Turnip Sensei

Thanks! I kinda found my love for books again through Japanese novels and LNs, and lately I've been spending more time reading books than on games or VNs. I still need to figure out some place (other than my twitter) to post impressions and spread the joy, but in a way these "normal" books are way more niche than even VNs if you interact with the western world, so quite uncertain what to do.

Yeah, SeaBed is gem, one the best VNs I read last year. It's pretty hard to categorize or even explain properly, but SeaBed is a cool exercise in psychology and very atmospheric story. A mystery, but not really. Adults living with their problems. And even though the game is Yuri that's never the focus. In fact if someone were to pick the game just expecting yuri they would probably be disappointed. (Unless they'd fell for the it's other wonderful qualities) But that said, even though I really took a liking to it I can see that SeaBed is not really for everyone. Some might find the dreamy, diary-like narration boring, but for those looking something different, little unusual SeaBed can be an amazing experience.

Got some more LNs and "real" novels as a late Christmas present for myself

Like last year I voted for more Liar-soft games. Fairytale Requiem being fairly recent is not totally impossible for them and Hikari no Valusia is the next logical step if Mangagamer decides to work on more Steampunk games after Sona-Nyl. (Gahkthun fan-disk isn't bad choice either, but I rather have the main games first) And then a stellar doujin VN in form of SeaBed for good balance, not that I actually think it's going happen, but one can always hope.

It's unbelievable how on point MGS2 is, especially now when it's more relevant than ever. What a great game.

Spent the last week playing through Metal Gear Solid 1, 2, and 3, something I've been meaning to do ever since I played Metal Gear Rising and took a liking to the crazy world and story telling. If I had played MGS1 when I was smaller I'm pretty sure that would have been a mind blowing experience. Sure, the graphics are really rough, but man. Frosty breath effects, lighting, the atmosphere... I can't even imagine what people thought when playing that in 1998. Too bad the gameplay hasn't aged that well. It's clunky and more often than not Snake gets stuck in the surroundings rather than doing what you want him to do, but luckily the game is paced really well with segments of different gameplay. The boss battles especially are pretty cool. But the best part of the game is the story. I love how it manages to create such cohesive narrative combining serious and silliness, conspiracy theories and real nuclear politics, gene manipulation and super soldiers. Not to mention the titular Metal Gear. Codec conversations and numerous cut scenes present the story really well. All the twists and intrigue kept hooked till the end. MGS2 made some much needed improvements to the gameplay. Now it actually felt like a proper sneaking game, but at the same time these improvements made the already annoying fixed camera even more unbearable. There's nothing more annoying than failing a perfect infiltration because an enemy shows up from a place you can't even see or when camera transition fucks up your movement. But luckily the story is once again really interesting, so the little frustrations weren't that much of a problem. First thing I noticed in MGS3 was that it's actually fun to just play. 3D camera makes moving around much less of hassle and now it feels you like you are actually in control; getting caught is only a result of your own mistakes. I personally found the jungle more interesting location as well, the methods of approaching objectives are more varied and that's only a good thing. The Sniper duel boss battle demonstrates this especially well and was one of my favorite moments of the game as a result. The story was as good as in the others and the Cold War setting was nice change of pace. And Paramedic is the best Codec contact ever! In conclusion: MGS games are cool, why didn't I play them earlier?

SeaBed was probably my favorite release of the year. This cool doujin VN surprised me with its atmosphere and unique low key storytelling, delivering a very humane story in all its mundaneness. And worst? I don't think I read anything that bad.

Finally found myself time to start Himawari. Wasn't too impressed with the first part of the game. It wasn't bad per say, but that kind of SoL wasn't really what I was looking for, not to mention I'm not a huge fan of clumsy oblivious characters like Aries. There were some good parts though, mainly Ginga going to wild tangents about whatever loosely scientific popped up in his mind. It started getting better near the end, but if I haven't heard so much praise for the rest of Himawari I probably would have quit somewhere on the way. But I'm happy that I stuck with it, as come 2048 I felt the like I started playing a completely different game. Suddenly everything became much more interesting from narration to events and characters. I suddenly found myself really enjoying everything I was reading, and not just going through the story waiting for something interesting to happen. Can't wait to see what's waiting for me and from what I've heard I don't think I'll be disappointed!

Steins;Gate 0 was really good! I was little hesitant at first how it would work since the original is so complete experience, but luckily I was proven wrong. Overall Steins;Gate Zero is just more of Steins;Gate, for better or worse. It's one cool extra loop before the true end of the original, offering new viewpoints to the original and fleshing out the world. There's plenty cool characters, old and new, the humor and great character interactions are still there and it's still as moving when it's time to be serious. If you ever found yourself wanting more of Steins;Gate then S;G0 is pretty much that. It does some things better than the original and loses in some, and while it builds itself on already completed work Zero also manages to be cool on it's own. Obviously there's spoilers about the original Steins;Gate, and while I tried to avoid spoilers about Zero in my impressions you might want to be careful if you want to experience Zero knowing as little as possible beforehand.

Had some free time in a while and went and got myself Odin Sphere Leifthrasir, since thanks to vita being portable I at least have some chances to play something. And it's pretty damn good, which is to be expected from a Vanillaware game. Gameplay is fast and fluid, and even if it's bit on the simple side in terms of variety it plays so well that it doesn't even matter. (and keep in mind that I've only touched 1 out of the 5 characters, each with their own unique moves and abilities) Playing on hard makes it good and enjoyable ballet of death; you are strong and there's plenty of defensive tools available, but carelessness and mindless approach gets you killed fast. They've certainly fine tuned the difficulty since Dragon's Crown and Muramasa, as Odin Sphere is so far their most satisfying game, in terms of pure gameplay. And as always, the game looks fantastic. The fantasy worlds the artist at Vanillaware make are unbelievable and the attention to detail in their hand drawn graphics are mind blowing. Too bad there's not as much food porn and not in as much detail like in the previous games, but other than it's one treat for the eyes. The story is pretty fantastic as well, a Japanese take on Shakespearean play or European Opera. It's filled with classic tragedy and the characters talk like they are on stage, and I love it! The presentation and concept makes the story way better than it would be if it was portrayed "normally". It being a play means it can take some liberties, like you wouldn't expected people to talk the same way in a movie or a classical play, same goes for types of characters and concepts. And I don't know, maybe it's just me but I love people having dramatic monologues about their tragic love. Some parts reminded me of Sakurai's works and that's always a good thing. Can't wait to see what the other characters stories have in store for me and how they are going to intervene. As bonus, it not that uncommon to have voice actors in similar roles in different games, but hearing pure and gallant Valkyrie (same seiyuu as Saber) refusing to became an arrogant king's (Gilgamesh) mistress is rather amusing.

Since lately I've had for the most part only time and opportunities to read books, I decided to get some new filling to my bookshelf. This should last me a good while.

Finally got a long weekend off and Dead End Junction just happened to conveniently release at the same time for me to read it. It's was pretty good. The setting is cool take on Wild West with some fantasy elements and story is very classic "journey of a hero". Naive girl with big dreams and some unsettled business with his missing dad traveling through the wild, meeting new friends, getting tangled up with fate and learning the ways of the world. Simple and traditional maybe, but well executed. The episode format works pretty well as well, each have their own theme and all being pretty consistent in quality. 3rd is probably the best of the bunch and the finale being quite different from the rest. Colorful cast is one of the strong points of the DEJ. The protagonist Josette is not only very talkative, but also somewhat klutzy and simple; a rather endearing a hilarious combination. Other characters like the smart and sharp Inaho are great counterparts to her, the constant bickering and banter between the characters is joy to read. If there's some kind of Wild West stereotype you happen to like, I'm almost certain you'll find an interesting Japanese take on it. Big part the charm is also thanks to the fantastic localization. I could almost claim that the English version is better, since the characters speak in Wild West accent and use sayings common to that period. But I haven't (yet) read it in Japanese so I won't, but nonetheless, the translation is great. So yeah, Dead End Junction is pretty cool and well worth the few bucks it's going for. The presentation is real nice and the story is solid good that leaves you of with a pleasant feeling.

I spotted this vn earlier in Spring while looking for something to read and was immediately captivated by the art style. Not to mention wild west setting feels really fresh and interesting. If I wasn't as busy I would have probably read it already... Pretty excited for this!

Persona 3, S.T.A.L.K.E.R, Ys Origin Persona 3 is one the best and first JRPGs I've played and has special place in my heart. Story, characters and gameplay; everything is so engrossing. S.T.A.L.K.E.R (all of them) have the best shooting mechanics and open-worldish level design I've seen in a videogame. That combined with the amazing atmosphere of The Zone and emergent gameplay thanks to roaming patrols and mutants, and changing weather conditions makes for amazing experiences. Ys Origin is the most satisfying ARPG I've played. It's fast, fun and straightforward, difficult yet fair and very rewarding. Bosses are tense and music is totally awesome.

VA-11 HALL-A turned out to be pretty excellent. It's those kind of games with lot of heart that I really like. It's obviously made with lot of love for Cyberpunk and Japanese popular culture, a weird mix that works. The setting both parody and depressing portrayal of itself, as well as parody of modern times. Waifuboom 2010s, click-bait newspapers, VR-porn... There's lots of anime references, but mostly as secondary punchline. Core part of the game is just talking with various clientele. The characters are wonderfully varied, some more important than others, but seeing new ones is always exciting. There might be few that rub you the wrong way, but it's strange how fast your view of the people might change after talking a bit a sharing a drink. Much of it is thanks to the writing, which is witty, engaging and very life-like. They dialogue is snappy and entertaining, and manage to be clear and not unnecessary complicated while talking about more heavier themes like politics. Through dialogue with the clients you get to know them better and learn about their stories. And while It's interesting to learn more about them, at some point I just started look forward to seeing the familiar faces again, hearing what silly things they have to say. Or serious topics too, VA-11 HALL-A doesn't shy way from more darker themes. Depression, insecurities and so on, these are handled pretty naturally, but never become too overwhelming. VA-11 HALL-A is just nice heartful game about human interaction. It's silly and little grim at the same time, but very humane overall. People don't change fundamentally that much, be it dystopian future or whatever. There's good and bad times, work sucks and future is scary. And there's always a need for a cup of alcohol and someone to talk. Sometimes you might even find a friend that way. The developers suggestion is very apt, VA-11 HALL-A is best enjoyed by getting comfy, maybe with drink in hand. And just enjoy the good music, great atmosphere and have fun with the story and the characters.

It's not really a top ten, but here's bunch of tracks I really liked and still listen to from time to time. Fate/Hollow Ataraxia - Stranger Tranquil and little mysterious, this is what starts to play in my mind when I look back to F/HA. Narcissu - Pineapple Tree The soundtrack of Narcissu is S+ overall, but this track is my favorite. It's so really smooth. I could listen this for hours. Shikkoku no Sharnoth - 夕暮の花たち・静かな日 The music in Steampunk games is so good. But everything is better in moderation, so I'll refrain from mentioning more than a few. From all the Steampunk games, Sharnoth's OST is my favorite. Might be the Irish folk music influence or something. Shiei no Sona-Nyl - Reminiscence - Warm Memories I guess I really like sentimental and moody songs, huh. Sona-Nyl has bunch of really nice songs, but this one I like listen the most. It's so warm and cozy. Fate/stay night [Realta Nua] - Sorrow Moving piece that plays during a really moving scene. This one's a pretty interesting since the tone is quite different from what you would normally expect. Kusarihime -「たそがれ月」 Kusarihime is really atmospheric game, and so is the soundtrack. Picking my favorite is pretty hard, so I'll have to do with the one I can find on youtube. Forest - Hitori Much like Kusarihime, Forest has also excellent sound design, though considering the sound-team is the same, it's not that surprising. These somewhat melancholic pieces are very memorable to me, and I like the faint feeling desperation or something in this one.

Don't know what others think, but VA-11 HALL-A is enough of a visual novel for me. And it's pretty damn good. The characters are quirky and interesting and so is the dystopian setting. The random conversations in the bar are really engaging, flowing really naturally between silly and serious topics, much like random conversations normally tend to do. It also looks really dope, the soundtrack is a blast and the game just oozes character. Can't think of a better way to spend a nice summer evening. Time to mix up some more drinks, turn on the scan-lines, up the volume a notch and get back waifu bartending!

Good review, I guess I should really finish Fata Morgana now. The "prologue" chapters were definitely the best parts of Fata Morgana for me, that's where the tragedy is in it's finest, portraying different shades of humanity with brutal honesty. The rest of the story (for what I've read), not as good. Pacing bogs, the main characters are pretty uninteresting and it made me feel like I was reading stories I've already read. The writing itself isn't that captivating either, which makes it kind of annoying to read at times. Fata Morgana is still pretty good VN I think, but not really my cup of tea.

Started playing Grand Kingdom and it's pretty fun. The story seems really dumb, but I really like the gameplay which is a mix between strategy and action elements. Think of 2D line-based SRPG, with Valkyria Chronicles movement and Mario RPG action commands and slight combo possibilities. It's sounds little overwhelming, but works really well. I also really like how the promotional comic that came with the game knows exactly it's audience. Of course I'm going to do quests for the country with prettiest queen, and of course my party is going to consist solely of hotties.

Kusarihime was pretty peculiar experience. It's little all over the place, but somehow very fulfilling at the same time. I'll probably have to, and I want to read it again to understand it better and to see the scenes I missed. Kusarihime is very much a story where the journey is more important than the destination. It get's pretty strange near the end and quite lot was left pretty uncertain, but at the same time I felt like I read something really cool. It was way more more focused in human emotions and minds than I initially thought. While there is of course supernatural parts to it as well, but it's more about the shadows in people's hears. And Kusarihime has plenty of really impacful scenes concerning those. It's also really atmospheric game and storybook aesthetic makes it even better. Something I really liked in Kusarihime is how well the story and the writing flows. From the scene to scene, event to next, adding steadily new things to keep it interesting and steadily progressing. Sometimes things go faster, sometimes slower; there's laid-back times and desperate times, but flowing feeling stays the same. Writing helps in this too. It's simple enough and reads fairly easily, but has it own nice feel. And like the story, it flows very naturally between narration, dialogue and sometimes pretty ephemeral descriptions. Kusarihime is just really satisfying visual novel to read. Quite numerous H-scenes were the only things hindering my reading enjoyment, but that's just me finding H-scenes kind of annoying to read in general, since for the most part they are not just throwaway scenes and actually contain content worth reading outside of the deed. Overall I liked Kusarihime a lot. There are parts that feel little incomplete, yet it has charm that makes me forgive most of it. Kusarihime might be flawed, but it's a pretty damn cool experience.

Got myself some uh, "light" reading material for my summer break. (pls someone help, buying books is addictive)

Yeah, there's some games that no matter how much you loved them they still feel really awkward to play again. All stories are not fit for rereading. Personally, I like to read everything I really liked and found really good at least twice. It's bit hard to do with visual novels since they are so long, but not impossible. I don't feel like knowing the conclusion would make good story any worse, there are lot more to stories than just the twists. Good writing is enjoyable to read even if you have already experience it, and I like finding subtle details that I missed the first time through. Some stories even get better on the second go, when you are not focusing on anticipating what's coming up next, but just enjoying what it is. It also depends on how tastes change over the time. There are some visual novels I know I couldn't stand if I were to re-read them, but there's also ones I would probably appreciate more if I read them now. Fate/stay night for one, turned out to be a story I enjoyed better after getting more experienced with VNs and being able to see it on more than just the surface level.

Yeah, all of the Steampunk games do H-scenes really well. Out of the translated ones Inganock has probably the best H-scenes (in terms of artistic merit, or whatever), but the rest are not bad either. These scenes are more about the emotional distance between the characters and their inner turmoil, rather than the act in question. Being narrated from the female perspective also adds pretty unique feel to them.

I decided to ride the good reading feeling and started Kusarihime. I had been thinking about reading it for a while, even more so after reading Forest, but never really got around doing that. And now I've been completely hooked in since the amazing opening, it just sets such perfect mood for the game. Same melancholy and the sense of discomfort when something feels ever so slightly wrong carries over the story, emphasized by the great music. And while the character art is little rough, I really like background, especially scenery art. They have that magical children's picture book feel to them. Don't know how to explain it properly, so just have a look. Haven't gotten too far yet, but I'm really liking it. The atmosphere is pretty low-key, but really captivating. The memory loss of the protagonist is also handled in a interesting way and the small hints about the past and the mysterious events are really tickling my curiosity. I just got into a part where I think things are going to get lot more interesting (the red snow in the fourth day), so looking forward to what is to come.

Finally went and finished the Gahkthun Fandisk. For a fandisk it was pretty alright. The game divided in two parts; the repeating "Shining 6 days" where you choose between events from the map screen, and the titular "Shining Night", which is the grand conclusion. "Shining 6 days" is mostly slice of life, and it's pretty good one at that, granted you liked the characters. There's drunk Neon, Berta being super moe and so on. And while it's not exactly dark, it's not all fun and games either. If there's something that's hindering the enjoyment, it's the fact they show the same scene from multiple perspectives a lot. At times it works pretty well. Sakurai's characters are pretty internally conflicted so the feel of the scene can change a lot depending who's thoughts you get to read and there are some individual parts that make it worth your while. But at worst it's seeing the same scene 6 times with very minimal changes. (luckily that's only one scene) Shining Night also touches some of the subjects that weren't included in Gahkthun. Like Izumi's situation, Tesla's and few other characters (Neon's friends, especially the last one's) pasts that were somewhat neglected in the original. But for all the questions that are answered it introduces few new as well. For example vigilantes and "The Shining League" seems quite integral part of the story from the first glance, but apparently it was just a shout-out the Gahkthun Anthology novel. Talk about small disappointment, I wanted to see Sakurai writing about superheroes in classical western style... The finale "Shining Night" is also pretty cool. There's epic confrontations, and even though the fight itself feels little too close to that in the end of Gahkhtun, the ending itself is pretty satisfying. Fandisk is by concept already pretty difficult thing to finish properly since it's basically a continuation to an already finished story, but not a sequel either, so it's all the better. I wouldn't say the fandisk is very good visual novel, but it's not bad either. The structure is little crooked and it suffers from not being it's own story. Still it's good fun for those who liked the characters, and even though it might be little weak in terms of plot, the writing itself is good as ever. There's some fascinating things tucked inside even the smaller scenes and the familiar charm is still there.