Jump to content
  • entries
    766
  • comments
    1836
  • views
    478956

About this blog

This is a blog primarily focusing on but not limited to VNs.  It is primarily designed to express my opinion on otaku media (jrpgs, anime, manga, LNs, VNs, etc), individual VNs, and otaku community issues.   Most of the posts are related to my VN of the Month and Random VN columns, originally started in threads in the forums. 

As of March of 2017, I'm also looking for people to help with VN of the Month.

Entries in this blog

Suki to Suki to de Sankaku Ren'ai

This VN is pretty straightforward.  It is a comedy charage with about 90% of the emphasis focused on the comedic aspects.  What about the romance?  At its best, it is a bare bones generic type, constantly interrupted by jokes that break the mood (deliberately).  What about the story?  Irrelevant to nonexistent. This is a VN where you get almost all the enjoyment out of the comedic aspects and character interactions.  Even if I were to compare this to the 'average' charage, the romance would

Clephas

Clephas

Natsuiro Koi Uta

Studio Ryokucha.  This company is fairly unique, utilizing an art style that differs dramatically from the standard for moege/charage but still falls into the same realm nonetheless.  In addition, this company has produced a disproportionate number of excellent games, despite the fact that they are all essentially charage (though the degree to which they fit the genre differs from game to game).  Natsuiro Koi Uta is their latest work, a ‘pure’ charage set in modern Tokyo.  It starts out

Clephas

Clephas

Yomegami

I'm going to say this straight out... Awesome job, Alcot!!!  There is a peculiar balance needed to make the perfect fantasy story-focused charage... and it has literally been years since the last time a VN has managed it.  I should know, since I play everything fantasy that isn't a nukige and some that are.  Alcot's formula of comedy (in particular sexual comedy and situational comedy) is pretty straightforward and easy to enjoy, going across cultural lines fairly easily.  As such, it

Clephas

Clephas

Preview for November releases

For those who are wondering, this is a list of VNs I'm planning to at least sample.   Yomegami Ryakudatsuha no Inen (seriously, despite the fact that it is an obvious trap) Gokukano (giving this a chance, in case it isn't a nukige) Natsuiro Koi Uta Karenai Sekai to Owaru Hana (no idea what this is about, since the Getchu and official pages are somewhat vague) Suki to Suki to de Sankaku Ren'ai     Right now, I'm playing Yomegami, having completed

Clephas

Clephas

Reminiscence Collectors Edition Part 2: Recollect

ReCollect is the direct sequel to the original game, based on a 'normal' ending where certain major events in Aki's, Accela's, and Kizuna's paths never came to fruition.  In fact, it is based off of a romance-less version of Aika's path, as the events in the last part of her path (before the romance/lovers thing) occur immediately before the story begins.  So, if you've played Reminiscence but not ReCollect yet, it would be wise to use the update patch to activate Aika's path so you can get to k

Clephas

Clephas

[Changed] Reminiscence Collectors Edition part 1: Reminiscence

I picked up the Reminiscence Collectors Edition, despite the fact that I already possessed the original game, primarily so I could see how they altered things.  To be blunt, the changes so far - having finished Rin's, Nozomi's, and Aki's routes - are a lot less than is indicated on the site.  The typos I vaguely remembered from my first and second playthroughs are no longer present, Rin and Nozomi both got minor (very minor) touch-ups to their paths, and there are a few added scenes in the commo

Clephas

Clephas

Clephas' list of high-quality writers: Tier One

I think we can all agree I've read a lot of VNs. *waits for audience laughter with a smile* *looks sad when the audience laughter recording doesn't work* Anyway, over the years I've encountered a lot of writers.  Some were mediocre, others were decent, yet others were good... and some were just great. I decided to list the writers I honestly think have a lot of talent and whose works are something we, as VN fans, should at least keep an eye on.  Tier One presents writers who are '

Clephas

Clephas

Signalist Stars and VN of the Month, October 2016

Signalist Stars came at me from out of left field, smashing me across the face with a spike grenade.   I literally wasn't expecting anything from this VN, as my recent experiences with new companies have left me unwilling to hope for better.  This VN does, in my mind, fall into the charage genre, but it does it so well that I was left a bit stunned.  Signalist Stars is based in a city where people who have a burning passion are encouraged to pursue it, regardless of what it is.  In this cit

Clephas

Clephas

Gusha no Kyouben [UPDATED]

First, I should say that I have no taste for loli-shota whatsoever, so I'm going to drop this now that I've finished one of the paths and gotten a feel for what this VN is like.  So... this turned out to actually be a loli-shota game, despite my hopes otherwise.  I have no idea of what Akabeisoft is thinking, turning its main child brand into a sub-brand that produces random games, but I can honestly say that I wish they would stick to one or two genres... Now, this is one VN that has no bu

Clephas

Clephas

Unionism Quartet A-3 Days

I'm going to be frank... for people who liked the original game and those who didn't, this is a waste of time.  Do I sound like a jerk?  I'm not trying to be... I don't think I've ever come across such a weak direct sequel (since it really is a full game).  I sampled one of the new heroines, one of the main heroines from the original game, one of the secondary heroines from the original game, one of the sub-heroines from the original game, and one of the 'extra' heroines from the original game (

Clephas

Clephas

What am I doing right now? Mid-November Editioin

For those who are wondering, I am currently replaying Unionism Quartet before moving on to A3 Days.  It has been long enough that I didn't recall most of the details, so I needed a refresher.  At the same time, I'm playing Dishonored 2, so I'm dividing my time in half between VNs and gaming right now.  I don't plan on doing a full post solely on Unionism Quartet, so I'm going to just relate a few impressions here before I finish Yulia's path (I already finished Silvia's, Jubei's, Yuno's and

Clephas

Clephas

Re: LieF ~Shin'ainaru Anata e~ Part two: Hinako and Ai (true)

Mmm... first I should explain why I chose to do Hinako last before the true route.  Hinako is the secondary protagonist of the VN, the one who introduces you to the characters as well as to the nature of the rehabilitation plan in the story.  As a result, Hinako's character development is jump-started, to the point where she is incomparably developed compared to Ruka and Momo.  Hinako is probably the strongest person in the VN, at heart.  Of course, she has her - rather obvious - weak point

Clephas

Clephas

Issues when Reviewing/Commenting on stuff you like and stuff you don't

Something I'm sure people have noticed in my posts in this blog is that I almost invariably compare VNs I'm reading on to either a genre standard or a similar VN in the past.  To be blunt, this is a shortcut, as it is incredibly tedious to write out an extensive analysis of a genre-typical something that is only minutely different from a hundred other VNs of the same type.  Comparisons provide a frame of reference, giving the readers a chance to figure out what they can expect based on prev

Clephas

Clephas

Clephas Top 50 VNs

For the last two years or so, I've gotten repeated requests to unequivocally name my top VNs made up until the present, ignoring objectivity, my vndb votes, etc.  I've more or less just ignored most of those requests, because it is a pain in the ass to name a 'favorite' VN in the first place.  I've made lists of VNs I loved from various genres, and I've also made lists of VNs for a specific purpose.  However, I've avoided making a list like this one up until now, mostly because my 'favorites' sw

Clephas

Clephas

Re: LieF ~Shin'ainaru Anata e~ Part One: Common, Momo, Ruka

First, I should state that this is a VN I was unsure of from the beginning.  The concept of the 'rehabilitation program' in the VN is so similar to some manga and anime that have gotten attention recently that I had to shake my head in exasperation... not to mention that the concept is also at the core of why so many Japanese otakus like the school life slice-of-life charage that are produced in such profusion. The VN starts out from the perspective of Hahakigi Hinako, one of the three hero

Clephas

Clephas

Sora no Tsukurikata Final: Final Arc, Haru route

Surprisingly enough, Sora no Tsukurikata has managed to avoid driving me insane with rage.  *pauses for the gasps of shock and the screeches of terror from the audience* In the end, this VN managed to mostly avoid the violence you would see in most VNs with mafia members as main characters, and it did so without going down the 'total moe-moe' route that most VN writers would have chosen in the same case.  Haru is the main heroine of the game, but her route doesn't relegate the other he

Clephas

Clephas

Sora no Tsukurikata part three: Third Arc and Noa

The third arc of this story focuses on the homonculus, Noa. Noa is a homonculus made by an old alchemist named Kagari, who dwells atop the hill overlooking the city.  She is the game's resident loli, a sweet, slow-speaking, kind-hearted girl who raises vegetables as something of a cross between her lifework and a hobby.  Naturally, like most characters of her type, she is widely loved by the game's characters. The third arc and Noa's path pursue knowledge of Noa's past, her nature as a

Clephas

Clephas

Sora no Tsukurikata part two: Second Arc and Yurika

The second arc of this story is focused narrowly on the aftermath of the first arc and Yurika.  Yurika is a rare type in VNs these days... a sexy adult woman who isn't another man's wife or widow (yes, I went there).  She is a member of the 'Virgin of Chains', the more 'peaceful' of the two mafia groups dominating the area.  She is the protagonist's friend, occasional partner, drinking buddy, and sex friend.  She has a somewhat nihilistic attitude toward life and an absolute love of te

Clephas

Clephas

Foreshadowing: My experience in VNs

Foreshadowing is one of those elements in all forms of literature and entertainment media that is pretty much unavoidable.  To be specific, it's been around since at least the time of the Greek tragedies, lol. However, how a story uses foreshadowing says a lot about its style.  In a lot of chuunige, for example, it gets laid on pretty thick, though they generally choose their moment for 'grand effect' and melodrama.  In nakige, it is usually as a prelude to a tear-jerking event in the immed

Clephas

Clephas

Sora no Tsukurikata Part one: First Arc, Kazuha route

As I began this VN, I decided to change my approach to how I would handle it.  My dislike of ladder-style story structures will probably cause me to go berserk when I finish the final (Haru's) route, but for now, I'm going to evaluate the story based on each arc and its associated heroine route, ignoring the VN as a whole until I've gone through the final route. Now, the protagonist of this story is a pretty archetypical character... a PI who has been scarred and run down by life living in

Clephas

Clephas

*sighs* more ladder-style complaints

For those of you familiar with my tendency to bitch and moan about this kind of story-structure, I don't really need to explain... but I'll do so anyway.  The 'ladder-style' story structure is the style used in games such as G-senjou, Aiyoku no Eustia, and Sen no Hatou.  While it does make it easy to fit in a 'true' path (the true path being main street) and breaking things down into 'arcs' makes for a more expansive story, that is at the cost of increasing irritation in a way that would never h

Clephas

Clephas

October 2016: Which VNs I plan to play and what I'm doing now

October is turning out to be a frustrating month, with the VN I was most interested in delayed until December (for some reason, December seems to be getting all the most interesting ones...).  I honestly had hopes that October would break the 'dry spell' I've been experiencing since I completed July's releases.  There is still a possibility of that happening, but I'm not getting my hopes up. Right now, I'm busy with work, trying to open up a nice quiet period so that I can get all of Octobe

Clephas

Clephas

Random VNs: Prima Stella [edited]

First thing that anyone thinks when they see a VN written by Choco Chip is 'nukige!!!'.  That isn't precisely correct.  I've played exactly three games by this guy that impressed me, though that was over four years ago.  Those three games were Prima Stella, Sarasara, and Sakura Iro Quartet.  Randomly, I decided to pick Prima Stella back up, and I relived my ancient experiences with it, gaining new impressions relative to what I've experienced since. First, my impressions are universally pos

Clephas

Clephas

My opinion: Pitfalls of a Fantranslator

This is a simple post putting forth my views on what the largest pitfalls are for a fantranslator, both in the immediate sense and the long-term. Immediate 1. Making promises: Anyone who starts a translation is bound to do something stupid... such as setting a deadline or predicting how long it will take them to do something.  Even experienced translation groups trip and fall into this particular trap.  Nothing good comes of making promises, primarily because rl exists. 2.  Agreei

Clephas

Clephas

Random VNs: Yuyukana (also VN of the Month for September announced)

Ok... as random choices to play go, this one was probably a horrible choice.  Yuyukana starts out as and rarely escapes the standard charage model (there are some tear-jerking moments at the end of some of the routes, but it isn't at nakige level).  First, you have the tsundere osananajimi.  Then you have the ojousama who mysteriously comes in every morning to cook breakfast for the protagonist whose parents are not living at home.  Third you have the mysterious transfer student who profess

Clephas

Clephas

×
×
  • Create New...