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No. What I'm saying is that, the fact that 1) it works (to clarify: scamming people doesn't "work" as it is obviously not an optimal way of doing things) 2) it's legal, is not sufficient to claim something is "ethical". What other people claimed, and I find their arguments good for those I cited, is that using kickstarter in this way can indeed be seen as "unethical". With that said, I'm not exactly a strong believer in the meaningfulness of ethics, and I don't care very much either about SP's doings and financial situation and whatever. I guess I just don't like the assumption that anything goes as long as it works and it's legal, and I especially don't like the often underlying tone that this kind "ultra-liberal" attitude is some intrinsic rule of nature.

It sounds to me like they're using it for exactly what KickStarer was designed for though...? I've seen multiple threads like these before, and they always make me giggle at how misinformed people are. Backers are not getting nothing out of putting money into a campaign - in fact, they are getting more for their money for backing the KickStarter than if they were to just buy the game post-release. That is a very shallow thing to say, as I can't imagine you've played any of those titles. Throughout this entire thread, you have been making assumptions out of thin air, as well as forcing your own opinions onto others by claiming to know how the market is supposed to work. Forgive me if I'm wrong, but you seem to be aggravated that SP is not using an orthodox approach like MG and JAST. Well, I'll tell you this - the market is a fickle thing, and is rapidly changing. Well I am deeply sorry that two major titles spells 'over-reliance' for you

Oh god. Based Confessions thread. You guys would go from me having a date with someone, to femdom. 10/10 guys. Confession: The date went really well. She has changed quite a bit, but in a way that feels complimentary to the way that I myself have changed. I guess you might say this is what it's like growing up and maturing. This meetup was much more comfortable for me, and any nervousness was gone the moment we met up. So yeah, everything went quite smoothly. Although, we were supposed to have a bonfire this evening, but it rained earlier today so we ended up postponing it until next Monday. Kinda sucks, but that is just another time we get to hangout~ Confession 2: I wanted to sneak up on her and surprise her, but she ended up sneaking up on me instead.

Unethical for me would be if they're taking advantage of their costumers without them knowing it. But Kickstarter is, quite frankly, one of the more honest ways to go about this. They're literally exposing everything they're doing to you and what you're getting for when you pay them and you only pay and support them if you'd like. They're not taking advantage of you, they're trying to involve you in the process of licensing a game and you only chose to support it if you want to. Unlike Jast or MG who only license the titles they feel they should license, SP actually asks their audience what they want licensed by launching a kickstarter and letting the fans decide. They're not shoving this down your throat, and like I mentioned earlier most of their kickstarters aren't even theirs to begin with, they're just indie devs who happened to partner with SP for extra advertisement, SP will likely not profit much off of it. Just because SP puts those kickstarters on their websites doesn't mean SP is the one in charge of those projects, they're just helping them get exposure. I really fail to see how unethical this is when SP is one of the companies that's most directly involved with fans, where the fans decide who to support and where to put their money in. You're saying they shouldn't keep doing it because they should establish themselves as a business by now instead of relying on fans throwing money at them, but I think they already have, they're pretty much an advertisement agency, and all the kickstarters or their page are primarly done by indie developers who are doing their own thing, so SP is just listing a bunch of Kickstarters at once, what's so inherently wrong with that?? This whole "dishonest" and "unethical" talk gives me a headache.

My heart of course says yes, it's my schedule that is the problem. And currently my schedule says... not now at the very least. Especially not for this next month (real life is going to be really busy and tedious for me the next 30 days or so). When you are speaking to Flutterz, definitely! When you are on screen but not speaking to Futterz, than probably not as much. Or at least it won't be the subject of the conversation then. xD Thanks for the support everyone. I'm glad people enjoyed it. And once again, I want to give a huge shout-out to FidgetQueen for creating the face sprites. I doubt it would have been nearly as amusing without them.

Hello FUWA! RLS is recruting for Violet Hill project! We are currently searching for a talented co-artist who can help Darksin out with character art. Good art skills are expected since applicants will try and match the style and quality of our head artist. We also need a SDCG artist. For those unfamiliar with the acronym, SD stands for "super deformed" which is commonly referred to as "chibi." Cuteness and neatness are an absolute plus, please send us your samples!

Missing the troll option.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o6c1UuoMwI

lol if you think any of the people hired by any of these companies are being paid well. It is a requirement for the people they employ to be motivated by passion for the games they work on rather than by money, because they get paid a laughable amount. Like, a tiny fraction of what actual translators get paid. All people hired by MG, JAST, and SP are essentially volunteers with minor benefits. Except for Clannad, where Sekai Project used all the money they acquired to hire multiple translators at, AFAIK, the actual standard wage for translators, which is why progress is so fast. But even still, they can pay to make it fast, but apparently not pay to make it good, because according to Herkz the quality of their work is leaving something to be desired. edit: I do agree that people heavily underestimate the operating costs of these companies and overestimate their profit margins. I'll toss a guess out there and say that Sekai Project still is not exactly laden with cash, they seem to be spending it as quickly as they're getting it in order to keep the gears turning. But my point is that the "skilled labor" issue is worked around by not actually paying them much, which is achieved by not actually employing "skilled" labor but amateurs who do this as a second job in their spare time. This is why official VN translations are also slow and unreliable. If anything, I hope that SP's approach can help break this mold. Because if you actually want this industry to grow and become more popular, they are absolutely going to have to earn much more money than they currently are and actually hire full-time employees at industry standard wages. Unfortunately, I don't see many signs of this happening any time soon.

Watched the first three episodes of From The New World. It's very pretty, and it's doing a fantastic job of making me feel uneasy. I wanted to relish the calm atmosphere it has going now, because I can see that all the nice everyday stuff is going up in flames very soon, but the show keeps jabbing me with reminders that all is decidedly not well. I don't recall any show every leaving me feel quite this nervous before - it's both pleasant and unpleasant, but mostly I'm savoring the feeling.

IIRC in Suika's case it was more like that^

Everyone who buys into those tier levels know exactly what kind of deal they're getting, and are basically knowingly donating to cause.

You can make that argument when it actually happens with an SP release Backers are able to opt out at any time before the end of the campaign should they change their mind. They're given more than enough time to think about their pledge, and should they feel that they regret buying something, then that's really not a problem that arises from Kickstarter, but from the consumer's own discretion. Many games have free trials and demos that show you the direction the developers are trying to go in. If you buy a product and you don't like it, then that's a reality that encompasses not just Kickstarter, but virtually any market you can think of. Business 101. How much do you think it costs to manufacture an iPhone 6? The maximum retail value is not attributed to the cost of production - it scales with consumer demand. If it's really not worth it, then people won't pledge for that tier. However, since people clearly do want those high tiers (most of them are all gone), then you're really not in a position to say that they're getting ripped off when the backers themselves feel like they're getting good value for their money. The only people who complain about this are the ones who are butthurt that they can't afford a one-of-a-kind colored shikishi. That being said, the higher tiers are geared towards more die-hard fans. I personally wouldn't back $5,000 on a game, but you need to be more open-minded and realize that there are people out there who do so willingly, and don't feel like they're being ripped off. If the backers are okay with it, then why are non-backers stirring up things like 'injustice' and all that bullshit?

On second thought, I don't really care that much about this issue. Sekai Project isn't even releasing games I want... so why I should I even care how they run their business? Honestly what I don't like about Sekai Project is their "non-adult first" policy rather than their penchant for crowdfunding (though the two are sort of linked). If they continue down the path they're on they'll simply fall off my radar as a company worth thinking about, much like NIS America.

I think the whole thing is even more stupid when you go into right or wrong. Is it violating other people's freedom? No. Check. Is the product they promise being delivered once they get the money? Yes. Check. Are they breaking any other law of some sort? Aside from organized crime with the illuminati, no. Check. ...Can't think of anything else to check, tbh. Their priority should be profit and keeping themselves alive. Using kickstarter is a nice 'n rational way to go for it.

JAST/MG-style funding: - Pay for licensing costs out of own pocket - Players buy the game once it's released - MG hopefully makes back funds in sales Pros: - Less people bitching about you - Can possibly license in bulk, whereas KickStarter really works on one project at a time - Even if sales don't do well, licensing fees were already paid, so the Japanese companies probably wouldn't hesitate to work with them again if fees were paid again up front. Cons: - If not enough sales, they lose money ========================================= Kick Starter: - People can back projects if they are genuinely interested in the project - Easy to gauge interest - Everyone wins in the end Pros: - If not enough interest and campaign fails, no losses for anyone - Backers actually get MORE out of their money (cheaper game + extra goodies WOW!!!111) - Said goodies are exclusively made for western fans, for the KickStarter. See stretch goals for CLANNAD for instance: "With the cooperation of some amazing artists in Japan, we'll create a Kickstarter original CLANNAD anthology manga!" Cons: - If project fails, the Japanese company in question might not want to work with them again because they've already tasted failure once (it might look bad for their company if they risked failing twice in a row). This is something money can't buy, and is more damaging than low sales. - People bitch about you NOTE: Just because a project is gets funded 200% more than its goal doesn't mean they make more money than if those funds were to go into sales instead. Looking at price and raw value of backer tiers alone, it is generally cheaper for consumers to back the KickStarter. People who back the project generally won't need to buy the game a second time, which in fact decreases actual sales.

http://www.siliconera.com/2015/06/18/senran-kaguras-producer-says-small-breasts-are-hard-to-work-with/

@Lino that's so cute :3

It's about ethics in Kickstartering #kickstartergate #notyourimouto

We suspect some sort of bug. NAYLEEN, WE SUMMON THEE. Hopefully this won't settle as shrugging it off with a "lol IPB".

User Control Panel Avatars Avatars are like your forum identity. Choose whoever and whatever you want! Curious about the types of avatar users that exist? Visit my blog entry, Avatar: The Last FuwaBender! To change your avatar, visit "My Profile" and then mouse over your current avatar and click "Change", OR visit "My Settings" -> Profile Settings tab -> Change my Photo This will open the Photo Editor where you can choose to upload your own avatar using the "Upload from file" option, link one from an image hosting site such as IMGUR using the "Import a photo from a URL" option, and finally, crop your avatar using the "Adjust Crop" option. TIP: You have a maximum size of 150 KB for your avatars. Typically this means you will have to use JPEG filetype for large images or really small images for other filetypes such as PNG. You can also use GIFs if they are < 150 KB, though that requires some massive shrinking and quality nerfing. TIP: Avatars are optimized for the portrait shape, so if you want a big smokin' hawt avatar to rampage the forums with, choose an avatar with a height size that is greater than its width (ie. taller than it is wider) Tall (left) vs. Wide (right). Das' some Goliath vs. David right there: Signatures A signature is a user-defined message which is attached to all of said user's posts. Usually includes an image with their username on it. In the case of Fuwanovel, expect to see hot 2D females (and males. and anything else people like...) To change your signature, visit "My Profile" -> Signature tab This will open the Edit Signature where you can input your desired contents: Up to 1 image, 800x150 pixels, any number of URLs, and up to 3 lines (note: an image takes up 1 line). TIP: Careful! If you attempt to save your signature when it violates a rule (ie. contains more than 3 lines, size is bigger than 800x150, etc.) you will get an error and will lose all of what you typed up and will have to type it up again. Copy paste your content before attempting to save! TIP: You can artificially have more than 3 lines by using Spoiler tags(see my signature: 1) Image, 2) Currently reading, 3) Signature by Kurukosari, and then voila 4) Spoiler tag (Love Live Event SR List) Attempting to save a Signature that violates a rule... ...Results in... ...And so when you go back and refresh the previous page you'll be greeted to a nice ol' empty text box (or whatever your signature was pre-attempting-to-change-it-to-your-desired-new-one). So be careful! Adding a VNDB, MAL, and Steam VNDB is the #1 local Visual Novel database. Make an account there if you haven't already so you can log all of the VNs you read. Same thing with MAL for anime (and manga / LNs), and finally Steam for your gaming needs. To link your VNDB, MAL, or Steam, visit "My Settings" -> Profile Settings tab -> Scroll down to Profile Information from there just type in your VNDB ID number (without the u) for VNDB, your MAL username for MAL, and your Steam username for Steam. You can also add your various contact information (Skype, AIM, etc.). Scroll down to Profile Information at bottom of Profile Settings tab from My Settings and type in your information: Now you look legit whenever you post B) Blocking users, signatures Fuwanovel is widely hailed by many of its current users to be a wonderful little friendly community that may or may not have its share of trolls. But everybodys' their own person, and sometimes you just can't mix well with certain individuals, or maybe they have a certain obnoxious signature. That's where the block feature comes in where you'll be able to ignore (it will be hidden) a users' posts, their signature, and even their PMs towards you! To block a user, visit "My Settings" -> Ignore Preferences to bring up Users I'm Ignoring. Type in the desired username in the "Add new user to my list" and tick what you want to ignore (Post, Signatures, Messages) and then hit Save Changes. Afterwards you can toggle a users' Hide / Allow by clicking on the bubbles or Remove them from your ignore list if they have achieved redemption. TIP: By ticking the "Ignore all signatures when reading topics and personal messages" you can get rid of Signatures once and for all! Yay! User is blocked!! One day you'll become old and grumpy enough that you'll block everybody. That'll be fun~ Managing notifications Notifications are love, notifications are life. Notifications help keep you informed of everything happening in your daily Fuwa life that may interest or pertain to you, so it's a good idea to be able to filter out which notifications you want and which ones you don't want. Visit "My Settings" -> Notification Preferences tab to bring up a list of the various notifications you may receive from Fuwa. The left column of ticks applies to in-Fuwa notifcation system, whereas the right column of ticks apply to your personal email. Should be self explanatory from there. TIP: My favorite notification option is probably the "Show inline pop-up when I have new personal messages (latest will be shown)" option under Private Messages; check that and you'll get a popup whenver someone PMs you:

I'm trying to see the negative here, and I just can't find it. As a consumer, I have two possible modes when it comes to a Kickstarter project that I want the final product of: I pledge I don't If I pledge, I am only harmed if the project fails after being funded. As far as I'm aware, that hasn't happened. So no harm done. If I do not pledge, I am only harmed if a project I want fails to be funded and not brought over as a result. And even then, that only holds true if it would have otherwise been brought over if Sekai Project had been using a different business model. Since this is pretty much impossible to accurately gauge, the default assumption based on Sekai Project's past performance is that no harm has been done. If you don't pledge to Kickstarters, or even just not to Sekai Project's Kickstarters, you are still able to buy products they release. So in that aspect there is literally no difference between different methods from a consumer standpoint because the result is exactly the same. The only other reason I could see for claiming that Sekai Project using Kickstarter is a bad thing is from sort of ideological standpoint predicated on the premise that Kickstarter should only be used as a desperation move. And frankly, I doubt that's a stance that Kickstarter would stand behind, so it only holds as much water as the crowdfunding populace grant it, which is to say not much. Evidence suggests that people prioritize their crowdfunding based on what they are interested in rather than what projects need outside funding the most. The only other other reason I could see would be if one were to claim to be some sort of moral or ethical authority on how crowdfunding should or should not be pursued regardless of the actual consequences to the consumer or desires of those doing the funding. In which case I guess I just don't believe in your authority as much as you do.

Hmm... I'm more confused as to why Sekai Project keeps announcing new projects over and over again, yet rarely announces when things are actually completed. Every thread on this website and other websites have been about SP announcing new projects, but not about SP releasing new products. Not sure, I may just be looking in the wrong spots.

That isn't blackmail.

Ah, yeah I'll give Aoi that. Those are some pretty fun moments. But man, the amount of teenage drama angst her route gets from the mid to end-game parts will be obnoxious so brace yourself for that Edit: and yeah protag is also to blame for the angst in her route

Confession: Y'all are playboys. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3utaOPNODjs

What happened, did someone win yet?

u dated for a week? weak.

Fucking PETA, back off my catgirls!

Mario actually responded to PETA allegations

Considering it's a very frequent, idiosyncratic, and often annoying part of your posts I don't see how anyone that's seen one of yours could possibly miss it, I was p. much certain of it immediately

Crowdfunding is neither sponsorship (financial backing in return for commercial benefit, usually related to marketing) nor investment (financial risk in anticipation of future gains), but shares characteristics of each. Patronage might be the closest concept (financial backing in anticipation of continued service or performance of duties), except it assumes that the benefactor is in a position of power and has leverage over the benefactee. I chose the investment angle to showcase how crowdfunding shares many of the underlying benefits for the investee without the burden of being responsible to investors and compensating them for the financial risks they've undertaken. It's a system that favors the recipient at the expense of donors, and I'm astonished it caught on with such a lopsided incentive system. A primary reason JAST and Mangagamer don't use crowdfunding is because Japanese developers won't let them. They regard crowdfunding as unprofessional, and for good reason, and they don't want their name sullied by shameless cash grabs. Note that most of Sekai Project's Kickstarter campaigns are for doujin projects, as doujin groups don't have a professional reputation to maintain. I'm a bit surprised Frontwing and Key let Sekai Project go through with the crowdfunding projects for Grisaia and Clannad, but don't expect Japanese professional companies to keep supporting an endless deluge of Kickstarter campaigns. By establishing themselves as perpetually reliant on crowdfunding, Sekai Project may be locking themselves into the role of doujin publisher, a role they may find difficult to escape once they're spurned by most or all professional developers. Japanese companies have long memories when it comes to social matters such as public image and professionalism.

Okay, so whats your alternative? Compete with MG to get all the nukige? Or go the Jast route and relase like one game a year? Since you're the moral and business expert here, whats your solution?

It's going to come back to bite them eventually if that's all they do. You can't run a business venture based entirely on donations unless you're a nonprofit that operates entirely on cultivating donations through goodwill. Sekai Project is a for-profit company, obviously. I don't like how Kickstarter is being used recently, either. I have nothing against Shenmue or the people making it, but they essentially turned the site into a pre-order retailer without admitting that's what they were doing. We all know that Sekai can most likely afford to fund things themselves now, considering how popular the Sakura series is, for some reason. I was hesitant to use Kickstarter in the first place, but if things continue like this, no Kickstarter project will see any money from me unless they can prove that they aren't just gauging interest, and the project won't be funded no matter what. It goes against the very purpose of the site. AAA publishers and developers using the site is moronic.

Hoh... Strays' the reason Cyr stayed huh... I ship.

Yin by Mirrowdothack http://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewtopic.php?f=45&t=25320

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAvuEyDy5JE Kudos to this man for putting a smile on my face on this shitty day.

,-,

If you select a random VN on the ren'py site there's a pretty good chance it'll be pretty poor.

Hope you get better soon, dude!

(Last time…) Guy: "Oookay. I still think they're porny." (< not a word) Me: "That probably says more about you than the art style." *Tay gets slugged* Me: "Owww!" Guy: "No, but really. Why not just read a book or comic instead?" (And now for the "epic" conclusion!) Me: “What do you mean?” Guy: “I dunno. Why read *that”—“ *he waves a finger lazily at the PC screen* “when you could just read a comic or a book, instead?” Me: “Um. Because variety is a good thing? For example, do you eat the same thing for lunch every day?” *Uncomfortable moment of silence.* Me: “You do, don’t you?” Guy: “Yeah, generally.” Me: “Dang. Way to pull a Ford on me. Okay, so, that was a bad example –“ Guy: “Ford?” Me: “Henry Ford. The guy who made the cars? He’s famous for the line, ‘You can have any color [of Model T] as long as it's black.’ Meaning: sameness is boring.” *Guy’s eyes are still glazed over* Me: “Okay, fine. Tell me a hobby that interests you.” Guy: “NASCAR.” Me: “Um. No. Try again. Give me another one. A better one.” *Tay gets slugged* Me: “Owww!” Guy: “Music, then.” Me: *Rubbing arm* “What kind of music?” Guy: “Oh, all kinds.” Me: “What’s your favorite song?” Guy: “’The Angry American’ by Toby Keith” *Uncomfortable moment of silence* Me: “I’m feeling increasingly justified, here. If that’s your favorite song, we’ve got bigger problems to deal with.” *Continuing rapidly to avoid more pain* “Okay, so, by comparison – don’t you like listening to more than just that one song? Or to just Toby Keith? Isn’t it good to get some variety?” Guy: “I guess so. But I do listen to him most of the time. I don’t like much else.” Me: “You’re making this very hard, [Guy]. Anyway, I’m sure that if you searched your soul you’d discover that variety is a good thing and keeps life interesting. I do read books, but I also read these things—“ *pointing to PC screen* “—because they’re fun. And different.” Guy: “And porny.” Me: “What is it with you and that word?” Guy: “It’s just what they are, [Tay].” Me: *mucho annoyed look* Guy: “I’d be too embarrassed to get caught reading one of those.” Me: “How mature of you.” Guy: “They can’t be that much different than a book, man.” Me: “You’d be surprised.” Guy: “Not likely.” Me: “How about we make this interesting?” Guy: “Fine by me.” Me: “I’m going to let you borrow [my tablet] for a few hours. You’re going to play one of these ‘porny’ games. If it doesn’t impress you, I’ll buy you lunch. If it does impress you, however, you buy me lunch. And if it makes you cry, you have to take my afternoon shift.” Guy: “Fine. But if I hate it, you have to take my shift tomorrow morning.” Me: “Great.” *tap* *tap* *tap* Guy: “So what am I reading?” Me: “It’s a sunny little thing called 'Planetarian'.” *hands over tablet* Guy: “Wish me luck.” Me: “Good luck. Oh, and I locked the other apps, so you can’t snoop. Sorry.” Guy: “D*@%.” The After-Story: [Guy] loved Planetarian and he definitely cried. Lunch was delicious, as was having the afternoon off. He’s interested in trying another “porny game”, though I do not know which one I’ll recommend to him. I have not yet actually told him that there is, in fact, porn in some of the games. Mostly because I really hate the word “porny.”

A few months ago, I figured that I knew enough about visual novels to post a Beginner's Guide to Visual Novels onto Talk Amongst Yourselves (Kotaku's user community) because I didn't really see a guide to the genre that was up to snuff. I've been working on it ever since, tweaking it to improve it and make it better, and now I'm currently working on a video version of it, which is in the process of editing. I figured, since i'm now on Fuwanovel and I think there would be a few people who would appreciate it, I'd go and post it here. I'm no pro to VN's in comparison to alot of people here and it's not perfect, so if you have any constructive criticism, please comment about it below. What exactly is a Visual Novel? Why should I care, and why do you care about them? The Visual Novel Genre is a confusing genre, especially if you have no idea what it's about. I'm here to try to help. This is is my Beginner's Guide to one of my favorite genres in gaming, Visual Novels. Before we actually get started, there is one thing I need to clarify; i'm talking about Visual Novels as a genre, not about dating sims. NOT ALL VISUAL NOVELS ARE DATING SIMS. Dating sims are a Sub-Genre of Visual novels, if that. A lot of them aren't even VN's. Get it? Ok, good. Let's move on. What is a Visual Novel? A visual novel is Genre of video games (Personally, I like to think of it as an interactive storytelling medium, as there isn't really much gameplay), that's similar to choose your own adventure books and adventure games. As the name implies, Visual novels are text heavy, but they usually have music, voice acting and stills of characters to help you get absorbed into the story. The biggest gameplay aspect of a Visual novel is choices; The player has to decide what the protagonist does in the form of options. The options can lead you to different story plotlines called routes, or they could just lead you to a bad end and you'll have to try again. Visual novels without choices are usually referred to as Sound Novels or Kinetic Novels. Why should I care? Visual novels are a very flexible genre, storytelling wise. Visual novels have very little restrictions, story wise, as they can go on and have a ton of exposition without making a book HUGE, they have the flexibility of multiple routes, they don't have to comply with arbitrary rules set by TV companies and using the genre to mess with you. The Fate Stay Night Visual novel is a good example of this, as it's 50+ hours, had 3 separate routes, and having Shirou as a narrator can skew your viewpoint. The flexibility leads to many visual novels to have amazing stories. Because of the excellent stories from this genre, many popular visual novels get anime adaptations. Some of the most well known adaptations are Clannad, Fate Stay Night, Steins;Gate, and Higurashi. Some of you may be asking, why would I play Visual Novels if I could watch the anime? There are many parts of the visual novels that do not get adapted, and sometimes the adaptation is kinda bad. Also, there are some great visual novels that have not been adapted, like Phoenix Wright, G-Senjou no Maou, 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, and Tsukihime that I'd recommend you check out. What is it like to play a Visual Novel? How exactly do Visual Novels play? It's like watching a really long anime, or reading a book that's kinda animated. It's easiest to describe as a mix between a book and an anime. On average, they are usually much longer than the anime counterparts, which give them time to flesh out the characters and the world. Usually, Visual Novels have branching routes, where stories have some similarities (known as a common route), but overall could be considered their own stories (ex: Heaven's feel in Fate/Stay Night). In any Visual Novel, usually you have to go on a path and stick with it. When you stray away from the route you are in, you'll probably run into what's known as a BAD END, where something horrible or pointless happens. Also, i'll insert the OBLIGITORY EROGE WARNING here; Many Visual Novels are Eroges, meaning they have NSFW content. Many have censorship patches, or none of this content at all, but if type of content is not up your alley, be prepared. How would I get my hands on a Visual Novel? The fact that Visual Novels are not popular in the west means that most of them are kinda hard to get over here. Many companies do not translate and make english versions, so you are pretty much have to rely on fan translations. If you know that the game has an official US release, I'd go and support the publisher, but if it's not, the best place to find a visual novel is at Fuwanovel. It's important to note that many Visual Novels do not find their way outside of Japan, which can be depressing if you found game or series really like. Terms used in Visual Novel talk: Visual novel - This is an umbrella term used in the west to designate a type of game which is particularly story-focused, or containing novel-like narration in its writing. In Japan, such games are generally referred to as "love adventure games" (恋愛ADV/AVG), or novel game (ノベルゲーム noberu gēmu, in short: NVL). Routes - The name that refers to a story line in visual novels. Non-linear branching story lines are a common trend in visual novels, and these branching story lines are routes. Kinetic Novel - Kinetic novels are visual novels without choices, so all you do is read. Sound Novel - Sound novels is a trademark from Chunsoft. The term is the original word referring to novel type games.However "Visual Novels" became prevalent due to other companies using it in order to avoid the company's trademark. This term later was known because of Higurashi, which used it because the sound was more important than the actual visuals, so they called it sound novels. 07th Expansion's sound novels are essentially kinetic novels with a focus on sound to create an atmosphere. Dating Sim - Technically, this term refers to simulation games focused on dating. However, this term is frequently used by English speakers to describe any romance-driven game, regardless of game mechanics used. Chuuni - An umbrella term for games that have melodramatic characters, and they are typically focused on the protagonist. Nakige - A game that produces emotional catharisis (touching your heart, making you cry, etc), with a good ending. Think of games like Clannad. Utsuge - games that are made with the intent of making you depressed, kinda like how nakige is to make you cry. Moege - A VN where the focus is on Moe (not even going to try defining moe....) Charage - Sub-genre of Moege where the focus is on character development Eroge - An eroge (エロゲー or エロゲ erogē); a portmanteau of erotic game: (エロチックゲーム erochikku gēmu)) or Ero-ga is a video game that features erotic content. AKA Hentai Game. This is a blanket term for any game that includes NSFW content. Nukige - A sub-genre of Visual Novels which focus on the erotic content. Harem - A trope characterized by a protagonist surrounded by three or more members of the opposing sex who are usually love interests. Harem usually refers to a male protagonist with female love interests, while stuff with females with male love interests are referred to as reverse harem. Occurs in manga and anime as well. Bishōjo game - This term designates any game involving a male lead dating pretty anime girls. The word "bishōjo" literally means "pretty young girl". "Girl game" and "gal game" are also used to describe this sub-genre. Not really used here in the west. Otome game - This term designates any romantic game involving a female lead dating pretty anime boys.... so the exact opposite. Translated literally, Otome game means "maiden game". They are also referred to as a "reverse harem". Boy's Love game - This term designates any game involving a male lead dating pretty anime boys in a homosexual relationship. "BL game" and "Yaoi" are terms also used to describe these games. This sub-genre is primarily geared toward a female audience. If I missed any terms please post a comment below and i'll update this post, or check out Fuwanovel's document of Lexicon​ that should have pretty much anything I missed. Recommendations A beginner's guide really wouldn't be that great of a guide without some recommendations, right? well, I have quite a bit of recommendations broken into sub-genres, so click on the ones you are interested in, or just watch them all. I'll be giving out one main recommendation per sub genre, with extra recommendations if you liked the main recommendations. If there's anything you think that's missing, that's probably because I haven't played them yet, or I didn't care for them too much. If these aren't enough for you, check out Kaguya's list of 50 translated VNs you should read before you die. Sci-Fi This is the same Sci-Fi you know and love, Science fiction; but the Japanese usage may skew more twords fiction than science. This is my favorite sub-genre of Visual Novels, I haven't played one of these I disliked. 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (DS,iOS) Why this rocks: This game has an amazing atmosphere, great writing, and it keeps you engaged with an interesting premise. This series has an atmosphere that is unmatched by any other game, and it's a must play. If you like this one, play Ever 17, Remember 11, Never 7, Zero Escape Virtue's Last Reward (3DS, Vita), Steins;Gate, Chaos; Head Romances Romances are all about relationships, dating included. This includes the sub-genres of Nakige, Utsuge, Dating Sims and many others. Clannad Why this rocks: All of the feelz ;-;. It's pretty much like the anime, but there are a few routes that are in the game that go further or are totally missing from the anime. If you don't know anything about clannad, it's a great story with excellent characters, excellent writing, and is just amazing overall. This game really impacts you with a great message, great charecters, and it floods you with feelz. If you like this one, play Anything made by Key: Kanon, Rewrite, Little Busters, Planetarian, Katawa Shoujo, and the fantastic White Album 2 (no English translation yet, but it's going to be great when it comes out. Check out the anime). Horror Horror is… well horror! These are games made to make you afraid. Pretty self explanatory. Higurashi - When They Cry Why This Rocks: It's a horror mystery. it has some of the most interesting scenes in any series ever, and is unlike anything you'll ever see. Personally, I haven't played the game so I can't speak personally about it, but I did love the anime. If you like this one, play Umineko, Corpse Party (PSP), Saya no Uta (on a totally different lvl of messed up tho....), Kara no Shoujo Mystery G-Senjou no Maou Why this rocks: I like to call this the Death Note of Visual Novels. If you want to learn more about this, check out my review Here. If you like this one, play Sharin no Kuni, Any Akabeisoft2 game, Higurashi, Hotel Dusk, Last Window Action Fate/ Stay Night Why this rocks: This, along with Clannad are pretty much flagships of Visual Novels. Fate Stay Night has a very well written plot If you want to learn more about this, check out my review here. If you like this one, play Tsukihime, Fate/hollow Ataraxia, everything Type-Moon... and Muv-Luv. Phoenix Wright Why this rocks: Some people may debate that these are actually visual novels, but personally, I think they are. If you've made it this far without knowing what Phoenix Wright is, i'm disappointed in you. You play as the defense attorney Phoenix Wright, and it's quite fun. If you like this one, play the rest of the Ace Attorney series, It's spiritual Successor, Ghost Trick (DS, iOS), Danganronpa, Hotel Dusk Weird Visual Novels Visual Novels usually come from Japan. You kinda have to expect stuff like this. I've never played a lot of these, but from what I've read about them, I'm very curious. Go! Go! Nippon! My First Trip to Japan- This one's about an okaku going to Japan. It has an interesting concept, but it's really not worth your money…. can finish in one sitting. Hatoful Boyfriend - YOU ARE TRYING TO DATE PIGEONS. AND GUESS WHAT? IT'S COMING TO THE STATES. Osananajimi wa Daitouryou: My Girlfriend is the President - This one is self explanatory. I'm very curious. School Days - A game that defies expectations with the most assholish protagonist ever. Edit: Thanks to our friend Richard Eisenbeis, I'd seen some pretty weird VN's as of late. Interested in dating Sushi or slabs of meat? Well, NOW YOU CAN! That's about it for the basics of Visual Novels. If you see anything missing, post it in the comments and I'll update this post.

Licensed by Devolver Digital Summary A BL (Bird's Love) VN. Welcome to St. PigeoNation’s Institute, the most splendid and greatest academy of the pigeon, by the pigeon and for the pigeon. At first, you felt anxious entering a classroom filled with pigeons’ eyes peering up at you. But as you enter your second year of high school, you’re getting used to your school life, and enjoying the peaceful days…right? Soon, you start to feel emotions you’ve never experienced before…emotions that could even be called…love? The unexpected softness of a pigeon’s rhinophyma… This is a heartwarming love story. Ending Guideline / Suggested Route Order There's no order you need to worry yourself over, just complete whichever endings you want first as they're all unlocked. The normal endings are what you'd call bad endings but in this case they're not actually bad they just don't provide you with a conclusion hence why I named them normal endings instead of bad endings. To unlock the Hurtful Boyfriend (BBL) Bonus story however you need to complete all endings, including the normal ones. That is all there is to it. Route Guideline Kawara Ryouta Only End Sakuya Le Bel Shirogane Normal End Full End Fujishiro Nageki Only End Sakazaki Yuuya Only End Oko San Normal End Full end Nanaki Kazuaki Only End Iwamine Shuu Normal End Full End Higure Anghel Only End Koshiba Azami Only End BBL Attribution This walkthrough was put together by me using the following source: http://jayisgames.com/archives/2012/02/hatoful_boyfriend.php