What are you playing?

[Trickay]

Just finished Rakuen, have to say that I wasn't a fan of the 

Spoiler

harem end. It was a little too kinetic for my liking. But the rescue/car chase was bloody brilliant!

Not sure what to move onto next, I should probably restart Ever17.

[Stormwolf]

Just finished Ever17 and i certainly need more visual novels like this in my life!

Spoiler

 

Well, that was pretty epic all in all. Only 2 things i would have wanted different was a more touching epilogue instead of just showing what's up. Takeshi and Tsumugi reunion after 17 years was not a particularly good scene, and i was waiting for something heartwarming  Nothing offensive mind you, just would have been better if they didn't make it into a comedy scene. 

And the other thing which i found really curious is that Tsumugi had a human strain of the Cure virus.  So how did she infect Chami when the human strain is incapable of infecting anything but pure humans? They went over this in a route and there was like 3 different strains of the virus. It didn't really make much sense. It's a minor thing but it stuck to my mind 

 

 

[adamstan]

Finished Aoi's route in ToHeart.

Unfortunately, this route didn't work for me at all - it was pretty boring and tedious to read, consisting mainly of Aoi's training descriptions, and martial arts infodumping full of unknown words. Route was pretty isolated, with Hiroyuki's other classmates disappearing completely (if you choose to skip read text - meaning, they are featured only in common scenes). Each day you just go to the training grounds, watch Aoi train (and/or assist her), have a bit of rather bland dialogue, go home, rinse and repeat.
Also, this route made me sick of the word "senpai" for a while

Next one is robot girl Multi.

They say that she's the best girl in this game. Let's see...

[nekofuwafuwa]

I've finished Supipara vol.1 and vol.2!

Honestly, I'm not sure what to think about it. The characters were very charismatic, especially Kamishiro, Yuzuki and the cook whose the name I forgot and can't find anymore.

Sakura also was very charming and funny on her route and the start of Vol. 2, but sadly later Vol. 2 she ended just being a bother on the few occasions that she appeared. (Sorry Sakura!)

The game had some good soundtracks for more dramatic moments, which is unfortunate that they were played so rarely. And I won't mention the art, since it is all animated and there is a lot of beautiful scenarios and etc everyone knows that it is pretty, just Minori being Minori.

But, other than that... I feel that Supipara doesn't have much else to offer. Even with the great humor, the situations don't vary much: You go to school, find someone, have a fun chat,  go home. Rinse and repeat. Very rarely you go to the Café or Sea gazing, but I felt like these moments were too short and could have been better explored...

What got me interested in playing Supipara was: I loved eden* and wanted to see more things from Minori. Specially because I found eden* to be so pretty and having a great drama. Especially because Supipara was tagged as nakige.

So, I was expecting a sad story, or something that would make me cry, like Key titles. If you want to play Supipara expecting an emotional game like eden*, I'm sorry to say that I wouldn't recommend it... Unless you don't have anything else of the kind to play before.

Don't get me wrong, Supipara is a good game. I had plenty of fun with the characters and seeing everything in motion was very charming. But it should be considered as an Moege, not a Nakige. The drama on Sakura's route is far too weak and different from all the possibilities that they could have done considering Sakura's background and career. I'm not even sure if the route was supposed to be just a slice of life or if the really really small conflict that they showed was actually the drama? Honestly, I don't know.

The conflict in Amano's route was done in a much better way and it got me worried for her and actually crying on its climax. But since was done so close to the end and was so short, I can't evaluate Supipara as a Nakige. As a moege, it's okay, but even as it there is so much potential lost and very few new situations...

So, I don't know. I liked because the characters and art. There are plenty of better games both in comedy and drama. I definitely expected more from the game. But Supipara is comfy and that's fine with me. Even if it's not a very good game, I still wish that somehow I could see the last chapters of it being completed. I would love to know what exactly is happening with Yukki and seeing the remaining heroine's routes. 

And lastly, I hope that other minori titles give me more a feeling of eden* than Supipara. (I've ordered a physical edition of ef, I hope that it doesn't disappoint me!)

 

tl;dr: Comfy game, not great but comfy. Pretty art. Play if you are bored, want to laugh and don't have anything else to play. Don't expect much from it. And especially don't expect drama.

Edited March 29, 2019 by nekofuwafuwa

[AustriaVNFan]

Phew! Yesterday I finally finished ChuSinGura46+1 and wow, was that a long one!

And while there is no doubt that this VN can be called epic it was also far from perfect. Although many aspects are hard to judge because of one thing - the horrible translation! Now I am really not very strict about translations. If I see little errors here and there I don't mind. But this TL (Steam version) was extremely bad. Most of the times I could imagine what the translator was trying to tell me but there were points where it was just gibberish. I am not a native English-speaker but I am sure it would have been a lot better if I had done some proof-reading. It seems to me like this was translated by someone whose native language is definitely not English. But I will try to still be objective about the game since the translation is not really a part of it.

About the story: The VN is about the MC shifting back in time to the timeline where the story of the 47 ronins happens. He lives through that happening 5 times (5 chaptrers) and uncovers a conspiracy surrounding the events. While lots of the events and acting characters are authentic the conspiracy thing is fiction AND of course the 47 ronins being almost exclusively female is also fiction. Other than that many historic details are integrated in the story.

The story is usually quite exciting to follow and uncovering the different happenings in the various time loops and getting to know each of the ronins is fun. The sword fights and duels are also well made and well placed, not too many of them so that it never gets boring. But there are also a few moments where the story seems to drag on (for me mainly in the 3rd and 5th chapter). The conclusion of the story is technically well made and fun to read although I still think there are many questions left open and things unexplained (but perhaps it was the bad TL?).

In the romance department I have mixed feelings. I played the Steam all ages version and the romance with the heroines (each loop has a different love interest) seemed ok although sometimes the MC seemed extremely dumb (especially in Yasubee's route) while Chikara behaved totally strange in her route (she seems completely different in the other routes). It was also the first time in a VN where I was asking myself if I missed something because of a cut out h scene (4th chapter) as the relationship between the characters seemed quite different afterwards (don't want to spoil who it is )

The cast of characters is HUGE! And they are well drawn and interesting and likable (well, most of them). I really enjoyed the diversity of characters in this game and there are still new characters showing up in the 5th chapter.

I liked these 4 characters most:

• Yasubee: She was the only main heroine I really got into. I liked her honesty and clear principles, but also her cool-headedness when needed and I think her route was the best.
• Sayo: She was a very sharp and cute character. How she always gets her point across and realizes what's going on is really cool. Well done making such a young character so interesting and enjoyable!
• Fuwa Kazuemon: A pity she didn't get highlighted more. I found Fuwa a very funny character with her wild manners. Yet, although she seemed so unruly at times she was probably the most loyal character of all.
• Shimizu Ichigaku: An beautifully drawn character that perfectly fits the role of the villain. I liked her looks, her behavior and also her voice acting. Simply awesome!

All that said I wish there would have been a bit more of an epilogue. I was surprised that the game ended where it ended

Oh and btw. this is actually a kinetic VN. There is one choice (ha, that was almost shocking ) in the third chapter, but that's it.

 

So, I will be moving on now to read https://watercress.itch.io/this-was-for-you before I start another long-term project!

Edited April 2, 2019 by AustriaVNFan

[Seraphim]

Finished Eden yesterday. I loved it, but it's the only visual novel I can think of that probably would have benefited from an open ending. It would have been perfect if they'd just ended it after

Spoiler

the scene at the lake, where Ryou and Sion kiss for the first time, and then leave it up to the reader to decide how the rest of their lives are spent.

I'm looking forward to ef now, which I'll be reading after I'm done with Lucy: The Eternity She Wished For.

[Stormwolf]

7 minutes ago, Seraphim88 said:

Finished Eden yesterday. I loved it, but it's the only visual novel I can think of that probably would have benefited from an open ending. It would have been perfect if they'd just ended it after

  Hide contents

the scene at the lake, where Ryou and Sion kiss for the first time, and then leave it up to the reader to decide how the rest of their lives are spent.

I'm looking forward to ef now, which I'll be reading after I'm done with Lucy: The Eternity She Wished For.

Spoiler

Had a small discussion here with another guy, but did the vn make it look like the meteor was about to hit or miss? I seem to recall that at the very end it seemed like the meteor missed afterall.

 

[Seraphim]

Spoiler

It is never clearly stated what that red thing in the sky actually is. Ryou and Sion speculate that whatever it is will most likely still be there once the world ends, meaning it probably isn't a meteor, since a meteor wouldn't stay the same after colliding with Earth.
Anyway, meteor or not, I didn't see anything implying that the planet survives at the end. The only thing we know for sure is that Sion passes away, and Ryou decides to keep living on for as long as he can.

EDIT: This reply ended up on a new page, so I should probably mention that the spoiler is from Eden.

Edited April 3, 2019 by Seraphim88

[Stormwolf]

Spoiler

Aha. Maybe i read too much into things then. Well, it's a sad story, but a good one nonetheless. Although it could be less vague with it's story elements.

 

[adamstan]

Today I finished Multi's route in ToHeart.

Well, I understand those who say she's best girl. She's moe incarnate You just wanna take her home Route was short, but very enjoyable, with some heartwarming and a bit tearjerking moments, as well as a sweet epilogue. I'm not sure if it was the best, but certainly in the top.

Also, if I'm not mistaken she's one of the first AI/robot-girl heroines to appear in VNs? Especially of the "too human" kind.

From the VNs that I've read, both Ame from Dal Segno and Yumemi from Planetarian seem to be her descendants in some ways.
 

Edited April 3, 2019 by adamstan

[AustriaVNFan]

I finished the little VN 'This was for you' (a short review of it is here) which I found very charming.

Now I have unexpectedly (because it was on sale on Steam) started Grisaia no Kajitsu. I started reading it yesterday and while I have no idea where the story will be going I can already say: finally a cool MC! It's really awesome to see such a proactive MC. So far I am intrigued and looking forward to continue reading tonight. And funny how I started it even though it had been nowhere on my list.

[Seraphim]

I'm about to start reading ef, but I don't know if I'm supposed to choose "Original Minori's Script" or "Advance NNL's Script" in the options. What's the difference, and which one should I use?

[Stormwolf]

16 hours ago, AustriaVNFan said:

I finished the little VN 'This was for you' (a short review of it is here) which I found very charming.

Now I have unexpectedly (because it was on sale on Steam) started Grisaia no Kajitsu. I started reading it yesterday and while I have no idea where the story will be going I can already say: finally a cool MC! It's really awesome to see such a proactive MC. So far I am intrigued and looking forward to continue reading tonight. And funny how I started it even though it had been nowhere on my list.

Grisaia is a bit contradicting where Yuuji is concerned. The vn tries it damnest to tell us that he's really an average and worthless guy (self insert purposes i suppose?) but he doesn't act like it. He's as you say, really cool. 

[nekofuwafuwa]

2 hours ago, Seraphim88 said:

I'm about to start reading ef, but I don't know if I'm supposed to choose "Original Minori's Script" or "Advance NNL's Script" in the options. What's the difference, and which one should I use?

I have the exactly same question as you.

Searching I was only able to find this very old and vague post from Mangagamer explaining the differences. Sorry, I'm also lost but at least I can share with you this.

Quote

minori/NNL Engine Styles

When we worked on ef, we made numerous tweaks pertaining to fade and scroll speed. In addition, with fan feedback, we removed control lockout in various scenes. But let’s say you’d prefer minori’s original Japanese experience. Now you can! With a simple toggle in the configuration menu, you may switch between our technical code and minori’s technical code! Text remains the same in both versions.

Source: https://mangagamer.wordpress.com/2011/10/07/ef-the-first-tale-updates/

(It's kinda fun to browse the old blog and see how much Mangagamer has grown and changed.)

I've also found at the end of the post a image of the manual in a blog that reviewed the LE of ef and say a little about the differences.

Source: https://normanicgrav.blogspot.com/2015/02/unboxing-ef-fairy-tale-of-two-limited.html

And if someone can be more specific about the changes between NNL's script and Minori's script, I would be very happy to listen. 

Edited April 6, 2019 by nekofuwafuwa

[Seraphim]

Ah, I was under the impression that the translation differed as well. Judging by the description on the blog, it sounds like NNL is the superior option, but I would very much like some confirmation from someone with personal experience!

While I'm waiting for a definite answer, I've started reading Hoshi Ori, and I figure I'll just go ahead and alternate between that and ef.
The protagonist gives a much better impression than the one from Hatsukoi, so it seems Tone Work's learned from their mistakes (unless it all goes south later on).

[yelsha57]

1 hour ago, nekofuwafuwa said:

I have the exactly same question as you.

Searching I was only able to find this very old and vague post from Mangagamer explaining the differences. Sorry, I'm also lost but at least I can share with you this.

Source: https://mangagamer.wordpress.com/2011/10/07/ef-the-first-tale-updates/

(It's kinda fun to browse the old blog and see how much Mangagamer has grown and changed.)

I've also found at the end of the post a image of the manual in a blog that reviewed the LE of ef and say a little about the differences.

Source: https://normanicgrav.blogspot.com/2015/02/unboxing-ef-fairy-tale-of-two-limited.html

And if someone can be more specific about the changes between NNL's script and Minori's script, I would be very happy to listen. 

I believe I am reading the NNL script of EF. I didn't know about the 2nd option. Anyway the NNL translation is good so far. 

[Plk_Lesiak]

On 3/23/2019 at 12:15 PM, Mr Poltroon said:

Freakily Charming recently put out another game that I feel truly lives up to the brand name.
Whilst Hitomebore was a very sweet tale of dealing with 'different', and the other title has its own appeal and fanbase, Butterfly Affection, the newest title, deals with the truly creepy. It's not long at all, and takes less than an hour, so I do recommend you give it a try if you're interested in cohabitating with a Gothic horror.

Spoiler

I wonder if I missed any nightmare fuel there, because in general, this was a surprisingly wholesome experience. I really like the subtle difference between the "proper" good ending, when you commit to the relationship and the "fake" good endings, where she drugs you to make you stay after you try escaping. Subtle horror storytelling at its best. 

But maybe that's the point too. When you make your protagonist live with an eldritch abomination, the lack of gory horror twist is a twist on its own? ^^

 

Anyway, quite an excellent little game. Makes me want to try Dorei to no Seikatsu even more, even though I feel like I should wait for when it gets more or less finished. It looks like the author still pushes out major updates and the fan patches aren't exactly up-to-date...

Edited April 6, 2019 by Plk_Lesiak

[Mr Poltroon]

8 minutes ago, Plk_Lesiak said:

Anyway, quite an excellent little game. Makes me want to try Dorei to no Seikatsu even more, even though I feel like I should wait for when it gets more or less finished. It looks like the author still pushes out major updates and the fan patches aren't exactly up-to-date...

I think the fanpatches are up to date, right now?

That said, I do not think that game has too much to offer. Unlike the other two, that one has minimal story content besides like 4 or 5 scenes. Its continued development mostly focuses on adding more outfits/art, more H-Scenes, or trying to optimise the code.

I do hope it gets some more 'story' content someday, though.

[Plk_Lesiak]

16 minutes ago, Mr Poltroon said:

I think the fanpatches are up to date, right now?

That said, I do not think that game has too much to offer. Unlike the other two, that one has minimal story content besides like 4 or 5 scenes. Its continued development mostly focuses on adding more outfits/art, more H-Scenes, or trying to optimise the code.

I do hope it gets some more 'story' content someday, though.

Oh, I guess there's indeed an up-to-date English version now! I guess I'll... Check it out. To see how short the story actually is if you avoid the h-content.

I was always extremely curious about the theme and if there's that little story... I can at least read it in one evening. :3

Edited April 6, 2019 by Plk_Lesiak

[Stormwolf]

Utewarerumono mask of truth

Spoiler

 

What can i say? The plotline is good and im excited to see how the war will develop. Also it has a wide range of interesting characters. What do i think about Hakuo in this though? Absolute dogshit. Plotline about protagonist transforming into someone else is shit to begin with, but actually becoming him as it goes is worse. I liked Hakuo and did not want to play the game with oshtor as main lead. Yes, i hoped he'd be found out properly or realizing how pointless and silly his decission was to transform, but alas.. how is kuon though? Shit as well. It was truly sad at the end of the last game, and i got such hopes when she realized haku is oshtor with the emotions she displayed in the scene..... But that was all discarded and she just became the typical grumpy harem member who's neither too close nor too distant. Shit is what it is.

Well, the game got a lot of faults, but it is exiting. Just not in the main characters department. Its a harem through and throuhh, even if you know who tje main girl is from the get-go.

Gameplay is fun, but could have been a bit faster. At least let us skip those slow animations.

 

 

[AustriaVNFan]

On 6.4.2019 at 3:33 AM, Stormwolf said:

Grisaia is a bit contradicting where Yuuji is concerned. The vn tries it damnest to tell us that he's really an average and worthless guy (self insert purposes i suppose?) but he doesn't act like it. He's as you say, really cool. 

Really? Actually I am thinking quite the opposite: that the MC is quite obviously overpowered and way above average. Surely, he is weird enough at times that you can easily see why he goes to school with these others strange pupils but other than that I can see nothing average about him. But perhaps I am just not far enough in the game yet.

[Stormwolf]

1 hour ago, AustriaVNFan said:

Really? Actually I am thinking quite the opposite: that the MC is quite obviously overpowered and way above average. Surely, he is weird enough at times that you can easily see why he goes to school with these others strange pupils but other than that I can see nothing average about him. But perhaps I am just not far enough in the game yet.

It's related to his backstory.

[Plk_Lesiak]

10 minutes ago, Stormwolf said:

It's related to his backstory.

Well, yeah, but the game never really suggest he's average or not very capable. He would like to be average because of how messed up his life has been and he's occasionally resigned/brooding because he considers himself a murderer. I don't think these are even spoilers, it's established quite clearly early in the common route of Kajitsu, later parts only explain the details of his past and the work he does.

[Stormwolf]

55 minutes ago, Plk_Lesiak said:

Well, yeah, but the game never really suggest he's average or not very capable. He would like to be average because of how messed up his life has been and he's occasionally resigned/brooding because he considers himself a murderer. I don't think these are even spoilers, it's established quite clearly early in the common route of Kajitsu, later parts only explain the details of his past and the work he does.

It does say he's average or below average. Naturally he is capable now. But he's capable because of his training etc.

[Eurobeatz]

Finished MYTH last month. Definitely improved on the third chapter, I actually enjoyed myself most of the time. Overall, the game was really interesting in terms of the themes it dealt with. However, I personally didn't enjoy the writing style, it was simply too confusing and dense at times. I would have enjoyed the story more if it were written in a more traditional fashion, revealing information and plot twists to unravel the plot gradually, as opposed to leaving the reader mostly in the dark until the end. 7/10 - interesting concept for sure but just not really what I was looking for in terms of entertainment.