kevspacec Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 Happy New Years from a new user here, I wanted to know your experiences with playthroughs of VNs (presumably on youtube). I know it's a very specific topic and generally controversial, many people tend to think that if you're going to watch a game, might as well play it (a common view of Lets Plays in general). As a Youtuber myself, I wanted to know your thoughts. Have you seen a playthrough of a VN before? Did you enjoy it? What do you like/dont like? What do you want to see in a Playthrough? Personally my first VN experience actually came from a Playthrough. One bored afternoon I stumbled upon Millbee's Playthrough of Katawa Shoujo (I would definitely recommend it). I was thoroughly hooked on the series and watched all of the 100 or so episodes. What I love about a VN video series is the way a particular personality interacts with the characters and story a given VN is giving them. What results is a fusion of VN and entertaining commentary, making (in my opinion) a very entertaining series. There are a few pitfalls though, a lack-luster or just inappropriate commentator can ruin a VN, and in that case, you may as well read it yourself. Also, you might want to make your own choices within a VN, and take back that interactivity and freedom that a Lets Play series took away. I would be glad to hear your thoughts, and please let me know if I have made a mistake by posting this here. Thanks, and again Happy Holidays! Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 I think VNs are meant to be read, not for you to watch someone reading them and sometimes commenting. I recently played through F/SN Fate route with my mom rofl and was translating it for her since she can't read in English, that was terrible, it's definitely not the best way to enjoy one. Unless you really love the comments made by the person, then reading it by yourself is surely the right choice. If the playthrough is just a video of the game on auto-mode then you're better off downloading it anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nohman Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 I regularly watch Let's Plays of video games, but rarely do I watch an LP of a VN. For me, visual novels are something I prefer to experience independent of any color commentary or personality. If it's something I've read before, that's obviously a non-issue, but then I feel like I could be using that time reading something new rather than treading over old ground. The main thing is that I just simply haven't found a youtuber entertaining enough to really want to watch someone else play a VN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalor Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 Have you seen a playthrough of a VN before? Did you enjoy it? What do you like/dont like? What do you want to see in a Playthrough? 1) Yes 2) No! 3) Regarding VN playthroughs, I have never enjoyed any. I suppose watching somebody react to interesting plot/character developments would be interesting, but most VN playthroughs I watched were just people reading the text. 4) I don't know. In my opinion people shouldn't watch let's plays of Visual Novels because it ruins the feeling of reading it yourself. If you watch a LP prior to reading one, the LP is going to influence and change your experience. I love visual novels because they are a highly immersive experience between the reader and the story. With the use of music, art, and a good narrative, a visual novel makes me feel like I am in the story as an observer. An LP would completely shatter that experience because you have to hear somebody else read and make choices. Personally, I wouldn't even watch a good LP of a VN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoom909 Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 For replays I may kind of enjoy it--depends greatly on who is doing it. I never really cared for them all that much until I found the Lost Pause channel--I find that guy more entertaining than most. Of course it ruins the atmosphere of it. But for one I've already done once by myself, it can be interesting just to pick out what you know are the funny parts and watch the reaction as they do those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambda Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 I don't mind reading playthroughs and actually started playing vns that way when my parents kept a close watch on my computer activity and wouldn't let me download anything. I don't see that much of a difference if there's no commentary to actually reading it yourself, especially if there are few choices/I'd use a walkthrough anyway. But for those purposes, commentary is annoying. I skip videos with commentary. It's generally alright for testing games without taking up space on my laptop/going through all the steps to download them, especially if it's really short or infamously horrible to install. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eclipsed Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Happy New Years from a new user here, Welcome to the forums and happy new year to you too Have you seen a playthrough of a VN before? Yes Did you enjoy it? No What do you like/dont like? Didn't like it. I can see how some people would like to read along and have someone's commentary (I can watch Let's Plays of regular games, but not VNs). For VNs, I'd rather read the story for myself. What do you want to see in a Playthrough? No commentary, so I can read in peace at my leisure. An example would be Zakobot's work on Steins;Gate's fandisc which prior to him has been untranslated to date. zakobot 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zakobot Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Personally my first VN experience actually came from a Playthrough. One bored afternoon I stumbled upon Millbee's Playthrough of Katawa Shoujo (I would definitely recommend it). I was thoroughly hooked on the series and watched all of the 100 or so episodes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowtsuku Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Have you seen a playthrough of a VN before?Did you enjoy it? What do you like/dont like? What do you want to see in a Playthrough? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevspacec Posted January 10, 2015 Author Share Posted January 10, 2015 I think this is the main point. Unless you are already a successful YouTuber with over 100,000 subscribers a vanilla VN playthrough is probably not going to get watched. As other people have mentioned most people prefer to read at their own pace and play the game themselves and I've also been told this too by many people. Conversely if you can translate a VN into English I think people might be willing to watch because they can't access it in its native form but even then it's not like millions of viewers either because Visual Novels are already a niche category. I guess what I'm saying is that if you thought that VN's would turn you into some YT sensation overnight then you might be mistaken. Zakobot, how is this relevant? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalor Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Zakobot, how is this relevant? I think what he is expressing is relevant because he is saying that most people in the VN community are not interested in seeing other people read VNs. Contrary to some popular misconception, VNs are not really games; they are far closer to books. How fun would it be to watch somebody else read? He is also making it clear that this is a very niche medium. Even if you do find a way to make LPing a VN entertaining, you still won't get many views. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevspacec Posted January 10, 2015 Author Share Posted January 10, 2015 I think what he is expressing is relevant because he is saying that most people in the VN community are not interested in seeing other people read VNs. Ah i see, sorry, was just thrown off by his concluding comment. It's true, he has a point though, most people won't enjoy a VN, and I understand that now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EldritchCherub Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 I personally wouldn't want to experience a VN through Youtube Let's Play because it would feel like I am messing with the relationship that an author and reader have. It would be like adding an unnecessary layer to an already complicated relationship. I already give my consent to the author to allow him/her to alter my emotions in some way and take me in a certain direction. I don't particularly need another mediator to finish the conduit for me. Whether it be fiction or non-fiction, the path I take when I read a story is one I walk alone. Sometimes my hunger for a new story supersedes my pride, and in that case I only go for the unvoiced video so as to get as close to my preferred experience as possible. Suzu Fanatic 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrillej1 Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 I don't mind them, especially if I'm unable to play it myself, I rather watch it than be unable to see it at all. However I can be picky with voicing... I easily get annoyed and have less patience for random silly-ness since it can distracting from the actual story/game. I do watch some for fun if they read more seriously and at a normal pace, but I probably prefer silent gameplay if I had a choice. I can't stand commentaries that halt gameplay time every couple minutes... I like people getting straight to the point, and playing it properly through without too many pauses. These preferences aren't just for VNs but all video game-plays in general. I think it's because... if I wanted to hear someone make long comments about a game, I'd watch a review of it, not a play through. I watched through the whole gameplay of Saya no Uta the first time on youtube. It was a silent play through, and I still enjoyed reading it. (I'm being a hypocrite though since I do have some play-through videos with voice, lol... And I think my preference for how they are played also influenced me to read them more seriously... even though I know it's boring, but I enjoy them that way xD). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InvertMouse Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 Yep, I have seen playthroughs before, but never one from start to finish. I find them all right. More enjoyable if they have funny voice acting . I like it when the reader expresses his/her thoughts about the game, praising good parts, discussing potential plot holes, etc. It makes for great study material. I don't really dislike it, but I find it less exciting when the video just contains a straight up read without any bias or opinions from the reader. In that case, I might as well just read through it myself! VN Let's Plays are cool, though personally, I doubt I would ever go through one that are upward of a hundred episodes long. Maybe a short VN like Narcissu I would be down . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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