Sunday, September 10, 2023
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A Gentle Touch, A Quiet Bond
Not
all stories need to have a grand scale or expansive themes, sometimes
the most profound things can be expressed in the smallest moments
between two lovers. There is an energy and life to Studio Elan’s
visual novels which forms a feel good ethos surrounding the
characters as they come to know their own feelings and is infectious
in its presentation. This is infused into their yuri narratives that
tend to lean into some element of magic or fantasy to support the
bewitching atmosphere as the pair explore their feelings. As a small
indie studio their portfolio is not large, but what is here is some
of the best the western visual novel scene has to offer in terms of
well told and heart felt romances. Above all else it is a studio
never content to rest on the familiar and are always pushing their
ideas out into new stories and characters. Let’s take a closer look
at what Studio Elan bring to the yuri genre and how their approach to
visual novel design defines them.
Developer Overview
At
first glance it might be tempting to characterise the narratives of
Stuidio Elan’s games as simplistic or standard in nature. On a
surface level this is true with a leaning into direct stories that
present their core ideas to the player without any attempt to conceal
or surprise. However, looking beyond this level we can see what the
developers are truly interested in and that is the nature of romantic
relationships, particularly those between women. Each game places its
pairing in the direct light of the narrative and slowly peals away
their masks to reveal the different parts of a person that go into
forming a bond with another. This is often accompanied by the
developers characteristic magical element which reflects some aspect
of the heroine’s emotions and adding a touch of mystique to
proceedings. What results is a brilliant stage upon which the cast
dances, revealing to us and to each other the universal truths about the
closest bond a person can have. It is at once theatrical
in its directness and intimate in its contemplations which is an
impressive line to tread, one that Studio Elan regularly does with
grace.
In
their games there is sensitivity to emotion few other developers can
match. When a character expresses their feelings it is always in a
gentle and sympathetic manner where each word carries a
human fragility. Yet this is never presented as a weakness but
instead a well of strength the characters can draw from to work
towards their dreams together. Every relationship reflects this
positive forward momentum even when the character does not
necessarily end up with what they want and this evenness prevents it from becoming to unbelievable. The greatest benefit of
this angle is way it smoothly integrates the romantic core with the
other themes the game wishes to cover by bringing them into a
cohesive whole that the player will never question. In reverse this
also means that when the chips are down and the lovers take centre
stage, they are never overshadowed or interrupted by side elements or
unresolved ideas since they have already been dealt with in the lead
up to this moment and this gives the couple space to be themselves
without unnecessary narrative burden.
Selection of Notable Works
Highway Blossoms
Road
trips are an exciting prospect where many interesting and unusual
encounters can happen along the way to your destination. Highway
Blossoms taps into this sense of adventure and freedom to push our
two heroines, Amber and Marina, towards each other as the space given
to them allows for a searching of their own feelings as they overcome
the trials. The motivation for this journey is the recently
discovered journal of a gold miner filled with cryptic clues that
promise hidden treasure. So a new ‘gold rush’ is sparked as our
heroines join a race to uncover the hidden riches and this provides a
background sense of this period in American history which acts as a
nice contrast to the romance’s value on the intimate and
immaterial. Overall this is by far the studio’s most grounded work
but even this early on you can see the sensitivity and understanding
of relationships which would come to define their later works.
Heart of the Woods
The
supernatural presence in Studio Elan’s works goes up dramatically
with Heart of the Woods with our protagonist, Madison, actively
seeking it out as part of her role in an online show on the subject.
Of course when she goes to a remote village in the woods she get far
more than she bargained for both in terms of ghost from the past and
love. It also has an ex-girlfriend who is actually present in the
story and Madison has to sort out her feelings about this former
lover as love for someone else blooms, which makes for one an
interesting back and forth as they try to decide where they stand in
relation to each other. This interest in the dynamics surrounding
romantic relationships and how they begin and end is carried over to
the rest of the cast. Each one brings their personality to bare in
this debate of values through their actions even as the supernatural
threat is out to get them. Giving both sides of this divide, plot and
romance, the right amount of time and the sensitivity to the
characters intimate emotions is the game’s greatest success.
Please Be Happy
Knowing
love and loving another are integral parts of being human and Please
Be Happy takes this angle to explore the meaning of having humanity
and its value. This is a tale where the most human people are
supernatural in some way such as our protagonist, Miho, who is a fox
turned human on a quest to find a certain kind human. Despite seeing
the darker aspects of humanity she remains good at heart and this is
very much a tale of good people who are just a bit awkward with their
emotions. Finding their happiness is something the cast struggles
with as their past, affections and commitments pull them in different
emotional directions which leads to the majority of the game’s
conflict. Please Be Happy is by far the studio’s most character
centric narrative with emotions and interpersonal conflict being
almost the entire narrative substance and this clear purpose allows
for their distinctive style to shine at its brightest here.
Conclusion
The
strength of Studio Elan’s sensitive narratives cannot be overstated
and works to make their visual novels some of the best in the English
speaking sphere. Being able to tap into the well of complex emotions
which go into human romantic relationship through the lens of yuri
gives room for a proper consideration of what they mean to each
character. Placed alongside their game’s sympathetic and gentle
presentation of the fragile nature of the human heart and the result
is a series of extremely well rounded titles which are willing to
push their characters within the framework of the plot into revealing
to the player who they really are deep down. Picking up a game from
this studio is always a worthy investment of your time if these are
the kind of experiences you are looking for.
