Clephas

My top ten VN soundtracks Evolimit Komorebi no Nostalgica Hapymaher Silverio Series Akeiro Kaikitan Ikusa Megami Zero Draculius Kitto, Todoku Sumiwataru Asairo Yori Mo Yami to Hikari no Sanctuary Devils Devel Concept

Perfect Blue was the anime that made me not want have anything to do with the entertainment industry. I hated it and hate it to this day. Outlaw Star doesn't really need any intro for people who began watching anime near the turn of the century, since it was one of a small minority of anime that made it onto cable television.

Vampire Princess Miyu- I liked this series when I was younger, but to be honest, it hasn't aged well. It was part of a sub-genre of horror anime that involved mysterious young girls in ambiguous moral situations. This included Miyu, Jigoku Shoujo, and a number of others. Berserk- Do I really need to say anything about the original? Those who Hunt Elves II- Identical meh opinion to the first season.

Utena is one of those anime that was immensely popular despite being absolutely awful and making no sense. Such anime became common near the turn of the century, and they have left a legacy of indelible horror and illogic in the minds of formerly rational human beings exposed to them. Hyper Police- I was fond of this anime, if only because the protag was a catgirl and her partner was a kitsune. The image of a world where gods, youkai, and demons were both coexisting with and fighting humans was pretty fascinating at the time. Fushigi Yuugi 2- Honestly, this season turned me off of the series, though I liked the first one (despite its horrors). Haunted Junction was one of those random comedy fantasy anime that made waves before FLCL ruined everything. It is fairly amusing, though the humor hasn't aged that well. Slayers Try- This was the last good season of the Slayers. Or rather, it was the last complete one, lol. It has some decent action scenes, the series' usual combination of slapstick humor and drama, and a few new characters on a new continent. Clamp Gakuen was one of many weird anime Clamp made over the years. It wasn't one of their better moments, but it wasn't awful either.

Twitter and Facebook and all large social media sites are evil. Down with big social media!!!

I actually have hopes for Akuma to Yoru to Isekai to, despite the maker. Primarily this is because the sample cgs don't show any of the company's typical sexual violence and the writer isn't one of their regulars. This might be an attempt to forge a new niche for the company, which would be great for me if it turns out to be a chuunige, lol. I'm waiting for a sale to get ahold of it, as I'm not really up to paying eighty-something dollars for a game from a company whose history I don't trust at the moment.

Those who Hunt Elves is a trash ecchi fantasy series that is fairly awful. Nadesico is a pretty interesting science fiction with a ship's crew going up against alien invaders in a last ditch attempt to save Earth (fairly typical of pre-2000 sci-fi space stories) This time the Legend of Crystania isn't as hurried, but it still stops short of completing the story and satisfying the watcher.

Maze- I watched this one repeatedly when I was younger. The main reason was that it is ecchi+chuunibyou+comedy+fantasy and at the time, I'd watch anything fantasy. I still can enjoy it, but it has definitely lost some of its attraction over the decades. X- Decent apocalyptic fantasy movie. Saw it in the local theaters when it came out (a downtown theater that occasionally had anime movies). Stylistically it is excellent, but the decision to make it as a movie rather than a series made it move too fast for its own good. Slayers Return- A weak movie that fails to fill in the blanks about Lina's meeting with her 'rival' who only appears in later seasons.

Escaflowne- Escaflowne is a classic fantasy and one of the earliest isekai. Typical of early isekai, the protagonist is obsessed with returning home and virtually helpless despite having a mystic ability. The real attraction of this is the nominal love interest, a superhuman prince from a backwater kingdom called Van. Slayers Next- Arguably the best of the many seasons of Slayers with the most impactful final arc. Like all of the Slayers' series, it has a lot of slapstick humor, puns, and silliness alongside a surprisingly good story. Kodomo no Omocha- A good comedy about a child star's daily life. I remember laughing a lot and crying a little, though I never went back once I watched it all. Tenchi Muyou in Love- Easily the single worst Tenchi-related movie/series/episode. Not really relatable, as it is virtually impossible to figure out where it fits in the labyrinthine series.

For those who are interested, the best games by that company are: Baldr Skydive Baldr Sky Zero (alternate world setting, which makes sense if you completed the original, battle system was more clunky than Skydive due to a transition to 2.5D) Baldr Force (has aged surprisingly well, but the visuals, while pretty, are very much yesteryear. Occurs significantly before the development of biological AIs that led to Baldr Sky) Baldr Heart (based a few centuries after Baldr Skydive, when Ark's digital mind transfer tech is in common use)

Baldr Bringer. Baldr Bringer's story is virtually nonexistent, and the combat is awful and slow-paced (the attraction of the Baldr series battle systems' was how fast-paced it was). Senkou no Clarias (the last gameplay game by Giga's Team Baldrhead) was interesting... until it wasn't. The combat system was clunky and poorly designed, though not as poorly as Baldr Bringer's.

SofthouseChara was innovative, but they hadn't produced anything that remained in memory after you played it for years. Heck, nothing at all since before Covid, which probably means they were already in financial trouble before Covid hit.

I played the Baldr series up to the point where they for some reason decided to make the last game a piece of crap (both battle system and story). I still don't get why they destroyed the traditions of the series to create a mindless game obviously designed for mobile phones rather than pc or consoles. Giga has been showing signs of collapse for a while now. The over-production of the 'kiss' series, which was never that popular even amongst romance VN lovers, was another sign of this. In addition, Giga's development costs were always excessive for the genre, which probably made it worse due to the borderline nature of sales of VNs. Harvest Overray was decent, but after that I came to the conclusion that Giga was incapable of producing anything truly superlative outside of the Baldr series. This was confirmed by my first attempt to play a game from the 'kiss' series, which was a total kusoge.

It's on my wishlist, but it isn't a priority. Tbh, I'm considering replaying the entire series from the beginning, so it just adds more time to my Utawarerumono binge.

It should be noted that 08th MS Team is easily the best Gundam up until this point, with it competing very well with the ones that came out later. That was because the makers chose to use an adult protagonist (something that doesn't happen in the other ones), and the actual mobile suit combat was semi-realistic, making it feel like real battles rather than one-sided slaughters with mechs doing unbelievable stuff.

[Hey, your Mom is an evil woman (toxic woman)!] [I... I can't argue with that.] (Move... Move! Move! Move, please! If I don't move now...!!) He tries to move his legs to get away from the three approaching him. However, he can't move. His body won't move an inch. It is as if he's being tied down by an invisible something. (What is this!? What is this!? This is... what is it...? It's as if I'm being enveloped in something...) At that moment, something was reflected in Ibuki's eyes. It was a gigantic translucent tail. It was a gigantic, soft tail with gleaming fur that wrapped around his body. It was extending from in front of him--- to be straight, it was coming from behind the blond girl to wrap around him. "Ah" He was dumbfounded. From behind the girl two more gigantic tails appeared and swept away the other two that were approaching him. Incidentally, the only things harmed by the gigantic tails were the guy and elderly gentleman, and there was no damage to the nearby structures. It appears that she can choose what the translucent tails will pass through. As he was indulging in that bit of escapism... "Eh!?" The girl was right in front of him. She was giving him a sweet smile that threatened to melt his heart on the spot as she looked at him. Slowly, her mouth opened. (What... what is she planning to say? What does she want to ask?) Thump, thump, thump. His heart throbbed hard within his chest. (Ok, come on. Come at me! My vocation is a great youka--) No matter what she says, he will be fine. He will be able to respond calmly and somehow make his way out of this situation. Or so Ibuki thought... "Nice to meet you Ibuki, I'm your mother. I've loved you in every way for a thousand years." His confidence was shattered in an instant. What was expressed was emotions so sweet as to induce nausea. He knows he is not particularly perceptive, but he somehow knows... There was no lie to the words 'I love you' as they came out of her mouth. The problem was the type of love. There is no doubt in his mind that, though she called herself his mother, she was also expressing 'other types of love'. It was frightening, so frightening. It was terrifying beyond belief that her emotions were so obvious and intense that a single word was enough for him to understand. Devilish and monstrous. He couldn't help but understand the girl in front of him was fundamentally different from humankind. "And so, yes... I think I'll state my appeal points." The girl (self-proclaimed mother) smiled like a child while clapping her hands. "... you like this, don't you? This type of girl." In an instant, the childish, innocent smile vanished as if it had never existed and a demonic smile that looked like it would split her cheeks wide appeared. "I know" "I know" "I know" "I know" "I know" "I know" "I know" That single word echoed in his mind over and over. "Even if I can't become omniscient, I know everything the man I love desires." Slim, white fingers caressed him under the chin. "People say a lot of things about me. Toxic woman, slut, woman who destroys nations... But... oh yes. I can say this even so. Until the moment the man I loves reaches his terrible end, no; even after that, I never let them feel regret that I stole their hearts. After all, there is no other woman as 'convenient' to a man as I am, past, present or future, no matter where you look." Haa her warm breath tickled at his ears. "This is what men seek in a woman: To be at their side like a wife, to connect like lovers, to be spoiled like a grandmother, accepted like a mother, embraced like an older sister, rely on them like a little sister, and adore him like a daughter." Even the Red Comet was a bit more humble... or so Ibuki wanted to say, but... (... She's probably telling the truth.) Looking into those eyes full of certainty, it is obvious. This vixen that calls herself his mother is... ah, he can't avert his eyes. She is most definitely the nine-tailed fox whose name went down in history as a beauty that ruins nations. He didn't have the words to deny the statements of a woman who knows men more than any other in existence. "How pathetic? How selfish? How... How adorable a desire that is..." Her expression was ecstatic, full of scorn and fondness, and a sweet fragrance wafted around him. She was too toxic. Even closing his eyes and sealing his nose, he became dizzy. Even so, he managed to stay upright and listen to his self-proclaimed mother's words. "The only person who can fulfill that desire is me. Precisely because I once toured three countries, indulging in all forms of hedonism and corruption, I can do so. There is no other woman who can love you like I can, you know? I'll love you with everything I am, so you need to love me back, Ibuki?" Smack, she kissed him on the cheek. Even as he was being pushed around by the sensation of his brain going numb, Ibuki couldn't help but think this. (This... what a... egotistical woman.) I'll devote myself to you entirely, so I would be happy if you came to like me too. If you took her words at face value, it would seem like she was saying something innocent and womanly. However, the sentiment there wasn't nearly that cute. (She's pushy beyond belief...!!) Ibuki acknowledged that the nine-tailed fox wasn't incorrect in her statement of a man's ideal woman. However, that was just a reflection of the id revealed when a man's pride and self-control were ripped away entirely. In addition, that desire was most likely so close to an unconscious desire as for there to be no real difference. If not, then all the world's men would be hopeless trash. (It's rationality and pride that make us human." For that reason, though there were differing tastes like large breasts or tight butts... There were very few men who were seeking the type of woman the fox described while sober. Ibuki was the same. He didn't want a lover, nor a mother or sisters. It would be correct to say that in his case, those desires were faded and weak at best. However, the nine-tailed fox cared nothing for his situation. 'You know you like this, don't you?' she said arbitrarily and forcefully while shamelessly asking him to love her. It was the penultimate form of egotism, of trying to force emotion upon him. (However, what's really awful is...) That even with her obvious egotism, she had the ability to force one to accept her. Whether it was the inhuman attractiveness fit to ruin a man's life with a single glance, or the experience she had built up to now in using words and observations to manipulate others. There was no way for a normal person to resist if she set eyes upon him. They would fall into corruption in no time flat. (Even I'm pretty close to the edge.) He knew she was egotistical and pushy, but he couldn't find it in himself to find the nine-tailed fox's existence unpleasant. Rather, he was feeling good about it. For that reason, he told himself over and over again about how dangerous she was. But well... the results were predictable. It was a resistance more unreliable than a candle in hurricane winds. (Hmm, is it already too late?) Was he still sane? Did he only think he was resisting her? Was he not already long-since fallen to her wiles and sinking into a well of pleasure? Ibuki's sanity was being shaved away to the point where he was unsure of the reality in front of him, but... "Nevermind." He let out a deep breath. To put it simply, she simply was on another level. What could a boy that hadn't even lived twenty years do against her? 'They who only have bad ideas might as well be asleep.' Thinking just made him tired, so he might as well rest. Ibuki decided to just go with the flow and let things happen as they would. "... Hmm..." The nine-tailed fox showed a smile different from the ones before. In it were admiration that was exceeded by annoyance, and a lovesickness that far surpassed her annoyance. "Now, self-proclaimed 'mother'. Before you try to show off your appeal as a woman, don't you have something else you should do?" Her name. He told her to introduce herself first. She knew his name, but he didn't know hers. He'd figured out she was the infamous nine-tailed fox, but if she was taking on a humanoid form, she had to have a name for it. "What should I call you? Kumiho? Daji? Tamamo no Mae?" "Fufufu... bzzt, you are way off!" She made an X with her index fingers in front of her face. The gesture was unbelievably sly. It was apparent she was faking it, but it felt so natural it was vulgar. If one couldn't reach that level, there was no way one could be called a siren. "After all, those are the names of women loved by other men? They are symbols with no more value than broken straws, destined never to be used again. They aren't the right name to call myself in front of the man I've loved for the past thousand years and will continue to love until the void takes this world." The name I name myself here has to be for you, for only your sake. Ibuki felt chills go up his spine as she whispered that into his ear, but he gestured for her to continue. "Fufufu, so hasty. That's fine though. Yes, I want to introduce myself as soon as possible. For the past thousand years I thought about it and only recently - six years ago - I decided upon my name." In an instant, she turned her back to him and made some distance beween them, showing only her profile as she quietly stated her name. "Shino." He tried to deny it as a coincidence. "That's because...." He recalled her words 'six years ago'. "It's the name of the only woman to have left a scar on your heart." With a cheshire cat's grin, she ripped the scab off the old wound. "You...!" A Ibuki tried to reach for her in anger, the nine-tailed fox stopped him with words. "'Now you've done it'" A pure as a child. "'You got angry'." As crafty as the most toxic of women. "You directed your attention at me." Shino smiled. "Now there is no escape for you." As if he was paralyzed, he became unable to move. He wasn't tied down with her tails, it was her words that bound him in place. "From now on, whenever you call my name, you will remember your past woman and your heart will throb with pain. No, I made you aware of me this way, so even if you don't say the name, you might feel it just looking at my face." Baring a heart full of rage, hate, and jealousy, Shino smiled. "What will you do? Will you avoid the name and call me Mom? Ah, but the more you do that, the more you might become conscious of it." Tap, tap, tap, she once again approached him, deliberately making sound with her steps. She looked up at him from below after approaching him and stabbed him with her words. "Another choice would be to call me Shino over and over, wouldn't it? Are you going to act as if it doesn't matter while enduring the pain? Ah, but if you get used to the pain, your memories of her might become weaker." She touched his chest with her slim fingertips, caressing him. "When you stop feeling pain, your heart will be painted over with me." As if to aggravate his pained heart. "There won't be any way for a woman from the past to touch your heart... aaaaah!" With an expression of a woman overwhelmed with escstasy, was Shino looking at a future that was certain to arrive one day? "Haha!" In an instant, the front of Ibuki's shirt was torn open and his skin was bared. "How long will it be before the name of your wound becomes mine?" Shino brought her lips to Ibuki's chest and licked it with her tongue. A sensation that was not quite pleasant nor unpleasant went through his body from his chest. "..." "Fufufu, what is it?" "... I just fully realized it?" "Realized what?" "The meaning of the phrase 'toxic woman'." He understood it for the first time after fifteen years of life. No, he didn't want to understand it. Ibuki repeatedly made deep breaths and put his head in his hands. (... what is this?) It was a bit much for his first experience of the World of Illusions. It was beyond hard mode. Did he do something wrong? No he hadn't. He couldn't say he lived a pure and good life, but he lived normally. But this was just too horrible. (Is that it? Is it my parents? My parents blood?) Setting aside Soujou Bou (Clephas: one of his three youkai ancestors), the remaining two bloodlines. The oni who wreaked havoc on Kyouto during the Heian Period, Shutendoji. The toxic woman who spread immorality and corruption across three nations, the nine-tailed fox. Was it revenge for the sins of those two bloodlines? "Uuu...." It would be cruel to blame Ibuki for getting down on his hands and knees. Ibuki was a child that had just graduated from middle school. "There, there, good boy." Struck to the heart, Ibuki was embraced by Shino, who began caressing his head. Her expression was that of an affectionate mother, but it wasn't an expression the source of the problem should have had. (So soft and smells so goood... this is no good!!) He could feel his corruption gauge filling up, so he pulled away from Shino. "Anyway... umm, Mom? I have someone waiting for me. For the moment, umm... just let me take care of this later!!" Right now, he just had to get away from this woman. Making that decision, he tried to use an excuse, but that plan was shattered in an instant. "Are you talking about the guy from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? He isn't coming." "Eh?" "Of course, after all your mother (me) is coming to meet you. Don't worry, I made sure to tell them." She quite naturally wrapped her arms around his. "Now, let's go home together... to our new house. Ibuki felt faint at the sight of Shino's smile. (I-I have to live with this...) I have a new family. That phrase briefly went through his head before being swept away into the distance.

Try reading the Ln or the web novel. So far it is pretty close to the web novel, with the exception of skipping over a lot of the school life shit. The details that includes will fill in the characters to an extent. As for Delta and the others, you don't really get to know them until later in the story. Alpha and Beta are the ones who have the most 'screen time' in the story, with Ipsilon coming to life pretty late in the story. Delta is really simple (literally simple)... she's basically a wolf to the bone. If you can beat her up, she's submissive, if you lose to her, she dominates you. Her main interests are food and killing.

Kage no JItsuryokusha ni Naritakute is my gem for this season. Great mix of ridiculousness, melodrama, and story. Beast Tamer is a good harem fantasy. Shinmai Renkinjutsushi is cute but not so cute-focused that it makes me want to vomit, so it is actually watchable. Tensei Shitara Ken Deshita I also like, but my thing for catgirls probably has me liking it more than most would.

Amatsutsumi is a weird one... if it weren't for the ladder-style choice progression I would have liked it a lot more, but even with it, it is still a top-quality game. While it does gyp the heroines other than the 'true' one, it doesn't do so as much as some games *coughs* anything by August *coughs*.

2- Given how this one had several early attempts to fantranslate it, it isn't much of a surprise. However, in terms of quality, it isn't a 'classic' I would have bothered with. It is just famous because it got an anime, in any case. 3- One of a very small number of 'nearly pure comedy' VNs out there. This one is a pretty good choice. 5- Mmm... to be honest, I don't get why they decided to translate this one. It is not only niche but has extremely mixed reviews (from me, in particular). There are some fairly disgusting aspects to the story, and it is more than a little depressing. Moreover, there is a really awkward mystery system included in there that makes it annoying to play at times. For a small number of people, though, it seems to have hit the spot perfectly...

Something to keep in mind with replaying a VN is that 'normal' VNs really aren't suitable for being played repeatedly. In my experience, there are a few golden standards (though not absolute ones) that enhance the replayability of a VN. 1) Depth of the Setting- This is one of the two primary reasons why I'm most likely to replay a VN. If a setting is deep enough, there is very little chance you will catch everything on a first playthrough, so games with deep settings often take two or three replays to start to feel stale. 2) Emotionality/Catharsis- The degree to which a VN stimulates the emotions through presentation and story can often make a VN that is otherwise not all that special replayable. For this reason, nakige are some of the most commonly replayed VNs from my conversations over the years with other VN players. If it makes you cry, it is probably worth trying again, lol. 3) Presentation (dramatic, memorable)- In some cases, there is just something about the way the story is presented that makes replaying a VN easy. 4) Uniqueness- Though this became rarer and rarer as time went on, this quality is often enough to make me go back to a VN. Semiramis no Tenbin and Re:Birth Colony both fall into this type, for different reasons.

Naturally? Whenever I needed to cleanse my palate of the taste of kusoge, I went back and played something good.

Evolimit Tokyo Babel Dies Irae Draculius Amatsutsumi Mirai Nostalgia Aoi Tori Devils Devel Concept Soshite Hatsukoi wa Imouto ni Naru Minamijuujisei Renka Paradise Lost Kajiri Kamui Kagura Yurikago yori Tenshi Made Haru to Yuki Eden* Eien no Aselia Silverio Vendetta Silverio Trinity Zero Infinity Vermilion Bind of Blood Electro-Arms Muramasa Akatsuki no Goei trilogy Karenai Sekai to Owaru Hana Akeiro Kaikitan Nanairo Reincarnation Ikusa Megami Zero Bradyon Veda Bullet Butlers Kikan Bakumatsu Ibun Last Cavalier Ayakashibito Chrono Belt Cross Channel Tsukihime FSN Comyu Rui wa Tomo o Yobu and fandisc Hapymaher Haruka ni Aogi, Uruwashi no Lovekami (original) Jingai Makyou Koisuru Otome to Shugo no Tate (both) Komorebi no Nostalgica Tiny Dungeon series Valkyrie Runabout Majikoi Ou no Mimi ni wa Todokanai Phantom of Inferno Otome ga Tsumugu Koi no Canvas Ryuukishi Bloody Saga Suzunone Seven Kamikaze Explorer Tenshi no Hane o Fumanaide Tsuisou no Augment (both) Yomegami Yami to Hikari no Sanctuary Suisei Ginka Hello, Lady (all versions) Konata yori Kanata made Houkago no Futekigousha Semiramis no Tenbin Baldr Skydive Baldr Sky Zero Ojousama no Hanbun wa Ren'ai de Dekiteimasu Ojousama wa Gokigen Naname Dracu-Riot Kin'iro Loveriche (and fandisc) Campus's Uso series Bloody Rondo Gensou no Idea Shinigami no Testament Natsuiro Recipe Venus Blood Hypno (known as Hollow in the West) Shuumatsu Shoujo Gensou Alicematic Tayutama (original) World Election Prism Recollection Haruru Minamo ni Duelist x Engage ExE PrimalXHearts Sakura, Sakimashita Abyss Homicide Club Amairo Islenauts Blade x Bullet Shirogane no Soleil Fake Azure Arcology Re:Birth Colony Lost Azurite Hyakka Ryouran Elixir Kanojo-Tachi no Ryuugi Kono Sekai no Mukou de Kouyoku no Soleil Primary Lunaris Filia HHG Sakura Iro Quartet Otomimi Infinity Reminiscence (for Aki's route) Toppara

The only one worth mentioning on this list that wasn't on the previous ones as an OVA is Legend of Crystania. Legend of Crystania is a far-distant sequel to The Record of Lodoss War, based in a land where Ashram went into exile with his closest followers after his defeat. This new continent, unlike the previous one, is one where gods interfere with the world more directly than by using clerics and champions, and the setting had a great deal of potential. However, it didn't live up to that potential, primarily because both the movie here and the ova later hurried things too much.