SieghartXx

Well that's fine except that immersion is wholly impractical for an adult learner who is not in Japan but who wants to learn to read.  And I think the ability to read is what most Fuwalings are interested in.
 
If you have the opportunity to be an exchange student or worker in Japan, then immersion is the way to go.
 
But if you're stuck in the U.S., then the traditional grammar method is the way to go.  It requires some geekiness, but it works.  It is the way people have learned to read for centuries (even dead languages like Latin).   Using a computer analogy, it is simply a bootstrapping process by which you download the assertions and rules into your brain so that your natural language processing can boot up in Japanese instead of English.  The comparison with English is a necessary part of this learning process, as you learn about any new thing by discovering how it is the same or different from what you already know.  What you already know, you learned by studying English grammar in school.
 
So, first you complete this learning period where you assimilate the basic grammar and some essential vocabulary, and read example dialogs and such with the textbook holding your hand.  After that, you are ready to dive into reading for real.  Perhaps "dive" is the wrong word here, because it's a more gradual process than that.  Here is where the internalization happens that Clephas mentions.  As you read, your mind will absorb that subtle language information that isn't part of the textbook rules.  It is an important step but it happens automagically.  The key to making this happen is to read some every day.  Note that reading Japanese for an hour out of a day, and watching a couple of hours of anime, in a day otherwise spent using English can hardly be called "immersion."  It is just called "practice."  But it will be enough--that is, as long as you didn't skimp on grammar learning and as long as you are satisfied with just reading and not speaking.

First of all:
 
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
 

 
Now, let's get things started (yes, Ren isn't the only one who can do these).  It's almost time for the holidays, and I don't know about the rest of you, but one thing I associate with the holidays is great food. So in honor of that, I will be holding a baking competition.  The rules are quite simple:
Bake something.  This should be something holiday related/themed.  It does not have to look entirely festive, although it is encouraged.  If anything appears to be store-bought it will be disqualified, but using pre-made mixes (Betty Crocker, etc.) is acceptable.  Take of picture of the item you baked, with a handwritten copy of your username.  Then post the picture along with a short blurb on why you chose to bake that item and why you associate it with the holidays.  The winner will be chosen by random selection.  Now, of course, what's a giveaway without a prize right?  So, the prize will be this: $20 to spend on any Steam VN you desire.  If My Heart Had Wings, Planetarian, Hatoful Boyfriend, these and many more could be yours.  Any combination or multiple items works as well, as long as the sum total is $20 or less.
 
Full List Here: http://store.steampowered.com/tag/en/Visual%20Novel/#p=0&tab=NewReleases
 
All submissions must by the new year (midnight on the 30th of December PT), so you all have plenty of time to bake your hearts out.  
 
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night. 

Before reading this thread, keep in mind that this giveaway is the 2nd of 2 giveaways currently going on right now. If you are looking for the Santa hat avatar giveaway and the physical copy of Clannad as a special prize, please check the following thread:
 
https://forums.fuwanovel.net/index.php?/topic/7583-originalrens-very-merry-christmas-giveaway-a-fuwanovel-holiday-message
 
Please note that the giveaway linked above has now finished.
 
That being said, welcome my friends, to the biggest giveaway you will ever experience!
 
Welcome to OriginalRen's Secret Santa Extravaganza!
 
Please Note: Due to the amount of items I need to focus on delivering from Japan, including prizes and mailing service items over the next few weeks, I will taking a small break from all other games/activities on the site. I plan to pick these back up once the holiday season settles down and the new year kicks off, so thank you for being patient.
 

 
The Rules of the Giveaway -
 
Simply sign up in this thread by stating your interest or by sending me a PM if you're too shy! 6 winners will be chosen at random and allowed to pick from a grab bag of goodies celebrating the holiday season. Once a prize has been chosen, the remaining prizes will be up for grabs, essentially meaning you will not be able to choose a prize if you are the final person selected.
 
If you wish to signup, please make it very clear that you are joining so I can be sure to include everyone.
 
The Prizes -
 
All right, I know a lot of you are itching to know what the prizes of the competition will be, so without further ado, here they are, in no particular order. If you have any questions about them, please let me know.
 
OriginalRen's Bag of Goodies!
 
Prize #1: A free character good of your choice from any anime/manga/VN priced at 2,000 yen or less (~$20)
(this includes things such as bookmarks, file folders, card sleeves, mugs, key chains, and the like)
 



 
Prize #2: K-On! "Guitar, Elite" Azusa figure
 



 
Prize #3: Love Live "No Brand Girls" Maki figure
 



 
Prize #4: Majikoi S 1st press limited edition release
(comes with an art book)
 



 
Prize #5: Ultimate Fighting Climax - New (PS3)
 



 
Prize #6: Fate/stay night + Fate/hollow ataraxia bundle pack
(comes with the games, 2 art books, the side material found in the special edition of the original game, and a 10th anniversary art book)
 

At the moment I can only think, mostly, of on-going ones like Hibi Chouchou and Horimiya, but I must say that at least I have found a lot of manga to read now thanks to this thread, thanks for that!

As for completed ones, that I remember right now while browsing my list:

Kanpeki Kareshi Kanojo
Mou Speed de Karera wa
Hatsukiai
Kirikagohime to Mahou Tsukai
Tsubakikan no Utsukushisugiru Garcon
Matsuri Special
Zettai Joousei
Honey-Coming: Sweet Love Lesson
Otomen

Sorry if you've already read some, but I'm kinda in a rush at the moment D:

It's that time of the year again, time to come up with new logos for the forum!
 
I'm thinking that the best decision from now on is just to have different logos for each season so 4 contests total per year so that's something you can expect.
 
Let's keep it brief as I'm sure you're familiar with things by now
 
The theme for the second edition will be Winter
Simple, straightfoward, can't get any easier.
Show that winter and holiday spirit on your logos for a chance to be featured as our forums' logo for the rest of the Winter!
 
Rules (Please read):
How to interpret the theme is entirely up to you.  All entries must explain why they fit the theme (even if it's something obvious like "there's snowflakes therefore winter"). Entries that fail to explain properly why they fit within the theme will be rejected. OriginalRen, Emi and myself are not allowed to participate in this contest due to winning the previous contest. This becomes null in the next contest. Likewise, the winners of this contest will not be able to participate in the contest immediately after. Only one submission is allowed per user. You may change your logo at any time during the submission phase, just make sure to indicate which is your final version (in case you post more than once) so there's no mistakes.  To submit an entry you must post the logo you made in this thread or send it to me via PM if you wish to be anonymous. Entries should be around 354px by 90px and must include the title "Fuwanovel" and the sub-title "Make Visual Novels Popular in the West", but font, styling and design are up to the artist.  The logo should have a transparent background, it also must be visible when being used on the layout (black letters would likely not be visible without a colored stroke for example) No porn, sexual acts, genitals, female nipples, or excessive female cleavage If you wish to add (a) character(s) to the logo there is no restriction as far as whether that character comes from a VN/Anime/Manga/etc. or whether it's Male or Female. As long as you think it looks good and doesn't violate previous rules it can be submitted We'll accept entries for 10 days after this post goes up Once 10 days pass we'll make a poll where users can vote on their favorite logos There will be three winners per contest: The "official" winner will be the logo with the most votes, the second winner will be the runner-up in the poll, and the third winner will be chosen by a secret logo council run by Tay  We encourage people to be creative and have fun making logos, but all logos -- even if they win the popular vote -- have to be approved by Tay before they'll be displayed on the forums We'll cycle through the logos periodically between contests (including the old stock banner and possibly previous contest winners) Submitting a logo gives us the right to use it forever and ever however we feel like it (*evil laughter*) Logo contests will be held semi-regularly If you wish to use the default font template in your submission we have a sample of it here that you may use, there is no penalty for using it.
 
I'll be in charge of handling the contest so any questions you may have can either be sent via PM to me or be posted here and I'll try to answer as fast as possible.
 
I hope you all have fun in this edition of the Fuwanovel Logo contest.
Good luck to all participants 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wsf1-hndZ8I
 
There isn't "Fabulous" without "Kaga Kouko" in it

Hey everyone,
 
Hopefully this short video helps explain some of the awesome prizes being showcased this holiday season by yours truly:
 

 
Enjoy!

Common routes in visual novels usually give the reader some kind of expectation of what's to come, in some shape or form. Even without that, anyone who's watched or read enough stories probably has a decent grasp on storytelling tropes and cliches. So we all likely have some kind of expectation when we start on a new route in a visual novel. It could be a simple expectation of quality, an expectation of atmosphere and tone, or even an expectation of what's to come. So I wanted to ask, what character route in which visual novel surprised you the most? Maybe you had zero expectations for a route and it ended up being exceptional? Maybe the one you anticipated would be your favorite ended up being a disappointment? Perhaps the route took a sudden, dark turn you did not see coming or it even ended up being unexpectedly soul-crushing.
 
After thinking about it a little bit, I'm surprised to say Wanko's route in Majikoi best suits the question for me. Given the the kind of VN it is and the game's general tone,  I was surprised at how touching it ended up being and the extent of the character development that was shown. On top of that, she was the character I was least interested in reading a route for. So her route ending up being my favorite of the four translated ones came as a surprise to me.
 
Majikoi spoilers for Wanko's route:



 
Anyway, what character route ended up surprising you the most? Since this is a general topic, please try to keep all spoilers within spoiler tags.
 
 
 
 

Just saw this in my sub feed:

Of course what immediately caught my attention was the distinctly Key-ish art, and sure enough it's made by Itaru Hinoue who did most of the art for Key. And it's apparently not a very big VN so if someone decides to translate it it will hopefully not take several years. as if

>Ask for the discussion to stay civil
>Starts out by saying that H-scenes are an atrocity
meph_says_gg_topkek_10/10_10h.mp3
 
In terms of purely narrative value, implied sex or explicit sex are the exact same. Their presence may or may not emphasize the fact, but I don't find that extremely important - I ctrl through them anyway so it doesn't matter.
 
I have to disagree with your statement though. Eroge ARE for the most part hentai games, I don't give a flying damn about being called a "hentai gamer" and I don't think the presence of sex scenes does the medium any bad per se. If there is a problem with this media, it's its niche nature and the extreme exigence of its players about trivial details - mandatory voice acting, mandatory routes for everyone, mandatory archetypes, mandatory sex scenes too but that's only a consequence.

If you are reading VNs for H-scenes, you are a nukigamer, though you probably don't want to admit it - unless you are as open as Steve is.  If you believe that h-scenes ruin VNs, you probably shouldn't be involved with otakudom at all. 
 
The proper answer is 'h-scenes are the frosting on cake and the mold on bread'.  A proper VN-reader shouldn't consider them to be important either way, as h-scenes at best are no better than frosting on a cake and at worst, mold on otherwise edible bread.
 
Edit: I know that first paragraph sounds pretty... assholish?  However, it is a fact that if you are placing too much importance on the existence of or non-existence of h-scenes in VNs, you are probably way too far to one side or the other.  Sometimes I want to play a VN with no sexual focus, like Tokyo Babel, and at others, I feel like something with an ecchi atmosphere, such as Erect.  However, regardless of how I feel at a given moment, I don't place any significant interest in the existence of h-scenes.
 
Edit2: To be honest, I don't like seeing this ancient debate getting revived at all.  Tay already made a similar thread last year, and it was argued to death, so seeing this argument resurrected is rather unpleasant.

Nope, I do every route in every VN I read.  I'm a completionist, so I get seriously irked it I don't finish every route (except Isuzu's from Hoshimemo, I loathe her).  I don't really view it as "cheating" because each time you do a new route you're essentially back in the beginning of the story, and the events of the past route didn't actually happen.  I also don't really view it as a relationship between me and the heroine, only myself watching the MC develop a relationship with the heroine.  Even if I strongly identify with the protag I've never actually been able to "put myself in their shoes", so to speak, to the point where I think of myself as the protag.  Not to say that I don't form emotional attachments to the characters, though.
 
I'd seriously recommend reading the other routes in Hoshimemo.  Komomo and Kosame's routes kinda blow the other ones out of the water.

I wonder whether it was only this episode, or if Grisaia will focus on Yumiko's route. The op also makes her stand a bit more than the others.

>honostly

I'd hope so. I host most the VNs on this site

How I stalked some dude with an exposed nipple and stumbled upon the Zenithian Sword

Heh, I stumble upon the weirdest shit sometimes

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun best anime of the season. Laughter were had. Countless laughters....
 
I need a second season of this so badly ==

Battle of the Guilds
 
The Guilds of Fuwanovel -
 

 
Take a look at some of the special abilities each guild in the competition has. This card represents your very struggle for power on the website, so wear your guild tag proudly!
 
The Guild of Chibis: Gathers those with the power of moe and forms an army of adorable cuteness to enchant the hearts of many. Being in constant rivalry with the rest of the guilds, the chibis hope to one day claim the website of Fuwanovel for themselves.
 
The Guild of Kuuderes: Gathers those with a neutral stance of the new uprising on the website of Fuwanovel. The kuuderes are the problem solvers who tend to keep the other guild's attitudes in check, but in the end, wish for power like anyone else.
 
The Guild of Lolis: Claims to have been established by the same members who founded the website of Fuwanovel. The lolis represent order and justice, and with their rule, they hope to spread kindness and love to the rest of the community.
 
The Guild of Senpais: Gathers those with the wisdom and experience of the age. The senpais are the oldest guild to exist on Fuwanovel, and using their extensive knowledge and life experiences, they hope to teach the rest of the community the same.
 
The Guild of Tsunderes: Originally, the tsunderes had no interest in claiming power on the website. Seeing a recent war sparked by the other guilds convinced them to change their opinion drastically (and rather harshly I might add). They now seek to join the war for mere pleasure, but it's not like they'll enjoy it or anything.
 
The Guild of Traps: The heart and soul of trickery and deceit. The traps represent the cunning wit of Fuwanovel and its many dormant members. With their new power, they may rise from the shadows and claim the website for themselves.

Annarasumanara
Since we're sharing screenshots, this probably my favorite manga visual-wise, I'll leave this piece of review found on MAL.
 
 

I assume we aren't mentioning DBZ since it goes without saying, right?
 
Apart from that, Great Teacher Onizuka.

General Information
VNDB: http://vndb.org/v4806
 
Takumi is a normal guy who barely gets by with part-time jobs. One day, he was asked to attend the prestigious private school Rokuroku Gakuen while impersonating a rich student that looks just like him. Although he was hesitant to accept this strange request, circumstances (mainly financial) compelled him to agree to do it. However, he knows nothing about the celeb world. Will he be able to keep his cover?
 
 
Related Links
Official Translation Website
Yuzusoft Website
 
Translation Progress
Prologue: 784 / 784 (100%)
Common: 10,542 / 10,542 (100%)
Maya: 10,005 / 10,005 (100%)
Hinata: 9,796 / 9,796 (100%)
Akari: 8,705 / 8,705 (100%)
Shizuru: 8,374 / 8,374 (100%)
Sena: 8,381 / 8,381 (100%)
Bonus: 1,103 / 1,103 (100%)
Total: 57,690 / 57,690 (100%)
 
Downloads
COMPLETE Patch
Official 1.02 Patch
 
Patching Instructions
- If you haven't already, update Noble Works to version 1.02 (see above link)
- Copy patch3.xp3 into the main game folder
 
Most Recent News
2015/12/22 - Sena route translation complete
2015/8/24 - Shizuru route translation complete.
2015/6/15 - Hinata route translation complete.
2015/3/27 - Bonus route translation complete.
2015/3/12 - Akari route translation complete.
2015/2/7 - Maya route translation complete.
2014/10/4 - Common route patch released.
2014/7/19 - Project announced. Prologue patch released.

Oh damn, I have to add them one by one there too xDD I'm not about to do something like that ever, not with this list (which isn't even finished ;_

*Use caution when opening the spoiler*

Hi everybody
 
I'm dannyboo and I recently found this forum while I was looking for a good page to start my translation (career?). That's only in the future though Around one year ago my mother met someone during the time when she was translating live on seminars (eng - ger).
It turned out that the other Person translating was a Woman who had lived in Japan for some years and is now an independant teacher who teaches japanese. I am really glad that I had stated my interest in japanese language and culture to my parents a few weeks before that, otherwise we would've maybe never seen this oppertunity.
 
Right now I've been studying/learning Japanese for one year and soon I'll probably be able to pass the N5 levels (JLPT). I really hope that I can become a professional translator for japanese games (be they visual novels or other kinds) and be paid for what I love and enjoy.
But as I said, I haven't quite reached the N5 level yet so I'm probably getting a bit ahead of myself but it is really something I would love to do and I'm looking forward to being part of this community even though I'm more the type to observe conversations on forums rather than contributing to them.
 
I became interested in Anime when I was a little kid (I thank god that I was a kid during the times when they still played shounen anime on tv haha). My absolute favorites where of course Dragon Ball Z and it's predecessor Dragon Ball but I didn't quite enjoy GT. My second favorite was Shaman King  and I also enjoyed watching Pokemon (but I didn't like the games lol) and Naruto was nice, too. Besides that I was totally entranced by Detective Conan and I would watch it whenever I could no matter how often I had seen that episode already
 
Some years later I was re-introduced to Anime by a friend of mine (he showed me the first few epiosdes of Bleach) and from that point on I became more and more addicted to Anime. I'm the type that likes to rerererererererererewatch the Animes that he loves rather than watch new ones so there aren't like 500 of my favorites I could list now
 
I still want to list some that i really enjoyed though:
 
Hangyaku no Lelouch R1 & R2 - When I watched that one for the first time I was so emotionally screwed at the end (that was during the hard times of puberty where you're emotionally screwed to begin with) Tasogare Otome x Amnesia - That may or may not be a great piece of work depending on different people's opinions but for me it was a great experience (probably because it was the first Anime of that genre and after that I got more used to it?) Shaman King - Kid that runs around with 20kg weights on every ankle and of course defeats every guy that opposes him until he finally defeats the bad guy at the end and becomes the superhero for the next 500 years. All the while being dominated by his fiance whom he promised to marry her if he became shaman king. I enjoyed it Detective Conan - who solves every case no matter how illogical it seems and often it seems more like a who-can-come-up-with-the-craziest-way-to-kill-somebody-but-still-make-it-seem-logical contest Dragon Ball Z - I was glued to the screen for hours and hours just to see him shout AAAAAAAA for 10 more minutes. Clannad - because why. Great story and a happy ending (although I don't mind bad ending as long as they're well written. Zetsuen no Tempest - A recent one for me which leans on to Shakespeares 'The Tempest' and all those unexpected plot twists really keeps it interesting and exciting. But the most important thing for me was that I could identify with some of the characters' personal aspects and that made me enjoy it all the more Steins;Gate - Not much to say here   Everyone who knows it loves it and if somebody doesn't like it I can't blame them. You may or may not philosophize why this sentence doesn't make sense!  
I'm drawing out my introduction but I think there's still something I haven't actually mentioned - VNs.
At some point of my Anime filled life I realized that Animes don't always start as Animes (or more like, at this point I can't name one that does) because they all seem to be adapted from a light novel, manga or visual novel before they make their ways into our hearts. So at that time I thought I might try that kind of 'game' out. Now there are two obvious things I really want to state:
 
First - How awe-inspiring the collaboration between art and storystelling can be
Second - How frickin' long it takes to read through all that mind blowing story
 
I mean, I may have spent more than 500 hours playing Visual Novels already even though I haven't played that many (I must admit though that quite a few had gameplay in them - like Kamidori - that really keeps you playing for more than just a long while). Right now I'm kind of staying on hold with Grizaya no Kajitsu on the Amane route and others I read are Fate/Stay Night and Dracu-Riot, I also started with Rewrite but right now I'm 'reading' several VNs without making any progress because there are always so many great ones that I'm already looking at a new one before finishing the last. Makes me feel lost.
 
Well, however, I want to be a translator in the future and I hope that I can speed up that progress by doing finding some small projects here on Fuwanovel in the next few years (I don't really think that I am ready for a project yet, so I'll stay put for a few months till a year until I'm confident enough )
 
That's enough from me and I believe this is a long introduction, I hope those of you who read all of it don't feel like they wasted their time! Feel free to send me messages or something if you want to stay in contact with me. I'm excited to see what the future brings
 
Btw: I'm a guy! Don't get distracted by my profile