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I'll cut you, rooke

Why not get a better taste instead of wasting your time with this type of characters

AKIRA's art has this mesmerizing charm that I really like.

Start from route A, because while route B was take place before route A actually it was full of spoiler (Route B). As for the ending, just go for true ending if I may suggest something (And save before branching in case you want particular ending). Have fun.

Confession: I can talk to cat, jk

I finished the Aqua's route in Himawari, and, let me say it straight, I didn't like it. At all. The truth is however, that I can't pinpoint what exactly I didn't like. There are still things like unrealistic characters and completely nonsensical setting, but, let's be honest, almost every VN has both, and we still like them. This time however... I saw exactly which emotion every scene supposed to bring, but they just didn't work. The reason, most likely, is that I failed to connect to any of the characters in the Common route, and it worked in that way. Though I have a feeling that maybe I should've stalled this VN before I had more time to spend on it and read the route in one go instead of stretching it to several weeks. I don't know if I'm going to continue this VN right now. Actually, this VN made me seriously consider dropping the VN medium altogether. My next VN needs to be a complete masterpiece, or I might actually do it, you know.

Visual Novel Translation Status (04/29/2017) As for the title, since we finally had Rakuen release (Without 18+ content though) I decided to use the French for one of Rakuen opening song (Because Grisaia like using French), which was named Eden's Song. Of course the title here would be obviously my very loose translation for the title itself. I knew that Eden's Song was not Rakuen main opening, but I'd found that it was more appropriate that we had that as this week VNTS Review title imo (The main Rakuen opening song title was Fission by the way). With that done, welcome to this week VNTS Review and from the first look at image header this week was the busiest if we talk about the releases so far. Also we had two Grisaia releases to boot, which I must admit was quite popular out there. Let's see what we had this week, shall we. For the first news here, we had both of the good and bad news JAST here. The good news is that they finally had released a new VN here (Yay), and the bad news is that the released VN in question wasn't something like Sumaga or even Flowers Summer episode. It's the nukige called 'Nympho Sensei Ryoko' in which will tell the story of how pervert the female teacher in question was. Not in my looking forward list to be very blunt here, but if there's people who looking forward to it so much that looking at the update from JAST in regard of Ryoko go get that. Other than Ryoko release, no much news from JAST here. While this week we didn't had the update from Mangagamer, we had one release from them and another announcement in regard of planned release. This week, or back at 28th Mangagamer release Meakashi which once again a part of Higurashi (Or to be exact a part of the second part of Higurashi (Higurashi Kai)). As for the Meakashi itself, it should be no surprise that it'll be featuring some disturbing element (Higurashi and all), but actually Meakashi was one of most infamous even among of Higurashi arc. For more information, the most known creepy act from the anime was adapted from Meakashi. Other than Higurashi, Mangagamer also announced that they'll release the nukige that they announced in Boston (Sweet Young Bride) at May 19th. Speaking about May 19th, they'll have two announcements at Anime Central later although looking at their announcements in the past, let's just say I won't expect too much here. That's all for Mangagamer here. Fan Translation For fan translation here, there's some usual updates. The updates goes like Loverable was at 61.98% translated and 33.75% TLC-ed, Majokoi was at 24%TLC-ed, Koiken Otome fandisc was had Shiho' route at 19% translated, and Eustia prologue was almost reach 90% mark translated (It was at 89.54% translated, and overall was at 8.24% translated. Also was at 60.58% edited and past halfway (50.24%) TLC-ed for the prologue). There's also ToHeart 2 matter of decensoring, which right now was fully decensored so if there's some people here who like to see HCG being uncensored so much (I don't pay attention to HCG in regard of censoring to be honest), be glad and look forward to ToHeart 2 eventual release which will take place after remaining proofread and quick QC finished. There's also some rather interesting news in regard of Clover Days, in which it was revealed that instead of almost halfway Anzu's route was only 15% translated by Astro. So of course Ittaku decided to translate it, and right now it's at one third translated (I mean Anzu's route). As for HatsuKoi, once again they release Maya's patch back at Monday and right now they translated 35% of Yukino's route, so just usual works for them here (They'll probably had the update tomorrow). There's also the confirmation in regard of Dracu Riot, in which both of Decay and Clephas still working hard to polish Dracu Riot as much as they could, not to mention that apparently the TLC staff was dislike Dracu Riot so he gave up. Well, good luck to Dracu Riot project there and hope they could deliver the patch later. Before forget, there's another release of Higurashi although this time it's original arc from PS3 version. Yes, there's a PS3 to PC port for one of Higurashi arc (Someutsushi) although if I may say I'd quite content with original eight arcs from Higurashi though (Both original and Kai). Nevertheless I believe that port would be quite interesting addition for Higurashi fans out there, especially the hardcore ones. Before closing fan translation section, once again actually other than updates and Maya's patch release Tsurezure was also announced their next project. It was Tsujidou which had same setting as Majikoi, although it'll be focused on delinquent girls though unlike Majikoi. As for the review, I'd heard that it's not at same level as Majikoi so perhaps it'll be a disappointment for some. Regardless of that opinion, I'll keep my eyes on this and will report the weekly progress from them if they had one just like back at HatsuKoi. Other At 25th, Fruitbat was started their Kickstarter for Chuusotsu, and at this time I must said that the Kickstarter itself was running quite nicely with 8,461 out of 20,000 was gathered. I would say good luck to the Kickstarter there, and hope it'll be successful. For other update, there's Psychopass which finally entering Steam (Not interested, especially with VNDB average score which was mediocre) and Period Cube (I admit that the MC girl was good looking, too bad it was for console though). Other than those releases, there's MoeNovel in which they already announced their next release with name 'Lovekami Useless Goddess'. My comment would be whatever ie didn't quite care about that for now, especially after MoeNovel using LoveKami as their answer to Winged Cloud's Sakura franchise (Although LoveKami was had better characters though, at least compare to Sakura franchise). Oh, and by the way Little Busters was entering the Greenlight, which mean the release date was almost close (If you interested with Little Busters, vote it here). For the last news here, there's big news from Frontwing in regard of Grisaia which there's release for 2 volumes of Phantom Trigger and the finale for original trilogy Rakuen. As for the Rakuen, to be honest it's quite surprising that Sekai managed to barely release it before the month's end, but then again it's nothing new though I guess (Just like Root Double in the past). Guess like MoeNovel and Winged Cloud Frontwing was using Grisaia as their Cash Cow Franchise (Phantom Trigger case), although I admit that they bring characters with good backstories there if I may say something about that here. As for my opinion, to tell the truth the moment I'd read that Grisaia was gonna had two sequels I quite disagree with Frontwing for taking trilogy route, especially in regard of Kajitsu which was actually already good enough charage imo (Besides if Frontwing really need Yuuji backstory, they could make it akin Sharin fandisc instead of two sequels imo). Not to mention unseen 'route' which had Yuuji save five heroines off screen, and Frontwing managed to retconned one of important trait from one of main heroine (Also one very important event from one route, but it could be easier to retcon). It's quite hard to write my feeling here to be honest, so guess it's just my uneasiness here. Although I may already said that, I'm sure that both of Rakuen and Phantom Trigger (Which apparently still need more volumes later, like Corona Blossom) would be good if someone was big fan of Grisaia like Decay. In the end, it's up to you to enjoy Grisaia or not. Before I closing VNTS Review, there's Bokukotsu update from Sekai in which it was at 64.09% translated. That's all for this week, and see you next week. PS - There's additional updates from HatsuKoi, in which they had translated 79.21% of Yukino's route (Overall was at 97.27% translated). They also say that hopefully by next week they could release Yukino's (Completed) patch, although of course it may be change though. That's all for the additional HatsuKoi update here.

To be honest, I wrote this point just several minutes after I finished that route, and maybe I overreacted a bit there. Anyway, it's not like it was entirely Himawari's point that I started to think about dropping VNs. It's more like, finding good VNs to read became a bit too difficult recently, and I'm not sure at what point it becomes just not worth it anymore. Like when I just started, I could just take a random high-rated VN often mentioned in reviews, and I was almost guarantied to like it, at least to some extend. For some reason, I managed to like VNs for that is good in them and almost completely overlook their flaws. There still were some VNs I didn't really like (mostly, less popular ones), but I always could just drop them at the very beginning and move to something else. Then, at some point, about a year and a half ago, it just stopped. Suddenly, for almost every VN I played I could say "There were some great moments in it, but ... completely ruins it", or "I liked it overall, but there were some aspects that lowered my overall enjoyment quite a bit". For example, I liked very much how Ever 17 handled mystery, and I had very good time trying to add all things together. On the other hand, I couldn't care less for it's characters, and the final revelation turned out to be so little thought-out, that it dropped my overall mark by 2 points. It all got a bit tiring, and the thought that maybe my time with VNs is coming to its end started to appear in my mind from time to time. Then for a few months I just didn't have enough free time to read VNs anymore. When I came back, I tried Fata Morgana, and suddenly I was engaged again. And though it wasn't perfect, I managed to overlook it's flaws and get the full enjoyment of the things it does right. The same thing with Pygmalion, though it's actually even more flawed than Fata Morgana (like, 20 times so). Then I tried Himawari, and suddenly I'm where I started. Overall, I can't say I hate it, or this is a bad VN. There are some things it does quite well, and the overall idea is quite good. Just, I cannot connect to the most characters, especially to the protagonist, and the number of plotholes makes it almost impossible to enjoy it to fullest extend. The worst part of it, though, is that I start to compare Himawari to some VNs I read earlier... and I don't see how they are better. It's not a very healthy thought, because it makes me wonder whether those VNs were actually as good as I remember, and maybe my tastes are just changing with time. Maybe you're right @akaritan and I just need to stay away from VNs for some time. I'll probably try to get through some works in other media that I wanted to try. Anyway, thanks for your advice! I'm stalling Himawari for an indefinite amount of time. I'm not dropping it, however. I still want to give it a second try, at some point of time. I had a single precedent when I suddenly started to like a VN long time after finishing it, even though I fully hated it the first time. I am still going to at least finish it, but I won't touch it at least before the middle of this summer. And I'm sticking to VNs with good protagonists from now on. @littleshogun Yeah, thanks, but I tried both, though I haven't finished them. Actually, I'm a big fan of Higurashi and Umineko. Though, in case of Higanbana, I just couldn't make myself care about it, and dropped it on the third chapter. As for RGD... I played first two seasons when they the only ones available in English, but never got in the mood to finish it later. @Funyarinpa Thanks, but I already finished it. @Vorathiel I'm pretty sure Moogy wrote something somewhere... Though I don't have a link, sorry.

First, I recently completed my second playthrough of Kikan Bakumatsu Ibun Last Cavalier... and I'd forgotten how much fun it was digging around in the political violence of that period. It made me remember why I named it VN of the Year 2015, though that was mostly because 2015 sucked, lol. It is a great game for fans of historical fantasy and the Shinsengumi, as well as fans of Grisaia's writer (who also wrote this one). Having a trap protagonist who is also more than a little... bewitching makes it even more interesting, hahaha. Second, I'm considering a number of VNs for my next random VN... I keep meaning to replay Muramasa (though that one is so over-sized it is hard to get up the energy for it) and Bradyon Veda (ditto). I'm also considering a number of older VNs for replay, as well as Sengoku Hime 7. Last Cavalier was great for sword fights and high ideals accompanied by bloodshed, but I'm kind of in the mood for ambition and war, lol. April's releases are all short games, so it won't take much time to get through all of them. As a result, I will inevitably play at least some random VNs this time around... what kind of game would you like to hear from me about?

Mmm... the problem is that heroines that seem taciturn on first glance in VNs are almost always hidden deredere heroines... heroines that remain distant and taciturn are pretty much unknown. I've come across heroines that are emotionless but appear to be emotional on the surface, but that isn't what you want... Suzu from Kono Sekai no Mukou de seems to be that type, but she changes radically on her own path...

Try her https://vndb.org/c5005 She is definitely similar to Rei.

Any requests considered, right? I have particular interest in chuunige and the VN that thrills me the most recently is Sabae no Ou. Can't make my mind about it without a proper review. It should not be total trash since it got sequel Sabae no Ou II. Just a thought to consider.

You probably just need a break. We've all been there. After trying to get through Muv Luv for some seven months, I ended up not reading practically anything for six months or so. I also felt like maybe the medium wasn't for me after all. Then I happened to pick up the first chapter of Higurashi and that got me out of that slump. If you're looking for a masterpiece, The House In Fata Morgana is sublime.

I recommend to start with Root A. As for the endings. If you mean all the BAD ends then no, you can get them if you want to 100% the game but you don't have to. However I do recommend getting the Normal ending but once again you don't have to (or you might get it on your own). But you need to get the Root A true ending (or was it called the Good Ending I don't remember). But if you want to get the best ending you'll have to complete Root A at least 3 times. Each time you'll need to make the right choices to get a scene with your favorite girl. I recommend that you do that, it's gonna be worth it.

I knew that Himawari was going to be either very good or overrated ie not good there. Although if I may say something, it's definitely scretching too much if you want dropping VN medium altogether. As for your solution, I think you better drop Himawari and take a rest for a while just like Akaritan suggested. And if you recover, I think you could try to read both of Higanbana and Rose Guns Days if you still interested in VN (Or haven't read those yet). In the end, it's your decision.

GOD DAMMIT ANIKIN

JAST's technical support is more or less their forums. They're too understaffed to individually troubleshoot problems over private channels. They've even let major issues slide like taking the official Shiny Days bugfix patch down and expecting users (i.e., ME) to host it somewhere else. Contacting J-List is useless because they're just distributors; at best they'll forward your mail to JAST.

I like Liarsoft's old Streampunk series and Kindred Spirits's art. I also like Steins; gate. Innocent Grey is also nice. In general, I dislike overtly large eyes and too much "anime-esque" art.

I've had this experience several times before (thanks, Da Capo), and I really do think that you should just take a break, and probably drop Himawari too. If you dislike it to the extent that it's pushing you away from VNs as a whole, then reading more will be a huge waste of your time. Frankly, I don't think dropping VNs as a whole is a great idea, as you're probably just burnt out and I truly do think that there are still good experiences that the medium can offer you. However, that is your choice to make. What I would do is drop Himawari, and then do something else for however long until another VN piques your interest (be it weeks or months).

Gay

Just finished Kanade's route and got started on Riho's route (not looking like I'm going to finish the whole game by April, but I'm going to try!). I'll echo Turnip's comments that Kanade narrating so much of it really helps the route feel more complete. In general, I'm a fan of VNs that let the heroines narrate for a while (the longer the better, almost), especially when that means you see the protagonist from their perspective, so I'm hoping that Riho's route will deliver more of that. I also liked a couple of the new characters who appeared in her route, especially Megumi and Johann, both of whom ended up being much more interesting than they looked at first blush. The story arc was solid and well-resolved, and felt both thematically appropriate for the game (in contrast to Rimu's or Yayoi's route) and quite different from anything I'd seen so far in the common route. Kanade hadn't really been properly shown off elsewhere, and it was pleasant getting to see her really shine. Also, I feel like the CG artist really loved Kanade; every last CG of her looks stunning. The sprite artist, well, not so much (though her secondary sprite is kind of cute, I suppose). On to Riho's route!

SSS is one of the worst system I have ever seen in VNs. You never have ANY idea about what characters are going t odo if you raise their meters, it's coplete bullshit. I recommend playing with walkthrough, but then - you need to alt+tab the game once in every few minutes. So yeah, RD is a good VN (I think, I only just sterted), but its system is horrible.

I mean, you can just skip over those scenes. It's not like that's everything the game has to offer, and it's just during H-scenes, as far as I'm aware. Still a 50<hour long game with story and other content.

Rubi-Sama. Her art is so freaking good.

Granted, I don't have much experience with VNs, but Steins;Gate is one I really like. It looks fantastic (especially on a big screen) and it also looks like nothing else I've seen. The "dots" for example, really pop and add character to the art. I also really like the style of the backgrounds, though I don't know how to describe it. It seems kind of run-down in a lot of places, but not in a "neglected" or "broken" way - more in a "lived in" type of way.

Even though you don't actually get with the guys (or anyone), Enigma has a lot of both men and women interests. Some may argue there aren't, as the protagonist doesn't start a relationship with them, but it is clear both male characters are into him, while one female one states she is in many moments.

I use to really fucking hate the "soap opera disease", but than I saw the ending of SAO season two and decided that it was a much better alternative. Well dealing with visual novels that have "foreign" characters one should not expect a realistic depiction, one should expect a character archetype. Just like how you are not going to find a "tsundere" or "coodere" out in the wild, you are not going to see "foreigner" archetype in real life.

I didn't even know that she held the day hostage!