Visual Novels

[Terithian]

[Shousa]

[Kimiko]

Narcissu 1 and 2 are on and . Fans of these VNs may wish to vote

And Aksys Games are doing a on VNs and their Zero Escape series. Let them know what you think

[ZetaBladeX13]

Thanks for the link to the survey ;D


Now if only XSeed can manage to get Corpse Party 2 on Steam...

[Weeaboolits]

I just finished Dysfunctional Systems and Juniper's Knot.

[Apolloncrash]

Super-Necro FTW.

I probably should have posted this whilst it was still going, but I backed my first Kickstarter recently, . Like the Zero Escape series, it is a hybrid adventure game/visual novel. I pledged $80 for the Authority reward tier, which gets me the game, access to the forums, some wallpapers, a strategy guide, the OST and the complete art book. I haven't even played the demo and I already hate Miho. Thankfully, she will be dead for the vast majority of the game and the other characters seem fine. In fact, Gunther seems pretty cool.

On Zero Escape, my first ever visual novel(s):
(No untagged spoilers)


Whilst I'm on the subject of visual novels, I guess I'll also mention that I own Fate/Stay Night, Fate/stay night Réalta Nua and Fate/Hollow Ataraxia. I've actually had them for a few years, I'm just waiting for the English patch for Hollow Ataraxia to come out (it's progressing, just... slowly).

I have also decided to try out Katawa Shoujo, even though it sounds really sketchy, since the internet can't seem to shut up about its greatness and it apparently isn't as dodgy as it sounds. I've actually had it installed for a while now, but just need to get around to actually playing it.

Edit: Edited a hide tag.

[Maxine MagicFox]

I LOVED 999. However, Zero Escape I was a little... 'eh' on. I did not get hit with the game crash bug (but when I heard about the PEC bug I followed the guide since I dind't want to risk it). However I felt the puzzles were boring and drawn out. There was none of the spark that I got from 999. I also, honestly, didn't give a damn about the characters and I had long guessed the main villain's secret since the moment I started the game.



I was honestly annoyed about the cliffhanger ending. It was such a cop out bullshit. I went through that entire game and I didn't even get a decent ENDING?! It really detracted from the experience since I was expecting to be EPIC'd the way I was with 999.

It was PREDICTABLE and the puzzles were "meh" and the ending SUCKED. Innovative as hell and I still love the directions that it took so... I loved the idea of it but it's not something I would replay again. I give it a B out of respect when I would probably attach a C to it.

[Apolloncrash]

[Maxine MagicFox]

LOL at name. I have a hard time remembering the name of the game and for some reason Zero Escape sticks in my head rather than Virtue's Last Reward - this is just me being lazy and not looking up the title of the game that I'm ranting about even when I'm sitting here discussing it.

@puzzles:
Oh you're so right: 999 is WAY easy over VLR. I never denied that. But the puzzles were still FUN. I CARED. And you're talking to the queen of point-and-click adventure games. (My favorite games are eternally the Myst series. I've also played many Nancy Drews and some of the Sherlock Holmes games - and dear god Mystery Case Files, especially the later Ravenhearst games remain so deliciously addictive). Yes, easy. However, VLR weren't hard - these were easy, too, but they were ANNOYING and they didn't always make sense and that's what created the sense of difficulty which is just disgusting for a point and click in my mind.

The food pantry. That one sticks out in my mind as the most ridiculous or the one with the 'Root'. I just felt that they were DUMB. At least in 999 even if they were easy there was still a fun flare to them.

The controls of VLR were also tremendously annoying as you mentioned and that only added to my frustration. Worst controls in a game EVER.

And, yes, very easy and I thought the 'gold file' aspect was pretty laughable since it was supposed to be harder to get this code - several times I got the gold file before I got the lock out of the room. My mind for some reason picked up the gold solution and went in that route before I considered the other method. One of the rooms, and I forget which one, I actually had a hard time figuring out the lock out of the room as opposed to the gold file.

Seriously, if it weren't for VLR's flaws the puzzles in this game would have been easy, too.

@Luna:
It was Ever17 all over again. I felt like I was re-reading Sora's story only with a different twist. No. I wasn't interested. At that point I was just disgusted with the director. He was just pulling too many story elements from Ever17 at that point. If you have read Ever17 the story twists were *yawn* you did this before.

@third game:
Last time I had heard (and this was a while back) they had managed to receive funding for the game and it was greenlighted. Did this change? I'd have to take and look this up, though.


Edit: my ranting makes it sound like I really really hate VLR. I just want to correct this impression that with all the frustrations and moments of disgust I do feel it's a great game. Just not as great as it should have been. And definitely not as good as 999.

[Kimiko]

I liked 999 and VLR both. I don't recall VLR's puzzles being too frustrating. Maybe the Vita version's touch screen controls worked better than the 3DS version's? I think it didn't have the crashing bug either.

As for the story, well, both games had some contrived elements to them, but if you accept the premise it works fairly well. I think the not seeing the MC in VLR doesn't stand out much if you're used to games which avoid putting any kind of face/personality to the MC (presumably because some people need to identify with them, but can't if they aren't a blank slate). I loved the humor in some of the scenes (less so the ones where the MC was being creepy though).

[Maxine MagicFox]

[Kimiko]

The poster scene is just icky in general. More so with Quark there.

[Maxine MagicFox]

I dunno who hired someone to do the art but I hope they never do it again. I found 999's art far more appealing and even beautiful in some areas. VLR was just creepy in many aspects.

[Kimiko]

How do you mean the art? The two games had the same character designer, Kinu Nishimura.

[Maxine MagicFox]

I dunno how you can even ask that question:


vs


If the difference is because he chose to do 3d models then I hope he never touches 3d models EVER again. Hell, even Conception 2's 3d models with all the bouncing boobs doesn't look half as shitty as VLR.

The shading looks like shit, one pink blends in with another and there's hardly any personality or emotion ever demonstrated in any of the character models.