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adamstan

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  1. Thanks
    adamstan reacted to Silvz in What are you playing?   
    Not exactly, but I found a site that suggests Shiroha > Ao (for they complement each other this way) > Kamome > Tsumugi
  2. Like
    adamstan reacted to Silvz in What are you playing?   
    Yes, do it! You won't regret it!
  3. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from Seraphim in What are you playing?   
    So, today I finished Tenohira o, Tayou ni.
    I liked it, but there were also some drawbacks. My main gripe is about route structure. But first, let's do small introduction. (I'll try to avoid any major spoilers, most of the things I write below are from the very beginning of common route).
    The game is divided into two parts. Main (first) part, called "Tenohira o", consists of three routes. The protagonist of this part, Akio, is living pretty dull and lonely life. He's initial state reminded me a bit about Kouhei from YMK. For some unknown reasons, he got completely estranged from his two childhood friends, Minoru and Mika. His memory is pretty hazy, like somebody painted it over with a gray paint. Also, he keeps seeing a strange dream about huge hibiscus tree on a nearby hill. Then, one day, on the way to school he meets strange girl. Towa, who turns out to be new transfer student in Akio's class, claims that she knows him from the past (as well as Minoru and Mika), and that she really missed them. However Akio, Minoru and Mika cannot remember her at all. To make matters worse, class ojousama, Hasumi, seems to hold some grudge against Akio, and keeps harrasing/bullying him and any one he's connected to - especially Towa. Really, there are moments when she's almost as bad as Antoinette.
    So, the first part is pretty good story about friendship. Thanks to Towa's influence, Akio, Minoru and Mika slowly regain their memories and their friendship.
    There's also town's legend of mind-reading entity called Satori looming in the background.
    And right there we have first problem with route structure. Towa is clearly main heroine, and whole story is centered around her. Also, on first playthrough we are locked onto her route, but only onto the "normal ending". Or rather, the story gets just abruptly cut. Then we have to complete Mika's and Minoru's routes. Both girls are cute, and it is nice to observe their relationship with Akio. Also, each route provides additional background bits for the main story. However, they clearly feel as side routes - they are just brief branches from main story, but ultimately lead to the same cliffhanger ending.
    After that, true route gets unlocked. But we have to replay Towa's route, which is exactly the same as during first playthrough, so it can be just skipped right to the end, and then the rest of the story unfolds. That true route was really great, and I loved it. There were twists, reveals, and lots of intense and emotional moments. But I still think the route system itself is pretty flawed.
    After completing Towa's true route, second part, called "Taiyou ni" gets unlocked. The protagonist of this part is Jun'ya, Akio's one year older childhood friend, who makes brief appearance in main story.
    His arc features two heroines, Sarasa and Rin. It provides different point of view and additional background for the main story.
    Jun'ya and Sarasa also keep seeing dreams about the tree on a hill, and Sarasa decides to investigate legends and traditions concerning it (and town's shrine) as their summer assignment. Jun'ya, their classmate Koujiro and Rin decide to join her. Their investigation also leads them towards the legend of Satori.
    Rin's route is rather brief, and I feel like it was there mostly to provide some background, but at the same time I think it relied too much on the assumed reader's knowledge of the main story - I felt like some jumps were too broad, and wished for more direct explanations. Still, it had very good parts.
    Sarasa's route can be considered "second side" of the true route, and it is good to play it as the final one.
    Now, onto the other aspects. I really liked the art - it has some very nice looking backgrounds (apart from two or three odd ones), and I loved character design. Music was also good.
    I played +18 version, and I actually liked h-scenes, especially in the Towa's route. There's only one scene per heroine. What I liked the most about the scenes (especially in the Akio's arc) was that they were brief and, how to say it, discreet, not too explicit. They were focused mostly on feelings, and spared most of the "mechanical" details Also, there were some pretty nice dialogues. However, scene in Mika's route had probably one of the worst introductions ever
    It felt rather disappointing, when compared with his attitude in other routes - I facepalmed pretty hard after seeing that line - but somehow they managed to save it, treating it half-way comedically
    Scenes in Jun'ya's arc were more "standard eroge" fare (probably due to different writer) but still not bad.
    Another complaint is the lack of the longer epilogues. But maybe they are in the fandisc - I have to check it out. It definitely has some after-stories, and prologue which retells the legend of Satori.
    So, to sum it up... The main story was great. Like with Amber Quartz, I expected "just" a charage with osananajimi heroines, but got good nakige about friendship instead, and loved it. For that alone I'd rate it at 8. However I have to detract some points for the flawed route structure. So the final score is 7.5/10.
    Now I'll either check out the fandisc, or try something translated for a breather. Summer Pockets maybe?
  4. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from Plk_Lesiak in Recent (Japanese) Things You Have Purchased   
    It feels weird to write third post in a row... well, whatever Today I got another JVN - this time it's PSP version of Sorairo

    I got interested in this title since I loved Amber Quartz, and Sorairo shares some staff with it (writers and artists).
  5. Like
    adamstan reacted to MaggieROBOT in Worst VN of The Decade?   
    Yeah, I believe expectation plays a big role in what we perceive as "worst". We do see those as more trash than we should because disappointment and frustration doesn't really have a "so bad it's good" funny meme value to poke fun at in the future.
    I did play games that are sitting at 57 in Metacritic thrice from scratch while dropping titles at score 93 halfway so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  expectation is one bitch that takes time to adjust.
     
    p.s. I could contribute to the discussion but no one needs to know that one bad nukige I played
  6. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from alien51 in How to make a baby in Visual Novel ?   
    That one clue gives it right away
  7. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from alien51 in How to make a baby in Visual Novel ?   
    is one of the exceptions. (I wonder, is it a spoiler in itself?) I really liked how they executed it.
     
  8. Sad
    adamstan reacted to ChaosRaven in Summer Pockets is here!   
    I'm not far into the VN yet, but I can't help wondering, do the heroines also interact with each other sometime? The VN feels a bit... lonely so far, because all the characters seem to be isolated from each other. The heroines are charming, but I honestly miss some simple friendship vibes here.
  9. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from ittaku in Birthday thread   
    Happy birthday, @ittaku! Ruu \(^-^)/
  10. Sad
    adamstan got a reaction from Silvz in Summer Pockets is here!   
    That's a pity - I always liked it when characters were important also outside their routes.
  11. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from Silvz in Summer Pockets is here!   
    They say that there is - that despite not having Maeda's writing it's still "classic" KEY.
    I think I'm going to read it next, after I finish Tenohira o, Tayou ni - unless I get distracted by something else, that is
  12. Like
    adamstan reacted to tahu157 in Worst VN of The Decade?   
    Is the scope limited to VNs that were more or less serious efforts or I can choose any one of those Patreon-funded, pre-rendered 3D CG incest fantasy shovelware titles at random?
  13. Like
    adamstan reacted to Seraphim in What are you playing?   
    After devoting my time to a bunch of lenghty VNs lately, I opted to change things up by reading some shorter ones. Here's some input on them, in order of completion:
    Ambre - a heartbreaking kinetic novel
    The fact that they're using "heartbreaking" as a selling point in the title made me a bit skeptical, and rightfully so, it turned out.
    The main plot twist was too obvious, and despite the game only being somewhere between 60-90 minutes long, it still managed to feel repetitive, because you're forced to view the same events all over again after said plot twist has been unveiled.
    Furthermore, while rather well-written, the narration feels needlessly convoluted. I like variation as much as the next guy, but they kinda went overboard here. At times, it felt like the writer was just randomly piecing together fancy words in an attempt to make it sound like there was some deeper meaning there, when, in truth, there wasn't.
    The Language of Love
    One of the most wholesome and adorable slice of life VNs I've read to date.
    I really liked the character design. The eyes, in particular, look great; especially when compared to the lifeless eyes in Baldr Sky, which I finished a few weeks ago.
    I also have to say that it was nice to not be stuck in high school for once, and relationships with single mothers aren't exactly commonplace either, at least when we're talking non-fetish titles. Furthermore, it was oddly refreshing to see a character who makes average-tasting food. (It's usually one of two extremes; either really tasty or bad to the point of basically turning into coal.)
    I've had several of ebi-hime's VNs in my wishlist for a while now, and I intend to look into some of those other ones in the near future. She actually released a new one, The End of an Actress, just a week ago and it seems interesting. (Sidenote: The dude in the screenshots reminds me of Jacopo in Fata Morgana.)
    missed messages.
    This one caught my eye due to the "Overwhelmingly Positive" reviews on Steam. I tend to be skeptical whenever I see that for a title I've never heard of before, and I was even more so this time around due to the fact that there's a mention of "memes" in the game description. However, just as was the case with Acting Lessons a couple of months ago, this turned out to be a worthwhile experience.
    It's really short - just 30-or-so minutes to complete all four endings - but it somehow still managed to make me develop an emotional bond with the characters. The artstyle is cool and the psychedelic music fits the ambience of the game rather well.
    I wouldn't have minded paying for this title, so the fact that it's completely free is all the more reason to give it a chance.
    Carpe Diem
    This received a major visual overhaul at the end of last year, and judging by the old screenshots on VNDb, it now looks a lot better.
    In any case, this is probably the shortest VN I've ever read, clocking in at around 10 minutes playtime. While "missed messages" (referring to the VN above) managed to, despite a lack of information, make me care for the characters to a decent extent in a remarkably short time, this VN ultimately failed to do so. The twist at the end felt interesting enough to warrant giving the direct sequel, Carpe Diem: Reboot, a go, though. So, without further ado...
    Carpe Diem: Reboot
    Leaps and bounds above the original, but that doesn't really say much, considering the lack of substance in that one. To make things a bit clearer, let's just say that this wasn't anything special either.
    The scenes leading up to the twist in the original are replayed at the start of Reboot, so right off the bat, the original becomes kinda redundant.
    The art (mainly the character art) is better this time around, and there's even English voice acting; something I've only seen in a couple of VNs before. Problem is, there's only English voice acting, so if you find it awkward, like I did, you'll have to turn off voices completely.
    The slice of life scenes were rather nice, but all that stuff about
    and whatnot that they started spewing later on felt out of place and unnecessary. I don't really see the point of adding that when the story could easily have stood well enough on its own with the prerequisites it started out with, but I guess it's all just meant as a setup for the true ending, which was equal parts depressing and disappointing. The two choices that determine whether you get the good ending or the true one shouldn't influence the story progression in the way that they do. Despite the choices being more or less entirely irrelevant, the contrast was like night and day, and the protagonist started acting really out of character for seemingly no reason whatsoever. The ending is a prime example of forced drama and solidified my opinion of Jung as one of the worst protagonists ever.
    Being a DIK: Season 1
    Honestly, I kinda regret playing this. Not because it's not good, because it most certainly is, but because it's unfinished.
    I was under the impression that the seasons would have individual conclusions as parts of a greater, overarching story keeping them all together, but that turned out to not be the case. No matter which choices you make over the course of the game, you'll inevitably just end up with a bunch of questions that won't be answered for a long time, possibly several years (considering the fact that DrPinkCake has said that he plans to make somewhere between 10-20 episodes in total, which would equal 3-5 seasons).
    The game itself is great, just as expected, with the same type of humor as in Acting Lessons. The story isn't quite as dark as Acting Lessons, but there's still drama and I expect it will escalate rapidly in the upcoming seasons.
    The characters aren't as relatable for me as the ones in Acting Lessons, due to the college life theme and age difference, but the developer does a good job at making you care about them nonetheless.
    One of my main concerns is that there are so many choices and branching paths in this first season alone that I honestly have no idea how DrPinkCake is going to be able to piece everything together without cutting a few corners in the end. Hopefully, he won't do something among the lines of what the Walking Dead game series did.
    Depraved Awakening
    While Acting Lessons and Being a DIK are storydriven games with sex scenes mixed into the plot to spice things up, Depraved Awakening feels more like a porn game with some plot added for good measure to lead the player into the next sex scene. Sure, the noir approach is a bit interesting, but it didn't manage to keep me interested enough to actually care about the story. The same goes for most of the characters, who feel pretty hollow; the protagonist included.
    Some of the stuff happening was really stupid, like
    Moments like that make it hard to take the story seriously and it really cements this title as a porn game through and through.
    Kill or Love
    Another free VN. I don't have much to say about this one other than that it wasn't anything to write home about. It did, weirdly enough, still somehow manage to keep me entertained for the two-or-so hours it lasted, which I assume might be because I haven't read that many VNs with yanderes in them, so it felt a bit fresh despite some awkward story developments and blatantly obvious plot twists.

    I originally planned to give Totono a go by now, but what with the last minute delay until May, I'll have to improvise a bit and take on another project. We'll see where I end up.
  14. Sad
    adamstan got a reaction from fujoneko in What are you playing?   
    Ah, Planetarian... sometimes even thinking for a moment about poor little Yumemi still makes me a bit teary-eyed.
     
    For a few last days I'm getting unusually sleepy in the afternoons, so I definitely cannot read Japanese in that state - thus my reading has been stalled for a moment.
  15. Like
    adamstan reacted to Plk_Lesiak in What are you listening to right now?   
    Indeed, although people say it's based on her personal trauma of working as a waitress and getting an intestinal disease out of stress. So it's symbolic. Some of it at least. Not sure about the closeup at the very beginning, but the rest...
  16. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from Plk_Lesiak in What are you listening to right now?   
    It indeed is But the video is really bizarre - as were many of 80's MVs actually
  17. Like
    adamstan reacted to Plk_Lesiak in What are you listening to right now?   
    Oh hey, is it just me, or is this song absolutely brilliant? 
     
  18. Like
    adamstan reacted to Plk_Lesiak in What are you playing?   
    Yup, but for what it is, I think it was only a little bit too short – could've used slightly more development around the moment when the romantic parts kicked in. It makes sense the author rushed it for an event, as it even feels similar to the higher-end NaNoRenO or Yuri Game Jam VNs, but it probably doesn't deserve half of the bashing the dev himself gives it in the author's notes. 7/10.
    I've also read through Planetarian and well, it definitely lived up to the hype when it goes to the emotional impact. I have a hard time remembering when a VN genuinely made me cry, but I was completely defenceless against this ending. It's also all-around a great example of how awesome short stories in VN form can be – whether literary adaptations or original ones, I think these are the ones where visuals and good music offer the greatest added value. You never get that stale/repetitive feel that @solidbatman likes to talk about, and which is inevitable when you deal with tons of dialogue and similar events repeating over and over again, but all elements are synergizing with each other all the way through.
    Anyway, quite a compelling little game. 8,5 tears out of 10. I think I'll go through Harmonia now, I know it's considered to be a lesser Key game, but it's also pretty short and kinetic, and I feel like playing another one of those. :3
  19. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from Silvz in Summer Pockets is here!   
    FanTL patch itself has been cancelled, but recently the group released patch for official version that adds subtitles to OP and ED videos.
  20. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from Plk_Lesiak in What are you listening to right now?   
    Nice (even if simple) playing, however I'm not big fan of that singing style But overally nice song.
  21. Like
    adamstan reacted to Plk_Lesiak in What are you listening to right now?   
  22. Like
    adamstan got a reaction from BookwormOtaku in What are you playing?   
    FWIW, recently Hoshi Ori Yume Mirai english patch got an update.
  23. Like
    adamstan reacted to Larxe1 in What are you playing?   
    Kono Aozora ni Yakusoku o. Finished Saeri's route and dropped Rinna's route. 
    Rinna's route was funny and romantic and that's it. It's probably the best route if you like Rina and this kind of stories but I GET TIRED INCREDIBLY FAST OF THOSE KIND OF STORIES. I didn't feel like her character developed at all and most of her development comes from the common route.
    Saeri's route, on the other hand, was unexpectedly great. She was mostly in the background as some sort of comedic character but it's turned around in her route. She has to stand up for herself and steel herself if she wants to save everyone including her relationship with Wataru. She steeled herself and defended Wataru in an amazing way. She defended him smartly and loyally. The 12 Angry teacher's scene based from the 12 Angry men, I shit you not there was a scene like that and that title was put in the beginning like some sort of movie credits. It's the best scene in the whole VN and probably gonna be one of my unforgettable scenes. It was written well, the title was fitted incredibly well and also the names of the characters participating where changed into the 1st teacher, 2nd teacher and so on. What makes me think it's written well is that even if it is a scene that would change Wataru's life, the teachers are just human. Some just don't care or ignorant or treat it casually. The whole scene had me on the edge as it really felt like some kind of mini courtroom. Also yeah I really was looking forward to what the hell Naoko (The cunning and smart president) was planning and she did not disappoint. Seriously, play this game just for Saeri, she's unexpectedly quite cute in her route.
    Probably going to continue Umi's route. Played her for a while and stopped since while it was heavy it wasn't exactly quite gripping. And yes, it feels like a totally different visual novel and it's natural considering their past and Umi's character. 
    So far
    Common 9/10
    Rinna Dropped
    Saeri 9/10
    Which reminds me I haven't shared my thoughts on the common route. The common route suffers from the game-y system it has. I prefer it when visual novels feel more like a novel than a game. Yes, I'm referring to the map selection that plagues some VN's even up today. It takes you out from the immersion. Aside from that the common route does not disappoint. It introduces the characters well and is funny. Also what I like about this game is that the characters feel like they have their own life. Some other visual novel heroines has their life centered around the protagonist (Well Umi's an exception and she has a reason for that)
  24. Like
    adamstan reacted to Plk_Lesiak in What are you listening to right now?   
  25. Like
    adamstan reacted to Ramaladni in Shame in liking H scenes/18+ Content in Visual Novels   
    I think it's normal for people not to discuss their fetishes or masturbation habits in public. I personally believe it should stay private.
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