What are you playing?

[Eclipsed]

I actually enjoyed Danganronpa solely because of the loud, obnoxious, over the top characters and bombastic class trials , but can totally see how it can be off putting to some. Definitely think just watching the Class Trials is a bit of a disservice though, that stuff should be played!

Aaaand there's another person who vouches pretty heavily for VA-11 HALL-A, I'm definitely gonna bump it up priority wise on my to read list, it's been on my backlog for years now.

 

~~
So I was supposed to read Flowers, but work started picking up again for me yay 2021 so I did jack all in terms of reading this month. Also realized that Flowers is not a trilogy, but instead a quadrilogy or w.e you wanna call four entries, so I've decided to hold off on it since the last entry le volume sur Hiver apparently isn't EN yet.

I did pick up some really random short VN called Prison Princess. It was aight. Just like Neko Para you expected a short VN about cute cat grills and !animated! pr0n, Prison Princess is a short VN about helping two princesses escape a dungeon. Some of the puzzles can put the heroines in some pretty... provocative situations, and there's standard live2D animations going on and !touch support! so if you get tempted enough you can totally just say fk the puzzle and tap away on the heroines to hear all of their moaning goodness. Which, not surprisingly, will lower your compatibility with said heroine(s) and lock you into the bad endings. Escape first, play later!

 

~~
I also picked up Yumeutsutsu Remaster. I think this will be my first Yuri / girl's love VN? The protagonist is (first) Ai Ohtori, a 21 year old naive cutie country girl who moves to the city to work at a small game development company. You'd think this VN would thus be heavy game design jargon infodumpy and maybe Ai would be this genius programmer with mad skillz or perhaps SOMETHING technical, but unfortunately Ai's position is circumstantial: she has never worked a job in her life prior, has absolutely 0 game design knowledge, and she was mainly approached by the company's President, Honoka, to work as an Assistant Director under her younger sister, 19 y.o Director Kokoro Yanagiya who I guess has been in some sort of slump and so the President went out of her way to set this up to rectify things power-of-sisterly love-style.

 

Unfortunately, Ai and Kokoro are not on the greatest of terms, and that seems to be the core conflict of this VN:

Ai's a really nice girl, it's great to have a female protagonist with moege-tier / casual / first world problems inner monologues for once. Most of the otomes I've read were mature story based so the protagonists and their inner monologues often reflected that. 

[adamstan]

It's been exactly 3 years today since I finished first Majikoi. I think my favorite heroine routes were Miyako, Mayucchi and Momoyo. But the ultimate best was true route, and it was what gave the VN such high score in my list (8).

6 hours ago, Leonor said:

Usually, I'm neutral to h-scenes and I even read them just for the sake of reading everything, but this time (and I'm adopting this from now on, unless I need them for the plot) I skipped them all.

H-scenes in this one are numerous and while some of them were not bad, most are rather cringey. And Yamato's obsession with anal soon started getting on my nerves I think I might, just out of curiosity, check out the Steam edition, when JAST finally releases it

Edited January 19, 2021 by adamstan

[littleshogun]

About Yumeutsutsu, I did remember that the writing between four routes are very different. By very different I mean looks like each writer did what they think it's the best when it come to narration, and therefore the perspective writing between four routes are vary. To elaborate, Saki's route didn't have perspective but instead there's only non-stop conversation (ie no monologue) just like the manga without narration, Nana's perspective is fully focused on Nana with few lines back to Ai, Marie route has standard everchanging perspective between Ai and Marie, and lastly Kokoro's route is goes as normal with Ai in charge of monologue just like common route. Also I like that the textbox color here is reflect on which character perspective that currently the reader read. As for the twist, let's just say that it's not as surprising as Hakuai although it's still quite wham in the VN itself. Either way have fun in regard of Yumeutsutsu.

For both of Carnevale and Rhapsody, well don't expect much in regard of those two is the good advice that I can give. Although it's less in regard of the VNs are bad and it's more that you better not expect something amazing in those two VNs because after all disappointment was born from high expectation. That said, those two VNs are still good on their own so have fun in regard of that. Also Carnevale engine here is really bugged, so it would be wise to follow the translator advice to not right click on it (Although admittedly it's quite annoying in that you can only use keyboard to access the menu). In case you have doubt on the translation thanks to translator infamous translation of Cross Channel in the past, I'll just say that the translation is okay despite some of awkward wording, or to make some comparison here I have more problem with typo at 11eyes than Carnevale's translation and yet I still say that it's nice to have 11eyes translated.

Edited January 20, 2021 by littleshogun

[Mr Poltroon]

@Eclipsed Under what rock did you pull out that yuri game I knew nothing of!?
I mean, not to say I always know about all releases or anything, but I know these developers (Nurse Love Addiction) and find it odd I never registered that this thing released, much less that it had a fandisc/sequel.
These guys have been escaping me, so I better register this all down.

[Plk_Lesiak]

So, I'm done with VA-11 Hall-A, outside of the prologue chapters. I think it only lacks a more powerful ending and a bit more fleshing out of some secondary characters – with that it would be a 10/10 contender, but I still give it a strong 9/10. Even the gameplay showed a little bit more depth than I initially though – you not only get awarded for learning your clients' tastes, but also should actually care about making them leave as much money as possible, pushing bigger and more expensive drinks. It's a very low-key, but fun kind of puzzle, rewarding you with the ability to buy all kinds of thematic junk for Jill's apartment. And while I might complain about episodic characters being... too episodic, the game also surprised me with some stuff. Particularly with how deep the subplot of the ghost girl from the demo went. It was weirdly satisfying. ^^

On 1/19/2021 at 5:19 AM, Eclipsed said:

I actually enjoyed Danganronpa solely because of the loud, obnoxious, over the top characters and bombastic class trials , but can totally see how it can be off putting to some. Definitely think just watching the Class Trials is a bit of a disservice though, that stuff should be played!

To be fair, I don't hate them, I just never felt they had the same amount of substance as AA trials. Those were also over-the-top and silly, but felt more like an actual battle of wits, while the wit of anyone in that Danganronpa trial room was highly questionable. xD Also, some parts of the gameplay, like rhythm-game sections, are something I'm criminally bad at, so I think I'd end up playing on casual and still feeling they were pointless. Plus, while I generally like the cast, the whole thing lacks a proper focus on main characters. Kyoko is cool, but she's an enigma for most of the game and Makoto... Uh, he's hardly anything. I mean, he's somewhat believable as random dumb kid being used as a tool by Kyoko, so she can keep a low profile, but that's hardly a satisfying role to play.

Edited January 24, 2021 by Plk_Lesiak

[Plk_Lesiak]

And continuing with unfair comparisons, I've started going through Coffee Talk, the VA-11 Hall-A rip-off... And I'm starting to think it was a bad idea to give it a try straight after finishing the latter. It's quite stylish and interesting with the modern-fantasy approach to the mundane theme of being a barista, but it's just really hard to compete with VA-11 Hall-A's writing and atmosphere. The biggest issue is probably the protagonist being a complete blank slate, at least as far as I've seen. While Jill is reserved in her interaction with her clients most of the time, the personality and backstory she brings into the game make everything that happens in it more meaningful. Her backroom interactions with Dana and Gil were always funny and build up to interesting side stories. Here, you have just this self-insert owner and clients who are quite often talking with each other rather than with the protagonist. It's a lot of subtle differences that result in the whole formula feeling tepid, rather than captivating, despite visuals and music that could possibly carry it. But maybe it will get better further down the line...

[Stormwolf]

quite normal that we get copies of great stuff where the developers don't really seem to understand what made the original great in the first place. 

[fuyopon]

Well, one more route completed! This time, Wanko's   

BOY, compared to Chris', this route was so much better! Although the beginning was a little boring and dragged, I had a lot of fun (and tears)! Maybe I felt it dragged because I was rushing and I had a huge headache on those two days of reading lol

Overall, I liked this route. It wasn't heavy on the romance, which is something I LOVE and find rare in eroge.

Spoiler

I cried during the whole drama parts (Wanko's mental breakdown after she gave up her dream and when she met again with Momo), my heart couldn't take it sobs

Well, her h-scene... wasn't bad. I mean, I only read the first 40 lines or so and skipped the rest but it didn't look too forced. I'd still rather have a friendship route with her, tho. Like, every little thing but they remained friends. That'd be perfect

Spoiler

I still haven't done her after story so I can't say much abt that, but I liked to see all grown up hehe  she looked so professional!

-----

Next is Miyako, which I'm already focusing on;   

Let's see, Miyako isn't much of a favorite of mine... I hope this changes that!

Edited January 25, 2021 by Leonor

[adamstan]

Recently I've been feeling strong urge to re-read Princess Evangile and Konosora for the third time. It seems that they have become my "comfort VNs" .

Quote

A comfort VN is a VN that you re-read several times regardless of knowing what's gonna happen and when. Maybe it's because you are getting tired or overwhelmed of deciding what to read next, or because you are feeling down, or just because you like revisiting those characters and stories.

While they aren't the greatest that I've read, my feelings about them are almost exactly as in quote above. But before that I have to finish Sorairo, and then I think I'll try Worldend Syndrome.

[Novel21]

I'm playing Utawarerumono: Prelude to the Fallen on PS Vita and I really love game very much.

It have nice story and gamplay are very easy to understand.

It have a lot of drama, friendship and tragedy.

It does have romance but not very much. 

I used to have PS4 and play game on it.

I have plans to play Pokemon Super Mystery dungeons on 3DS and play games on PC.

Does someone know how good Taishou x Alice translation are on PC?

[Dreamysyu]

29 minutes ago, Novel21 said:

Does someone know how good Taishou x Alice translation are on PC?

The other translations from the same translator are good, so it should be fine.

[Plk_Lesiak]

So, Coffee Talk... I want to say it's a bit slow-burn, because it did got better after the midpoint of the story, but it's also too short to really get in-depth with any of its subplots. Also, dialogue never stopped being a bit dry and devoid of humour. The comedy relief character, the alien, got a few funny lines, but in the end, the game lacked impact both when it tried to be witty and when it tried to be dramatic. Also because it has little going for it outside of dialogue – the artstyle is cool, but not really captivating or expressive and the gameplay... I can't say I liked much about it. It relies not as much on knowing what to serve and using proper ingredients as on adding stuff in proper order which is rarely intuitive. You have little time to learn what your regulars like and the process of finding the right drink is more trial-and-error than anything. I mean, I love coffee (and tea) so I don't know how the game made experimenting with it unappealing but somehow it managed. There was a rare good puzzle or two in there, but overall, I wished this hole primary-secondary-tertiary ingredient system burned in hell. From what I've seen even endless mode failed to do anything interesting with the mechanics...

Well, at least the main subplots weren't bad and the extras were cool. Also, the music was objectively speaking really cool. Ultimately, a 6,5/10. It has its charm (and maybe I just got spoiled by VA-11 Hall-A) but I think it could've done both its specific storylines and the concept of being a barista a lot better.

Edited January 26, 2021 by Plk_Lesiak

[Larxe1]

Hakuchumu was good but as usual for me, I kinda forgot to continue playing it and lost the will to read it. When I'm busy I tend to put off my VN's and then I don't feel like continuing it anymore, a bad habit of mine. 

Instead, I'm reading two visual novels. One to satisfy my itch for highschool romances that don't blueball you. I usually feel  like that when I read romcom's in manga, I just want my progress man. The other VN I read because i actually want a good story.

Shirogane x Spirits is the former, good god are the tits big. Why are their nipples popping out from their uniforms, thats seriously one of my peeves in some romcom vn's nowadays. I cant take it seriously when the girls nipples are popping out. Dont they wear a bra? Aside from that its standard-fare. Have played like only an hour of it but its like majikoi lite. Battle romcom in which there really isnt much complex in the battles as its more of just showing strength and emotion stuff.  I read this on and off as I get easily bored if i read this kind of game (basically an average romcom game) too long.

Mahoutsukai no yoru is the latter, and it's beautiful as hell. The art, ui, everything about it is absolutely stunning. The OST is amazing too, its kind of immersive in that way, it feels like im watching a movie. Sadly though there wasn't voice acting but its actually pretty good in spite of that. I prefer voices though as it helps me know the character better but its an artistic choice of the author. Its been long since I actually read something like this in which the monologues are incredibly long, last time I read something like that was oretsuba and that was a year ago. Nasu delivers though, there's just something about the way he writes that is enchanting and also funny. Soujuurou makes me laugh a lot along with Aoko. TBH I didn't expect Aoko's personality to be a neurotic student council president though, my image of her from Tsukihime was someone who goes with the flow and a genki-ko (cheerful girl). 

[crazyjosiah]

i am currently playing Clannad...  got through Misae , Tomoyo , Yukine, the Fujibayashi twins, and Kappei ..currently working with a girl who might possibly be on the spectrum who goes by the name Kotomi weird yet beautiful she is.....i'm having fun with the Clannad game yet it is at the same time kind of a drag 

[Larxe1]

On 1/27/2021 at 3:10 AM, Larxe1 said:

Hakuchumu was good but as usual for me, I kinda forgot to continue playing it and lost the will to read it. When I'm busy I tend to put off my VN's and then I don't feel like continuing it anymore, a bad habit of mine. 

Instead, I'm reading two visual novels. One to satisfy my itch for highschool romances that don't blueball you. I usually feel  like that when I read romcom's in manga, I just want my progress man. The other VN I read because i actually want a good story.

Shirogane x Spirits is the former, good god are the tits big. Why are their nipples popping out from their uniforms, thats seriously one of my peeves in some romcom vn's nowadays. I cant take it seriously when the girls nipples are popping out. Dont they wear a bra? Aside from that its standard-fare. Have played like only an hour of it but its like majikoi lite. Battle romcom in which there really isnt much complex in the battles as its more of just showing strength and emotion stuff.  I read this on and off as I get easily bored if i read this kind of game (basically an average romcom game) too long.

Mahoutsukai no yoru is the latter, and it's beautiful as hell. The art, ui, everything about it is absolutely stunning. The OST is amazing too, its kind of immersive in that way, it feels like im watching a movie. Sadly though there wasn't voice acting but its actually pretty good in spite of that. I prefer voices though as it helps me know the character better but its an artistic choice of the author. Its been long since I actually read something like this in which the monologues are incredibly long, last time I read something like that was oretsuba and that was a year ago. Nasu delivers though, there's just something about the way he writes that is enchanting and also funny. Soujuurou makes me laugh a lot along with Aoko. TBH I didn't expect Aoko's personality to be a neurotic student council president though, my image of her from Tsukihime was someone who goes with the flow and a genki-ko (cheerful girl). 

Bruh, the comments on Shirogane x Spirits were totally right. This didn't really focus on the romance aspect but more on how it builds up and the silly battles. Jesus christ I was surprised while reading that I reached the ending and it didnt feel like an ending. I didn't even see them date lol. I just saw them asking each other out in the end and then fucking but seriously no date or love scenes that much? The H-scenes weren't even that satisfying. 

Now that the negatives are out of the way, I reallly didn't expect this to be quite good. It knows its strength and uses it a lot. This screamed like something that warrants a fandisc or something as the cast is really fucking big for a mid length game. All of the cast is even interesting and thats something rare in VN's, makes you want a route for all those side characters more lol as I wasn't really interested in the main heroines which are your schoolmates. The game is funny and has something like a majikoi mood and funny. Also in the sprites, only the main heroines have their nipples erect in their uniforms, why? why do that, it aint even that hot. In IRL its hot but in anime it just looks kinda strange IMO. All of the other women characters dont even have their nipples erect so why are the main heroines having erect nipples? Is it because of the uniform of their school? My questions will never be answered and the answer is probably because big titz win by the artists anyway.

I read mahoutsukai no yoru as a side vn since damn is the text heavy that it tires me out, gonna reread chusingura while im at it

[fuyopon]

Okay, one more route! Well, it's been a week since I've read this one but I forgot to post it here lol 

Gotta be honest, this was the one which surprised me the most! I was expecting some character development, but not this kind. It was good haha

I skipped all h-scenes and I couldn't care less about them but damn, I think this might be on the same level as Wanko's route: while Wanko's was more emotional for me, Miyako's was better paced in its entirety (Wanko's beginning was a little too boring lol). I'm gonna give it an 8/10!

Also, that "after" was VERY cute and wholesome. 10/10 

Spoiler

Just one thing... I didn't get the whole fortune teller thing? Who was supposed to die? My pals guessed it'd be Miyako killing herself and I was like "damn, that's morbid..." I got really depressed for a moment there  

Anywaaaaay, I'm reading Mayu's route right now! What's the deal with her ass...

[adamstan]

So, I finished PSP version of Sorairo.

I have kind of mixed feelings about it. It was definitely enjoyable, and the concept with three "worlds" seemed interesting, but at the same time I feel like it was kind of unpolished, lacking that finishing touch. Also, quality of the routes was rather uneven. Ai's and Hanako's main routes were decent, but rather standard moege fare, without anything standing out too much. Side routes in each "world" were rather short - but they provided nice "what-if" scenarios or showed a bit different side of given heroine.

Spoiler

I think the most interesting usage of "worlds" concept was kind of personality reversal between Hanako and Tsubame in Ai's world, as a result of Kenji's words near the end of prologue - seeing how he dotes on Ai they demand that he make them his little sisters too. He, jokingly, says that Hanako should calm down a bit, while Tsubame should liven up. Fastforward to teenage time, and that's exactly what they did

Nevertheless, if it stopped at that, it would get 7/10 score at best. But there enters Tsubame's route, which screams "TRUE ROUTE" in big letters. It was great - much better and longer than the other two. It also tried to pull off a bit of Clannad (and did quite well at that), extending into struggles of adult family life of Kenji and Tsubame. Really great, and I'm glad that I listened to Accany's review's advice and saved this route for last. It's just a shame that there was only one such great route. So, after all, it gets 7.5/10.

I think now I'll try World End Syndrome.

I bought PS4 version, but I'm going to play Switch version in emulator... Sadly, there's no PS4 emu yet (and I don't have the console), and Switch physical edition seems to be sold out everywhere I checked... Still, both version have the same dev and publisher, so I feel this is alright at least from the ethical/moral point of view...

Edited February 4, 2021 by adamstan

[adamstan]

I just finished my first playthrough (prologue) of World End Syndrome

Spoiler

Meaning the unavoidable Worst Ending after linear prologue

My impressions so far - I like the setting, the characters, and little animations sprinkled here and there - blinking, lip-sync and various animated elements in the backgrounds. I'm not the fan of nameable protagonist, and scenes felt a bit disconnected sometimes. Perhaps some more narration would be in order? But then, perhaps it has something to do with protagonists' condition?

Also, translation has been a bit of hit and miss so far. Dialogues are done pretty decently most of the time, but some lines in narration feel rather awkward. Like the use of present tense while obviously reporting past events that happened before.

Nevertheless it got me interested, and I'm looking forward to subsequent runs, romancing those cute girls and discovering town's mystery

 

Edited February 4, 2021 by adamstan

[Seraphim]

Just finished 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, and, well, I'm kinda underwhelmed.

The overarching plot was pretty decent, but the presentation; not so much. I mean, you're just dropped in the middle of things without any idea what's going on, and then you're expected to keep track of a ton of characters and their relationships while the game jumps back and forth between different timelines in basically every scene. Things obviously got clearer as the story progressed, but the hours leading up to that point weren't very enjoyable and I don't feel like the conclusion to the story was satisfying enough to make up for it.
I found the characters completely uninteresting, in large parts due to the sheer number of them, which effectively counteracted individual character growth. This is a common problem for me in games with a large cast, and this one was no exception. I could barely keep track of their names, much less care about what happened to any of them. Now that I'm done, I can say that not a single one of them left much of a lasting impression on me, save for maybe Miwako, who wasn't even part of the main cast.

In conclusion, I wouldn't say this is a bad game, but I had quite high expectations diving into it and that ultimately ended up making this a lackluster experience for me when it didn't live up to them.

[Mr Poltroon]

1 hour ago, Seraphim said:

Just finished 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, and, well, I'm kinda underwhelmed.

The overarching plot was pretty decent, but the presentation; not so much. I mean, you're just dropped in the middle of things without any idea what's going on, and then you're expected to keep track of a ton of characters and their relationships while the game jumps back and forth between different timelines in basically every scene. Things obviously got clearer as the story progressed, but the hours leading up to that point weren't very enjoyable and I don't feel like the conclusion to the story was satisfying enough to make up for it.
I found the characters completely uninteresting, in large parts due to the sheer number of them, which effectively counteracted individual character growth. This is a common problem for me in games with a large cast, and this one was no exception. I could barely keep track of their names, much less care about what happened to any of them. Now that I'm done, I can say that not a single one of them left much of a lasting impression on me, save for maybe Miwako, who wasn't even part of the main cast.

In conclusion, I wouldn't say this is a bad game, but I had quite high expectations diving into it and that ultimately ended up making this a lackluster experience for me when it didn't live up to them.

Well, since I just happened to have played it recently (and replayed it... twice), I can share my opinion on the matter.
Whatever the opposite you said, except when it comes to liking things. Or, in other words, I like it a lot.

[fuyopon]

[Majikoi]

Ooookay, I just finished Mayucchi's route! 

 

Oh... WOW. This route was good, very good! I really liked the pacing for this one~

Spoiler

This is a really minute thing, but that gay guy hitting on Capt was... I don't know. At the same time, it was cool of them to acknowledge the existence of gay people as not exclusively a joke (even if it wasn't for the plot either) but, as an aro/ace person, I relate to Capt a lot of times and I mean, you CAN be into no one lol I also understand it's a vn from 2009, so it's okay.

First, let me just say how adorable Matsukaze is! Also, Mayu's "awawawa"s are super cute, it makes me wanna hug her hehe 

I played this entire route in two days and I'm writing it right after finishing it so I'm not sure if I'll be able to talk about everything but let's see...

I really liked her friendship with Iyo, they are very cute together! I like seeing different personalities around like hers. Oh, yeah, the giant battle royale was great!! I loved the battle between Mayu and Shakadou, I love seeing Mayu's power, absolute poggers 

The trip to... wherever-they-went was fine, I guess? The non-alcoholic water scene was funny, I gotta admit.

Finally, the ending. The fight between the Premium girl and Mayu was such a good moment, with Iyo hugging her and all! Oh, and Matsukaze's farewell, oooh... I felt sad. 

Now, my pals said the downside of this route is the romance - or the lack of thereof. Personally, I felt it was fine. I didn't miss it. Actually, I felt really awkward reading those scenes, like I was a third wheel or something lol Maybe it's because (as I mentioned before in my spoiler-tagged commentary) I'm aroace, but I really could do without Yamato's comments. I don't know, I guess I just feel weird because everyone is so friggin' horny all the damn time, oof-

Wanko and Capt are the only ones I can feel comfy around 

-------

Awwwwrighty! Next one is Momoyo, and then there's only the sub routes and the true ending left!

Edited February 5, 2021 by Leonor

[fuyopon]

[Majikoi]

Oh! I wasn't expecting to finish Momoyo's route this fast! 

Oh my GODS!! This route was amazing for sure! My pals told me this would be mostly Yamato being Momo's plaything so I didn't have my hopes up but nope, it was much better! I mean, as much as I like seeing Yamato being toyed with, I wouldn't have cared much for this route if that was all it was.
 

Spoiler

The days until the first confession were okay; I didn't dislike them or found them boring, but they weren't exactly exciting. The date was okay - that adorable CG with Yamato blushing was super worth it!  

Then, the Kawakami Battle - oh, that battle! It was what I had been waiting for in Majikoi! For a vn of "samurai girls", I was expecting way more action scenes.
It was very good hehe except... except for one thing, right after 2-F won. It made me cringe when Captain just fell in love with Momoyo out of nowhere. Sure, she looked cute, but like, seriously? It felt too forced, like they just wanted some weird rivalry at the last bit just "to make things interesting"... me no likey. As an aro/ace individual, I really liked to see Captain as an accidental representation, but that scene made me feel like he "had" to some day fall in love, that he couldn't just live his life without actually experiencing romantic or sexual attraction. We could say attraction isn't as labeled or strict as that, but in the end, it just felt forced for the sake of rivalry and a motive for Yamato to ask Momo out. 

Well, I can forget that little scene and just say I absolutely loved this route! Sure, I can't really see Momo as her lovey-dovey self (especially in her after story) without feeling weird and cringe, but maybe that's just me.

I'm reading Moro's route right now and will probably read the other before I write my updates here! Toodles! 

Edited February 7, 2021 by Leonor

[adamstan]

Aaaand -  World End Syndrome already finished.

It was shorter than I expected. Nevertheless, I liked it.

From the three "questions" routes I think I liked Hanako's the best - it had the best flow, and I feel like their relationship evolved most naturally. Then, Yukino's route was kind of detective story, and then there was great Miu's route, and true ending following that. Those parts were definitely the best for me. Later part of Miu's route, and most of the "Truth" route had lots of tearjerking moments. Loved it. Some twists and reveals also got me by surprise - but I have to admit, that I'm newbie when it comes to mystery VNs, so perhaps I'm easy to fool

My main complaint about this title is map movement system. The way it is implemented it kind of kills the flow of the story, and makes the whole experience unnecessarily fragmented. Unvoiced scenes were also a bummer.

Still, the story itself was good, especially the finale, so I think it's 7.5/10 VN for me. ("potentially great title hindered by some annoying shortcomings" - namely underwhelming execution of map movement in that case).

And WTF with that sequel teaser at the very-very-end? It means now we have to wait who-knows-how-long for the sequel... Somebody even angrily called WES "30 hour prologue to the sequel"

Edited February 7, 2021 by adamstan

[adamstan]

Now that I think about it, after finishing true route I'm unsure about some details in World End Syndrome's plot (HEAVY SPOLIERS AHEAD!) :

Spoiler

 

1. According to Miu and Yamato, Yomibito can only be killed by decapitation. Yet in the Worst Ending Yukino got stabbed to death. How's that possible if she was Yomibito?
2. I wonder who was the killer in the Worst Ending - was it Mibu or Kaori? (couldn't be Yukino since she was one of the victims)
3. At the end of Maimi's and Saya's routes there was a mention of the massacre in which all characters got killed. I suppose those were done by either Yukino or Kaori who had finally "fallen into Yomi". But, interestingly, no such thing happened after Hanako's route. Strange...

 

People who also finished it - what do you think about those points?

[adamstan]

Yesterday I started reading PS3 version of Himawari no Kyoukai to Nagai Natsuyasumi (which has just arrived)

I'm still quite early in the prologue, but it looks promising (and pretty - art is really nice )

Unfortunately I have some technical issues with it (I don't know if it's just due to emulation, or the game itself is broken) - while it runs seemingly without problems, sometimes it will randomly freeze while advancing to the next line. And autosaves/quicksaves don't work properly in emulator. So yesterday I lost 3 hours worth of progress The workaround is to remember to save manually often (at least on scene transitions, when auto-save message pops up ). A bit bothersome, but it looks sooo much better than low-res PSP version, so I'm sticking with it