Yaruge Girl Triona - Synopsis

Warning: This synopsis contains adult content

Story: My name is Craig Shirakawa, and I got me a Waifu. With Waifu, I can do all sorts of fun things. Life is good.

Relationship Type: BxG

Positives: Extremely customizable ‘waifu’, creative actions in the sex scenes, limited animation for some actions, highly effective use of Ren’Py functions to minimise game size.

Unusual features: Integration of plot and sex, no overall goal in the sex scenes, solo project, non-standard aspect ratio

Playtime – 40 minutes

Sexual Content: Mainly breast related, including lactation. Only the male organ (or dildo) is depicted in penetration scenes.

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Yaruge Girl Triona - Review

Warning: This review contains adult content

In the world of OELVN’s, Yaruge Girl Triona is only the second H-game available from the Ren’Ai Archives (although there have been several commercial English H-games released with playable demos). DaFool’s previous H-game, The Nettestadt Troll is a plot-driven game with visually depicted H-scenes only being present at the end of each path. In contrast, Yaruge Girl Triona is primarily sex driven, with the plot establishing a context for each scene. Before discussing the various innovations and unusual features of this game, I will briefly touch on the basic elements of the game. Triona herself is well drawn and coloured in all of her scenes. Notably, her breasts are much more natural and realistic in shape than those seen in most other H-games. The five original pieces composed for this game all convey a strong underlying mood, whilst not dominating over the other in-game elements. Yaruge Girl Triona uses a non-standard aspect ratio, and consequently the game might not be able to be played full-screen at some resolutions.

Triona is extensively customisable, in appearance, with two to five options being available for her skin, body type, clothes, and eyes. There is also an option to give her glasses and another which can customise her and Craig’s interests (anime, cars or religion). Many of these customisation features involve changing the shadings on one layer of an image, allowing a variant of the image to be presented without requiring the image to be redrawn.

The sexual content, if you’ll excuse the pun, is rather top heavy, with Triona’s breasts being the prominent features of each scene. They are positioned roughly at the centre of the screen, and are thus emphasised compared to the penetration scenes, where only Craig’s penis is shown. In each scene, a number of actions can be selected from a menu, including one ‘special’ for each scene. Although some actions need to be performed in a certain order to allow other actions, there is no overall goal in the sex and the scene can continue for as long as the player likes. This comes with an unfortunate downside, as it is impossible to make Triona orgasm. It should also be mentioned that all in each scene, Craig performs all of the ‘actions’, while Triona remains as a passive partner, providing supporting dialogue. When considered in this way, YGT is perhaps the most male-oriented OELVN so far.

Within each scene, one or more of the actions are animated. These are mainly used to emphasise the upper body, although a few are used purely comically, and make references or pay tribute to various influences on the game.

Quite unusually, the sexual content of the game, which sits firmly in the yaruge (‘doing it’) and fetish genres, is integrated as part of an overall plot, with each scene describing the growth of Craig and Triona’s relationship. Although many of the dialogues and discussions might have been more overtly successful in a different VN genre, they do create a context for each scene, and personalities for each character, which also emerge in the actions available during sex.

One slightly annoying downside, perhaps caused by the complexity of the coding, are the several seconds of loading time between scene changes. These recur between scene changes, and interrupt the game’s flow. However, this is a minor flaw in what is otherwise a very innovative and enjoyable game.

Overall, whether or not you will enjoy Yaruge Girl Triona depends on your own feelings towards yaruge and male-oriented ero. What it does, it does very well, but the concept may not appeal to some gamers. However, even if you feel that the genre or game design isn’t particularly to your taste, it is still worth playing to see a very effective use of Ren’Py in action.

Review by Ignosco

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Idol/TYPE - Synopsis

‘I am a different person when I write. More open, saying things I would never say’.

Story: You and your idol, the lesser-known supporting actress Hirae Erishima write letters to each other. At first they were just fan letters. But now, is there something more?

Relationship Type: BxG

Length: Between 15-30 minutes on the longest paths (depends on typing speed).

Positives: Very unusual and effective game-play, well written story supported with good art and music.

Unusual Features: Timer for each letter shown by the disappearing picture, the whole game is a ‘mini-game’.

Download Idol/TYPE here

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Idol/TYPE - Review

Warning: This review contains some spoilers.

Idol/TYPE is an amalgamation of two different ‘genres’ – the ‘typing’ game, and the epistolary novel. Based upon an earlier game (Mr. Typer) by mike.pr, the gameplay of Idol/TYPE involves typing out a number of short letters that Reijiro writes to Hirae before a time limit (indicated by disappearing pictures of Hirae). Although the time-limit requires the player to be a reasonably proficient typist, accuracy is much more important than speed, as the time penalty for errors is quite heavy. It is also easy to accidentally forget a letter or a space, and end up with a number of errors caused by being out of ‘time’ from the original.

The usual positive features of mikey’s stories are present, including his writing style built from short, emotional sentences, and a surprising and very effective plot twist. Unusually though, this twist is only hinted at in the ‘good’ ending, whilst being fully revealed in the ‘new’ ending. This story also contains the clearest examination of the ‘idol’ or ‘dreamgirl’ themes that permeate several of the other ATP games. As the characters never interact directly with each other, they only understand each other through the images they present in the letters. Consequently, the resulting dialogues perhaps do not portray the true personalities of the characters, but rather the images they aim to present to each other.

The art and music are both integrated into the game very well. The art consists of a number of CGs (no character sprites) that appear as the ‘timer’ for each letter, as well as other pictures that show up at the game over scenes or the endings. Ending 3 (arguable the ‘true’ ending of Idol/TYPE) contains most of the bonus pictures. The music for Idol/TYPE is also very effective – it has a somewhat hypnotic feel, but always remains in the background enough so as not to distract from the typing.

Sadly, there are a few potential downsides to Idol/TYPE. The primary one is the typing-speed issue described above. There has recently been a patch released, which allows for the game to be played with the timer off, although this eliminates the sense of pressure created by the time limit. Consequently, the gameplay component almost becomes redundant, and the game essentially becomes a very short VN. To quote from a PM mikey sent me:

Indeed the point was to maybe even fail once or twice, so that the player absorbs the contents of the letters more and so that there is some meaning behind them - in a normal VN, the text would be 5 minutes of reading, of course. But typing them gives more thought to the words, since typically people think or often rewrite their formulations - this was the intention.

There is no save function (although there is a continue function, which resumes from the dialogue after the last letter typed), so for the player to understand the full story, they are forced to replay the game. Personally though, I found the need to re-read (or ‘re-type’) helped me to understand the content of the earlier letters, in light of the plot twist.

Overall, Idol/TYPE is a very unusual and well made game. Although the format and concept might not appeal to everyone, the themes explored in this game are very important in most of the other ATP projects VNs as well.

Review by Ignosco

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The Garden Society: Kykuit - Synopsis

Story: As a recent transfer student and new member of the Garden Society, will you be able to fit in? Make friends? ... Or something more?

Relationship Type: BxG

Length: 25-40 minutes for each playthrough.

Positives: Excellent artwork and writing, unusual highly atmospheric and romantic setting, one-person project completed in 1 month, challenging gameplay.

Unusual Features: Art entirely in black and white, very unique game.

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The Garden Society: Kykuit - Review

Facts may tell you, that GSK was released in March 2005. They may also tell you that it was part of some NaNoRenO. And, facts say this is a 40-minute visual novel game that's all done in black-and-white. It has 8 endings, 4 courtable characters and several alternative paths. In summary then... facts tell you nothing.

In order to know more, to really understand this game, one must travel to its past, way beyond the actual release date of March 2005. Let us go then, to the summer of 2004. At that time, a small group of people gathering around the Lemmasoft forums, dedicated to creating English ren'ai games was already starting to feel like a community of game-makers. It was roughly a year since they were formed and 2004 marked the peak of their first successful efforts to create games. The games from that time were later to be called their first generation OELVNs and they were created with various technical methods. From this point of view the numerous projects as well as the few completed games, all had one thing in common - the lack of a dedicated technical tool, an engine. Almost every project or group had to overcome this problem somehow and indeed this was the time that almost every project had to have their own programmer, their own engine. It's safe to say that this was one of the biggest hurdles of OELVN creating of that time. But necessity and enthusiasm meant that very soon the idea of a dedicated VN engine, designed specifically for the OELVN creators was formed.

Since the famed long-running Sourceforge Dating Sim Engine project never really took off and therefore couldn't really be used, by the summer of 2004, American Bishoujo has created a fresh new engine from scratch - called Ren'Py. Its simplicity and effectivity was revolutionary - an easy scripting language meant that the creators were typing right into the code, with simple commands to show backgrounds and characters, with the option of branching and multiple paths - and a menu and save system was already present. It all took away a lion's share of work from the creators, and while in its early stages the Ren'Py functionality was basic, it was all people could ever ask for.

The community felt strengthened and new possibilities opened up almost immediately. The story of Ren'Py started here, and a few months later it opened the floodgates for wave after wave of new games. The engine would go on and continue improving at breakneck pace, gaining more and more popularity, and, in a recent episode, decimate a rival engine effort, even though it was backed by a commercial entity. But the story of Ren'Py is perhaps for a different article. We are still way back from that time - in fact we are still in the year 2004, which was nearing its end. With Ren'Py born, the community formed two new ideas, related to its growing self-awareness. The first one was the Ren'Ai Archives, a site that would serve as a repository for all the community's and other people's creations, so that no OELVN and ren'ai game would ever disappear. It helped hosting the games and ensured equal treatment for all - projects were added regardless of art quality, story rating or other rather personal opinions. It also underlined the concept of that a finished game, however small, was being valued more than a grand but unfinished project. The RAA only accepted - and to this date still only accepts - complete works.

But there was another idea that was formed as 2005 was approaching, this time something that was geared specifically towards game-making. Much like the challenge NaNoWriMo, which sees its participants try to write a sizeable short novel in a month, the community's equivalent NaNoRenO would put the makers before a challenge of trying to make a complete ren'ai game... within a month. The emphasis was on complete - and by limiting the time to one month, it was also assured that people don't take too much work upon themselves - a frequent problem with game projects. The idea was to plan from the outset, to make a small game. There were still too few games that were being completed, and this one month should help in achieving people's first projects, or simply offer a challenge to those who already completed some.

There is a lot more to be said about NaNoRenO than just that, though. Its rules aren't competition, they are cooperation and support. There is no winner, no pressure to be better than the others. Arguably the most important thing about NaNoRenO is the sense of not being alone - all others have the same problem, the same goal. NaNoRenO provided the necessary motivation, the jump start that many people needed and over the years it has proven itself to be a very helpful concept that's now a part of the community. It's not surprising that NaNoRenO was indeed a tremendous success for a community as small as the Lemmasoft game-makers. Together with three Ren'Py releases even before its start, NaNoRenO and Ren'Py were responsible for a whole new wave of games - in the history books (if the OELVN community will ever have any), these will be later called the second generation.

And GSK is one of them. A NaNoRenO game, a second generation OELVN. It was done within the one month framework and released one day before the first ever NaNoRenO ended. And although all NaNoRenO games have had this special aura inside them, with GSK, Ren'Ai Games, the maker - have achieved something extraordinary. GSK is a not only a game that embodies everything that NaNoRenO stands for, it's also a consequence of Ren'Py, and it contains the very spirit of the times it was created. You see, every beginning is romantic, and GSK is from the time that is usually the most romantic of them all. It's a time that follows the very early tries and successes, a time when one already knows enough to make visions into reality, but at the same time is still not skilled enough to not need to use all available resources and invention to make up for that lack of skill or resource. GSK is such a special game, because its era, the times of dreams and possibilietes radiates from it.

I remember playing it for the first time - that piano music and the panning picture and a custom font, I was amazed how that was done - special effects like these weren't everyday at those times. It wasn't spectacular though - what struck me most was that it was subtle. It was inspiring, it was atmospheric and it was new.

It was the introduction to the most beautiful English ren'ai game ever made.

As a player in those times, you could feel from NaNoRenO, from Ren'Py and most of all from the game itself, that something was going on, that good games were being made and it was simply awe-inspiring when one realized just how much was possible. Now, we had the tools, the skill and the self-respect to create what we always wanted to create. It was this time that the community was perhaps most thrilled, excited and enthusiastic about ren'ai games. And it's this game where all of this is preserved - even when I set out to write this review and installed the game, it has lost none of its impact. It could move one to tears.

With such praising words for a game, one would imagine that it would have a gripping and well thought-out story. But - and those that were expecting a review, please forgive me for taking so long to get to it - it doesn't. In Kykuit, it's not important how things end. And I'd even go so far as to say it doesn't matter. The real beauty and soul of the game is in the playing itself. In talking with the people, in growing to like them, in getting absorbed by the atmosphere of it all. It is black-and-white, but you can clearly see the green and colors of the summer gardens, you can feel the heat and haze of the sun and the air, and you could just bask in all of them forever.

And it's not just the surroundings, the atmosphere of a school trip with holidays in the air and the art around you that warms your heart - it's the characters as well. If there was ever a perfect way to make drawn characters fit with photographs, this is how it would be. The symbiosis of the abstract (manga characters) and the real (surroundings, summer atmosphere) is so natural, there would just be no other way of creating it. Colors would break consistency, drawn backgrounds would lose atmosphere and more music would stand out. Some believe flawlessness defines the term, but in fact it's the inability to make something better - The Garden Society: Kykuit indeed is... perfect.

It's difficult to explain fully what the characters, its most memorable part, do for the game. You really need to see them, how they are drawn - each line drawn with love, even mistakes contributing to their personalities. You realize by playing this, just how different they feel to other manga drawings. They are original, have their own style and soul. They epitomize what OEL ren'ai games are. They were inspired by Japanese works, but they have their own ways, their own character. And most importantly, you can find in them what Japanese games can never give you. Something familiar but still special, something that has a heart which you can undertand and appreciate. Something... unique.

Just look at all of them again - and start with the girls. These are no dating sim archetypes with stock personalities. And neither are they drawn with all the sexy stereotypes. They have summer attires, short skirts even - yet none of them feels cheap, or provocative. Instead, they feel sophisticated, and very feminine - none of them shows off, none has the need to grab attention - their clothes are as simple as they are elegant and they just need to appear and smile to completely enchant you. Maybe you'll notice all the small details on their clothing, their hair and accessories, how they are all so subtle and discreet that all of the sudden the obsessive in-your-face designs from the bulk of Japanese games feel so obvious, much too flashy, two-dimensional, too pronouced and in general... completely wrong.

Even when you read this visual novel, it all fits so perfectly. While the story that revolves around a school trip to the art gardens and conversations with your friends slowly goes on, you'll notice that it's a joy to read - the style is balanced, it's never dramatic, always sophisticated yet not wordy, calmingly simple but never flat. The romance is just the same - metaphorically, rather than being the love of your live, Kykuit is the girl that you notice every other day in the subway and somehow it just makes your day a bit brighter. Like the characters, like the atmosphere, the romance has a melancholic flow and soft presence, soothing your soul.

It is still a proper game, though. There are three main girls that the player can become closer friends with, and one, the teacher, which is a little more difficult to get closer to. Throughout the game, your decisions about friendship, personality and art will determine which girl will like you most. The girls have their personalities and to be honest, it never feels anything like the usual girl-getting scheme. On the contrary. In this game you seem to find out what girl you have the most common with. The usual formula of trying to find your bishoujo archetype and then playing the game to get her does not apply. Even I, with my weakness for teachers didn't feel disappointed when my first playthrough did not get me close to her. It was just... alright. None of the "getting" pressure that stereotype-character-driven stories often have.

Backgrounds are livened up by people, the game's music plays to evoke the right mood and even the troubles that the protagonist, Arthur, will recall, they seem to go away in the garden parks.

And you feel sad, no matter how good the outcome of the game, when that final background comes up and you know that very soon the bus will take you home. It's one of those times when you wish you could go back and remember the whole day again. How it began, how your teacher explained to you about art, and how later on you had your free time in the garden. Even now, that beginning where you meet all the people you'll spend the day with is carved into my memory, because I've fallen in love with this game at the very fist sight. And then... you do it. Start the game again. And again. You tell yourself you play to get endings with the other girls, but you're simply feeling at home. For me, it was also the rare, or maybe even the only occasion where I really wished that *I* was there. Even though, technically, I was**. And I couldn't be more honored.

** Vivian Muse always has a group of fans following her. And on the very left, there is a boy with a black pencil on his t-shirt.

The Garden Society: Kykuit was never a game that revolutionized. While having subtle features and attention to detail, it wasn't ground-breaking or trend-setting. There is no feature that it could call its party-piece and there seems to be no effort to push the boundaries. And as more and more games are coming out, its black and white screenshot is often not enough to attract players. But this game was never destined to be popular. And about half a year after its release, it showed. And the times for OELVNs began to change yet again.

It was the August of 2005 and as many others, the community of OELVN makers was hit by the release of the English localization of the Japanese doujin visual novel Narcissu, a tragic and thoughtful story in the typical Japanese fashion. Many say it has brought a lot of good and a lot of respect for visual novels - contributing to freeing them from the hentai game stereotype at least somewhat. Many also say it has inspired the OELVN community. But among all the positives, many overlook, that for the OELVN makers, there was also something else that Narcissu has brought to them. It was competition.

Narcissu had started a new era in the history of the fan translation community. Shortly after its release the translation group insani went on and completely changed the face of visual novel fan translations. It brought respect and dignity to the world of translating, treating it like a craft. It started a new initiative, a translation festival al|together, that in the span of one month was the equivalent of NaNoRenO for the fan translators. Numerous releases started to appear, most of them from doujin makers, most of them free of charge. This was the first time that OELVN creators could see and experience the works of their counterparts from Japan. Just as themselves, the doujin makers were often small groups of few people, with limited resources, doing what they could with the tools at hand.

Narcissu's popularity shadow however did not leave the fandom. And all that was left for the OELVN community was to study and wonder how an on-purpose budget-like production gained popularity, how games that didn't have significantly better or more assets have attained respect and recognition that was unheard in the realms of OELVN making. While all of this is again, probably material for a different article - the outcome is not. It was after all this has happened, in late 2005 and in the following year that the first serious attempts for popularity from the OELVN makers have started. And to this day, this silent race for recognition and popularity continues, and in many cases it isn't silent anymore.

Of course, it's not like the OELVN has betrayed its own values. It has evolved and went on to create really great games that the community itself and many others still enjoy with the same enthusiasm as before. And it's one of the very few communities that still have to exhibit non-friendliness and un-supportiveness. It's always the spirit that's at the heart of things and even though there are more people and more opinions, the spirit is, I believe, still the same.

However, ever so often, especially when motivation is scarce, people will want to go back to the roots. To find something unique, something that feels special and cannot be found anywhere else, something which in turn inspires them and gives their work a meaning. If OELVN works would just mimic Japanese doujin or engage in pointless popularity races, surely, there would be no soul to be found underneath the fandom's releases. A maker searching for the heart of OELVN would only find hollow imitations, and visions of fame that can never inspire.

But, this is not the case with OELVNs. And it takes just one playthrough of garden Society: Kykuit to realize just how unique OELVN works are. GSK symbolizes the first and most basic idea on which the whole fandom was created - creating your OWN visual novel. Making it just the way you always wanted it, having it respect your background, having it more accessible to your friends, while keeping the spirit of the Japanese works that were the inspiration. And since the fandom started from absolute nothing, it's also about remembering that the mere completion of your game is enough of a reward, and how every single comment from players feels special.

The Garden Society: Kykuit is a game that can never have a Japanese doujin equivalent. It's a game that only the OELVN fandom can produce, it's a game that takes you back to the creative roots of the community and it's a game that carries the heart and spirit of the first of the English ren'ai games.

And there isn't anything more that one could possibly want.

Review by mikey

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Time's Tear - Synopsis

Story: Kazuhiko and his brother Hideo are orphans living under the supervision of their caretaker. Then, one night, Kazuhiko has a dream. Will it help him pass a test in school?

Relationship Type: BxG

Length: 1-2 hours

Positives: Very well told unusual story, outstanding music, vast amount of artwork which is stylistically ideal for this sort of game, several unexpected plot twists, adventure-style mini-games.

Unusual Features: Young protagonist, user-friendly and children-friendly game, quasi-linear VN.

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Time's Tear - Review

Warning: Some spoilers below

Ostensibly, the Visual Novel genre at present is a rather adult form. A majority of VN’s deal with romantic (or perhaps not so romantic) relationships, and a majority of these games contain adult content. Although, arguably the VN is in some ways like an interactive children’s picture book, at present there are very few VN’s which focus on a younger audience (Hikari no Ribbon, in the Ren’Ai Archives is one of the exceptions). Although many of the games in the Ren’Ai Archives for example have an all-ages rating, this more relates to the lack of any potentially objectionable content, rather than implying that the story might appeal to pre-teen children. Generally, these games also have teenage or adult protagonists too, which might also make the games difficult to relate to.

Time’s Tear is a game that goes outside many of the standard conventions – the protagonist Kazuhiko is 10 years old, and the story in some places (though not always) feels like it is being told from a child’s perspective. As well as this, the romantic elements, whilst not insignificant are fairly downplayed compared to some of the story’s other themes. In many ways it feels like Time’s Tear has been designed to appeal to a younger audience. Whilst there is a lot of reading involved in many places it plays more like an adventure game. Probably for Time’s Tear to be successful with a younger audience, it would have to be approached as a computer game, rather than a 20000+ word interactive book.

One of the most innovative components of Time’s Tear are the mini-games. For me, they reminded me a lot of some of the adventure games from the early 90’s (choosing the right object or combination of objects to perform a task). All of them are well integrated into the story, and in some ways act as a substitute for a branching storyline. The mini-games will vary greatly in difficulty from player to player – but the game gives unlimited retries (and a hint when you don’t succeed). In this respect, the game is much more forgiving than most VN’s difficulty-wise, making it ideal for a younger audience.

Like most other ATP games, there are some subtle clues in the story that suggest what will happen in the ending. The ending manages to tie together almost all of the story’s elements, and was completely unexpected for me. What impressed me most was seeing the complete Time’s Tear poem on-screen after finishing the game – it really made the ending feel complete by having the game come full circle.

The main reason for this game’s success is probably Lordcloudx’s artwork. As Mikey mentions, the ability to draw anime-style children purely as children (without any of the common extraneous connotations), is rare among artists. His art fits perfectly with the game, and really captures the personality of each character. The amount of artwork for Time’s Tear is vast (58 images in the CG gallery for example) and processed background photographs - in the extras section, there is the expected CG gallery, but also a CYOI (choose your own image), where you can superimpose your favourite character sprite over any of the game’s backgrounds. I’ve never come across a CYOI gallery in a VN before, and it’s a very nice addition to the game. Because of the large number of resources used, the download is unfortunately very large for users who are on dial-up connections.

As with O3 (and a few other games), Renesis’s trance/ostinato driven music is outstanding, and is at least the equal of the music from an average commercial VN. The soundtrack (which comes with a printable CD cover) can be listened to in ogg format.

Despite Time’s Tear being a children’s adventure (and to some extent an adventure for children), there is just as much content in the game for older gamers (besides possible nostalgic feelings it may induce). It’s one a few VN’s that almost anyone is likely to enjoy.

Review by Ignosco

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Project Nattsu - Synopsis

Story: The protagonist is a young man, Shoichiro Yoshizumi, whose grandfather has a job as a summer remedial instruction teacher. However, his gramps' has to have a surgery, so Shoichiro will be a substitute teacher for a while... And then he discovers that he's going to teach three girls, not very far from his own age!

Relationship Type: BxG

Length: 20-25 minutes for one path, about 1 hour for all endings.

Positives: High quality ‘traditional’ Ren’Ai game, numerous well integrated choices, game has fairly universal appeal, informative Omake section.

Unusual Features: Ending 5

Download Project Nattsu here.

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Project Nattsu - Review

Warning: This review contains some spoilers

While it’s difficult to describe a game as being traditionally representative of its genre, Project Nattsu contains some stereotypical features, for example a quasi school-based setting in Japan (a few Japanese words are used too), with a ‘harem’ of females around a male teacher. There are a few more unusual features too, for example Anna’s best ending being non-romantic, and of course Ending 5. On the whole, the game doesn’t stray too far outside the standard ‘conventions’ of Ren’ai VN’s though.

Hime’s thoughts about each character are explained in the Omake section. To a certain extent the characters are typical stereotypes, which work well for a game of this length and genre. That is not to suggest that the characters are dull – on the contrary, these archetypes are used to create three completely different, yet likeable characters. The protagonist, Shoichiro is much more generic, which as explained in the Omake section is almost a necessity for this sort of game.

The overall gameplay is excellent, with well thought out choices than in some cases are not immediately obvious. Getting to each girl’s good ending requires a little thought, and the true ending (where you have to act in a way most in character with Shoichiro) can be challenging to get. [Whilst on the topic of endings, Ending 5 is one of the most amusing scenes I’ve come across in a VN.] Although the game only takes place over four days (with only the first three having any choices), there are a relatively large number of choices, which are all well-integrated into the storyline. Importantly, every choice increases/decreases the value of at least one variable, so that none of the choices are meaningless. I feel that this approach is by far the best for a game with a linear storyline – as only the ending, and small sections of text will differ on each playthrough, it makes sense to always let the player influence the ending they will receive.

Overall, Project Nattsu is the sort of VN that is likely to appeal to most Ren’Ai gamers. The gameplay/choices are at a good average level of difficulty, and are combined with likeable characters, and good CG’s and music. Whilst the story isn’t overly ambitious or deep, it always reads well, and along with the other elements creates an enjoyable ambience. I highly recommend Project Nattsu to anyone looking for a light-hearted, ‘traditional’ Ren’ai game.

Review by Ignosco

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The Missing Tickets - Synopsis

Story: Jasper invites Augustus to a baseball game with her, only to find out that her season tickets have gone missing.

Relationship Type: Non-romantic (play as Male and Female characters)

Length: Each part of the game (main game and extra stories) is about 10-25 minutes.

Positives: Very well designed game, light-hearted and fun to play, one-person project.

Unusual Features: The main game functions like a large-scale minigame, as do the extra stories.

Download The Missing Tickets here.

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The Missing Tickets - Review

Warning: This review may contain some spoilers.

Unlike the other mystery/detective games from the Lemmasoft forums, The Missing Tickets is a light-hearted investigation of a ticket theft, rather than a murder. This is in no way a serious game, as can be seen when the motives of the culprit are revealed, and when playing I really got sucked into The Missing Tickets’ infectious sense of fun. Whilst the story in places is a bit short, this is made up for by the enjoyable and effective way in which it is told.

The characters are mostly based on real life stuffed animals, and this comes through in some of the designs (and I imagine partly in their personalities as well). All of the character sprites are coloured very brightly, which lets them stand out well from the darker backgrounds. Although the character sprites and their personalities aren’t overly refined, this approach works very well in a VN like this.

What struck me most while playing was the overall layout of The Missing Tickets. From the non-static main menu (which doubles as an introduction) to the information sheets on each character, everything is very well designed. The information sheets in particular might be worth including in future mystery games, to reduce the amount of note-taking that a player needs to do.

Whilst playing the game, certain choices will unlock one of the four bonus stories (minigames). Three of the extra games are very short, but Midnight’s extra story (a dating sim type game without the dating) is more substantial and fairly challenging, with multiple endings and three different statistics to juggle.

Overall, The Missing Tickets combines a fun experience with some very effective design features (which are worth looking at for any potential game creators). If you’re looking for an enjoyable way to spend 20-30 minutes, then The Missing Tickets is well worth downloading.

Review by Ignosco

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Winter Shard - Synopsis

Short evaluation:
Story: Bleak story in a medieval fantasy setting with gothic undertones and an anti-hero as the main character. The story has a good number of branches and the choices change significantly the story and the ending you get. Strong characters and many CGs help giving this game a powerful impact. The game contains some gory descriptions, but they are fairly short and well done.
Presentation: Good art and an impressive amount of CGs. Regular presentation and good music.
Strongest points: Interesting characters and story. Your actions affect the story profoundly. Unusual setting for the story.

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Winter Shard - Review

Warning: Spoilers below:

Well, I am quite a suspicious person to review Winter Shard, since I was one of the game’s beta testers and am very fond of bleak stories, complex anti-heroes and difficult moral dilemmas, all of which can be easily found in Winter Shard. For any regular VN players, accustomed to reading a romantic story in a familiar, modern-age scenario, Winter Shard may feel like a bucketful of freezing water. It has a dark story, which does not refrain from showing murder, war and tyranny as well as many tragic or disturbing scenes, like Rosetta and the flower that sustained her and Rosetta’s burial. The hero, while not completely unlikable, is far from the ideal hero of an average story. Although initially he may seem a cold hearted tyrant, in fact Frederone is much more complex than that, with a very basic, and human, conflict inside him: How to deal with the changes that inevitably come with time, especially the tragic death of someone we love. This is one of the main driving forces in the whole game and such a rich theme is explored by F.I.A. in a very tasteful, strong and above all dramatic manner.
The Gameplay is also a strong feature of this game, with a good amount of branching in the story, leaving you to deal with the consequences of your acts. There are endings for all tastes, from the romantic, to the evil, to something in between these two. The game must also be praised in the fact which the game doesn’t “punish” you for bad decisions ( except one single choice in the very beginning ). The player is given liberty to choose whatever path he wishes, and can be as evil, or as kind as he pleases without fearing that some higher power ( i.e. the morality of the author of the story ) will automatically punish you with death or lousy endings. One could argue that evil itself is already a just punishment for evil actions, but I’ll leave that for the philosophy conversations. The game does have a true ending, and one which I believe many agree to be the most satisfying of them all. None of the other endings are bad ( most, in fact, are fairly happy, with the exception of one sudden ending near the start of the game ) but the True ending is, by far, the most dramatic, moving and well executed of them all. While the other endings happen easily, with little or no conflict, the true ending reaches a truly epic scale in which creation and creator battle for their ideals and the story goes full circle, finishing in a bittersweet gran finale that would be difficult to surpass.
The art is fairly well-executed, with some sprites that deserve special praise like the hydra image or Rosetta’s burial CG. The quantity of event images is also good, and none of them feel wasted, each contributing to the story resulting in a unique effect. The game music can be found freely in the internet, but is still very good, and works well with the somber, moody ambience of the story. The sound effects are good, and presentation is normal.
Concluding this review, I can only say that it took courage and determination to make such a rich game, with a fair amount of violence, following almost no “standards” of the genre, with various paths and event CGs, it is a game that deserves praise and full merit for its accomplishments.
I did warn you that I was a suspicious person to write this review, remember?
Review by Mr. E

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K*A*O*R*I - Synopsis

‘She became my dream girl. And also something I always returned to. Something inspiring.’

Story: Souji, the popular writer for an art magazine gets all his inspiration from his old flame Kaori. But articles from the mysterious Ghostwriter seem to be even more popular.

Relationship Type: BxG

Length: 40-60 minutes to complete all endings

Positives: Very well told story, large number of endings, very effective use of passwords as part of the gameplay.

Unusual Features: Minimalist approach (2.2 MB download, 7 MB installed), password required to fully complete the game.

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K*A*O*R*I - Review

‘She became my dream girl. And also something I always returned to. Something inspiring.’

Warning: This review contains spoilers

K*A*O*R*I (hereafter KAORI) was one of the earliest OELVN’s, and for me it seems to be one of the most important, not just for ATP projects, but also for OELVN’s in general. Being able to tell a story in an original, effective way using minimal resources has become somewhat of a hallmark for the Lemmasoft communities VN’s, and KAORI was one of the first games to demonstrate this.

KAORI was created as a prototype for what mikey describes as ATP’s ‘simple games’. Compared to River Trap (which is still one of the most complicated and graphically intense OELVN’s), KAORI is about 1/15th its size. To reduce production time (and to keep the game small), there is only one pose per character sprite, no music and a rather low resolution background photographs. There is still a strong atmosphere created by the minimal resources used, particularly the filter of the backgrounds, which for some reason reminds me of yellowing paper.

One of the most unusual features of KAORI is the characterisation. None of the characters’ personalities are described to a significant extent, even when they engage in conversation. The characters function more as inspirations to each other rather than as people, and because of this, in some ways they become 'idols' for each other.

The other strongly innovative feature is the overall structure of KAORI, in particular the way that 5 out of the 9 of the Endings (where some or the entire Kaori/Inami story is revealed). By constructing the game in this way, the reader is forced to read most (or all) of the endings to discover reach the True Endings. KAORI’s choices are structured such that each ending can only be reached in one way, which combined with the newly added keyboard support, allows the player to easily retrace the paths to the password endings. Additionally, the decision points in KAORI are well thought out – one choice in particular seems rather ambiguous, but makes perfect sense after the whole story is revealed.

KAORI differs from most of the other ATP games, as a (slightly) greater focus is placed on the storytelling rather than the emotions attached to it. Overall, I didn’t find KAORI quite as successful as the other early ATP games – but it still integrates gameplay and story in a way that’s perfectly suited to the VN format.

Review by Ignosco

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Wings - Synopsis

'To be always alone, but never lonely...'

Story: A mostly emotional and psychological drama told from the point of view of two characters.

Relationship type: Friendship (BxG)

Length: Both versions are approximately 15 minutes

Positives: Honest storytelling, very effective use of artwork, extensive author’s notes, solo project, two protagonists

Unusual Features: Protagonists appear as sprites and have very strong personalities, story exists in two versions, minimal dialogue, linear visual novel.

Download Wings here.

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Wings - Review

'To be always alone, but never lonely...'

Wings is a rather unusual VN in several respects, as there are two versions of the story included in the one download, two protagonists and a storyline conveyed mostly through internal thoughts.

In a few places the writing doesn’t flow particularly well, feeling at times like a compressed list of facts. However, what really stands out is the overall honesty and immediacy of the story. Both protagonists convey their thoughts to the reader very frankly, without an attempt on the author’s part to express any moral judgements, leaving the ideas presented open to a personal response. What I also found interesting was the personalities of the protagonists, which are quite likely to rile the players. While their thoughts are often highly arrogant and condescending in their thoughts, it is unlikely that they will completely distance anyone. On a personal level, at times my thoughts have drifted down those lines, and I imagine that this is true for many other readers, making this a somewhat confrontational VN.

As Lordcloudx mentions in the authors notes, there is a strong influence of some of the translated doujin VN’s, particularly Narcissu and Until We Meet Again. The influence of Narcissu is particularly evident, through the tightly squeezed backgrounds and Kotori’s appearance (which resembles Setsumi’s in Narcissu).

While the other elements of the game (art, music etc) aren’t quite on the same level as the story, they are still well done and effective. The art in particular is an essential part of Wings, as there are minimal character descriptions, which I think is why the protagonist is also presented onscreen. In the ending of the revised version the use of art is highly effective too.

It’s difficult to say which version I prefer, as the primary difference between each story is the artwork, with only a few sentences of the original storyline being changed. If you enjoy the story, it’s definitely worth playing through the other version to draw comparisons between them. Additionally, Lordcloudx’s comments in the author’s notes and in the Completed Games section of the Lemmasoft forums are well worth reading. It’s also hard to say who this story might appeal to as it operates on a rather personal level. However, I think Wings is well worth downloading if you are looking for a slightly different VN experience.

Review by Ignosco

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Elven Relations - Synopsis

‘We ought to do our bit at improving human-elven relations, don’t you think?’

Story: Takuya is a swordsman in the Royal Army of the Kingdom of Reachfar, who is sent on a unique mission into the Endless Forest to establish diplomatic relations with the Elven people. Could there be love awaiting him in the depths of the Elvenglade?

Relationship Type: BxG

Length: 60-90 minutes, 3+ hours to complete every ending/get all CG’s.

Positives: Very well written story (Ren’Ai/Fantasy), vast amount of artwork, RPG minigame, extensive omake and gallery (includes character expressions and backgrounds), highly replayable.

Unusual features: Choice between RPG minigame and narrative-style combat, very long-term project completed as a result of NaNoRenO 2007.

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Elven Relations - Review

‘We ought to do our bit at improving human-elven relations, don’t you think?’

Warning: This review contains some spoilers

As mentioned in the Omake section, Elven Relations was initially begun in 2003, but ended up stalling with about 2/3rds of the script done. It ended up being completed in 2007 as an IntRenAiMo project, making it one of the few games to be successfully completed after being left on hiatus for a long time.

The overall story of Elven Relations combines a traditional Ren’Ai experience with a relatively standard fantasy world (pre-gunpowder). At times the overall storyline and plot feel a bit conflated as the scale of the mission is rather grand, and everything goes very smoothly throughout. Even so, Elven Relations is (I think) the second longest Lemmasoft forums game, behind Gakuen Redux. However the game’s focus is more on the Ren’Ai aspect, rather than the overall plotline, and as chronoluminaire mentions, the depth of the game comes from the back-story, which requires multiple playthroughs to fully discover. Tohko, Yurika and Asilana all have very well developed personalities/backgrounds etc, and while certain parts of their stories are revealed on every path

One of the best features of Elven Relations is its replayability. Although the overall plot is the same no matter which character you pursue, there are changes not just in the interactions which the character you romance, but also in some of the other conversations. I particularly enjoyed the way other characters noticed and responded to your growing romance – it really increases the realism of the game. Elven Relations will probably require multiple replays to track down the best endings (particularly the semi-hidden Ending 1) – it’s definitely worth replaying to find all of the endings as they are all well-written and each of them has at least one CG associated with it.

Almost all of the art appearing in the final version of Elven Relations was completed under NaNoRenO conditions by Sunkitten. The quality is consistently high, and the amount is staggering (15 CG’s and many characters (including costume changes) with) numerous facial expressions). More importantly, the expressions are matched very well to the character sprites, for example Yurika’s subtle expressions fit her somewhat reserved personality. The backgrounds (a few of which are hand-drawn) and music were very well chosen too - and the gameplay never feels overly repetitive due the numerous resources employed over the course of Elven Relations.

The combat minigames are at the right level of difficulty – they require a little bit of thought (particularly the Dragon combat), but they can all be beaten even if the only character you defend is your love interest. In these sequences, the combat is continuous (as opposed to turn-based), but your actions can only take place (as menu choices) in a reactionary way (you can only decide how to interact with one of the NPC’s as they are attacked). The romantic interactions between your love interest are also carried over into combat, as one way to get ‘her’ to like you more is to protect her in combat, and in return, they will defend you in some way too (for example Tohko distracts enemies from attacking you by Fireballing them)

As there are only three combat sequences in the game, it raises the question of whether they are needed in the game. Personally, I much prefer this mini-game to the story-mode overview, as the written-out comments seem a bit perfunctory. It’s good to have the flexibility to choose between them though, particularly when replaying a characters’ path to achieve the best ending.

Overall, Elven Relations is a high-quality OELVN, with an excellent mix of Ren’ai, fantasy, and some other elements (eg humour). As long as you don’t approach the game expecting a really deep and meaningful story you are likely to really enjoy this.

:)

Review by Ignosco

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