Mr Poltroon

As with others, time dictates what time I can spend reading VNs, so it is by no means daily that I read them, but when I do, it's normally 2 or 3 hours per VN. I can read multiple or none in a day. If I am particularly engaged, I can spend my every moment of free time on the particular title of interest. However, this goes for any piece of entertainment, so if I'm engaged in an anime, manga, light novel, or game, then I will have no time for VNs.

I even posted here but forgot to pin it! Someone could've reminded me... So... This season looks pretty good! Very much so, actually. Kemono Michi (3 episodes) - This was the first thing I watched this season, driven solely by the fact that the original author is the same as Konosuba's. Thanks @littleshogun for bringing that up! Anyway, I like it! I see some people may take an issue with at least the first episode and the main character's obsessive and possibly sexual interest in animals, but I think further episodes toned at least the sexual aspects down. I found the show to be very much funny, and compared to Konosuba... Well, the dynamics are necessarily different, for one, because Kazuma is a very different type of person to the protagonist here. Unlike Kazuma, the protagonist here is the one lacking the common sense, and others usually act as the straight man. Since it has only just started, it also lacked a consistent cast (though I think that'll change from here on) and Konosuba's gold really came from the cast's interactions, so it is natural that it wouldn't hit the same good points yet. Episode three offered some very promising scenes that probably resemble what's to come, so I'm very much looking forward to this in the future! Kabukichou Sherlock (1 episode) - A detective show and an adaptation of Sherlock. There's no reason not to like it, and so far I like it, so I'll continue with this. Oresuki (3 episodes) - It, uh, went in a lot of directions, so if you haven't watched these three, stop reading for fear of spoilers! Cautious Hero (2 episodes) - There's a whole lot of bloody competition this season, so I can't say it wins comedy of the season, but it definitely wins best animation for a comedy! The first time I heard about this title, even before it was announced to be getting an anime, I became super interested because of the way the manga had drawn things, and I'm so so glad the anime did not ditch the style! The show itself is still super funny, and that is all I really need to have a whale of a time. The goddess's reactions are currently the gold mine, with the occasional ridiculousness of the guy's actions thrown in for good measure, such as Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun (4 episodes) - The surprise so far. I started it because I liked the character designs, and I felt like it would fit a fantasy/adventure-ish mould that I like. So imagine my surprise when I realised it is doing literally everything that I like! Iruma-kun (aside from his age but Japan's Japan) is everything I've ever wanted from a protagonist. Everything from his general demeanour to his ability to "dodge everything" (a premise I've often dreamt about seeing in a show; and now, finally, here it is! If you know of any other pieces of entertainment with similar abilities, do point me in their general direction) to the course of events of "accidentally win at everything" is all I wanted from a show, so I am ULTRA happy with this. I hope to god this doesn't fall into the shounen tropes I dislike later on. I can see I can't avoid fights and other such things. Okay. But please avoid getting the protagonist to attempt irrational things and pulling through on willpower alone. Don't make him attempt to do things that others better suited to the job are already tackling just because he can't sit and wait when it's not his turn. Additionally, try to make it work without adding more abilities to him, or particularly changing them. It always irritates me when someone that's supposed to have no attack power suddenly gains some. Don't lie to me and get my hopes up if you're not going to make it work... I'll see how they tackle it. I hope it continues to be a funny story as it has been so far!

It makes no sense here, since the protagonist has a unique design and personality, and plenty of scenes where his entire sprite is on screen, talking. This is a bloody curse, I tell you!

I believe I've mentioned this elsewhere, but my problem with a lack of voices is when it's selective. Or, even more specifically, when it's just the protagonist who lacks voices. I'm fine with partial voices or no voices, but going out of your way so that only the protagonist lacks a voice irritates me to no end. There really is no reason for this on games such as this one.

So I went on and concluded Machikado Mazoku. I recall watching the first episode and thinking... not terribly much of it. It was good, but didn't really push me to continue watching. That's why I stopped a few months ago when I watched the first episode. That said, now that I restarted it the other day, I quickly finished the whole thing! It turned out to be so good! The best thing about this series, besides generally funny moments, is how heart-warming it is.

I've played up to most of Chapter 3. For the first chapter I was iffy on the trial systems, but that went away by the second. I was sad the main character is unvoiced, but that's a curse of the VN world. And then Chapter 3 really went and did everything I hoped from the game, so I'm very happy with this. At this point I'll probably wait for the rest of the game, which should be between half to a third of the complete game.

It is funny, but it is a true phenomenon. If you do something enough, the magic of it will disappear or lessen. And then something else needs to make up for the difference. This is the reason I don't consider cases like this "exploitation", exactly. As fans, people are willing to take on bad deals or volunteer for things. But this spirit will not remain forever. Once the magic is gone, they might end up feeling like they let themselves be exploited, but at the time they did not feel as such. Regardless, fans that work for free enough will generally start to feel like that isn't enough anymore. Not out of greed or any such thing. It's not the desire for money that increases, it's the will to work hard for their hobby with no recompense that decreases.

You probably have, yes. My spoiler was directed at Jun and Jun alone, since I was pretty sure he'd get it. Anyone else is better off if they don't.

I suppose in a few ways. To start with, I have, in general, less time. Whereas before I actively looked for long VNs as the only way to get immersed in the VN world, these days I haven't found a VN I'd call 'short' for years. I take ages, no matter the length. Before I was also both more and less picky. I used to only play all the big and famous VNs (Like Muv-Luv: Alternative, which I wouldn't play today), but then transitioned into playing all the romance ones, and now those really are all I play, aside from gameplay or mystery ones. I enjoy the writing much more. The reason VNs are my medium of choice are because I prefer dialogue and character interaction over all other sorts of writing. That said, before I'd consume things just to say I finished them, even when I didn't understand what I was reading or had to filter out a bunch of sentences for being unable to parse them or understand their meaning (due to wrong grammar, for instance). I'm also worse at finishing things before starting something else. More new things are coming out these days than they were previously, which is very good. I'm at a point where even if the industry implodes tomorrow, as long as all announcements we currently have are released I will never lack for reading material.

30 minutes is no problem when you're browsing and reading stuff on this forum, but I have on occasion taken well over two hours writing a post, so I understand how it can consume some time. I understand how notifications can impose negative habits or tendencies. My worst behaviours related to notifications are definitely me wasting away days waiting for replies where I didn't know when they'd come. That said, I only waste days when I've days to waste. As I'm in a busy period right now I really pay very little attention to notifications.

It's so crazy, the way everything was so foreign to me. Everything the girls did or pushed the protagonist to do... It's so out of the realm of possibility, me even considering it or sharing any of those feelings, that I enjoyed the strange, foreign experience. As you might guess, I share your opinion.

You may have meant something else.

Though there is no such post (I believe there were some, at one point) now, I'll see about either finding an old one or making a new one explaining the editor. For spoiler tags, all you have to do is click the eye icon in the editor. Whenever you type a reply, you are doing so in a box, and at the top left there should be an icon that looks like an eye. If you hover over it, it'll display a tooltip saying 'Spoiler'. That is the button you need to click.

Certainly abandoned. Cease and desist with all hope efforts.

Blast. All these rave reviews and now this. I can see why this VN was success. I guess I really will have to get it.

Can't you tell I'm part of the old man club by the fact that I only consume moege and romance?

Happy birthday to @littleshogun there. Edit: Idem @Kiriririri

Say what you will. I really find his art charming these days. It used to be slightly less cute, methinks.

I would be very interested in any depictions of native speakers referring to themselves in 3rd person you may have found in media or literature (by which I mean books).

Ah, yes. That's my bad. I've actually decided not to include the EXTRA because it is too difficult to spot them all, and they seem to vary depending on factors I couldn't quite nail down.

I initially had a poor impression of the characters and interactions. That issue was resolved the longer I played. That said, I believe the strength of this title is how much it explores the setting. Instead of telling us a single story, it lets us explore 30 different ways things could've gone. On this aspect, I can think of few games similar on this scale (Cinderella Phenomenon, also quite good, is one of them).

Steam Prison. I enjoyed this one thoroughly.

Would you kindly use the English name in the title? You know, the one that people can actually recognise? I understand titles that were previously fantranslated using the Japanese one, but ones that have only been advertised by their English one are unrecognisable if you stick to the Japanese one. Also, glad their payment processor woes are ending. I'm interested in this title, though not as much as Sengoku.

Yeah, I don't think the game usually tries to redeem said characters. They're just people, sometimes they're arseholes to those they know less well, but if you get to know them better they'll show a different side. It's not that it offers a justification for their meaner actions, it's just two sides of the characters. And maybe you find them unbearable as a result of one of their facets.