ChaosRaven

So, I finally finished it. Though calling it finished is probably not entirely correct, I read about about half of it and then skip-read most of the second half until the end.
Short story: I didn't like it! 
Long story: Not everything was bad - I could have liked it, if it wouldn't be for some rather unfortunate design decisions the creators made. And first and foremost, most of its problems are rooted in the choice of two main protagonists. The VN did pretty much confirm all my prejudices against multi-protagonist stories, even if there are exceptions where it can still work like in Root Double. But in Root Double the story was vastly better written around those two characters.
The first huge problem with the two protagonists was that Senri totally outshines Haruto. I do get the initial idea though - both characters were indended to be polar opposites from the start. Senri as the cool mature guy and Haruto as the naive school boy. The problem is that the writer did stick to that concept to an almost fanatical degree. Haruto was just so unbearable bland, that pretty much all scenes involving him bored me to death. On the other hand Senri also turned out a bit too cool and composed, especially considering some of his actions were borderline suicidal. I mean if you get scenes like "Sure, loosing my arm and using it with the other hand as a club to beat my opponent to death, was totally my plan from the start!", you're starting to wonder. The example is a bit exaggerated of course, but there were definitely scenes where they just went a bit overboard.
Still, Senri was certainly one of the better things of the VN and his route parts were mostly okay. And I actually liked the fact that he usually had a battle plan and it wasn't just all random actions and Deus Ex Machina.
The route parts of Haruto were the major problem. Not just because it dragged the overall pacing down by a huge degree, but also because of the lack of quality in his route parts. His dialogs were just plain and boring and although I kind of liked Atorin and Asahi it also dragged them down. The writer thought it would be a good idea to assign the heroines to the protagonist they are most similar too, but that was a huge mistake. Both Atorin and Asahi had their best scenes when they did interact with Senri. It was one of the rare scenes when Senri got actually a bit irritated because Asahi supposedly acted irrational, and Asahi herself started to tease him because he didn't believe her. Both Senri and Asahi really opened up there.
And Senri had similar problems because Fiona was just too similar to him, so after they allied there was barely an interesting conversation between them anymore. I also could never manage to like her, even if she was one of the more interesting characters. Probably because she was a treacherous bitch, even if I occasionally like such characters lol. And Noah had just the mind of a 3 - 4 year old baby girl and was more or less dead weight for all intents and purposes. Conversations with her were comparable to watching an episode of Teletubbies. The bad coupling of the characters caused several of them to stay pale and bland through the whole VN.
And it got worse. Since I couldn't identify with Haruto and was routing mostly for Senri, his route parts started to look more and more like an NTR route. Imagine a VN where the 'idiot friend' gets all the nice chicks you like and you are stuck with the leftovers. Funny, isn't it? Sorcery Jokers makes it happen. 
The romance and slice of life parts also left a lot to be desired. Especially since they tryed to squish 4 heroine routes for two protagonists into a kinetic VN with no choices - it's just madness! I also regret having read the adult version, since the heroines pretty much started with blow jobs out of nowhere. Most of the H-scenes are in the after stories, but the ones in the main story were as badly and nonesensical placed at it gets. The VN might have some merits in the battle scenes, but romance and slice of life certainly aren't part of it.
Another issue was the visual presentation. While the VN has technically pretty good art, it has a severe lack of event CG's. Most of the art seemed to have been made with a simple moege in mind and then the characters just got 2 - 3 fighting poses which are repeated through all fights. You almost never see a background CG with characters, damages or any environmental changes drawn on it. I barely remember even seeing an injured characters despite the many battles. It's always a sterile empty background with a fixed sprite put on it. There was just no dedication to 'show' the story events like in Innocent Grey VN's, Root Double or Ourai no Gahkthun. To compensate this they often just added a simple color effect instead, which looked rather amateurish. And the half screen effect with black bars at top and bottom is shown almost every two minutes. I've no idea why, but the creators were absolutely obsessed with that effect.
That was also the final nail in the coffin that made me drop the VN. If you skip forward and the only thing you see are battles against the same characters with the same CG's reused again and again, and there's just nothing new coming up, there's just no motivation to continue. I remember that I could judge my story progress in Ourai no Gahkthun by looking into the CG gallery. If you were half through you've just seen half of the CG's and you're looking forward to the new stuff.
Anyway, heroine ranking: Atorin > Asahi > Fiona (Noah is excluded - I refuse to include a girl with the mind of a 3 - 4 year old baby girl into a heroine rating)
Overall rating: 5/10 (Could have been easily higher, if it wouldn't be for the brain fart of making Haruto a second protagonist )

It's kind of amusing that the OP gets immediately adviced to drop moege's to avoid disappointment, if the only VN he didn't drop and even considered very good was a 100% pure moege with little to no story or drama parts. Do people even read posts before answering anymore those days?

It's kind of amusing that the OP gets immediately adviced to drop moege's to avoid disappointment, if the only VN he didn't drop and even considered very good was a 100% pure moege with little to no story or drama parts. Do people even read posts before answering anymore those days?

It's kind of amusing that the OP gets immediately adviced to drop moege's to avoid disappointment, if the only VN he didn't drop and even considered very good was a 100% pure moege with little to no story or drama parts. Do people even read posts before answering anymore those days?

So the Getchu Bishoujo Game Awards 2017 for the most popular VN's of last year are finally out and the winner is... Kin'iro Loveriche from Saga Planets.
The full list of the best 20 titles hereinafter:
1.) Kin'iro Loveriche by Saga Planets (Also first place in categories Scenario, Music and Characters with Souma Ria)

2.) Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart 2 by Harukaze

3.) Making＊Lovers by Smee

4.) Hikari no Umi no Apeiria by Silky's Plus Dolce

5.) Aoi Tori by Purple Software (Also first place in category MOVIE)

6.) Bakumatsu Jinchuu Houkoku Resshiden Miburo by Inre

7.) ChronoBox by No Brand

8.) Suisou Ginka no Istoria by Uguisu Kagura

9.) Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu by Marmalade (Also first place in category ERO)

10.) Amayui Castle Meister by Eushully (Also first place in category System)

11.) Shigokare ~Ecchi na Joshi Daisei to Doki x2 Love Lesson!!~ by Atelier Kaguya Bare & Bunny (NSFW)
12.) Trinoline by Minori (Also first place in category Graphics)

13.) Haruru Minamo ni! by Clochette

14.) Ouka Sabaki by Irodori

15.) Choukou Shinki Ixseal by Alice Soft

16.) Niizuma Lovely x Cation by Hibiki Works

17.) Silverio Trinity by Light

18.) Kizuna Kirameku Koi Iroha by CRYSTALIA

19.) Koinosu ☆ Ichacolize by eRONDO

20.) Kotonoha Amrilato by SukeraSparo

Personal comments:
There was already a bit of a hype about Kin'iro Loveriche, so it doesn't really come as a surprise that it won the Getchu awards, even if I would have made my bet on Clochette's Harumina.
Nice to see Minori back on the graphics throne. I think it goes back to ef and Eden when they last got it. Though I think I liked their old style a bit more. 
Having Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu win the ero awards is... slightly surprising, considering it looks more like an all ages game. 
Looks like Eushully are back, even if they are not at the top yet.
Seems like Dergonu was right - ChronoBox seems a lot more popular in Japan than in the west.
Is Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart really getting an English translation or was it just a fake announcement about 2 years ago?
Miburo seems to be a bit lower ranked than its predecessor ChuSingura overall, though maybe that's just because its not 'new' anymore. I think at least the graphics are better.
I'm somewhat interested in Ouka Sabaki - the theme of murder mystery in past Japan looks very interesting.

Looked though all the other links. These lead to a wrong VN.

So the Getchu Bishoujo Game Awards 2017 for the most popular VN's of last year are finally out and the winner is... Kin'iro Loveriche from Saga Planets.
The full list of the best 20 titles hereinafter:
1.) Kin'iro Loveriche by Saga Planets (Also first place in categories Scenario, Music and Characters with Souma Ria)

2.) Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart 2 by Harukaze

3.) Making＊Lovers by Smee

4.) Hikari no Umi no Apeiria by Silky's Plus Dolce

5.) Aoi Tori by Purple Software (Also first place in category MOVIE)

6.) Bakumatsu Jinchuu Houkoku Resshiden Miburo by Inre

7.) ChronoBox by No Brand

8.) Suisou Ginka no Istoria by Uguisu Kagura

9.) Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu by Marmalade (Also first place in category ERO)

10.) Amayui Castle Meister by Eushully (Also first place in category System)

11.) Shigokare ~Ecchi na Joshi Daisei to Doki x2 Love Lesson!!~ by Atelier Kaguya Bare & Bunny (NSFW)
12.) Trinoline by Minori (Also first place in category Graphics)

13.) Haruru Minamo ni! by Clochette

14.) Ouka Sabaki by Irodori

15.) Choukou Shinki Ixseal by Alice Soft

16.) Niizuma Lovely x Cation by Hibiki Works

17.) Silverio Trinity by Light

18.) Kizuna Kirameku Koi Iroha by CRYSTALIA

19.) Koinosu ☆ Ichacolize by eRONDO

20.) Kotonoha Amrilato by SukeraSparo

Personal comments:
There was already a bit of a hype about Kin'iro Loveriche, so it doesn't really come as a surprise that it won the Getchu awards, even if I would have made my bet on Clochette's Harumina.
Nice to see Minori back on the graphics throne. I think it goes back to ef and Eden when they last got it. Though I think I liked their old style a bit more. 
Having Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu win the ero awards is... slightly surprising, considering it looks more like an all ages game. 
Looks like Eushully are back, even if they are not at the top yet.
Seems like Dergonu was right - ChronoBox seems a lot more popular in Japan than in the west.
Is Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart really getting an English translation or was it just a fake announcement about 2 years ago?
Miburo seems to be a bit lower ranked than its predecessor ChuSingura overall, though maybe that's just because its not 'new' anymore. I think at least the graphics are better.
I'm somewhat interested in Ouka Sabaki - the theme of murder mystery in past Japan looks very interesting.

So the Getchu Bishoujo Game Awards 2017 for the most popular VN's of last year are finally out and the winner is... Kin'iro Loveriche from Saga Planets.
The full list of the best 20 titles hereinafter:
1.) Kin'iro Loveriche by Saga Planets (Also first place in categories Scenario, Music and Characters with Souma Ria)

2.) Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart 2 by Harukaze

3.) Making＊Lovers by Smee

4.) Hikari no Umi no Apeiria by Silky's Plus Dolce

5.) Aoi Tori by Purple Software (Also first place in category MOVIE)

6.) Bakumatsu Jinchuu Houkoku Resshiden Miburo by Inre

7.) ChronoBox by No Brand

8.) Suisou Ginka no Istoria by Uguisu Kagura

9.) Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu by Marmalade (Also first place in category ERO)

10.) Amayui Castle Meister by Eushully (Also first place in category System)

11.) Shigokare ~Ecchi na Joshi Daisei to Doki x2 Love Lesson!!~ by Atelier Kaguya Bare & Bunny (NSFW)
12.) Trinoline by Minori (Also first place in category Graphics)

13.) Haruru Minamo ni! by Clochette

14.) Ouka Sabaki by Irodori

15.) Choukou Shinki Ixseal by Alice Soft

16.) Niizuma Lovely x Cation by Hibiki Works

17.) Silverio Trinity by Light

18.) Kizuna Kirameku Koi Iroha by CRYSTALIA

19.) Koinosu ☆ Ichacolize by eRONDO

20.) Kotonoha Amrilato by SukeraSparo

Personal comments:
There was already a bit of a hype about Kin'iro Loveriche, so it doesn't really come as a surprise that it won the Getchu awards, even if I would have made my bet on Clochette's Harumina.
Nice to see Minori back on the graphics throne. I think it goes back to ef and Eden when they last got it. Though I think I liked their old style a bit more. 
Having Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu win the ero awards is... slightly surprising, considering it looks more like an all ages game. 
Looks like Eushully are back, even if they are not at the top yet.
Seems like Dergonu was right - ChronoBox seems a lot more popular in Japan than in the west.
Is Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart really getting an English translation or was it just a fake announcement about 2 years ago?
Miburo seems to be a bit lower ranked than its predecessor ChuSingura overall, though maybe that's just because its not 'new' anymore. I think at least the graphics are better.
I'm somewhat interested in Ouka Sabaki - the theme of murder mystery in past Japan looks very interesting.

So the Getchu Bishoujo Game Awards 2017 for the most popular VN's of last year are finally out and the winner is... Kin'iro Loveriche from Saga Planets.
The full list of the best 20 titles hereinafter:
1.) Kin'iro Loveriche by Saga Planets (Also first place in categories Scenario, Music and Characters with Souma Ria)

2.) Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart 2 by Harukaze

3.) Making＊Lovers by Smee

4.) Hikari no Umi no Apeiria by Silky's Plus Dolce

5.) Aoi Tori by Purple Software (Also first place in category MOVIE)

6.) Bakumatsu Jinchuu Houkoku Resshiden Miburo by Inre

7.) ChronoBox by No Brand

8.) Suisou Ginka no Istoria by Uguisu Kagura

9.) Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu by Marmalade (Also first place in category ERO)

10.) Amayui Castle Meister by Eushully (Also first place in category System)

11.) Shigokare ~Ecchi na Joshi Daisei to Doki x2 Love Lesson!!~ by Atelier Kaguya Bare & Bunny (NSFW)
12.) Trinoline by Minori (Also first place in category Graphics)

13.) Haruru Minamo ni! by Clochette

14.) Ouka Sabaki by Irodori

15.) Choukou Shinki Ixseal by Alice Soft

16.) Niizuma Lovely x Cation by Hibiki Works

17.) Silverio Trinity by Light

18.) Kizuna Kirameku Koi Iroha by CRYSTALIA

19.) Koinosu ☆ Ichacolize by eRONDO

20.) Kotonoha Amrilato by SukeraSparo

Personal comments:
There was already a bit of a hype about Kin'iro Loveriche, so it doesn't really come as a surprise that it won the Getchu awards, even if I would have made my bet on Clochette's Harumina.
Nice to see Minori back on the graphics throne. I think it goes back to ef and Eden when they last got it. Though I think I liked their old style a bit more. 
Having Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu win the ero awards is... slightly surprising, considering it looks more like an all ages game. 
Looks like Eushully are back, even if they are not at the top yet.
Seems like Dergonu was right - ChronoBox seems a lot more popular in Japan than in the west.
Is Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart really getting an English translation or was it just a fake announcement about 2 years ago?
Miburo seems to be a bit lower ranked than its predecessor ChuSingura overall, though maybe that's just because its not 'new' anymore. I think at least the graphics are better.
I'm somewhat interested in Ouka Sabaki - the theme of murder mystery in past Japan looks very interesting.

So the Getchu Bishoujo Game Awards 2017 for the most popular VN's of last year are finally out and the winner is... Kin'iro Loveriche from Saga Planets.
The full list of the best 20 titles hereinafter:
1.) Kin'iro Loveriche by Saga Planets (Also first place in categories Scenario, Music and Characters with Souma Ria)

2.) Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart 2 by Harukaze

3.) Making＊Lovers by Smee

4.) Hikari no Umi no Apeiria by Silky's Plus Dolce

5.) Aoi Tori by Purple Software (Also first place in category MOVIE)

6.) Bakumatsu Jinchuu Houkoku Resshiden Miburo by Inre

7.) ChronoBox by No Brand

8.) Suisou Ginka no Istoria by Uguisu Kagura

9.) Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu by Marmalade (Also first place in category ERO)

10.) Amayui Castle Meister by Eushully (Also first place in category System)

11.) Shigokare ~Ecchi na Joshi Daisei to Doki x2 Love Lesson!!~ by Atelier Kaguya Bare & Bunny (NSFW)
12.) Trinoline by Minori (Also first place in category Graphics)

13.) Haruru Minamo ni! by Clochette

14.) Ouka Sabaki by Irodori

15.) Choukou Shinki Ixseal by Alice Soft

16.) Niizuma Lovely x Cation by Hibiki Works

17.) Silverio Trinity by Light

18.) Kizuna Kirameku Koi Iroha by CRYSTALIA

19.) Koinosu ☆ Ichacolize by eRONDO

20.) Kotonoha Amrilato by SukeraSparo

Personal comments:
There was already a bit of a hype about Kin'iro Loveriche, so it doesn't really come as a surprise that it won the Getchu awards, even if I would have made my bet on Clochette's Harumina.
Nice to see Minori back on the graphics throne. I think it goes back to ef and Eden when they last got it. Though I think I liked their old style a bit more. 
Having Ouchi ni Kaeru made ga Mashimaro Desu win the ero awards is... slightly surprising, considering it looks more like an all ages game. 
Looks like Eushully are back, even if they are not at the top yet.
Seems like Dergonu was right - ChronoBox seems a lot more popular in Japan than in the west.
Is Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart really getting an English translation or was it just a fake announcement about 2 years ago?
Miburo seems to be a bit lower ranked than its predecessor ChuSingura overall, though maybe that's just because its not 'new' anymore. I think at least the graphics are better.
I'm somewhat interested in Ouka Sabaki - the theme of murder mystery in past Japan looks very interesting.

Every language patch is essentially a mod and its purpose should be clear. Besides that, there are uncensor/restoration patches (If my Heart had Wings) or even censor patches (G-Senjou). All of them could be considered mods.
So there's nothing wrong with mods for VN's in general, although that doesn't mean that 'every' mod makes sense.

Hyper and airheaded heroines are something I usually can't stand, as more often than not they're just dumb and infantile and I don't see any possible appeal in that. Especially when it comes to romance, it has this creepy vibe of hooking up with someone who's emotionally and intellectualy still a child.
Every archetype can have its appeal if done right though. I like tsundere/kuudere types the most, just because how satisfying it is when their attitude finaly changes, but I've enjoyed all kinds of pretty clear archetype iterations in different VNs and anime.

Currently playing Subnautica which was recently released after a very long early access time. This game is genuinely mocking your primal fears of water. It's fascinating and terrifying at the same time. I think the last game that had me so on my toes bcause it was so scary was Amesia - The Dark Descent, and not even that is quite matching it.
It's also the first survival game I ever played and feels a bit like Soma meets Minecraft. Building your own under water base is just deeply satisfying. Especially if things go wrong - like disregarding hull integrity until cracks are building and the whole base is running full of water. Or stalker fish ripping out the camera drones of your navigation room and playing catch the ball with his buddies with it. And not being aware of the huge energy consumption of spot lights and then suffocating because the life support system ran out of power was certainly one of my more creative deaths. Maybe not as terrifying as getting killed by a reaper leviathan after it turned my submarine to scrap metal, but certainly more interesting than drowning 10 meters before reaching the surface.
There are lots of ways do die anyway: Suffocation, dying of thirst, starving, burning, getting cooked by a volcano, death by radiation, poisoning, getting eaten or otherwise killed by sea monsters, hull break in deep waters, etc. It's really making you paranoid. 

Looking mostly forward to Hapymaher, Shiei no Sona-Nyl and the rest of the Leyline trilogy.

You're way overthinking things. You can have a complex about all kind of things - it's not restricted to just a few things. Just like 'fan' is also not a word restricted to the usage of 'Star Trek fans'. And considering there's already both a 'father complex' and a 'mother complex' (=Oedipus complex) I think it should be clear that brother and sister complexes are just in line. Especially considering that you can find lots of incest cases between siblings in history and mythology too. And if a psychologist would encounter a patient who's obsessed with his sister - how would he call it? Or do you think crazy stuff like a 'Madonna-whore complex' that spans an entire Wikipedia article has more justification than a simple brother or sister complex?! And do you also think that the huge Lolita Complex article in Wikipedia with countless quotations should be deleted just because it originates from the term 'Lolicon'?
The more interesting question would be: would the usage of the word 'Otaku' be okay in a translation? Because it's most certainly not an English word, even if there's a huge Wikipedia article about it. And who exactly decides what's okay to use in an English translation? If the word or term can be found in the Oxford Dictionary - or Wikipedia?
But what about fictional beings? If you translate a fantasy RPG that has lots of fictional monsters like gnolls or illithids which are essentially D&D monsters which you will most certainly not find in the Oxford Dictionary, would their usage be allowed, or not - and why? Would the word oni be allowed despite being a very specific Japanese monster or would it have to be translated to something like 'ogre'?
Guess that removes all clarity now... 

Oh, I quite disagree. I was just having a bit of fun trying to prove Kiri wrong. Sadly, my attempts backfired. In any case, thank you for expressing yourself in a respectful manner, and allow me to respond to everything you said here in an equally gracious way.
An Oedipus complex is separate from a father complex and mother complex. Neither of the latter two indicate any form of sexualisation; rather they can indicate a range of feelings from negative to positive to ambivalent. My point is simply that "complex" has too wide a range of implications for the common reader to be able to discern what "sister complex" would refer to, whereas sister enthusiast, although certainly not perfect, has relatively easily discerned sexual undertones in my opinion. Sister complex could be that the individual is (non-sexually) obsessed with his sister; that he is jealous of her, so on...
Depends. It should be noted that complexes are found chiefly in psychoanalysis and analytical psychology. Unfortunately, as I am a mere student and not a certified psychologist, I cannot hope to surmise what name a professional would assign to such a condition. 
Yes, I do think the Maddona-whore complex has complete justification. I can easily find a number of academic sources detailing information about it... not to mention, I don't think it's crazy at all. You should see how hard of a time I had getting it up with my ex-girlfriend of several years! No, I don't think the Lolita complex article should be deleted, nor did I ever suggest such a thing. It doesn't originate from the term lolicon at all; it derives from the novel by Vladimir Nabokov. Unless you're referring to how the title of the article is "Lolicon"; if that's the case, I think it's fine considering a wider amount of readers are more familiar with that term than with "Lolita Complex", but I am not well-versed in Wikipedia's guidelines.
 I originally referred to Wikipedia in my previous post because the then-current discussion concerned it. I don't think it has very much importance or relevance in terms of translating something. Technically, any of the terms we discussed are "okay" to use in an English translation. If there was a hard guidebook on translating a visual novel I'd slap it out right here and say, "Oh, it seems you're correct" or the inverse. Personally I think what's important is that the ultimate translation convey meaning in the clearest way possible to the largest amount of English readers, not just people familiar with Japanese anime culture. I would have been completely lost when I played through STEINS;GATE as a western fellow unfamiliar with these sorts of terms had it not been for the glossary of terms... perhaps having such a guide is a decent compromise?
Thanks for your response, in any case!
EDIT: To clarify, I don't think either of us are absolutely "correct". Translators can and do choose from both original Japanese terms and attempts at localising them. Regardless of which one they choose, one camp of visual novel fans will be upset.

Finally finished Ourai no Gahkthun, and overall it was an enjoyable read, though not without flaws.
What makes this VN really stand out is its unique and mature Steampunk setting. A large academy on a small artificial island, located close to the coast of Marseille in an early 20th century France. Most  characters are already young adults instead of teenagers and the academy resembles more a university than a school. The VN also manages to create the right atmosphere for the right moment. Slice of life scenes have a classic soundtrack that perfectly captures the feeling of a Paris inspired, lifely city, while the darker scenes are backed by an eerie soundtrack. The battle scenes were also surprisingly well done, using animated effects and such, even if some end a bit sudden. They were also not too long which was a huge plus for me.
Although the VN is written from a third person point of view, it uses a rather interesting writing style to create a semi-protagonist feeling when needed. This is done through inner monologues of the characters where they share their feelings and thoughts with the reader, usually in a voiced manner. This is often done for female characters and for Neon in particular.
Story-wise there were lights and shadows. While Tesla was an overall interesting character with some supreme lightning powers, you don't really get to know a lot about him, even to the end. He just comes to the academy as a transfer student and rescues Neon from a near-slavery fate. Together they oppose the members of the student council who use some kind of demonic bell to gain special powers - also called arts in the VN. Most chapters then showcase a conflict with one of the members of the student council, though not all of them. And so you get to know that not all of the members are just bad guys and that there's more than meets the eye.
While the VN does a marvelous job in setting up a believable Steampunk world and creating the right atmosphere for it, its biggest flaw is certainly the story-flow and character development. To use a somewhat accurate comparison, I guess most people remember the infamous Windows progress bar and when it sometimes gets stuck at about ~X% for minutes, just to suddenly jump to the end in a second. And here it's pretty much the same. While in most chapters you get to know a certain side character better, this is usually not the case for Tesla or Neon and their relationship gets stuck very soon. The chapters are also very independent from each other, to a point that the order doesn't really matter. Usually chapters should build up on each other to create a homogenous story flow, but this isn't really the case here.
But in the last chapter the VN suddenly turns up to light speed story development and literally every story and character development you can image is squished in there. It goes without saying that this didn't work out without some sacrifices in the form of abyssal size plot holes like...
So yeah, there were quite some questionmarks at the end. For that reason I find it difficult to really call this a story VN. I'd call it more a slice of life VN with a unique setting and actually entertaining slice of life since in every chapter there's new stuff happening with new CG's and sometimes even new characters. It was also somewhat interesting to see an unavoidable tentacle rape scene in a Steam VN. Granted, it was pretty tame, but WTF. 
So, since I overall still enjoyed the VN and liked most of the characters, I decided to call this a good slife of life VN instead of a bad story VN, so my final rating is 7.5/10. 
And yeah, I managed to finish a dreadful boring Mihiro route in Wagamama Highspec in about 3 months of time - I'm so proud of me. 
Still want to try Ashe's route, but I think I'll pass on the other ones.

Saga Planets new VN was quite well received - not only on VNDB but also on EGS. Must admit that the whole knight girl & princess stuff looks quite tempting. It'll be interesting to see how it'll perform in the upcoming Getchu Bishoujo Game awards.
The structure doesn't really matter. Even a one-liner would have been okay. 
My year reviews always tend to end up a bit over the top... 

I think that's not really the same thing we are talking about. Umineko is told from 3rd person POV and in those character jumps are quite normal. And if Kindred Spirits on the roof is written like Sakurai's other VN's, it's probably also 3rd person POV. Didn't play the others, so I can't judge. Though technically I played Katahane for a few hours, but I dropped it because I didn't like it and I can't remember the writing structure anymore.
And in Sorcery Jokers it definitely doesn't work 'perfectly' - it's an absolute mess so far. Not just because of the sudden POV changes, but also because of the unfunny jokes and some really dull written characters with Haruto and his ultra-annoying 'that's not playing fair' statements in particular. The VN even goes so far to show the exact same scene from the 1st person POV of two different characters. This can be interesting if there's a certain twist behind it like in Root Double. But in Sorcery Jokers it's done for completely pointless slice of life scenes just to drag the pacing down.
I still hope it's just a messy beginning and gets better after a while, because I definitely won't finish it like that. Currently, the only thing that keeps me reading is Senri and that there are occasionally still interesting story bits showing up.

I didn't see a review thread about 2017 VN's yet, so I'm creating a new one because I usually review my VN's every year. I forgot to do that last year, so I really want to do it for 2017 now. Everyone is welcome to add their own review too of course.
Best story VN:
Best moege:
Best slice of life & drama VN:
Best comedy VN:
Best ero VN: (NSFW)
Biggest disappointment:
Now, let's go to some side categories...
Best art: Love Tore ~Ecchi na Ren'ai Training~ by Atelier Kaguya
This was pretty hard since I played several VN's with great art. But I picked this one since it simply stands out because of it stellar animation. But honorable mentions go to Kara no Shojo 2, Lovely & Cation 2, Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata, Dies Irae and Ourai no Gahkthun.
Best sound: Ourai no Gahkthun ~What a Shining Braves~ by Liar-Soft
I initially was tempted to pick Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata because of it's stellar atmospheric soundtrack, but since some of the voice actors weren't that good, Gahkthun was overall better. Kara no Shoujo 2 was also pretty good but some soundtracks got pretty dull after a while. Other honorable mentions go to The Shadows of Pygmalion and Dies Irae for some pretty good soundtracks.
Best male character: Tokisaka Reiji from Kara no Shojo 2
Closely followed by Masaki Tomoyuki, the other protagnist from KnS2. Honorable mentions go to Jay from The Shadows of Pygmalion, Iwaki Akio from Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata and Valeria Trifa from Dies Irae.
Best female character: Shimzu Ichigaku from ChuSingGura46+1
For being a great villainous heroine. Honourable mentions goes to Hazuki Kyouko and Aoki Touji from Kara no Shojo 2, although I consider the latter more as a loyal friend and comrade than waifu material. And another honorable mention goes to the Lovely & Cation 2 girls.
Guess that got longer than expected, but that's it for me... 

I didn't see a review thread about 2017 VN's yet, so I'm creating a new one because I usually review my VN's every year. I forgot to do that last year, so I really want to do it for 2017 now. Everyone is welcome to add their own review too of course.
Best story VN:
Best moege:
Best slice of life & drama VN:
Best comedy VN:
Best ero VN: (NSFW)
Biggest disappointment:
Now, let's go to some side categories...
Best art: Love Tore ~Ecchi na Ren'ai Training~ by Atelier Kaguya
This was pretty hard since I played several VN's with great art. But I picked this one since it simply stands out because of it stellar animation. But honorable mentions go to Kara no Shojo 2, Lovely & Cation 2, Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata, Dies Irae and Ourai no Gahkthun.
Best sound: Ourai no Gahkthun ~What a Shining Braves~ by Liar-Soft
I initially was tempted to pick Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata because of it's stellar atmospheric soundtrack, but since some of the voice actors weren't that good, Gahkthun was overall better. Kara no Shoujo 2 was also pretty good but some soundtracks got pretty dull after a while. Other honorable mentions go to The Shadows of Pygmalion and Dies Irae for some pretty good soundtracks.
Best male character: Tokisaka Reiji from Kara no Shojo 2
Closely followed by Masaki Tomoyuki, the other protagnist from KnS2. Honorable mentions go to Jay from The Shadows of Pygmalion, Iwaki Akio from Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata and Valeria Trifa from Dies Irae.
Best female character: Shimzu Ichigaku from ChuSingGura46+1
For being a great villainous heroine. Honourable mentions goes to Hazuki Kyouko and Aoki Touji from Kara no Shojo 2, although I consider the latter more as a loyal friend and comrade than waifu material. And another honorable mention goes to the Lovely & Cation 2 girls.
Guess that got longer than expected, but that's it for me... 

I didn't see a review thread about 2017 VN's yet, so I'm creating a new one because I usually review my VN's every year. I forgot to do that last year, so I really want to do it for 2017 now. Everyone is welcome to add their own review too of course.
Best story VN:
Best moege:
Best slice of life & drama VN:
Best comedy VN:
Best ero VN: (NSFW)
Biggest disappointment:
Now, let's go to some side categories...
Best art: Love Tore ~Ecchi na Ren'ai Training~ by Atelier Kaguya
This was pretty hard since I played several VN's with great art. But I picked this one since it simply stands out because of it stellar animation. But honorable mentions go to Kara no Shojo 2, Lovely & Cation 2, Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata, Dies Irae and Ourai no Gahkthun.
Best sound: Ourai no Gahkthun ~What a Shining Braves~ by Liar-Soft
I initially was tempted to pick Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata because of it's stellar atmospheric soundtrack, but since some of the voice actors weren't that good, Gahkthun was overall better. Kara no Shoujo 2 was also pretty good but some soundtracks got pretty dull after a while. Other honorable mentions go to The Shadows of Pygmalion and Dies Irae for some pretty good soundtracks.
Best male character: Tokisaka Reiji from Kara no Shojo 2
Closely followed by Masaki Tomoyuki, the other protagnist from KnS2. Honorable mentions go to Jay from The Shadows of Pygmalion, Iwaki Akio from Hyakki Ryouran no Yakata and Valeria Trifa from Dies Irae.
Best female character: Shimzu Ichigaku from ChuSingGura46+1
For being a great villainous heroine. Honourable mentions goes to Hazuki Kyouko and Aoki Touji from Kara no Shojo 2, although I consider the latter more as a loyal friend and comrade than waifu material. And another honorable mention goes to the Lovely & Cation 2 girls.
Guess that got longer than expected, but that's it for me... 

1. Unionism Quartet
2. Shin Koihime † Musou - Kakumei (Trilogy)
3. Walkure Romanze
Guess neither of them will ever happen, but whatever... 

Finally finished Ourai no Gahkthun, and overall it was an enjoyable read, though not without flaws.
What makes this VN really stand out is its unique and mature Steampunk setting. A large academy on a small artificial island, located close to the coast of Marseille in an early 20th century France. Most  characters are already young adults instead of teenagers and the academy resembles more a university than a school. The VN also manages to create the right atmosphere for the right moment. Slice of life scenes have a classic soundtrack that perfectly captures the feeling of a Paris inspired, lifely city, while the darker scenes are backed by an eerie soundtrack. The battle scenes were also surprisingly well done, using animated effects and such, even if some end a bit sudden. They were also not too long which was a huge plus for me.
Although the VN is written from a third person point of view, it uses a rather interesting writing style to create a semi-protagonist feeling when needed. This is done through inner monologues of the characters where they share their feelings and thoughts with the reader, usually in a voiced manner. This is often done for female characters and for Neon in particular.
Story-wise there were lights and shadows. While Tesla was an overall interesting character with some supreme lightning powers, you don't really get to know a lot about him, even to the end. He just comes to the academy as a transfer student and rescues Neon from a near-slavery fate. Together they oppose the members of the student council who use some kind of demonic bell to gain special powers - also called arts in the VN. Most chapters then showcase a conflict with one of the members of the student council, though not all of them. And so you get to know that not all of the members are just bad guys and that there's more than meets the eye.
While the VN does a marvelous job in setting up a believable Steampunk world and creating the right atmosphere for it, its biggest flaw is certainly the story-flow and character development. To use a somewhat accurate comparison, I guess most people remember the infamous Windows progress bar and when it sometimes gets stuck at about ~X% for minutes, just to suddenly jump to the end in a second. And here it's pretty much the same. While in most chapters you get to know a certain side character better, this is usually not the case for Tesla or Neon and their relationship gets stuck very soon. The chapters are also very independent from each other, to a point that the order doesn't really matter. Usually chapters should build up on each other to create a homogenous story flow, but this isn't really the case here.
But in the last chapter the VN suddenly turns up to light speed story development and literally every story and character development you can image is squished in there. It goes without saying that this didn't work out without some sacrifices in the form of abyssal size plot holes like...
So yeah, there were quite some questionmarks at the end. For that reason I find it difficult to really call this a story VN. I'd call it more a slice of life VN with a unique setting and actually entertaining slice of life since in every chapter there's new stuff happening with new CG's and sometimes even new characters. It was also somewhat interesting to see an unavoidable tentacle rape scene in a Steam VN. Granted, it was pretty tame, but WTF. 
So, since I overall still enjoyed the VN and liked most of the characters, I decided to call this a good slife of life VN instead of a bad story VN, so my final rating is 7.5/10. 
And yeah, I managed to finish a dreadful boring Mihiro route in Wagamama Highspec in about 3 months of time - I'm so proud of me. 
Still want to try Ashe's route, but I think I'll pass on the other ones.