Tales of Lemma - Review
Tales of Lemma
Tales of Lemma was the first Lemmasoft VN, one of the pioneers in the English VN scenario and incidentally the first VN I played that was originally in English, so it’s hard to talk about it without getting slightly nostalgic but I’ll try. First, the plot is fairly simple. Those expecting a complex story with elaborate twists and deep psychological background will be disappointed. Tales of Lemma is delightfully unpretentious, hence one of its greatest charms. The story has some very funny moments and others that are just plain surreal. The unexplained mushroom attack and the squirrel rescue are strange and the fact that the characters aren’t very surprised and never question these only adds to the whole bizarreness of the situation, but it’s all for the sake of humor and entertainment, and Tales of Lemma succeeds in both.
Also of note is the choices system, which remembers the choices you made and gives further choices accordingly, an ingenious system which unfortunately wasn’t used as much as it should be. The game gave the player a “fanservice” option only if he had shown interest in that earlier in the game, which is perfect in terms of experience since you really feel in the protagonist’s shoes. If you don’t like fanservice then the character won’t look for fanservice ( yes, in one part the main character stumbles into fanservice regardless of the player’s choices, but partial control of the story doesn’t mean total control, just like in everyday life really… ) I only lament that this system wasn’t used much in any other part of the game. Giving the artsy persona a special choice would be equally rewarding and the appeal of the game would be higher, although the game maker’s workload would be increased too. All in all, the choices system is sound and only need a more broad approach.
The background photos are ok and work surprisingly well with the character art, despite the fact that Miko is not especially photorealistic. The music and sound effects do the job, no more, no less ( although the campfire sound effect deserves some special praise ) and the fact that the game has no saving system is at least eased by the fact that the game is small, taking 15-25 minutes.
Overall Tales of Lemma is a good game for those that want to relax and have fun. It is also one of the main inspirations for many amateur VN creators of the “early generation” ( i.e. Three years ago. ) and a good stop for the terminally nostalgic, a group that includes this sorry game reviewer
Review by Mr. E
Tales of Lemma was the first Lemmasoft VN, one of the pioneers in the English VN scenario and incidentally the first VN I played that was originally in English, so it’s hard to talk about it without getting slightly nostalgic but I’ll try. First, the plot is fairly simple. Those expecting a complex story with elaborate twists and deep psychological background will be disappointed. Tales of Lemma is delightfully unpretentious, hence one of its greatest charms. The story has some very funny moments and others that are just plain surreal. The unexplained mushroom attack and the squirrel rescue are strange and the fact that the characters aren’t very surprised and never question these only adds to the whole bizarreness of the situation, but it’s all for the sake of humor and entertainment, and Tales of Lemma succeeds in both.
Also of note is the choices system, which remembers the choices you made and gives further choices accordingly, an ingenious system which unfortunately wasn’t used as much as it should be. The game gave the player a “fanservice” option only if he had shown interest in that earlier in the game, which is perfect in terms of experience since you really feel in the protagonist’s shoes. If you don’t like fanservice then the character won’t look for fanservice ( yes, in one part the main character stumbles into fanservice regardless of the player’s choices, but partial control of the story doesn’t mean total control, just like in everyday life really… ) I only lament that this system wasn’t used much in any other part of the game. Giving the artsy persona a special choice would be equally rewarding and the appeal of the game would be higher, although the game maker’s workload would be increased too. All in all, the choices system is sound and only need a more broad approach.
The background photos are ok and work surprisingly well with the character art, despite the fact that Miko is not especially photorealistic. The music and sound effects do the job, no more, no less ( although the campfire sound effect deserves some special praise ) and the fact that the game has no saving system is at least eased by the fact that the game is small, taking 15-25 minutes.
Overall Tales of Lemma is a good game for those that want to relax and have fun. It is also one of the main inspirations for many amateur VN creators of the “early generation” ( i.e. Three years ago. ) and a good stop for the terminally nostalgic, a group that includes this sorry game reviewer
Review by Mr. E
Labels: 2003, BxG, Review, Tales of Lemma, VN
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1:27 AM
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