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ProfessorProf posted:As a more immediately understandable argument from an EP2 perspective, if Beatrice said Witches exist in red this early, Battler would reject the premise of the Red Truth, and they'd be back on square one. That's a good way to think about it, thanks.
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Oct 29, 2013 14:22
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I got started on Chie's route in Kira Kira, and now the story is heading to some weird cult's place in pursuit of some girl the crew just met? Is this turn gonna make sense in the bigger picture or is it as random as it seems?
Suleman fucked around with this message at 00:17 on Nov 1, 2013 |
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Nov 1, 2013 00:14
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Suleman posted:I got started on Chie's route in Kira Kira, and now the story is heading to some weird cult's place in pursuit of some girl the crew just met? Is this turn gonna make sense in the bigger picture or is it as random as it seems? It's completely random, but it also leads into my favourite scene in that route.
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Nov 1, 2013 00:47
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Suleman posted:I got started on Chie's route in Kira Kira, and now the story is heading to some weird cult's place in pursuit of some girl the crew just met? Is this turn gonna make sense in the bigger picture or is it as random as it seems? All the routes go off on their own thing. Not really connected at all. Kirari's is really the only one that sticks with a Band theme. Even though Chie's route is pretty silly and they get involved with the Cult, it's probably my favorite.
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Nov 1, 2013 17:43
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Major Kira Kira spoilers (Kirari route): Wait, so Kirari's loving dead? Like, that's it? Just bam, nope, Kirari's dead. Immediately after we're told she's going to have to be a prostitute to pay off her family's debts. drat game, you kinda just threw that out there all at once. Not really sure what to think right now other than drat. 
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Nov 2, 2013 05:56
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Remember when it was said earlier that one route has both a normal and true ending? Bam. The ending you're starting right now is probably my favorite from Kira Kira, just because its really goddamn emotionally powerful. Like, Alternative PTSD arc levels. Overdrive is great at doing really happy comedies and then suddenly turning around and crushing your soul. Blhue fucked around with this message at 06:12 on Nov 2, 2013 |
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Nov 2, 2013 06:00
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I'm really liking Higurashi. It's giving me all sorts of philosophical ideas that you just don't get in other stories. Chapter 2 just taught me that a person is kinda like a futon, if you think about it. I'm also using the better sprites; sometimes the old sprites show up outside the TIPS screen, and I was (briefly) loving terrified when it first happened because I thought Rena was literally morphing into a shambling flipper-monster as part of the horror angle.
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Nov 2, 2013 08:36
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Soho Joe posted:I'm really liking Higurashi. It's giving me all sorts of philosophical ideas that you just don't get in other stories. Chapter 2 just taught me that a person is kinda like a futon, if you think about it. Stuff like this is half the reason I enjoy Ryukishi/Nasu. I recall some weird but apt metaphor about a bar of soap. Perhaps its time to re-read.
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Nov 2, 2013 09:26
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Blhue posted:Remember when it was said earlier that one route has both a normal and true ending? Bam. The ending you're starting right now is probably my favorite from Kira Kira, just because its really goddamn emotionally powerful. Like, Alternative PTSD arc levels. That ending, man. I mean, i'm sure the true route will be a lot happier in a conventional sense, but I can't help but tear up when I see someone overcome so much and still find it in themselves to face the world with a smile. Especially since i'm still neck deep in the same period of life where i'm just wandering around trying to figure out what I want. That was a very nice story. 
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Nov 2, 2013 13:08
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Blhue posted:Remember when it was said earlier that one route has both a normal and true ending? Bam. The ending you're starting right now is probably my favorite from Kira Kira, just because its really goddamn emotionally powerful. Like, Alternative PTSD arc levels. Edelweiss would be another example of this, although not to the same degree.
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Nov 2, 2013 22:22
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There's yet another VN that's been put up on Greenlight. This time it's Narcissu 1 & 2. I think they were a couple of the first VNs I read, and I would love to be able to give the devs some money for them.
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Nov 4, 2013 04:32
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So on a Halloween reccomendation from the Extra Credits team, I just finished Saya no Uta. Are most of the other Nitro+ works around that level of insanity? My best friend wants me to read Chaos Head and I'm not really sure I'm wanting to jump back into to similar material.
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Nov 4, 2013 08:31
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SnU is more of an Urobuchi thing than a Nitro+ thing, but the company's definitely known for extremely non-traditional VNs in terms of writing content. edit: C;Head is one of the Nitro+ games I haven't got around to playing, sorry, can't help you there. Davzz fucked around with this message at 08:49 on Nov 4, 2013 |
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Nov 4, 2013 08:36
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Davzz posted:SnU is more of an Urobuchi thing than a Nitro+ thing, but the company's definitely known for extremely non-traditional VNs in terms of writing content. In general is Chaos Head worth checking into? I'm not going to say that SnU was bad by any stretch of the word, but there were many a part were I just was completely uncomfortable and sick to my stomach, and I'd prefer not to repeat that.
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Nov 4, 2013 08:41
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ManSeriesBrofist posted:In general is Chaos Head worth checking into? I'm not going to say that SnU was bad by any stretch of the word, but there were many a part were I just was completely uncomfortable and sick to my stomach, and I'd prefer not to repeat that. Only if you go for the "B ending" after finishing the story, which is basically just "ok here's what would happen if everything got completely hosed". The remake, "Chaos;Head Noah", has more bad ends of a sort, but it's only in Japanese. The other translated Nitro+ works worth checking out are Kikokugai (same author as Saya no Uta but nowhere near as serious) and Hanachirasu (not all that serious either), both are fun swordsman revenge stories with a twist on the concept of some sort. Demonbane is fun but it isn't a "great" VN, just a pretty good one.
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Nov 4, 2013 09:06
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Chaos;Head is a mystery where the main character spends most of the story in this pattern: 1) Takumi sees a piece of the mystery, 2) Takumi runs away screaming from said mystery, 3) Takumi huddles in his rooftop container anime palace, where he is King of the MMO, and hopes the mystery will go away. 4) It doesn't! Insert delusions at appropriate points and you have the Chaos;Head Experience. This is an endorsement, actually! The main character is so completely broken and pathetic that it's actually kind of endearing, the delusions are universally weird and sometimes cool, the mystery is interesting, and I think his end-of-story character growth is fairly well-done. (Though said final arc is a common point of contention among people who've read it.) If you can't read Japanese, then you're missing the expanded remake's changes (mostly the addition of a route structure, with the final arc of the game relocated to a separate True Route unlocked by finishing the routes), but the original stands on its own pretty well.
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Nov 4, 2013 09:14
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So I've been reading more of Chie's route in Kira Kira. It's good! The way their relationship develops is actually fairly organic and the divorce subplot and the route in general feel surprisingly... real. Even the sex scenes are surprisingly tasteful (surprising, considering how awful they were in Dengeki Stryker) and seem to fit in with the plot. Hell, this last one is actually directly plot-related, but... would you loving stop fingering her for one second, Shikanosuke? You're having a serious discussion here. Sheesh.
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Nov 4, 2013 22:35
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No one's mentioned Steins;Gate yet? Well I will. It's really good and was a joint project involving Nitro+ and 5pb. No where near the nauseating levels of SnU. It takes place in the same world as Chaos;Head, but you don't need any knowledge of C;H to play and will only miss a small reference or two. Most people will agree that S;G was an improvement over C;H as well.
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Nov 5, 2013 18:24
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Wait a couple months for Steins;Gate, and get it when the official English release comes out.
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Nov 5, 2013 18:48
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planetarial posted:No one's mentioned Steins;Gate yet? Well I will. It's really good and was a joint project involving Nitro+ and 5pb. No where near the nauseating levels of SnU. It takes place in the same world as Chaos;Head, but you don't need any knowledge of C;H to play and will only miss a small reference or two. Most people will agree that S;G was an improvement over C;H as well. It was talked about quite a while ago, presumably when the fan translation came out. I think I also posted about it earlier this year when I was reading it. Also, "improvement" is a huge understatement. While the overall story of C;H was really cool, the ending was so utterly atrocious that it outright ruined an otherwise great story. However, S;G was fantastic in every single aspect (except maybe psychotic Nae, but only maybe).
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Nov 5, 2013 21:40
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Oh boy. Oh boy oh boy the final parts of Sharin no Kuni are pretty amazing. Not quite sure whether or not I found it better than Maou, but it was pretty drat entertaining. Ririko always being behind you kinda makes sense if we consider that his "addiction" is false. Now all I need to do is read something else. I've been toying with the idea to try Higurashi/Umineko due to the crazy amount of chatter for that series, but from everything I've seen it appears to be a little bit of a hassle. Kira Kira sounds good, but so do the three Lord Koth recommended. What other VNs are there that have settings and characters as interesting as stuff like Maou and Sharin, preferably with the standard art style most things go for?
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Nov 6, 2013 21:32
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I forget if you've played Grisaia yet. If not, there are some definite similarities between it and Sharin.
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Nov 6, 2013 22:01
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Oh yeah, I played Grisaia too. Looking very much forward to the rest of the series getting translated.
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Nov 6, 2013 22:26
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I had a feeling I had seen your name when Grisaia was the hot topic here, but I couldn't remember for sure. Maybe try Dengeki Stryker or Demonbane and Dra+Koi. Dengeki is by the same company as Kira Kira, and manages to combine their comedic chops with some more serious story bits. It has some flaws though, and it might be worth waiting for the upgraded version that Mangagamer will theoretically release someday. Demonbane is basically a shounen super robot show in VN form, with heavy Lovecraft influences. Dra+Koi is another VN written by the same guy as Demonbane, which has a lot of its strengths and few of its weaknesses (Demonbane feels very monster of the week in the middle, so it drags on and on at parts. Dra+Koi is about the same length as SnU, so it doesn't have that issue). Also it has a great goddamn soundtrack.
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Nov 6, 2013 22:41
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HerpicleOmnicron5 posted:I've been toying with the idea to try Higurashi/Umineko due to the crazy amount of chatter for that series, but from everything I've seen it appears to be a little bit of a hassle. Kira Kira sounds good, but so do the three Lord Koth recommended. What other VNs are there that have settings and characters as interesting as stuff like Maou and Sharin, preferably with the standard art style most things go for?
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Nov 6, 2013 22:48
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Or heck, you could just not use the patches at all and let the original art grow on you.
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Nov 6, 2013 23:46
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There are other patches besides the sprites; the font, UI removal, and (especially) music patches are nice as well. These wouldn't be possible for the Kai compilation either. E: For Higurashi, that is. I can take or leave the sprite/BG patches (the only ones you might consider) for Umineko. Nate RFB fucked around with this message at 15:30 on Nov 7, 2013 |
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Nov 7, 2013 00:09
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Son Ryo posted:Or heck, you could just not use the patches at all and let the original art grow on you. Like a fungus of some kind.
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Nov 7, 2013 03:29
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I've just started to read Grisaia. Is there a route order that should be followed or do I just roll with whatever happens? Edit: And within the first 2 minutes the game throws a "your mom" joke at you. vvvvvv Thanks Hommando fucked around with this message at 06:15 on Nov 10, 2013 |
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Nov 10, 2013 05:57
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No particular order, for the most part. Amane's route sets up some likely sequel hooks, but since we won't see a translation of that for a long rear end time, there's no real point in saving it for last or anything. Once you start getting choices (the common route is really long, and choices don't show up until pretty late) there will be really obvious branch off points, just make saves at those to easily go back and do the routes you passed up. Sachi is a minor exception, as the game will give you two choices to help her with something or pass, and if you don't help her then even if you make an affirmative choice at her branch off point, you won't trigger her route. Blhue fucked around with this message at 06:06 on Nov 10, 2013 |
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Nov 10, 2013 06:03
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In the same vein, I started to read Sharin no Kuni. Is there anything I should know about it before I get too far?
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Nov 10, 2013 06:09
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Eh... not really. Its structured kind of similarly to G-Senjou no Maou if you've played that. It does the same episodic thing, with each girl getting a chapter, save that returning a girl's feelings doesn't end the story. It keeps going as normal and it just locks you out of choosing one of the later girls. Assuming I'm remembering correctly, its been the better part of a year since I've read it.
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Nov 10, 2013 06:14
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Yeah, Sharin's linear, choosing a girl to be the MC's girlfriend gives you some lovey-dovey scenes once in a while but otherwise there's no real changes to the plot. edit: Actually, hold on. It's possible to get bad endings in the chapters if you really screw up on your choices, but I think it should be fairly obvious which to pick.
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Nov 10, 2013 06:22
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unpronounceable posted:In the same vein, I started to read Sharin no Kuni. Is there anything I should know about it before I get too far? I haven't played it, but there was a post from the last thread that makes me really not want to play it. Apparently one of the heroines raped the protagonist when he was younger, and it's treated as a joke? I want to believe I'm misremembering or there was goony hyperbole involved.
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Nov 10, 2013 08:20
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Silver2195 posted:I haven't played it, but there was a post from the last thread that makes me really not want to play it. Apparently one of the heroines raped the protagonist when he was younger, and it's treated as a joke? I want to believe I'm misremembering or there was goony hyperbole involved. That is indeed a thing but it's not treated as a joke so much as it's treated as "man SOCIETY won't accept incest clearly this is just another example of the system being a huge failure".
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Nov 10, 2013 08:25
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jonjonaug posted:"man SOCIETY won't accept incest clearly this is just another example of the system being a huge failure". That general attitude is dumb but I can almost accept it as a genre convention inherited from Byron or something, but characters who rape their younger siblings and the reader is supposed to be OK with it are a different matter. 
Silver2195 fucked around with this message at 09:14 on Nov 10, 2013 |
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Nov 10, 2013 08:42
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Silver2195 posted:That general attitude is dumb but I can almost accept it as a genre convention inherited from Byron or something, but characters who rape their younger siblings and the reader is supposed to be OK with it are a different matter. It's not really treated as a joke. It's more well, the protagonist has complicated feelings about it, and about intimacy in general as a result. Especially when the person who did it was subsequently punished by the State in an extreme way, together with the rest of his family. Personally, it seemed reasonable that the MC adopts a forgiving attitude towards the whole thing, which is what the narrative requires. I don't see the story as requiring you to be okay with it.
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Nov 10, 2013 11:22
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Its treated in a bit of a terrible way, especially when you pick the option to join her at the end. Instead of the promised "Help with reforming the government" or whatever the option was, it is more along the lines of have a sex scene and then push off for the fandisk. but hey, except for that the character, and every other for that matter, are pretty entertaining in their own ways.
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Nov 10, 2013 18:24
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Fangz posted:It's not really treated as a joke. It's more well, the protagonist has complicated feelings about it, and about intimacy in general as a result. Especially when the person who did it was subsequently punished by the State in an extreme way, together with the rest of his family. Personally, it seemed reasonable that the MC adopts a forgiving attitude towards the whole thing, which is what the narrative requires. I don't see the story as requiring you to be okay with it. This is how I see it too. If you think it's wrong, don't hook up with Ririko. Kenichi's pretty messed up by it, but until he met Natsumi, she was pretty much the closest thing to either a parent or a friend Kenichi had during his childhood. Then eventually Kenichi ditches his friends, and eventually contact (or what little her obligation allows) with Ririko is held out to motivate him during his training. Considering how during many, vulnerable, periods of his life she was more or less all Kenichi had, I can understand why he doesn't want to call her out and possibly permanently estrange himself from her, even if it's supremely messed up.
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Nov 10, 2013 18:41
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Pornographic Memory posted:This is how I see it too. If you think it's wrong, don't hook up with Ririko. Kenichi's pretty messed up by it, but until he met Natsumi, she was pretty much the closest thing to either a parent or a friend Kenichi had during his childhood. Then eventually Kenichi ditches his friends, and eventually contact (or what little her obligation allows) with Ririko is held out to motivate him during his training. Considering how during many, vulnerable, periods of his life she was more or less all Kenichi had, I can understand why he doesn't want to call her out and possibly permanently estrange himself from her, even if it's supremely messed up. Yeah, the molestation seemed to me as part of the way they show just what kind of screwed up background leads to someone becoming becoming a SHCI. As hyper competent as they are, the game presents them as deeply emotionally damaged and almost incapable of interacting with other humans normally.
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Nov 10, 2013 21:02
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