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Zalor

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  1. Love
    Zalor got a reaction from Mehnot in How do you pronounce Narcissu in English?   
    Thank you! I was not expecting such an informative reply, I really appreciate it! I was surprised that the Latin pronunciation uses a "k", and it seems to be the basis for the Japanese. According to one of the official translators of Narcissu, the reason that Narcissu gets rid of the final "s", making a "su" instead, is because its suppose to stand for "Suicide". Which is a significant theme in the story. So it seems they took the latin pronounciation and modified the ending to "su" for thematic reasons. 
    It does seem however that most people in English use the "Narsissu" pronunciation. So if I want to avoid a whole segment justifying my pronunciation in the video, it might be easier to default to that. 
  2. Like
    Zalor reacted to Mehnot in How do you pronounce Narcissu in English?   
    I believe pronouncing it like it's supposed to be pronounced in English is a safe bet. So,  /nɑɹˈsɪsəs/.
    I'm not sure where the japanese pronunciation might come from, but if I had to take a guess, it's either from Latin, where the "c" is /k/, or from the original Greek "νάρκισσος"  /ˈnar.kis.sos/.
    Taking the guess a bit further, it might be the case that they took the Latin nominative "narcissus" and removed the final -s, thinking that would get rid of the plural even if the plural of the second declension doesn't end in -s but in -ī, narcissī. It seems like a plausible misunderstanding to me, what do you think?
    TL;DR:
    The options seems to be either /nɑɹˈsɪsəs/ or /nɑɹˈsɪsə/ for the English pronunciation (introducing an /s/ for the heck of it in the first case), or if you don't mind stepping out of English's phonology, then you can go with the -incorrect- Latin /nar.ˈkis.su/.
    In the end it's a made up word so whatever floats your boat I guess!
    EDIT:
    You can hear how the Latin word is supposed to be pronounced here: https://forvo.com/word/narcissus/#la
    I decided to use IPA for this reply because trying to convey phonetic information without it, even more so when I'm not a native English speaker seems sketchy to say the least. I apologize if you are not familiar with it.
  3. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from VernonZirconKitsune in Do you prefer new VN titles announced early or when it's really close to releasing?   
    From a marketing standpoint (A) is probably always better. But from my perspective as a consumer, I always prefer (B). It respects consumers more by being straight to the point, where as (A) is focused more on creating hype above all else (just look at the gap between the expectations movie trailers create, and then the actual movies themselves). (B) also allows more creative freedom, since you can change your work as many times as you want until you release it. But with (A), especially if you raised money via Kickstarter, you have to commit to the originally advertised mission. Else you risk pissing off your backers and followers. 
    Overall, (A) seems more corporate, restrictive, and sometimes even fake. Whereas (B) feels more personal, honest, and open to creativity since it's not as focused on winning over the crowd. 
  4. Like
    Zalor reacted to adamstan in How can Visual Novels improve their storytelling?   
    Well, ok But could I perhaps ask you in the future to include at least some summary/abstract when you post your videos as thread starters? Some of the topics are interesting, but I really find it a chore to sit through video - unless it contains something that couldn't be written.
    So I guess I'm the exact oposite of that:
    I prefer to read lots of paragraphs than to have to watch someone tell me the same thing on the video
  5. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from adamstan in How can Visual Novels improve their storytelling?   
    Weird you made this topic, as the past couple of days I've been working on a script for a video that in many ways is all about this. Ultimately though, I think the only real solution is for actual writers (the type of people who write novels) to start writing VNs. While I won't say I am exactly optimistic that this will start happening, there are a couple reasons why I think this might happen.
    Simply, nobody really reads anymore. I mean that somewhat hyperbolically, but if you look at statistics the amount of people who read novels and short stories for entertainment has been dropping practically every year. I read a statistic a couple years ago that only around 20% of American's read more than 2 books in an entire year. The new media, notably video games and online videos have completely enthralled two generation (most millennials and the entirety of Gen Z). And lets not forget, that even boomers, many of whom qualify as being elderly, were the original TV generation.  
    One of my favorite self-published books to come out in the past couple of years is false kotatsu. It's a great novella, and nobody knows about it. It has no reviews on Amazon, and on Smashwords the one review of it was actually written by a personal friend of mine (who recommended it to me in the first place). If you want people to read your novel these days, you need one of two things, and unfortunately talent isn't one of them. You need to already have a decent social media following, or you need to have a solid connection in the publishing industry. And even then, the amount of people who will read your work, compared to the amount of people playing the latest games, even indie games, is miniscule.
    So if you want to tell stories, and you actually want people to experience them, the one (false) option people think they have is to make a video game. Now this is going to be a point I will go into detail in my video, but while video games can certainly feature great writing, for a game to be good it is critical for its level of interaction to also be good. Interactivity is always at least slightly more important than writing in video games, even in plot focused ones. And if you disagree with me, please wait for my video because I go into much more detail in that (I already wrote that part of my script).
    Visual Novels on the other hand, are a medium that function under a different system of poetics than games do. Visual Novels is where writing is top dog. A great story won't save a game with completely ass gameplay. But great writing, combined with at least mediocre visuals and audio, can make for a great VN. Because visual novels are multimedia, and in many respects close to video games, the coked out brains of a generation raised on the screen can appreciate them more naturally than many of them can stomach to read a conventional book.
    Writers who want to share their stories would be wise imo, to start using that talent in making VNs. And likewise, visual novels would strongly benefit by having competent writers migrate over. Since it's a medium, that appreciates good writing above all else
     
    Tl;DR: This is exactly why I'm planning to make a video about everything I just wrote, because it feels like in many cases nobody wants to read anything longer than a single paragraph
  6. Like
    Zalor reacted to NowItsAngeTime in How can Visual Novels improve their storytelling?   
    Where's your video gonna be posted so I can watch it when it's out?
  7. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from NowItsAngeTime in How can Visual Novels improve their storytelling?   
    Weird you made this topic, as the past couple of days I've been working on a script for a video that in many ways is all about this. Ultimately though, I think the only real solution is for actual writers (the type of people who write novels) to start writing VNs. While I won't say I am exactly optimistic that this will start happening, there are a couple reasons why I think this might happen.
    Simply, nobody really reads anymore. I mean that somewhat hyperbolically, but if you look at statistics the amount of people who read novels and short stories for entertainment has been dropping practically every year. I read a statistic a couple years ago that only around 20% of American's read more than 2 books in an entire year. The new media, notably video games and online videos have completely enthralled two generation (most millennials and the entirety of Gen Z). And lets not forget, that even boomers, many of whom qualify as being elderly, were the original TV generation.  
    One of my favorite self-published books to come out in the past couple of years is false kotatsu. It's a great novella, and nobody knows about it. It has no reviews on Amazon, and on Smashwords the one review of it was actually written by a personal friend of mine (who recommended it to me in the first place). If you want people to read your novel these days, you need one of two things, and unfortunately talent isn't one of them. You need to already have a decent social media following, or you need to have a solid connection in the publishing industry. And even then, the amount of people who will read your work, compared to the amount of people playing the latest games, even indie games, is miniscule.
    So if you want to tell stories, and you actually want people to experience them, the one (false) option people think they have is to make a video game. Now this is going to be a point I will go into detail in my video, but while video games can certainly feature great writing, for a game to be good it is critical for its level of interaction to also be good. Interactivity is always at least slightly more important than writing in video games, even in plot focused ones. And if you disagree with me, please wait for my video because I go into much more detail in that (I already wrote that part of my script).
    Visual Novels on the other hand, are a medium that function under a different system of poetics than games do. Visual Novels is where writing is top dog. A great story won't save a game with completely ass gameplay. But great writing, combined with at least mediocre visuals and audio, can make for a great VN. Because visual novels are multimedia, and in many respects close to video games, the coked out brains of a generation raised on the screen can appreciate them more naturally than many of them can stomach to read a conventional book.
    Writers who want to share their stories would be wise imo, to start using that talent in making VNs. And likewise, visual novels would strongly benefit by having competent writers migrate over. Since it's a medium, that appreciates good writing above all else
     
    Tl;DR: This is exactly why I'm planning to make a video about everything I just wrote, because it feels like in many cases nobody wants to read anything longer than a single paragraph
  8. Like
    Zalor reacted to Mehnot in Need help. I'm suffering from severe depression now...   
    I never thought I would be the one to ever say this, but go outside and get some air. Seriously. 
  9. Like
    Zalor reacted to Darbury in Hitokata Translation Project [Released]   
    Darbury presents Darbury’s Old Visual Novels for Old People Named Darbury
    Will anybody care about this TL other than me? Probably not. So let’s just agree to call it a micro-niche release, okay?
    Anyway, there’s this doujin VN called Hitokata. It’s old. Came out 20 years ago, in fact. A one-person labor of love released at the turn of the century. It’s also well-regarded in the Japanese freeware VN community. Start poking around people’s top 10 lists of free VNs and you’ll be surprised how often it turns up. I mean, not Narcissu often… but enough.
    Why? Nostalgia maybe. Back in the day, a 100% free VN that clocked in at 10+ hours was something of a rarity. And one that was sorta good? Doubly so. The game was also surprisingly influential, picking up the time-loop ball from YU-NO and running with it before that trope became a total cliche. Even now, you’ll often see Hitokata referenced in reviews and discussions of doujin VNs with timey-wimey narratives.
    Great. So what the hell is it about, Darbury?
    Glad you asked. Here’s a little write-up:
    Ancient demons, teenage angst, fresh fish… What more could you want, right?
    Hitokata never made it to the West for a variety of reasons: a graphically bare-bones first release; an over-reliance on repetition; and an odd mix of cornball humor and existential dread. (Plus, if I’m being honest, the narrative can be slightly clunky at times.) It was popular enough in Japan, however, to merit a commercial remake for mobile — first for feature phones, then Android/iOS. And with that came a whole new generation of fans.

    A very stupid localization
    Everyone had a COVID hobby to keep them sane over the past year, and working on Hitokata was one of mine. It started as a simple translation of the NScripter original, but when I was done, I was visited by a series of increasingly stupid thoughts:
    Stupid Thought #1: Hey, this VN isn’t very pretty. Maybe I can just add the backgrounds from the mobile release. Stupid Thought #2: Heyy, now that I’ve added the backgrounds, it probably won’t be much more work to add the sprites. Stupid Thought #3: Heyyy, now that I’ve added the sprites, it probably won’t be much more work to add the sounds and music. Stupid Thought #4: Heyyyy, now that I’ve added the sounds and music, it probably won’t be much more work to add the UI. Stupid Thought #5: Heyyyyy, now that I’ve added the UI, why don’t I just port this whole thing to Ponscripter. By the time the stupidity stopped, I’d more or less done a ground-up rebuild of the game. Whoops! On the bright side, it means there are now two distinct versions of the TL patch: Hitokata Classic, a straight TL of the original game; and Hitokata Enhanced, with all the added bells and whistles. Here’s a side-by-side comparison of an early screen to show how those two versions stack up.
    Screenshots:
    CLASSIC | ENHANCED
    So, if your name is Darbury and you like old doujin VNs, you can find more info on the patch here. (You're also incredibly handsome. Good on ya.) If you’re anyone else, just go play Musicus! already.
  10. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from Chronopolis in The Bare Minimum Required to Read Visual Novels in Japanese   
    I've spent enough time learning Japanese, befriending lots of other people who were learning Japanese, and hanging out on otaku forums to know that at least half of what you hear is... misleading at the very least. Anyone genuinely interested in jumping the gun and learning Japanese should read this: A Friend of Mine Learned Japanese in 1 Year
    From what I've witnessed in my own irl observation (and I've met safe to 100 people that have studied Japanese), unless they grew up speaking Chinese or Korean it took them a minimum of 4 - 5 years to get good at the language. I'm talking JLPT N2  - N1 level. And pretty often, it took more than that. Because people learn at different paces.
    Now if your only concern is reading, and you genuinely have no interest to ever communicate (speak or write) in Japanese, then you can probably get to an N2 - N1 reading level in 3 years if you study grammar and vocab diligently, and after getting a solid foundation in those read Japanese nonstop. I have known a handful of people like this, but most normal people can't and shouldn't do this. Most people burn out if they go too intensive for too long. Language learning for most people is like the Tortoise and the Hare, slow and steady wins the race. Please don't feel ashamed if you aren't N1 fluent in 3 years, or even 5 years. Because I feel in their push to encourage people to learn Japanese, sometimes Otaku communities unintentionally instill a sense of shame in people who don't learn super fast. Again, if you aren't Chinese or Korean, taking 5 - 10 years to get to JLPT N1 level is entirely normal.
    To specify, Koreans have an advantage because their grammatical system is relatively close to Japanese. And many words sound similar as well. If you know Chinese you already know the meanings of most Kanji, which is a huge advantage because this easily knocks out the hardest part of the language for many people. I should also add, anyone that is already multilingual, even if its not in Korean and/or Chinese also has an advantage because their brains are already more flexible when it comes to languages. 
  11. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from adamstan in The Bare Minimum Required to Read Visual Novels in Japanese   
    I've spent enough time learning Japanese, befriending lots of other people who were learning Japanese, and hanging out on otaku forums to know that at least half of what you hear is... misleading at the very least. Anyone genuinely interested in jumping the gun and learning Japanese should read this: A Friend of Mine Learned Japanese in 1 Year
    From what I've witnessed in my own irl observation (and I've met safe to 100 people that have studied Japanese), unless they grew up speaking Chinese or Korean it took them a minimum of 4 - 5 years to get good at the language. I'm talking JLPT N2  - N1 level. And pretty often, it took more than that. Because people learn at different paces.
    Now if your only concern is reading, and you genuinely have no interest to ever communicate (speak or write) in Japanese, then you can probably get to an N2 - N1 reading level in 3 years if you study grammar and vocab diligently, and after getting a solid foundation in those read Japanese nonstop. I have known a handful of people like this, but most normal people can't and shouldn't do this. Most people burn out if they go too intensive for too long. Language learning for most people is like the Tortoise and the Hare, slow and steady wins the race. Please don't feel ashamed if you aren't N1 fluent in 3 years, or even 5 years. Because I feel in their push to encourage people to learn Japanese, sometimes Otaku communities unintentionally instill a sense of shame in people who don't learn super fast. Again, if you aren't Chinese or Korean, taking 5 - 10 years to get to JLPT N1 level is entirely normal.
    To specify, Koreans have an advantage because their grammatical system is relatively close to Japanese. And many words sound similar as well. If you know Chinese you already know the meanings of most Kanji, which is a huge advantage because this easily knocks out the hardest part of the language for many people. I should also add, anyone that is already multilingual, even if its not in Korean and/or Chinese also has an advantage because their brains are already more flexible when it comes to languages. 
  12. Sad
    Zalor got a reaction from Fiddle in Miura (Berserk mangaka) Passed Away Recently   
    I was honestly shocked. Apparently he died on May 6th but it was only just recently announced. RIP 
    It was always joked that Miura would die before finishing Berserk, but I don't think anyone expected it to happen like this when he was still relatively young. 
    Edit: In case you want sources more official than Wikipedia, here you go. Cnet and Kotaku. 
  13. Sad
    Zalor got a reaction from Plk_Lesiak in Miura (Berserk mangaka) Passed Away Recently   
    I was honestly shocked. Apparently he died on May 6th but it was only just recently announced. RIP 
    It was always joked that Miura would die before finishing Berserk, but I don't think anyone expected it to happen like this when he was still relatively young. 
    Edit: In case you want sources more official than Wikipedia, here you go. Cnet and Kotaku. 
  14. Sad
    Zalor got a reaction from Dreamysyu in Miura (Berserk mangaka) Passed Away Recently   
    I was honestly shocked. Apparently he died on May 6th but it was only just recently announced. RIP 
    It was always joked that Miura would die before finishing Berserk, but I don't think anyone expected it to happen like this when he was still relatively young. 
    Edit: In case you want sources more official than Wikipedia, here you go. Cnet and Kotaku. 
  15. Like
    Zalor reacted to Plk_Lesiak in How open are you to the idea of playing a VN with a Black Protagonist ?   
    Man, please don't... This is so cringe. You're turning a good idea into this weird social activism exercise that will appeal only to people that are already in your narrow niche and scare off everyone else. The indie VN community in the West is already very progressive. It doesn't need this virtue signalling and if you think there's some forms of diversity/representation that are too rare, remedy that by action (making your VN the way you feel is appropriate) and promoting games that already fit it (I assure you, if you look at game jams such as NaNoRenO or Yuri Game Jam and commercial projects by devs that show up there, you'll find plenty of diversity).
    And really, you should be talking to other devs about this stuff, in places such as Lemma Soft and VN Devs subreddit. That's where you could make a difference.
  16. Like
    Zalor reacted to Stormwolf in How open are you to the idea of playing a VN with a Black Protagonist ?   
    Well you know. The identity police groups are the biggest racists of all. While the rest of us don't care about skin color, they don't do anything but single out colours. Wish they'd stop already
  17. Yes
    Zalor got a reaction from Plk_Lesiak in I'm ripping off Ange, so here's a quiz about my horrible VN and anime habits. Do you guys know me well?   
    I used the name Anon since if I got a bad score I didn't want it traced back to me. But I didn't do too bad. I'm glad to know you also enjoy School Days. I've had a lot of fun showing people the School Days anime over the years. I find it to be one of the best shows to watch with a group of people. Since its bad enough to be talked over, but entertaining enough to be engaging. Also, whenever you think that Makoto couldn't prove himself to be more irredeemable, he always finds a way to disappoint you further.  
  18. Like
    Zalor reacted to NowItsAngeTime in A Showcase of Various Online Visual Novel Communities   
    This romhack dialogue is quite impressive my friend. You should make an updated one for the 2020s
  19. Haha
    Zalor got a reaction from NowItsAngeTime in A Showcase of Various Online Visual Novel Communities   
    You just reminded me of a joke Fire Emblem hack I did 5 years ago about the VN community:
     
    Part 2 is more focused on Fuwa, and heavily references the community back when this was made (2015). I suppose it's sorta Fuwa history kinda.


  20. Haha
    Zalor got a reaction from Cibermoon in A Showcase of Various Online Visual Novel Communities   
    You just reminded me of a joke Fire Emblem hack I did 5 years ago about the VN community:
     
    Part 2 is more focused on Fuwa, and heavily references the community back when this was made (2015). I suppose it's sorta Fuwa history kinda.


  21. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from adamstan in How do you prefer these type of words/phrases (English) translated in visual novels you read?   
    Regarding honorifics and "Onii-chan" I'm really confused myself which is better. I don't like the inclusion of honorifics and "Onii-chan" because it makes it harder to recommend VNs to people who aren't already entrenched in Otaku media. To a certain extent I want to see VNs "get more popular in the west", to quote the Fuwa slogan, but it's hard to appeal to people outside of the niche when they see cringey stuff like "Onii-chan" all over the place. On the otherhand, we don't really have a culture of referring to people by their social rank (kouhai, senpai, Onii-chan, Onee-chan). Yes we have words like upper classman, underclassman, older brother, older sister. But often the context they are used in Japanese translated really awkwardly. In theory I think these translations are more friendly to outsiders looking to give VNs a try, but they also have their own bumps on the road. Constantly calling your older brother "older brother" is just awkward, and vernacularly terms like "bro" are usually used between friends that aren't technically related. Like the saying "Bros before hoes" (a vulgar, but accurate example), refers to male-friends who you feel so close to it is as though they are your brothers. 
    I guess all I'm really saying is that I appreciate the complexity of both sides, and ultimately which ever choice a translator makes I respect so long as it's clear they clearly thought about it and are consistent with their choice.  
  22. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from AaronIsCrunchy in VNDB has inconsistent standards of what's considered a Visual Novel   
    I agree that those types of games and VNs can both be lumped under the broader category of Interactive Fiction, but I wouldn't call them Visual Novels. I think reading is a critical component for anything to be considered novelistic.
  23. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from adamstan in VNDB has inconsistent standards of what's considered a Visual Novel   
    I agree that those types of games and VNs can both be lumped under the broader category of Interactive Fiction, but I wouldn't call them Visual Novels. I think reading is a critical component for anything to be considered novelistic.
  24. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from FinalChaos in VNDB has inconsistent standards of what's considered a Visual Novel   
    I agree that those types of games and VNs can both be lumped under the broader category of Interactive Fiction, but I wouldn't call them Visual Novels. I think reading is a critical component for anything to be considered novelistic.
  25. Like
    Zalor got a reaction from tahu157 in VNDB has inconsistent standards of what's considered a Visual Novel   
    I agree that those types of games and VNs can both be lumped under the broader category of Interactive Fiction, but I wouldn't call them Visual Novels. I think reading is a critical component for anything to be considered novelistic.
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