Archive for January 2024
Best Visual Novel Releases – January 2024
With
the new year behind us, we can finally shake off the haze of drink and
food as we walk towards the Spring. This is a month which is always
relatively slow when it comes to visual novel releases, but there are
still a few games worth your time. We have another Ace
Attorney remaster, a classic mystery collection and a short title
about a certain streamer. Let’s face another year of brilliant
possibilities and find out what the first steps are for visual
novels.
Official Releases
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy
Replacing
your existing protagonist is a risky move at the best of times and
even more so when they are as iconic as Phoenix Wright. Yet that is
exactly what happened with the Apollo Justice games and to say that
the reaction was mixed is an understatement. Now this trilogy has
received the same remastering and porting as the previous titles and
look its best for a new release. It will be interesting to see how an
entirely new audience deals with this change of guard, but what made
the originals good is still undeniably in these games. However, there
is definitely a shakiness to the first game where you can feel how
unsure the developers were about how to marry the old and the new Ace
Attorney in a way pleasing to fans. At the end of the day if you
enjoyed the stories of Phoenix Wright then you will probably find
some fun following the struggles of Apollo Justice, just do not
expect it to be exactly the same.
Petit Game Collection vol.1
This
is an odd one, a collection of mini games with a visual novel acting
as a complimentary element and all themed around retro aesthetic. It
is an odd way to follow up the success of NEEDY GIRL OVERDOSE and yet
it is that game’s identity and characters from which this
collection derives its appeal. The visual novel section focuses
around a date the Ame-chan and explores it in a more direct fashion
than the very number centric original game could have managed. It is
a nice peak behind the curtain and adds a nice bit of humanity to
Ame-chan as well as her place in this world. All in all this is a
short and cheap title which aims to give the fans a chance to immerse
themselves in this relationship once more with some fun side
activities. Presumably there will be a volume 2 at some point and it
will be interesting to see how this formula is iterated upon.
My Lovey-Dovey Demon
Ebi-hime
is back again with another excellent visual novel, this time in the
romance / slice of life genre complimented by a little supernatural
spice. Taiki has only recently turned into an adult and during his summer holiday he decides to spend
his time with his grandparent and his chaotic younger siblings.
Things do not go as planned as he accidentally summons a demon girl
and she becomes completely infatuated with him. Now he has to juggle
the troubles of looking after his siblings while also considering his
new found guest. This is ultimately a light bit of entertainment in a
sweet and wholesome way that is designed to make the player smile and
feel warm inside. If this sounds like your cup of tea then My
Lovey-Dovey Demon is definitely for you.
Another Code Recollection
Nintendo Eshop VNDB Genre
– Mystery, Sci-Fi, Drama Play Time – 20 hours
Another
remaster, this time for a pair atmospheric mystery titles original
released on the DS and Wii to cult status and they are well regarded for
their distinctive sci-fi undertones. The narrative follows Ashley
Mizuki Robbins as she pieces together the fate of her parents over
the course of the two games. Leaning into a sense of wistfulness and
longing to fuel an atmosphere which piles on a feeling of the past being
ever present and echoing through not only peoples’ lives but the
very environment itself. The graphical uplift does wonders to bring
the package together especially for the first game with its minimal graphics
due to system limitations of the DS and it makes the island where the
title is set on appear mysterious. This collection contains two
strong games that are worth picking up if you want some head
scratching mysteries to solve while being completely immersed in
the experience.
Timed Choices – An Anatomy of Visual Novels
Under Pressure
As
a medium visual novels lack many ways to get the player to make
split second decisions and one of the few they do have is the Timed
Choice. These are as simple as they sound, the player is presented
with a normal choice but must consider and act on it under the
pressure of a time limit. Some games show the timer ticking down
while others merely state that the clock is ticking leaving the
player in dark about how much time is left. Both offer a precious
avenue to apply stress in calculated amounts at the developer’s
discretion and can be fine tuned through the spacing between Timed
Choices or their narrative placement. Despite their utility they are
a relatively infrequent inclusion due to the inherent issues of tone
caused by stressing the player in visual novels aiming for a more
relaxed or measured experience. However, the spread of genres making
use of Timed Choices is wide with everything from horror to comedy
putting its benefits into practice for vastly different effects.
Let’s race against the clock and discover how the Timed Choice has
been used in visual novels.
Death Breathing Down Your Back
Under
pressure people are prone to making mistakes and Timed Choices can be
used to deliberately cause this reaction for the player. This is especially
effective when backed up by an atmosphere which already places a
sense of dread and foreboding onto the player and as such horror
loves this type of choice. Here it serves the purpose of making the
threat of death posed to the characters seem more immediate as the
player suddenly has to make choice in roughly the same time-frame as
the people they are playing, putting them into the character’s
shoes. It also acts as a way for the game to follow through on the
promises of a gruesome ending implied in the existence of whatever
monster or threat is stalking the halls and increase the likelihood
of the player choosing the wrong option thus witnessing said demise.
This helps create a sense of actual consequence to the choices and a
fear of failure to reinforce the tension that horror feeds off.
 |
| When every choice is a puzzle adding in a time limit creates tension |
Death
Mark showcases this approach to Timed Choices very well throughout
its entire length. The first feature to note is the relative sparsity
of this type of choice as the game want to save their impact for key
moments in order to not reduce the effectiveness of this tool or
irritate the player who might feel hounded by the game. Alongside
this is their connection to the monsters the protagonist faces, the
majority of the Timed Choices focusing around his encounters with
them and give a more direct feeling to their lethality and the odd
set of rules each is governed by. These choices form a short test to
make sure the player has been paying attention to the clues about the
monster which have been unveiled so far. This is an important role
given the way the ‘boss fights’ against the monsters rely on the
following of a proper series of actions the game has hinted at,
meaning the Timed Choices tell the player that they should be paying
attention for future events.
Think Fast
Introducing
a timing element into a scene inevitably gives it a sense of forward
momentum since the game is pushing the player for a response. In this
trait we can see another common use of the Timed Choice, providing a
feeling of action and excitement. Titles focused around the Thriller
genre love to make use of the Timed Choice as a complementary feature
for climatic moments involving life or death stakes resulting in
increased tension. In many ways this usage is similar to how other
type of games place quick time events (QTEs) in cinematics in order to
provide the player an bit of active participation even in the more passive
sections. Hybid visual novels like AI: Somnium Files often mix Timed
Choice in with QTEs due to how much they complement each other and
demand a different type of quick reflex. It also reflects the
importance the game places of narrative by demanding the player
consider the consequence of their actions even when suddenly
presented with a choice.
 |
| A ticking clock can be an exciting prospect |
For
visual novels, choices drive home the importance of certain character
actions and act as the player’s only real avenue of control meaning Timed Choices offers an extra spice to proceedings. The length of
time available to make the choice is quite long in Thrillers and it is unlikely
the player will not be able to consider the options properly. In fact
the options are often made deliberately simplistic in order to avoid
confusion since the aim here is be a form of reaction test to
encourage engagement rather than a challenging obstacle and the right
answer is thus make obvious. We can look to BUSTAFELLOWS for the
simple nature of this form of Timed Choices. Here the choices that
are presented to the player have generally been outlined in the
proceeding scene and just demand they choose rather than make a
logical deduction based on facts from elsewhere in the narrative.
Through this clear presentation it keeps its exciting tone while not
making the player feel lost or confused as the game asks them to think fast
and they gets a shot of adrenaline as the clock ticks down.
Comedy In Panic
Sometimes
the suddenness and pressure of a Time Choice can lend it a certain
absurdity which leads to laughter rather than tension. It is this
contrast which comedy visual novels tap into when they make use of
this kind of choice. They are used infrequently in order to ensure
when they do appear it is a complete surprise to catch the player off
guard and this is complemented by the out there nature of the options
presented. Often the game will not even wait the full duration of the
timer before forcing an outcome on the player with a certain comedic
timing that lends itself to making the player laugh at their own lack
of control. The contents of these choices is always of no consequence
to communicate to the player the low value of any outcome and add a
certain levity to the surrounding events. Everything is put into
making the Timed Choice a form of meta joke and points out the nature
of the medium itself. The Maji de Watashi ni Koi Shinasai! games
provide a good example of how this is implemented in practice. Over
the entire series there have been very few Timed Choices and
they are all sprung on the player without warning in scenes where a
somewhat absurd tone has already been established to ensure they are
not too much of a shock. They are also in line with the established
brand of humour the games have put a lot of effort into cultivating
so shifting between the banal and the insane required for a Timed
Choice makes sense in this context.
 |
| Maji Koi's humour uses every trick in the book |
Conclusion
Controlling
how someone engages with a game system is always a powerful tool and
it is doubly so when it applies pressure on them. This is a feature
visual novels rarely have access to without using another gameplay
style alongside themselves and as such Timed Choices have been put to
use across the medium. Horror titles take advantage of the pressure
to instil a sense of panic and fear while paying off the promised
violence when the player makes the wrong choice. When the choices are
made simple and clear they can be put to use within a Thriller
setting to help sell the heart pumping tension in the same way QTEs
do for other games. Timed Choices have an inherent absurdity to them
due to the artificial nature of their demands and this can be played
around with for comic effect in order to get people laughing. These
different angles on the same system showcase why a single element
can provide interesting new possibilities for the presentation of
ideas and tone within visual novels.
April Fools – Genre Deep Dive
That Time of The Year
Once
a year people come together to pull pranks or other humorous activities
on each other in an effort to lighten up their lives and visual
novels have become a vessel for this practice resulting the birth of a
genre. The games which spawn from it are parodies of established
titles or series where their essence is exaggerated for comic effect
while keeping the qualities that made them so popular in the first
place. They also embrace their short form and throw away nature to
explore one shot style narratives not possible within the main
series. All of this is in service of something that is more than just
a simple joke, but instead a humorous celebration of what the games
have achieved both inside their play time and beyond to their real world
success. This analysis will consider titles which fall into the
spirit of this genre rather than simply those released in or around
April 1st since the genre has grown well beyond its
confines. Let’s subvert expectations and dive into the weird world
of the April Fools visual novel.
One Trick Pony
Being
a self contained title which exists only for a single humorous
purpose is by no means the drawback it at first appears. Choosing to
embrace the nature of a one shot offers a chance to be something a
little different from the established ideas of the series and present
a vision of an alternative path. Obviously this is played
up for comic effect but the underlying examination of what the
games mean and how they came to be, works wonders to add a nice
background texture to what is otherwise light entertainment through
the contrast with what came before. Keeping this in check is
important as the game does not want to stray too far away what drew
people to the original and while a novel concept might initially
delight, people are still here to see the something reflecting the old ideas and may lose
patience with this new angle. A short play time does a lot to
mitigate this issue through its low demand on player and it helps
make the prospect of playing something slightly different more
appealing.
 |
| Oh no the catboys are hot! |
Neko Para -Catboys Paradise- offers up a perfect example
of how switching things up works in this genre. It is role reversal
of the original Neko Para games with catboys instead of the original
catgirls and replacing the female character archetypes with their
male equivalents. The result is a surprisingly different feeling game
that showcases how keeping the same base concept but shifting the
characters results in something fresh. However, it never takes this
transformation particularly seriously and constantly pokes fun at
itself and at the concepts fundamental to the original games as it
points out their absurdity through this new angle. In combination
with an exaggerated version of the series’ humour, it keeps the
player engaged for its short play time and works well as the one off
title that explore what the series could have been.
The Art Of The Parody
Simply
pointing and laughing at the flaws and absurdities of the original
work is a fast way to form a disconnect with your audience who have
invested in that title. Such is the struggle of the parody, which
must balance its reliance of the original game for the source of its
humour and the dangers of taking the joke too far. The solution many
parodies have found is to find the core of what made the original
appealing and take it then refine it into its purest essence. From
this starting point they can use the inherent absurdity born from the
exaggeration caused by the refinement and play off it for comic
effect. In doing this the parody can also leverage the player’s own
love for the original since what attracted them to it is on full
display in the parody drawing a line between the old and new while offering a
similar feeling to it, albeit through a less serious lens.
 |
| Characters are often the best tool for the April Fools game |
Take VA-11
Hall-A KIDS for example, this spin off the cyberpunk bartending
simulator abandons most these elements in favour of what is truly
important, its characters. They are the part of the original game
people resonated with and built an attachment to rather than the world
itself, so KIDS chose to focus on them in order to draw out the core
of what made the game great. It places the cast in a school setting to
get as far away from the original as possible and allow the characters to shine
while showing off what made them fun in the first place. Through the
silliness of the shift in setting, KIDS has a somewhat whimsical tone and
plays into this by making the events the characters are involved in
be low stakes to avoid any player potentially feeling offended when
it pokes fun at the original game.
A Celebration of The Game
Comedy might be at the core of a
parody, but to leave a lasting impact it needs a form of sincerity
baked into it so the title can stand on its own. Often this involves being a
celebration of the game’s heritage rather than just its core ideas.
The path that the developers and the players have walked down together
to reach this stage is a common touching point between the two
parties and allows for a form of dialogue when used within a game. By
showing that the developer is aware of this through the aspects of the
series they include within the parody, they can transform something
which was previously only a simple joke into an appreciation of the
players for keep the series alive.
 |
| Knowing where you came from can help you build engaging humour |
For The
Murder
of Sonic the Hedgehog
this is created through
giving each member of
Sonic’s ensemble some screen time to snapshot why they are beloved.
It is they who best
represent the sprawling franchise Sonic has become with its toes in
many types of gameplay, narratives and consoles. The characters have been built
up over time and this results in players having many memories with them so invoking them in this
manner acts as a nod to the player that this series they love has
come a long way. This is capped off with the whole cast coming
together to defeat the threat and reach a peaceful resolution just
as they have countless times before, but here it hold a certain
nostalgia due to the prior focus on the past while still wrapping up
with a sense of future
adventures ahead for the cast. Playing into these strengths allowed
The Murder
of Sonic the Hedgehog
to be well received
beyond its status as an April Fools game and is remembered in a
positive light by Sonic fans.
Conclusion
Making
a simple joke is an easy task, but having it leave a mark in people’s
memory is quite another. The quirky visual novel genre of April Fools
games merges parody and earnestness in an established series and puts it
in a unique position. On the one hand these games are one shots by their
very nature and tend to lean into that trait in order to offer a
completely different angle on the ideas which came before.
On the other they must not make their humour and subversion come at
the expense of what player’s liked about the original or they might
become offended and lose interest. Alongside this runs an
understanding of the series' heritage shared by player and
developer alike and in turn the game is often shaped as a celebration
of what the games has achieved. Creating an April Fools visual novel
is a process which requires an excellent knowledge of both your own
titles and your audience’s expectations for them, something to keep
in mind if you plan on making your own addition to the genre.
Hoshizora no Memoria – Wish upon a Shooting Star Review – Shining Amongst The Sea Of Stars
Genre – Slice of Life, Romance Play Time – 50 hours Developer – FAVORITE Steam VNDB
A Boy And His Shinigami
If
the plot of Hoshizora no Memoria were described to you in its most
abstract and literal form then you might be forgiven for thinking of
it as another run of the mill slice of life/ romance visual novel. In
many ways that opinion is not entirely wrong, but what sets Hoshizora
apart from its peers is how it uses its execution of plot elements to
elevate the material. It is the poster child of how a distinctive and
continuos theming and iconography have a profound effect on the
reception of a work. For Hoshizora this manifests as its love for
stars and the cosmos and this can be felt from how they influence the
fates of the cast to the constant stream of star related images
showcased over the course of the game. This pillar being so strong
allows the game to maintain an audience despite the rather uneven use
of its supernatural elements and ineffective employment of its characters.
Let’s dive into the sea of stars and find out if this one trick is
really enough to hold up an entire game.
Revealed Under Moonlight – Narrative and Themes
From
a narrative perspective the biggest success of Hoshizora is the way
it ties the emotionally resonant character routes the genre is known for with the ever present majesty of the
cosmos. How this effect is achieve is cleverly varied over the course
of the game and the only constant and stable reminder is the
activities of the Astronomy club. Here the cast regularly find wonder
and solace in the stars above as they look up at them and remember
how they came together over this shared passion. Individually the
character’s conflicts somehow relate to the cosmos, whether that be
directly through their nature as a magical creature, as it is with
Mare, or merely an extension of a more grounded struggle such as the
construction of a planetarium. This provides a feeling of continuity
to what are, for the most part, disconnected personal conflicts and it
allows the game to circumvent the impression of being several stories
stitched together that many other titles in the genre suffer from
since it can present a recognisable set of ideas to the player. Once
establish in their mind a route can use it as a short hand for the
themes which have become associate with it and spend less time
repeating old ideas and instead focusing on what makes the route unique
without completely losing the player with the shift. There is a
subtle balancing act going on throughout since the risk in this
approach is the feeling of repetition it might cause in the player so
it has be kept just behind the main meat for the route.
 |
| Yep, that about sums her up. |
Helping
along the cosmos motif is the gradual build up to the final route.
Initially this is through quiet hints to the past of our protagonist
and the mystery surrounding Mare, but they escalate into new
additions to the common route showing glimpses of what is to come.
Keeping the player engaged is the key reason for this gradual
approach to the final route rather than simply unlocking it once a
set of conditions have been met. In doing this Hoshizora can build
this finale as a culmination of the themes and ideas of the work as a
whole and make the player excited to find out the truth about all of
the supernatural elements which have been rearing their heads over
the play time. By sprinking in additional cosmos related ideas it can
tie this escalation back into the ongoing character narratives. The
only issue with this method is how the pay off for Mare is lacking
with her only being given a short time to tie up her character’s
loose ends. Such an omission does create a hole within the narrative
which leaves the player with the feeling of something being missing
from the experience. The fan disc, Eternal Heart, does rectify the
mistake through an expanded route for Mare, but it was something that
should have been in the base game in the first place leaving a sour
taste in the mouth.
 |
| Given Mare's importance the game's handling of her is odd. |
Within
the narrative there is a sizeable use of supernatural forces relating
to the cosmos as the core drives behind what is happening in this
small town and Mare’s odd existence. When they are the main focus
of events of a route they are handled well and provide some nice
spice to help heighten the sense of danger and emotion. However,
Hoshizora is inconsistent with their inclusion and this results in
them feeling like an element the game is not quite sure what to do
with. There can be long stretches of the title where everything is
entirely grounded and this often includes the heroine routes which
makes the return of the supernatural come across as a jarring shift
in the tone of the work since the player had become accustomed to their
absence. On the flip-side there are important routes and sections
where the supernatural features prominently, these are often the more
relevant sections to the overall narrative and world building and this
provides them with a sense of significance and grandeur that the more
mundane routes lack. What these two extreme create is a sense of the story
being unbalanced and the grounded sections being filler rather than
an equal to the supernatural. There is a distinct lack of effort made
to cleanly merge these disparate halves and while they are
individually strong, they rub up against each other far more than
they would if handled properly.
Fallen Stars – Characters
Behind
the cosmic theming is a central cast of characters who act to keep
the story firmly in the realm of the relatable. Core to their appeal
is the lively way they bounce off each other and highlight their
personalities in a manner that is both natural and endearing. No dynamic
between two characters is the same as one between any other in
order to keep things memorable and prevent the game's extensive reliance on
their conversations to support the narrative from growing repetitive.
Take the relationship between the protagonist, You, and his little
sister, Chinami, they have an obvious familial closeness in the way
they throw playful insults around but genuinely care about what the
other has to say. Compare this to how You gets along with his
neighbour, Aoi, with their initially chilly interactions giving way
to a somewhat awkward acceptance and the contrast and variety of cast
relationships could not be clearer. When a heroine becomes the focus of the
narrative upon entering their route the strong foundations provided
through these interaction and slowly more texture is added
to the dynamic in order to help sell the transition from their
current relationship into a more romantic one. It also works well to
supplement the central conflict by offering a convincing reason for
the actions of the characters involved and why the player should care
about the outcomes.
 |
| Aoi is nothing is not awkward. |
It
is a shame then that Hoshizora inconsistently uses its cast beyond the
focal characters of a route. There is a tendency to fixate on a few cast members to the point at which you could be forgiven for
forgetting there where ever any other people in the world. Even when it
makes sense for characters to be active in events, they are only
brought in for the bare minium amount of time before being shoved off
stage. There appear to be a fear that any character intruding upon the
romance will cause the player to lose interest in the main driving
force of the route and turn their attention to the intruding
character. However, the result is a feeling of the story being
disconnected from everything which came before and somewhat uneven.
The secondary cast fair even worse as the game treats them like
simple plot devices dropping them in and out whenever it likes and
giving them no chance to develop a sense of humanity. Having intimacy
be so important to the functioning of the central narrative makes
these choices to omit the very builders of that feeling, and use
of them in an almost mechanical fashion, an odd one due to the
obvious damage it causes to a players immersion.
Painted In The Glittering Cosmos – Visuals, Audio and Technical
Just
as the cosmos and stars motif is the core of the narrative
presentation so too is it for the visual side of Hoshizora. At every
possible opportunity the game showcases the darkened sky and the
lights that inhabit it and this covers all kinds of scenes from quiet
contemplation to dramatic confrontations. Beyond the time of day, the
motif extends to objects and environments such as the planetarium or
Mare’s crescent moon scythe in order to make sure the idea of the
cosmos is omnipresent. What this results in an immediately
identifiable set of imagery that is recognisable even when taken in
isolation, it gives the game a consistent tone whenever it is on
screen and helps set the player’s expectations for what is about to happen in a scene. This is important in a title so invested in emotional
resonance in order to maintain long term interest, since being able to invoke
specific feelings lends the narrative a lot more freedom to shape
events knowing it can always rely on the motif to tie things
together. It also helps draw people into the game in the first place
as it presents a strong artistic direction to capture the attention of a
someone looking for a visual novel to play and maintain that hold
with the sense wonder it embodies.
 |
| Controlling the camera's focus is surprisingly powerful. |
Favorite
have always had an understanding of the power controlling the camera
has on a scene and they bring it out in Hoshizora to brilliant
effect. Through making the backgrounds appear out of focus, attention is drawn to the character portraits as they are still clear and
it ensure the player will not miss any subtle changes in their emotion.
Providing a much needed intimacy is also key to its strength with it
lending a feeling of nothing else existing in the world but the two
of you. A liberal use of the zoom function can be found supporting
this as the game move in and out of objects or people in order to
provide a sense of kinetic movement and make it feel as if what is
being presented is truly the point of view of the protagonist.
There is more general sense of motion throughout Hoshizora through
the use of transitions that support this idea of immediacy which aims
to enhance the power of emotional moments by bring them closer to the
player.
Conclusion
As you look up in wonder at the star tonight remember the power this feeling has and consider how deftly Hoshizora no Memoria pushes on that emotional button to create engagement. This motif runs through everything from the words on screen to visuals and audio in order to create a thematic and continuous experience no matter where the player looks. Supporting the game’s identity is a strong overarching narrative pull and lovable characters who struggle to achieve their dreams. Even if it does have some issues of lacking proper pay off and understanding of how to use it characters. The result is a good core package elevated through the use of an immediately recognisable motif.
Verdict –
The poster child for the power of consistent imagery and theming
and how they can elevate what would otherwise be just another title
in its genre.
Pros -
+
A strong cosmic and stars motif permeates everything and
gives it a distinct identity.
+
Overarching narrative is well built up and provides a sense of
intrigue and forward momentum.
+
Character dynamics are varied and used to great effect in emotional
moments.
+
Has a visual and audio design that makes it immediately recognisable
with clean camera tricks.
Cons -
-
Supernatural elements are used inconsistently and often rub up
against the grounded parts of the narrative.
-
Cast is often underutilised and drop in and out of the story in a
jarring way.
-
The pay off for the finale is a mixed bag with Mare getting less time
than she deserved given her importance.
