Clephas

Use the walkthroughs. VNs aren't really video games in the traditional sense, so there is no reason not to.

No spacing in Japanese language, except after commas, periods, etc. However, if that were an actual sentence, the answer would be yes in romaji, since romaji needs regular breaks for westerners to understand it (in Japanese, when a color adjective and its described word are connected without a particle, they are literally considered one word). Edit: aka no tsuki would also work. Also, akatsuki does work, apparently... it just uses the archaic kanji and isn't present in modern language (in modern language akatsuki generally means 'daybreak' or is used to mark the beginning of the event... otherwise it is an archaic - as in not a part of the common language in the last fifty years - term) Edit2: Modern Japanese grammar demands a particle when 'aka' is used before a word, whereas archaic Japanese - Taisho, Meiji, Edo era - tended to be a bit looser about that.

Akatsuki means 'daybreak' whereas 'Akaitsuki' means 'red moon'.

Two major points... avoid webslang and if you need to use otakuslang, make sure you include a glossary for those not fully familiar with it.

If you really do have problems with English writing, I'd suggest bringing in a skilled amateur writer and handing them an outline, with detailed setting and character descriptions, and asking them to do the scut work. I used to do the same thing for people that had ideas but couldn't quite get them down on paper in their own hand. It isn't something the majority of authors do, but a small minority do it that way. You can then go in afterward and edit it, add on to it, or trim it as you feel necessary... or you can do it the other way around, if your own style is important to you. You can do the actual rough writing yourself, then have a more skilled English-speaker come in after you to fix language that won't work for an English-native audience. Edit: Generally speaking, people who read heavily are far less forgiving than your average otaku, so you will end up facing certain unavoidable problems in attracting people like that to your work.

Kanojo ga Ore ni Kureta Mono. Ore ga Kanojo ni Ageru Mono. ~KISS My Darling:Mecha-kon case3~ This is the latest in the harem charage/nukige series started by Mecha-Kon in 2011. tbh, I've been meaning to give the series a try for years, simply because the concept is just so rofl, yet I heard decent things about the plot in these VNs. Let's just say I wasn't disappointed. Yes, this is a nukige... but it also manages to be a charage with surprisingly good individual routes (though they are all harem routes...just with a different set of events, heroine focus, and ending). While there is nothing spectacularly awesome about this VN (other than some of the rofl turns of events in Tsubasa's path and the protagonist's special ability), it nonetheless manages to make its way slightly above the average I've encountered amongst charage in general, story-wise. Do you like harems but are tired of harem VNs where the protagonist just randomly gets with a few girls? Do you like harems but wish there was actually a reason that makes sense (in an anthropological sense) for their existence? Do you love harems, but find that harem routes suck in most VNs that have them? If the answer to all those questions above is yes, this is a good choice for you. Edit: For all that I like harem VNs with good story, I don't have any desire for a harem irl, if you were wondering. I simply have a taste for abnormality as the norm and strangeness in general. Also, if you ask 'Why did you play this if you don't like nukige?' then I'll answer: 'Every once in a while you come across an exception, for that reason I occasionally test the waters. Most of the ones I try I drop inside an hour, if only because they have plots that would have done better in a bad porno flick...'

The sequel is about twenty times better than the original. While they both occur at the same school, the protagonist is significantly different (background setting makes more sense, he's more interesting), and the heroines are less 'true to the template'... not to mention that the overall writing is just better. It occurs a few years after the original, and the new protagonist is a distant relative of the protagonist of the original. I thought the original VN was awful as well... but the second turned out to be miraculously good.

I wouldn't know, I got bored about nine episodes in, both with the characters and the story. Also, Higu was pretty much my limit with that crappy art style... It's one thing if it is a VN like Abyss (http://vndb.org/v2537) where the characters are proportionate... If they remake it with better art later, I'd consider playing it... but since I didn't like the characters in the first place and I don't really have a strong interest in mystical murder mysteries and horror for their own sake... Edit: Also, generally speaking, I absolutely hate Ryuukishi's writing style... English or Japanese. Edit2: Generally speaking, the problem is that after Higu I'd grasped the way Ryuukishi thought... so his stories became too predictable (this happens with all mystery authors for me, after one or two books). Even if he changes settings and even the basic plot idea, I automatically see where he is going with the plot... and ninety percent of the non-comedic fun of Higu was not knowing precisely where he was going with things...

Mmm... a seemingly normal guy who is surprisingly strong of heart when it is necessary. tbh, I don't think I could have done what he does pretty much from the beginning of the story (sorry for being vague, but I'm speaking to one of the central parts of the plot). He's surprisingly adaptable (especially considering how weird the thing with the oni is). He definitely isn't a non-entity, despite those somewhat common character traits. Edit: I know, he sounds like the average VN protag... and for the most part that's true. The fact that the writers managed to actually add depth to such a character was one of the aspects that made me like this one.

I read Higurashi... but the anime was better. I hated the Umineko anime, so I didn't bother with the VN.

Mmm... oni are a very vague existence in Japanese occult mythology. Some are gods, some are demon-like, others were once human, etc. In this case, the oni are a bit different, so unless you find youkai interesting in general... as for ghosts... generally speaking, the Japanese rule of thumb is that 'if you look at it, it will see you'; 'Names still have relevance, even after death.'; and 'ghosts come into existence because of the lingering regrets of the dead.' Japanese mysticism is very... harsh on the people who supposedly possess the abilities. Looking directly at a ghost can let it possess you, for instance...

Anyway, the reason for this is I was asked for just 'what are the top 50 VNs you love the most' and I made up a random topic name for the list, because I'm bored of informative names at the moment, due to the rum in my stomach. As for Muv-luv... having to slog through Unlimited and the original makes it a huge downer. Also, if I hadn't played the FD afterward, Alternative's ending would have traumatized me. I like utsuge now, but back then I was a bit more innocent.

I'm doing this list on a direct request. Rather than just being a list of 'good' VNs from a particular genre, these are my favorites, in no particular order. Why? Because picking out 50 favorites is surprisingly hard when you are getting closer to five hundred played... Evolimit Nanairo Reincarnation Ikusa Megami Zero and Verita Ayakashibito Tokyo Babel Dies Irae Hapymaher Komorebi no Nostalgica Draculius Devils Devel Concept Hello, Lady Jingai Makyou Muramasa Grisaia Series Haruka ni Aogi, Uruwashi no Bradyon Veda Otome ga Tsumugu, Koi no Canvas Konata yori Kanata Made Rui wa Tomo wo Yobu Tenshi no Hane wo Fumanaide Tsuisou no Augment Vermilion Bind of Blood Semiramis no Tenbin Yurikago yori Tenshi Made Bullet Butlers Abyss Homicide Club Izuna Zanshinken Harumade, Kururu Natsukumo Yururu Akatsuki no Goei series Tsuki ni Yorisou, Otome no Sahou (series) Eien no Aselia Baldr Skydive Baldr Sky Zero Tiny Dungeon series Tasogare no Sinsemilla Koiiro Soramoyou Sakura Iro Quartett (guilty pleasures, lol) Natsu no Owari no Nirvana Boku ga Tenshi ni Natta Wake Houkago no Futekikakusha Mirai Nostalgia Satsukoi Ore no Tsure wa Hitodenashi Irotoridori no Sekai AstralAir no Shiroki Towa Eden* Phantom of Inferno Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru ~Futari no Elder~ Suzunone Seven Ok, a lot of people are going to ask me why their favorites aren't on here... For a few particular VNs, I'll give you some reasons. For the Type-Moon VNs, it is simply the fact that I found VNs that did the same things for me better later on. If the Tsukihime remake ever gets put out, I'll probably have to reconsider that, but until then... For the Steampunk VNs by Liarsoft... I absolutely loathe the combination of roundabout and repetitive prose in their VNs. One of the few cases where a VN is better off in English... For the Key VNs, similar to Type-Moon, I found other companies that did similar things better. Key just pumps more money into their VNs than others, lol. You may have noticed I have a thing for chuuni... well, it's no joke. I adore chuuni, fantasy, and sci-fi. I enjoy those genres the most, so they are overrepresented here. Why didn't I include Seinarukana along with Aselia? Because I hated the endings. Why isn't Yumina up there? For a lot of reasons, not the least because the game starts out way too slowly. Why isn't Hoshizora no Memoria up there? Simple. I liked Irotoridori and AstralAir more. As for the rest, the less obvious questions... feel free to ask them and I'll answer as best as I can. I will update the list as old VNs get toppled by new ones or I simply feel it necessary.

Nanairo Reincarnation Kamige kita!!! lol I've been waiting all this year for a kamige to appear, and thankfully, I wasn't disappointed. Every once in a while I come across a game that gets every last aspect of what it included right. These games are rare... usually just one or two in a given year. Last year had two, for example... and so far, this year has one. The Game: Most of this VN is the common route, with a few scene changes on the way based on which of the two (inhuman or human) sides of things you chose to go by. Kotori (the main heroine) and Iyo (the zashiki warashi) are on the inhuman side of things, whereas the human side is Azusa (the policewoman) and Yumi (the protagonist's ex). There are a lot of common text and scenes to all the routes, which is why I say the common route is about ninety percent of the VN... this is because the basic flow of events in the main story doesn't change. What changes is who the protagonist ends up with and how they deal with certain issues (such as the protagonist's three oni servants), as well as the ending. By 'ending', I really mean about an hour and a half of story followed by a relatively short prologue that is nonetheless quite satisfying. The story itself is initially focused on the antics of the protagonist, his oni, Iyo, and Kotori as the protagonist accustoms himself to his duty of seeing the restless dead off. However, about one third of the way through, things take on a much more serious tone, for reasons I won't give now, and the central mystery of the story comes into play. To be honest, I want to avoid any hints here, because this is a game that definitely goes over best if you play it from the beginning. This VN is a combination of a lot of genres... it verges on an utsuge at times, a nakige at others, and at yet others it feels like a comedy or an occult mystery. The Heroines: First, let me state that you should not play the inhuman side first. To be frank, there is this one scene that is just downright cool near the end of the inhuman side of the common route that just makes certain events pale in human side of things. Play Yumi>Azusa>Iyo>Kotori (do Kotori's two endings in the order suggested by the walkthrough) to get the best experience. Yumi is a sweet, devoted young woman who parted from the protagonist sort of by default as they grew apart during college. Unlike the other heroines, she can't 'see' ghosts or oni, which causes problems. Azusa is a policewoman assigned by Unit 13 of the local police to be the liaison with the protagonist, who takes on requests to 'deal with' ghosts from them. She is light-hearted, serious about her job, somewhat easily frightened (the first scene with her is total rofl), and gets drunk easily. She is really hot-blooded about her work as a policewoman, which causes problems because she thinks she was dumped on Unit 13 as some kind of punishment. Iyo is the zashiki warashi that has protected and guided the protagonist's family for eight generations, teaching each new one how to manage the oni... while at the same time doing her level best to bankrupt them with her spending habits. She is foul-mouthed, mischievous, and gluttonous... and also surprisingly wise, though she has trouble being serious for more than a few moments at a time. Kotori is a young woman the protagonist meets who is looking for her dog. She becomes attached to him as a result of the incident's conclusion and begins hanging around his house, working as his 'assistant'. She can see ghosts and the oni, and she gets along with the protagonist's oni famously. She's somewhat shy with strangers but otherwise cheerful and easygoing. The Oni: The four oni seen in the story are Kikyou, Aoi, Fuyou, and Iris. Kikyou has the appearance of a beautiful and mature woman and she was inherited from his grandfather for the purpose of teaching the protagonist about oni. She is soft in manner, though she 'changes' when she gets angry. Aoi is the first of the oni born at the protagonist's command. She has the form of a cat-girl and she acts just like it. Her personality is very similar to Iyo's, though her personal devotion to her master is different from Iyo's role as protector and mentor. She wants what she wants at any given moment, and she won't hesitate to go after it. Her special ability is psychometry, the ability to read objects and people for memories. Fuyou is the second oni born at the protagonist's order. She is very similar to Kikyou in appearance and manner, and her special ability is that she can be seen by normal people (something none of the other oni can do), though in exchange she doesn't possess a more mystical ability. Iris is the third of the oni made at the protagonist's orders. She is, to be frank, a cute goth-loli who prefers to talk using her puppet or through her telepathic abilities (she can read minds, communicate mentally, and link other people's minds like a wi-fi hotspot, lol). She is the quietest of the three, though she is just as devoted to the protagonist as his other servant oni. She is a little shy and a bit of a crybaby... though it is understandable considering what her first duty upon creation ends up being. Overall: This VN is a first-rate story-focused, suited for people who want a good cry, a good mystery, and a few laughs along the way. If you can't stand some mild guro and some really tragic scenes... you should still play this, because it is an excellent VN, lol.

Grisaia, since someone is going to suggest it eventually anyway. Also, are you fine with untranslated suggestions?

Kaminoyu.

If you liked the anime, yes, if not, no.

Rosenbleu is reliably good and funny, so I'm still looking forward to Sekai wo Sukuu dake no Kantan na Shigoto... whenever the actual package arrives at my house or someone uploads it. I'm currently playing Nanairo Reincarnation, which looks like it might be good, just going by what I've played so far.

For translated, there is Sekien no Inganock. For untranslated... Nekonade series Shiro no Pika-pika Ohoshi-sama Koisuru Doll to Omoi no Kiseki Neko Masshigura Meguri Megureba Meguru Toki!? ITH and translation aggregator with jparser are the basic tools.

Yakimochi Stream To be honest, there really isn't that much to say about this VN. It took me approximately eleven hours to go through the main route and all four paths, while preparing to work with the rest of my mind at the same time, and it is basically a borderline moege/nukige, meaning it is both. It has too much H to be considered a normal moege, but the heroines are a little (slightly) too strong to be considered a full nukige. That said, the heroines are basically all joined together by their love for the protag from the beginning, and three of the heroines are basically insane with jealousy for any woman who approaches him (yes, it is that bad). Making it worse is that the protagonist is super-donkan, meaning he doesn't even recognize that the girls might have something more than friendly feelings for him in some distant universe until the actual paths. Not only that, he is below average in every way, which means he has no redeeming value in my eyes, lol. So is this a potential candidate for VN of the Month? No.

Only untranslated come to mind, sorry.

*Clephas makes a burnt offering of one million lolis in tribute to the gods of otakudom, that they might give blessings to the mods and admins and all who might follow them in service to Fuwa* *Clephas feasts*

Minamijuujisei Renka Basic Outline: This VN is a story-focused charage centered around a young man named Ryousuke who goes to a southern island kingdom, accompanying his twin little sisters. While those little sisters work at a research lab (being geniuses who have already completed university), he gets to go to school at a Japanese school for the relatively wealthy. This VN is made by Studio Ryokucha, the company responsible for Koiiro Soramoyou, a similar story-focused charage of equivalent atmosphere and quality. I should say that Ryousuke, the protagonist, is a combination of the two traits most common in a moege protag: 'donkan' and 'nice guy'. He's the type that will save people by reflex, without even thinking of the danger to himself. Due to the fact that, until recently, he'd been getting by by working multiple part-time jobs while going to school and (for the past two years) supporting his little sisters, he is a lot more adult than the normal VN protagonist, especially when it comes to handling people. Miyako: Miyako's route is a pretty straightforward first-cousin-little-sister-tsundere route. She loves her niisan but isn't willing to admit it (for complicated reasons that are overcome with surprising speed in her route). Unlike the other routes, the drama involved tends to be mostly focused around her misconceptions of duty to her family and Ryousuke's own family issues. I honestly enjoyed the route, though the subject matter turned out to be slightly more mundane in the end than some of the others. Mitsuki: I finished this route first. Mitsuki is a 'slovenly but beautiful kyonyuu genius'. She has a bad habit of losing track of reality when she starts thinking about a problem, so she frequently collapses from dehydration and hunger when she comes back to herself. She is perhaps the most open and honest of the heroines about her feelings from the beginning, and thus the conversion from friend to lover goes surprisingly smoothly. Elise: This heroine is right up Steve's alley. She's a cute loli-otaku-katana-wielding knight who loves Kanori as a sister and friend and has a very straightforward view of the world, usually seen through a lens of duty and/or friendship. She is something of a mascot character, as people love to feed her and watch her happy face while she puts down enough food for a football team. Her overly serious way of taking things tends to trip her up somewhat. Her path has some nice drama toward the end (some action, some politics) and I had to rofl at her relationship with the protag, for reasons that will probably attract Steve. Sakuya: A loli hacker who loves a good mystery. Predictably, her story is primarily focused on her quest to find the secret of the Kingdom's underground and her relationship with the protagonist. This leads to some nicely dramatic antics that are fairly enjoyable. Kanori: The Kingdom's half-Japanese princess and the main heroine of the VN. She is beloved by the non-aristocratic people of the Kingdom for her policies, which have eliminated the slums and given work to the people without putting the small country into debt. Her personality is more than a little sharp-edged beneath the gentle exterior, she has a fondness for BL, and she is more than a little cynical. I had to rofl at the ichaicha in her path and the way she keeps tripping herself up. Her path is the 'true path', but it is also a little unsatisfying because, while the center of the drama in the other paths is revealed, the ending isn't really all that detailed. It is way too obvious they were aiming for a fandisc here. Overall: A first rate story-focused charage with excellent characters, decent story, and good humor. If you liked Koiiro Soramoyou, you'll like this game as well, most likely (the overall writing style and storytelling are almost identical in tone). While this isn't a candidate for VN of the Year, it is definitely one for September's VN of the Month. A big downside is that it is obvious the company is aiming to put extra story into a future fandisc, and thus some of the endings are truncated and some of the mysteries, while revealed to an extent, are sort of tossed aside at the end.

Edit: Meh, that teaches me for posting while sleep-deprived.

Gore Screaming Show by Black Cyc.