adamstan

Hi to anyone interested I'm a solo-dev making a visual novel titled "The Lost Delinquents of Rollings High".
It's currently on its final 10 days of Kickstarter funding, if you're interested please go check out my Kickstarter & Twitter.
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Yesterday I finished second route in Hoshi Ori Yume Mirai. This time I went for Marika's route. It was extremely heartwarming and wholesome experience - especially in console version, which adds one of the most heart-melting scenes near the ending.
Based on the two routes I read so far (Sora and Marika) I can see why this game is a love-or-hate thing - but for me it definitely lands on the "love" side, since I don't mind pure SoL at all, and the (let's admit - heavily idealized) way it portrays love also scratches all the right itches It isn't the kind of VN I'd read one after another, but once in a while it's great. Just like with sweets I guess
After those two routes my gameplay clock reads 47 hours, and completion rate is at 30%, so this will be a looong journey.
Now I'm starting Natsuki's route. Then I'll go with Misa, and I save Rikka and Touko for the last, since apparently those two routes are quite different from the rest - at least that's what I can get from reviews I saw.
 

Arrived yesterday - another 3 physical console editions of JVNs - Hoshi Ori Yume Mirai, Strawberry Nauts and Hatsuyuki Sakura

(As for HoshiOri - I'm actually reading Vita edition, but for "owning a legit copy" purpose I bought PS4 one because it was cheaper )

Arrived yesterday - another 3 physical console editions of JVNs - Hoshi Ori Yume Mirai, Strawberry Nauts and Hatsuyuki Sakura

(As for HoshiOri - I'm actually reading Vita edition, but for "owning a legit copy" purpose I bought PS4 one because it was cheaper )

No, it was later,
I read that scene just a few minutes ago
 

I may sound really pathetic but playing Michiru's route really make me feel like life would be better if I could settle down and start a family. I seriously never felt like this before when completing any visual novels before.

Yeah, Sora's great! She's my favorite aside from Rikka. 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.

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
It seems to be near-perfect relaxing, feel-good moege - and nicely executed
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

There's not really any recommended order from what I can remember, so just go with whatever strikes your fancy. At some point in the future when I feel like rereading this VN in the form of Perfect Edition (only read the original so far), I'm probably saving Rikka for last, since she's the heroine I liked the most (and a lot of others seem to do as well).

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?

Beautiful story is quite a bold way to put it still. xDDD
But honestly, I think that even if something like MB is generally not your thing the first (neutral?) ending is possibly worth slogging through all the torture porn. It's one of the most imaginative conclusions I've seen in a VN – unique and thought-provoking enough to kind of set up the true ending for being a disappointment. You could stop reading at that point and do not miss much of value.
Also, the bad route is a just massive stream of porn and I don't think it even tried being anything else. A hard-pass for anyone that approaches MB for the story as it literally adds nothing narrative-wise and goes on forever. Although I chuckled at one or two scenes there because of how over-the-top they were. 😛 
If you ever change your mind, I have a legitimate copy of euphoria I'd be willing to share. Always curious to see what people that aren't into that content make out of its story, particularly Makiba's route as it's almost universally loathed and also my personal favourite for its extremely-uncomfortable Stockholm syndrome plotline.

Yep, that's me - I'm not touching MB, euphoria and similar stuff with a ten feet pole

Yep, that's me - I'm not touching MB, euphoria and similar stuff with a ten feet pole

Well, I have finally finished Maggot Baits!  Phew~!
I can't believe it took me almost two years to finish one novel... if it wasn't so graphic, I could have finished it sooner, but I always had to make sure my parents wouldn't see me playing it haha
I'll just start by complaining about the one thing I disliked: up until chapter 4 or even 5, there is barely any balance between the plot scenes and the h-scenes; I can count on my fingers the ones minimally relevant to the characters or the story itself; most dragged themselves for much longer than they should have, even if the reader was getting off to it. With the amount of h-scenes there is in the initial chapters, the readers certainly do not need 15 minutes worth of tentacles and torture for every 10 minutes of plot, do they? That's what it felt like for me, at least.
Anyways, the character design is, as always, beautiful! I love Hamashima's work~  I especially liked their glowing eyes, they really felt bewitching during the night...!
The OST was way better than what I expected, especially during the battle scenes, but the ending song was so lovely it made me relax as I listened to it~
The writing felt a bit dense at times, but that is to be expected, due to its setting.
I liked that there weren't many choices, as I could totally focus without worrying about my previous choices, since it felt like characters could drop dead at any moment... well, some characters. The plot itself never got tiring, always adding more mysteries to the main thing - after the endless h-scenes, the plot scenes start to get longer and you get by the other h-scenes that come next quicker, so it only gets better from there!
(about the endings)
This was such a fun VN to read! I've cried... I've laughed... and I sure recommend this to anyone who is able to stomach the torture. No, wait...! You don't have to, actually! If you really want to read it, they have an on/off switch and you'll only be seeing vomit when there is any, but not blood or gore! 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.
I know this game has a bit of a bad fame, mostly coming from people who haven't read it in its entirety (or anything at all), but trust me, it's a very beautiful story! Overall, I'd give it a full 8/10!
oh and best girl is Serika, of course ✰

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
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
And it was oddly satisfying, when
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.

Mine too
 

Cheesy 80s j-pop is my vibe lately for some reason...

I've been asked to post my reviews here, so I thought I'd start with what I've been working on for about 70 hours - Digimon Survive!

For those unaware, this Digimon Survive is a dark/horror take on Digimon, with death, mental breakdowns, sensitive topics and more. It's not one for the kids. I'd say it's about 80%+ visual novel/point-and-click, with <20% SRPG combat and Digimon recruitment.
Click Here for the Detailed Review of Digimon Survive

Hello,

In the hope that ppl get revived from being greeted for their birthdays I'm going to greet every single person, that have a birthday here - every single day. I think this should maybe give them a ping to realize that this place might be reviving again. :copium:_

Happy Birthday to "adamstan, EliteShadowMan, hitoribocchi, jen_tsukase, Leimeir, Megawebdesign, Necrofantasia, nomac, Targenor, WIlliam Nye (bill Nye), writingmysoul and Zeev!

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 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"
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.

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!

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

Perhaps it was available on vnds in the past? I'm not sure if vndb still shows vnds ports.
Air was actually the first vn with h-scenes that I played. It was definitely a very weird experience. Especially with how out of place most of them were.
Ps. Also, I remember reading somewhere that originally Air was supposed to be an all-ages vn, and the h-scenes were added at the very last moment.

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