Sunday, May 24, 2026
Cycle Of Seasons
Human
civilisation has been defined by the yearly rotation of Seasons and people have long come up with stories using their powerful emotional resonance. The dark days of Winter capture a very
different feeling to the warm Summer sun which makes them excellent
narrative devices to form an underlying tone. Japanese culture is
especially sensitive to the Seasons so it is no surprise to find the
medium of visual novels being heavily influenced by them. Even titles created beyond its boards still adhere to this core
thematic identity both as homage to the cultural associations and as a
convenient means of controlling the player. Spring is most often
linked with new starts and a generally positive outlook with a tinge
of uncertainty from the remnants of Winter. By contrast Autumn adopts
the idea of bounty and harvest while having an undertone of decline
as the greenery dies away. The embrace of Winter is a still and
frozen one where death lurks yet there is a beauty in that coldness
and a knowledge it will one day give way to Spring. This
article will not be covering Summer since it has already been covered
extensively in its own separate work Here, but the overarching
points remain unchanged and apply to it as well. What is important to
note is how Seasons rarely exist in narrative isolation and instead
tend to transition into one another in particular at the end of a
story or route. Let’s watch the changing Seasons and see how they
intersect and define their visual novel space.
Spring: Beginnings And Hope
For
the natural world, Spring is the true beginning of the year where
life takes its first tentative steps to be born anew from the cold
embrace of Winter. Visual novels love using Spring for their setting
due to the striking and immediately recognisable colours and imagery
surrounding it. Streets lined with sakura have become such a
ubiquitous feature of the visual presentation of this Season and it is
odd to see a title show springtime without them. This is the most
striking Japanese influence on Seasons in the medium with it being
present even in games made elsewhere in the world, for example it is
rare to see daffodils being used despite being so closely linked to
Spring in European cultures. Other imagery finds its way in alongside
the sakura when it comes to budding plants, animals with their young
or other signs of new life. All of these feed into the thematic idea
of new beginnings and rebirth which underpin the traits attributed
with Spring. It easily ties into stories about young love or finding
hope in a change of situation which naturally lend themselves to
sharing the same language of visuals and text. What this achieves is
a smoothing of the overall demonstration of the core ideas through a
short hand the player is already familiar with due to its prolific
use in the medium. By leaning on this baseline a developer can ensure
a smother experience where their new narrative elements can stand out
against it to make them easier to parse via the contrast.
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| Spring is the Season of Flowers |
The Flowers
games absolutely love making use of the Seasons in exactly this
manner and the first game, -Le volume sur printemps-, presents the
Spring example of this technique. All the standard features of Spring
are accounted for here from the deluge of sakura to the countless
other flowers in bloom amongst the greenery. This use of flowers
throughout the aesthetic and theming of the title engages the visuals
and narrative in a carefully thought out multilayered presentation.
On the surface it connects the title Flowers directly into the game by living up to its name which creates a bright design space going
forwards. Then there is the connection between yuri and flowers which
further ties together the overall theming of the work as the
blossoming love becomes reflected in the very world around the cast.
To bring this all together the protagonist, Shirahane Suou, also
reflects the new beginnings theme in her arrival at the academy
marking a new stage in her life and it taking place in Spring subtly
pushes this transition as a positive change even if she does not yet
full understand that herself. These three aspects push the Season
front and centre at all times and provides a distinct feeling to this
Flowers game which the later ones can play off while they shift into
their new Season.
For a far subtler example, Katawa Shoujo makes use
of Spring not so much for its own visual identity as much as its
contrast with Winter. The game opens with a snowy confession and
Hisao Nakai first near death experience and from here everything is
framed in contrast to this moment of disaster. As such the arrival of
Spring always coincides with the new hope and moments of release he
finds from the school and the people attending it to underscore the
change they are bringing into his life. Compared to the Flowers games
Katawa Shoujo’s Spring colours are far more muted and less directly
presented to the player since the Seasons are not so narratively
important. The grounded nature of the game’s environment choices
give this theming a lighter touch to ensure the struggles of its cast
feel authentic instead of the hyper reality of fiction. Both approaches
achieve the same overall effect but at different levels of player
consciousness suitable for what each title wants from the Seasons.
Autumn: Harvesting Decline
When
it comes to Autumn the associations are significantly vaguer and it
lacks the direct and universal language found in Spring. The browns
and yellows of vegetation and a lower light level dominate the visual
language of Autumn making it easily recognisable and it also lacks
the culturally specific elements attached to Spring. However, its
emotional and thematic elements are far more nebulous in nature with
it invoking a wide variety of impressions and being defined more by
its place between Summer and Winter. This ends up resulting in Autumn
having everything from prosperous harvest to slow decay being
connected with it. Developers have more free rein on what theming
they can use with this Season but they cannot rely on it to present an
easy to understand message so must put the work in themselves.
Due to
this flexibility it is better to discuss Autumn through a few
examples of it inside visual novels. 11 eyes utilises the decay and
decline aspect of Autumn as an undertone to the growing danger
swallowing the lives of the characters and then the city itself. The
Season is never directly mentioned by the narrative since it has
little bearing on the what is happening in the escalating magical
battles. Instead its darker colour palette adds to the tonal mesh
formed around the dire situations to further the tension surrounding
it while also acting as a contrast against the growing bonds between
the cast. Alongside this it is tied into the end of the
world style scenario 11 eyes develops, where Autumn’s decline
and decay towards winter mirrors this world’s own march to its end.
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| Getting dressed up for Halloween |
On a less serious use of this Season, Sanoba Witch pulls on the
thread of harvest and bounty and even makes use of a seasonal
festival in the form of Halloween. Here the association is made
between Autumn and love where the deeper colours and cooler
temperatures offer the perfect excuse to snuggle closer while their
emotions grow larger. Similarly to 11 eyes this is a predominantly
background element which defines the game’s visual design in terms
of both colour palate and the clothes worn by the characters and offers a distinct space to work within separate from other Seasons. One
notable exception to this coming in the form of the Halloween party
where Autumn gets shove in the player’s face in the most direct
manner possible. It is no coincidence this is also the point where
romantic feeling begin to truly mature into a concrete change in both
parties since it can nicely invoke the association with bounty and
plenty in a romantic context. Over the course of the runs through the
game for each route the party acts as recognisable marker of the
progress of time and the player’s position within the story lending
the narrative a natural sense of forwards momentum inherent in the
cycle of Seasons.
Winter: Cold Beauty
Despite
being at the opposite end of the year Winter shares a similar direct nature to its emotional and visual power with Spring. The world blanketed in white
snow invokes a wide range of reactions from the player from awe at
its pure beauty to fear of the cold and death it can bring to the
unprepared. It is the Season with the most directly negative
associations with stasis, oppressiveness and depression brought about
through the dark and cold which define the characters lives during
it. Thick coats and gloves immediately speak to the temperature
before the characters have even begun to comment on it and it
furthers the continuous presence of these thematic association as
they press down on the player’s thoughts. Yet is is not without
hope since the player instinctually knows Spring will come and Winter
needs only to be endured for better times to once again sprout. This
is also why many stories set during Winter come to an end with the
characters being at their happiest in the Spring which follows to
provide a visual catharsis through the transition into brighter
colours. The beauty of the Season presents a new angle to
complicate the player’s feelings on the Season where its majesty
written in pure white can have positive connections to the narrative
beats. In particular it often gets mixed with the idea of pure love
romance as a visual symbol of their untainted bond and a sense that
the world itself reflects their growing relationship. A coldness
still exists in this presentation, hence why such games transition
into Spring at their finale, and it acts as an excuse for physical
intimacy where the lovers cuddle together to share warmth while they
overcome the harsh temperature.
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| Dark, cold and dire |
Kara no Shoujo - The Second Episode
embraces the oppressiveness of Winter to match the dire situation
surrounding its mysteries. Its world is permanently caked in a layer
of snow which is ever so slightly dirty in its colour to make sure
the player finds no beauty in it and only the weight it presses down
upon the people living through it. The muted colour palette it uses compliments this tone and nestles the tension of Tokisaka Reiji
pursuit of Kuchiki Touko and the other mysteries encountered along
the way in dim haze where the answers are obscured from view. Keeping
this relentless cold even into its final act ensures the pressure on
the player never diminishes and they are left in the same state a
Tokisaka Reiji when the curtain falls.
While nowhere near as
depressing, G-senjou no Maou operates the lens of Winter in a similar
fashion. Its use of snow is far more strategic with it only coming in
a key dramatic moment to lay the oppressiveness on thick and sell how
important these scenes to the characters. Over the course of the
title the darker colours end up being the continuous manifestation of
the feelings of being trapped reflected in web of the yakuza as
events slowly spiral out of control. Complimenting this approach are
the many scenes taking place in the dark or a darkened room to really
push the claustrophobic sense of being lost within the underbelly of
the world. For G-senjou no Maou Winter can be a more ambiguous force
which is presented through the activities related to the Season. Azai Kanon’s figure skating demonstrates this tendency
through its association with Winter and its pure white as well as
Kannon’s passion for it. Even this is somewhat muddied by the
conflict the figure skating brings to Kannon’s life, there is still a decidedly positive emotion provided and it works the cold beauty angle.
Conclusion
Seasonal
presentation forms an important part of the tool kit available for
visual novels both in terms of aesthetics as well as easy to access
themes. Spring leans into its associations with new beginnings and
rebirth through its bright colours to craft stories leaning into hope
and the future. Winters sits on the opposite extreme as stasis and
oppressiveness define the fiction set within it and leading to dire and
darker tones. Autumn prefers to take a backseat role pulling up ideas
of decline and harvest to create rich soil for a wide variety of
narratives. There is a Season for every kind of visual novel and
knowing when to utilise them can enhance your work while giving it a
memorable aesthetic flare.
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