InvertMouse

Those are some really good points . It is true that there are tons of unexplained logic in the game. For some reason, though, I just went along with it. With the exception of one or two points, I can accept all of the issues listed above. Otherwise, I never would have picked up Zero Escape, which I'm playing now B).

I'm looking forward to the final film, too! Really hoping Mami will get some good screen time. Here's my review of the movie if anyone's interested. Of course, there might be spoilers so be careful. Then again, the movie is largely similar to the TV series, anyway:

Thanks for the response, Finjas . Yeah, after reading Ever17 first, 999's impact definitely lessens dramatically. Care to talk about some of the plot holes that you've hinted at? I love 999 but I want to hear it being ripped apart as well .

Welcome to the forums man ! Hope to catch you around~

Yeah, Chitanda is from KyoAni's Hyouka. I like Natsume, too! She's pretty and really funny. Natsume x Sasayan B)! My favorite is Oshima, though .

Chitanda is the cutest girl in recent seasons B)/>! ChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitandaChitanda~

Yeah Steve, music is something that has been on my mind when I develop indie games here and there. But yes, we'll talk about that later B). I think so too, alden_003. Recently, I've finished 999 for the DS and loved it. The game has six endings. That's fine, but I'm wondering if I would've loved it just as much if it had just the single true ending. I think my answer could be a yes. That's why this topic came to mind.

Nice Uninstall song there Steve XD. fuzzion, yeah. It is true that seeing the bonds between characters will make any story appealing. Of course, that can be friendship and not romance. In fact, friendship is often more refreshing, because romance can often be forced in tales. Just some random thoughts :)/>.

We're more here to share thoughts rather than just a blunt yes or no answer. Hope that's all right. Thanks for sharing those kinetic novel titles! Might check them out sometime (delusional about having time again).

Clephas, I've never really played an NTR game so I'm not sure~ Not everyone's played 250+ games . I imagine it'd be an awful experience, though. Although, that would only work if the writers do an excellent job of making you care about the girl first. I would love to see it done right to a point where I really feel something. If anyone has titles to recommend, feel free to share . Though let's be honest, finding time to play VNs is a real challenge for me. steverowland, I would rather not do the NTRing, either XD. If it's going to be romance, anyway, I prefer ones where there's no competition and just all love. The generic "this girl and I are meant to be" type of deal B).

Aw, that's really unfortunate . If it's the same spoiler I've included, though, I guess it's not a big deal, because you find out about that in the game's first half hour XD. Really hope you'll still read it! It's a masterpiece.

Mine would be Narcissu Side2nd's Himeko . In that case, I'd go with Yuka from the same game. She's never dated anyone before, but she's actually one of the nicest people around. What a waste. Nobody in the community really talks about her, either!

I created this topic, so I guess I should contribute to it . These Narcissu Comiket goods arrived today during work. I love collecting Narcissu stuff, and these I've never seen around before, so I'm pretty happy with them : http://pic.twitter.com/lh7nNrEW Rather than picking up expensive items, I actually much prefer jumping onto obscure things that most people care next to nothing about, like brochures for upcoming games, etc .

alden_0023, just drop every other game you're playing and get on some Narcissu! Yeah, I kind of love that game B). I keep hearing Hoshimemo mentioned here. Guess it's a game many folks recommend? There are a few non-romance focused VNs out there already, I suppose. In Narcissu Side2nd, the friendship between Himeko and Yuka played a big part, and I loved their relationship more than most romantic plots in other VNs. meru, haha, fair enough XD. If you like horror and mystery, 999 is for you! Man, I loved that so much B).

harry_kinomoto, you're completely right. It can be glaring when an artist breaks conventions just for the sake of doing it. Often, it makes it feel like the author is just trying to impress, and nobody appreciates that. *Reads steverowland's response* .... What the--there's a vocaloid VN ? No one's told me about this! Anyway, it's true. The overall enjoyment is what matters in the end. I loved Ever17, which is plot focused, yet I also obsessed over romance routes like Kawana Misaki's. As for the anime thing, when done right, I actually appreciate seeing those anime adaptions. Actually, I find most VNs are, if it's okay for me to say, really draggy with tons of unnecessary scenes. Of course, I'm pretty impatient so we need to keep that in mind .

I've recently started playing Tears to Tiara and Wind ~A Breath of Heart~. Unfortunately, I only play about a night per week, and I quit whenever I lose patience, so I'll see how far I go with these. Also, I'm currently itching to make a start on Zero Escape B).

okami55, I do recommend this game a lot ! meru, thanks for the recommendation! It looks interesting indeed. Man, Zero Escape is all I care about right now, though XD. Moekou, yeah, to say it's a completely ripoff is harsh. However, there are definitely similarities that I felt were more than glaring. As in, they threw me out of the immersion because I thought, "Oh, hey, this is exactly like Ever17." Anyway, I'll recommend this game to anybody. I heard those who pre-ordered it gets one of those watches as a bonus. So wished I owned one! But it's $150 on Amazon .

I recently finished this game on the DS and I loved it so, so much! The twist was just mindblowing. Often, when a game is this plot heavy, the characters will have no time to develop, and they all become storytelling devices. In 999, however, I found the characters' personalities were clear, and I ended up caring for just about all of them. Those twists in the true path were so clever they almost moved me to tears. The story in 999 mirrors that of Ever17. That's okay, I suppose, because it was written by the same person. Still, there's a risk of people calling the writer a one trick pony. I hardly cared, because a mindblowing plot is a mindblowing plot. I remember reading from somewhere (maybe from this forum) that 999's plot is a ripoff of some other visual novels. If anyone knows the details, I'd love to hear it. Though it might make me respect the game less, I want to know more. I'd also love to know if you guys have other games of this type to recommend. Ever17 and 999 are two of my favorite stories out there. Any other VN titles with the same level of plot twists? Of course, if anyone else has played 999 and would like to share their thoughts, I'd be keen to read all about it. Last, I just want to say I really look forward to Zero Escape, which I picked up several days ago B).

Yeah, it's understandable for developers to choose the safe route. We're all trying to make a living, after all. That's why I enjoy free pursuits like Narcissu, where the creator wants to experiment with something different. It's all good; I like romance, too .

Thanks steverowland! I'm asking these questions partly because they help me with my indie game development endeavors, so you guys are helping me out a great deal as well. Glad we're all enjoying the discussion. Supah Kawaii Weeaboo, well, Narcissu was an attempt at using minimal graphics. The characters rarely showed their faces, and the background resolution was small as well. However, as the games gone by, Side2nd, 3rd, then the PSP game, the image dimensions steadily increased until it went back to taking up the entire screen. Characters also showed their faces more often. Assuming those were choices made based on players' feedback, does that mean we need images in our visual novels after all? Wait, this might not be the thread to talk about this XD. Sure, I'll be happy to bring up these weekly questions . Kygrykhon, you're right; there's plenty to discuss with VN's design choices. That's how our craft will evolve B).

I've played that game when I was in uni ! It was one of the prettier games on the GBA, if I recall correctly. I remember going with the red haired girl B).

Thanks for sharing your thoughts guys! Your opinions were all interesting to read. Haha, steverowland, fair enough about your comment on Mass Effect. I was actually pleased with the Extended Cut DLC, though. The earlier choices made no impact. However, the three choices did indeed feel different and influential. Yeah, KOTOR was amazing in terms of making your choices matter. That image you posted really sums up how I have been feeling about games these days. Well, torbin12, roleplaying does help get you involved in the game a lot more! I do that when I'm playing Mass Effect B). Solidbatman, that is true. I guess it's because if the routes diverse too greatly, it means most gamers will miss huge parts of the content, which feels really unfortunate when you're thinking from the developer's point of view. Aaeru, I only heard about chunsoft after 999 on the DS. Oh, right, I remember now. Those are called kinetic novels. Maybe I should check out a few more of them.

Yeah, it always sucks when there's a girl you like in a VN, but she has no route .

This question is related to visual novels, but can be related to many other media forms as well. To be honest, this question came to my mind while I've been developing an indie game. It's not a visual novel, but it does have different endings. I was influenced by games like Mass Effect, where your choices are reflected throughout the adventure. Is it necessary, though? I admit I'm asking this to myself partly because I can be lazy sometimes and would rather not have to develop multiple endings. However, there is a point to this. If the writer focused on writing the best single plot possible, maybe the result will be more fantastic than all the split routes combined. For those who have played Mass Effect, imagine if the game was linear but still had the depth with all those galactic races, etc. Would you like the game far less? I certainly think I would still enjoy the story quite a lot. Then, I'm thinking of visual novels. Planetarian is far from my favorite title, but it worked out fine without multiple endings. I enjoyed Narcissu 1 and Side2nd immensely, and both of those are linear experiences. Utawarerumono comes to mind as well. That was another game I loved, and in the end, you can really only end up with Eruru, even though, well, you get H-scenes with just about all the ladies. I've brought up realism in VNs during a different topic, and it applies here as well. When there's only one path, then the adventure felt real. I can say, "Yeah, Guy A ended up with Girl D.", and every other person who had experienced the game would agree. Thanks people. Hoping to hear some thoughts .

I'd love for many members from the first game to come back. Eruru is a must, at least! Yeah, Karura is my favorite also B). I'm so bummed out how this is for consoles only. PC is the only thing I have right now. I loved the original Utawarerumono and would so love to check out the sequel!