Best Visual Novel Releases – May 2026
Despite
spring fleeing now from the blasting heat of summer, visual novels
have not wilted under the punishing rays of the sun and instead provide us
with an exciting array of new titles. This has been a month defined
by developers taking shots at new ideas and remixing old ones from
taking mysterious phone calls to preparing coffee for excentric
guests, there is a wide swath of options. Let’s dive in and look at
which among these new releases are worth your time.
Official Releases
Coffee Talk Tokyo
The
Coffee Talk series returns once again, this time with a new setting
in the bustling Tokyo and an entirely different set of characters to
make beverages for. Small and incremental changes are the order of
the day here as little of the fundamentals have shifted from the
previous two titles. All the changes revolve around streamlining the
UI and user experience while adding in a few new options to the
drink brewing process to prevent it from becoming stale. By far the
biggest draw is the new cast who bring their fresh problems and
struggles wrapped up in the usual coating of supernatural races to
create some truly entertaining dynamics. This move to a new group of
characters marks an attempt to make this game a good entry point into
the series, but at the same time it relies just enough on the old
material to mildly confuse a fresh player. Despite this quirk, the
trip to Tokyo is one fans of the genre should not miss out on.
Birushana: Winds of Fate
Nintendo Eshop VNDB Genre
– Otome, Heian Period, Fan Disc Play Time – 20 hours
This
title is the fandisc for the historical otome Birushana: Rising
Flower of Genpei which released four years ago and it sets about trying
to round out the narrative. It is clear Winds of Fate wants to stick
to a more upbeat style of story compared to the original which it
primarily does through its after stories following on from the best
endings of each route. These consist of very little conflict with the
romance and slice of life aspects taking centre stage so the suitors
and the protagonist can spend quality time together. The only slight
exception to this rule is the new routes for some of the
sub-characters as these are set during the original game so inherit
much of its serious tone in new and exciting contexts and
relationships. Yet even they do not quite go to the same places as
before and stay within the overall lighter tone. If you enjoyed the
Rising Flower of Genpei then there is a lot for you here in a fandisc
that understood what its audience wanted.
NICE TO MEET YOU, AGAIN
Purple
Software has become increasingly willing to move beyond the standard
route structure which defined much of their earlier work to create
shorter and more focused titles. Nice To Meet You, Again is a part of this
trend with its singular direction around a core narrative conceit and
mystery carrying the entire experience. This takes the form of the
protagonist, Kinou Yumeto, being offered the opportunity to redo his
youth after he crosses paths with a demon but when he travels back he
finds a girl in the past which he has no memory of ever meeting. Weaving
this central mystery through the various moments of drama and
emotional growth makes for a compelling and intimate tale which knows
when it has said its piece. The magical element understands when to
stay in the background and adds just enough to chew on in order to
keep the player engaged. Another excellent title from Purple Software
for those seeking a more directed experience, now if only all their women would not have ridiculous breast sizes.
Schrödinger's Call
Earning
the award for most distinctive release this month, Schrödinger's Call
takes the conversational style of visual novels and leans into it
with its core concept of a mysterious phone which connects the
protagonist to various animal people. Even as the quiet spectre of the
apocalypse hangs over each call, the human connection is what the
game considers to really matter and all of its mechanics revolve
around getting the player to feel its importance. The tenuous nature
of the link through a phone line further pushes the personal nature
of the tales told to the player and invests them in these last
confessions. All this is shrouded in a mystery about the
protagonist’s past and the nature of the place they find themselves
in and provides an engaging hook beyond the moment to moment
interactions. If there were a single title on this list you should
play before all others then it is Schrödinger's Call.
Iris Odyssey
Combining
magical powers, a modern day setting and yuri might seem like an
eclectic mixture but Iris Odyssey is a surprisingly direct and well
paced title. It follows the intersecting journey of two women, Fuka, who is trying to track down her missing brother, and the investigator
Iris, as she pursues a criminal band of rouge sorcerers called the
Skyseekers. As the two become closer they find themselves entangled
in a conspiracy far larger than they had originally imagined and must
test the limits of their bond to overcome it. This game understands
the assignment of an urban fantasy with its interweaving of our world
and magic into a believable mesh which lends its thriller narrative a
sense of grounded realism. Overall this is a fun time for those
looking for a light magical romp with some likeable characters.
Fan Translations
Sengoku † Koihime ~Otome Kenran ☆ Sengoku Emaki~
Patch Download VNDB Genre
- Sengoku Period, Gender Swap, Fantasy Play Time – 80 hours
From
the studio which brought you The Romance Of Three Kingdoms but
everyone is a woman comes the Sengoku Jidai but everyone is a woman.
More specifically the period surrounding Oda Nobunaga's, who is of
course a woman, rise to power with an added supernatural element in
the form of the oni. It only loosely follows the events of history
using it more a spring board for references and nods to the player
rather than a script to be rigidly adhered to at all times. As should
be obvious by now, this is a comedy harem style of visual novel
firmly aimed at taking its gender swap concept to its absurd
extremes. Enjoying this title means being able to meet it on the
level of seriousness it present in its long title and silly premise.
If you are willing to do so then there is a funny and light story waiting for you which will take you through the colourful characters which define
this period of Japanese history.
Seasons: Emotional Resonance And The Passing Of Time – An Anatomy Of Visual Novels
Cycle Of Seasons
Human
civilisation has been defined by the yearly rotation of Seasons and people have long come up with stories using their powerful emotional resonance. The dark days of Winter capture a very
different feeling to the warm Summer sun which makes them excellent
narrative devices to form an underlying tone. Japanese culture is
especially sensitive to the Seasons so it is no surprise to find the
medium of visual novels being heavily influenced by them. Even titles created beyond its boards still adhere to this core
thematic identity both as homage to the cultural associations and as a
convenient means of controlling the player. Spring is most often
linked with new starts and a generally positive outlook with a tinge
of uncertainty from the remnants of Winter. By contrast Autumn adopts
the idea of bounty and harvest while having an undertone of decline
as the greenery dies away. The embrace of Winter is a still and
frozen one where death lurks yet there is a beauty in that coldness
and a knowledge it will one day give way to Spring. This
article will not be covering Summer since it has already been covered
extensively in its own separate work Here, but the overarching
points remain unchanged and apply to it as well. What is important to
note is how Seasons rarely exist in narrative isolation and instead
tend to transition into one another in particular at the end of a
story or route. Let’s watch the changing Seasons and see how they
intersect and define their visual novel space.
Spring: Beginnings And Hope
For
the natural world, Spring is the true beginning of the year where
life takes its first tentative steps to be born anew from the cold
embrace of Winter. Visual novels love using Spring for their setting
due to the striking and immediately recognisable colours and imagery
surrounding it. Streets lined with sakura have become such a
ubiquitous feature of the visual presentation of this Season and it is
odd to see a title show springtime without them. This is the most
striking Japanese influence on Seasons in the medium with it being
present even in games made elsewhere in the world, for example it is
rare to see daffodils being used despite being so closely linked to
Spring in European cultures. Other imagery finds its way in alongside
the sakura when it comes to budding plants, animals with their young
or other signs of new life. All of these feed into the thematic idea
of new beginnings and rebirth which underpin the traits attributed
with Spring. It easily ties into stories about young love or finding
hope in a change of situation which naturally lend themselves to
sharing the same language of visuals and text. What this achieves is
a smoothing of the overall demonstration of the core ideas through a
short hand the player is already familiar with due to its prolific
use in the medium. By leaning on this baseline a developer can ensure
a smother experience where their new narrative elements can stand out
against it to make them easier to parse via the contrast.
 |
| Spring is the Season of Flowers |
The Flowers
games absolutely love making use of the Seasons in exactly this
manner and the first game, -Le volume sur printemps-, presents the
Spring example of this technique. All the standard features of Spring
are accounted for here from the deluge of sakura to the countless
other flowers in bloom amongst the greenery. This use of flowers
throughout the aesthetic and theming of the title engages the visuals
and narrative in a carefully thought out multilayered presentation.
On the surface it connects the title Flowers directly into the game by living up to its name which creates a bright design space going
forwards. Then there is the connection between yuri and flowers which
further ties together the overall theming of the work as the
blossoming love becomes reflected in the very world around the cast.
To bring this all together the protagonist, Shirahane Suou, also
reflects the new beginnings theme in her arrival at the academy
marking a new stage in her life and it taking place in Spring subtly
pushes this transition as a positive change even if she does not yet
full understand that herself. These three aspects push the Season
front and centre at all times and provides a distinct feeling to this
Flowers game which the later ones can play off while they shift into
their new Season.
For a far subtler example, Katawa Shoujo makes use
of Spring not so much for its own visual identity as much as its
contrast with Winter. The game opens with a snowy confession and
Hisao Nakai first near death experience and from here everything is
framed in contrast to this moment of disaster. As such the arrival of
Spring always coincides with the new hope and moments of release he
finds from the school and the people attending it to underscore the
change they are bringing into his life. Compared to the Flowers games
Katawa Shoujo’s Spring colours are far more muted and less directly
presented to the player since the Seasons are not so narratively
important. The grounded nature of the game’s environment choices
give this theming a lighter touch to ensure the struggles of its cast
feel authentic instead of the hyper reality of fiction. Both approaches
achieve the same overall effect but at different levels of player
consciousness suitable for what each title wants from the Seasons.
Autumn: Harvesting Decline
When
it comes to Autumn the associations are significantly vaguer and it
lacks the direct and universal language found in Spring. The browns
and yellows of vegetation and a lower light level dominate the visual
language of Autumn making it easily recognisable and it also lacks
the culturally specific elements attached to Spring. However, its
emotional and thematic elements are far more nebulous in nature with
it invoking a wide variety of impressions and being defined more by
its place between Summer and Winter. This ends up resulting in Autumn
having everything from prosperous harvest to slow decay being
connected with it. Developers have more free rein on what theming
they can use with this Season but they cannot rely on it to present an
easy to understand message so must put the work in themselves.
Due to
this flexibility it is better to discuss Autumn through a few
examples of it inside visual novels. 11 eyes utilises the decay and
decline aspect of Autumn as an undertone to the growing danger
swallowing the lives of the characters and then the city itself. The
Season is never directly mentioned by the narrative since it has
little bearing on the what is happening in the escalating magical
battles. Instead its darker colour palette adds to the tonal mesh
formed around the dire situations to further the tension surrounding
it while also acting as a contrast against the growing bonds between
the cast. Alongside this it is tied into the end of the
world style scenario 11 eyes develops, where Autumn’s decline
and decay towards winter mirrors this world’s own march to its end.
 |
| Getting dressed up for Halloween |
On a less serious use of this Season, Sanoba Witch pulls on the
thread of harvest and bounty and even makes use of a seasonal
festival in the form of Halloween. Here the association is made
between Autumn and love where the deeper colours and cooler
temperatures offer the perfect excuse to snuggle closer while their
emotions grow larger. Similarly to 11 eyes this is a predominantly
background element which defines the game’s visual design in terms
of both colour palate and the clothes worn by the characters and offers a distinct space to work within separate from other Seasons. One
notable exception to this coming in the form of the Halloween party
where Autumn gets shove in the player’s face in the most direct
manner possible. It is no coincidence this is also the point where
romantic feeling begin to truly mature into a concrete change in both
parties since it can nicely invoke the association with bounty and
plenty in a romantic context. Over the course of the runs through the
game for each route the party acts as recognisable marker of the
progress of time and the player’s position within the story lending
the narrative a natural sense of forwards momentum inherent in the
cycle of Seasons.
Winter: Cold Beauty
Despite
being at the opposite end of the year Winter shares a similar direct nature to its emotional and visual power with Spring. The world blanketed in white
snow invokes a wide range of reactions from the player from awe at
its pure beauty to fear of the cold and death it can bring to the
unprepared. It is the Season with the most directly negative
associations with stasis, oppressiveness and depression brought about
through the dark and cold which define the characters lives during
it. Thick coats and gloves immediately speak to the temperature
before the characters have even begun to comment on it and it
furthers the continuous presence of these thematic association as
they press down on the player’s thoughts. Yet is is not without
hope since the player instinctually knows Spring will come and Winter
needs only to be endured for better times to once again sprout. This
is also why many stories set during Winter come to an end with the
characters being at their happiest in the Spring which follows to
provide a visual catharsis through the transition into brighter
colours. The beauty of the Season presents a new angle to
complicate the player’s feelings on the Season where its majesty
written in pure white can have positive connections to the narrative
beats. In particular it often gets mixed with the idea of pure love
romance as a visual symbol of their untainted bond and a sense that
the world itself reflects their growing relationship. A coldness
still exists in this presentation, hence why such games transition
into Spring at their finale, and it acts as an excuse for physical
intimacy where the lovers cuddle together to share warmth while they
overcome the harsh temperature.
 |
| Dark, cold and dire |
Kara no Shoujo - The Second Episode
embraces the oppressiveness of Winter to match the dire situation
surrounding its mysteries. Its world is permanently caked in a layer
of snow which is ever so slightly dirty in its colour to make sure
the player finds no beauty in it and only the weight it presses down
upon the people living through it. The muted colour palette it uses compliments this tone and nestles the tension of Tokisaka Reiji
pursuit of Kuchiki Touko and the other mysteries encountered along
the way in dim haze where the answers are obscured from view. Keeping
this relentless cold even into its final act ensures the pressure on
the player never diminishes and they are left in the same state a
Tokisaka Reiji when the curtain falls.
While nowhere near as
depressing, G-senjou no Maou operates the lens of Winter in a similar
fashion. Its use of snow is far more strategic with it only coming in
a key dramatic moment to lay the oppressiveness on thick and sell how
important these scenes to the characters. Over the course of the
title the darker colours end up being the continuous manifestation of
the feelings of being trapped reflected in web of the yakuza as
events slowly spiral out of control. Complimenting this approach are
the many scenes taking place in the dark or a darkened room to really
push the claustrophobic sense of being lost within the underbelly of
the world. For G-senjou no Maou Winter can be a more ambiguous force
which is presented through the activities related to the Season. Azai Kanon’s figure skating demonstrates this tendency
through its association with Winter and its pure white as well as
Kannon’s passion for it. Even this is somewhat muddied by the
conflict the figure skating brings to Kannon’s life, there is still a decidedly positive emotion provided and it works the cold beauty angle.
Conclusion
Seasonal
presentation forms an important part of the tool kit available for
visual novels both in terms of aesthetics as well as easy to access
themes. Spring leans into its associations with new beginnings and
rebirth through its bright colours to craft stories leaning into hope
and the future. Winters sits on the opposite extreme as stasis and
oppressiveness define the fiction set within it and leading to dire and
darker tones. Autumn prefers to take a backseat role pulling up ideas
of decline and harvest to create rich soil for a wide variety of
narratives. There is a Season for every kind of visual novel and
knowing when to utilise them can enhance your work while giving it a
memorable aesthetic flare.
Coming Of Age – Genre Deep Dive
On The Edge
Transitioning
to adulthood and leaving the days of childhood behind is a common
thematic trope throughout history so it should come as no surprise
for visual novels to make use of it. Coming of Age rarely holds the
sole focus of the narrative and instead exists as a genre only
visible once the characters' arcs have been completed and they gain
their maturity. Playing directly into drama of entering the adult
world and assuming the responsibility which comes with age is the
simplest form of the genre given it places it directly in the
player’s face to make the theming clear. Since maturity can be
subtle in nature there are games which choose not to tie it to age
and rather present it as something gain through personal conflict
beyond the process of growing up. Not all presentations of the Coming
of Age are entirely positive with many dwelling on what has been lost in the face of the inevitable march of time.
Let’s put on our big boy shoes and find out how a genre can extract
drama from the act of getting older.
Stairway To Adulthood
There
is an inherent layer of conflict built into ageing as the march of
time changes people and forces them into uncomfortable new
situations. Periods of transition bring these feelings to the
forefront and few are more dramatic then stepping into adulthood.
Gone are the protections of childhood and the characters are thrust into a
world of responsibility which they must contend with. This is by far
the most direct type of the Coming Of Age story since it is a literal
coming of age rather than a purely emotional one. Since it is so
immediate in its presentation these visual novels tend to deal with
the realities of adulthood such as jobs and having children. They
push the idea of responsibility in a series of smaller scale changes
to a character’s life before leading them into the life shattering
conflicts required for an exciting finale. Titles looking for a slow
build up while pushing a continuous Coming Of Age theming tend to
pick this style for exactly these reasons since it gives incremental
emotional moments to keep the player engaged in the lead up to the
pay off while also appearing to be a natural extension of its ideas.
 |
| YU-NO's cast are often defined by their immaturity |
One of the most prominent examples of this jump to adulthood is
Clannad, in particular the After Story section. Tomoya has to deal
with the responsibilities of being an adult as they are thrown at him
one after another from getting a job, marriage and preparing for a
child. Many of these end up being minor hiccups used for comedy but when combined they create a sense of Tomoya’s growing maturity
through him overcoming them. They lay the foundation for the bigger
hurdles of his journey into adulthood in the form of dealing with a
child. Forming a connection with his child presents the greatest
challenge for him given all the personal and emotional baggage
surrounding his own life and only by finally coming to terms with it
can he be a good father. This acts as the climax solidifying the
final stage of his Coming Of Age where he can cope with the
responsibilities and maturity appropriate for his age. Not all uses
of this style need present day or real world connections to be
impactful since maturity is an internal quality. YU-NO presents this
approach in its later section where Takuya is whisked out of our
world and ends up being trapped there leading to him having to
quickly learn to be an adult. Since this is a loosely fantasy world,
adulthood means a maturity and responsibility to those around him
rather than the specific expectations for the modern world, hence why
he does not get a job but instead involves himself in activities related
to his survival. Interestingly just like Clannad the final stage of
this journey into maturity is connected to a child but this time it
is the pursuit and reconnection with the child after they are
kidnapped. The idea of successful raising a child is a common
narrative beat to end the arc on since it is seen as the most taxing
aspect of being an adult.
Maturity In The Face Of Change
Not
all Coming Of Age stories need to be focused around a transition to
adulthood and they are more often based around a looser idea of
personal maturity. This makes for a malleable source of drama and
development suitable for appearing alongside other styles of
narrative without distracting too much from them. It can take the
conflict at the centre of story and have the cast mature in the face
of this challenge and can co exist with each specific character arc
to create a complete sense of transition out of childish traits into ones
demonstrating growth. These tend to be focused around negative
internal elements like trauma which haunt the character and need to
be resolved so they can move on with their lives. What is important
to emphasise here is the idea of the growth as maturity must be
pushed by the game, either explicitly through text or implicitly
through the character’s place in the world, just overcoming the
negative aspect is not enough in of itself to be considered Coming Of
Age. However, it is exactly this slight overlap with other genres
which allow it to be so freely used within a complimentary context to
those same genres. Little Busters encapsulates this approach to
Coming Of Age drama as it entangles this journey to maturity with a
variety of different narrative threads. For the majority of the game
it stays in the background of the thematic mixture so the romance and
supernatural threads can be the focus yet still contextualises those
as steps towards a growth in overcoming trauma. This continuity
of its underlying presentation makes the shift into it being the core
message during the finale a natural one where the revelations about
reality and its sadness are contrasted against the cast’s known
ability to grow beyond it. So as they move into a maturity they
previously lacked there is a strong sense of catharsis where the
title’s conclusion becomes a final release for a quiet build up and
it is a powerful emotional moment to end on.
 |
| His age should not be the reason he accepts... |
The Melancholy Of Growing Up
Growing
up is not all sunshine and rainbows, some aspects of childhood and
innocence are forever lost in the transition and, no matter how much
the person might want to recapture them, they can never truly be
restored in quite the same way. For visual novels this manifests in a
sense of melancholy at this transition into maturity where the lost
is dwelled upon for dramatic effect and the cast wrestle with its
passing. How these emotions all play out varies wildly from game to
game since melancholy is an extremely vague feeling being anything
from the partner for depression to a loose acceptance of change. Its
shifting nature makes it unsuitable to be the main thematic push so
it often ends up forming the underlying tone present through each
step along the Coming Of Age journey. Despite this position in the
narrative structure, its use is limited by the emotional state it
invokes not always being compatible with the kind of stories told
alongside this genre due to the more positive spin on growing up they
aim towards. While melancholy might not be immediately negative,
there is a connection with dwelling in the past and loss which forces an
introspection on maturity and demands a slower pace for it to have
its desired impact. Kimi ga Nozomu Eien demonstrates this use of
Coming Of Age drama through the way it ties into the romantic
progression. It focuses on the characters’ loss of innocence due to
the gaining of responsibilities both to themselves and to the one
they love. There is juxtaposition between the childishness of their
love triangle and the realities of relationships where it plays out the drama to its extremes through this transition and its consequences.
The game continuously rubs in this melancholy into the wound to fully
immerse the player in the vat of emotions it has concocted so it can
make the catharsis of their resolution all the more powerful.
Transitioning out of these darker feelings is key to their success
since they are never entirely escaped, but merely something to be
pushed beyond as the characters move into maturity.
 |
| One birthday closer to the inevitable march of adulthood |
Conclusion
Utilising
the genre of Coming Of Age can be a surprisingly flexible process
which reflect the vastly different experiences people face in their
journey into maturity. The transition into adulthood due to age is
the most common way to use this idea since it is an easy to
understand experience the player can be expected to be familiar with.
Growing up may not be a universally positive process for the cast so a
title may choose to focus on the melancholy from a loss of innocence
and freedom as a means of creating an emotional tone. Maturity is not
necessarily a quality inherent to a certain age which means titles can frame their narratives within the context of personal
maturity in order for a more flexible application. Tying all of these
versions of the Coming Of Age genre together is the idea of
transition and growth so its appeal to developers as a means of
expressing a character arc is the foundations of its use in visual
novels.
DRACU-RIOT! In-Depth Analysis (SPOILERS) – Yuzusoft, Slop And Audience Expectations
Where Does 'Worth' Begin and End?
It
has been a long time since I have felt the need to do an expanded
examination of a visual novel I have reviewed. However, there is a
surprising amount to be said about Dracu-Riot and Yuzusoft in general
and, coupled with my general enjoyment, it has led to me ruminating on the
game far more than I would have otherwise. Particularly the idea I
have encountered among the title's audience viewing Yuzusoft’s work as ‘slop’.
To me this seems strange given the clear effort involved in making
those titles and how they are put together with a great deal of
intention in order to achieve the genre’s expectations while still
standing out in their own right.
So
in order to full appreciate the complexities and issues surrounding
Drau-Riot we will be going through its entire narrative structure
from the Common Route to Nicola’s Sub-heroine route. Then the
overarching points which are common to the whole game will be picked
apart to reveal how all these routes are drawn together. Spoilers
will be constant and extensive so be warned. In addition it is
assumed you have read my original review here for my
broader thoughts and opinions on Drau-Riot. Now let’s dissect this
undead corpse and understand its workings.
Protecting Romance – Narrative Analysis
-Common route-
In
terms of Yuzusoft’s common routes, this one might be their smoothest
and most consistent in terms of the natural feeling heroine
interactions and escalating conflict. Rather than having segregated
sections for each heroine, they are instead given a time to shine
within the group dynamics of the dorm cast where they endear
themselves to the player through an organic set of interactions with
Yuuto and co. Given the importance of the dorm group to later
character moments and the overall themes of the game a
lot of effort is put into setting up the baseline for future
developments which it does with a deft hand and does not draw too
much attention to itself.
Slowly escalating the stakes throughout the
common route is the vampire drug case which brilliantly adds enough
tension for a climax at the end of the common route which is big
enough to be exciting but minor enough to be easily eclipsed by the
conflicts in the routes. This is a lesson they would apparently
forget in Senren Banka and Angelic☆Chaos RE-BOOT! with both having
an action set piece whose stakes are far above anything in their
respective routes so harming their ability to properly present
greater or more personal threats in their stories. Once you have
reached life or death as the stakes for your story everything else
seems more minor by comparison since the threat of death is the
ultimate danger. Dracu-Riot’s common route also manages intrigue
well through dangling plot threads surrounding Yuuto’s lycanthrope
powers and their origin. They are touched upon but left to the
individual routes to develop creating a great sense of continuity and
flow into each route. This opening provide a strong foundation and
the rest of the game builds up one aspect or another introduced
here making it the perfect encapsulation of the broader experience
the player can expect from the title.
-Miu’s Route-
Miu
is obviously the main heroine of Dracu-Riot, she is the first one
Yuuto meets and gets the most screen time even outside of her own
route leading to her being front and centre of the player’s mind
for most of the game. What makes this interesting is how it has
affected her route since it acts as a grand finale for the cast and
story where all get a chance to shine and be resolved as they
face the greatest threat posed to them by any conflict. This is to the
point that her route should probably have been locked behind the
completion of all the others since there are so many references to them. If a player chooses Miu first they will not
appreciate these nods and satisfying resolutions and at worst they
may even be spoiled about what to expect from other characters. The
biggest example of this being Anna’s behaviour towards Sayo since
it reveals her self martyring nature that Mera’s route relies on
for a big emotional moment so playing Miu’s route beforehand
somewhat undermines it.
Insecurities
are the name of the game for Miu’s route with the main hurdle the
pair must overcome being the whispering voices of doubt in their own
head. These inner demons stick around just enough to make the act of
overcoming them meaningful and in doing so side step the possibility
of the player getting frustrated with how self inflected their
problems can be. Transforming Miu’s blushing pretensions of
adulthood into a genuine maturity makes for an endearing arc since it
satisfying to see her come to understand that the allure she aspires
to have is more than just crude references to sex. The element of
possessiveness and aggressiveness in Miu which the relationship brings to
the front compliments this journey as it maintains a sense of her
as a flawed person while shifting the humour to focus around it
rather than her old weakness to teasing.
It also helps that Miu and
Yuuto have some of the most consistently amusing banter in this route
which really sells the back and forth nature of their relationship as
they constantly outplay each other. If there is any problem with this
approach it is in the lack of connection to the main themes of
Dracu-Riot, hence why the route leans into aspects of other routes
and a dramatic finale to try and bridge the gap. The attack on the
island has nothing to do with the pair’s love nor has any personal
connection to them and only works when framed through the rest of the game it
references. Even its defining moment where the vampires and humans
come together to save Yuuto and a child from a collapsed building is
about the character of the people on the island rather than Miu or
Yuuto themselves. Ultimately this division is unlikely to be noticed
since the game flows from one to the other smoothly and the
excitement will overcome any lack of cohesion.
-Rio’s Route-
If
there is one thing Rio’s route highlights about Dracu-Riot it is
the vague nature of the lycanthrope and games complete aversion to
providing details of anything not happening on the island. The big
reveal of this route is the existence of artificial lycanthropes and
the fact Rio and Yuuto are both the result of these experiments. This
seems to exist to explain why Yuuto has multiple powers despite never
having eaten another vampire while providing a nice bit of tension
when people start to come after the two of them in pursuit of this
power. However, nothing about this experiment and the narrative
issues it brings up are ever really explained. For example, why don’t
either of them remember being experimented on and why would they just
be abandoned without any monitoring after the project was ended? Why
did Rio awaken as a vampire without any stimulus while Yuuto had to
drink vampire blood? Were Rio and Yuuto the only test subjects or
were there more? There are many more questions like this which the
game just glosses over when it should have taken more time to examine
them given the prominence it gave to a major re-contextualisation to
Yuuto’s life. Yet these are all characterised by not being about or
related to the island so they are discarded by the side of the road.
As
for the rest of the route, Rio’s innocence and her maternal streak
are capitalised on for great effect as she grows into understanding
just how valuable her supporting role is to the people around her.
Playing off her friendship with Elina was one of the smartest choices
this route makes since they are at opposite ends of the innocence
spectrum and constantly talk passed each other for comic effect. Yet
it in the sincere way Elina pushes Rio to be more aggressive in her
feelings for Yuuto that reinforces the sense Elina cares about Rio’s
happiness even if she also wants to tease them. The handling
of Rio discovering she is a lycanthrope is combined with an
escalation in the action as a bounty is put on her and Yuuto’s heads in order to create the most effective confirmation of love in the
entire game. It mixes Yuuto’s frantic searching for Rio with Rio’s
own increasing spiral downwards and leads them into a positive
overflowing of emotion between the pair as they both find acceptance
in their common condition.
This should have probably been the end of
the route since the narrative after this point runs into a few
hiccups. First of these is Ougi being used as a straight villain who
is spouting uninspired evil lines which sit directly opposed to the
sympathetic view the other routes give to him. He also does not
really fit in with the theming and character arcs of this route
and instead feels as if he was crammed in here because the developers
thought they needed another action scene. Secondly there is a new
revelation that lycanthropes can turn vampires back into humans. This
should be a world shattering reveal since it offers a way for any
vampire to become a human and this creates a lot of possible issues
for the power balance between vampires and humans. Except this reveal
is actually just an excuse for Yuuto and Rio to share their memories
and not have to deal with the existence of two lycanthropes running
free. However, the memory sharing and its romantic outcome are a
strong note to end on and I cannot deny the way it completed their
arc is satisfying.
-Mera’s Route-
Dracu-Riot’s
world building and its integration into its story is at its best in
Mera’s route since it is willing to address the issues surrounding
vampire society and does not try to shy away from the grey nature of those
involved. As the only human in the dorm group, Mera is the embodiment
of the ideal relationship between vampires and humans since she sees
them as her equals and cares about them. Her struggles with the
undocumented vampires where she tries to her best to protect and help
people in a situation not their fault and rubs up against the
structures which see them as sub human. This clash between her ideals
of equality and what she can realistically achieve form the backbone
of her arc as she becomes more capable and willing to take a stand
for what she believes in. The relationship between her and Yuuto also
plays into this dynamic as they find their comfort zone to become a
walking example of this ideal. The fact Yuuto overcomes his vampiric
temptations to be with the one he loves nicely ties into this bond
being romantic rather than lustful.
What makes this all come together
is the route’s willingness to explore the way old wounds, ways and
grudges cannot be easily forgotten and it will take a long time for
them to truly fade away. Even after Mera and Yuuto’s victory things
are not magically better for everyone, the Hunters still hate
vampires and the vampires are still suspicious of humans, but the
first step has been taken by the pair towards the future they
envision. This small hope ends up feeling more powerful than the
grand coming together of vampires and humans in Miu’s route since
it captures the reality of our own world and how change comes about.
Positioning Anna as the antagonist of this route and highlighting her
self martyring nature allows her to be a foil to Mera by being the
jaded old guard to her youthful idealism. That said the contrivance
to make Anna related to Mera was a bit too much since it felt like
the game shouting this contrast at you especially since she dies at
the end further push this idea. Another knock against the story is
the one dimensional nature of the Hunters who are just violent racists and nothing else which makes it hard to believe Mera grew up
connected to them. Some more nuance to their motivations, in
particular for Kaede, would have gone a long way to making the human
side of the conflict feel more justifiable rather than simply hate
fuelled.
-Nicola’s Route-
Since
I already explained the issues with Nicola and her sub-heroine route
in my review I will try to cover a few different points here so as
not to repeat myself. These mainly centre around Nicola’s
grandfather who acts as the route’s main antagonist. His appearance
in the story as well as the conflict and its resolution are abrupt
and quickly move from one stage to another at an unnatural pace. Too
much of his identity seems to have come about from a need to make him
comedic rather than from his role as the test of the Nicola and
Yuuto’s love and so the scenes with him in lack the needed tension
for them overcoming him to have catharsis. Yet it is the very nature
of his existence which poses the biggest problem to the overall
narrative of Dracu-Riot, he is a vampire who has extended his life by
transferring his consciousness into animals. This opens a strange can
of worms concerning the nature of the vampire virus, can animals also
be infected with it? If he can transfer his consciousness does that
mean he knows what consciousness is and its location in the body?
Does being in an animal body not substantially alter his perception
of the world? Obviously the game does not want you to think about
these holes hence why he is a comedic character so the player will
not take him seriously. However, as you might have noticed by now
such holes are a common feature of Dracu-Riot’s storytelling.
-Elina’s Route-
Elina
might be my favourite character which is interesting given her route
is by far the most self-contained one with its conflicts and
characters only existing inside of it. As a result it has a greater
sense of focus then the other routes, the romance and
everything exists in service of showcasing the pair's bond rather than the
overarching themes of Dracu-Riot. This is mostly to its benefit with
Elina and Yuuto’s relationship being adorable and giving enough
space to fully explore the push and pull of Elina’s extrovert
personality against her deep seated insecurities about abandonment.
It is also nice to have the female character be the one with the
dangerous and controllable desire and the male being on the receiving
end as it flips the dynamics of their relationship on its head while
tying into Elina’s fears. Elina’s route is well thought out with
a lot of effort being put into creating situations where the couple’s
future is at stake rather than pointing some simple danger at them.
The Russians exemplify this technique since even if they are defeated
now they will never leave Yuuto alone so threatening his future with
Elina rather than just being an enemy to be battled than forgotten
about. Having the Russians use the police is a great little flipping
on the head of Yuuto’s normal status as someone working to assist
the police making for a nice thriller atmosphere in their pursuit of
him. In its totality this is the most singular and focused route
about two people in love and is paced to perfection, but its
detechment from the rest of the game will make it feel vestigial to
player’s more invested in the connectivity offered by the other
routes.
Genre Above All – Stray Thoughts
-Vampire Virus – Science VS. Magic-
Having
the origin of vampirism be a virus is a source of problems for
Dracu-Riot’s world building since the player is going to have at
least a passing understanding of how viruses function so not
meeting this expectation is distracting. The reason for this choice
is clearly to ground the title in its present day setting by
providing a modern explanation for vampires while also justifying why
Yuuto has to constantly be going to hospital. For the most part this
choice works as an explanation due to how most vampires and their
powers stick within a relatively reasonable range to the framework
established in the game’s opening hours. Where it starts to crumble
in the many expansions to this core which go beyond its simple
outline. These are things like the transfer of consciousness into
animals, the ability to absorb memories through drinking blood or the
non-physical related powers like telekinesis. What do these extremes
all have in common? They are all effectively magic and the player
subconsciously picks up on this shifting to the more extreme end of
fantasy and feels a dissonance between the pseudo-science explanation
from before. Since the developers clearly want vampires to be
mailable to whatever the narrative needed them to be, letting them
just have a vague magical nature would side step this issue through
correctly setting the player’s expectations. It also does not
entirely exclude the idea of scientific study if they wanted to
maintain the reason for Yuuto’s visits to hospital.
-Vampires As A Race Allegory-
Throughout
Dracu-Riot vampires are grouped together under the idea of them as a
‘race’. This is clearly intentional given the various parallels
to discrimination against real world racial group from a racially charged term of discrimination in ‘sucker’ to the difficulty in
find property due to landlords not wanting vampires in their as tenants to a vampire’s signature hold no legal weight and so needing a
human to sign their documents. The messaging around this use of race
is to highlight the negative impact of discrimination and the harm it
does not other people who are just the same at their core. It is
broadly successful at keeping this theme from feeling too preachy or
familiar and Mera’s route showcases a surprisingly nuanced take on the mutual damage and entrenching of preconceptions this racism has done
to both vampires and humans.
Issues with vampires as a race only
start to raise their head when it comes to their status as
supernatural beings. The idea of the vampires as 'diseased' and the
existence of a vaccine which can prevent a human turning into a
vampire has unfortunate parallels to real life rhetoric against
minorities. Add to this the fact the vampires are a genuine threat to
humans due to their powers and they need/want to feed on
humans creates a justification of human discrimination while also
echoing the ideas of race politics, such as them being a ‘parasite’ or
‘diseased’ and as a threat due to their divided loyalties, used
throughout history. Nothing among these problematic connections is
intentional on the part of Yuzusoft, but rather it stems from a
somewhat haphazard approach to their theming. They want a narrative
line about discrimination to add texture to the conflicts yet want it
to play second fiddle to the romance and action hence why it meshes
poorly with elements deemed more important for the story it wants to
tell. Obviously Dracu-Riot is not a treatise on racism but rather a
simple parable so a complex examination was never going to be
something it was capable of. Instead what should be taken away from
this observation is how hard it is to cover the nature of racism in a
fictional setting especially if you draw parallels to the real world
since the player will naturally look for other similar examples
whether these be intended or not.
-Gambling And The Sex Industry-
Another
interesting quality of Dracu-Riot’s writing is its somewhat
uncomfortable relationship with Brothels and Casinos which
characterise its setting. These two industries are the core economic
pillars the vampire island is built on yet you could be forgiven for
forgetting this fact given how minor their presence is from start to
finish. Gambling gets the somewhat larger presence since both Elina
and Nicola working at a casino and it is occasional used as a backdrop
for certain action scenes or dramatic build up. Even here none of the
characters engage in gambling for money themselves outside of one
instance where it is justified as an undercover operation to catch a
criminal so absolving them of any negative connections with the act.
This odd tiptoeing around the Casinos' existence is likely born of the
strict controls Japan has on its gambling and Yuzusoft not wanting to
be seen as endorsing it while also wanting use its taboo and alluring
nature to their advantage.
The sex industry fairs far worse with the
only notable interactions with it being the confiscation of illegal
pornography which was smuggled in and the opening joke about Yuuto’s
friend want to lose is virginity at a brothel. At no point does any
character actually go anywhere near these brothels despite the fact
we are told they are a major part of the islands financial income so
must occupy a lot of space yet is somehow completely invisible within
the narrative. If it were not immediately obvious, the reason for
this absence is how brothels do not fit into the idea of pure romance
pushed by Dracu-Riot. For the game the act of sex is a manifestation
of love between two partners and expresses their bond in the most
physical and intimate manner possible. A brothel would complicate
this idea of sex by adding in an element of sex being something
transnational which commodifies it and stands in opposition to sex
being a sacred act of love. There is a good reason Yuuto declines any
attempt to get him to go to a brothel and he always follows this
rejection up with a comment about wanting his first time to be with
someone he loves. This puts the brothels in a strange position where
they exist for the sack of making the island more seedy and
mysterious yet they cannot actually appear on screen so leave the
heavy lifting to the casinos.
-‘Yuzuslop’-
When
talking to someone about the works of Yuzusoft, the phrase ‘Yuzuslop’
or something with a similar sentiment often emerges. It can be meant endearingly
but nonetheless reveals how their audience sees their output. But why
do they view it this way? When boiled down the issue can traced to
two points, the similarity of their output and the nature of the
Slice of Life Romance genre. All Yuzusoft games share a core identity
based around their brand of light and pure romance and differentiate
themselves through their unique gimmicks be this vampires, spies or
shinigami. This brand of story born from their style of writing is
immediately recognisable to the player from the first scene and
communicates they are in good hands. Having a feeling of familiarity
can be exactly what attracts a player to Yuzusoft’s work, they want
a comfortable experience with just enough new to keep it from
becoming too predictable and for many Yuzusoft give them exactly what
they want. However, this is a double edged sword and familiarity and
predictable are the parents of contempt and form the underlying idea
of a Yuzusoft game as ‘low effort’ or ‘unimaginative’.
The
studio is walking a fine line between appealing to their audience and
losing them due to a lack of new and exciting ideas, hence why they
are so insistent on gimmicks even if it results in strange narrative
problems. Anything but being thought of as producing the same game
over and over again. Then the issue of genre expectation for slice of
life romances rears its head, the conventions and tropes of the genre
have become a set of expectations most titles in the genre choose to
adhere to as part of their appeal and Yuzusoft is not exception. Yet
utilising them brings their games closer in form to the homogenised
lump of the genre fiction and risks becoming lost in the sea of other
similar titles vying for attention. The aforementioned gimmicks are
the main way this is tackled, but even they cannot entirely wash away
the association with mediocrity brought from this connection with the
largest and most saturated visual novel genre. At every turn Yuzusoft has
to fight this two front war against the genre they have chosen and
their success should be a demonstration of their abilities even in
the face of being labelled as ‘slop’.
Conclusion
If
there is one thing you should take away from this article through
both its criticism and praise, it is the intent and effort behind
everything in Dracu-Riot and by extension all of Yuzusoft’s work.
This is far from some low effort ‘slop’ but instead a title
crafted by developers who clearly love the genre while understanding
the chains of audience expectation which come with it. Despite not
having ambitions to be high art, there is still value in what it
offers since a well made example of a genre played straight is
surprisingly difficult to pull off without leaning too heavily into
cliché and mediocrity. Bring joy through a comfortable atmosphere
and pure romance is a skill worth recognising and not dismissing as
‘slop’.
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