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First, this VN is done in a similar vein to that of the Chuushingura VN, in that it is historical fiction with elements of fantasy. In this case, the protagonist is Okita Soujirou, the infamous Shinsengumi swordsman (in this case a trap, lol, since the Shinsengumi are all women). For those wondering how they chose to do this VN, it is pretty interesting. I have so far played three of the four end-story arcs (Hijikata and Kondou share the same arc, as do the Saitou/Sanou and the Sakuma/Higo pair). The 'true history' arc is Kou's ending, which follows the same basic story as the original history, with the minor addition of the fantasy element. In this one, the protagonist's fate follows history exactly, as does that of the Shinsengumi. The other paths I've played are the Sakuma arc and the Sakamoto Ryouma arc. Sakamoto Ryouma, who was infamous for his (in this case her) neutrality and what were considered wild ideas by many, was assassinated after he succeeded in making arrangements that might have brought about a peaceful end to the Shogunate, were it not for certain events. This arc is something of a what-if story, where Ryouma wasn't assassinated and you get to see how that alters history. It is a threesome ending, with the infamous Tosa assassin Iori as the other part of the triangle, lol. Sakuma was a famous scholar and scientist who advised the Shogunate in the years leading up to the war and was eventually assassinated, leaving the shogunate without its primary scholar of foreign technology. This is also a what-if story, where Sakuma survives to alter the fate of Japan. Sano and Saitou's ending is basically an alternate epilogue that is a part of the same path. The last arc, which I'm playing at the moment (I will edit/update this post when it is done) looks like it focuses on a Hijikata and Kondou, and I'm interested to see how they'll handle that. A few comments on the story in general... one thing is that this VN, like Chuushingura, gives you a lot of insight into an era that is a bit overly romanticized, retaining a strong element of that same romanticism while at the same time going into the gory details of what went on (both political and literally gory details, lol). The degree of detail in this VN will probably be overwhelming for the average person, and I can see that they are lining the story in general up so that they can later create a 'true ending' fandisc, if the VN is well-received. To be honest, the linguistic difficulty of this VN stays around a 7-9 throughout its length, and I honestly can't see it being comprehensible for someone who isn't at least familiar with the historical outline of what happened in Japan between 1861-1868. Another thing to understand is that anyone who reads this with even a slightly objective point of view should be able to see how this era eventually resulted in the birth of the insane nationalism that defined Imperial-era Japan before and during World War II, and it does indeed touch on many of the underlying issues that created the antagonism toward the West in Japan. It doesn't gloss over economic or political issues (in fact, those are central to the progression of the story), and as a result, it can be a bit confusing if you've only heard one side of the story (the average western textbook doesn't mention the unequal treaties, the bombardment of Ezo, Satsuma's brief conflict with Britain, or the element of proxy war between France and England involved in their internal civil war). For weaboos, this is pure crack, just like Chuushingura. Sure, it is bloody, violent, and shows off the less romantic side of the fall of the shogunate... but the Shinsengumi fights are as wonderfully violent as you would expect from the legends (even up to the recreation of the infamous Ikeda-ya incident). As a VN, it is also probably the most solid VN, from a literary perspective, written this year, simply because they simply added on and breathed life into the existing history and romanticized events of the era. What-if stories about Sakomoto Ryouma surviving aren't uncommon in jidaigeki historical fiction, but this is the first time a VN has gone into this much detail on the era. PS: Will update this later. Edit: Ok... first, the Hijikata/Kondou paths are both split out of the Kou path (so naturally, the protagonist's fate doesn't change), but in exchange, the endgame changes greatly, diverging from history (where Kondou was executed and Hijikata died in the battle for Hokkaido). Nonetheless, the story is definitely a tearful one, with the more traditional 'tragic hero of the losing side' feeling that you generally expect from Shinsengumi-related stories. The actual storytelling between Kondou and Hijikata's paths doesn't change much, though the actual end result does indeed change. Overall, this VN was a good experience for me... I got deeply emotionally involved with the characters, weeping over their suffering and glorying over their triumphs, and I honestly felt that it did justice to the writer's expressed intent 'Shinsengumi with an element of steampunk fantasy'. Shuuri's path (Sakuma's arc) touched the most deeply on the steampunk elements, for those who are interested, and honestly, I preferred the Ryouma and Sakuma arcs over the Shinsengumi ending arc. Nonetheless, the VN as a whole was immensely enjoyable. However, I do think this needs a true ending arc, and I honestly hope that Takaya Aya (the main scenario writer for this VN and most of Caramel Box's other VNs) will produce a fandisc to fulfill that desire for me, lol. That said, this was an immensely satisfying VN with no real downsides, save that the protagonist was only partially voiced (probably due to budgetary constraints). Edit 2: Just so no one mistakes my feelings about this VN, the endings and the paths themselves are satisfying. My single complaint - that there isn't a unifying true ending and it felt like there should have been - is mostly because I was put into that kind of mood after an experience that was in someways similar to Chuushingura (except the protagonist kills LOTS of people, lol).

As some may or may not know, a long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away - New Jersey and New Hampshire) I was a writer/editor for sports sections of some different newspapers. I loved it, because I've always loved writing. And I've managed to profit off of it (let's not discuss high school where I wrote papers for money). But newspapers are an industry practically on its deathbed and my last job feel through. With sports, it's hard to get in, as it's a great job and those who bet them stay until the bitter end. Can't say I blame them - you get paid to watch a game and then write about it. So I've fallen in love with the visual novel format this year, and have been looking for ways to get in on projects. Frankly, I miss writing for an audience. I'm not even looking for payment - I just want to write and have someone read it. So I'm pretty stoked that I'm working on a project. Now I have to get used to writing in more of a VN format as opposed to prose. I'll keep everyone updated on the project as it goes along.

Alright, here's number two! Note that these aren't put in any particular order. Enjoy 1-Understanding Nyanyans I made a conscious effort to stay from cats last time, but screw it:They are everywhere for a reason. If you're looking to understand cat behavior and language more, or just want cute kittie pics, this should satisfy you: 2-TFW you start out strong, but then things go downhill... ... Literally 3- Reasons why you shouldn't post your pictures on the internet. Sure, this particular position is kinda asking for it... But anyone with enough photoshop skillz can turn even the most innocent picture of you into a sex tape. Beware 4-Why Women Can't Drive in Saudi Arabia title 5-When you're trying to take down the boss your team be like I guess you can say this about any team in a co-op game. And that is that. I didn't type the paragraphs I thought I would, but "The best of speeches are the clear and short" (let's see if you can find the source of that. Note that it's translated from Arabic :P) . Lemme know whachya think buddeh, I'll be sure to... Consider your words

A few days after Christmas and the site has been infested with either selfies and star wars spoilers, or posts complaining about selfies and star wars spoilers, so it's refreshing to see something new for a change. 1-Crazy Post of the day This one is a bit NSFW, so I'll just post the link. I can't really give you a description as I'm not sure what to say, but if you're bored out of your mind, this might slightly amuse you http://imgur.com/gallery/bUpNgCe 2-Animals Oddly enough, this doesn't concern cats. I know, a post on the internet about animals that doesn't have cats?! I couldn't believe my eyes either! But hey, it's heartwarming sometimes to see animals do their unexpected things, so here ya go 3-What Happens When You Lose to a Mud Monster in Monster Girl Quest My title is probably more appropriate than the original 4-Meme of za day Took quite a while finding this one. We all know memes on the internet are serious business. I chose this one because well... It's kinda funny no? 5-What iz Racism? A bit more serious, and it's also a repost, but the message here is as true as it is important. And that's that for today. Not much words and critique, but that's mainly because it's the end of the day and I can't really give each picture it's fair share of criticism and consideration. You can look forward to more of that in the future. Hope you had fun for now, any suggestions/complaints/praises are appreciated