Tuesday, May 31, 2022

With Summer just around the corner, it is about time to round up all the best visual novels released in May 2022. This month has been a relatively quiet one for interesting visual novel releases but there were still a few titles which are worthy of your time. So without further ado let’s dive into these games.
 
 

Official Releases:

 

-fault - StP – LIGHTKRAVTE -

+VNDB     +Steam 
We all know the feeling.
LIGHTKRAVTE is the latest title in the fault series produced by ALICE IN DISSONANCE and continues their trend of releasing smaller titles. It acts as the first episode of a prequel to the main line entries and is set some five years before they begin. Rather than any of the previous protagonists, the story is instead told through the eyes of Khaji the unremarkable son of a fruit farmer who dreams of becoming a painter. Obviously this mundanity cannot last forever and so a revelation soon shatters his world and sets events in motion.

 

It is nice to see another fault game as its blend of fantasy and sci-fi elements continues to charm. This new short entry makes the lack of a main series title since milestone two side:above, which originally came out in 2015, all the more painful knowing it may be the only bit of content we get for a while. However, that does not detract for the quality of this game and it must be a good sign if it leaves me wanting more.
 

- Senren * Banka (Switch) -

+VNDB     +Nintendo Estore 
The traditional Japanese aesthetic is definitely a major selling point.
While Senren * Banka has been available on PC for two years now, its arrival on the switch is another excellent addition to the console’s increasingly large library of visual novels. This release marks a chance for switch users to pick up a strong Yuzusoft title which they might not have been able to play otherwise. 


The story follows Arichi Masaomi as he arrives in the village of Hoori deep in the middle of the mountains. This village has developed itself into a hot spring tourist destination through its old fashioned Japanese feel. One of their major tourist spots is the legendary katana Murasamemaru which is embedded in stone. Or it was, since soon after his arrival Masaomi breaks the sword in half when he attempts to pull it out. This accident sends his life on a new course as he finds himself fighting supernatural entities and maybe even finding love.

 

-CORPSE FACTORY -

+VNDB     +Steam
Noriko is such an interesting protagonist.
Corpse Factory is a release which was not initial on my radar since its developer, River Crow Studio, only has one notable visual novel under their belt, the mediocre How To Date A Magical Girl. However, my attitude towards the title changed with the release of a demo last year which impressed me with its characters and premise and sparked my interest in following the game’s development. 

 

The visual novel is a horror / thriller which revolves around Corpse Girl and her website where users can request the death of someone they know by providing a picture of that person. The victims then receive a photo of their own corpse with a date marked on it. All these people have later been found dead in odd ways…. Couple this interesting premise with a morally questionable protagonist in the form of Noriko Kurosawa and you have a recipe for an interesting story. There will definitely be a review from me on this game sometime soon.

 

 

-Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Anniversary Edition (Microsoft Store) -

We all know someone like this...
There have been so many ports and releases for the Danganronpa series that at this point it is almost a joke. However, any release of my favourite entry into the series will always receive some promotion from me until everyone on the planet has experienced its madness. This time the release is on the Microsoft store and more importantly it is now available on Game Pass making it more accessible than ever to the Microsoft ecosystem. What are you waiting for? Go play it.

 


Fan Translations:

 

-Guardians of Daybreak (Akatsuki no Goei) -

+VNDB     +Patch Download
Ah yes, the traditional sleepover.
While fan translations are no longer the primary source of visual novels for the English language community, they still output some of the most interesting titles around. Case in point, the release of a patch for the first game in the Akatsuki no Goei trilogy which came out of nowhere for me since I was not even aware it was being translated. Needless to say this was a pleasant surprise given its positive reputation for being an excellent mix of comedy and action with a no-nonsense protagonist.

 

It is set in Ren’ou Academy, a school where first-class bodyguards are reared alongside the daughters of the nation’s richest families. On the day of the opening ceremony, our protagonist Kaito Asagiri attempts to leave by delivering a letter notifying the school of his withdrawal. However, the whims of fate won’t let him go that easily as he meets Nikaidou Reika who takes a liking to him and strong arms him into being her bodyguard. So the stage is set for the winds of change to start to blow.

 

 

 

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