Clephas

I would wait for the remake or play the ero-capable PC version. It's your choice. The original on PC is a pretty awesome story, but the game system is pretty third-rate, even by the standards of the age (to give you an example, the only two characters who could inflict serious damage on enemies at the end in my party were Karura and Hakuoro, lol). Until I play the remake (which I plan to do), I'm unwilling to state which is better. However, Utawarerumono was one of those games where the ero actually 'fit', at least in some cases, so I honestly don't know how I'm going to feel at the end. Edit: Incidentally, the reason my damage was so low with the others was because I was pretty careless with how I handled stat points, lol. However, I was able to beat the last boss with those two alone, so it all worked out in the end, hahahaha.

While the duology isn't new to people who have a PS4 and played the games, the cruising onto PC on Steam is a big thing for those of you who prefer to do everything with their computer (including me). A few days ago, these two games, which are very much a treat for those who liked the original game or anime, became available. For those who have only watched the Utawarerumono animes (both of them), Mask of Deception covers the same area of the story as the second anime, albeit in more detail with some changes. My personal opinion of it was that it was great... but I found myself wanting H-scenes about halfway through (too many mimikko and those mischievously erotic twins). The second game (Mask of Truth/Futari no Hakuoro) is considerably more serious than the first from the beginning until the end. As such, it provides quite a different experience. For those who were annoyed by the sudden way the second Utawarerumono anime ended, this is a good way to see the rest. For those who have already played both... well why not do so again? I know I will.

Inochi no Spare

Evolimit Karenai Sekai to Owaru Hana Hapymaher

*Clephas emerges from the abyss, a mass of grasping tentacles and gaping mouths full of multiple layers of razor-sharp teeth, the screams of the devoured echoing from every orifice* Whoops. *Clephas restores the illusion of humanity and smiles innocently* Greetings and welcome to Fuwa.

I can understand that... I'm a sucker for Kyou-kotoba (Kyoto accent), for instance.

It would be weird if they weren't. I've yet to meet a heterosexual man, regardless of age (unless they were impotent), who didn't have an interest in 18 year old girls, even if he didn't have any intention of doing anything about it. Males are predisposed toward it. Moreover, eroge girls are eternally young and far more attractive than filthy 3D females. *smiles innocently*

Personality-wise, I am tired of the 'usual' archetypes like osananajimi variations and the like. I'm also tired of high schools as settings. However, if you ask me whether I can still get it up for them... the answer is yes. Most of them are no longer waifu material though, lol.

Sorry, but don't worry, I'm sure the original demon's small spirit will be eaten by the new one.

Sold! *fails to mention that he accidentally implanted a soul-eating demon lord into the scarecrow*

I have a wonderfully made pot I could sell you for the low, low price of $1000. *Shows you a shiny golden pot... made out of gold foil*

Most of Light's games include scattered infodumps that pop up as they become needed. Part of the reason is that most of Light's chuunige deliberately obfuscate certain aspects until revealing them will have the most impact. Dies Irae is a good case in point... Propeller gave the most important infodumps in the prologue in most cases (the prologue of Bullet Butlers is a case in point, as is the one in the first chapter of Tokyo Babel) including smaller scattered ones as necessary later on. Tiny Dungeon gets the basic infodump about the setting done with in the prologue of Black and White (what happened before and why humans are distrusted by the other races). One case of a 'Lump - in an anime in this case - that I hated was Tenjou Tenge. They essentially wasted half the episodes on a massive flashback infodump on past events. In a VN... I've actually never come across an infodump I hated, though I did criticize some for the way they disrupted the flow of the story. Whether a 'Lump becomes a problem is entirely dependent on timing, in my experience...

Despite not getting Abby, I'm pretty satisfied with the results of my Christmas and New Years splurge... I did get Hokusai (almost got the skills maxed, just a few more QP), and I ended up with Ozymandias from the guaranteed gacha. Since that expands my Rider options without even really trying, I decided to be happy about the results. I loved the Davinci event for the lottery and being able to buy gems... because of that I have enough gems and various other mats to upgrade a lot of skills I probably would have otherwise left alone indefinitely. Well, I do need to build up QP, though, lol. Probably the only Servants I will absolutely roll for this year are Fujinon and Skadi. I have enough Alter Egos, so I'll reluctantly pass on evil Okita, lol.

In plotge of all types, whether they are chuunige, kinetic novels, horror suspense, or mysteries, infodumps are ubiquitous throughout the VN world. Infodumping in and of itself isn't a horrible thing to do to the reader (as some people claim), but it is a tool that is often abused by writers who want to expound on their beloved world and its characters. First, the definition of an infodump is a scene with little or no dialogue where background information is provided without directly proceeding with the story. Infodumps can vary in size from as small as forty lines of narration to up to a thousand, depending on the writer and the subject matter involved. There are even multiple types, which I will describe here. The Lump of Infodump The Lump of Infodump (as I put it) is the most common type of infodump in VNs. In the 'Lump, a great amount of information, sometimes with brief bits and pieces of dialogue or character stream of thought, is provided in a single scene, interrupting the story. The 'Lump is the type of infodump most likely to drive people crazy, due to its tendency to create walls of uninterrupted text. When abused, it tends to interrupt and/or destroy the flow of the story, and I've encountered a number of games where a more measured approach to presenting the setting or explanations of the particulars of an event or the 'why' of an action would have been less monotonous. In fact, that is the big flaw of this type of infodump. It is almost impossible to avoid monotony with this kind of infodump, because all it is doing is literally dropping information on you. That said, infodumps often have a reason for existing that becomes clear in coming scenes, so it is not necessarily always a bad thing. The Scattered Infodump 'Scattered Infodumps' are a technique where the writer provides the information in smaller, more digestible asides throughout the story, as it becomes relevant. This technique tends to be received with less irritation and often goes almost unnoticed by the reader, because it doesn't go on long enough to disrupt the flow of the story. Unlike the 'Lump, it is less likely to be abused, though many writers who use it get into the habit of always using it, which can be problematic for those with an allergy to non-dialogue text, lol. The Flashback Infodump The Flashback Infodump is just that, an infodump provided in the form of a flashback instead of an aside. These often fill in the gaps in the motivations of characters or their upbringing, and their purpose is, 90% of the time, to reveal something that would have made things less interesting if it were revealed earlier. Flashbacks are often abused, though. They are common throughout VNs, with roughly 90% of plotge having at least one and 30% of all charage (in my experience) having one. They are a convenient method of revealing a character's past, so many games also use them for character development, particularly in heroine paths. The Prologue Infodump This is probably the least annoying of the 'obvious' infodumping and is a sub-category of the 'Lump. Some games, rather than dumping setting and character information on you mid-story, will instead infodump immediately after you start. This has the advantage of getting around the disruption of the game's flow that is inevitable with mid-game 'Lumps and providing background information without the writer having to remember to include it strategically throughout the story. This technique is, however, rarely used. Games that use it are rare mostly because if the first thing you see when starting a VN is a wall of text, most people will drop the game right then and there. Because of this, most games that use this are directed to a very specific fanbase or niche of the VN community that already has an established interest in the game in question. A few thoughts The reason I decided to make this post was because of a conversation I had with @fun2novel regarding infodumping in Bradyon Veda. In Bradyon Veda, infodumping is integral to the game's battle scenes (incidentally the discussion began with me giving examples of good battle scenes to him). Because the science-fantasy techniques being used by the characters manipulate matter and physical laws, there are infodumps built into the battle scenes, explaining what they are doing. Because of this, I noted that Bradyon Veda's battle scenes were an example of positive infodumping, because it was done in such a way that it enhanced rather than disrupted the telling of the story. Conclusion What am I trying to get at? Nothing, really. I just thought that people give infodumps a bad rap, when they have probably been infodumped without even noticing it.

Oh, incidentally, I excluded games where the world-building and setting weren't utilized effectively from that first list I posted. Sadly, there are some games with good world-building that make no effort whatsoever to utilize the tools and structures they built (Koiken Otome comes to mind).

The only really challenging battle on normal is the final battle of Dive 2... the rest can be handled fairly easily if you have a good combo set up, with fairly minor adjustments for tactics on occasion. I won't make any suggestions on combos, because this game provides a decent array of weapons/attacks that can be stringed together in ways that suit your temperament. In my case, I used the basic sub-machine guns, homing missiles, and the grenade launcher the most.

In Hapymaher's case, the protagonist's and antagonist's perceptions (conscious, subconscious and otherwise) defined the setting at any given time, with some interaction from the heroines. In that sense, the world was fluid, but vagueness about how much was reality and how much was dream was deliberately orchestrated the way it was, to give the impression of the lines being blurred between the two. World-building isn't just something like Dir Lifyna's grand setting, but also the more immediate setting. In that sense, Hapymaher does an excellent job. Moreover, even characters can be considered world-building elements, depending on their roles. I honestly consider Maia to be one of the single most powerful living world-building elements I've ever seen in a VN, lol. Edit: I'm going to go ahead and clarify my viewpoint on what I consider to be world-building. First, world-building is an aspect of creating the setting. The difference between the creation of a setting and world-building primarily lies in unique lore or aspects that require you to step beyond what can be called 'common sense' or 'things you should know as a matter of course'. As such, the creation of a high school setting in a charage wouldn't be considered world-building. However, the creation of a unique aspect of such a school - such as the election system in Primal Hearts - would be considered world-building, as this aspect does not exist as a base template of what a high school is. Similarly, merely placing a story in a typical fantasy setting is not an act of world-building. However, adding unique cultural elements, filling in details of daily life for the average person, etc are world-building elements. In the end, world-building is an extension of establishing the setting, where the writer fills in the gaps left by the template he/she is working from. Do you have elves? An elf is a template. What kind of culture do the elves have? That is world building (if you aren't working from an obvious template, lol).

Games and series with good or great world-building The Silverio series The Tiny Dungeon series Sorceress Alive Komorebi no Nostalgica Fake Azure Arcology Re:Birth Colony Lost Azurite The Akagoei series The Dir Lifyna games by Eushully (Ikusa Megami, etc) FSN and Tsukihime Tokyo Necro Soukou Akki Muramasa Bradyon Veda Bullet Butlers Evolimit Ayakashibito Devils Devel Concept Hapymaher Nanairo Reincarnation and the other games in the same series Hyper→Highspeed→Genius Otome ga Tsumugu Koi no Canvas Ou no Mimi ni wa Todokanai Kikan Bakumatsu Ibun Last Cavalier Ryuukishi Bloody Saga Vermilion Bind of Blood The Shinza series (Dies Irae, Paradise Lost, KKK) Yami to Hikari no Sanctuary The Baldr Sky series Ojou-sama no Hanbun wa Ren'ai de Dekiteimasu Zero Infinity Draculius Sora no Tsukurikata Sakura, Sakimashita Abyss Homicide Club Sukimazakura Realive Aoi Tori and Amatsutsumi Dracu-riot Gleam Garden no Shoujo Izuna Zanshinken Yurikago yori Tenshi Made Shirogane no Soleil (the Soleil series by Skyfish in general) Tayutama (the original) Toko o Tsumugu Yakusoku Tsuki ni Yorisou Otome no Sahou Valkyrie Romanze

I had someone ask me why I consider some VN battle scenes to be good and others to be low quality just the other day, and I thought I would address this here. First, I should state that while visuals definitely have an effect on the quality of a battle scene, the quality of visuals is less than 15% of the reasons why I pick one VN's battle scenes over another's. The considerations when it comes to visuals are raw quality (artist skill, detail, etc), number of combat-related CGs and sprites, and the quality of the visual effects. More important (roughly 25% of the whole) is music and sound effects. It is quite possible to turn a VN whose visuals are mediocre and writing are good into a masterpiece based solely on how the BGMs and sound effects are used. I've seen it happen (Devils Devel Concept being a prime example), and I can honestly say that this aspect almost always trumps visuals when it comes to determining the quality of a given battle scene. Another 25% comes from context and presentation. I split this evenly because these two factors tend to be inter-dependent in battle scenes. Without the context, you can't tell whether you should care, and presentation (the art of bringing writing, sound, and visuals together to create a collaborative effect on the reader) quality can dramatically alter how you see the battle. The last 35% is all writing. My prejudice would have put it at 50%, but realistically, in a VN, writing is at the very least 35% of what determines the quality of a battle scene. The very simple reason is that making a battle scene interesting requires an eye for detail, for stringing descriptions of character actions, emotions, and words into a cohesive whole. There are plenty of writers outside of the VN industry who only do this well and literally are incapable of 'peaceful writing'. That is because what is demanded of writing during a battle scene is fundamentally different from what is demanded outside of battle scenes. To be blunt, most VN writers have no idea of how to write a battle scene, which is why the good ones stand out so much. 'Tom blasted magic sword at Dave, Dave took it on his shield with a grunt' is about as far as it goes with most VN battle scenes... and that is fairly horrid, since there is no sense of what is actually going on in that exchange. It isn't uncommon for VN makers with unskilled writers to simply substitute visual and sound effects for descriptions of the battle simply because the writer can only handle dialogue and minimal or copy-paste action lines. However, this results in amazingly boring scenes, since there is usually almost no variation in visual or sound effects from scene to scene, action to action. This means that they are essentially using a square block for a round peg. I don't know how many third-rate battle scenes I've fallen asleep to over the years... Anyway, ideally, a good battle scene should have all the elements come together in one cohesive whole. However, in practice, that almost never happens. About the only companies that have ever managed to do that consistently are Nitroplus, Light, and Propeller... and we all know what happened to Propeller and (more recently) Light.

That's easy... Raillore no Ryakudatsusha. It managed to piss me off inside the prologue, despite being a chuunige. The game starts out all right, until you hit the events immediately before the protagonist switch, then the pacing goes all to hell.

Clannad, Little Busters, Grisaia, and Majikoi were all fantls before the companies bought the finished or nearly-finished product. Essentially, rather than paying in advance for something that might take years to finish, they payed for something that just needed to be polished and could potentially be released sooner with less expense in the long run.

DMM occasionally works properly, but it varies. They go through cycles where they block IPs from outside Japan. Yes, it is a matter of size. Back when fantls were the mainstream (fantls being a minority now), it wasn't uncommon for someone to take on such a ridiculously ambitious project. However, now that localization companies are the mainstream (having poached most of the good fantls), they choose which games get a localization... and they have to pay by the line.

The game is pretty huge... one of the largest I've ever seen outside chuunige. However, it is totally worth reading. It is also highly unlikely to ever see a translation.

Kimagure Temptation or Realive. Kimagure Temptation was yet another good one by the makers of Nanairo Reincarnation, and Realive was another great plotge/nakige by Purple Soft. Most of the other stuff I tried was 'meh' at best. Edit: Nvm, I thought Sakura, Moyu was 2018. Definitely Sakura, Moyu, by several degrees above everything else.