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Interest-wise, what part of the VN community would you say you're the most part of?


NowItsAngeTime

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Look, I've been watching anime all my life, even as a baby I watched the 80s anime for children. Anime is a big entry point for people into the VN world. So, like an anime person would watch several different genres of anime, that same person, if he did VNs, would tackle several genres.

Sometimes what matters is the quality of the game (within its genre), and you're sold. Who says moege can't do great within the moege style? You just need to like the thing, or at least not abhor it.

Looks to me there are some people who would segregate players by their main genre, and that's a bit sad. For example, no matter how much I like Root Double, Ever 17 or Virtue's Last Reward, I can't do those constantly, I need a change of pace and some kawaiis.

Edited by Okarin
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Charages, moeges I like those of the most, where you can choose from girls, but is important that relationship well built and progresses logically. I hate when there is absolutely no romantic buildup but out of nowhere and ero scene forced just because, what I call those is throwaway scene. Those throwaway scene usually most often occurs VNs with so called story, where the game focuses on shounen like fights etc hate those with passion. So almost never want a VN with story, usually just boring and predictable filler.

 

Now I like very dark VNs with story(lot of bad ending) or would love to read VNs with depressing ending only and of course NTR however these are quite rare so my default stance NO STORY because I never feel any fun reading them, knowing that everything will end happy and never any real danger.

As it is now, give me moege

NO to story and NO to nukige

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      I'm open to many things, but generally I really prefer stories over anything else. I really believe in a VNs ability to convey a seriously amazing and cool story; to me a VN is essentially a book+. S;G, KS, Lucy:TESWF, Axanael, etc. I trust VNs to tell a kind of story I'm not prefared for, and to pull me in with more creative story techniques than most story-telling mediums, and sometimes with techniques different than even other VNs.

      Currently I'm reading Wonderful Everyday, and I hope to read Fate after that.

 

      I generally though disagree with the whole idea of not giving a game a chance by it's genre. I don't really judge anything in particular, and just because I tend to prefer games with strong story or character development, doesn't mean I can't see the appeal in those that don't have that. I guess although I don't have too many titles read to show for it, I just kind of like everything a little bit.

Edited by Optimistic;Nihlist
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Personally I think visual novel should just be considered a visual novel and not really either a game or a book. While it can be combined with games through hybrid titles like Rance or Neptunia I think the visual novel in itself should just be considered its own form of medium. I think that to a large extent it is too different from other mediums to justify putting it into a subcategory of something else.

 

Also to add to the main thing this discussion is about (have already answered what types of VNs I care for)

I consider myself a part of the visual novel community that cares for physical releases.

Edited by bakauchuujin
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Well, for me VNs could be considered some kind of mutation/spin-off of adventure games (for example YU-NO is adventure game, but with much more dialogues and character interaction than typical point'n'click) but as time went by they strayed further and further, and now indeed are their own thing.

BTW When I played classic point'n'clicks, the "gameplay" - like solving the riddles - never really interested me. I was in it mostly for story, so I almost always played with walkthrough handy - just like I read VNs ;)

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4 hours ago, UnlimitedMoeWorks said:

I advise that you be careful about saying that pal. Most of this community likes to include VNs as games rather than books for the simple fact that unlike a book, a VN has interactivity that essentially makes it gameplay. Implying or outright saying that "VNs are just books, digital books, books 2.0, etc." will set off some users' berserk buttons, because some are more sensitive about the issue than others.

I don't really mean it as *just* a book. I mean it as it combines the best aspects of a game and a book. It has nothing to do with it being inferior; in fact I view it as taking the aspects of game-storytelling with the prose of a book. They are not at all "just books" and I never really meant it that way. I hope people aren't as you say and jump to those conclusions :0

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5 hours ago, UnlimitedMoeWorks said:

A very interesting solution. Listing VNs as a standalone medium rather than a sub-category of either a game or a book may quell that debate. Though I wonder what the rest of Fuwa and the VN community thinks of it.

It's a pretty common solution though. If I got the correct impression, most arguing isn't really about whether VNs are books or games, it's about whether they are a genre of games or something else entirely. I feel like most VN communities lean toward "something else", but, to be honest, this question mostly comes down to defining what exactly a computer game is. In my opinion, VNs generally have quite a lot of elements inherited from the games, but they don't have nearly enough gameplay to be games. On the other hand, I also call them games from time to time, because in the end, who cares?

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I honestly can't help myself from asking. Does it REALLY matter? There is no changing either vn's, peoples personalities or what a person thinks about a visual novel. As long as people are different you will get different opinions on just about everything. On the internet, at best the discussions end in a draw. At best. Play vn's and enjoy them for what they are :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

I didn't even know what charage is 'till today. lol

I think I definitely fall into the first category, the one who would read any VN regardless of genre. Charage sounds like something akin to Clannad and Key games though, so I'm open to those kinds of games as well, but I could understand why people refrain from it. I couldn't finish MajiKoi because the story was so boring and way too goofy for me, in spite of its great character writing. Moege receives a similar sentiment from me, as I'm not a big fan of moe either.

I think a good story is definitely one of the most important elements I look out for in a VN, but there's another far more crucial element in my priority, which is the amount of choices and interactivity. That's the key element that separates a visual novel from an anime to me, because an anime could just as easily (or even more effectively due to its expensive animations and choreographed music) convey a good story as a kinetic novel without choices. A visual novel with choices, however, could provide the kind of interaction an anime just couldn't provide, a kind of immersive experience like you're actually interacting with people in the story. But that's why I actively avoid kinetic novels, no matter how good their stories might be. I know myself and my own flaws, so while I also know that I might be missing out on a good story, I know I would most probably drop the KN before I could even finish it anyway, so I might as well not waste my time to begin with.

That being said, this has changed dramatically after I've read Umineko - the entirety of it. I think I'm a little more open to kinetic novels now, though I should note that the only reason I stuck with Umineko was because of its popularity and acclaim. Plus, the solid production value (voice acting and music) really helped a lot. And also, I'll probably not re-read Umineko for a long time. I love the story a lot, don't get me wrong, but most of the intrigue and curiosity regarding the mystery is now gone since I know the truth. That initial curiosity that had also played a large important part in keeping me reading in the first place is unfortunately just not the same during a second reading.

But anyway, back to charage. I think if the characters were written serious enough (unlike MajiKoi), something akin to 428 Shibuya Scramble or G-senjou no Maou, then I might actually still stick with it in spite of a lack of focus on story. 428 in particular had a pretty thin story when you sum it up. The "bad guy plot" isn't really that complex (even if the mystery surrounding the plot is) when you find out the truth, if that makes sense.

Charage like this does have benefits though, because if it's not story-focused, then you don't have to infodump the lore of the universe like Fate/Stay Night and Muv-Luv Alternative do. In that sense, it keeps you more engaged with its characters, and engagement with relatable characters is definitely a lot more interesting to me than engagement with some fantasy universe. That's why even with a simplistic plot, charage can sometimes derive an even greater reaction from me than something complicated like Fate/Stay Night or Umineko. A fantasy universe is fine and all, but when it comes down to it, the thing that keeps me engaged is the emotional connection I have with the characters' backstories.

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On 17/10/2018 at 12:56 AM, NowItsAngeTime said:
Now of course it's possible to be part of multiple but I think in the end we have all of our favorites.

Feel free to choose any I didn't point out but this is my idea of the various subtypes of the VN community can be divided into:
  • People who mostly read VNs that have any type of story. No Charages, moeges.
  • Conversely, the people who basically mostly stick to charages or even moeges (or just for the waifus)
  • The people who only read in Japanese no matter what
  • People who mostly stick to a very specific genre of series like Mystery ones, or Otome/BL
  • People who mostly read VNs for the H scenes
  • People who mostly stick to Original English Visual Novels/EVNs
  • People who mostly create Visual Novels

For example, while I do try to read a variety of VNs, these days I mostly stick to charage/moege, and of course the H stuff...

I can read or play almost anything. Except nukiges or Extreme Gore (ex : Maggot Baits is not for me). And I'm not very interested by Girls/Boys Love only VNs :sleep: If I have to choose one communiy...it would be "People who mostly read VNs that have any type of story" (EVEN Charages or Moeges) 8)

Edited by Canicheslayer
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