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Showing content with the highest reputation on 06/02/19 in all areas

  1. Clephas

    Stubbornness and Burnout

    For those familiar with me, you know I spent year after year doing VN of the Month and that I ritualistically complained about how tired I was of this or that trope or bad habit that plagued the industry or games. I was asked repeatedly why I could still plow through so many VNs, despite the stress? The simple answer is that I have always been stubborn as hell. I've experienced 'burnout' numerous times in my life, mostly because I have a naturally obsessive personality. Once I start obsessing over something, I literally am incapable of ceasing to do so without something jarring me completely away from it for a time, which usually results in me realizing I burned out long ago and have just been hanging out of stubbornness. The same was the case for VNs. When I first started playing VNs, all VNs were worth at least trying. However, as time went on, I increasingly lost interest in most nukige and eventually my interest in 'everyday teenaged life SOL romance' (or 'the standard charage') began to fade. It was probably about 2016 when this reached the critical point, but it took another year and a two-week bout of flu where I couldn't think well enough to play anything to bump me out of my years-long trance. Part of it was that I rarely, if ever, took a break from VNs during those years. I was always playing at least one, and I had a tendency to barrel through them consecutively without even a short pause to rest, week after week, month after month. I used most of my free time to play them, I structured my work schedule and habits around playing them, and I generally existed solely to do so. I dunno how many of you can even imagine what living like that is like... but it was the fact that I am no longer driven to play game after game that is letting me sit back and enjoy the few I actually want to play. I go back and pull stuff out of my attic on a whim, I dig through my collection based on a desire to relive a single scene, and I generally just take pleasure in playing what I want to play. Would it be strange for you to hear that this all feels unnatural to me, after all these years? I've been playing third-rate charage I didn't want to even see, much less play, for years... and now I only play stuff that takes my interest, dropping them if I don't see any hope for the game to break out of the shell of mediocrity. I don't feel driven to blog about replays beyond when I feel like it or when I think I have something to add to a previous assessment, and I can actually sit back and enjoy the few charage I actually feel like I want to play. While I do have regrets, they aren't about the years spent obsessing and over-playing VNs, despite my previous words. I set out to do VN of the Month because, at the time, there was no way for people to have an idea of what they were getting into with most VNs. It was a bit startling how few people were seriously trying to let people know what kind of VNs were out there without spoiling everything from beginning to end. Even today, most reviewers can't seem to keep heavy spoilers out of the text, which saddens me. However, I no longer feel that it is my mission to 'fix' this. I've been there, I've done that, and I won't be doing it again. I will still play VNs, and I will still review them (on occasion), but don't expect me to be as prolific as I used to be, lol.
    11 points
  2. Based on how eroge companies generally operate regarding their western releases (especially when they have no "partner" to help them), I'd say simply asking them first would be the wise decision as japanese eroge pubs may not think of releasing a 18+ version for the most absurd reasons you can't even imagine in the right mind. Looking back, I'd even say they usually approach the release with the mentality of "of course we are going for the safe console version, why would we release porn in the wild west and ask for trouble?" and only then fans can sometimes manage to dissuade them. I have a very hard time believing that NoraNeko of all things (considering that all seiyuus in the game are the usual suspects) is exactly that legendary game which can't be released uncut due to the extreme licensing issues and it's not simply a case of "can't be bothered to go back to the basic preparations that late in the game". If there's no will, there obviously won't be a way. While true, it would be absurd to stall the steam release for another, say, six months simply because they didn't think of releasing 18+ version, it still means that if noone presses them about it, they'll just think that everything is marvellous and they are genious strategists. Especially since, as I understand it, they don't even look at the feedback, only Fruitbat does. Fruitbat that's not even releasing 18+ games to begin with.
    4 points
  3. Can only speak from my personal experience, which is about a dozen things with about eight different translators, but at least from what I've seen in the industry, the translator usually checks over the editor's output and does so-called "counter-edits" (75% of the games I've worked on). Also, who gets the "final cut" between the TL and the editor is kind of up in the air, though usually the TL and editor simply discuss anything where they disagree, so it's not really an issue. And just briefly, regarding Fureraba: the translator has spoken very highly of the work the editor did on Fureraba on several occasions, to me and to others, so you can at least assume they were agreed that it was good work overall. I haven't read it myself, but the screenshots I've seen posted here and there have always looked fine to me. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
    3 points
  4. I couldn't find To Heart 2 in the list so gave up before even starting.
    3 points
  5. Late to the party here. Happy 25th birthday to both of @Infernoplex and @flamepaladin, and I hope that both of you will have a good year ahead.
    2 points
  6. Good question. It seems unlikely at the moment, I believe that if they were able to offer an 18+ version, they would just do it. What storefront they offer one on isn't relevant to the voice issue. And I don't believe they have any other reservations about making one, considering they're the ones that made the 18+ version in the first place. In some cases voice licensing issues can just make something impossible (see TM just releasing a new F/SN edition that still doesn't have voices), or it might be -significantly- expensive (what I know about the scale of voice licensing costs in general, it might be something that'd say, double the entire cost of the release). At the other end of the scales, if they had wanted to roll with the 18+ version they probably wouldn't be able to use the new console content (which might've made things like a Steam release impossible). This is just speculation on my part though, based on my general understanding of how these things work. I'm sure we'll discuss the topic repeatedly in the future as well and maybe we'll eventually be wiser about it.
    2 points
  7. Happy Birthday, @Infernoplex! And, Happy Birthday to you too, @flamepaladin! The text sounds so excited! Look at all the exclamation marks! Woah!
    2 points
  8. Clephas

    Trinoline

    Written by Kiririri and edited by fun2novel and Me Trinoline If there ever was a time when the quality of a story was judged purely on its aesthetics then minori’s games would be tough opponents to defeat. Trinoline continues in the same tradition as many other minori games. High-budget top-quality visuals with a ridiculous level of attention to details. This includes blinking eyes and well done lip syncing, top-notch high quality CGs, and unusual camera angles, where you walk and look to the side at a character walking next to you while a long non repeating background scrolls by. All that and more put this at the top of one of the most visually polished games around. Fortunately, visual novels aren’t judged purely on how good they look. Not usually at least. Trinoline asks valuable questions and explores some very interesting themes and ideas. It is set in a world where the science has advanced far enough to manufacture real, lifelike androids. Events become more complicated when our protagonist’s little sister dies only to later come back as an android. She is just an android and not his real sister of course, only an illusion of the real thing. However, the twist is that she has all of the little sister’s memories inside her, and the question is, 'does it matter if she is real or not?' Do memories make her his sister or is she just a replacement for what was lost to tragic events? What happens if your loved one comes back in android form? Are they the still the same person? Are androids even capable of love, even if they don’t have a heart? Do they dream of electric ships? Trinoline features three heroines. Yuuri, the childhood friend, skips school often. However, nothing is what it seems on the surface. What does she hide behind that cheerful upbeat smile of hers? Her route was the least interesting, and it is a bit of a downer for much of it. Shirone, plays the role our protagonist’s “little sister”. She is the Trino (android) with the protagonist’s little sister’s memories inside her. It explores how and if love can bloom between a human and an android. Sara is the other childhood friend. She had a leading role in developing the Trino, a new kind of android. Because of her work, she and the protagonist haven’t seen each other in a long time. Her route is considered the true route and it explores the difficulties of developing an android and the problems in their thinking. The game is pretty equally divided between the common and all the other three routes, and it touches on very interesting issues. However, at the end of the day I don’t know how I really feel about it. I can't help but wonder if I actually enjoyed the game or not. It doesn’t help how stupid the protagonist acts in some scenes and changes his opinions about androids from one route to the next with no consistency, with no regard for his personality. I wanted to like the game because I thought the heroines are really great. In addition, if it wasn’t iterated enough previously, the game is really beautiful. Unfortunately, the constant depressing atmosphere kept up throughout the game pretty much crushed me and every false hope I had for it. I don’t want to further elaborate on that to avoid spoilers. The game has a lot of great moments, but it also has many points that will split opinions. If you’re looking for a deep and exhilarating science fiction story, you won’t find it here. The narrative is slow-paced and takes its sweet time to build up. This is a game for those looking for a character driven nakige with some light sci-fi elements. However, it might keep you depressed most of the time, so take care if you don't like that sort of thing.
    2 points
  9. "Hello everyone, I come with a translation project And it is the visual novel "Otome Domain" Vndb: https://vndb.org/v18149 Description from VNDB: thinks about how he was blessed to have family, but dryly laughs about how he’ll need to take care of himself now. However, during the funeral of his grandmother, someone named Kazari approaches him and offers to admit him into a prestigious school, in addition to providing him a place to reside. Minato immediately and thankfully takes up on this offer, but soon realizes that the Suzu Academy is an all-girl’s school, and the "ojou-sama" that he’ll be residing with has flaws of their own which really shattered his expectation for a high-class lady. "I have already managed to modify the texts." "I do not speak japanese" (Update) Translated: 2/83 Files Staff: Project leader: Harushio Hacker: Harushio Traslator: New: Showhey (and searching) Editor: searching TLC: searching QC: searching Beta tester: searching Contact: E-mail: [email protected] discord: Harushio#1083 FAQ: Q: Where are the patches? A: You can find all and any available patches on the 'Downloads' page. Q: Can I beta test? A: Of course yes Q: I want to donate to you! A: Thanks you.
    1 point
  10. Thyndd

    Trinoline Release

    I haven't finished it yet. But afaik at first you can only pick SHIRONE or Yuuri's route. Then Sara's route will unlock once you've read both. As for the choices, for Yuuri's route you pick going for a stroll on the beach, and for SHIRONE you stay in your room having a siesta.
    1 point
  11. Confession(?): Google stats told me that someone reached my blog today by searching "succubus yuri lolicon visual novels" in Bing. I'm a bit sad that probably they came no closer to finding their fix by checking out my posts and I most likely have no means of directing them to Lillium x Triangle. I always respect people with tastes this specific.
    1 point
  12. Dreamysyu

    Birthday thread

    Not really, but I just randomly decided that you are older than me for some reason, lol.
    1 point
  13. Both are correct sentences with different emphasis AFAIK.
    1 point
  14. Dreamysyu

    Birthday thread

    Happy birthday to @Infernoplex! I actually thought you were older for some reason.
    1 point
  15. Though, it also removes about the same amount of CGs due to the lack of H-scenes, so, it's really just an equal amount to the original PC release. This is certainly better than the alternative, which is just a cut version, with no additional CGs. So, that's something. Still, not having the 18+ option at all will make one part of the community lose interest, even if there's all-ages replacement CGs. (Something I'm sure you've noticed by now.) It matters a lot to some people. On that note, I have a couple of questions, if you don't mind: You mentioned a possible issue with offering 18+ content now is that the voice actresses have their real names listed in the credits for this console version. Would this not be solved if they offered a completely separate build on other sites like JAST, similar to the Japanese PC version? Because in that, the names would be their aliases again, so this issue shouldn't be there. Have you tried getting them in talks with storefronts like JAST/ Mangagamer, who could offer more insight in possible ways to get around these issues? Other companies have approached the west with only all-ages versions in the past, and were met with similar backlash. A recent example being Ninetail, though after talking it over with JAST, they got a deal in place where they could offer an uncut version too on JAST's store. Maybe Harukaze would come to a similar conclusion after talking it over with a western storefront familiar with this market.
    1 point
  16. Plk_Lesiak

    Birthday thread

    All Best Wishes to You, @Infernoplex!
    1 point
  17. Dergonu

    Birthday thread

    Happy birthday @Infernoplex! Huh. You're a year older than me. Guess I'll have to start calling you senpai now (/ω\)
    1 point
  18. Absolutely. I always work closely with the editors on my projects, and have never been in a situation where that wasn't possible. Editors should always be able to ask the translator for their opinion on something / ask for further explanations of translations should they need it, and translators should always read the editor's edits in case there is something they feel should be handled differently. (And in these cases, the editor and translator will often discuss how to handle it together, like Fred pointed out.) So, this is very much not the case, at least in my experience:
    1 point
  19. In English this (+ 'then') is an expression that can be used when someone says or does something that screws you over.
    1 point
  20. I decided to rewatch Princess Tutu, and my god, this anime is good! Actually, I remember being completely weirded out and skeptical for the first several episodes when I watched it the first time, but now it actually feels amazing from the very beginning. Definitely a must-watch, unless you have very specific taste in anime.
    1 point
  21. There's already a thread about it on vndb too. Some people who know the JP original say, that it is filled with japanese memes that would make very little sense when translated directly. https://vndb.org/t12405
    1 point
  22. That always gets on my nerves, when the translation has nothing to do with what they are saying, makes me crazy. Waiting on further feedback before purchase in this case then.
    1 point
  23. Plk_Lesiak

    Birthday thread

    Thank you for the wishes everyone! It's such a weird feeling being in my 30s already... At least I've got a lot of weird RL stuff happening lately to distract me from my advanced age. Hopefully, it will settle down soon and I'll be able to celebrate by reading some VNs in peace. :3
    1 point
  24. The ps4 assets are actually the best ones.
    1 point
  25. SkraalQ

    Hello Fuwanovel!

    Hello my fellow brethren! I've been stumbling into this forums from time to time when searching for VN news, recommendations, tools.. The time to come out is here. I'm Skraal, and I'm from Spain. I've been into VNs for a while now (10~ years). Feel free to look at my VNDB profile https://vndb.org/u6087/votes?c=all;o=d;s=vote and call me a sick man with lewd and bad taste. Also I'm about 20%~ progress on translating a certain visual novel, and I might publish the project here in the future. So there's that, it's a pleasure to join you
    1 point
  26. Yeah, a good protagonist should be a super manly badass who doesn't give a fuck about anything. And he should curse, smoke, drink beer and after drinking the beer, throw the bottle at some bitch's head.
    1 point
  27. 0 points
  28. Seems like an excuse made by the company, I really dislike that they are taking westerners as a fool, selling "nerfed" censored products(reminds me of smartphone market, asian companies ripping of customers in EU, offering less RAM less storage and weaker processor for the same money).
    0 points
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