This week we try and get back to the regular swing of podcasting. We discuss the hot new streamer game, an old favorite, a new release, and some stuff we did last week.
Visual novels are one of the most niche genres you can find in Western gaming. In Japanese gaming communities, visual novels are a staple. In the West, not so much. There’s no definitive reason why this large difference in markets exists, but that’s not what we’re here to talk about today.
There’s a number of (not entirely unfair) stigmas on visual novels: “They have 0 gameplay”, “They’re all anime”, “They’re all dating simulators”, “The stories aren’t interesting enough”, “They’re all on PC and I only play console” and so on. And although it’s okay to simply not like visual novels, I also think it’s important to remind people that there are exceptions to these common misconceptions. There are visual novels with more gameplay than others, there are some visual novels that have had official releases on handhelds and consoles in the English speaking market, they’re not all drawn in an anime style, there are some that are American-made, and they’re certainly not all dating sims, for example.
I’ve compiled a list of visual novels that fall into such categories: Visual novels that even people who don’t like visual novels might find worth a try because they break the stereotypical image of the cheap, anime dating sim that most people associate with the phrase “visual novel”. Alternatively, think of this as a list of worthwhile visual novels that a visual novel novice might find as a good starting point for getting into the world of visual novels. And of course, fans of visual novels will probably recognize most–if not all–of these titles, and if they haven’t played them already, I’d highly recommend each and every one of these.
Steins;Gate
There’s a good chance you’ve already heard of the prodigal son of the SciAdv series, Steins;Gate, thanks to its critically acclaimed anime. For everything that makes the anime great, it makes the visual novel arguably one of the best of all time. Although heralded as one of the better visual novel adaptation anime, it still doesn’t capture everything in the Steins;Gate story–especially now that the sequel, Steins;Gate 0, is out. The world of Steins;Gate is vast, interesting, well-written, and in one word, memorable.
Set in Akihabara, Japan during the Summer of 2010 (the not-so-distant future at the time it came out), Steins;Gate is the story of a young, down-on-his-luck scientist, Okabe, who finds a way to send text messages to the past. He quickly discovers the dark truth behind the research of time travel, and takes on the task of preventing a dystopian future that it’ll cause at the cost of his sanity and his friend’s lives.
The story of Steins;Gate is one of the most praised in visual novel history. If you’re looking for a visual novel with a gripping story and lovable characters, this is precisely what you’re looking for. It’s also among the most accessible visual novels on this list, as it’s available on Steam, PSVita, and PS3.
Katawa Shoujo
What happens when a group of 4channers can’t get enough of a doujinshi artist’s concept sketches? They formalize a team, call it Four Leaf Studios, hire Mike Inel, and make a visual novel based off of those sketches. And so Katawa Shoujo was born in 2012.
You play as Hisao, a high school senior who was just diagnosed with a heart condition. He’s sent to a school for the disabled where he befriends an energetic track star with prosthetic legs, a laid back artist with no arms, the deaf student counsel president (and her translator), the blind yet graceful class representative, a shy burn victim, and the legally blind conspiracy theorist. In a sentence, this is a dating sim featuring a cast of disabled girls.
At its core, Katawa Shoujo is a set of heartwarming stories about self-discovery, acceptance, the thrill of youth, and most importantly, love. Not a single weak character or story exists in this stellar dating sim. Dating sims, more than any other kind of visual novel, are extremely character driven and therefore need a diverse set of interesting, well-written, and likable characters–Katawa Shoujo succeeds with flying colors in this respect, making it one of the best (and most accessible! it’s free on their official website) dating sim visual novels you can find.
Zero Escape
I’ve made my opinion on the Zero Escape trilogy (999, Virtue’s Last Reward, Zero Time Dilemma) very clear in the past a number of times–I adore it. It’s one of my favorite trilogies in video games period. It’s a cult-favorite, highly acclaimed trilogy of puzzle visual novels for the gamer who likes a good challenge.
Each game starts out the same way: You (and you play as a number of characters throughout the trilogy, but mostly Junpei and Sigma) and a group are trapped in an enclosed building of some sort and your lives are all on the line–use your scientific prowess and creativity to escape. You’ll die a few times, you’ll come back to life a few times, and most importantly, you must find out who’s behind your imprisonment and why. There is an overarching story throughout the trilogy as well, and therefore, these game absolutely should not be played out of order.
If you enjoy puzzle games that’ll test you to your absolute limit, Zero Escape will more than satisfy. Aside from being an excellent visual novel, each of the Zero Escape games are known for their extremely challenging puzzles that’ll test your creativity, problem solving, scientific knowledge, morals, and ability to listen to their fullest extent. For the visual novel novice who likes puzzle games, Zero Escape is ideal.
Ace Attorney
Odds are if you’ve played at least one visual novel without realizing it, then it’s almost definitely an Ace Attorney game. One of Capcom’s most beloved handheld series, Ace Attorney has been around since 2001. Since then it’s had 6 main series games, a few crossovers (most notably with Professor Layton and a cameo by Pheonix in Marvel vs Capcom 3), and a few spinoff games–a few of which were never released outside of Japan.
Ace Attorney tells the story of rookie lawyer Pheonix Wright who only takes cases in which he believes his client is truly innocent–even if the evidence is against them! You’ll explore crime scenes, question witnesses, and face off against a variety of prosecutors who want nothing more than to whip you, throw coffee at you, get you disbarred, or even show you their sick air guitar riffs because they’re a part-time prosecutor, part-time rock star.
Consistency in its incredible writing and fascinating characters are what drives the Ace Attorney series. Its sense of humor is also worth mentioning, as it makes the otherwise serious tone you might suspect of a game about a lawyer disappear almost entirely. Without playing them, most people likely wouldn’t expect a game series about a defense attorney to be even half as entertaining as Ace Attorney is–and Ace Attorney is, without a doubt, not only one of the most entertaining visual novels out there, but entertaining handheld games period.
Hotel Dusk: Room 215
One of the most standout titles on the Nintendo DS, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 is a visual novel that does nothing conventionally. From its art style to its story and even the way you actually have to hold the game, Hotel Dusk is, at the very least, one of the most creative visual novels you’ll ever play.
The year is 1979, and a former detective, Kyle Hide, finds himself staying in a rundown hotel with a gaggle of colorful guests. Allegedly, wishes are mysteriously granted to those who stay in the room he’s been assigned. Haunted by the shadows of his past and perplexed by the mysteries surrounding this hotel, you’ll play as Kyle as he solves puzzles and discovers the missing connections between his past and present.
There’s more gameplay in Hotel Dusk than most of the other titles on this list. If a lack of gameplay is one of the major reasons you avoid visual novels, this one would be a bit more up your alley if you like puzzle games or point and click adventures–or even games that are a bit more experimental in their execution. Hotel Dusk is, without a doubt, one of the most memorable games on the Nintendo DS. Hotel Dusk is a must-play for anyone who wants to experience the best of what the beloved handheld has to offer.
Danganronpa
Although its anime wasn’t as well-received as Steins;Gate, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc is another visual novel with an anime that helped bring it to the forefront of notoriety in visual novel releases in the West. Since its release, it’s had a number of re-releases, spinoffs, and even sequels on various platforms.
In a sentence, Danganronpa is Ace Attorney meets Zero Escape. You play as Naegi–an ordinary high school student with extraordinary luck. So lucky, in fact, that he was randomly selected to enroll in a high school, Hope’s Peak Academy, for the incredibly gifted. When he and his classmates arrive, they’re told that they’ll be held captive in the school forever unless they kill each other. When a student is found murdered, they’ll hold a trial. If the true culprit is discovered, they’ll be executed. If the murder is pinned on the wrong culprit, the innocent will all be executed. In a series of high stakes trials and investigations, you and your fellow classmates must not only solve the mystery of the murders, but the mystery of Hope’s Peak Academy itself and who’s truly behind everything.
Also like Ace Attorney and Zero Escape, it features more gameplay than most visual novels–mostly puzzle solving and trials very similar to Ace Attorney. Admittedly, Danganronpa relies heavier on typical (and often clichéd) anime character tropes than anything else on this list. I’d therefore be more hesitant toward recommending it for the regular anime watcher, but for someone less familiar with the triteness of many of these tropes, this would be fine. I’d therefore call Danganronpa probably the best visual novel entrance point for someone who not only doesn’t play many (if any at all) visual novels, but also just doesn’t watch much–if any–anime either. It is, at the very least, redeemed in its sense of style and a mantra of “Go big or go home” that seems to be thematic throughout the entire game.
Like Steins;Gate and Danganronpa, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of Clannad thanks to its famously tear-jerking anime. Originally released in 2004 by Key (the makers of many other highly successful visual novels like Kanon, Angel Beats, and Rewrite) , Clannad has managed to survive the test of time better than most other visual novels thanks to its highly praised emotional writing and endearing cast of characters.
The story of Clannad is a simple one: You play as Tomoya, a high school senior, and a bit of a slacker. One day he befriends a cute girl from his school, Nagisa, and through her and the experiences they share, he makes a few other female friends: Now choose one to date. Each girl has her own unique route in the game in which you spend time with her and an after story which acts as an epilogue.
If you like a heartfelt, emotionally charged story then Clannad will deliver. Through highly sympathetic characters, it’s a visual novel that will make you laugh and cry with equal intensity all in the same chapter. If you liked the anime, you’ll love the visual novel. Like Steins;Gate, the anime for Clannad is often praised as being one of the better visual novel adaptation anime, but it’s still far from perfect. Above all, Clannad conveys strong messages of personal growth and learning to love: Ideal for the player who’s going through a rough patch in their lives and in need of encouragement or relatability.
You play as the cute, pink-haired Hana, as she transfers to a new school after being bullied at her old one. Despite her shy disposition, she’s quickly able to make friends with Mai and the extremely popular Normal Boots Club–which, of course, is made of the guys in Normal Boots. From here, you choose who to spend time with, what you’re doing, and of course, who to date. In dating them, Hana learns more about them, herself, and the potential danger in becoming too close to your friend’s pet bird.
Barring a few in-jokes, being a fan–or even familiar with–Normal Boots isn’t necessary for being able to appreciate Asagao Academy. At its core, Asagao Academy wants to tell stories of people overcoming obstacles in their lives with the help of their friends–romantic or otherwise. Where Asagao shines most is that, unlike most other dating sims, the importance of friendship is also heavily emphasized. Obviously your romantic relationship takes center stage, but friendships with Mai and other members of Normal Boots all still get time to shine–something extremely rare (and extremely wonderful!) in dating sims.
If after the release of one of the worst games in gaming history and a 20 year absence Bubsy can make a triumphant return, then there’s no reason why the other games in my dream journal can’t. Anything is possible! And as Bubsy has just proven, there are no odds to slim! Which is why I’m pulling out the ol’ dream journal of games that I otherwise was sure would never come out, and I’m going to restore some of my hope for these beloved series. After all, what could possibly go wrong?
Mother 3
via twoleftsticks.com
The elusive sequel to Mother 2 (known in the States as Earthbound) that, to the lament of Earthbound fans, was never released outside of Japan. There is no definitive reason why it was never localized, but many speculate it’s because Earthbound sold so poorly at the time of its release that Nintendo didn’t want to risk losing more money on its sequel. This cult classic GBA game is now something of a symbol of game publishers not listening to their fans. And believe me, Nintendo is very aware of it. But 20 years wasn’t enough to stop Bubsy, so why should Mother 3 care about 11, right?
Earthbound 2
via youtube.com
Known in Japan as Mother 3, Earthbound 2 is unofficial English name of the highly sought after sequel of Earthbound that was never released outside of Japan. We’ll never know exactly why it was never localized, but many speculate it’s because Reggie Fils-Aimé maintains his youthful facade by drinking the tears of Mother fans every night. Bubsy 3D is infamous for being one of the worst games in gaming history, and even that didn’t stop it from a sequel. So why should the fact that Earthbound didn’t sell as well as Nintendo wanted it to stop a sequel for it?
Earthbound 64
via earthboundcentral.com
Before it was eventually put on the GBA, Mother 3 was going to be a Nintendo 64 game that many fans refer to as Earthbound 64. Due to overwhelming technical difficulties however, the idea was eventually scrapped (but not before a few brief gameplay demos). About a decade later, it was finally revived and released as a 2D game on the GBA, Mother 3. The Internet has dug up every last scrap of information it could possibly get on this cryptid of a game, but legend has it that the only functional Earthbound 64 cartridge lies leagues beneath Nintendo of America’s headquarters, alongside a script for a localized version of Mother 3 being guarded by the last living dodo bird. If we have Bubsy to keep us going, I see no reason why a group of us Mother fans can’t just get together and dig under Nintendo of America’s headquarters. After all, if they have nothing to hide, why could they possibly mind a group of fans digging up its only headquarters in the country?
.hack//Link
via cc2.co.jp
.hack//Link is the elusive sequel to the .hack//G.U. series that connects it with the .hack//IMOQ series that was never released outside of Japan. There’s no definitive reason why it was never localized, but many fans believe it’s either because both of the previous .hack// series didn’t sell as well as Bandai Namco wanted them to and they didn’t want to risk losing more money, or because it’s the tears of English-speaking .hack// fans that keeps Dracula sealed away in the depths of a remote volcano island. Regardless, like Mother, .hack// has very much become a cult classic series since its release. Much has changed since the last .hack// game came out over here a decade ago. If it takes Bubsy 2 decades to get over having a game being called one of the worst in gaming history, then I’m sure .hack can get over having 7 fan-favorite JRPGs that just didn’t sell quite up to expectations in 1, don’t you agree?
The Son-Flower Boys: Lucas’s Wild Ride ft. Sentient Furniture
via aminoapps.com
Also known simply as Mother 3. We’ll never know exactly why it was never released outside of Japan, but many believe it’s because Nintendo likes drinking the salty tears of Mother fans out of champagne glasses before every E3 or Nintendo Direct for good luck.
Greg and Adam continue their trudge through Persona 5— and Adam finishes it. Sydney and Greg keep playing through Fire Emblem games: Shadows of Valentia for Greg and Revelations for Sydney. And Deanna, despite running a video game podcast, didn’t play any new games. We also decide what candies we’d be. Some of us have an easier time of it than others.
Our E3 predictions will be the topic of next week’s podcast. E3 coverage will start at 3PM EST on June 13, after Nintendo’s Special Direct. It’s going to be an all-afternoon stream picking apart what we liked and what we didn’t about each conference. Our full streaming schedule can be found on Twitter and Facebook, and is also the offline image on our Twitch channel.
We venture out into Twitch talk show territory and have a good time with it. Greg discusses Shadows of Valencia, Deanna played through The Sexy Brutale, Chris struggles more with Kingdom Hearts, and Dan gets way too into Voez and LOVE LIVE.
It’s always a good day when a new Fire Emblem game comes out. Bright-eyed and hopeful, I went to GameStop last Friday for Shadows of Valentia with that mentality. In fact, I was even considering getting the amiibo pack (and I might have if they weren’t sold out by the time I arrived). I brought the game up to the register and the otherwise indifferent employee’s voice dropped a few octaves and she raised an eyebrow as she asked me if I wanted the season pass for the game. Knowing that the season pass costs more than the game itself (albeit by $5, but still more than the base game nonetheless) I said no, but followed it up by asking if anyone else had got it yet. She laughed and said no.
It’s no longer news that the Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia season pass costs more than the game itself. On top of this, the trailer and information revealed about it haven’t been particularly inspiring, and with its price tag, leaves much to be desired. Even now, many fans are still resentful about it–including myself. If there’s one thing we Fire Emblem fans know anything about, it’s over paying for Fire Emblem. Unfortunately, even when the game is new, not a 3 part game, not a rare collectible, or a lovable money hole of a mobile game, Intelligent Systems apparently wants to uphold that tradition in Shadows of Valentia through DLC and the amiibos.
Worst part is, this is the average price.
What frustrates me about this are 2 things: First and foremost, no season pass should cost more than the base game itself. Period. Season passes that cost more than their base games are indicative of one of 2 things: Either the DLC itself is over priced or there’s so much content that the developers should’ve either left a fraction of it in the base game or, if it’s story/mini-game content, then they should’ve made it a separate game entirely (but, just to reiterate, that’s only if it’s making it more expensive than the base game).
Second, even if you do decide to buy the season pass, you still don’t have all the content that this game has to offer. For the cherry on top of your content sundae, you need to buy the Shadows of Valentia amiibo 2 pack. It grants 2 more dungeons (one for each amiibo) and illusory heroes of Celica and Alm. In other words, for 100% of the content Shadows of Valentia has to offer, you’re paying a staggering $110 (or $130 if you got the special edition). That’s essentially triple (or more than, if you got the special edition) the price of the base game. That’s absolutely absurd.
via rpgsite.net
“For 100% of the content Shadows of Valentia has to offer, you’re paying a staggering $110.”
I will give Intelligent Systems points where they’re due, though: They are allowing players to either buy the DLC in packs or, as the site is currently leading us to believe, singularly. In other words, if you’re just interested in the prequel story in the DLC, you can buy those maps in a pack. Or, if you just want one or two extra maps, the official site lists individual prices on them so it’s reasonable to believe that they’ll be able to be purchased singularly. This doesn’t excuse them for this whole debacle, but admittedly, it does alleviate the issue since it shows that they’re at least somewhat aware that asking the players to pay $45 for the season pass of a $40 game is not only risky, but PR suicide.
The decision to make such an expensive season pass is surprising–not just because extra maps in Awakening were so reasonably priced, but because this game is coming through Nintendo–a company that’s only recently stepped into the realm of DLC and has been otherwise fair about pricing it and finding a good balance of how much to leave out for DLC. Part of me therefore wants to believe that perhaps this is their or Intelligent System’s way of experimenting with how much fans are willing to pay for DLC and what their attitudes are toward it. Unfortunately for them, if that is indeed the case, they likely won’t be seeing the results they were hoping for.
Numbers as of 5/23/2017
The only other reasonable explanation for the prices I could think of is Intelligent System’s trying to hold to the 28-map-tradition that’s in nearly every Fire Emblem game. By making DLC maps, they’re effectively keeping to tradition (a wise idea, since this is, after all, a remake) while offering the fans additional content. The addition of dungeons and exclusive classes might just be their way of putting icing on the cake, if this is the case. This might have been a better idea if the lackluster map designs weren’t perhaps the lowestcommondenominator among reviews for Shadows of Valentia.
Regardless of the reason, the bottom line is, Intelligent Systems made a frustrating decision by dividing up the additional content for Shadows of Valentia so poorly. What I think would’ve worked better for them is utilizing the amiibos more–perhaps adding a pack of the DLC currently in the season pass on each amiibo–therefore allowing the season pass to be about half its current price, and perhaps just being the prequel story with an extra dungeon or two. As for the exclusive classes, those should’ve been left in the main game. Extra maps and a little extra story is one thing, but classes for characters shouldn’t be exclusive to players who throw extra money into the game. It’s not just a scummy thing to do, but also downright unfair.
Issues with its pricing and content distribution aside, I truly am having fun with Shadows of Valentia so far–which only makes it more of a shame that these aforementioned problems are so prevalent. Although alleviated by the fact that they can all be purchased separately or singularly, it’s still no excuse for the fact that 100% of the game’s content is triple the price of the base game. I sincerely hope that Intelligent Systems and Nintendo learn from this–especially if Binding Blade really does end up getting remade next. I love Fire Emblem, I really do, but I don’t relish the idea of paying more than a hundred dollars on a single, complete game (unless it’s .hack//Quarantine, apparently, but that’s a whole other story).
Chris leads us in with a short ad, and we roll right into what we’ve been playing, since it’s not much, we go through an ask meme for about 50 minutes. Featuring announcements of upcoming content!
We start out by reading names that Dave gave Deanna’s Pokemon in Pokemon Go, and then move into naming Kennedy’s ska band.
Further than that, Deanna complains about her relatively recent medical mishaps.
Deanna’s been cracking down on Animal Crossing on steroids, or otherwise known as Stardew Valley. Also, she smacks down all the Tom Nook hate.
Kennedy discusses the nuances of having a Gamecube when all your friends have PS2, and what a struggle it was as a kid. In terms of today, she beat Thimbleweed Park (which we’ll have an in-depth episode about sometime in the future) and What Remains of Edith Finch.
We have a short discussion about Undertale’s brilliant use of fourth-wall breaks and how fandom really just ruins things for a large portion of people.
Adam mulls over how Persona 5 started feeling like a bit of a chore, taking us into a short discussion on criticisms and how saying something is part of a series isn’t a valid one sometimes.
Colin talks about how he’s been revisiting Dragon Quest and doing a bit of writing, in the spare time when he’s not working his Real Adult Job.
Thank you to everyone who sent in questions this week! Since we’re getting so many, we are going to start picking out just a few each week to answer. We’re seriously so humbled by all of you, and we can’t thank you enough for all your enthusiasm.
We aggregate everything on thelifecast.net! We have Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, and a Discord server. We’re always taking questions through the ask box on our website and in our Discord server, so you don’t have to wait ‘til recording time to ask!
We did a collaborative episode with The Gamer Stand podcast, and thank you again for having us on!
Lastly, if you’re able to do so, give us a rating on iTunes. It’s something that would help our show a lot and we’d be immensely grateful.
