adamstan

Yep, that was old patch. I read Kotori's route with it (and ejoyed it), and then dropped it, because Ageha's route was almost unreadable due to bad translation. Then I picked up retranslation patch when it came out and replayed the game - and indeed it was great. New patch is here: https://www.reddit.com/r/IMHHW/comments/8ac8ba/konosoraimhhw_retranslation_patch/

Did you use latest retranslation patch? It sounds like you played old "restoration patch" that restores h-scenes, but retains original awful translation.

That Byakko thing looks nice - another Konosora perhaps? With rockets instead of gliders? Also, I'm glad that legal problems with SukiSuki were resolved.

Thanks, guys

From the screenshots, it looks even worse.

If you're OK with older titles, check out Yukizakura (available from JAST) and To Heart 2. Guessing from your list, Koichoco should work too. Also, if you liked IMHHW, try Miagete (A Sky Full Of Stars).

Well, since it is really short, I just read Planetarian You were right @Flutterz, it is good. But so sad again, even more so than AIR ending... It reminded me of Ame's ending from Dal Segno. Both of these robot/AI heroines became almost human by the end of the story. And the track "Perfectly Human" that played during final scenes was so haunting... It was somewhat similar to the song that played during Dream World sequences in Clannad. The protagonist had some nice character development. BTW - it seems that the planetarium in Miagete (and especially its projector) was inspired by this story. To sum it up - great story, packed with feels, definitely recommended - 8.5/10

I'd say that PE doesn't have that problem - although it is slice of life, there are lots of things happening, heroines are great, and other characters don't completely disappear after entering the route - but of course their role is smaller. I liked PE very much, but after reading some opinions here and there I completely lost interest in MML.

Maybe the difference is that now they are disabled by default and you have to manually switch them back on, while previously they were enabled? That way new users arent hit by "offensive" content.

I already have "One", so probably I'll go with it. As for Rewrite - I'll wait for official localization, that apparently is in work.

Yesterday (or rather today around 2AM) I finished AIR Wow, that was a ride... First is "Dream" arc - something like "School" in Clannad. I played in the order suggested by @Flutterz's walkthrough - Misuzu, Kano and then Minagi. There are some other walkthroughs that suggest reversed order (meaning leaving Misuzu for the last playthrough). Actually both approaches make sense. Since Kano's and Minagi's stories can be considered side-stories, and Misuzu is main character, playing her route last makes sense story-wise. OTOH, reading it first gives game a structure somewhat similar to LittleBusters While Misuzu is main character of whole VN, and I love her, the best route of Dream arc is Minagi's. Minagi is lovely, first impression somewhat similar to Kotomi from Clannad. Michiru was annoying at first, but as I got deeper into the story, I grew fond of her as well. And the ending of this route hits hard with feels... This route also has interesting quirk, because Kano's route is significantly weaker, but still enjoyable, and she was very likeable character for me as well. Misuzu is great, but her route serves mostly as introduction for later arcs. After completing three heroine's routes, there's "Summer" arc. It has no choices, and gives backstory for "Girl in the sky" and her connection to Yukito. It was good, packed both with comedy and feels. Also, it features another VA I really like (first being Aya Hisakawa as Haruko) - Kikuko Inoue as Uraha. Then comes "AIR" arc - something like "Refrain" or "After Story". Main heroines of this part are Misuzu and Haruko. It was great, but it hits right into the feels many times, as its very bittersweet. At the end, I cried my eyes out There are some glimpses of hope but overally, from 4 KEY VNs I read (Kanon, AIR, Clannad and LB!) this is definitely the saddest one, without clear happy ending provided by KeyMagicTM (like Clannad After Story's final run or LB's "it's not enough!"). I'm completely used to Key's art style, so no complaints here, and backgrounds are actually really good. Music was good too. I tried both English patches (WinterConfetti's and GaoGao's), and finally switched to the former (with All-Ages addon from Takafumi). Both have their share of problems, but they aren't game breaking, so just pick your poison Great emotional ride, and it's for me right up there with Clannad and LB. 9/10

I didn't play Hoshimemo, so I don't know how they compare, however as for imouto routes in general (from the VNs I've read), there is one in WagaHigh and SakuSaku.

Hmm... I was almost sure that Fureraba didn't have honorifics - or they were at least partially removed. Will have to replay to check... I remember "senpai" being used here and there, but others not so much...

You got me interested in that Root Double. However I'll wait for next Steam sale Today I started reading AIR. The very beginning was somewhat slow and tiring (but then, it conveyed MCs feelings and situation perfectly that way, so I guess it's good). As soon as we meet Misuzu, it kicks into action. And then there's one of my favorite VAs - Aya Hisakawa - as Misuzu's mom. Looks promising. BTW the heatwave we're currently experiencing seems perfect setting for reading this VN

Well, I recently finished Kanon, so may as well read AIR next.

I'm on the fence regarding the Hoshimemo. On one hand - it has rather good score on VNDB, with 8s prevailing. OTOH there are some really critical reviews on Fuwa and elsewhere, and in addition to this, fan-TL is allegedly awful, and official release, while somewhat better, is broken (with some untranslated lines). Or did Sekai finally fix it perhaps? Should I add it to my backlog, or don't bother?

Yeah, may as well. Downloading now and adding to the to-read list It's almost like looking for early/demo versions of your favorite song

I just finished Kanon. It was beautiful. Can be seen as sort of prototype for later Key games, but still holds up on its own. I think my favourite girls and routes were Nayuki and Ayu (first and last played). Probably because we spend most time with one or both of them, whichever route we're on. Nayuki's route felt natural for first one to read, it makes nice introduction into the world. Shiori, Makoto and Mai were good too. Makoto's story was really sad, but with many heartwarming moments near the end. Shiori's route was nice romance story. Mai's route was interesting, also with right amount of feels included. The setup for this route was very similar to Saya's route from LB!. The ending - in some ways - too. The nicest thing about this route was observing how Mai slowly opened up before Yuuichi as their relationship progressed. Then the ending hits somewhat unexpectedly, and whole epilogue sequence is vague enough that I wasn't sure if KeyMagic finally did it's work, or it was bittersweet one. Still, good route. Ayu is main heroine of the game and her route is closest to "True Route" we can get here, that's why I read it last. It was really good, classic Key - but it started it all. Some of the most heartwarming CGs from these route for me were Music and voices were good. Backgrounds were beautiful, and character's look didn't bother me at all - I guess I got used to this drawing style by going gradually LB! -> Clannad -> Kanon. I actually liked them. I played with All-ages patch. I briefly checked some of the h-scenes, and they feel so out of place and out of character, that it's best to go MoeNovel on them and pretend they never were there. Really, they feel like the result of applying Rule34 to the characters. Avoid at all cost. KEY stories don't work as eroge at all, period. Translation was okay. It was smooth read most of the time. However it's slightly inconsistent. On one hand, it replaces some more obscure cultural references with Western ones (with clickable pop-up TL notes explaining what whas there originally for those who are curious), and that's good. OTOH later in Ayu's route they left ”ごちそうさまでした。” untranslated (with TL-note), which makes no sense at all. But apart from that, it's okay. Overally - great experience, not as epic as Clannad or LB!, but for a first attempt - really good. 8.5/10

That blog post was brilliant, thank you for bringing it up. So, everything has been said years ago

Just make sure to use new retranslation patch for KonoSora (if you want english).

If that means no Japanese voices - please, noooo! (EVNs are different matter of course). Just like with anime - I strongly prefer subs over dubs. More on topic - if to get more popular VNs have to completely change from what they are now - I don't see the point, and I don't want it. いやだ！

For once I'll be quicker than @ittaku and recommend To Heart 2 If you liked Majikoi, then give Tsujidou-san No Jun'ai Road a try. Then, for fans of Konosora there's also Miagete (A Sky Full Of Stars) - if you're OK with all-ages version (I liked it). I also second recommendations of Clannad, SakuSaku and Fureraba.

Sasami and Saya are standalone stories, Kanata's route is connected with Haruka's. I enjoyed all three of them, totally worth reading. Dungeons in Saya's route might be little tiring, but Saya herself makes it worth suffering a bit As for the length - from what I remember they are normal.

I feel a little weird, writing third post in a row, but whatever... I'm reading Kanon now, and it's good Yesterday I finished first route - Nayuki's. I had one funny experience. At one time I was quite tired and sleepy, so decided to lie down a bit. Then, being half asleep I started to dream about Nayuki - seeing something like scenes from VN, with my thoughts in a textbox nonetheless. And - not realizing that I'm lying on a sofa, not playing a game, I repeatedly tried to click nonexistent mouse button to advance the story

That's not too bad. I already have some backlog, and new titles are coming out, so definitely can wait that much.