Visual Novels Master Page

My list on VNDB is probably better… oh well.

Seeing as the VN categories at this blog are expanding quite rapidly, I’ve decided to create a VN page. Here, you’ll see a (kind of) complete list of VNs I’ve played over the years, along with a short comment, rating, and a judgment of routes. The games are listed by company, but feel free to drop a comment if you think there’s a better way to categorize them.

Note: All the games listed here are translated, either into English or Chinese. If you don’t see an english patch over at VNDB, assume it’s CHinese.

Note 2: I am extremely biased against slice-of-lifes and stories based on moe. I am extremely biased for imoutos (because I am one) and good singing (I don’t care if the rest is crap, if the singing is good I’ll like it).

Note 3: I’ve left out pieces of complete idiocy such as  X-change. There’s no point in wasting any more time on those things.

Note 4: The ratings are my gut feelings, ranging from 0 to 10. There aren’t any zeros because I’m not wasting anymore time on them. Gut feelings usually mean what I felt about the best route.

Note 5: I’m still adding to this place. And scores are subject to change without notice (probably more accurate than my review scores).

07th expansion

Higurashi no naku koro ni Rei 8/10

Short stories, play if you like the original.

Umineko no naku koro ni 9/10

Art that’s awesome after you get used to it, music that’s just awesome, and a kickass plot. One ending only (technically). Lately, I’ve kind of grown apathetic about it, however, I’m still saying that you should play it. Be prepared for trolling though… LOTS of trolling…

Alcot

Real Imouto ga Iru Ooizumi-kun no Baai 8/10

Cute (sis-con) story, has its moments but is also a lot of wasted potential. Review

Shiori (unlock-able true end)>> Mai>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>that other thing

Shinigami no kiss wa wakare no aji 7/10

They tried. They really tried. But it’s just as good as it’s supposed to be. All of the stories are around the same, but the unlockable true end made me RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGE.  review

 Akabeesoft2 (includes branch companies such as Syangrila, etc)

G-senjou mo maou 10/10

Go for the true ending (with Haru), ignore everything else. Decent enough art/BGM, but the plot and songs are awesome enough to compensate and more. Review

Sharin no Kuni, Himawari no shoujo 10/10

There’s an extremely long trunk story, and little difference in the different routes aside from a few scenes and an epilogue, so there’s not much of a point in getting them all. Natsumi’s ending felt the most right in my eyes though. Once again, kickass plot, but the rest of it is kind of meh. Review

Akatsuki no Goei 6/10

The first of three games. Not BAD, but really unfinished and kind of meh, despite likable characters and nice packaging. Mini review

August

Yoake Mae yori Ruriiro na 5/10

Most of it is about as interesting as boiled water, and though the production values are like by many, it’s not for me. No path rating because other than the the hidden stories, the stories are equally bland. My opinions of it hasn’t improved with time either. Review

Yoake Mae yori Ruriiro na -moonlight cradle- 6/10

Fandisc. The art’s better than I remembered it to be, even though I still can’t accept the clothes. There are a few funny moments and one almost tear jerking moment, but other than that it was mostly a waste of time. Review

Aiyoku no Eustia 9/10

So much more awesome than August’s other titles. This one’s darker and a little depressing. The one true end is just…sigh…………… review

Axl

Koisuru otome no shugo no tate 5/10 (The blonde girl route only)

One of the drawing points seemes to be the trap protagonist, and while it was entertaining for a while, the comedy/whatever got old pretty quickly. The music’s forgettable, along with the system and overall presentation. I have a thing against the artist. Overall boring.

Brocolli

True tears 1/10

The only good thing about it was the opening video, which lulled me in with false expectations. Has nothing to do with the anime True tears.

Caramel-box

Otoboku 7/10

Quite funny, with nice background art (I have a thing against the character artist). Didn’t finish it all though. Sion>Yukari  Review

Circus

A CG because the coverart is a bit misleading and I can’t find any promotional art

Mai hime Unmei no Keotouju 8.5/10

Surprisingly good for an adaption of an anime, though the story has little to do with the Sunrise production other than some shared characters and some parts of the hime system. It also took me a while to get used to the new character designs. Unfortunately, all the endings were bittersweet (sometimes just plain bitter). Shizuru was awesome in this game though. Review (written by me under a different name)

Natsuki>Mai>Miyu>Mikoto>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Sakuya (I hate her)

Da capo Plus Communication 5/10

…This game has a bad flow. It might have been pretty good 9 years ago, but now, it’s horribly generic. Also, I’m sick and tired of the endless amount of repetitive daily life in moeges. So…yeah.

The new routes are worse than the original ones. The routes that involve magic are better than the ones that don’t. Other than that, they’re pretty much the same. Review

Da Capo II 8.5/10

Nice art, nice music, nice story. Yes, it is infamous, yes, I liked it and I don’t care what you say.

Anzu>Sakura>>>>>Otome>Nanaka>Yume>>Minatsu>Coco (well, the last 5 are about the same, Anzu-sama forever!)

Da Capo II to you 6/10

4 short stories, each decent in their own way. Review

Suika

Working on it.

Cuffs and sister companies (Cube and Sphere)

Yosuga no Sora 8/10

Nice production values. Short but dramatic stories. A bit on the generic side. Review

Akira=Kazuha>Sora>>Nao=Motoka

Haruka no Sora 7/10

4 short stories (2 heroines, 1 Sora after story, and one kareoke special), web dramas, and wallpapers. It’s a fandisc, so it’s nothing special, although iinchou’s outrageous reactions were fun to watch.

D.O.

Family project 5/10

Overrated. It was pretty good, then went downhill FAST. The main story’s excessively long, and I just couldn’t bring myself to finish all the endings. Review

Kana -little sister- 7/10

Overrated. You know, people were all saying that it’d make grown men cry. I’m a girl and I still didn’t feel a single tear coming. Pretty dramatic at the right places though.

Etude

Soshite Ashita no Sekai Yori (short: Asuseka) 10/10

Beautiful art, great sound tracks, nice system, and a plot with two routes that took my breath away. It’s both darker and lighter than I thought it’d be, with lots of heartwarming fluff, rape, murder, and an true epilogue that made me cry. Now if only they made Minami and Asahi more interesting… Review.

Aoba>Yuuhi>>>>Minami=Asahi

Favorite

Hoshizora no memoria -wish upon a shooting star- 7/10

Not a bad story, but it’s not my type and feels unsatisfying. review

Komomo>Yume>Kosame>Mare=Chinami=Asuho>Isuzu

Hoshizora no memoria -Eternal heart- 5/10

Fandisc. Nothing special. Ima and her brother are pretty cute though.

Flying Shine

Cross channel 9/10

Very addicting and very different. The plot twists are about as shocking as they come, but I didn’t like the ending much.

Giga

Parfait Chocolat Second brew 9/10

Surprisingly good slice of life, with lots of drama. Some of the plot twists were simply amazing. Good music too, but the art isn’t that great.

Rikako>>>Ema=Yui>Katori>>Kasuri>Asuka

Kono Aozora ni Yakusoku wo 6/10

I expected something like Parfait, but it just wasn’t as good. However the first part of the main story trunk and the last epilogue was really touching.

Umi=Rina>Naoko>Miyaho>>Shizu>>Saeri

Fosette 4/10

A decent enough fandisc for Parfait and Aozora. There’s a lot of material, mini games, etc. However I rarely care for fandiscs, and the material just wasn’t that great.

Haikuo soft

Yotsunoha 7/10

A story about old friends reuniting, told through the weaving of the past and present. The characters are really likable and it’s fun, plus there are some pretty good squeeee moments. Too bad the actual drama’s a bit on the light side. Production values are good, despite really really REALLY inconsistent art.

The big boob girl (SO SQUEEEE)>the tsundereish girl(SO AWWWWWWW)>Nono (why is she always the focus of promotion material? I really don’t get her personality)>>>the hidden sickly nekomimi girl (the ending’s just……sigh…..)

Innocent grey

Cartagra 10/10

Best mystery I’ve ever played, period. Only 1 true ending, don’t bother with the rest. Great music, great graphics, really disturbing scenes and a fantastic atmosphere. However beware the numerous bad endings and h-scenes. Review

Nagomibako 8/10

Fandisc to some innocent grey games. The comedy is surprisingly good (EYEBROWS!!!!!!!!!), though the continuation of Cartagra’s story doesn’t help to make the ending less bitter.

Kara no shoujo 9/10

The true true ending was a pain in the ass to unlock because of a string of bad luck, which probably made me score the game lower than I would have. It’s another mystery (with an interesting search/deduce system) and great production values. I guessed the truth more here than in Cartagra. I wonder if that’s because it was easier or just that I was older/wiser…

Technically only one ending. No matter what it’s kinda linear, so no heroine-specific routes. Review

Jellyfish

Sisters～夏の最後の日～ 7/10

A short, linear story, and the first game I played in Japanese, Whoo~ It’s really pretty and almost completely animated, and the story started off well. But then, the h-scenes came along, and there ended up being a plethora of h-scenes instead of a good ending. Too bad.  Review

KeroQ and Makura

I’m not sure if this is actually official art… so many artists worked on this game it’s not even funny.

H2O Footprints in the sand 5/10 (on hindsight)

Everything besides the story was good. Review

Leaf and Aquaplus

Utawarerumono 8/10

The harem was thrown together kind of haphazardly, I don’t find enjoyment in RPGs, and I was spoiled on the ending so it wasn’t as good as it could have been. However, it still has a good story that’s worth a play (watch the anime extras, the comedy works SO much better with animation). One ending only.

Tears to Tiara 6.5/10

I was kind of scared away by the art, but once you get into it, TTT’s pretty good. However, the side characters are as flat as rice paper, the ending leaves a lot unexplained (though they might be plot holes) and I just couldn’t get into it as much as Utawarerumono. Review

Tenshi no Inai 12-gatsu 8/10

Very beautiful, and very different (AKA dark and open ended). Good for someone who wants a change of pace. None of the stories stood out than the rest. ReviewTo heart 2 Xrated 8/10

A very cute, very sweet, very romantic, and pretty classical game. Added plus is the excellent production values.

Yuma>Manaka>Karin=Sango/Ruri>Lucy=Yuki>Sasara>>>>>Tamaki=Konomi

To heart 2 another days 7/10

Lost a lot of the magic that the original had, replacing it instead with fanservice. Ugh. Fortunately there is SOME good in there.

Harumi=Ikuno>Silfa>>Chie>Michiru>>>>>>>>Marianne=Nanako>the mom>that poor excuse for a h-scene side story with Konimo and Tamaki

White album 2 -Introductory Chapter- 9/10

The best love triangle I have ever come across in an eroge. As expected from the people who wrote Parfait, this was really good. Linear, short. The mark may go up when I see the Closing chapter. Kazusa forever! Review

Liarsoft

Sekien no Inganock 9/10

I usually hate open ended stories. But somehow I really liked Sekien no Inganock. Now, if only all the stories were as good as the first it would have been an 11. Linear. Review

Kusarihime -euthanasia- 9/10

Fantastic atmosphere, but like Inganock and Cross channel, confused the hell out of me. It’s not what it seems. For some reason, I have a soft spot for the graphics, which have aged quite well since 2002. Review

Little /Witch

Quartett!    8/10

Simple and short plot, but with a lot of effort in presentation. There is a ridiculous amount of art, fantastic music, likeable characters, and a great atmosphere. There is no voices present in the PC game, however, there is a voice patch floating around. I wouldn’t actually recommend the voice patch though, as the system is not designed for voices and the acting isn’t really fantastic.

KID

……

I’ve played like 15 of their games, and Ever17’s the only one that I really liked.Well, I guess the Souma endings in Memories off 2 were good too (but that doesn’t get interesting until the epilogue).

Ever17 9.5/10

The best mystery ever until I discovered Umineko and Cartagra. You have to go through all the character paths to get to the true ending, which explains the mysteries, and those paths aren’t the greatest (equally decent). However, the true ending is made of win. The system/art/music is pretty dated at this point though.

Kogado

Symphonic rain 6/10

It was good while I was playing but left a bad after taste. I can’t understand why so many people praise it. The music system was kind of fun, and the score would have been lower if the music hadn’t been so good (even if half the songs were just remixes of each other).

Lump of sugar

Tayutama 4/10

They set out to make a mindless fluffy story with ero and some heartstring tugging in Mashiro’s path. They did it. Review

Mashiro’s actual path>>>>>>>>>>Mifuyu’s actual path>>>>>>>>>>>>> the rest of the game

Minori

Ef ~a fairytale of the two~ 8/10

Nice, short, little dramas. The first tale didn’t click with me at all, but the latter tale clicked with me. The anime’s still better though, especially since it’s so different. Just go and watch the anime then play the Mizuki path (for some reason, the anime starts on Mizuki’s back story but never explains any of it). Review (sort of)

Mizuki=Chihiro>Yuuko=Miyako>Kei

Ef -Tenshi no Nichiyoubi 7/10

The fan disc of Ef and a series of very short comedic dramas. We get to see a day in the lives of the 8 main characters, plus 3 dreams. In the first dream, Yuuko avoids the car. In the second dream, the earthquake didn’t kill anyone. In the third dream, the original Mizuki never died. It also came with a  fun little mini game. Review

Eden* -There were only two on the planet- 9/10

A very nice linear short story. Very cinematic. Very sad (the scene with the plates in the sink really got me). However, some parts dragged a bit (especially with the reporter).  Review

Wind -a breath of heart- 6/10

Meh. Generic bishoujo game with a twist that wasn’t pulled off all that well.

Nekoneko

The 120 yen series 4/10

I expected some heart warming short stories. I got nothing.

Scarlett 6/10

A linear story about spies and people, I think. Didn’t really click with me. Review

Sanarara 9/10

Don’t let the cover art turn you away, this is a really nice collection of short stories about love with some seriously great music and tear-jerking powers. Review

Ryou>>Yuriko>Nozomi>>>Ayumi

Nitro+

Chaos;Head 8/10

Odd, but gets strangely addicting as it goes on. Odd ending. Most of the characters show up but don’t really do anything. Pretty much Linear.

Dra koi 7/10

Boy meets girl err dragon story, filled with laughs, romance, explosions, h-scenes, and an awesome loli mother. It’s only an hour and a half long, so give it a spin if you feel like unwinding. review

Saya no Uta 10/10

WOW. It has a breathtaking atmosphere and interesting themes. The story’s linear, short, and absolutely fantastic.

Also, it’s pretty much the scariest thing I’ve ever seen.

Chaos;Head

…still working on this one

Jingai Makyou 8/10

Good story with likable characters, comedy, romance, and lots of action and blood. Really reminds me of Fate/stay night. Entertaining to the core. Review

Kaze no Ushiro wo Ayumumono=The landlady>>>Ignis

Kikokugai 9/10

Like Saya no Uta, but not as scary and a lot more action. Good stuff. Review

Hanashirasu 7/10

A story about modern day sword fighting with an awesome protagonist. It’s a bit simple, but it’s short and worth a play. Also, beware of the zombies. Review

Orbit

Para-sol 8/10

Nice art, and really grand and interesting setting. However, the story falls short of its potential and ends up being kinda weird (and absolutely chock full of incest). Linear plot line, but you need multiple playthroughs to unlock extra scenes. review

Overdrive

Kirakira 6/10

Just didn’t click with me. Impressions

Pajama Soft

Piano no Mori no mankai no Shita 8/10

A really nice, cute little romance with a really siscon main character and lots of Sakakibara Yui (YAY!). It’s not that long, so I’d recommend you get all 3 endings. Review

Palette

Moshimo Ashita ga harenaraba 9/10

A really good school romance/drama. With some really interesting characters. It could have gotten a better mark if the epilogues were better ( it was like a slap in the face every single time). Review

Tsubasa>Tamami>>Chihaya>Akiho

Propeller (under will)

Kitto, sumiwataru asairo yori mo 8/10

A one route story that can’t have a story summary because it’s too epic for one. Seriously, there’s no way to make make 1 that carries the tone of the story without providing serious spoilers. Review

Ayakashibito: 6/10

A bunch of people with superpowers fighting with romance, comedy, suspense, and slice of life thrown in. Not my type. review

Pulltop (under will)

Haruka ni Aogi, Uruwashino (or Kanisino) 10/10

Most of it is fantastic, but some routes are complete crap (especially the redhead from above). Well, I guess that’s just what you’d get for hiring 2 main writers. Despite it’s premise, it’s not really about Ojou-samas and teachers. Has one of the greatest maids ever, and is the best pure drama in a school setting ever (Until I found Asuseka). Review

Tonoko>Miyabi=Shino>>Yuna>>>>>>>Misaki>>>>>>Fumika

Princess Waltz 6/10

Some parts were good, but most of it was very meh. The two main characters annoyed the hell out of me. There are barely any differences between the different paths, save for around 1 scene+an h=scene. Review

Yunohana 6/10

A relaxing little comedy set in winter. The paths are all about the same. Review

Purple Software

Kimi to Ashita no Au Tame ni 7/10

A pretty standard chara/moe-ge with some REAAAAAAAAAAAALLY nice production values. The stories are pretty much the same in terms of plot quality, so just go after the girl with the most appealing personality. My favorite characters are Saya and Rin, although Rin doesn’t have a route. Review

Ruf (under Will)

Yume Miru Kusuri 9/10

It’s unrealistically realistic, kind of like Tenshi no Inai 12-gatsu. Too many h-scenes in some places, but otherwise 3 very enjoyable tales.

Nakoko>>>>>Aeka>Mizuki

Stage nana

Narcissu 10/10

Narcissu side 2nd 11/10

Absolutely beautiful. I cried a lot in Side 2nd. It’s linear, it’s short, it’s powerful, and there’s no reason in this world for you to skip these two titles if you can read.

Tarte

Katahane 7/10

It’s not as Yuri as it looks. A lot of it was confusing/boring, but the true ending brought it together nicely.

Story is kind of linear. Review

Type-moon

Tsukihime 7/10

Couldn’t get into it for some reason. It’s been too long, can’t remember which path I liked.

Kagetsu Tohya 10/10

…I don’t know why, but I really love the comedy that this guy churns out. This is also probably the only time where I’ll like a fandisc more than the original work.

Fate/Stay night 9.9/10

Epic fights, epic comedy, epic tears down my face. Go and play it. Sakura>Saber>Rin

Fate/Hollow Ataraxia 10/10

I LAUGHED. SO. MUCH. There’s also a lot of awesome thrown in, such as the battle at the bridge, the swimming pool, dark Sakura, Rider’s past, etc etc. A must get if you want more from the characters of F/SN.

Unisonshift

Nanatsuiro Drops 8/10

A very adorable romance with Mahou Shoujos that has no business being an eroge.

Sumomo>Nadeshiko=Yuki

Flyable heart 9/10

A very adorable romance which was also really funny. While the individual  stories aren’t the strongest, there is an overarching plot which was incorporated wonderfully into the routes. The production values are nice too.

…for some reason, I just can’t rate the routes in this one… Review

Visual arts & KEY

One ~to the radiant season~ 1/10

I don’t know how I made my way through it, I really don’t.

Kanon 6/10

A (supposed) tearjerker set in winter. Didn’t get a single tear out of me.

Err…this is a bit of a misleading picture. The actual game was drawn around 10 years before this picture and looks quite different (I mean worse, much, MUCH worse)…

Air 9/10

An absolute tear jerker set in summer. However I’d recommend you skip the game and just watch the anime.

Clannad 9/10

An absolutely tear jerker set in Spring. However I’d recommend you watch the anime and then play for Kyou and Kappei. Really, it’s like the longest VN ever or something, save yourself some time.

Kyou/Ryou (DRAMA)> Kotomi(TEARS)=Misae(DRAMA)> Kappei> Nagisa> Tomoyo> Yukine=Mei

Tomoyo after 7/10

A (supposed) tearjerker set in summer. The excessive amount of h-scenes at the beginning really ruined it for me, but get it if you like Tomoyo, I suppose. Linear, but not short. Review

Planetarian 9/10

A tearjerker set in the future (are you seeing a trend yet?) Short, linear.

Little Busters Ecstacy 7/10

It has its moments, but overall it was repetitive and tedious. Not to mention the minigames are annoyin and Saya’s route has made me hate guns. Another problem is that it doesn’t explain things well, and so many things are metaphorical it felt more like Cross channel or Remember11 rather than a heartwarming story about friendship and family from Key.

Completing the main heroines and Rin’s bad end unlocks Rin’s true end which unlocks refrain (the true true end) which unlocks 3 other paths for side characters and Saya.

Refrain (aka the BL end)>Kud (if you can understand it)=Komari (if you can stand her voice)>Haruka=Kanata>>Sasami=Mio>Saya (troll ending)>Rin (she barely has a path, even though she’s the main heroine)>>>Kurugaya (made no sense)

Rewrite: 7/10

Romeo had a grand plan in mind, but the execution falls short of expectations. Don’t expect raburabu or happy endings, because this story’s really bleak. It feels like the heroines are just there to draw in sales because the main story aren’t really about them. Mini Review

Yuzusoft

Tenshin Ranman (Sana route only) 6/10

Played it just to see what all the hype over Sana is about. Didn’t really impress me.  More detailed impressions.

Natsuzora Kanata 8/10

I somehow managed to walk away with a pretty good impression despite skipping half the game. If that’s not magical I don’t know what is. Short review here

Chihaya>>Sasara>Yuiko