Common Routes

[babiker]

Me and my friends recently did a podcast about common routes, and I thought I'd get the discussion going here. I'm interested in knowing what the general consensus on common routes is over here. Here are some of the questions that were asked in da podcast:-

What are your preferences in a common route? Long vs short?

What is the best way to do a common route? 

Are VNs without common routes better for it?

 

 

[Asonn]

The length doesn't really matter as long as it keeps me interest, so it needs to be either funny, have a backstory or connect the points along with the progress. I don't like the aimless common route that is just there to fill the game with random moe shit scenes.

[TexasDice]

Common routes are almost always better than the character routes.

[babiker]

Just now, TexasDice said:

Common routes are almost always better than the character routes.

Wrong thread, I think this belongs to "how to piss of Fuwa in one sentence".

[Arcadeotic]

Ehh, if it actually serves a purpose and isn't random shitty pandering, I'll usually like it

Exception is if the SoL is funny and high-quality, like in Kajitsu

[solidbatman]

One guess as to which I voted for. No peaking! 

[Caio000]

I tend to enjoy common routes as much or more than characters routes.

[Zidan209]

If a large part of the story is there, they are important, but that way they are long, and i will only read them once. If they are short, it s just fine, or better when there is early branching plot

So, i both, like and don t like them 

[Barktooth]

It depends, if it's well executed they can be more interesting than the character routes, especially if there's an element of mystery as you are slowly introduced to the setting. Still, if it's a long one I usually fast forward through it for every playthrough except the first and last, which makes it a bit annoying to read those scenes that appear only after you've read a certain route.

[Codesterz]

In general I do like and prefer there being a common route. The common route is typically used as a get to know them arc or whatever you want to call it. Usually there isn't any romance here and is meant to get the player more invested into the characters or setting. The biggest issue I tend to have with the common route is more related to the way choices affect the it and how most VNs transition from common route to a characters route. Many choices will cause a short scene to change and then it goes right back the standard common route. This lack of diversity and meaningful choices are my main issues with them as you are always just fast forwarding through them on replays. I think common routes should work with a branching story aspect. By this I mean you make a choice(for this example we will say there is 2 choices) and then you branch into common route A or common route B. Common route A brings you closer to characters 1 and 2 while common route B brings you closer to characters 3 and 4. Route A and B scenes are different and so are the next set of choices. This next set of choices will determine if you continue along your current common route or go to common route C which will have an eventual choice that can lead you into the the other route(A to B, B to A or stay in C which may lockout characters 1 and 4 ). I think taking an approach like this will make the common route choices feel like they have more of an impact and are more meaningful. This has the catch though where you can't use the easy point based system most VNs use nowadays. Choice 1 gives +1 affection to character 1 and choice 2 gives +1 to affection of character 2. At the end of the common route tally up those affection points to determine which character has the most points and if you have enough points to enter that route. Hopefully I explained everything well enough to give you a general idea of what I mean. I woke up not too long ago so I'm a bit out of it still. Pretty much I like the existence of a common route I just dislike the lazy way they are currently implemented. If you actually read the wall of text you have my thanks.

[granit]

When I started watching subbed anime I enjoyed romantic comedies, harem and slice of life animes and the fact that most VNs have the same "feeling" in the common route was a very big factor why I got interested in visual novels in the first place. So because of that I've always enjoyed common routes. (And It's a bonus for me if they are long and maybe episodic too.)

5 hours ago, babiker said:

Are VNs without common routes better for it?

I think darker themed VNs and heavily story focused VNs are better without it, but for charages, nakiges, and moeges it's a must.

[TexasDice]

5 hours ago, babiker said:

Wrong thread, I think this belongs to "how to piss of Fuwa in one sentence".

I actually can't think of many VNs that have notably better character routes than common routes. Noble Works, Dracu-Riot, Yume Miru Kusuri and maybe Osadai, I guess. Check my VNDB to ask me on my opinion on specific VNs.

Most of the time, things are too weird to judge them. For Grisaia, I have to judge the character routes as dramas and the common route as slice of life comedy, so no comparison possible. Others, like Kira*Kira, Ayakashibito, Deardrops, etc, flawlessly attach their character routes to the common route pace and mood, so they basically become one cohesive script (and that is probably exactly how a VN should feel). 

[Kabu]

12 hours ago, Codesterz said:

In general I do like and prefer there being a common route. The common route is typically used as a get to know them arc or whatever you want to call it. Usually there isn't any romance here and is meant to get the player more invested into the characters or setting. The biggest issue I tend to have with the common route is more related to the way choices affect the it and how most VNs transition from common route to a characters route. Many choices will cause a short scene to change and then it goes right back the standard common route. This lack of diversity and meaningful choices are my main issues with them as you are always just fast forwarding through them on replays. I think common routes should work with a branching story aspect. By this I mean you make a choice(for this example we will say there is 2 choices) and then you branch into common route A or common route B. Common route A brings you closer to characters 1 and 2 while common route B brings you closer to characters 3 and 4. Route A and B scenes are different and so are the next set of choices. This next set of choices will determine if you continue along your current common route or go to common route C which will have an eventual choice that can lead you into the the other route(A to B, B to A or stay in C which may lockout characters 1 and 4 ). I think taking an approach like this will make the common route choices feel like they have more of an impact and are more meaningful. This has the catch though where you can't use the easy point based system most VNs use nowadays. Choice 1 gives +1 affection to character 1 and choice 2 gives +1 to affection of character 2. At the end of the common route tally up those affection points to determine which character has the most points and if you have enough points to enter that route. Hopefully I explained everything well enough to give you a general idea of what I mean. I woke up not too long ago so I'm a bit out of it still. Pretty much I like the existence of a common route I just dislike the lazy way they are currently implemented. If you actually read the wall of text you have my thanks.

I actually agree here. Da Capo II did something similar, where a certain choice in the common route changed it dramatically and I loved that they did it that way. The common route actually kind of felt like multiple different stories depending on the choices you made, despite some scenes here and there still being the same or similar.

[Decay]

I don't think you can definitively say "no VNs should have common routes" or "all VNs should have common routes." It's based on the kind of story that they're trying to tell. Stories that are heavily focused on character drama benefit greatly from allowing you to get to know the involved characters and slowly watching relationships grow. 

In general, I prefer them. Many of the common routes people most frequently complain about, such as Grisaia and Rewrite, I actually enjoy quite a bit. And I said this before, but Grisaia no Kajitsu's common route is actually my favorite part of that game. 

And to @Codesterz, you should definitely give Da Capo 2 a shot.

[Satsuki]

I enjoy common route if it's good. I don't enjoy it if it's bad. Simple as that. 

Generally speaking, I don't mind common route.

[andzalot55]

For me, I want common routes to last long but not too long; it varies on the plot. Also, VNs are better with common routes. I don't know why you would play a VN without it.