Visual Novel Masterclass

[Dowdz]

Greetings! I'm Dowdz and I'm very happy to be here!

I've been reading VNs on and off for a while now, and I'm very interested in the medium itself. The stories, the art, the music, it's all very fascinating to me.

I was wondering, if anyone has a list of what they might consider a 'Master class' on visual novels. Between the writing, the art, and the music, I'd like done recommendations that set the standard or exceeded expectations, with regard to its style, storytelling, and score. I understand this is a broad request, but I find this stuff so damn interesting, and I'd really like to hear some solid recs from people who enjoy this stuff as well, rather than just googling 'Top 10 VNs'.

Full disclosure, I loved G-Senjou no Maou. I've played Steins;Gate, 999 and VLR, along with a few others. My interests skew towards horror, SciFi, and fantasy, as opposed to slice of life and other genres. However, if you feel something is really amazing, please feel free to recommend it.

I really appreciate it, and I look forward to any and all answers I receive. Thanks!

[PapaRabbi]

Kara no Shoujo is for you.

[Beichuuka]

I wonder if he updates these anymore.

Edited October 24, 2017 by Beichuuka

[Benji Price]

Majikoi can also fit your likings.

[Sparteh]

1 hour ago, Beichuuka said:

I wonder if he updates these anymore.

I don't think so. Dies Irae, Eden*, Tokyo Babel are still listed as untranslated, though they have been translated a while ago. 

 

I personally recommend those in this list, because they are really good. In addition, Fata morgana no Yakata and Umineko no Naku Koro ni

[littleshogun]

In regard of your taste, I think you could try both of I/O and Root Double considering both of those were sci-fi. Otherwise, maybe try Remember11 although the ending might not satisfy you though. As for mystery, I think Chaos Head could interest you and if you have PS4, then perhaps you may as well try Chaos Child. Hope my recommendations here were help.

PS - If you okay with OELVN, then I would suggest you to try Doki Doki Literature Club as well and trust me it's quite interesting that the creator did insert some unusual feature.

[Clephas]

2 hours ago, Sparteh said:

I don't think so. Dies Irae, Eden*, Tokyo Babel are still listed as untranslated, though they have been translated a while ago. 

 

I personally recommend those in this list, because they are really good. In addition, Fata morgana no Yakata and Umineko no Naku Koro ni

If I were to update that list, I'd have to completely redo it...  some would be removed, others added on... it would be hours of work, which I don't have the time for right now. 

[Dowdz]

Thank you very much for all your responses. I really appreciate it! A lot of these are definitely going on my to-read list. Thanks again!

[Codesterz]

I have to recommend Muv-Luv Alternative. It's technically the 3rd in the series. If you are looking to get the full experience I'd read the 1st 2, but they are nowhere near as good as the 3rd. Another VN I'd recommend is Comyu.  While not the most highly appraised VN it's worth giving a shot at least.

[Being]

From what I've read, I'd file only two works under the master class: SubaHibi and Symphonic Rain. Neither are perfect, but they affected me a lot more than other VNs.

SubaHibi's artistic sense appealed more to the brains. It's deep, a bit crazy, and the complex narrative is honestly stunning. It also has amazing use of artwork to play up the emotional aspect of certain scenes. It's so complex and people feel so belittled by not understanding it that they resort to taking individual lines out of context just to validify their misunderstandings of it. If you're not very smart, then you might not enjoy it. As for me, I really enjoy being confused by layered labyrinth-like narratives, or just themes presented in obtuse ways. The funny thing about SubaHibi is that a lot that goes on it is pretty easy to understand, it's the narrative that is complex. I guess that's where so many misunderstandings stem from. They missed the nuance.

Symphonic Rain's artistic sense appealed more to my emotions. It made me feel all fuzzy or all empty inside at various points. I have never felt such emotions playing another game. It is a beautiful looking, cosy, yet kind of tense gamewith great character portrayals and depth. The second half is truly fantastic, but two of the character routes aren't quite on that level. I'd still call it a masterwork. The narrative is simpler, but very effective. Both this and SubaHibi excel in their visual, audio and most importantly writing style & merits.

For more minor masterworks, I'd point towards Saya no Uta which is incredible for its short running time, having I think the best soundtrack, some of the best art, and some of the best writing. I do think it could've been just a little better writing-wise, but you can't expect much improvement in its short playtime. It's honestly up there with some of the best novels I've read, but I admit the music and CGs won me over. I'd also point toward Cannonball for being something of an unpolished diamond. There is a masterpiece in there as it is mindblowing at times and does some things way better than other VNs, but I cannot overlook its numerous flaws either, especially not the terrible gameplay mechanics. I think you need a certain sensibility to really see how good this is, as it has a pretty low score on VNDB. I'm suspecting a lot of them didn't finish it or just hate having to use their imagination for certain things. Steins;Gate seems to be a fan-favorite and although I loved it, for me it is no masterpiece. It just cannot be one when it has the Faris chapter. It's excellent other than that chapter, though.

I'm also reading Edelweiss right now. Not finished, but as of right now, if it keeps up this level of quality, it might be a masterwork in the comedy genre... maybe. I am pretty picky with my comedy, but silliness is just something I have a lot of fondness for. Especially the Marx Bros, or Jacques Tati. I haven't laughed this much reading a VN before Edelweiss.

My opinions don't seem to line up well with other fans of eroge, for example I found Doki Doki Literature Club, Fata Morgana, and Euphoria all to be quite horrible, with very few merits I could honestly point out. I would advice you to not trust popular opinion too much as people seem to have entirely different sensibilities and looking for entirely different things in this medium. I mean, they're porn games. For example, for me, a plot twist needs to be built on the foundations of good writing, strong themes, good characterization, or something else to be effective. If these aren't present, it has the opposite of the intended effect, and just feels pathetic. Pathetic is just the word I would use to describe the twists in the aforementioned anti-masterpieces.

 

[Nandemonai]

Being that I did a full retranslation of Nocturnal Illusion, it should come as no surprise that I think it counts.  It definitely has a kickass soundtrack.  The translation on existing versions is terrible though.  I'd wait.  There are plenty of other really good games.

I liked Tokyo Babel and Shadows of Pygmalion a lot.  Littlewitch Romanesque is great (get the steam version if you don't like loli, game's great).  Steins;Gate 0 is, well, it's more Steins;Gate.  Koihime Musou has a huge cast full of great characters.  Gahkthun of the Golden Lightning I haven't gotten all that far in, but it's awesome.  (It also sounds right up your alley.)  I hear really good things about Sekai de Ichiban NG na Koi (announced, not out yet).  And I'd have to say Funbag Fantasy - yes, for real, but only if you like nukige.  Planetarian is great.  If you haven't played them, Persona 3-5 are all excellent.  You'd probably like Demonbane.

Also there's Chaos;Head and Chaos;Child (just got officially released).  I haven't been able to get through Chaos;Head yet - it's much harder to get into because Takumi is a much less likeable MC than Okabe.  So I really don't know squat about its sequel, Chaos;Child.

[Dowdz]

Wow, thank you very much for all the recommendations! This got me a lot more titles than I was expecting!

[MarcomiX]

It might be an odd entry, but have you ever heard of Tokyo School Life?
It's not an excellent VN in terms of story (even if I enjoyed it for the most part), but it deserves an honorable mention about its "technology".

I've never seen a VN with animated and lip-synced sprites. Moreover, the art style is top notch...it feels more like an interactive anime, rather than a "normal" VN