fate123

Thanks for clearing it up for me. Yeah, that's very true. Everything you do no matter how minor can make massive impacts. I think it's a pretty interesting concept to implement in fiction, as it's unseen in any other medium.

So, it seems I was a bit mistaken about routes and how they work, since I am very new to VN's in general. This changes my opinion on them quite a bit. I had thought routes just meant replaying the game, except with a few different scenes and including the specified character more frequently. I realize now that they are nearly entirely different sets of stories. (Albeit being alternate "what if" scenarios.) Is this correct? Or is it different depending on the game?

Well, I think there's a bit of a misunderstanding. Routes and Choices are two completely different things. Although they are connected, it is possible to have choices without routes. What I mean is that I love choices; they're one my favorite aspects of a visual novel. Like Zoom909 said, they add depth to it and I also like seeing various "what if" scenarios. Routes on the other hand, mean you have to start the game over each time then choose predetermined choices to get the ending you're looking for. (Limiting your choices.) Since I'm somewhat new to visual novels, I've begun playing several but haven't finished all routes in a single one yet; I like to wait so when I start a new route it gives it a feeling of a "fresh start." It's always interesting to hear others opinions on these sorts of things

Well, not really ones with bad ends, I quite like them actually I mean ones which make you restart the entire game and choose things in a particular order in order to progress to eventually unlock the "Final" route. I love the idea of choices themselves since it makes it feel more like you're the actual character, but sometimes the inclusion of routes force upon you to make specific ones. (Like Little Busters! and Tsukihime which I am playing now.) Funny you say that, I actually did the same thing. I wrote a fan fiction of a video game when I was a kid, (which was terrible looking at it now haha) but in the end I ruled against using choices.

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The title says it all! I personally enjoy just reading it through as one continuous long story. But, I do like how choices are given which can alter events. What I don't like, is when you have to choose particular choices to get the right continuation you need. The following times aren't quite as enjoyable for me, and I end up usually using a walk-through for all my choices to get the proper route, which for me takes out some of the fun in choosing. What do you folks think of routes in general?

"The world is just another word for the things you value around you, right? That's something I've had since I was born. If you tell me to rule such a world, I already rule it." Tosaka Rin from Fate / Stay Night. I got really inspired by this one. This is one my favorite quotes of all time! It reminds me that the things we want to attain and the dreams we have are only what we make of them, and that possession is just an attachment of memories and personal thought to an object of relative unimportance, although that's going a bit deeper into the meaning of it.

Yeah, give it a try! I really liked it. Just keep in mind that it takes a while to get really good. There is a little romance in it (I just read the Fate route though) but not so much that it's romance themed. I like how it's there, but kept to a minimum. Yeah, I'm the same too, visualizing fight scenes can be difficult and at times tedious for me. Especially in Star Wars books, I always struggled through the action scenes. Especially the space battles. (Sorry, a bit off topic.)

Yeah, I like reading for the story, not the action. Reading action can be boring, I'd much rather watch an read a Manga or watch an Anime for that sort of thing. Psychotic stuff is always fun so I'll look forward to that.

Yeah, the remake should really make it all around more enjoyable (assuming it even comes out.) I find the scenes with no sound are extremely dull. *SPOILER... kinda I just read the third major action scene (the one with Nrvrskr at midnight in the park) and man, it was so boring with no music... it really makes a big difference. While F/SN's were really intensive, Tsukihime's action scenes are more boring than enjoyable to me.

haha yeah, the production is pretty low. In a way, it kinda gives it a nice charm though... but maybe that's just me. Fortunately the story more than holds that up though, so for me it isn't a big deal. And my only big complaint with it so far is the music. I mean, it's like the same 4 songs or so repeated over and over, and it gets old only after a little while. -_-

Well, I didn't get very far before I decided to give it a break. It was a bit past the Berserker fight, so pretty much at the beginning. It's not so much that it made me feel uncomfortable, but more that it was just awkward seeing characters' relations built up, then talking to each other having just met. Particularly Saber and Shiro since their relation was nearly the main focus of the Fate route. Once I get through Tsukihime, I'll check out all the recommendations I've gotten and decide from there. BTW I'm loving Tsukihime. It feels a lot more realistic than F/SN which is different in a good way, and the pacing seems a lot better. F/SN sometimes felt a bit dragged out for me, especially with the sometimes repeated explanations of things.

Thanks, and I will. You enjoy it as well! Oh, and another thing I forgot to mention. I might not have been clear enough, but I meant "similar" in terms of mood and the overall feel of the game, not in terms of the actual story content. I'm not as much into the ones where you hang around a bunch of cute girls the whole game, if you know what I mean... which seems to be like 50% of them haha. (Unless it has a really good story.) If anyone has any more ideas that would be great!

Thanks for all the great recommendations everyone. I just started Tsukihime (played about 6 hours) and so far it's really good. (In a different way from F/SN though. I think I might actually end up liking it more.) Dies Irae looks pretty interesting. Unfortunately, I don't know Japanese yet. I plan on starting to learn Japanese in a few years, so once I eventually get a good grasp of the language I'll definitely check it out!

Hello there So, I'm a newcomer to visual novels, so I decided to play one which immediately caught my interest; Fate / Stay Night. I've played the Fate route, and DAMN was it good. It was one of the most enjoyable things I've ever read. Now, here's where the problem lies... ...after having started the Unlimited Blade Works route, I just... can't get into it. After having become so familiar with the caracters, having felt their emotions and seeing events and personalities change, starting it over feels so unnatural for me. Nearly the whole time I'm thinking "this is how it happened in the Fate route" rather than "I wonder what will happen next?" So what I'm thinking of doing is waiting a month or two before starting the second route, just to sort of refresh my mind and give it a new start. Has anyone else ever felt this way? (Even with any other VN's?) I'm thinking of reading an entirely different visual novel in the meantime. From what I've seen, not many seem very appealing to me. I'm looking for something like Fate / Stay Night; one with interesting characters, and an immersive, epic and compex story. It doesn't have to fit all the criteria, but I'm just looking for something which may share some of these characteristics. Thanks for reading and hopefully helping out :D