LemiusK

The "heartwarming storyline" requirement makes it quite hard. I'd love to just drop Swan Song in there if i could.

Tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies... Just like No Man's Sky!
Also relevant...
 

Hello everyone! We have recently launched our Kickstarter campaign for the first entry in our Crime Opera series!
Kickstarter Page Here
We would love for you all to check us out! 

It's currently at -30% on Jast USA.
And this, yeah. The discounts at Christmas sale are usually higher.

Good chance it will go on sale for Christmas, so you probably won't have to wait much longer.

I agree with the sentiment on Root Double. It's one of those situations where you can clearly tell the wanted to do something cool and interesting, but the reason people stick to a choice system is because trying to get funky tends to fail. The obvious desire is to create a more diverse system of choices, but until we create free thinking AI, the choice will always be binary. 

Probably going to hold off on buying Fata Morgana 'till the PS Vita version comes out, AKA the "Dreams of the Revenants Edition" with additional story. Already added to my wishlist.

To quote my impressions of the choice system when I read Root Double:
Looking back, most of the times the text prior to the choice indicated what a high value would probably mean and the way it works even gets something like an in-universe explanation somewhere down the line but imo it's still worse than just having straight up choices imo. The only thing you can really change by using values other than 1, 4 or 8 is whose character mini-ending you get which amounts to a short scene and a CG, except for one or two decisions.

I'm thankful for having experienced 428 Shibuya Scramble. It's not everyday (literally) that you get to experience an amazing game like this that emotionally shook me to the core. I mean, I literally have to wait for two or three years before something this impactful pops into my life, you know? Be it a movie, anime, or a video game. The last time I was this emotionally moved was... maybe six years ago, when I experienced the consequences of all my decisions in the previous Mass Effect games. Man, that was... nerve-wrecking, having to contemplate all that I've done for my crew-members of Normandy, and having to live with their deaths (or survival).
428 was something similar, but on a much more simpler scale. It's more traditional and idealistic, but in that sense, it's also more heartwarming. Your role in saving Shibuya feels just as important as the many wonderful characters in there trying their best to help out, no matter how small their role might be.
Anyway, I'm not going to go into too much details here. I'm just thankful I got to experience something like this, and perhaps lament a bit that I probably won't experience something as impactful for a long time to come.
I'm also thankful that I got Fate/hollow ataraxia to work on my computer at last, after the many bugs and errors I previously experienced. The long-awaited sequel to one of the greatest VNs of all time has finally been voice-patched. Now we just need to get an anime adaptation...
On a similar note... ROOT DOUBLE IS FINALLY WORKING TOO! I thought I would never get to play this game yesterday because I kept experiencing some weird bug. It's not exactly expensive since I got it 60% off, but still. Thankful, thankful, thankful.
I would also like to thank Sekai Project for translating this, along with the many, many VNs they've translated, and the many VNs to come. Keep up the good work, SP.
Finally, I would like to thank @Ramaladni for commenting on my newly-created blog. We might not have been able to come to an agreement regarding our views of VNs with choices, but I'm thankful he commented on it, since new blogs like this often get ignored.

I'm thankful for having experienced 428 Shibuya Scramble. It's not everyday (literally) that you get to experience an amazing game like this that emotionally shook me to the core. I mean, I literally have to wait for two or three years before something this impactful pops into my life, you know? Be it a movie, anime, or a video game. The last time I was this emotionally moved was... maybe six years ago, when I experienced the consequences of all my decisions in the previous Mass Effect games. Man, that was... nerve-wrecking, having to contemplate all that I've done for my crew-members of Normandy, and having to live with their deaths (or survival).
428 was something similar, but on a much more simpler scale. It's more traditional and idealistic, but in that sense, it's also more heartwarming. Your role in saving Shibuya feels just as important as the many wonderful characters in there trying their best to help out, no matter how small their role might be.
Anyway, I'm not going to go into too much details here. I'm just thankful I got to experience something like this, and perhaps lament a bit that I probably won't experience something as impactful for a long time to come.
I'm also thankful that I got Fate/hollow ataraxia to work on my computer at last, after the many bugs and errors I previously experienced. The long-awaited sequel to one of the greatest VNs of all time has finally been voice-patched. Now we just need to get an anime adaptation...
On a similar note... ROOT DOUBLE IS FINALLY WORKING TOO! I thought I would never get to play this game yesterday because I kept experiencing some weird bug. It's not exactly expensive since I got it 60% off, but still. Thankful, thankful, thankful.
I would also like to thank Sekai Project for translating this, along with the many, many VNs they've translated, and the many VNs to come. Keep up the good work, SP.
Finally, I would like to thank @Ramaladni for commenting on my newly-created blog. We might not have been able to come to an agreement regarding our views of VNs with choices, but I'm thankful he commented on it, since new blogs like this often get ignored.

This kind of thread pops up every two years or so...  but the basic rule of thumb is the existence of extensive narration and the use of a text box in the ADV or NVL style (though there are exceptions).  VNs must always try to tell a story, even if it is nothing more than excuse for sex scenes.  While I mention narration above, someone is eventually going to point out Lamunation, which has almost no narration and the story is told almost entirely through dialogue.  
There are hardline parts of the community that don't even want to accept Eushully-type games as VNs because of the existence of gameplay.  there are also more liberal parts of the community that want to consider most jrpgs that even hint at VN elements as VNs.  However, the fact is, you have to draw the line somewhere. 
A few comments.  Persona generally gets excluded because the VN elements are actually far closer to dating sim elements than visual novel ones.  Dating sims, while they retain some similarities to a VN on the surface, rarely tell a story and are focused on simulation of a romance, often using social stats such as are seen in the Persona games. 
Personally, I find the inclusion of Ar Tonelico to be almost equally questionable, because the Cosmosphere is not so much telling a story as exploring the psyches of the heroines... though it does effect the story greatly at times.
Understand, if you play any Eushully game, then play a normal jrpg afterward, you will immediately see the differences... even if that other jrpg is Persona.  Simply put, Persona games' story is dependent on its gameplay, whereas a true VN hybrid's gameplay is an appendage to the story.  The differences are obvious when taken subjectively, but objectively, they are hard to describe.
 

Root double is a bit like ever17 but with quite a number of bad ends (though significantly fewer than that of 428). Its bad end system is also a bit like 428, such that it will give you hints as to why you got that particular bad end. The true end isn't as grand as that of ever17 but it's still pretty decent overall so I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did 

Currently still playing Yumiko's route, but, it got me thinking about one of my favorite Yumiko moments back in Grisaia no Kajitsu, and it wasn't even in her own route. I'm sure most of you already know what I'm referring to. Yes, it's that scene in Michiru's route that conveys just how deeply Yumiko cares about her friends, Michiru included. 
Sigh. My night is ruined by the waterworks. Sour mood now.
I think it's a lot worse that there's no BGM during that particular scene, or rather, the scene was a lot more painful to watch.  It's like being forced to watch a cute animal die, but you're given no catharsis in the form of some contrived melancholic music. Just... silence and grim reality.
Anyway, it's a good reminder why her route was my favorite route of all back in Kajitsu. It still is now, even if her AS in Meikyuu disappointed me. The heavy theme dealt with in her route wasn't particularly uncommon among VNs, but it's nonetheless relevant. And Yuuji's explanation of 
felt so realistic and grounded. Sure, he's a rather pompous hypocrite throughout most of Michiru's route, but his words rung true, and he did a good job showing how terrible the consequences would be.
Anyway, guess that's why I have a soft spot for Yumiko. Her AS so far is kinda boring, which is a shame, so I hope it will pick up later.
Sigh. My mood really took a turn for the worse now that I remember that scene.
In hindsight, I'm kinda glad that the anime didn't adapt that scene (IIRC). Not sure if I could handle it watching it in animated form. Then again, it's such a great scene that I also hate that it didn't adapt it... Wasted opportunity.

Mhm, mhm, You's Good End feels the most
I like that the epilogue cleverly hides away some of the plot details in vagueness since I haven't unlocked Coco's route yet. Now that I think about it, that would also explain why both Tsugumi and Sora's routes feel "uncomplete," because I haven't reached their combined epilogue yet. Not sure why it's combined though, because honestly, I would rather see an epilogue dedicated to each of them separately. You's epilogue, for example, wraps things up so nicely with her character arc. It feels like it has a lot of closure for her character, so I hope Tsugumi and Sora's epilogue being combined won't affect either of their routes not ending effectively.
Anyway, these readings of Good Ends feel kinda short because I kinda just skipped texts I've already read. lol So each Good End only takes me about an hour or two to reach. It won't be long before I hit Coco's route. Kinda anticlimactic, when I made such a big deal about how lengthy this VN is in the past.
Next up is Sara's Good End. 
 

VNDB
Seriously, if you just pay attention at the beginning of each month to what is scheduled and make a list of the ones you have an interest in, you won't miss anything.  That applies for English ones too, though perhaps not as reliable as localizations of Japanese ones.

Yeah, I could see that. In that sense, Sora's route does feel like the only route that reveals little to no important information, and therefore, in a sense, you're correct in saying it "contributes nothing." But again, that doesn't take away from my enjoyment of her route.
Actually, now that I think about it, Tsugumi's route bummed me out too, in that certain information about her wasn't revealed either, especially 
By the way, on an unrelated note, I've learned an important piece of information from Professor Dave in Grisaia no Meikyuu - that you can press F12 to minimize the game in case someone walks in on you playing an h-scene. Thanks, Professor Dave! 
Edit:
>Starts Yumiko's route
>First thing I see is 
>Reaction: EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. 
>In deadpan Tomokazu Sugita voice: "Ah, my apologies. Looks like I walked into Professor Dave's station by mistake. GOOD DAY. GOODBYE."
Yeah. This gonna be "good."[/sarcasm]

Well, just finished Sora's Good End. Hm... remember when I said I doubt that I would change my tone after I finish her route? Well... I was wrong. Tee hee.  Not wrong to a large extent, since I still prefer Tsugumi over Sora (both as a character and as a route), but still. Playing her ending, I've come to remembered all the adorable moments she had
Now I'll address some of the points @Rain Spectre made:
Disagreed to a certain extent. If I had started with Sora's route first, I would have felt almost the same about Tsugumi. That said, there's a reason why I said "to a certain extent"...
This. Yeah, it's pretty sloppy writing, very "last minute"-ish. Tsugumi's route has closure; Sora's doesn't, and was very tacked on.
Had they expanded her ending (which I assume the XBox version DID... ALL THE MORE REASON IT NEEDS TO BE TRANSLATED/PORTED), I would have put her End above Tsugumi's easily, in spite of how sappy it is (or rather, because of it). However...
This point, I disagreed with. There are many VNs where some of the routes contribute NOTHING to the "True Route," and some of those "meaningless routes" end up being my favorites over the True Route. While Sora's route isn't good because of all the problems I mentioned, I wouldn't say I want it to be cut because 1) she's quite a decent character, 2) the route itself is quite tearjerking, 3) the themes and philosophies fit the overall theme of Ever17, so her route doesn't feel out of place. To say a side-plot should be cut because it contributes nothing to the main is... well, simplifying things a little bit. It's not math or a strategy game; you don't cut content because it contributes nothing. It's a story. You only cut it if it's a bad side-plot with no redeeming value. I would say Sora's route would have contributed to the theme of Ever17 had it not been for the unpolished ending.
But yeah, I've come to like Sora more as a result of her ending, so it's not all bad. Looking back at all the times I've read about Ever17, I could understand why people called her route the worst route (infodump, infodump, infodump), but I don't think "worst" in this case necessarily equates to "terrible." More like "flawed," "potential squandered."
Anyway... now that that's done, time to move on to my waifu, YOU! I. AM. YOU! 

First of all how dare u
Second of all
How fucking dare u
Sora is literally the best thing about ever17

Still, even if it's generic, something like that does pique my interest, since it's not something more ordinary or far more generic like eating or something right out of the anime cliche textbook. Makes me wonder how Sara acquired that object. Seems like quite a significant plot-device.

The problem is that, from what I heard, the authors who did the rewrites aren't really that good, and some of the rewrites were pretty unnecessary. I didn't read that version since it's untranslated, but I've seen a certain really generic CG of
that apparently appears in that version, and it makes me very suspicious whether this new content really adds anything of value.
Oh, yeah, I kind of agree. I don't know, sometimes it feels that different writers didn't agree on how they wanted to develop Michiru, so in the end, though she is still my favorite character, I didn't feel like the way they handled her character was very satisfying.
Well, let's hope that you'll like it more than me. And the Grand Route is actually pretty good, so look forward to that!

Don't worry, I just half-jokingly summoned here a person who has the opposite opinion. I personally kind of agree that it was weaker than the other routes and overall pretty unnecessary.
From what I heard, the rewrote so much in that version that it pretty much became a new VN. It even has a separate page on VNDB, which says a lot since they usually don't add new pages even when the new version really needs one.
These types of after stories typically don't have much character development since they are just there to artificially continue the story. I don't know, I liked Michiru's AS for what it is, but I agree that the after stories for Sachi, Amane and Makina are a lot more interesting. As for Yumiko... It was so boring that I almost skipped it.

Grisaia no Meikyuu
Finished Sachi's route, and damn, her route has got Amane's route beaten. So much content is packed into it, you'd think it's a main route, not to mention the tension and suspense that the other routes lacked. Didn't expect that antagonist to be a real threat, even though the Chekhov's Gun was pretty obvious from the start.
Still, having completed Sachi's After Story only makes me feel even more bummed out about Michiru's AS. Compared to the three other AS I've played so far, Michiru's AS just has the least amount of story and character development. This is like Fate/Stay Night all over again, where my favorite heroine (Saber) has the weakest route of them all. Sigh. The only saving grace Michiru's AS has going for it is that unique Ending Theme, but that doesn't amount to much when the route itself isn't any thing special. Every other heroine so far aside from Michiru has some of significant character development or change to status quo, while Michiru's route was kinda casual and stagnant. But I digress.
Anyway, I could easily see Sachi's After Story making it into an anime adaptation, which is a shame that it didn't. That "conflict" that appeared in her route could have made for some decent drama. But it's probably best that it wasn't adapted, considering what a mediocre job they did with Kajitsu.
Ever17
Finished Tsugumi's so-called "Good End," which obviously feels more like a "Fake End." I have now remembered more of her past and backstory, which does make me warm up to her a lot more, but I'm still a little conflicted over how I feel about her for now.
Next up is Sora's Good End, which I have very little expectations towards. lol Not to be harsh towards Sora, but I'm just not interested in her type of "Elegant Ojousama" woman. Her character archetype is one of my least favorite among anime archetypes. Doesn't really help that 
But again, I might change my tone after finishing her Good End, but we'll see. I did feel a bit bad about her during
On a sidenote, I'm kinda annoyed that the XBox version of the game wasn't translated or ported. It looks a lot more fun with its additional content, not to mention its far more energetic OP theme that I really liked. Shame there's no patch to add that OP theme to the PC version of the game. I really don't like the PC version of the OP.
I might also play the other entries of the Infinity series in the future, but it seems that Remember11 wasn't finished or something, that one of the routes that explained the mystery wasn't completed, so I don't know how I feel about that. Oh well. Shame that 12Riven doesn't look like it's going to be translated any time soon.

Oh boy, Sora's route...a warning, it is easily the worst part of the game.