Sousaku Kanojo no Ren'ai Koushiki In-Depth Analysis (Spoilers) – The Suffering Artist and Depictions of Creatives In Fiction
Idealisation And Ego
Sousaku
Kanojo is fascinating for how it steps on every rake in the shed of
rakes which is depicting creatives in fiction. It is such a
prime example of the issues inherent in dealing with this topic that I
cannot help but want to pick it apart in more detail. So here we are,
a long form look at the game where I can
showcase the many dangers awaiting developers when they stray into
these waters. In doing this I hope to understand why this kind of
story ends up being so hard to get right.
This
is not to say Sousaku Kanojo is a bad game since, as I covered in my
review here, it has some strong characters and great emotional
moments. However, there is a constant feeling of this being a title pulled in two directions, its love for creatives and the need
for romance. It makes no attempt to hide which half it actual cares
about. Spoilers will be constant and unfiltered so you have been
warned. Now let’s unveil this plague of geniuses and see what ails
them.
Toxic Love- Narrative Analysis
-Common Route-
The
problems with the game’s fixation on creatives are strangely absent
in the common route with its focus being on the struggles undergone by the cast to continue their craft. Many of my praises for the game
overall were aimed at this section and its long length cements it
within the memory. Yet in hindsight the overuse of major character
events in the common route should have been a clue to the eventual
weakness of the heroine routes. The use of Kiriha’s conflict with
her parents so early on was an odd choice give how central its
resolution is to her character arc. It is revisited during her route,
but the impact has been lost since this is the second time it has
been used and the player is familiar with the emotions involved.
Saving this conflict for her route would have made more sense since
it would have been a perfect compliment to the routes overall ideas
rather than relying on the contrived problems.
Yumemi has a similar issue in the use of her conflict with Yuina being spent really early rather than being slowly built towards a
climax in her route. Once again the game has to lean on a contrivance
to create conflict in her route rather than using the perfectly good
source it has pre-emptively utilised when it could have been saved.
Both of these sections are well put together and compliment the core
emotional direction of the common route and its wide character
spread. Yet if they where relocated to their respective routes it
could have provided a more concise experience while lending
believable narrative beats to a wider spread of the game.
-Kiriha Route-
Of
all the routes living in Aisa’s shadow, Kiriha’s route is one of
the only ones to mostly come out unscathed from the many issues which
plague the others. Part of this is the way the romance is handled
with Kiriha’s being pulled in two directions, one by her future
career prospects and another by her feelings for Toshiki. It is fun
to see her struggle with these emotions just as Toshiki is also doing and this leads to a suitably dramatic confession between a pair of
characters who cannot be honest with their own feelings.
Unfortunately since the narrative has already used the conflict with
Kiriha’s parents it is left with only one way to escalate the
stakes which is to have their relationship being discovered and this is a little too
predictable an event. This also extends to Toshiki getting attacked
by the rabid fan since it is signalled too well for it to have the
punch the game wanted it to have. Toshiki gets over being stabbed
really quickly and the game spends no time dealing with the effects and recovery from being stabbed so he just gets over it off
screen in a disappointing manner. Instead the focus is on Kiriha’s
lost voice which, given how much her life is centred around it, is
appropriate, but the whole situation feels a little contrived
(although nowhere near as much as some elements in other routes). Having
Toshiki write a story so person to him and Kiriha that it gets
through to her and breaks the trauma is a cute way to end things and
fits the nature of the pair’s relationship.
-Erena Route-
This
route suffers from the problem of the common route taking all the
major conflicts in a different way to the others. Rather than
choosing a weaker plot point for its arc, it instead repeats the arc
about Toshiki’s feelings of inferiority towards COLORLESS just
passed through the lens of their new romance. As a result there is a strong sense of deja-vu throughout this route since the pair’s
relationship adds just enough for story to feel different but still
feels like something the player has already witness. In addition, it
runs afoul of another recurring issue of Sousaku Kanojo, the player
barely gets to see any of the writers’ actual work. What this means
is that they are constantly told by the cast how amazing COLORLESS’
and Toshiki’s work is but are never shown so it all comes across as
very hollow. There is nothing to back up these compliments, like a
fighter telling you how powerful they are without showing anything,
so Toshiki’s feelings of inferiority feel misplaced from the
player’s perspective and it is difficult to empathise with his struggles against them. However, the vastly different views of Erena
and Toshiki’s about what is important creates some great emotional
moments where they are just talking passed each other with no common
ground. Seeing the pair slowly try and reconcile these difference is
a nice climax to their messy relationship while putting a bow on
their feelings.
-Yumemi Route-
Yumemi
has by far the most messy route with a wide range of issues.
Initially all seems fine, her struggles with her feelings for Toshiki
and the way she wildly bounces around between the methods she uses to
hide them are amusing to watch. It make the moment the pair become a
couple a point of meaningful catharsis for the player since her
internal conflict was so apparent. Then she just forgets how to draw,
not forgets how to draw well, just forgets how to draw full stop.
Somehow she has become completely incapable of drawing even on a
technical level which is just the most ridiculously forced conflict
in the entire game. Even a person suffering from a creative block can
still produce something regardless of whether it is good or not, but
just forgetting is absurd especially when she gets it all back later even
faster. This is a plot contrivance plain and simple, one so obvious
it is difficult to suspend your disbelief.
Yet it gets worse when
Toshiki’s obsession with creatives rears its ugly head and results
in the pairs continued relationship being predicated on Yumemi
remaining a creative since this is the version of her he is in love
with. Despite the game’s efforts to frame this as a positive, since
it allows Yumemi to get her drawing skills back, it is clearly a
toxic relationship which could collapse at any moment. The question
should be put to Toshiki if he is real in love with Yumemi or just
the idea of her as a creator with the latter being an unhealthy way
to build a romance. A small tangent, but why did the game bring up
the fact she dyes her hair blonde? It creates this weird issue with
her sister who appears to have naturally blonde hair since she is
shown to have it even from a young age in flashbacks. This means the
pair have different natural hair colours so they might have
different parents yet this is never brought up again nor explained
even with a dismissive comment. It feels like this was meant to be a
plot point in an earlier version of the script but it did not make
the cut so this weird fact is just left hanging there without
resolution.
-Aisa Route-
Now
we reach the main heroine and the person who casts a long shadow over
the entire of Sousaku Kanojo. It is a route characterised by good
ideas which end up botched in execution. First among these is Aisa’s
illness, it is a magical nonsense illness, we are never given any
specifics about it other than it is killing her and it otherwise does
not effect her life unless the plot demands it or she is off screen.
This immediately set the tone of contrivance which stays with the
story until its end since the illness is clearly a plot device rather
than something grounded in any form of reality. If it were not such a
central element to her character it could be brushed aside, but under
the condition it is constantly shoved in the player’s face to
try and buy sympathy. This attempt is undermined even more by the
existence of a treatment for her condition which she refuses to
undergo for no reason other than because the plot demands it. Why even
bring it up if you have no intent to use it as a get out clause? All
this achieves is undermining any idea of tragedy and presents the
characters as utterly stupid while lacking any form of self
preservation.
Yet there is still some power to this tragedy and a clear
spectre of death hangs over Aisa and Toshiki’s remaining time
together. The struggles of their love and the determination to be
together despite this promise of doom provide an emotional weight to
their actions and it has the player rooting for them. It is also the
route with the most broad character resolutions with all the heroines
getting their time to wrap up their feelings and even the secondary
cast gets their moments to shine. As the end approaches Aisa’s
gradual collapse heightens the tragedy and pushes the narrative
towards a natural climax as the pair rush to complete the story they
are writing together. However, the ending is so short and abrupt as
to completely take the player out of the experience since it lacks
the necessary sense of resolution and is extremely unclear at times.
It is almost as if the developers lost interest the moment Aisa died
and wanted to get the whole thing over with as fast as possible.
Then
there is the way her survival is framed as the ‘bad’ ending among
the route epilogues. Throughout this section it constantly pushes the
idea that her death in the main game was the best outcome possible.
However, it does not make a convincing argument when this surviving
version of Aisa, completed the game they were writing, survived the
operation and then found a new reason to create again. If anything it
seems like this is a completely perfect ending yet the player can
feel the game's constant dismissal of this fact. This is because the game
puts the ideal of the suffering artist on a pedestal and Aisa’s
death is the ultimate sacrifice for her art and it is lessened by her
survival. I should not have to point out how absolutely absurd this
notion is, but I will do so anyway later on in this article since it
plays into the game’s overall fixation of creatives. In many ways
Toshiki is the developer’s stand in during this route and it does not create a pretty
picture of them.
Suffering As Virtue – Stray Thoughts
-The Lie of Genius-
At
every turn the idea of geniuses is presented to the player and these
people are placed at a level unattainable by mere mortals with
abilities which just magically produce wonders. This is a fairly
standard narrative pushed by media and society with countless
examples of it to be found throughout our culture. However, it is a
complete farce. Point to any so called genius and you will find that
they had to work long and hard to achieve what they did. This
‘magical’ power they have is merely the result of an intense
human endeavour built upon the knowledge and skills of those who came
before. Certainly some people have a natural talent or spark for
certain areas which make this easier for them, yet they too much put
in the effort in order to achieve anything. Should they just lounge
around then they will not have the world handed to them on a platter,
just like everyone else.
It is this truth which Sousaku Kanojo
struggles to balance with its fascination with the myth of genius.
All the heroines to one extent or another fit into the game’s
interest in the genius. Aisa and Erena pull best selling stories out
of the aether with little to no effort and Yumemi creates
professional level artwork without much in the way of training. It is
with Kiriha where the game somewhat acknowledge the effort which goes
into her craft and the cut-throat world of the VA industry. This is
also why it makes an effort to segregate her from the other heroines
as much as possible to avoid comparisons between them. The narrative
uses Toshiki as the everyman stand in and makes it a point to
constantly highlight how inferior he is to the geniuses, in
particular COLORLESS, to the point it often comes across as funny
since he seems so desperate to compare himself to others just to feel
this inferiority. When the geniuses demonstrate their skills it is
done with an almost magical reverence where it pushes aside any
thought about the practical nature of the work being done and instead
wraps it in mysticism. Overall, it is just feels strange and
disconnected with reality in a story meant to be set in our present
day world.
-Creatives Writing About Creatives-
As
I mentioned in my review Sousaku Kanojo suffers from the standard set
of problems which appear when creatives create stories about
creators. These being a general self congratulatory tone and putting
their craft on a pedestal. In particular the value of the creative is
tied up with the idea of the game or book or artwork touching the
hearts of many people and presenting this as something of inherently
great worth. Part of this is just an inevitability born from how the
need for drama in a narrative pushes it to make sweeping statements
and attribute value so it can have stakes and make the cast appear to
be striving towards a worthwhile goal. This is mostly the case for
Sousaku Kanojo’s failings on this front, it is caught between the
developer’s own need for self value and the story’s need to be
engaging.
However, let us interrogate the notion accidentally put
forward by this game and see what we can extract from it. The assign
of importance to the number of people who feel something for a
cultural product is not without real world comparisons. Throughout
history there have been countless such works which has shaped the
cultural context of their times and even ours for certain extremely
special titles. As such it is easy to see the line of logic a
creative which might them to feeling their craft possesses a major role in the shaping
of the world. Yet how many works have been created over the course of
our life times? Far more than any one person will ever experience and
the majority of them will be forgotten if they are even remembered in the
first place. These form the majority of creative endeavours and do
not have an impact. It is into this camp which the works of Sousaku
Kanojo fit so the question must be asked if they have worth despite
the fact they will be washed away. Of course the answer is yes, but
what Sousaku Kanojo does not understand is that it a less grand value
and not something to be put on a pedestal. Instead it is a broader
enrichment of the lives of those the works touch in combination with the
rest of its medium rather than in isolation or competition. The real
world is a complex painting made of different strokes which come
together to form the value of this endeavour.
-The Main Heroine And The Suffering Artist-
Having
a main heroine is a common feature in visual novels and especially so
in more plot focused ones. Many end up with a similar problem of them overshadowing the rest of the cast as is found in Sousaku Kanojo, but few end up
with quite the same level of messy execution when trying to
capitalise on it. This stems from the game’s fixation on framing
Aisa through the idealised lens of the suffering artist. In a similar
vein to its interest in geniuses, it puts forwards this idea of those
who suffer for their craft as being able to produce uniquely powerful
works. However, when thought about in any depth or when bringing in
real world examples it starts to crumble given the people involved
would have much rather not have suffered and were capable of
producing excellent art even if they were not in constant misery.
Aisa is not a real person so can be contorted into the form of a
suffering artist without much effort due to the illness she has been
given by the developers. In this light it is understandable for
someone to strive to leave something of meaning behind in the face of
their own death. Yet as mentioned earlier, it constantly undermines
this seemly cut and dry outline first through the existence of a
possible cure and secondly through an epilogue where she survives.
Why do either of these exist? Both actively weaken the premise of her
as a suffering artist by pointing out how her continued suffering is
at her own hands or through placing her death on a twisted pedestal.
If they had merely made her death an inevitability and a final note
with any epilogue being focused on those who were left behind then
this would have been a fairly clean narrative. In both case of
undermining the clean story they push the suffering artist ideal by
having her choose the suffering to give her art meaning and being an
empty vessel without the suffering to drive her. There is also a
flippant attitude towards those who are either want her to survive or
are happy that she lived. It is treated as if they do not
understand the value of what Aisa is doing and her role as a
suffering artist rather than the people in her life who actually care
about her well-being. Ultimately by pushing this suffering artist
angle they miss the very human story of Aisa’s suffering and the
potential for a meaningful impact to be left on the player.
Conclusion
Despite
what I have said over the course of this analysis, my opinion of
Sousaku Kanojo is fairly neutral as shown in my review of it.
Realistically not many people outside of myself are going to
understand the nuances of the game’s presentation of creatives and
instead just view it as a fairly normal romance visual novel. I have
been withholding a small piece of information which is the reason I
am so interested in the issues with Sousaku Kanojo, it won multiple
awards as the best visual novel in 2021(Moe Award Grand Prize and
Getchu’s award). The reason for this may well be the way it frames
the creation of a visual novel as a special act and the many things I
have criticised might well be viewed in a better light if this is
want the player wants to hear from it. What is also interesting is
this was the same year as Lupercalia of the Silent Accord’s
release, another title about creatives (this time actors) I have
reviewed and it got third place in the Getchu’s award.
This game could not have a more different view about geniuses and
what it means to love your craft. It too suffers
from the challenge of trying to create an engaging story about creatives
without coming across as self congratulatory to varying degrees of
success. Both have their many flaws, yet in the end it is the one
closer to standard form of visual novel structure which ends up
having the broader appeal. Does this make one better than the other?
I’ll leave that for you to judge.
Sousaku Kanojo no Ren'ai Koushiki Review – Writing Beneath Pastel Skies
Genre – Romance, Slice of Life, Drama Play Time – 20 hours Developer - Aino+Links Patch Download VNDB
Painted Upon A New Canvas
A
visual novel about those who create visual novels and other such
creative endeavours is a uniquely difficult proposition since
writing about what a developer knows often leads to extremely biased
and self congratulatory elements seeping in. Throughout its play time
Sousaku Kanojo no Ren'ai Koushiki struggles against this hurdle in
its attempts to tell the tale of a band of young creators finding
their place in the world. It is a game dominated by its long common
route which contains many of its most powerful and memorable moments during their time at an academy tailored to their
creative ambitions. The heroines are all given striking personalities
and the space to properly show them off and rub up against the rest
of the cast to promote their growth and provide some exciting drama.
Colourful and varied designs for locations and characters define how
the player will experience the highs and lows of the characters’
journeys as spring turns to summer and the march of time pushes them
forwards. However, this is a game of two halves and once the common
route is over it never reaches the same level of narrative quality
and many of the smaller issues begin to pile together and make new larger problems. Focusing around the idea of creatives and the
effect their passion has on their lives ends up meshing poorly with
the standard romantic and tragic ideas each routes bring up and it
results in some very messy theming and a protagonist who becomes
increasingly toxic in their relationships. Is this clash enough to
sour what starts out as amazing experience? Let’s pick up our pens
and find out.
Writer’s Block – Narrative and Themes
Impactful
emotional moments define much of Sousaku Kanojo play time with it
regularly moving from one to another at a quick pace while
alternating between which character is in the crosshairs. This
oscillation between dramatic developments and their build up is at
its strongest during the common route where it draws the main cast
together in order to support the focus heroine. Feeding into this feeling
is the way each of these big moments builds upon each other as a slow
ramping up of the individual character arcs while paying of hints left
from earlier points in the story. The overall plot has a somewhat
modular nature in that it has its sections solely focus on one
heroine at a time before moving on to another until it eventually
comes full circle back to the ones it started with. What this means
in practice is each character gets to stand on their own merits
rather than having to share screen time with other developments and
it lends the game an emotional clarity about what the player should
be invested in at any one time. Yet the rest of the cast is never
entirely gone either, they nicely slip into a supportive role to be a
constant remainder of the promises of drama their respective arcs
will offer in future. Since so much time is spent with a relatively
small cast the game gets to present their growth, both as people and
as creators, in a gradual fashion. Slowly they express their
flaws and immaturity and have them be sharpened into strengths which
can be invoked in the dramatic climaxes to sell their arcs as
complete and provide a sense of earned catharsis.
 |
| Hmmm... I wonder who the main heroine is... |
Despite
the common route having some of the game’s strongest moments, it
constitutes about half of its play time and so perhaps inevitably it
ends up feeling long and meandering at times. There is a lack of any
overall direction for most of it until in the latter sections where
the group comes together to make their game. Having so many big
emotional points of the heroines’ character arcs be located in the
common route means their actual routes are left without a lot of
material to work with and this can be felt in the somewhat contrived
nature of the plot points they choose to focus on. They lack the easy
pillars to fall back on since they have already been used up and this
has to be written around leading to weaker feeling climaxes. However,
all of this pales in comparison to the shadow which is cast over most
of the game, Ayase Aisa or rather how obvious it is she is the main
heroine. Everyone and everything which happens lives in her shadow
since she get the focus almost all the time and even when it shifts
onto another character she still is critical to how
things resolve. Couple this with the short and anaemic nature of the
other heroine routes and it clearly marks them as ‘sub-heroines’
who are merely stepping stone to reach the real route. This hurts the
any feelings of investment the player might have in those other
heroines since the game is only interested in Aisa.
Whether
intentional or not there is an air of self congratulation to the
focus on creatives and their struggles. It puts their struggles on a
pedestal as something to be admired and uniquely theirs which normal
people cannot understand. Some of this is due to the
unintentional way it interacts with the need for drama, yet it cannot
help but come across as tone deft to realities of the world around
them and how real life creatives behave and strive for their place in
it. Related to this is how all the big conflicts in the heroine
routes are all caused, and often also resolved, by some kind a vague
and ‘magical’ contrivance which is never explained properly. It is difficult to feel
the impact of an important moment when the player knows the story can
add or remove the source of the conflict on a whim just for the sake
of having a higher stakes climax. The extent to which each route is
effected by this varies quite a bit with some coming off lightly so
the impact is often tolerable. One final minor
point, early on there are lot of times where the protagonist will ogle
or become sexually aware of the heroines in a poor attempt at
creating teenage sexual tension. Instead it feels like a needless
objectification of the girls which clashes against its attempting to sell them to the
player as people leading to a weird tension between these two parts
of the writing. What is strange about this is the way it just
disappears after a few chapters never to be brought up again which
makes it feel like a left over from a different version of the
script.
Young Creatives – Characters
The
cast is characterised by their diverse personalities and the
friction which appears between them. Their individual goals all
strive towards some kind of creative endeavour but they are taking their own path to reach it. Each one is added to the group individually and get the space to show who they are and who they will
clash with. It leads to some colourful interactions between them
which are a delight to witness since they are all similar enough to each
other to promote a collective empathy but not so close as to be
unable to criticise the others behaviour. Tsukimizaka Kiriha is often
utilised by the story as a clashing viewpoint given the way she mixes
a jaded cynicism with a genuine love for the group. She gets to be
the voice of sense while also being her own gradually collapsing
house of cards which needs the protagonist and the heroines to step
in at times to prevent it from falling down. By contrast, Nagima
Yumemi is a far more introverted character who mostly avoids conflict
where she can yet even she ends up clashing with other characters and
growing because of it. Her desire for friendship and honesty compels
her to pursue that bond through her work and even though this does
not quite end as she expects, lending the results pack an emotional punch.
 |
| This gang are a delight to witness |
The
only place where this strong characterisation comes back to bite
Sousaku Kanojo is in the form of its protagonist Kagami Toshiki. For
the majority of the game he is a perfectly fine character who more or
less fits it with the rest of the cast. However, upon entering a
heroine route his obsession with creatives rubs up against the
romance in a way which does not paint him in a good light. He seems
only interested in the version of the heroines which is a creator and
wants them to adhere to this vision rather than accept them for who
they are beyond this one aspect. The results of this are a series of
unhealthy relationships with the heroines based on them keeping to
his vision of them and it does not leave the player with the feeling
of resolution the game seems to think it has created.
Seasonal Inspirations – Visual, Audio and Technical
From
the moment the game starts it is clear a lot of time and effort has
gone into the visual design. There is attention to
detail across the board focused on sell the believability and physicality of
the setting. This is a game set across a large span of time and the
changing seasons are reflected not only in the backgrounds but also
the characters having different uniforms and casual clothes.
Underpinning this sits the pastel and bright colours of its visual
language which led its tale of love and passion a sense of liveliness
to complement the character’s pursuits. While none of it is
groundbreaking for the genre, it cannot be overstated how much a
consistent level of quality helps keep the player’s interest and
create a smooth experience since they will be staring at it a lot
over the game’s long play time. The audio also fits into this
comfortable conformity where it perfectly serves its purpose in
context but is otherwise unremarkable and not something the player is
likely to seek out afterwards. Yet this is enough for it to sell the
emotional highs and lows of the narrative and it is in tune with the
overall identity of the work.
By contrast, the presentation of the only choices in
the game is dry and abrupt where it functional asks which route you
want at end of the common route without any build up. It also
separates out the choice for Aisa route, presents it first and locks
it until the other routes have been completed which furthers this
feeling of Aisa being the only character the developer really care
about. Even the existence of choices at all feels like an obligation
to have a variety of heroine routes rather than something the game is
passionate about. Another point of friction is found when after each and every chapter there is a full
credits sequence which gets irritating to witness given there are
quite a few chapters in this title so the player gets to see it a
lot. It comes across as self congratulatory as if each chapter was
some monumental piece of art within the medium rather than just
another section of a single game.
 |
| Behold! The Heroine Route Selector 3000! |
Conclusion
Being
so fixated on creatives and the act of creating is a double edged
sword for Sousaku Kanojo which it never quite manages to balance. Its
character based drama leads to some amazing emotional moments which
do a lot to engage the player and have them invested in the casts.
Having a vivid art direction and a wide variety of environments and
sprites crafts a charming visual language to help capture the
narrative’s biggest moments. The diverse range of personalities
supports this vision while creating many situations for them to rub
up against one another. However, there are a litany of cracks
throughout the game, from a fixation on Aisa over the rest of the cast
to the protagonist’s unhealthy obsession with creators, which
combine to deeply harm the experience. If the player can stomach
these weaker elements then what is here is a well constructed visual
novel with a high level of polish.
Verdict –
Clashing creatives and seasonal colours come together to forge a bright tale of love, writing and being true to yourself. Yet it can
never quite reconcile the individual parts of its identity into a harmony resulting in a
very uneven overall experience.
Pros -
+
Filled with impactful emotional moments where each character gets to
wonderfully express and overcome their struggles in a suitably
dramatic fashion.
+
The diverse personalities of its cast create a dynamic group who
clash as much as they complement each other.
+
High quality visuals make every scene pop with life while the
changing seasons and wardrobes provide a sense of place and
individual identity.
Cons -
-
Ayase Aisa is too clearly the main heroine to the point she
overshadows the everything else due to her constant involvement in the
narrative and the lacklustre choices offered to the player.
-
Conflicts and their solutions often end up being too much like
‘magic’ where they appear and act in whatever fashion the story
needs at that moment in a fairly blatant manner.
-
The protagonist Kagami Toshiki’s obsession with creators does not
mesh well with the romance leading to some very toxic relationships.
Best Visual Novel Releases – August 2026
As
the blazing heat of summer finally gives way to the shade of autumn,
let us look back into the dazzling sun and see what visual novel came
out under its rays. It has been a month bustling with an assortment
of amazing titles from a big name remaster to innovative indies to
the standard tales of love and all offering high quality experiences.
Let’s dive in and see what new games are worth playing and which
ones will tickle your imagination.
Official Releases
STEINS;GATE RE:BOOT
RE:BOOT
sits in a strange place, it is the third major version of Steins;Gate
to be released and ends up being a weird expansion of the second
version, Elite, while attempt to mix in some aspect of the
original. The script for RE:BOOT is largely the same as Elite’s
which means it inherits many of its problems stemming from its
simplification of the original game. What RE:BOOT brings to the table
is an expansion to this scenario and an aesthetic which leans
more into standard modern anime styling with live 2D sprites. The extra scenario is a cute addition and fun enough in its own right but it is
not substantial enough to justify purchasing the title for it alone.
Couple this with the inferior base script and it makes it difficult
to recommend RE:BOOT when the original is still easily available and
cheaper. However, if you simply did not find the previous versions
appealing and this shift in aesthetic has brought it onto your radar
then you should definitely pick it up. At its core it is still
Steins;Gate and Steins;Gate is still good so if this is the version
for you then you are still in for one of the best visual novels
around.
OVER REQUIEMZ
Nintendo Eshop VNDB Genre
– Otome, Fantasy Play Time – 50 hours
Drawing
heavily from The Wizard of Oz, OVER REQUIEMZ heavily pushes its influence through the lens of otome and ends up with a cast of handsome
murderers and a protagonist sentenced to death upon setting foot in
this world. Obviously there is more going on than meets the eye with
the fantasy element being played up as the main pillar of the mystery and
drama. Placing the protagonist in such a dangerous position allows
the game to take the story into some entertainingly dark places as
she struggles against circumstances stacked against her. Accompanying
her on this journey are this game’s suitors and they make for a
wild group of clashing personalities which become increasingly
interesting when events start spiralling out of control and they get to
show off their darker sides signalled through all those red flags the
game puts around. Overall, this is an otome aiming for intense drama and
danger over being sweet and romantic resulting in a ride which will
keep you on the edge of your seat.
The World Well: Blood of Caro
Nestled
in a world of medieval towns, vampires and technology distinguishable
from magic are two girls, one a half breed of human and vampire and
the other from the distant future. This unlikely pairing set out on a
quest to stop an ambitious tyrant before he can establish his world
spanning empire. Blood of Caro is a story defined by its impeccable
world building and delightfully flawed protagonists through their continent wide journey. The main pair’s growing relationship might
be the single strongest part of the title with their initially poor
start leading to a slow and believable bond as they lick each other’s
wounds. A constant sense of fragility is preserved over the entire
game with the pair’s position always being dramatically weaker then
their opponents and it leads to a wonderful sense of excitement and
catharsis with even their more minor success. Those looking for an
emotional and thoughtful science fantasy story with a good dose of
tension will not be disappointed by Blood of Caro.
Koikata: How Our Love Grows
Now
for something far more comfy and familiar in the form of a bright and
colour romance visual novel focused around the merge of two schools
and the feelings surrounding this process. Starting from this source of chaos,
each heroine get their own space to confront it and the
protagonist’s role in this process leads into a natural sense of
intimacy for the romance to build on. A bright and colourful
aesthetic ensures a comfortable and light hearted atmosphere
throughout where the character design gives a wide variety of easily
identifiable people for the player to engage with. While Koikata does
not reinvent the wheel, there is no doubt it understands what its
audience wants and if you are part of this group then it will hit all
the right notes.
COCORO
Another
entry in the strangely popular sub-genre of cute robot girls in a
post apocalypse setting, COCORO follows a young boy named Hinata and
his encounter with a robot girl, the titular Cocoro, who dreams of
marriage. The game proudly boasts about being written by Asta Konno
of ATRI -My Dear Moments- fame and this is something the player will
feel throughout as it shares many of the same thematic and narrative
quirks. However, it takes them in its own direction leveraging its
setting to probe the character’s motives and internal conflicts in
a suitably heart wrenching manner. Those looking for a title which
packs a powerful emotional punch cannot go wrong with COCORO.
Sovereign Tower
After
being made the sovereign of a magical tower which only they were
capable of unlocking, the player is tasked with managing a round
table of excentric knights with each of them bringing their own brand
of chaos. There is a strong element of humour to proceedings where the antics
of the characters and their absurd outcomes will regularly get a laugh
at their expense. Judging these large egos while giving them the
tasks best suited for their skills is an engaging challenge and it
provides a sense of the player being this ruler who must solve the
problems of the land. This is a memorable merger of visual novel and
management simulator with vivid artwork to round out the package.
Power Fantasies: Strength, Love And Peace – An Anatomy Of Visual Novels
Three Pillars
Not
every visual novels wants to be an artistic masterpiece which pushes
the medium into new territory and instead many are aiming to fall
into the eternally popular category of Power Fantasy. Upon hearing
its name, it might be tempting to immediately jump to thinking about
overpowered protagonists fighting superpowered enemies, but this is
only one side of the Power Fantasy and is arguably the least prolific
in medium. The biggest slice is taken up by the romantic style where
the protagonist is wildly attractive to members of the opposite sex
and the strength of their combined love overcomes all. Adjacent to
this sits the last major type in the fantasy of peace where conflicts
either do not occur or are resolved quickly with minimal stress and
damage. These all share the common thread of being detached from
reality and able to resolve their respective problems without having
to pushed beyond the confines of their specific fantasy. Let’s
fulfil our dreams and find out how each of these types of Power
Fantasy manifest in visual novels.
Martial Power
When
thinking of a Power Fantasy most people jump to the idea of physical
or magical strength where the protagonist possess them in large
amounts and even has their own unique powers which set them apart from
the other characters. The aim here is to offer the player a sense of
vicarious empowerment through an element of self-insert common in
these protagonists. As such they tend to have either vague
personalities or be lacking in strong emotions in order provide a
space into which the player can easily slot themselves without too
much friction. Despite this these protagonist rarely slip into being
the kind of complete blank slates as those of the romance Power
Fantasy due to the need for them to have tragic backstories and
secret connections to the plot, so their powers can be justified and
they can become increasingly involved in the drama of the story. Once
the player is comfortably slotted into their position, the powers can
be put to use in a series of spectacle battles which are the real
beating heart of this kind of story. It is a Power Fantasy focused on
feeding off the tension and heart pumping action while the player sits in a
comfortable position where they know their protagonist will
ultimately win the day. A comparison to a roller-coaster comes to
mind, both are experiences which present some level of danger in
their presentation but the participants all know they are perfectly
safe and are instead buying into a sanitised version of this danger.
This kind of Power Fantasy is not as prolific in visual novel as it
is in other types of game due to the difficulties in creating the
needed feelings of action and moment in what is a predominantly static
medium. Skilled developers have made it work but for many it is
simply not worth the risk and investment in this skill set when more
compatible Power Fantasies exist.
 |
| Nothing sells power quite like being really big |
A good example of this being pulled
off successful is Tokyo Babel. Tendou Setsuna is an absolutely
overpowered protagonist who goes toe to toe with angels, demons and
even gods and coupled with his relatively weak emotional range, makes
him a perfect vessel for this kind of fantasy. It leverages its down
time to make sure the connection to the player sticks with it pushing
the other characters forward in interactions to further relegate Setsuna
into the background to de-emphasise his personality. As for the
action which he partakes in, it is all extremely over the top and
involves spectacular feats of magic and physical combat removed from
any sense of reality. This is a perfect space for Tokyo Babel’s
Power Fantasy since it can fully detach itself from any grounded
ideas which might break its hold and gives it room to ensure each
subsequent battle ups the danger so the player can experience their
roller-coaster.
Not all games of this type need to have their
protagonist in such a commandingly powerful position. Coμ often has
its protagonist in battles where they are on the back foot despite
the power of the black dragon Babylon being at his command. This is
because of the fact Babylon’s power can only be drawn out to its
full potential when he works with the other people connected with it.
As such the highs of this Power Fantasy are contrasted by
exceptionally deep lows so it can full embrace the ‘safe danger’
it thrives on. It also gives it a bit of flexibility to lean into the
idea of a community being a kind of power and connect it to the
moments of catharsis when the group wins together with the player feeling
they played a role in it. Mizuwa Akihito has a far more distinct
personality and identity than Setsuna since he ends up being more
directly connected to events and so needs the extra wrinkles to
accommodate the more elaborate motives and interactions. Yet he still
has enough blurring around the edges to allow the player to
comfortably slip into this role and form the emotional connections
needed for the Power Fantasy to function.
The Power Of Love
By
far the most dominant Power Fantasy in the visual novel space is
focused around romance. The defining feature of this type of fantasy
is the way the protagonists are always inexplicable attractive to
members of the opposite sex. While this can mean the characters fall for the
protagonist at first sight and are all over them immediately, it is
often more subtle in its implementation with the ensemble gradually
coming together around them before moving into the explicitly
romantic events. A slow build up like this gives the characters time
to breathe but also staggers out the fantasy so it is less in the
player’s face that they are being pandered to. When selling the
romance is the name of the game the emphasis shifts into individual
interactions, but having the characters constantly jumping on the
protagonist can create a weird undertone of infidelity it wants to
avoid. As such pure love must be bound up in the fantasy in order to
make the player feel special and desired through the vessel of the
protagonist. Despite this direction, many titles lean into a degree
of jealousy and competitiveness to present the idea of every one of
these characters wanting to end up with the protagonist and being
willing to fight for that privilege. The protagonist themselves is
generally a blank slate who falls under the broad category of ‘nice
guy/girl’ with a traditional moral compass. Placing so few
character traits in them is important since they exist as a thin film
for the player to experience the Power Fantasy through.
Another side
to this fantasy is the power of love which underpins its later
sections once a romance with a specific character has been
established. What this promises to the player is that the newly
formed bond between them will overcome every trial which is put in
front of them and there is never any doubt they will succeed. Some
titles have this be literal with the protagonist’s love being the
magic touch needed to save the other person while others have the
pair work together to defeat whatever obstacle is put in their way. The point of such strength is as a
means of solidifying the romantic Power Fantasy in a quantifiable
manner where the player can feel the culmination of the pair's
relationship.
 |
| Got to get as close as possible to really sell the romance |
Sabbat of the Witch fully embraces this fantasy as a
core pillar of its identity while making sure never draw unnecessary
attention to this fact. The key to a good romantic Power Fantasy is
to never spell out its existence but instead to quietly let it creep
up on the player and so this game is slow in inviting all the
heroines into the main circle. Each of them has a massive soft spot
for the protagonist despite him being the quintessential ‘nice guy’
with few memorable traits of his own which makes him perfect as the
screen to view this budding love. The power of love features
prominently in game’s narrative progression with many problems
being solved with the protagonist’s love conquering things like
memory loss and there is even one point when their love actually
manifests as a physical object just to drive home its strength. As a
result the Power Fantasy it offers is focused and never lets the
player out of its grip for a second in order to allow its mesmerising tale
of romance to never loses their interest.
On the female face end of the
spectrum there is Code: Realize ~Guardian of Rebirth with its suite
of suitors who all find our protagonist magnetic. There is a slightly
greater attempt to justify the initial reason for their interest
through the fact she has deadly poison in her veins and her dramatic
encounter with Lupin. As such there is a common starting thread to
these future relationships which provides a less broad romantic
fantasy in exchange for a more cohesive progression of the
characters’ bonds. Cardia falls into the fair standard ‘nice
girl’ archetype common in otome meaning a generally pleasant and kind
person with a stubborn sense of good which allows her to serve the
role as the player’s vessel. Since otome already leans its
protagonist towards emotional intelligence and empathy as the main
ways to help the suitors, it naturally expands into the power of love
when intensely focused on one of the suitors and pushes it as a
critical part of their eventual happy ending. Combining these pieces
results in a more protagonist centric version of the Power Fantasy
with them being a magnet for misfortune and suitors to better
highlight the emotional highs.
Power To Be At Peace
Sitting
off to one side of these two titans are the Power Fantasies which
sell an impossible peace and a constant cosy feeling. They present a
normality which is sharpened to a point where all conflicts have been
removed or can be solved through simple and reasonable conversation.
There is no stress or trails in this vision of the world and instead
we are all just a step away for happiness if only we would let go and
embrace those around us. Community and belonging make the core pillar
of this Power Fantasy, where being a part of these groups comes
without the social pressure, group power struggles or constant
maintenance which often define their real world equivalents. Here it
is only a matter of existing and this alone is enough for you to be
able to form bonds and be appreciated. As such it does not demand its
protagonist be a blank slate like the others, even if it
does tend to lean in that direction, since what it being sold as the
Power Fantasy is more a vague atmosphere rather than something
focused on one character. Interactions between characters end up
being more important for the fantasy over one individual through the
support and affection they show for one another without any strings
attached.
 |
| OH NO, a cat got in! Truly world ending stakes! |
Across its three games, the Coffee Talk series has made
this type of Power Fantasy its selling point. Everything about it
from its choice of lo-fi music to its comfortable cafe to the
colourful and universally likeable cast scream cosy.
When conflicts appear they are all resolved by the characters sitting
down and talking about their feelings in a measured fashion and each
party coming to understand the other in an idealised vision of what a
relationship should look like. The stakes are suitably low to match
the cafe setting with everything being limited to the scope of an
ordinary life so it is easy to for the game to draw the player into
the fantasy it is presenting. Its protagonist is fairly weak in the
personalty department and instead serves as the player’s vessel and through the drinks they
serve to give them agency over the Power Fantasy. Coffee Talk walks a
fine line in terms of convincing the player of its believability and
selling the lack of conflict since if they solve the problems too
quickly then the resolution comes across as fake, but if done to
slowly it will break the illusion of peace the game depends on.
Conclusion
Despite
the negative connections surrounding the Power Fantasy, it remains a
popular and diverse element of visual novel narratives. By focusing
on the physical or magical strength of its protagonist it can create
a sense of empowerment through exaggerated spectacle and heart
pumping tension. On the complete opposite end the fantasy can present a
cosy and peaceful world devoid of the conflicts of reality which can
wrap the player in a warm blanket and assure them that they have
value and influence within this world. If romance is the main selling
point then the protagonist becomes inexplicably attractive to the
opposite sex and their combined love conquers all. Overall the Power Fantasy is an impressive tool to
help invest the player in the story and facilitate a boarder set of
associate themes and ideas which make it worth considering when
planning out your own visual novel.
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