adamstan
-
Posts
1806 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
51
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Blogs
Events
Posts posted by adamstan
-
-
15 minutes ago, Seraphim said:
I still find this kissing CG (that I think I've already posted here at some point) of her hilariously awkward, but I can't quite remember if it was from the first kiss scene you mentioned.
No, it was later,
Spoilerwhen Sora came to Ryousuke's home
I read that scene just a few minutes ago
SpoilerAnd now I'm at condom buying scene - quite hilarious with Ryousuke trying to be all stealthy
-
On 8/16/2022 at 3:05 PM, Seraphim said:
There's not really any recommended order from what I can remember, so just go with whatever strikes your fancy.
I started with Sora, since she was first both in the walkthrough, and on choices list
I'm still somewhere around the first half of the route, I guess (just reached the first kiss ), but I'm loving it so far. Sora is so cute 
Spoiler
It seems to be near-perfect relaxing, feel-good moege - and nicely executed
On 8/16/2022 at 3:05 PM, Seraphim said:At some point in the future when I feel like rereading this VN in the form of Perfect Edition
I've heard that Perfect Edition isn't as perfect as the devs claim
AFAIK it tries to merge together the original +18 version and additional/replacement scenes from console edition (which I'm currently reading), but apparently sometimes it comes out weird.
BTW reading Vita version on PC (using emulator) is an experience surprisingly close to playing actual PC VN - since Vita's touchscreen is emulated with the mouse, so I can freely navigate all the menus just like on PC - the only missing thing is right-click
-
From those games I only know Mashiro Iro Symphony (No. 4 on the list). It's indeed a moege masterpiece, and it would be nice if more people could read it
(Actually wanting to read it was main factor that made me start learning japanese)
I'd say that translation isn't completely unlikely - there were already some Palette's games that got translated (SakuSaku and 9 -Nine-), and Mashiro Iro Symphony itself is getting a HD remake next year. I'd say that makes it pretty good candidate for official translation.
If I'm not mistaken, Sekai Project has some kind of licensing/partnership agreement with Pallette, doesn't it?
I'm not familiar with other titles from the list, and after browsing their vndb pages, none caught my attention
-
On 8/14/2022 at 7:08 PM, Plk_Lesiak said:
If you ever change your mind, I have a legitimate copy of euphoria I'd be willing to share.
Nah, I think I'll pass, at least for now
***********************************************
Making use of recent progress in PSVita emulation and my new PC, I just started reading console version of Hoshi Ori Yume Mirai. Even the text-hooking works
I currently stopped in the middle of the third in-game day (first day of school), but I'm really liking it so far - it has really nice, warm mood.
Is there any recommended route order for this VN? As far as I can see, there seems to be no "true ending" or "true route" - just six heroines. The walkthrough at seiya-saiga gives following order:
Sora -> Rika -> Touko -> Misa -> Marika -> Natsuki.Is it OK to follow that order, or would you recommend other one?
-
3 minutes ago, Fujoneko said:
If the descriptions and/or the specific sexual content presented turn you off, however, I'm afraid you'd be better off just reading something else.
Yep, that's me - I'm not touching MB, euphoria and similar stuff with a ten feet pole
- fujoneko and ChaosRaven
-
1
-
1
-
Yesterday I finished Seven Days: Anata to Sugosu Nanokakan
First four chapters/routes (Sakura, Kotoha, Mari and Ichiru) were really good nakige stuff - on par with the best, or at least as effective as KEY's masterpieces
After that I feel like it lost direction a bit. Shizuku got the short end of the stick, since her chapter was there mostly to provide backstory/plot information. Nene's chapter also wasn't as strong as the first four. And then the three final chapters - Chiyako, Zero and bonus Murasaki's epilogue - I feel like it was unnecessarily overcomplicated
SpoilerWith all the time travel / parallel worlds stuff.
They tried to pull off the KEY and YU-NO at the same time - especially with bonus chapter
On one hand - it was interesting, and there were still some nice heartwarming KEYish moments
SpoilerLike when the ghosts of the first six girl appear in cursed world to defeat the villain. Or the scene with little Chiyako and Shuuichi's dad.
And it was oddly satisfying, when
SpoilerShizuku got her revenge, and told the villain - "Yes, you will go down in history - as a mad scientist turned into serial murderer of little girls"
But on the other hand I can't stop thinking that maybe the story would have stronger emotional impact, if it sticked to the original premise of helping the seven ghosts to find safe way to the other side.
Nevertheless I still enjoyed it very much, so it gets 8/10 from me
Strongly recommended to nakige lovers - especially the first half.
I played in Japanese, so cannot comment on the quality of translation.
-
1 hour ago, Plk_Lesiak said:
Cheesy 80s j-pop is my vibe lately for some reason...
Mine too
-
I want to read Amatsutsumi, but in Japanese all-ages edition, so it seems that my only choice is PSV version.
If Sekai's edition was bilingual, I'd probably get it from GOG.
(Some of the sexual tags seen on vndb are quite a turn-off for me, so hentai version is out of the question - especially when that's coupled with "Long Sexual Scenes" tag
)
-
Yesterday I finished the prologue for Seven Days: Anata to Sugosu Nanokakan and so far I'm really enjoying it. The heroines are pretty likeable and it looks nice
The only thing I'm missing is voiced protagonist - after playing few VNs with this feature (9-Nine, Damekoi or - recently - Loopers) I really got to like it.
-
Plans are funny thing - they usually get changed
HoshiOri is rather lenghty, HatsuSaku also isn't exactly short. And next week I'm going on vacation, and I can only bring my 12 years old laptop, which cannot run Vita emu no matter how hard it tried. And then I received notification about Seven Days: Anata to Sugosu Nanokakan being on sale on Steam (it's 30% off)
So that's what I'm going to start reading today
-
Recently I downloaded update for the Vita3k (PSV emulator), and was pleasantly surprised at the progress it made - many VNs that I wanted to try out but weren't working are now completely playable.
Therefore I think that for my next VN I might go with either Hoshi Ori Yume Mirai or Hatsuyuki Sakura.
Sadly, AstralAir no Shiroki Towa boots up, but then freezes on the title screen, so that one has to wait
Or perhaps the time has come to tackle the White Album 2?
Too many options and too big of a backlog!
-
7 hours ago, Plk_Lesiak said:
that there's no point to non-anime VNs/no real audience for them.
Yeah, but that point would be moot, or even void, because things like 3D OELVNS clearly have audience
Although I guess the person making such argument probably wouldn't acknowledge their existence, or do not consider them "true" VNs -
You really liked them?
-
H-scenes in KEY games are so bad and out of place that they just ruin the experience. It's no wonder that KEY removed them even for subsequent PC releases (Memorial/Perfect Editions etc). But what can I know - to each their own porn I guess, even if it's the shittiest kind of porn squeezed into an otherwise great story in a desperate attempt to boost sales
-
Yesterday I finished Loopers.
What can I say - it's pretty typical KEY story in a short format, with all pros and cons that come with it.
I loved it - but I'm easily moved, and I like KEY formula, so the fact that this VN adheres to it didn't bother me at all
I think the fairy tale prologue sets the mood perfectly, and it tells what this story actually is, allowing to adjust expectations.
Because I have to admit, seeing the premise and R07 as main writer, it's easy to expect more, and then get disappointed - which can be seen in some reviews.
I think it's a similar case like with ATRI and PARQUET - the setting isn't the main point, it's just a stage to tell a story. And while surely R07 added his own flavor to it, especially in the early chapters, this is still unmistakably KEY story. Needless to say, it fulfilled its "nakige" mission, making my eyes teary many times.
I think the closest to this from the "big" KEY VNs would be Little Busters - there are some clearly visible parallels. But at the same time it isn't just "LB! abridged"
Spoiler
"Maybe this world is someone's dream?"
I think this was first VN I read that in addition to voiced MC featured third person narration. That was nice, made it more "novel-like" I guess
Art is nice, music and voices too, although the voices have too much of dynamic range - some shouted lines are waaaay to loud.
To sum it up - YMMV, but for me it was 8/10.
If you're not tired of the KEY formula yet, want another dose, but don't have time for behemots such as Clannad or Summer Pockets - go for it
There's English translation available in Switch version, and unofficial patch that ports this translation to the PC version. There's also multi-language Steam version in the works, but no release date yet
I played Japanese PC version, so I cannot say much about TL quality. Reportedly there are some errors, but it's not bad.
-
Somewhere in April I started Akane Iro ni Somaru Saka, but just after the prologue I got distracted/interrupted by moving to a new flat, and haven't been able to resume it yet.
Meanwhile, the "Loopers Book Club" formed on wanikani forums, so I jumped on and started reading Loopers today. I just completed the prologue, and so far I'm liking what I'm seeing
I'm playing JP version from DLSite, but there's bi-lingual Switch version released, and Steam port in works, so it's possible to play this VN in English too.
-
9 hours ago, Plk_Lesiak said:
Looks like Junko Yagami is one hell of a live performer. :3
Very nice performance indeed, and looks ~95% live
I wonder if that show got released on some medium (VHS?), or if it was just on TV?
-
2 hours ago, Hiashi said:
The VN's very reminiscent of Kanon, and I would say the story is better. The individual routes are more interconnected too. For an old nakige, it's a good read so long as you're okay with SoL.
That's nice to hear
. And when I watched the credits before OP, I realized that it's been published by Visual Arts (KEY's parent brand), so similarities with Kanon shouldn't be that surprising -
-
Two days ago I finished Aonatsu Line
It's very nice "coming of age" story, with great friendship vibe between characters. I especially loved common route for that. All characters are present and important in every route, which is another big plus.
Yui's and Kotone's routes are "feel-good" routes, featuring some sweet romance, and light drama. One could say, that's "moege standard", but it was executed very well - at least it worked for me, giving me wonderful warm, fuzzy feeling
Kind of side-routes, but very nice.
Miki's route is more serious and longer, her being the main heroine. Apart from (obviously) romance between Tatsumi and Miki, it's also focused on the relationship between Tatsumi, Miki and Chihiro. And that leads to the next highlight of this VN - very good MC's male friend character. Chihiro is actually pretty serious and important character, not another Sunohara-wannabe comic relief.
Now for the (minor) downsides. This VN lacks after-route epilogues. While no deal-breaker, I always kind of wait for them...
Completing all three routes unlocks short bonus story after credits, and while walkthroughs sometimes call it "True End" it isn't one - it's actually "bonus prologue", showing four short scenes from the first day of school from the POV of four main characters - Yui, Kotone, Chihiro and Miki. Nice little touch, but I'd prefer full-fledged epilogues still...Another thing I missed are sprites for side characters. There are only four sprites in the whole game - three heroines and Chihiro. Thankfuly all "NPCs" are voiced, but I'd like to see them as well.
And that's it - it took me 36 hours to read this in Japanese (without text hooking, because it didn't work on emulated version), so it isn't long VN.
To sum up - nice atmosphere, cute heroines, great friendship vibe, and some minor drawbacks - that makes it 8/10 for me
I guess that my initial impression of this having similar atmosphere to Konosora was because of the "coming of age story" + "friendship" combination.
I hope that one day Alka translations team manages to overcome technical issues and translate this nice VN, so more people can enjoy it. I actually think it deserves official release - maybe NekoNyan could pick it up?
- Plk_Lesiak and Seraphim
-
2
-
16 hours ago, Zalor said:
But in the 90s with both VNs and point and click games, this seems to flip where the interaction becomes a means to explore the fiction.
Yes, that's right. Starting in '90s, adventure games started to have more and more developed stories, and puzzles ceased to be the main point
16 hours ago, Zalor said:Kind of like looking at an evolutionary chart of a species, it's interesting to see how VNs and point and click adventures branch off from a similar point, yet in essence strive to do similar things but in different ways.
I think one of the reasons for going different ways might be influence of dating sims - which also gave birth to the concept of "routes". Western adventure games just kind of evolved on their own, and stayed linear most of the time, while VNs started as a hybrid between adventure and a dating sim.
-
On 5/16/2022 at 3:38 AM, Zalor said:
The difference between the two is quite obvious, with Point and Click focusing on storytelling through environment interaction, and VNs focusing on character interaction more than explicit environment interaction. But the desire to explore and get the reader participating in a story I think is shared between both.
I remember one western mid '90s adventure game that seems to sit at similar point that proto-VNs of this time, such as Sakura no Kisetsu. I'm talking about Eric The Unready (and apparently there were also other similar titles from this dev). It was pretty funny, and presentation is what would be called "ADV" in the VN world
Wiki seems to categorize it as "Interactive Fiction" and this game, just like the other adventure games you mentioned, still focuses more on environment interaction than the character interaction. Also, that list of commands is enormous - since it was there to provide alternative for the parser, which is also present, and allows for some crazy things, like...
-
9 hours ago, ChaosRaven said:
Is this also sold somewhere else?
It seems that it isn't. I guess JAST or Mangagamer don't have it since it's released directly by Frontwing, and not by one of localization companies. DLSite also doesn't have it.
Still I find it strange for Frontwing to limit themselves only to Steam, but what do I know...
BTW it looks like original physical release from 2015 was also split into all-ages version and adult patch - card with download code for the patch was sold only to customers who were 18 or older
(If I'm understanding the notes correctly)
-
Today I started Aonatsu Line - and made it to the OP movie, so I guess I completed the prologue ;)
So far I'm really liking what I'm seeing - mainly the nice friendship between the characters. Even though this game isn't about saving the school club on the verge of demise, I got similar warm, fuzzy feeling like when reading Konosora :)
I'm reading Switch version, and this presents additional challenge, since I have no H-code for this version so far. But OTOH this VN seems to be on the easier side language-wise, so this might be a good thing - I have to concentrate more on the text itself, and I'm not so easily tempted/distracted by mouseover dictionary. Now, since I have to look up unknown words manually, I use it as a last resort, and try to infer as much as possible from context. Interesting experience :)
It seems, that Alka Translation group wanted to translate this VN, but sadly the project is stalled for now, since they ran into engine problems :(
What are you playing?
in Visual Novel Talk
Posted · Edited by adamstan
Seeing how it surprised you, I guees you played each route using the save from first branching point rather than starting everytime from scratch?
That makes the crucial difference, since that way you miss Umi's gradual decay at each playthrough - including her behaviour in common route. If you started from the "New Game" every time, you'd see her slowly loosing it, with her state in Alka being just the final stage.
FWIW I also played vanilla version (without RB), but I rated it at 8.5
*****************************************************************************************
And as for my reading - today I finished Sora's route in Hoshi Ori Yume Mirai
I don't know how it compares to other routes yet, but on its own it was simply amazing and heartwarming - I loved every bit of it