Ayakashibito or Tokyo Babel?

[Permagate]

I'm in the mood of reading chuuni work. Should I go with Ayakashibito or Tokyo Babel (or something else entirely)?

My only preference is that there is no deus ex machina if possible. But I just want to hear your thoughts first for those who have read both. Or maybe another similar suggestion, though I'm only looking for translated work right now.

 

[Soulless Watcher]

I havn't read Tokyo Babel, but Ayakashibito is a great visual novel. 

[Asonn]

Tokyo Babel for sure. 

[Zakamutt]

^

Having read all of ayakashibito and most of tokyo babel I would definitely recommend Tokyo Babel here. Ayakashibito has quite a few infuriating flaws TB does not suffer from.

[Zenophilious]

Which setting do you like more?  Tokyo Babel is steeped in biblical mythology, so if you're into that, than it's a really good read.  If you have a basic knowledge of the Bible, it's a lot more interesting than it would otherwise be, at least in my opinion, but it's still worth a read if you don't.

There's a decent amount of slice-of-life and humor in TB, but it handles serious chuuni quite well, from what I've read of it so far.

[Suzu Fanatic]

Having read all of Ayakashibito and all of Tokyo Babel I would definitely recommend Ayakashibito here. Tokyo Babel has quite a few infuriating flaws Ayakashibito does not suffer from.

 

(@Zakamutt )

Jokes aside, it's the same author for both, so you can more or less expect a similar feel, even if the separate localization teams used different methods. But as for deus ex machina - there's no escaping that in most chuuni

 

For my personal standpoint, i found the relationships built in Ayakashibito much more personable, as a reader I grew much more invested in the cast. Plus all the lore behind Japanese mythology provides some cool insight on several occasions.

[Permagate]

It seems like the opinion is pretty divided between these two titles, I'd really like to play both if I have time... I think I'll go with Tokyo Babel since I like biblical mythology more than Japanese.

@Suzu Fanatic I kinda expected that Deus Ex Machina is unavoidable, but the fewer that is, the better. That's why I really dislike some major shounen manga, where almost every battle must end in deus ex machina in some ways. Also, which flaws were you referring to for Tokyo Babel?

[Suzu Fanatic]

2 hours ago, Permagate said:

It seems like the opinion is pretty divided between these two titles, I'd really like to play both if I have time... I think I'll go with Tokyo Babel since I like biblical mythology more than Japanese.

@Suzu Fanatic I kinda expected that Deus Ex Machina is unavoidable, but the fewer that is, the better. That's why I really dislike some major shounen manga, where almost every battle must end in deus ex machina in some ways. Also, which flaws were you referring to for Tokyo Babel?

Was more just trolling Zaka Though I do have a dislike for the stylistic choices made by the editor and translator for Tokyo Babel - but that's a matter of personal taste.

 

I did feel there was a fairly large disconnect between the characters though (within the initial concept writing) - the pacing felt off - like the whole thing was slightly rushed, and thus none of the characters really had "time" to grow on each other in a believable fashion. That aside, the mythology in Tokyo Babel was very well researched, and is used extensively throughout.

[Clephas]

Tokyo Babel is more action-oriented and prettier overall.  However, Ayakashibito has a somewhat deeper story and a varied cast of characters.

Edit: Also, Tokyo Babel has a focus on Christian mythology, whereas Ayakashibito is Japanese mythology.

[DarkZedge]

Tokyo Babel.

[ChaosRaven]

Ayakashibito, because...

Spoiler

Kotarou!!!