place to relate these topics to the real world. Don't use visual novels as a proxy to voice your opinions about reality.

It kinda sounds like the thread author was the one decided to make it personal... even though the entire thing isn't worth arguing about in the first place. If someone has time to nitpick over gender political tags, then they also have time to be doing something more constructive... like reading visual novels or watching anime.

Sorry but I didn't find your highly politically influenced argument convincing at all. I suggest you take a step back and recognize that your views are excessively emotional on the matter. To be blunt, please don't bring America's perverse and dogmatic tribal politics onto the forum. You have the right to feel the way you do, but please refrain from trying to 'convince' everyone that yours is the only possible logical argument. Regardless of what 'views' Yorhel and the others might have (which I don't care about one way or the other), vndb serves its purpose of making people aware of new VNs when they come out and retaining basic information on VNs in general. I don't demand anything more of it, and I honestly don't care if they fiddle with tags for random reasons. It's their website and their efforts to maintain it are what have kept it alive for so long. Without vndb, finding visual novels would be much, much harder and more haphazard, like with anime and manga (which have way too many half-assed database sites with horrible structure that makes it hard to find anything). 'Rival' sites don't last long for a simple reason... those sites never manage to be convenient and relatively easy to search even if you don't know an individual visual novel's name. Edit: I should also note that vndb is not primarily or even secondarily a social media site. Ultimately, it is a database where one can (with a sense of moderation and responsibility) post information and reviews for VNs. Treating it like the poisonous swamps that are Reddit, Facebook, and X does no one any good. The social element has its issues, but the bare bones nature of the social features shows how little interest there is in that aspect in the first place. While it is technically a community, it is a community whose focus is on a niche medium of entertainment, not a place for people to rave about political viewpoints.

Tsukimichi 2- It's worth noting this separate from the original season because it is significantly better than the first season (barring a few scenes toward the end). For readers of the light novels, this fulfills the promise of what the series could have been, and for fans of the anime, it is a great continuation. Chiyu Mahou no Machigatta Tsukaikata- The protagonist is summoned along with two popular people from the same school to a kingdom endangered by an invasion of demons (Mazoku). While his friends are heroes, he only got caught up in the summoning, but because his magic is healing, he gets drafted by the semi-psychotic drill sergeant personality leader of the medical unit. While this in itself might not seem too bad, it is hilarious because he is essentially forced to take advantage of his magic's healing properties to keep himself going through a super-charged version of boot camp. Generally a fun to watch series. Akuyaku Reijou Level 99- Basically a communication-challenged girl gets reincarnated in the body of the hidden true villainess of an otome-ge rpg and goes crazy training herself due to her leveling addiction. If you don't expect anything great, it is a fun watch. Nozomanu Fushi no Boukensha- This is probably the true gem of the season, an anime about a guy who gets eaten by a dragon in a dungeon and wakes up as a skeleton. His struggles to gain a more human-like body and continue to pursue his dream are the basic premise of the story. Sokushi Cheat- If you want an op protagonist who just destroys everything and everyone, it is great. If you don't, you'll hate it. Sasaki to Pii-chan- Fantasy comedy with sol elements. It is enjoyable to watch once, but it is not a series you'll go back to again later. Gekai Elise- Highly emotional story following a girl who is executed for crimes against her nation, before waking up as an orphan in Japan. She becomes a doctor, trying to save lives and atone for her previous life's sins, but one day while flying to perform life-saving surgery, she gets in a plane crash. She survives the crash, but she overworks herself to death saving the other passengers... only to wake up in the body of herself in her previous life, before she made the mistakes that led to so much disaster. Saikyou Tank- Cheesy fantasy. Isekai de Mofumofu- Adorable little girl mofumofus animals and anything that even remotely resembles an animal with a side of being destined to decide the fate of that world's humanity, lol.

As far as I know, there is no word limit. I've never hit it, anyway, despite frequently posting walls of text early on. In addition, the massive posts by people advertising their VNs don't seem to have any issues that way, so you shouldn't need to worry.

Science Fantasy is perhaps one of the most pervasive genres in existence. The most powerful example in Western culture would be Star Wars, which is often considered the penultimate science-fantasy by fanboys. However, the genre also gained some minor popularity elsewhere, with the Deathstalker Saga and a few others prior to the current fantasy/sci-fi publishing boom that hit after ebooks took off. The Superhero genre can also be considered to be science-fantasy in a general sense, making it a bigger umbrella than most think. JRPGs such as the old Breath of Fire series and Xenogears both included elements of science-fantasy, mixing magic and tech freely, and this was also seen in Final Fantasy VI, where magitech was at the center of the story for much of the game. For VNs, my beloved Silverio series is worth mentioning, as the series has a basis in science-fantasy rather than being pure fantasy. Perhaps the most notable aspect of science-fantasy is that it combines the flexibility of fantasy with an internal consistency reminiscent of science-fiction in many cases. Fantasy is an infinitely flexible genre with no real limits, whereas science-fiction is usually an extension of our world, seen as a potential future or past. When the two are combined, you get a genre that seems partially like an extension of the world we know and partially a realm of pure fantasy and imagination.

As someone who read a wide variety of high fantasy novels over the years and experienced the golden age of fantasy (1980-2000) novels in the US, I am a lover of adventurer stories. This doesn't change even with switching to Japanese web novels, where 'true' adventurer stories are a solid minority of the isekai and fantasy genres. First, for those who are unfamiliar with the difference between isekai and high fantasy, it is fairly simple. Isekai requires that the protagonist have an origin in one world and be present during the story in another, so it doesn't strictly require the story to be pure fantasy (science-fantasy and certain types of science fiction also work). High fantasy, on the other hand, has no involvement with our own world, often having various rules and powers such as magic or psionics that don't exist here. A 'true' adventurer story - as I define it anyway - is a story where a protagonist becomes an adventurer and travels the world, builds a life as an adventurer, and/or delves dungeons for profit and exploration reasons. However, there is also one last requirement... the protagonist can't be 'overpowered'. The hardships of the story are part of it in general, and an overpowered protagonist - by nature - isn't adventuring, he is vacationing, lol. Not that I don't love overpowered protagonists in isekai and fantasy settings, but for someone who wants to vicariously experience adventures, overpowering the main characters generally isn't a great idea. If the protagonist is overpowered, then his enemies need to be overpowered as well to make the story a true adventurer, and these days, most stories of this sort in Japan tend to nerf the antagonists in general. Annainin wa Isekai no Jukai o Samayou https://kakuyomu.jp/works/1177354054918935123 This particular one is the one I think of the most when I think of 'True Adventurer Stories'. The protagonist of the story gets thrown into an isekai by a random portal and has to struggle to survive in a forest before eventually reaching civilization. He eventually manages to return to Earth, where he ends up becoming a guide for people who want to pass through 'his' portal to the other world. It is a very down to earth story, with a protagonist who is capable but not overpowered. Isekai Ten'i, Jirai Tsuki https://ncode.syosetu.com/n0350em/ This is one of my more recent favorites, as I only finished it up to its current end point a few weeks ago. The protagonist of this story dies - along with his entire class - and gets the option to select skills using points gained based on his capabilities and talents on Earth. As other members of the class request powerful 'cheat' abilities, the evil god (self-proclaimed) tells them there is no such thing as a cheat ability, and he learns when he selects 'Help' as his first skill selection that all the classic cheat skills (Skill Theft, Skill Copy, XP increase, etc) all have massive demerits that far outweigh their benefits. Thus, he avoids the traps and selects a skillset based on surviving in the new world, where he is joined by his childhood friends Touya and Haruka. The early part of the story is them starting out as adventurers and building a life base for themselves in the town they arrived near, while slowly raising their rank and improving themselves through training and fighting monsters. While the protagonist and friends are pretty capable by the end, they are - at best - on the higher end of the average veteran adventurers in capabilities, so you won't see them overpowering everything from the front like a lot of isekai protagonists. Bastard Swordsman https://ncode.syosetu.com/n9619hu/ This one follows a reincarnated protagonist who was born between two people of different ethnic backgrounds (and is thus a target for mild racism) and works as a low-ranking adventurer in town. While he is technically overpowered, he almost never shows this in his regular life, instead mostly working odd jobs and helping out those around him. If he doesn't use his special ability (which is basically a trump card that takes a lot out of him) he is about as strong as the higher-ranking adventurers, but he deliberately spends his life taking on small jobs, occasionally dribbling knowledge from his previous life anonymously to those who can use it, and generally just enjoying life in general. This is pretty much a slow-life story, so don't expect anything grand out of him. The fact that I can only name three such web novels, despite devouring tons of fantasy and isekai over the past five years should tell you just how rare this kind of thing is. If any of you have any suggestions to add to this list, I would be grateful, lol.

Of the recent anime seasons, this is the one I watched the most of. It just had that many wonderful series. Saihate 2- Saihate no Paladin's second season was a rare example of the sequel matching the original on every level, with a dramatic ending that made me clap and left me with a pleasant tingling of emotional fulfillment. Akuyaku Reijou- Yuri protagonist with a crazy personality goes all-out to save the villainess of the game after being reborn as the protagonist of her favorite otome game. It was pretty good, but not great. Hikikomari- This series had a ridiculous number of ups and downs and a difficult to understand premise (mostly due to poor setting setup). However, it does have a number of great scenes, mostly Komari's berserk scenes, lol. S-rank Musume- The story of a loving foster father in a village worrying about his overpowered father-con daughter as she works as an adventurer in town. The story is decent, but not great. It has some seriously great moments toward the end, but the buildup is pretty slow. Edit: There are a lot of hidden facets to this series that could attract different types of watchers, but it doesn't quite match my preferences. Feel free to say I'm wrong on my assessment, lol. Ossan no VRMMO Katsudouki- A guy makes a weird solo character for his VRMMO experience on the weekends and ends up triggering all sorts of crazy events despite only being on occasionally compared to others. Most of it is in-game SOL. Edit: This anime was relaxing to watch, a low-stress series to watch between other series, like the ginger in a sushi tray cleans the palate between types, lol. Sousou no Frieren- This season's true masterpiece, a tear-jerker of a fantasy series following a near-immortal elf who helped defeat the demon king, only to realize decades later her own sense of loss. She then goes on a journey with her apprentice to revisit the many destinations of her ten year journey with them. Has great action but most of it is her and Fern journeying across the continent in a slow, meandering manner. It is highly emotional, and many of the episodes are designed to draw tears or make you smile at the past antics of the hero party. However, when it goes for badass, it is seriously badass. Edit: This was straight out the best anime of 2023 and probably will end up being one of the top 10 for the next decade. It is just that high in quality and has that much of an impact. Kage no Jitsuryokusha 2- The second season of this series is just as good as the original, with the same over the top action and crazy mismatched expectations that made the first season so hilariously fun to watch. Goblin Slayer 2- While the animation quality is way weaker than the original season, it is still Goblin Slayer and that means blood and goblin-slaying, lol. Shangri-la Frontier- A high-quality anime with a high action focus where a guy who loves kusoge (shitty games) goes to enjoy a kamige (perfect/awesome game) of a VRMMO and causes a ruckus. Generally funny and fun to watch. Edit: Just because I only devoted a few lines to this doesn't mean I don't like it. If anything, this series was on my top 3 for the season. However, the anime does a good job of self-explaining without a ton of infodumping, so I feel no need to push it. Ragna Crimson- This one is a tribute to nostalgia, recalling the era of Claymore and other such brutal action stories. In a world where dragons are as common as dirt and are focused on devouring humanity in particular, Ragna has the compressed memories and power of his future self shoved into him, forcing him to confront the long tragedy that would have been his life, given a chance to change the future. This series is downright brutal, being reminiscent of Claymore and other dark fantasy series from the nineties and early 2000's, in both tone and aesthetic. Hametsu no Oukoku- Science Fantasy revenge story following a guy intent on exterminating humanity for murdering his teacher/mother/first love, a witch who died protecting him. Boushoku no Berserk- A meh power fantasy. It gets overshadowed by most of the other stuff this season, but it would have been higher rated if it were released during another. Edit: I say it is 'meh' because the concepts have been over-explored in fantasy and isekai anime, and the writer and anime-makers' attempts to present it in a new light didn't really change that it isn't anything new. It doesn't distinguish itself much from other similar fantasy series, similar to when I read the light novels. Seiken Gakuin no Makentsukai- A lord of the undead, a necromancer of immense power who was once a betrayed hero, enacts a ritual of reincarnation to fulfill his promise to the dark goddess he loved and served, only to awaken in the body of his child self an indeterminate period of time later, being 'rescued' by a naive girl he ends up saving in turn by using necromancy to turn her into a vampire. This science fantasy series has some good moments, but it ends too quickly and with nothing resolved, so I have to reserve judgment for a second season. Kikansha no Mahou wa Tokubetsu- This follows a protagonist who specializes in undoing others' magic when he is thrown back in time, given a chance to prepare for the upcoming world-ending disaster he lived through to the end. Generally a good watch, but just like the anime above, it really needs a second season to fill it out. Edit: In retrospect, it is kind of unbelievable that so much watchable anime got concentrated into a single season.

This game, in retrospect, didn't really do justice to any of the heroines other than Shinku. I can't say I recall any of the paths or the details of the characters anymore, whereas I can recall most of the details of Sakura, Moyu and even AstralAir by the same company. The incidents in the other worlds left a much stronger impression than most of the heroine routes, which is perhaps on purpose. Favorite's specialty as a company is playing on emotions, and the other world chapters and Shinku's path do an excellent job with this, while the other paths are mostly just background information to add depth to Shinku's path. While this was true - to an extent - with most of Favorite's other games (feeding the true path with the other heroine paths being a common tactic when there is a true path), this one is perhaps the most obvious about it. Nonetheless, it is a game that is worth mentioning for people who want the catharsis of emotion brought forth by the characters' situations.