VNs with good romance?

[garejei]

As the title says, but first let me explain in greater detail what I mean.

 

I'm mostly looking for something where the romance doesn't just boil down to school/harem hijinks, cutesy scenes and melodrama. I'm more interested in something where the romance is mature, treated in a serious way and the characters act like adults about it. But the story itself doesn't necessarily have to focus on the romance, it can be a sci-fi adventure for all I care. =P Is there such a VN? 

 

My vndb list is down there so you can check out what I've played. Untranslated VNs are also fine by me. Thank you.

[Guest]

A few good ones in terms of romance in my opinion: 

 

• Sono Yokogao wo Mitsumete Shimau ~A Profile~: This game was just really good for that.  Miku Ono's route was really well made, and to me, it was the epitome of romance.  Of course, you have to play the step-sister's--Rizu--route first, and hers wasn't too appealing to me.  But hey, you have the skip option for a reason.
• Yosuga no Sora: Just play it and you'll see why this one and you were made for each other.  (Note: It's only a partial patch, but Sora's route is translated, and that's all that matters)

[Sioxz]

well the da Capo series have a pretty high romance ratio and it's quite serious aswell depending on heroine though and almost all minori games are like that aswell

[Wahfuu]

White Album 2 is pretty known for being a true romance story, but be warned the protag is extremely YMMV. From what I've been told hes human, but extremely so, so it can be frustrating.

[garejei]

Thanks for the recommendations so far. Naomi, your description of YnS piqued my curiosity, haha. And now that you mention it I recall a friend of mine talking about it as well. I'll definitely have to look into that. Like I said untranslated stuff isn't a problem so I should be able to read it in its entirety.

 

I saw the anime of Da Capo many years ago and wasn't a huge fan, but I'll keep it in mind. WA2 also added to the backlog. Maybe a silly question but do I need to read WA1 to enjoy 2?

[Wahfuu]

You do not. They take place in the same setting but that's as far as it goes.

[garejei]

Right. Thanks for clearing that up.

[Clephas]

lol... you pretty much eliminated all romance in VNs with those words.   It's either goofy/harem or melodrama with VNs, for the most part.  If I had to choose between the two, I'd do melodrama. 

 

Edit:  This is mostly because human beings generally don't HAVE mature relationships, since it is the one thing people seem incapable of treating in an adult fashion.

[Aggressor]

A bit tricky to define adult relationship, but I guess I know what you mean, so I'd recommend:

http://vndb.org/v10958 (Floralia route)

http://vndb.org/v7238 (most routes will do)

http://vndb.org/v10597 (imouto route)

http://vndb.org/v629 (best routes are in second part though, but you shold start from the first one)

http://vndb.org/v184 (do you like Tsukihime?)

 

And the one the one I haven't read yet, but it's in my wishlist for the same reason:

http://vndb.org/v415

 

Hope this helps. And feel free to ask if you need additional info on any of the above.

[Clephas]

http://vndb.org/v9205 (non-ero, but I found the romance in it to be fairly mature, with its own logical progression, though there is a lot of melodrama in the game overall)

http://vndb.org/v604 (this is one of my oldest favorites and the romances for the main school heroines - Miyabi, Donoko, and Shino are good, though the protag is a teacher so he goes through the usual 'teacher-student relationship' internal dilemma)

http://vndb.org/v551 (All but one of the paths in this one are tragic, short-lived love, but what's there is very well-done, if somewhat melodramatic)

http://vndb.org/v6411 (great game overall... though the true ending is somewhat harem-ish and there is a threesome ending in the 'sun school' endings)

[garejei]

Thanks to both of you, you gave me lots of interesting stuff to choose from. Much appreciated. Oh and no, I haven't read Tsukihime, but I'm not a big fan of Nasu in general based on what I read of him.

[TotalDereMan]

Mature romance? I don't think there's such a thing as a totally mature romance. Maybe not even in real life.

 

It makes sense, right? Mature romance is boring and idealistic. You can't put those two together and expect a good story.

[threepwood007]

Mature romance? I don't think there's such a thing as a totally mature romance. Maybe not even in real life.

 

It makes sense, right? Mature romance is boring and idealistic. You can't put those two together and expect a good story.

 

I think I have to disagree on this one at a personal level, but I believe the difference lies in the definition of "romance." If we mean romance to indicate the sappy crappy novels - AKA wordporn - then sure, it is idealistic.

 

But a mature romance by my definition is something that isn't too far-fetched in terms of context. Sure, a harem situation seems pretty crazy, but I know someone's brother who literally had two lovely young ladies who wanted to date him and he had to make a choice. Something something Da Capo II something something a certain route.

 

I would recommend Da Capo II, especially over Da Capo I. The characters and story are a little more refined and make for a better novel.

 

For me, a novel with good romance makes me feel guilty about playing through another character's route. Grisaia no Kajitsu is doing that to me right now.

 

The other easy one is My Girlfriend is the President. Definitely sappy, but it does deal with a lot of the emotions and mental conflicts that come with being in a relationship.

[garejei]

For me, a novel with good romance makes me feel guilty about playing through another character's route.

 

Oh man. You MUST read Kimi to Kanojo to Kanojo no Koi. I don't wanna spoil too much but this exact idea is being explored in a very interesting way in that VN.

 

I'll keep the Grisaia series in mind as well, thanks.

[Aggressor]

There are several VNs where I wasn't able to bring myself to play other character route after finishing the first one, but I don't think it has something to do with mature or immature type of relationship. Btw the last one of the kind was http://vndb.org/v11569 - finished imouto route and haven't been able to play further

[BookwormOtaku]

I'd reccomend the Kyonyuu Fantasy games if you want to see a series of nukige that not only have good stories to them but also go the harem route and make it work well storywise.

[Eurobeatz]

Mature romance? I don't think there's such a thing as a totally mature romance. Maybe not even in real life.

 

It makes sense, right? Mature romance is boring and idealistic. You can't put those two together and expect a good story.

 

I COMPLETELY disagree with you. How is mature romance boring? What's boring is all the terrible moe-moe-harem-romance-comedy VNs that all have the same story, as if they weren't boring enough. The reason that I'm not interested in anime anymore (and that I'm losing interest in VNs) is because most of the romance stories are childish and ridiculous, and I can't see any of the characters going forward with their relationships when they grow up. Seriously, I go into a VN with an imouto route expecting a story about how your character falls in love with his little sister when the whole world is against such a thing, and instead I get "I hope Onii-chan sees me as a woman today! I know, maybe he'll fall in love with me if I repeat the word "Onii-chan" over and over again in an annoying high-pitched voice!" And yes, mature romance is a very real thing, in real life and fiction.

 

As for the recommendations, I disagree with Sloxz on the Da Capo series. DC1 isn't really all that mature, and while DC2 comes a whole lot closer with some routes, I still don't think it's what you're looking for. You may be interested in Anzu's route in DC2 though, I think it's the closest you'll get to mature romance in DC, and it has a great story. 

 

I also highly recommend Kara no Shoujo and Saya no Uta. Both have more disturbing stories, but the romance is amazing (especially in Saya no Uta), and if you're a fan of more mature stories, I think you'll be able to get into the non-romantic aspects of the stories as well. Clannad has some mature romance, especially in the after story. However, you need to get through all of the routes to get to the after story, and the majority of the VN is slice-of-life scenes, which are really difficult to get through if you're not a fan of slice-of-life like me. I recommend watching the anime if you don't want to spend 30 hours clicking through school life scenes.

[Akitak Uzu]

White Album 2 is pretty known for being a true romance story, but be warned the protag is extremely YMMV. From what I've been told hes human, but extremely so, so it can be frustrating.

What is a YMMV?

[Wahfuu]

What is a YMMV?

Your Mileage May Very

[Crubitz]

Checked out your list and I think I've got one or two good recommendations.`

 

G-Senjou no Maou (Devil on the G-String)- Great and intense story full of mystery and unexpected plot twists, it will keep you on your toes. if you do not shed tears at the end of the main heroine's route you hav no heart, Lol.

Yume Miru Kusuri ( A Drug that makes you Dream)- It's a school romance but with none of this cutesy nonsense, the routes have serious problems that need to be dealt with which lead to the birth of beautiful romance. It's a must read.

Ever 17, haven't read it yet but I have heard enough to know that it is worth it. Plus no sexual scenes meaning not need to lock the door when your playing (bonus).

Katawa Shoujo (The VN that made me a fan of reading VNs), great stories in all routes but Lily"s route (favourite route) is a classic romance story, you'll probably also like Emi's route (she was just too cute). The other routes were great as well though I think Shizune's was the hottest (you'll understand).

 

These VNs have some great romance though there are many others but I have to read them first, good luck.