Foreword: Loving the series. Nothing can stop me exploring it further.
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Showing posts with label Review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Review. Show all posts
Bra-Ban! ぶらばん！ [Yuzusoft]
Foreword: I'm sure that first brand's title bears a message of what kind of games it's going to make. Yuzusoft is a big player on the scene, it's good to know its roots.
Maid-san to Ookina Ken メイドさんと大きな剣 [May-Be Soft]
Foreword: Game opening is clean, heroines are pretty, and big swords promise good action, so I decided to try one game from nukige-maker May-Be Soft out of curiosity.
Hime-sama Ririshiku! 姫さま凛々しく！[Q-X]
Foreword: In June selection is so bad that I was choosing between erotic fantasy game in school environment and in fantasy environment, and the latter was chosen which is Hime-sama Ririshiku!
Kansen ~In'yoku no Rensa~ 姦染 ～淫欲の連鎖～ [Speed]
AR ~Wasurerareta Natsu~ AR～忘れられた夏～ [Circus]
Foreword: Circus makes either serial works of flying whales (hello, Saishuu Shiken Kujira). This is exactly such case of flying whales. Lots of mist and epicness summoned to cover dirty rags.
Horizont [Artel]
Foreword: I was choosing between booby fighting action, PS2 juvenile investigation game and SF game in January 2006, so I chose SF one, of course. I also quite liked Setsuka character design, so decided to try Horizont for her alone at least.
Toki no Kairou 時の回廊 [White Cyc]
Foreword: Toki no Kairou wins marginally in the joint poll of the year. It's quite curious to see what White Cyc first game is like compared to games of the big brother Black Cyc.
Yatohime Zankikou 夜刀姫斬鬼行 [Terios]
Foreword: Yatohime Zankikou has an absolutely starry staff, great chuni story, astonishing visuals and lots of fighting girls. Everything promises the ultimate score, but why average scores are just between 7 and 8 then?
Aekanaru Sekai no Owari ni あえかなる世界の終わりに [Caramel Box]
Foreword: Finally a Caramel Box game with a plot that I can actually enjoy. But online RPG development took me by surprise, so I'm totally sold here.
Dragonia ドラゴニア [Hirameki International]
Foreword: Dragonia remains in obscurity while being localized. That's a strange situation, so I wanted to check why.
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40ois_GrS5w&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=31
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40ois_GrS5w&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=31
Terrible Future てりぶるフューチャー [CoreMoreco]
Foreword: I was choosing between a moege and a nakige in November, so just went for the first SF looking work which by chance turned out to be Terrible Future. I wish I chose anything over it, really, like anything.
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2mluk-y9Bg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9k1HWgnRrjgH1amhusrT-d
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2mluk-y9Bg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9k1HWgnRrjgH1amhusrT-d
AYAKASHI アヤカシ [Apricot]
Foreword: Could only find one small impression (1), and it covers main points. I'll try to provide some novelty by comparing the game with the anime version.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v25
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o19Xvg1cMhE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-J7-CHaWYlOWzwXgTG0uAE
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o19Xvg1cMhE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-J7-CHaWYlOWzwXgTG0uAE
Heaven's Cage ヘブンズケージ [Art]
Foreword: Heaven's Cage is a very curious find for me due to its fresh, uncommon view on MMORPG. It pleasantly surprised me on more than one occasion. Here are the results of this experience.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v1355
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4rkHG8K-TE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_nMwz1VgZtn0zheAWpoWfO
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4rkHG8K-TE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_nMwz1VgZtn0zheAWpoWfO
Gunjou no Sora o Koete 群青の空を越えて [light]
Foreword: Whenever a war story is covered, I always expect something like Saishuu Heiki Kanojo anime story. But in fact Gunjou no Sora o Koete is a normal charage in an unusual setting. There are enough good English reviews (1 2 3 4 5 6), so address them for a more favorable review. Game does not live up to my expectations, so I can't stop being critical about it.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v1069
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxgPzBYzKUg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-E2DXYizsP4bmQoMlHuSS3
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxgPzBYzKUg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-E2DXYizsP4bmQoMlHuSS3
Saihate no Ima 最果てのイマ [Xuse]
Foreword: The reviews we have are pretty vague (1 2 3 4 5 6 7), so the impression of a very difficult work is created. I'm going to put all the dots so that there was not fear to read it.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v1278
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyO6B82c_GE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9G-VbjOXlAvQZqm-u8F497
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyO6B82c_GE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9G-VbjOXlAvQZqm-u8F497
Tsuyokiss つよきす [Candy Soft]
Foreword: I took up Tsuyokiss blindly hoping for a decent charage akin to Majikoi (same writer and also girl with katana) due to the high score this game gets. Moege equals trash for me. With such a high vote Tsuyokiss can't be a moege, right?
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v397
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFHoqzMOFDY&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-zA1QgYUTcnldJqEqo1lT5
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFHoqzMOFDY&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-zA1QgYUTcnldJqEqo1lT5
Tashika ni Kimi wa Koko ni Ita 確かにキミはココにいた -You were certainly here- [Undel]
Foreword: I just like everything that has to do MMO. Game has a curious enough concept. The only question is how it's going to be realized.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v5344
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2V6sLsNyHhw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_IUvdEluOx80SPFgHQF99e
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2V6sLsNyHhw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_IUvdEluOx80SPFgHQF99e
Jingai Makyou 塵骸魔京 [Nitroplus]
Foreword: Again, there are already enough English reviews of this game (1 2 3 4 5). But what I noticed is that the most thorough reviews are based on the Chinese version of the game by the speakers of Chinese language. My impression presents more of a Westerner approach.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v400
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mmQ92JtDpQ&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9MFhOSzB2n_xIyVbArHXgt
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mmQ92JtDpQ&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9MFhOSzB2n_xIyVbArHXgt
Ayakashibito あやかしびと [Propeller]
Foreword: This is a formal shameless review just to present a video and give score / personal impression. There is an abundance of reviews of this game in untranslated review sources (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8), and I did not even include reviews in the translated review sources.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v646
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkfbKBF3PZE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8HOd7D19oHjX9NAj_dJRkF
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkfbKBF3PZE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8HOd7D19oHjX9NAj_dJRkF
Tamayura 魂響 [Akabei Soft2]
Foreword: I'm quite excited to see the first professional Akabei Soft2 work after their doujin past as Akabei Soft. I'm mostly interested in the initial release of the game, so review will be based on that. I'll also compare initial release with the remake Enkan no Kizuna.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v85
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOJQFOpc5cs&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv93uWlEWyCml-A4kSkxsz4E
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOJQFOpc5cs&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv93uWlEWyCml-A4kSkxsz4E
Ojou-sama Kumikyoku お嬢様組曲 [Symphony]
Foreword: I only had to choose this game, because the only other somewhat curious game from April 2005 Gakuen Kaiketsu Kururi! turned out to have a horrible engine for auto-reading with voices getting constantly cut even with the latest patch, at least with win10. I want to ask sincere forgiveness from all those who like vanilla pure love visual novels. Depending on your likes, game can get even couple points more in the overall evaluation. I'm only conveying my sincere impression of this game even though I'm ill suited for that purpose.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v703
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4j0yAzjfXI0&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9FMXe5w9pSH_a01QqO_8qb
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4j0yAzjfXI0&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9FMXe5w9pSH_a01QqO_8qb
MERI+DIA ～マリアディアナ～ ~Maria Diana~ [Palette]
Foreword: I liked character designs and wide use of weapons first of all. The story looked promising. Palette is also a notable player on the visual novel scene. I ignored its first clumsy works, but it's high time for it to make a stand.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v2921
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI4V5pl8mts&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8VGk_kffrtrok065Qddm24
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI4V5pl8mts&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8VGk_kffrtrok065Qddm24
Seven-Bridge [Liar-soft]
Foreword: Liar-soft games are always absurd and somewhat fun, but of varying quality. Seven-Bridge actually has the same scenario writer as Kusarihime ~Euthanasia~ (at least one of the three authors) , so I see all the reasons to give it a bite.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v597
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdLAzm2uTvw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=30&t=0s
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdLAzm2uTvw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=30&t=0s
Steel [Graviton]
Foreword: I never expected a 80 hour long race out of this "episodic" story. How much time should pass till opening? What about length of the epilogue? Should there be some lines after the final credits? Believe me, Steel will surprise you with each answer. I knew that scenario from Kadokura Keisuke would be enjoyable. But it took me a full week to be able to digest it.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v6416
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5Nc368AlSs&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9jHMWwIIkzFPiTpLJ-eMP7
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5Nc368AlSs&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9jHMWwIIkzFPiTpLJ-eMP7
Abandoner - The Severed Dreams [Unknown]
Foreword: Abandoner is the second winner of poll for the extra review in 2004. There are actually two reviews already (1 2), but it does not hurt to give it a fresh look. Clephas recommends not to read this visual novel unless we are really hard masochists, but every visual novel reader is at least a bit of masochist for reading such long stories while normal people can't endure even director's cut movie versions. As for me, such question does not even stand - it's enough to look at the number of visual novels I played without really enjoying them. So let's start.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v1182
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eGicIWOOlw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_qT6p_Y5f1XbwJYUu2TCCe
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eGicIWOOlw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_qT6p_Y5f1XbwJYUu2TCCe
3days ~Michiteyuku Toki no Kanata de~ ～満ちてゆく刻の彼方で～ [Lass]
Foreword: It's requested as extra review, so I'm pleased to tell what kind of masterpiece this game is. It does not mean I'm not reviewing Abandoner, though. Both games stood so close in the poll that I could not make my mind in any way.
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v1085
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDJG1UQavYg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-73f48qzUpNIceFnIA8Mot
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDJG1UQavYg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-73f48qzUpNIceFnIA8Mot
Answer Dead [Le.Chocolat]
Foreword: Protagonist looks cool and badass, so I hope for a worthy chunige.
Title: Answer Dead
Developer: Le.Chocolat
Date: 2005-01-14
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1903
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2A2CAW3OmY&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_iAzf5N3n7qQx-aG-JlXpl
Developer: Le.Chocolat
Date: 2005-01-14
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1903
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2A2CAW3OmY&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_iAzf5N3n7qQx-aG-JlXpl
Tenshi no Nichou Kenjuu 天使ノ二挺拳銃 -Angelos Armas- [Nitroplus]
Foreword: I could not ignore Nitroplus work, especially one without reviews.
Date: 2005-01-28
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v429
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcC4Wki3bo8&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-rllhpCe9B1ueL5w0Uubdn
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v429
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcC4Wki3bo8&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-rllhpCe9B1ueL5w0Uubdn
Eigou Kaiki 永劫回帰 [D.O.]
Foreword: I could not pass by such curious looking chunige.
Title: Eigou Kaiki
Developer: D.O.
Date: 2004-12-17
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v9790
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7GfYjxdQ7Y&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9HwGDuJtaW_7Xb7oD2dWge
Developer: D.O.
Date: 2004-12-17
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v9790
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7GfYjxdQ7Y&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9HwGDuJtaW_7Xb7oD2dWge
Ano Sora no Mukougawa あの空の向こう側 [High Soft]
Foreword: Game interested me with its concept of parallel universe.
Title: Ano Sora no Mukougawa
Developer: High Soft
Date: 2004-11-26
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1212
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1sFJZ_BWLw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_VZRGzArVahzwnVXBEy7Gu
Developer: High Soft
Date: 2004-11-26
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1212
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1sFJZ_BWLw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_VZRGzArVahzwnVXBEy7Gu
Yuuhi no Mukougawa 夕緋ノ向コウ側 [BaseSon]
Foreword: I'm quite curious about BaseSon state before they rode the Koihime theme.
Title: Yuuhi no Mukougawa
Developer: BaseSon
Date: 2004-10-01
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1213
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaPkM9uZLZM&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9P6w6Jmc3aamggcIEP8eAZ
Developer: BaseSon
Date: 2004-10-01
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1213
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaPkM9uZLZM&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9P6w6Jmc3aamggcIEP8eAZ
Noel [FlyingShine]
Foreword: It's FlyingShine in its prime, after Cross Channel and before Swan Song, so why not taste one more bit of it. But it's action scenes and not yuri that keeps my interest here.
Title: Noel
Developer: FlyingShine
Date: 2004-09-24
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1000
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9ULLAtemM4&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_enAwLmfohExhIgVI2CClL
Developer: FlyingShine
Date: 2004-09-24
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1000
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9ULLAtemM4&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_enAwLmfohExhIgVI2CClL
Koijibashi こいじばし [Raccoon]
Foreword: Well, I just liked the cover - looked like today's charming covers.
Title: Koijibashi
Developer: Raccoon
Date: 2004-08-13
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v4247
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN2JN8bkyZk&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-YnknXUNJpQwDtOqLsGr9p
Developer: Raccoon
Date: 2004-08-13
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v4247
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN2JN8bkyZk&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-YnknXUNJpQwDtOqLsGr9p
Dear My Friend [light]
Foreword: This is going to a slightly unusual review, because I'm going to totally ignore main three heroines and focus solely on two side heroines because of Masada scenario writing and uniqueness of these two heroines compared to conventional ones.
Title: Dear My Friend
Developer: light
Date: 2004-07-09
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v519
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvEtF1Nh89A&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-vEHq8MQwNWKJi9NyRbYch
Developer: light
Date: 2004-07-09
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v519
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvEtF1Nh89A&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-vEHq8MQwNWKJi9NyRbYch
MinDeaD BlooD ～支配者の為の狂死曲～ ~Shihaisha no Tame no Kyoushikyoku~ [Black Cyc]
Foreword: There are a lot of praising reviews of this untranslated game (1 2 3), which was a great surprise for me. Are we really observing a great mistreated masterpiece in this case?
Title: MinDeaD BlooD ~Shihaisha no Tame no Kyoushikyoku~
Developer: Black Cyc
Date: 2004-06-11
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1060
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr5YBK4CASw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8DxlQByl9ojtAByJ-gdpN6
Developer: Black Cyc
Date: 2004-06-11
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1060
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr5YBK4CASw&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8DxlQByl9ojtAByJ-gdpN6
DINGIR（ディンギル） [Patisserie]
Foreword: Only chose Dingir as the only plotge of the month.
Title: Dingir
Developer: Patisserie
Date: 2004-05-21
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v204
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdYk3gR_Mgc&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=29
Developer: Patisserie
Date: 2004-05-21
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v204
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdYk3gR_Mgc&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=29
Realize リアライズ [PlayM]
Foreword: This perfect game made me re-evaluate... Coμ -Black Dragon in a Gentle Kingdom-. What do these games have to do with each other? Hop in to figure out.
Title: Realize
Developer: PlayM
Date: 2004-04-23
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v2025
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IChpMO4Jhz4&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_Z8T8hfm3788JmL-mH3l3m
Developer: PlayM
Date: 2004-04-23
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v2025
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IChpMO4Jhz4&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_Z8T8hfm3788JmL-mH3l3m
Routes [Leaf]
Foreword: Routes gets 5 votes cumulatively while closest rival sits at 3 votes, so here is review of this game.
Title: Routes
Developer: Leaf
Date: 2003-02-28
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v204
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sV1wg2BZOpM&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8K_WdeDpxSgGZzjGORqw_b
Developer: Leaf
Date: 2003-02-28
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v204
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sV1wg2BZOpM&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8K_WdeDpxSgGZzjGORqw_b
Sora-iro no Organ 空色の風琴 [The Lotus]
Foreword: I got on the hook of some reviews praising the story. Now I'm mad.
Title: Sora-iro no Organ
Developer: The Lotus
Date: 2004-03-26
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v962
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iX7seUlNpmE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8-QvoBMKw8KIUTf1tEqOdw
Developer: The Lotus
Date: 2004-03-26
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v962
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iX7seUlNpmE&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8-QvoBMKw8KIUTf1tEqOdw
Schrei-Ten [Pisckiss]
Foreword: I awaited a high fantasy story with very mature and curious looking characters. What I got was...
Title: Schrei-Ten
Developer: Pisckiss
Date: 2004-02-20
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v14455
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3bALNSl9Nk&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=28
Developer: Pisckiss
Date: 2004-02-20
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v14455
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3bALNSl9Nk&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=28
Paradise Lost [light]
Foreword: I just could not pass by without seeing with my own eyes one of the best cyberpunk'ish visual novels.
Title: Paradise Lost
Developer: light
Date: 2004-01-16
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1951
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9UUudO0wufPK3KqL-YaTUD
Synopsis: Paradise Lost takes off in a dystopian setting that comes off as much more blatantly dark than its successors’. The stage is in a city known only as Sodom, which is separated from the outside world known as “Zoar”. Ruled by the gang known as the Infinite Viper, the law of “the strong eat the weak” is rampant throughout Sodom to the point that if you’ve lived beyond the age of 20, you most likely have murdered someone in order to do so. It is widely believed that outside lies a peaceful world free of the everyday violence so frequently seen in Sodom, but there is a closely guarded Gate that prevents residents of Sodom from leaving so no one has actually left and returned to confirm.
Game type: Dystopia epic confrontation
Character Design rating: 10/10
Protagonist rating: 10/10
Story rating: 10/10
Game quality: 10/10
Overall rating: 10/10
Rating comments: Game has few perfect ratings, and I really tried to find any flaws in it as well. But I could not find any. I absolutely love all the protagonist, heroines and even side-characters. Story is second-to-none and without any fillers. Quality hits over the roof for me.
Protagonist: Ryle is totally awesome with his split personality and coolness, but I was worried about Know a lot after reading reviews on the game. He was described as a jerk associating with the worst moments of the game. That's partly true, but Know is not a one-sided character. He's a kind-hearted loving brother in the beginning of the game. He is reflexing about having to lose his left hand to buy food. When he is put into conditions to lose his right arm, he's at the brink of despair. He's so weak, but he chooses to protect Sophia and Ril even at the cost of his life - and only miracles save him several times. Masada writing manages to imbue Know with a lot of empathy which colors his less rational actions with different shades of grey.
Characters: All three heroines are charming and possess a unique story of survival in this unpredictable world. But side-characters and enemies also make this game shine. Ennis appearance makes every scene better. Moral choices and hesitations of Lilith make this heartless scientist feel alive. It's rare to meet such charismatic (and voiced!) negative character as Judas Strife.
Thoughts:
1) One of the best features of the game is sex scenes filled with talk and meaning. And it's not just one Ast blowjob scene. Half of H events are made this way, so I feel sorry I have to cut them out of the video. I only encountered this feature in Coμ so far, and it really adds up to the evaluation.
2) I only know Dies Irae by the anime so far, but I'm sure that Paradise Lost is its spiritual predecessor. It has a lot of God motives as well concept of an omnipotent Deity messing with lowly creatures fates.
Overall comments: This is the first Masada game that I've read. I'll try to play every game where he has something to do with the concept or writing.
Developer: light
Date: 2004-01-16
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1951
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv9UUudO0wufPK3KqL-YaTUD
Game type: Dystopia epic confrontation
Character Design rating: 10/10
Protagonist rating: 10/10
Story rating: 10/10
Game quality: 10/10
Overall rating: 10/10
Story: The only thing I want so say about the story is that it's fast-paced, breathtaking and without fillers. Each chapter has its title which seems a bit off from the start, but each chapter manages to perfectly describe its meaning.
Prologue
The 1st. God Forsaken Sodom
The 2nd. A Contest For Belzebub .
The Intermission. Criminal Fire Works.
The 3rd. Guilty Guilty Guilty
The Final. God Save The Zoar
The Final Godless A God Knows
Prologue
The 1st. God Forsaken Sodom
The 2nd. A Contest For Belzebub .
The Intermission. Criminal Fire Works.
The 3rd. Guilty Guilty Guilty
The Final. God Save The Zoar
The Final Godless A God Knows
1) One of the best features of the game is sex scenes filled with talk and meaning. And it's not just one Ast blowjob scene. Half of H events are made this way, so I feel sorry I have to cut them out of the video. I only encountered this feature in Coμ so far, and it really adds up to the evaluation.
2) I only know Dies Irae by the anime so far, but I'm sure that Paradise Lost is its spiritual predecessor. It has a lot of God motives as well concept of an omnipotent Deity messing with lowly creatures fates.
Gin no Hebi Kuro no Tsuki 銀の蛇 黒の月 [Project-μ]
Foreword: My first thought was that berserk was remade as a visual novel. How is it even possible that such game remains in obscurity?
Title: Gin no Hebi Kuro no Tsuki
Developer: Project-μ
Date: 2003-12-19
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v10059
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpnPjFUxVuQ&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=27
Developer: Project-μ
Date: 2003-12-19
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v10059
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpnPjFUxVuQ&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv8rKP5oDa1nzt0KevjFrmhw&index=27
Kurenai 紅 [light]
Foreword: Setting, guns and blood were the things that attracted me.
Title: Kurenai
Developer: light
Date: 2003-11-14
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v5367
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHAT2UfXhxM&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_1zimd4jO7eJ4LHc5DnPcj
Synopsis: The world is breaking apart. City is full of suicides, murders and bizarre crimes. City is full of shadows, and main character hunts down such "crimson shadows" that used to be persons. His abilities are trained by a woman of a mysterious identity. Love only exists in fragmentary form in this eternal whirlpool of death.
Game type: Err... bloody?
Character Design rating: 6/10
Protagonist rating: 6/10
Story rating: 7/10
Game quality: 7/10
Overall rating: 7/10
Rating comments: I spent quite some time deciding on how much I like his game. The first and second chapters were really impressive, of masterpiece level. Next three chapters lowered overall estimation. But final 6th chapter remained true to itself and managed to surprise me - for that I want to give it its due. And that's especially notable because of overall weak plot and characters in the game. Kurenai manages to find other approaches to the reader.
Protagonist: We get to see Touya, and we only know that he's a student and a kurenai hunter who fights with a bamboo sword. We also constantly read his thoughts - or rather someone's stream of consciousness. It sometimes falls into philosophy and sometimes into madness category, but it remains amusing to read.
Characters: Nominally there are four heroines - found doll Alice, detective partner Mutsuki and two acquaintances Yuri and Himeno. But Alice is definitely the main heroine here - she's also the only one who gets two endings instead of just one. I've actually only seen her two endings since discovering other heroines is quite confusing in this game as it needs backtracking. I tried to do it once and I failed, so just settled with the main heroine. All heroines but Alice and Mutsuki only make a cameo appearance and are absolutely not memorable. Basically all the heroines have almost the same face, and that does not help either. Alice is a doll who we find on the street. She is loyal to main character as her goshuji-sama. She's the only fighting heroine. She seems to be of such simple personality that last chapter of the game becomes shocking.
Thoughts:
1) I mentioned that this game has other means of attractiveness besides traditional ones. The first is the stream of thoughts. Both philosophy and madness are mixed here. I'd really rather read such thoughts as time fillers instead of some lovey dovey pursuits. The second one is the number of efforts given. Game has FOUR different omake with the last one divided in five parts. The third thing I'd mark is Alice scary monologues. I'm still under impression here, scary as hell.
2) I liked that we get the answers in this game. One strange thing is how protagonist even manages to survive and recover with such serious wounds. His limbs barely remain linked to the body, but in the next scene he's all right again. And game actually gives a very elegant explanation to that later. For the whole game we try to uncover what it means to be Kurenai. We don't get a clear answer, but we get more than just an answer.
Overall comments: This game remains memorable and alive for me. It's quite simple in structure, but impactful. Game is about blood, and it remains true to itself. Heroine's True End does not mean it's a good end, it's just another ending about blood. Blood is main character of this game, and that's what makes it absolutely hilarious. Game is crazy, but rather crazy good than crazy bad like BM0.
Developer: light
Date: 2003-11-14
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v5367
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHAT2UfXhxM&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_1zimd4jO7eJ4LHc5DnPcj
Game type: Err... bloody?
Character Design rating: 6/10
Protagonist rating: 6/10
Story rating: 7/10
Game quality: 7/10
Overall rating: 7/10
Story: There's not much happening in the game, actually. In first chapter we get in our first fight and find doll Alice on the street. In the following chapters there's usually one main perpetrator Kurenai that we need to take down. In the third chapter we get from the streets to the school and meet a whole lot of heroines. Not sure we need school at all in this kind of game. These chapters pay less attention to fights and more attention to spontaneous H events. And I call them spontaneous, because it happens exactly like that. There is no love line or flirt or anything at all. Just at any moment of the narration some girl may instantly get horny, and 10 lines after that there's H event, easy as that. I understand the need of H events for a game to sell, so I actually welcome such approach. This way we don't need to waste time for love. I cut all the H events from the video, and game only became better after that.
1) I mentioned that this game has other means of attractiveness besides traditional ones. The first is the stream of thoughts. Both philosophy and madness are mixed here. I'd really rather read such thoughts as time fillers instead of some lovey dovey pursuits. The second one is the number of efforts given. Game has FOUR different omake with the last one divided in five parts. The third thing I'd mark is Alice scary monologues. I'm still under impression here, scary as hell.
2) I liked that we get the answers in this game. One strange thing is how protagonist even manages to survive and recover with such serious wounds. His limbs barely remain linked to the body, but in the next scene he's all right again. And game actually gives a very elegant explanation to that later. For the whole game we try to uncover what it means to be Kurenai. We don't get a clear answer, but we get more than just an answer.
Ochiba no Mau Koro 落ち葉の舞う頃 [Noa]
Foreword: Sword apprentice protagonist and two fighting heroines (short swords and bow) were all that it took to lure me to this game.
Title: Ochiba no Mau Koro
Developer: Noa
Date: 2003-10-24
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v5367
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuf4kv1b9hg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv--j9jctcdQ0zRtWU4dw7pU
Developer: Noa
Date: 2003-10-24
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v5367
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuf4kv1b9hg&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv--j9jctcdQ0zRtWU4dw7pU
Thanatos no Koi ~Inshitei Soukan~ タナトスの恋～淫姉弟相姦～ [Red Label]
Foreword: I only picked this game because it has no reviews and scenario writer is Kanno Hiroyuki. Just can't believe he can write some total crap.
Salem no Majo-tachi セイレムの魔女たち [rúf]
Foreword: It looked like a semi-historical plot-centered game, so why not sample it, really.
Title: Salem no Majo-tachi
Developer: Daiginjou
Date: 2003-08-08
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v3679
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P53wX3hGx64&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-sUBbx3VBtkjZ8QS4wiJk4
Developer: Daiginjou
Date: 2003-08-08
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v3679
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P53wX3hGx64&list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv-sUBbx3VBtkjZ8QS4wiJk4
Kono Sora ga Tsuieru Toki ni この空がついえる瞬間に [Digital Monkey]
Foreword: Apocalypse angel story is enough to bait me as long as there aren't more intriguing candidates, but in July 2003 there weren't any.
Title: Kono Sora ga Tsuieru Toki ni
Developer: Digital Monkey
Date: 2003-07-25
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v4269
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_A5pJN26duNo4X_aEnGCZ-
Developer: Digital Monkey
Date: 2003-07-25
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v4269
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLs4Gp5VU4Fv_A5pJN26duNo4X_aEnGCZ-
Sayonara. さよなら。 [Panda House]
Foreword: Girl with a huge sword was a decisive factor for me, but game is quite mysterious and curious looking. It's created for the 10th anniversary of Cat's Pro/Panda House. So, is it as enjoyable as D.U.O.?
Ashita Deatta Shoujo あした出逢った少女 [Moonstone]
Foreword: May had zero interesting releases without review for me, so I chose one with the English review already (1). My hope in nakige is crippled, so I wonder if it can be restored with this game, just as it affected this review's author.
My Merry Maybe [KID]
Foreword: I know game is a nakige, but it has universally high scores. KID visual novels made for PlayStation look very generic and boring to me. Is this the one that finally puts me to shame?
Interlude インタールード [Longshot]
Foreword: I played Aya route six years ago, but was left quite confused for the lack of understanding. Anime put its dots, but it deliberately changed the ending. I'm over-enjoyed to finally read all the routes in all the complexity.
One 2 ~Eien no Yakusoku~ ONE2～永遠の約束～ [BaseSon]
Foreword: With Fuwa and vndbreview votes combined One 2 ~Eien no Yakusoku~ got 5 poll votes which is two votes more than closest competitor Masaru: Ashita no Yukinojou 2 has. I already mentioned that One 2 is a masterpiece, so it's time to present my reasoning. As usual, I only picked two heroines to capture while remaining four remain untouched (except for common route cameo).
BM0 残酷な夜に彼女の叫びは誰にも聞こえない。 Zankoku na Yoru ni Kanojo no Sakebi wa Dare ni mo Kikoenai. [FlyingShine]
Foreword: I made up mind not to read reviews about BM0 in order to preserve original experience, but I was surprised to see negative impressions of BM0 in other visual novel reviews of 2002! Wow, what could this game possibly do to piss so many people off? Can it really be worse than DoNoR with its blurry backgrounds?
Moekan モエかん [KeroQ]
Foreword: Why would KeroQ make a moege? This though bothered me for a while. But what if KeroQ tricked everyone and made something entirely different under facade of moege?
Tamamayu ~Miserareta Mitsu no Ito~ 玉繭 ～魅せられた蜜の糸～ [Mireille]
Foreword: Girls with swords - will they repeat success of Gunsister?
Gunsister [Silver Co., Ltd.]
Foreword: Guns and girls is a great concept, but it can go all way wrong as it happened with DoNoR. Can Silver Co., Ltd. really pull it through?
Rocket no Natsu ロケットの夏 [TerraLunar]
Foreword: Absolutely unknown game in the West that has overwhelmingly positive evaluation in Japan. Which side would I take?
Bokura ga Koko ni Iru Fushigi. ぼくらがここにいるふしぎ。[FlyingShine]
Foreword: I'm always curious about another FlyingShine game, but this time scenario by Arakawa Takumi is the biggest attraction point.
Viper-RSR [Sogna]
Foreword: RSR is the last big game of Sogna. I can't pass without saying farewell.
Asa no Konai Yoru ni Dakarete 朝の来ない夜に抱かれて -ETERNAL NIGHT- [DreamSoft]
Foreword: I was wondering what FC experimental branch (Dreamsoft) was capable of. Synopsis is quite fantasy-ish and girls with katana are featured, so I'm sold here.
Fearless] [Active]
Foreword: Voiced protagonist has become deciding factor to choose Fearless] over Shitai o Arau. Fearless] also is a mystery to me structure-wise and story-wise.
D.U.O. ～song for all～ [Panda House]
Foreword: A bad-ass cover and cyberpunk setting is all that it took to interest me.
DoNoR 女探偵凌辱 Onna Tantei Ryoujoku [FlyingShine]
Foreword: Girl with a gun and concept similar to EVE from FlyingShine - that's a curious thing to investigate provided that only a year later the same brand will create Cross Channel!
Kusarihime 腐り姫 ~Euthanasia~ [Liar-soft]
Foreword: I already chose another game for review in February... but in the end just could not ignore this huge pillar of today's visual novels. Without Kusarihime there would not be Saya no Uta, Cross Channel, Fate/stay night and Higurashi, so it's significance for the history can not be overerestimated.
Sollunea ソルネア [Luchs]
Foreword: I won't lie, Sollunea is the only game from January 2002 that has nice fantasy setting and is available. So, is it any fun?
Virus ウィルス [Celt]
Foreword: Virus... mystery... girl with a gun... I liked these setting elements and just dived into it without reading anything about the game. Here's my honest impression.
Faust ファウスト [Tail]
Foreword: I did not have much hope for this game until I found a Japanese review calling this game a hidden gem and praising its atmosphere.
Nijuubako 二重箱 [KeroQ]
Foreword: I don't review anthologies and fandiscs, but this time I have to deviate from this tradition for the fandisc of the game of the year 2000.
ASSASSIN Ann～アサシン・アン～ [Active]
Foreword: Assassins... hackers... I expected the second luv wave or Phantom of Inferno from this game. It proved to be quite different...
Rege ~Saisei no Ubugoe~ リジェ ～再生の産声～ [Sarang]
Foreword: Setting is quite cyberpunk'ish, so I expected an enjoyable read. Was I too optimistic?
Bittersweet Fools [minori]
Foreword: I have very strange history with Bittersweet Fools. I started playing it about two years ago, and finished it only a year later. But the most important question is why this first minori game neglected that much? I believe I know the answer to this question.
Cosmos no Sora ni 秋桜の空に [Marron]
Foreword: It's a non-voiced nakige, so I'm ill-suited to evaluate such game. But it proved to be a masterpiece even in my pretentious eyes. Game does not have a true route, so according to my review codex I only play two routes for such games - one for the heroine that seems to be the main heroine and one for the heroine that I like the most from the rest of the heroines. That's Suzuka and Haruhi routes for me. Three omake side stories are of purely comical nature and are not touched in order not to affect main story impression.
No Reality [Unknown]
Foreword: I spotted No Reality many-many years ago, but I lacked technical skills to play it properly - I had just one monitor back then, and game crashed at even sophisticated attempts to launch it in window mode or minimize in order to hook properly. Now with the help of agth and two monitors it's been a piece of cake. The most mysterious cyberpunk'ish game finally opened its doors for me.
Femme Fatale [Inspire]
Foreword: I only got sort of interested in Femme Fatale as prequel of Edelweiss and as a part of chaotic production of Inspire company. Detective mystery game should be a safe bet for an interesting story, right?
Handle With Care.. [ETOILE]
Foreword: April 2001 had zero visual novels to interest me. After long torments of what to choose, I stopped at Handle With Care. It's a serious musical band story, so I expected Kira☆Kira, just more serious. Should Kira☆Kira tremble at the sight of its rival that came 6 years before?
Sayonara o Oshiete さよならを教えて ~Comment te Dire Adieu~ [Craftwork]
Sayonara o Oshiete has a good number of English reviews (1 2 3), plus reddit comments (4), but what strikes me is that all of them are positive despite some noticed flaws. But as a plotge fetishist and pragmatist to the bones, I demand demolition of fake idols. This bastion shall fall today.
Video playthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvPm3uYd90o
Video playthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvPm3uYd90o
Lipstick ADV.4 [Fairytale]
Foreword: I rated Lipstick Adv.EX as 9/10 and I just can't believe that absolutely the same people - Fairytale and scenario writer Notori Shinji - could really make a terrible game after that. I hope to present an unbiased opinion from a person who knows the series well.
Vampirdzhija Vjedogonia 吸血殲鬼ヴェドゴニア [Nitroplus]
Foreword: With deletion of boukennonikki blog there's only one review of this game left, so I hope to fill the vacuum, even though it won't be even remotely as good, but should be same critical.
Dorei Ichiba 奴隷市場 [rúf]
Foreword: I heard about this game couple years ago that it actually had a decent plot, and around the same time got acquainted with the anime version. It's been my longtime wish to show that nukige may have a decent story, but is this exactly that case?
Nijuuei 二重影 [KeroQ]
Foreword: I actually knew nothing about the game apart of KeroQ background as a company. There's just one review of the game that blames SCA-JI writing as "feels amateurish and he didn't even try to write characters that would feel fitting to the setting" and theory-crafting as "it wasn't detailed or insightful enough to be interesting alone". I'm speechless. This is an absolutely genius 10/10 work and probably the best visual novel I ever read. The only possible explanation for low scores for Nijuuei is in case of playing PC non-voiced version. I have to admit that my experience of PC version was not too joyful either - the palette was too dark and without voicing I could barely focus attention on characters and the flow. But PS1 version was an absolute revelation for me. This review is based on PS1 version of the game (but screenshots are from PC version due to better resolution).
Kaichuudokei 懐中時計 [Free's]
Foreword: Won't lie, I only picked this game since the other notable titles of the month were gameplay-centered. But this one is a mystery story centered around time travel which makes it stand out among the rows of typical charage in October 2000.
Heart & Blade [C's Ware]
Foreword: C's Ware chuunige is always welcome by me. There are only couple Japanese reviews with mediocre scores, but knowing C's Ware... they must have prepared a new exhausting system like Kazeoto or Vist that most of people could not even pass through. Welcome to the elitist club review, since I made it to the end and have much to say about it.
Ragnapolice ラグナポリス [Air Plants]
Foreword: This game has too many girls with guns for me to miss. Sorry in advance for for guns-only gallery! Honestly, Ragnapolice surprised me with quality police story and meaningful heroines. This is a full scale 8/10 masterpiece for me.
Shoin, Aruiwa Ushinawareta Yume no Monogatari. 書淫、或いは失われた夢の物語。[Force]
This game has a good spoilerless review (1) and several mentions on reddit (2 3 4 5) that all claim the game to be a "legendary" eroge renowned for its metafiction-heavy plot" "sometimes seen as a predecessor to games like Ever17" and to have "exciting plot", "saddest and most beautiful H-scene" resulting in being "emotional during reading it". So my only question at this point is "ARE YOU FREAKING BLIND, PEOPLE?!"
Age Maniax ~Isumi Yon Shimai Saigo no Hi~ アージュマニアックス ～伊隅四姉妹最期の日～ [Age]
Foreword: I only started this game to find references to Phantom of Inferno, but it's high quality entertainment, and it does not let you go easily. Instead of just links to Phantom of Inferno, I enjoyed a colossal multi-culture reference mix, but about that further on.
Purepure ピュアピュア [Ange]
Foreword: There were three particular reasons to choose Purepure for review. First, because May 2000 disappoints me with the range of games - most games are either charage, or nukige, or gameplay focused games. Secondly, I see Purepure similarities with Shunpuu Shoujo that I love gently. The third reason is that I see this game to be very different from previous Ange games. I'll try to elaborate in the main part and give my reasons for nominating this game as game of the month in conclusion.
Gyousatsu♥Shinsengumi Hitokiri Bishoujo Adventure 行殺♥ 新選組 人斬り美少女あどべんちゃ～ [Liar-soft]
Foreword: I have a difficult history with Liar-Soft. Their games amaze me, but I usually get really confused by them as well. Like I really liked Forest, but it's so overburdened with meanings and layers that you never know if you grasped it all or not. But Hiragumo-chan that's probably the closest thing to our game disappointed me both times I tried to play it. All I knew that Gyousatsu being the second game of the company (it does not mean first one was not crazy) was already crazy. Crazy good or crazy bad?
Treating2U [Blue Gale]
There is a hospital where almost noone is ill, and everyone spends days peacefully waiting for examination day... There is a proper review ( 1 ), so I intended to skip this game entirely. However, I got a request and thought why not, what could possibly go wrong with a game that got an average score of 8.29 on vndb? Actually, everything went wrong right from the start. The genre is heartwarming hospital themed nakige, or so I determine it. I really detest hospital theme and nakige. I would never be able to play Kana little sister, for example. But hey, at least I can find interest in comedy, characters, songs and those fun events at CG, right? I really failed to see traces of comedy in Treating2U. Characters aren't really something that stands out here. In Masami route that I played I could not see her appeal at all, just a traditional Japanese widow, who could just wear kimono as well. She looks to me like an addition to her son Tatsuru, not like a main heroine at all. Japanese reviews also don't rate her route highly, and I admit that for me someone like green-hair scar face girl Ikuno would be a much better choice.
Lien ~Owaranai Kimi no Uta~ ～終わらない君の唄～ [Purple]
There is a normal Japanese family - a rock star priest, a fox goddess and their son ghost... ok, maybe not so normal. Anyway, there's a fantastic review ( 1 ) on this game already, so I can have a free style review for a change just to put something along with a video.
So following that review... first things first - game has no bugs on win98, all icons are in order - everything is perfect. But since the game can't run install on newer Windows, we indeed have to copy contents to the disk folder, launch reg file (need to edit it to change cd drive letter) and speech volume up tool. The full guide is here ( 2 ). Just in case - the link for the volume up tool is ( 3 ). So the only little inconvenience that we need to tolerate on newer Windows is that icons get messed up. It's not that much of a deal, right?
So following that review... first things first - game has no bugs on win98, all icons are in order - everything is perfect. But since the game can't run install on newer Windows, we indeed have to copy contents to the disk folder, launch reg file (need to edit it to change cd drive letter) and speech volume up tool. The full guide is here ( 2 ). Just in case - the link for the volume up tool is ( 3 ). So the only little inconvenience that we need to tolerate on newer Windows is that icons get messed up. It's not that much of a deal, right?
Viper-GTB ~Rise After~ [Sogna]
Foreword: After single story editions of F40 and F50 I was curious whether next games follow the set trajectory or move elsewhere. The following single story game is Viper-GTB, so...
Viper-F50 ~Mirai Tokusou Bureiban~ VIPER-F50 ～未来特捜ブレイバン～ [Sogna]
Foreword: I was really impressed with Viper F40, claiming that was a masterpiece. It's only natural I'd take on Viper F50 which is same SF single detective story. Is it a masterpiece as well?
Lipstick Adv.EX [Fairytale]
Foreword: I have very high evaluation of the games of the series and since this is the only Windows game of the series (I'll play Lipstick ADV.4 as well just out of spite, but it's universally despised by the fans of the series), I just had to play it. It took me quite some to realize that wish, but finally it's there. Welcome to the Lipstick ADV world!
Ai Shimai ~Futari no Kajitsu~ 愛姉妹 ～二人の果実～ [Silky's]
Foreword: I never wanted to play this game, but got a request to make a playthrough recently, so agreed to do that since I was quite curious to see how much the original differs from the remake and why actually PC98 version is described as kamige by some reviewers (1) while remake being trampled to dirt.
Title: Ai Shimai ~Futari no Kajitsu~
Developer: Silky's
Date: 1994-09-30
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1836
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=u8udgdLjN0U
Synopsis: A sincere older step-sister and a curious younger step-sister are doomed to become love slaves. One day, a house wife named Yukie has a traffic accident. She is ordered to pay a large settlement to the other party, Taketo, the son of the owner/president of Nogawa Industries. Unable to make the settlement payment, Yukie allows Taketo to have her sexually. At the same time, Takato's father, Nogawa, approaches Yukie's step-daughter, Rumi, and blackmails her. His evil scheme even reaches for Tomoko, Yukie's younger step-sister.
Structure: 10 branches with endings, some of which are bad endings and some almost identical. Game takes part during 5 days of Taketo father trip overseas - during that time Taketo must settle the incident.
Length: 2.5 hours
Game type: Nukige.
Difficulty: Quite difficult due to big number of branches, guide recommended
Character Design rating: 5/10
Protagonist rating: 2/10
Story rating: 2/10
Game quality: 7/10
Overall rating: 5/10
Rating comments: Even posting a nukige review is a high enough score for such a game, so 5/10 is not that bad. There's no real story and MC is just pure evil golden boy. But character design and graphics overall (including animated pieces) are really nice and all.
Protagonist: Taketo can only compete with cruelness with his father, corporate bigwig. Basically he has zero morality, so easily forges documents, drugs the opposite party and blackmails everyone. Don't think there was ever a trace of his humanity depicted anywhere in the text.
Characters: Main heroines are sisters Rumi and Tomoko, but their mother Yukie and secretary Yumi also play a very big and picturesque part in all this mess and all possible variations including 3P and 4P. Characters are cute, but not developed at all. What I disliked the most was that the interaction between the sisters is minimal, they remain schematic pieces.
Story: It's really all in the synopsis. Taketo's father gets into a crash and imposes dealing with its consequences on his son Taketo (in exchange for giving him pocket money) instructing him using harsh methods and using women weaknesses. And Taketo does just that - invites Yukie to the company office where drugs and binds her making lewd photos of her and forcing to sign a 5 million yen debt receipt. With that document and photos he goes straight to each of the girls at school, violating them as he wants in exchange of partial debt lifting. After 5 days father comes back from the overseas trip and finds out his safe cracked. Basically all the endings differ by the person who cracks the safe and the person who actually gets the safe contents in the end triggering all kinds of good/bad endings.
CG: Game hugely lacks non-HCG. It should probably be noted that pc-98 version does not contain censorship. Instead it just... lacks detail in some parts which was quite mainstream way of censorship in 1994.
Sound: BGM... I definitely remember there was BGM and I even waited for two minutes for the intro piece to finish. But overall I guess I did not pay enough attention to that.
Title and Themes: Title reflects the brainless story - only the fruits of those two love sisters matter here.
Overall comments: I really did not know what to write about here, so let's keep this at minimum volume. Silky's had a great success with Nonomura Byouin no Hitobito and with that established a standart of multiple branches, multiple endings for further generations. Ai Shimai is their next game, so it's natural that it was meant to reap the success of that new experimental structure. But while Nonomura Byouin no Hitobito is an intriguing mystery game, Ai Shimai is made as a brainless nukige where multiple branches structure looks redundant. They could prolong the game time from 5 days to like 10 days to include all combinations of participants and add some bad endings, but instead they developed these 10 almost identical routes that don't even have logical endings. Like in one ending hero gets hit on the head and receives the best possible ending as a result and in other cases he gets to jail after the very same loosing consciousness instead. There's no effort made in any branch, so it all looks like a very spontaneous development. I'm just happy Silky's stopped spamming the same structure in their future games in favor of more variety. But Ai Shimai original is not all that bad compared to its remake that's a parade of ugliness. So is this game bad? Yes. But is this game good and significant enough to get a review? Absolutely yes.
Title: Ai Shimai ~Futari no Kajitsu~
Developer: Silky's
Date: 1994-09-30
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v1836
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=u8udgdLjN0U
Length: 2.5 hours
Game type: Nukige.
Difficulty: Quite difficult due to big number of branches, guide recommended
Character Design rating: 5/10
Protagonist rating: 2/10
Story rating: 2/10
Game quality: 7/10
Overall rating: 5/10
Sound: BGM... I definitely remember there was BGM and I even waited for two minutes for the intro piece to finish. But overall I guess I did not pay enough attention to that.
Carbon Knight [Palette]
Foreword: I did not have much hopes about the game, but its introduction came upon me as a whirlwind. Mechanical dolls? Knights without soul? Three armored musketeers? Great demon king in person? A parade of deaths? Those were only a few things encountered in first 10 minutes of the game. Game has a very strong start and a strong ending with some nice battles and character development in-between. What's not to like here?
Title: Carbon Knight
Developer: Palette
Date: 1998-09-25
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v10914
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLENAECnNmAq_kUzzqmi57545i6p5b_Dwl
Synopsis: A world devastated by the battle of gods. The surviving people created inanimate "carbon humans" by using the relics of Gods and sealing the soul within. For several hundred years the war lasted. Now carbon knight needs to deter the restoration of the once sealed demon king.
Structure: 13 short days.
Length: 4 hours for one playthrough
Game type: Eschatological fantasy.
Difficulty: At least moderate, since there are a lot of choices and I only got lonely ending while there are happy endings with a girl as well.
Character Design rating: 8/10
Protagonist rating: 5/10
Story rating: 9/10
Game quality: 7/10
Overall rating: 8/10
Rating comments: Overall score might be even 9 if I got some substantial epilogue that should exist in some girl ending. The lonely ending I got was too abrupt, but actually cool in itself. Characters are funny and cute enough. They look simple at the first glance, but each of main heroines carries a huge secret behind her back, so I like how their personalities played out. Protagonist is very straightforward, but he's probably needed like that for story's sake. Game quality suffers from big loading times between the scenes. Autoskip function is implemented very poorly. Backgrounds are mostly implemented in 3D, but that's rather a feature than a shortcoming here since those look immersive. But as for the story, it seems ordinary fight the demon king tale, but bears much more in it as it goes, so I rate story very high.
Protagonist: Isaak is shown almost always irritated and/or shouting. He is too straightforward and short-tempered. He's not the most pleasant MC to deal with, but he's not voiced, so he can grimace as much as he wants in silence.
Characters: There seem to be two main heroines - long red-hair Sheckly and short violet-hair Fortita. Sheckly is our usual child friend, tender and caring. Fortita is much more mysterious since she's very short and never aging. She's actually a carbon knight, soulless relic created to fight demonic invaders. She serves to Isaak and his father. There is also father Balzak's fighting buddy girl Gina who gets a H scene if willing. Possibly she can also get her ending, but according to very few and very poor CG gallery that exists for the game good ending confirmed only for Sheckly, just don't cite me on it. There are lots of very colorful side-characters as well. Everyone but MC is voiced, so it's never really boring.
Story: So the game starts in a whirlwind of events. Demon king and his army demolish the city and kill the populace. The three armored musketeers are the only ones who try to oppose the demons. Sheckly, Isaak and Fortita try to escape a group of mechanical dolls. Next we're shown the dialogue between the demon king and the three musketeers and how a mechanical doll comes out with three corpses of Sheckly, Isaak and Fortita pierced. Isaak's father who is one of the musketeers goes berserk and demolishes the demon king... Then Isaak wakes up and those events seem to be a dream on the demon king invasion three years ago. Isaak is dreaming of becoming carbon knight master and goes on a journey with Sheckly and Fortita. There they confront demonic underlings who predict the resurrection of the demon king once all his body parts scattered around the world are collected again. These events take roughly first 15-20 minutes of the game, so I would not consider them a spoiler. As you can imagine, all the demon parts are destined to be collected for a grand confrontation again. But what I especially liked was that the battles of carbon knights and demons started out quite plain, but kept on with more and more increasing numbers of fatalities on both sides nearly wiping all the characters in the game. That was absolutely terrific and unprecedented since the time I saw GANTZ. Just so you know, there's much more to the story than just a series of battles. Every hero has a huge secret and uncovering those secrets make the game really exciting. Ending is surprising as well.
System: So I decided to devise an optional system section since there are issues that don't fall into other sections well. So here I wanted to rant why I only got lonely ending and not going to pursue true ending with a girl. First of all, I value initial game experience very much - and each consecutive playthrough is a torture for me, especially without a guide. Secondly, I know that I like lonely ending the best since it's so cool, a real mortal combat. Lastly, game has very poor skipping feature that has to be turned on in the menu and you can't really stop it till there's a new choice or till a new scene starts. And each scene loads for some 10-20 seconds. It's really not fun doing it again. There are actually two more issues - big number of selections and very poor save implementation. Each time you load, you're thrown away very far back, so it's hugely inconvenient.
CG: Absolutely terrific CG. Just loving it with all my heart. So much detail. Sometimes the blend of 2D and 3D looks weird, but mostly it's in harmony. But the best part in the art is dresses of girls. These dresses show so much skin that they look like the prototypes for all the modern Korean mmorpgs. Truly hilarious and breathtaking.
Sound: BGM is decent, but not too memorable.
Title and Themes: Game does not tell us much about carbon knights from the start apart of the fact that Fortita is one. But carbon knight theme gets a huge development in the last third of the game and finishes with the absolute domination of this theme, so it's a good choice.
Overall comments: So Carbon Knight has its flaws lying mostly in technical part, but they don't belittle its advantages. I consider it to be the first traditional fantasy chuunige and a huge masterpiece of the time.
Developer: Palette
Date: 1998-09-25
VNDB link: https://vndb.org/v10914
Youtube walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLENAECnNmAq_kUzzqmi57545i6p5b_Dwl
Length: 4 hours for one playthrough
Game type: Eschatological fantasy.
Difficulty: At least moderate, since there are a lot of choices and I only got lonely ending while there are happy endings with a girl as well.
Character Design rating: 8/10
Protagonist rating: 5/10
Story rating: 9/10
Game quality: 7/10
Overall rating: 8/10
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