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VN get more popular in West on console!


Novel21

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It's it just me or have vn get more popular in West on console like Switch and PS4, I'm not sure about Xbox one or Xbox Serie X and S.

It's seems we are getting more VN on console lately.

We just got Root Double Crime Days and soon we are getting Autumn Journeys on Switch.

We have Clannad, Tomoya After, The Fruit of Grisaia, Phantom Trigger and many other VN on Switch. 

I'm very happy with that, since I enjoy play VN on Switch.

I hope we are getting more VN in West on console.

I have four favorite VN I hope get on Switch.

1. Kanon(I know it might not be possible, but I hope it get ported on Switch) 

2. Da Capo

3. Flowers -Le Volume sur Printemps-

4. Air.

I'm not much into yuri but I did enjoy Flowers -Le Volume sur Printemps- and I have plans to continue play it.

What do you guys think about we are getting more VN on console? 

What VN do there hope get on console?

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As consoles open up as digital platforms it's going to be easier for VNs to "infliltrate" them. Bah, we even have Hatoful Boyfriend on the Xbox Game Pass which amuses me greatly. :D Still, at the same time, you have stuff like Sony pushing many visual novels out of their platform and digital stores on consoles generally going the Steam route, being flooded with indie games and plain shovelware, meaning VNs become available but do not gain much visibility, reaching mostly just the existing fanbase.

The one outlier might be the Switch, which really seems like a good environment for all-ages VNs, with the advantages of portability and weeb-leaning playerbase... I'm don't think the presence on the PS (outside of Japan) and Xbox is very meaningful, unless the games appear on subscription services more and thus encourage people to try them out. For me getting a VN on my Series S would only make marginal difference... It could be a bit more comfortable to read them on the TV, but normal screen is good enough and gives me more options to take screenshots etc. But hey, having more options is always cool!

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4 hours ago, Plk_Lesiak said:

The one outlier might be the Switch, which really seems like a good environment for all-ages VNs, with the advantages of portability and weeb-leaning playerbase... 

I think the Switch is a great platform for VNs for 2 reasons. You can read on the big screen, and you can read in a more portable manner (like lying in bed with the switch in your hands). In a sense, it kind of baffles me that in the west at least, VNs have pretty much been exclusively a computer thing. Whereas in Japan, the PSP and Vita were a major platform that a lot of VNs got released on. But the Switch is the perfect in between by being both portable and a console. Idk where this will take us in terms of future releases, but I am quite hyped for the Umineko port for the Switch. 

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3 hours ago, Emi said:

as zalor says. but yea we will most likely see alot of ports to the switch, if not in english the market will be getting alot bigger in japan as sony no longer will battle the handheld market. where ,any vns have thrived in the past on the vita.  also switch is apperently easy to throw ports onto 🤷‍♀️ if you have a hacked switch you can get basicly any renpy game to run on it with homebrew app.  so even if you buy it on steam you can just transfer it. 

not that im a console gamer myself. but pretty much only reason why im alittle interested in that underpowerd thing. 

I didn't know you could run renpy games on hacked Switch with homebrew app. Can you run Renpy games on Switch so are not hacked?

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31 minutes ago, Emi said:

Sadly on works if its hacked. 

im not sure how the switch hacking is nowdays

Yeah, Consoles obviously don't allow to install games outside of their digital stores/official releases. But Switch looks indeed port-friendly and open to indies.

Which is, as usual, both good and bad because people might easily stumble into something like Pantsu Hunter and get their first impression of what VNs are that way. 😛

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2 hours ago, Plk_Lesiak said:

Yeah, Consoles obviously don't allow to install games outside of their digital stores/official releases. But Switch looks indeed port-friendly and open to indies.

Which is, as usual, both good and bad because people might easily stumble into something like Pantsu Hunter and get their first impression of what VNs are that way. 😛

Pantsu Hunter looking lame out and boring.

Who want to play VN so are about underwear, not me.

I don't get impression of what VN from Pantsu Hunter, then again I have not play that VN.

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Functionally, the new Microsoft console probably has the best hardware for VNs.  Sadly, the lack of a foothold in Japan will hinder them - just like it has with each iteration of the xbox - in actually getting any games out of Japan on their system.  

Consoles have pretty much become a stand-in for people who can't afford gaming PCs over here.  A gaming PC generally bottoms out at $1000 and there is no limit to how much one can cost, if you go all-out.  Even the current generation of consoles is half that, which means the trade-off in flexibility is attractive for people who just want to game.

VNs have minimal requirements - relatively speaking - but high-end VNs sometimes have ridiculous ones for the content (I mean, why should any VN have a 3GB RAM requirement?  It isn't like there is all that much in the way of gameplay).  

The fact that most VNs are based off the PC produces the need for ports, which cost a surprising amount of money to produce sometimes (depending on the original engine and the system they are porting it to).  Like any port, the benefit vs cost analysis is everything to most companies.  If people buy the VNs that get ported enough to justify the cost, then we'll see more get ported and sent over here.  

Personally, if I was going to play a console VN, I'd want it on the Switch.  The Switch is more convenient than either of the other two systems, with the ability to easily connect it to a TV, its light weight, and its portability.  I really wish the PSP version of Ayakashibito would get ported to Switch, lol.  

As for popularity?  That's more questionable.  It's going to be years before we see any real results from the console market for VNs.  There just aren't a lot of JVNs that aren't otomege on consoles just yet, even over there.  Without the content, there is nothing to lust after, after all.

Note: Understand that when I say there is a 'limited' number of JVNs on console, I mean this in a relative sense.  One reason that VNs have managed to create a niche over here is the sheer number localization companies have to select from with JVNs.  The number of 'classics' and high-quality VNs in general makes it possible to cherry-pick, whereas consoles don't, as of yet, have the numbers to allow for that.

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It's something I'm very glad to see, handheld console is my preferred way to read VNs nowadays, just get comfy in bed and play away. Looking forward to see more releases trickle onto the Switch over the upcoming years.

My PSVita has served me well. Muv Luv trilogy, Utawarerumono Trilogy, Chaos;Child+Steins;gate0, otomes like CollarxMalice and Code;Realize, Zeroescape + Danganronpa, whew. 

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On 11/28/2020 at 11:12 PM, Clephas said:

Functionally, the new Microsoft console probably has the best hardware for VNs.  Sadly, the lack of a foothold in Japan will hinder them - just like it has with each iteration of the xbox - in actually getting any games out of Japan on their system.  

Consoles have pretty much become a stand-in for people who can't afford gaming PCs over here.  A gaming PC generally bottoms out at $1000 and there is no limit to how much one can cost, if you go all-out.  Even the current generation of consoles is half that, which means the trade-off in flexibility is attractive for people who just want to game.

VNs have minimal requirements - relatively speaking - but high-end VNs sometimes have ridiculous ones for the content (I mean, why should any VN have a 3GB RAM requirement?  It isn't like there is all that much in the way of gameplay).  

The fact that most VNs are based off the PC produces the need for ports, which cost a surprising amount of money to produce sometimes (depending on the original engine and the system they are porting it to).  Like any port, the benefit vs cost analysis is everything to most companies.  If people buy the VNs that get ported enough to justify the cost, then we'll see more get ported and sent over here.  

Personally, if I was going to play a console VN, I'd want it on the Switch.  The Switch is more convenient than either of the other two systems, with the ability to easily connect it to a TV, its light weight, and its portability.  I really wish the PSP version of Ayakashibito would get ported to Switch, lol.  

As for popularity?  That's more questionable.  It's going to be years before we see any real results from the console market for VNs.  There just aren't a lot of JVNs that aren't otomege on consoles just yet, even over there.  Without the content, there is nothing to lust after, after all.

Note: Understand that when I say there is a 'limited' number of JVNs on console, I mean this in a relative sense.  One reason that VNs have managed to create a niche over here is the sheer number localization companies have to select from with JVNs.  The number of 'classics' and high-quality VNs in general makes it possible to cherry-pick, whereas consoles don't, as of yet, have the numbers to allow for that.

 

You wouldnt need much more than a ps3 for most vn's. Latest xbox is overkill. Same is ps5. That is unless japanese developers step up their game significantly, but not much they can do in a vn that is nothing but text, images and some flashy effects.

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On 11/28/2020 at 1:11 PM, Zalor said:

I think the Switch is a great platform for VNs for 2 reasons. You can read on the big screen, and you can read in a more portable manner (like lying in bed with the switch in your hands). In a sense, it kind of baffles me that in the west at least, VNs have pretty much been exclusively a computer thing. Whereas in Japan, the PSP and Vita were a major platform that a lot of VNs got released on. But the Switch is the perfect in between by being both portable and a console. Idk where this will take us in terms of future releases, but I am quite hyped for the Umineko port for the Switch. 

I mean I've never ever played VNs on my desktop, its always on my Surface Pro. I imagine a majority of the VN readers in the West also reads it on their respective laptops more than desktops, same thing, you can read it lying in bed or sitting in bed or take it to Uni and read (Not recommended :notlikemiya:)

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15 hours ago, Stormwolf said:

 

You wouldnt need much more than a ps3 for most vn's. Latest xbox is overkill. Same is ps5. That is unless japanese developers step up their game significantly, but not much they can do in a vn that is nothing but text, images and some flashy effects.

I meant because its system is almost identical to that of a PC OS, so conversion would be significantly easier all-around.  It wouldn't surprise me if it eventually got to the point where the system could play PC VNs that have been localized without a need for a port.  

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11 hours ago, Clephas said:

I meant because its system is almost identical to that of a PC OS, so conversion would be significantly easier all-around.  It wouldn't surprise me if it eventually got to the point where the system could play PC VNs that have been localized without a need for a port.  

yeah Microsoft is incorporating windows with their xbox games/services, the xbox app is baseline now for all windows devices and not to mention GamePass. 

Porting VNs shouldnt be too big of an issue, doubt xbox gets anything exclusive though, I dont think the console is any popular is Japan yet.

 

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51 minutes ago, Freestyle80 said:

yeah Microsoft is incorporating windows with their xbox games/services, the xbox app is baseline now for all windows devices and not to mention GamePass. 

Porting VNs shouldnt be too big of an issue, doubt xbox gets anything exclusive though, I dont think the console is any popular is Japan yet.

 

That's the major barrier.  Licenses in Japan are usually considered to be separate between consoles and between consoles and PC.  As such, there is a high probability that the Japanese companies would require separate licenses for both versions or an actual full port.  Traditionalism is the poison of choice in all Japanese industries, and the VN industry is one of the industries most plagued by it in recent years.  Simple practical solutions tend to fall by the wayside when short-sighted traditionalists get in the way.  

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3 hours ago, Freestyle80 said:

yeah Microsoft is incorporating windows with their xbox games/services, the xbox app is baseline now for all windows devices and not to mention GamePass. 

Porting VNs shouldnt be too big of an issue, doubt xbox gets anything exclusive though, I dont think the console is any popular is Japan yet.

 

Not just that, but Microsoft haven't really seemed to have any interest in Japanese games. 

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1 hour ago, Freestyle80 said:

to be fair even Sony doesnt seem to anymore given how hard they go down on anything Japan/anime related (Western stuff doesnt get censored but games like DMC5 does for example...:saber:)

Isn't that because, AFAIK, media/gaming branch of Sony became basically an American company, with its HQ in California etc?

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