Sunday, July 30, 2023
As
we pass through the halfway point of what might become the hottest
summer on record, your thoughts naturally turn to what this month has
brought for the world of visual novels. Well then you are in for a
treat with the usual suspects in Slice of Life and Otome being
accompanied by some truly inspired, or perhaps mad, games with a port of
a mobile game and pixel art horror comedy showcasing what pushing
boundaries really looks like. Such a line up is a sight to behold so
let’s to the extremes of the medium and see what we can find for
you.
Official Releases
Grisaia: Chronos Rebellion
Here
we have an odd visual novel formed from the salvaged remains of the
Grisaia mobile game with additional story content to sweeten the
deal. Gone are the none visual novel elements of that previous
incarnation and there has been a concerted effort to weave this
narrative into one befitting of the more standard framework. It takes
the cast of the original games and Phantom Trigger, puts in some
original characters and pushes them into a truly mad series of events
on a different level of silly from what the series normally serves.
In many ways it is reminiscent of a fan fiction with its original
characters coming across as being forced in and the plot diving off
into insanity while having the two older casts interact and bounce
off one another. This is not a particularly negative aspect if you
are willing to accept it for what it is and turn your mind off to
enjoy being alongside these characters again on another adventure. A fan
of the Grisaia games will get a lot of fun out of Chronos Rebellion
but on the flip side it has absolutely noting for someone not already
invested in this series.
The Shell Part I: Inferno (Kara No Shoujo)
The
release of The Shell marks the second time that Kara No Shoujo has
been released on Steam and hopefully this time it will actually
remain on the store for a long time to come. It follows private
detective Tokisaka Reiji as he become involved in investigating a
string of horrific murders and it becomes clear that only young women
are being targeted. He must use all his wits to overcome this killer
and the many other people blocking his way to the truth. Having a
more accessible version of the excellent macabre mystery visual novel
is a great step forwards for the series and opens it up to many who
would not otherwise known about it. If the success of the Flowers
games is anything to judge by then there is an appetite for this
studio’s work, while The Shell is not in the same genre as Flowers
the quality of its narrative offers the same intense experience.
There is no better time than to take a dip into the enthralling
murder mystery of this series and with the more extreme elements
sanded off it is unlikely to lose people with its darker elements. In
the same vein those who already own the previous version of the game
will find nothing new here and may even find the changes not to be to
their tastes.
Radiant Tale
Nintendo Eshop VNDB Genre
– Otome, Fantasy Play Time – 40 hours
A
circus is certainly a unique central element to base a visual novel
around and, with a dash of magic to spice things up, it acts the main
framing device of Radiant Tale. The idea of performance is ever
present as each hero has their own role within the circus and the
heroine becoming accustomed to that before bonding with them forms a
large part of the appeal of the narrative. Performing things in the
right way also stands out as a repeated motif especially given how
important these performances are to the cast. These aspects nicely
mould around the romance that forms the basis for most otome and
works well to add the tension and spice the game needs to stand out
from the crowd. There is more than enough here to make this an easy
title to recommend to an otome fan looking for another spin on the
genre.
My Klutzy Cupid
This
month's moe slice of life visual novel takes the form of a story
centred around the a book called the Love Note which shows the reader
how fated they are to be with another person. What follows is a light
hearted journey through our protagonist’s love life with all the
comedy scenario that you would expect. While there is nothing here
you have not seen before it does understand the player is likely to
be familiar the formula and in order to compensate for this
potential issue doubles down on the sincerity with which it presents
these events. Each heroine is given the time they need to shine and
sell the bond with the protagonist and there is no sense of them
outstaying their welcome as the game smoothly leads you back into the
common route to see what would have happened with a different
heroine. At the end of the day this is a game for those who know
exactly what they want from their slice of life stories since you
can look at My Klutzy Cupid and instantly tell if this is for them or
not.
From Madness With Love
No
words can properly convey just how strange it is to play From Madness
With Love. It bounces backwards and forwards between comedy and
horror on what almost seems like a whim and works hard to keep you
guessing from one moment to the next. You know a game is aiming for
insanity when the reason provided for the protagonist’s transfer to a new school is
because their old one was bombed by terrorist and the game refuses to
elaborate as if being bombed is nothing to write home about. The
surreal atmosphere extends to the characters who are presented in a
way that prevents the player from pinning them down and predicting
them as they are prone to doing some truly abnormal things. This is
one hell of an experience to play through and its short play time
makes sure the constant bombardment of new twists and strange turns
does not become too tiring. If you pick this one up just make sure
you know what you are getting in to.
