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StarTopic Visual Novels |ST| Let’s-a-read!

FiveOVER said:
Among all the VNs that I read on switch, World End Syndrome was my biggest disappointment, along with Our World is Ended. The individual character routes were too plain and run of the mill. The structure of the vn where character events are found at randomized locations and times didn't help with the pacing at all. If you have to pick it up, I strongly suggest following a guide.

Maybe the overarching story is good. Maybe its worth trudging through the character routes for it. But judging just from the writing in the individual routes, it didn't fill me with confidence for the endgame. So far of the 2 character routes I played, it didn't feel particularly creepy.

I haven't played world end club yet, but it might be just as disappointing. World End Economica might end up being the only good "World End" visual novel on switch. :sneaky:
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That’s a shame, but thanks for letting me know.

Plain and run of the mill is definitely not what I’m looking for in a VN, and I don’t really want to have to follow a guide to try and get some enjoyment out of it. I’ll save the money as there are more than enough games coming out in the next few weeks that I’d rather spend my money on.
 
Mocata said:
That’s a shame, but thanks for letting me know.

Plain and run of the mill is definitely not what I’m looking for in a VN, and I don’t really want to have to follow a guide to try and get some enjoyment out of it. I’ll save the money as there are more than enough games coming out in the next few weeks that I’d rather spend my money on.
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Yeah, its a shame. It has such a banger opening song too.
 
FiveOVER said:
Beyond that, I became quite befuddled by the true end.
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The ending is so weird. I think the Kuon thing is meant to hit you hard, she's pissed Setsuna's attracted to their daughter and you want to go back one more time to make everything better even though outside of that literally everything else is going great. And then you get the reveal that he's been going back probably thousands of times in a loop. It's such a weird choice to end it and it's so uncomfortable but thematically it does make sense, and it's fitting in a visual novel where you're encouraged to go back to previous points in the flowchart to try new things including getting to the true final end.

But yeah it's so strange, leaves a sour taste right at the end of an otherwise incredible story.
After playing some visual novels on switch I always wished I could play the entire windows visual novel library on it.

I was ecstatic with the prospect of a windows handheld produced by valve, but was soon disappointed when I looked at the size and the button layout.

The steam deck is more or less the size of a 13.3 inch laptop with controller buttons slapped on it. At that point, if you have to give up so much of the comfort in terms of both ergonomics and weight, why even bother?

I just hope homebrew is possible on the switch successor and that windows on arm can somehow run on it.
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I agree the steam deck is just too big and power hungry. I'm hoping it helps spur an ecosystem and a Windows on ARM handheld comes along that sips battery and is a more comfortable size. My M1 macbook's windows VM does a shockingly good job at running X86 games, visual novels are usually no challenge for it but even more complicated 3D games run great.
Mocata said:
Does anyone here recommend Worldend Syndrome? It’s currently on sale and I’m wondering if it’s worth grabbing. I prefer my VNs to be creepy or utterly bonkers.
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I just finished it so it's fresh. There's a weird structure to it, it has a daily mechanic where you choose where to go and build an aura related to each girl, and the ending you get depends on the aura and if you hit key plot points with the girl. Each individual ending is well done, but the final girl and true ending are something else. Without spoiling anything the aura you build is plot relevant, and the spooky atmosphere really starts to hit towards the end.

Overall I didn't enjoy the mechanics, but I used a guide heavily and felt like I may have been better off just reading enough guide to learn how the mechanics work and save spam to find my own way around as well as which ending to chase first. Figuring out where everyone is is neat and the game makes it fairly easy. The story is fantastic though, well worth getting through the weird mechanics, one of those games where I really didn't want it to end.
 
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Played a bit more of AI: the Somnium Files, don´t know if I will stick with it yet (2 hours in), but I forgot to mention that I am playing it using the Xbox Xcloud phone stuff. I still can´t believe it works on my work wi-fi.
 
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FiveOVER said:
Yeah, its a shame. It has such a banger opening song too.
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Wow, you weren’t kidding, I just listened to it on YouTube and that is an awesome opening song indeed.
サカナクション said:
I just finished it so it's fresh. There's a weird structure to it, it has a daily mechanic where you choose where to go and build an aura related to each girl, and the ending you get depends on the aura and if you hit key plot points with the girl. Each individual ending is well done, but the final girl and true ending are something else. Without spoiling anything the aura you build is plot relevant, and the spooky atmosphere really starts to hit towards the end.

Overall I didn't enjoy the mechanics, but I used a guide heavily and felt like I may have been better off just reading enough guide to learn how the mechanics work and save spam to find my own way around as well as which ending to chase first. Figuring out where everyone is neat and the game makes it fairly easy. The story is fantastic though, well worth getting through the weird mechanics, one of those games where I really didn't want it to end.
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The structure of it doesn’t really sound like something I’d enjoy, although I really do love a spooky atmosphere in games. I think, overall, it’s the mechanics that put me off as it seems most people do recommend using a guide and that’s not something I’m keen on doing.

Thank you though for your post as it’s always helpful to hear lots of opinions.
 
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My affinity for visual novels are mostly not safe for work.

The fun part is looking for the diamonds in the rough, the lesser known titles.
 
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I enjoyed quite a few visual novels this year so far. The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles was definitely my favorite. While the cases start off overly simplistic I really dug the larger story told over the course of the two games and the second game is especially awesome with interesting mysteries that keep you guessing and have so much purpose. The characters, especially the main four, were awesome and I hope we’ll see them again. If they make a sequel I do hope it offers full voice acting as an option. The little bit it had was such a tease!

I also played:
Re:Zero Prophecy of the Throne - I’d certainly reccomend it to Re:Zero fans. Was a fun what if and I came to care about the new characters. Conversations are extra lengthy which I enjoyed, but others might not. The few gameplay sections are poor and look bad, but I liked the concept of the main guy not being strong enough to take out monsters so he has to assist and direct others. It was an interesting effort at least. Best part was definitely spending way more time with the characters you cared about from the show (so much Rem!).

The Famicom Detective Club Games - The production values were awesome! The prequel, The Girl Who Stands Behind was my favorite of the two since I liked the characters, the gameplay was more straightforward, and the horror angle was cool. The first game was suprisngly gruesome at parts for a Nintendo game. Hope we get the third one and a new one eventually!

Idol Days - got this randomly since I like idol anime and I don’t think I’ve read a VN with that theme before. It was fine for $10. Decent story and characters, but the fanservice was unnecessary and dumb. Translation was fine except they didn’t put a space after every comma,like this which was distracting. Wish the endings were longer.

World’s End Club - I was really won over by this one by the end. It’s similar to other Uchikoshi and Kodaka games, but it still has some wild, effective twists and it has a ton of heart. In a vacuum the platformer/action gameplay is subpar, but as a way to break up the reading, it’s acceptable and the bosses are decent-ish. I played with English audio for this one and it really added to the experience.

Planning on playing either Little Busters or Gnosia next. Haven’t decided.
 
After the announcement of TGAA, I got curious enough to try out the Ace Attorney series. Picked up the trilogy on switch and is nearly done with the 1st game. Will post my impressions once I'm done.

xghost777 said:
Planning on playing either Little Busters or Gnosia next. Haven’t decided.
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Why not both!? :whistle:
 
FiveOVER said:
After the announcement of TGAA, I got curious enough to try out the Ace Attorney series. Picked up the trilogy on switch and is nearly done with the 1st game. Will post my impressions once I'm done.


Why not both!? :whistle:
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I usually roll with one game/visual novel at a time. I do want to do both ultimately :)
 
Do we think Famicom Detective Club will ever come on sale. I’d love to give them a try but being in Australia my only option is the $90 double pack and I don’t know if I can justify that price
 
OldSkOoL said:
Do we think Famicom Detective Club will ever come on sale. I’d love to give them a try but being in Australia my only option is the $90 double pack and I don’t know if I can justify that price
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Seeing as it is published by nintendo... Yeah, I wouldn't get your hopes up. It'll be a 10% cut at most.
 
I actually completed the five routes of World End Syndrome… it’s pretty bland. I mean lots of these VN’s are just about dating pretty girls and have a fun story to boot, with WES its just about the girls and the story is whatever. Dialogue isn’t very snappy either.

In comparison I’ve played Steins;Gate My Darling’s Embrace and its about the girls (and guy) as well, but written with more fun and flair.
 
I don't think anyone here has mentioned yet the following VNs that I played on the Switch and had a good time with:
Death Mark (aka the 1st in the Spirit hunter series)
Spirit Hunter: NG
Root Double - Before Crime After Days

The first two are enjoyable horror VNs, the last one is a thriller set in the future, with more than a few twists
 
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Heron said:
Lastly, I hope I don't upset anyone here, but The House in Fata Morgana was one of the worst recommendations I've ever gotten. I'm absolutely astonished at the insanely consistent level of praise it gets without a hint of criticism when I found it so poorly written that I was constantly breaking out in laughter at the bathos present in just about every scene. There is pretty much no recovering as a serious work from some of the "beast" scenes in the second scenario. I stuck with it until I was well past the first four scenarios but it never improved. Read a summary and was glad I bailed when I did. Really, really regret the time I spent hoping it would get better.

Anyway, that's just a dissenting opinion for anyone who hasn't played it yet - because I wish I had read a dissenting opinion but couldn't find even one.
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Coming from someone that loves the game, I also HATED it through the entirety of the first four doors. I found it overly mawkish and completely unrealistic. No one was likeable. The stories were contrived. I nearly gave up several times on Door 3 especially, finding the conflict to be so intolerably awful, and I was generally forcing myself to play a little each night just because of the praise it had gotten.

Sometime near Door 5/6 or... wherever it is that Michael gets his sense of self back and realizes he has to get Giselle out of this place the game finally clicked for me, I was hooked all the way through till the end, and I had the information necessary to look back on all the earlier scenarios with fonder eyes, realizing just WHY they were written the way they were, and also why I though they were so bad the first time around. I love them all now in retrospect - the whole game - but as a somewhat jaded person who has read and played a lot of video games/fantasy stories, the game was absolutely a tough-as-nails sell for me in the beginning.

Having seen your post, I wonder if there are other people out there like me that did have conflicting opinions on the game in the beginning and decided not to share them because they enjoyed the whole experience too much. If so, I'm sorry you didn't have those impressions available. But like I said, for me, the entire game worked so well by the end I tend to lavish it with praise first and foremost.

...Although I will say that even though I love the game dearly now, some of the writing choices can still make me roll my eyes. This is especially egregious in Requiem for Innocence, which likes to have it both ways with "Everyone is talking fancy because they're in the distant past" but also "Everyone's talking like your average overly-foul mouthed edgy gamer buddy because they're real folks just living real lives" and it is something you just have to put up with.
 
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Pooroomoo said:
I don't think anyone here has mentioned yet the following VNs that I played on the Switch and had a good time with:
Death Mark (aka the 1st in the Spirit hunter series)
Spirit Hunter: NG
Root Double - Before Crime After Days

The first two are enjoyable horror VNs, the last one is a thriller set in the future, with more than a few twists
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I would also like to second Root Double as a wonderful thriller. It manages to execute a multiple perspective narrative really well. The contrast between a struggle for survival and a shounen mystery adventure is kind of funny, but the author somehow ties them together neatly.

The confrontation between the 2 protagonists at the end was chilling and an amazing set-piece.
 
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xghost777 said:
Planning on playing either Little Busters or Gnosia next. Haven’t decided.
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I haven't played Gnosia yet (I plan to eventually) but I really loved Little Busters. I actually like it just as much as Clannad I think. The protagonist isn't as good (Tomoya is one of my favorite protagonists, so that's not really an insult) but I think I like the rest of the cast more than Clannad's supporting cast. Hope you enjoy it when you get around to it.
 
Technically an adventure game but Ai The Somnium Files rules.
 
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Waluijob said:
If I love Ace Attorney, what would you recommend as my next step in the genre?
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If you play on steam and have a high tolerance for anime tropes, I would like to recommend a little vn called Master Magistrate.

To give you an idea, the 1st scene that greets you is Chikoku, chikoku!! The tiresome I'm late, I'm late trope, and you can surmise the rest from there. Beyond that, it's a take on the Ace Attorney formula during Japan's Edo period (gintama!!), where the monarchy (not technically but effectively the same) still holds significant power. So life in Japan is a little more fragile, fleeting, and the enforcement of the law is even more flawed than modern times. This setting is ripe for introducing a lot of conflict and drama to the story.

I have things to say about Master Magistrate that would set the Ace attorney mob after me, so I'll hold back.
 
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OldSkOoL said:
Do we think Famicom Detective Club will ever come on sale. I’d love to give them a try but being in Australia my only option is the $90 double pack and I don’t know if I can justify that price
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I have noticed that 30% discounts start to happen like a year after release.
 
lightning16 said:
I haven't played Gnosia yet (I plan to eventually) but I really loved Little Busters. I actually like it just as much as Clannad I think. The protagonist isn't as good (Tomoya is one of my favorite protagonists, so that's not really an insult) but I think I like the rest of the cast more than Clannad's supporting cast. Hope you enjoy it when you get around to it.
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I enjoyed the anime when it aired, so I’m most looking forward to spending much more time with the characters and seeing how the game is structured! I have Clannad too, but haven’t played it or watched the anime so that’s cool to hear about the protagonist! Might be a good while until I get to it, but I definitely want to play it down the road!
purseowner said:
Playing both of these off and on at the moment and they're both top-tier
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That’s awesome to hear!
 
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lightning16 said:
I haven't played Gnosia yet (I plan to eventually) but I really loved Little Busters. I actually like it just as much as Clannad I think. The protagonist isn't as good (Tomoya is one of my favorite protagonists, so that's not really an insult) but I think I like the rest of the cast more than Clannad's supporting cast. Hope you enjoy it when you get around to it.
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Riki being a weaker protagonist was the point of the story. So that it would be more pronounced when he showed growth throughout the course of the story.
 
FiveOVER said:
Riki being a weaker protagonist was the point of the story. So that it would be more pronounced when he showed growth throughout the course of the story.
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For sure and I don't really have issues with Riki. I liked him. Hope it didn't sound like I disliked him. Tomoya's just one of my all-time favorites.
 
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Dumb Raging Loop question for anyone who might be able to shed some light on an early game thing and a key gameplay mechanic: if I get a bad end is there any reason to read through from the beginning again? Will things have changed? Or am I expected to use the chart to jump back to branching points?

I just had my first bad ending after checking the source of the noise and dying, which I assume is unavoidable at first as it was the only option I had.
 
Ramune said:
Dumb Raging Loop question for anyone who might be able to shed some light on an early game thing and a key gameplay mechanic: if I get a bad end is there any reason to read through from the beginning again? Will things have changed? Or am I expected to use the chart to jump back to branching points?

I just had my first bad ending after checking the source of the noise and dying, which I assume is unavoidable at first as it was the only option I had.
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You only need to jump to your decided branching choice. No need to start from beginning. Normally, immediately after your choice, there will be a flashback/recap. After that, you're free to skip ahead until you encounter an event change.
 
FiveOVER said:
You only need to jump to your decided branching choice. No need to start from beginning. Normally, immediately after your choice, there will be a flashback/recap. After that, you're free to skip ahead until you encounter an event change.
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Thanks! I skipped the tip corner thing but guess I shouldn’t have. Jumped back to the branching choice and things have really ramped up.
 
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With Dread out of the way, I'm feeling to wind down with some VN's. I want to pick up Yu-No and continue, which is hard. The main character is just so unlikable, and the pervy jokes are hard to stomach. Not to mention the time mechanic is confusing as heck. I think I've placed all my jewel saves down by accident.

Shame, because I really like the premise and the idea. And the OST.

Might end up playing the rest of the Fata Morgana games. Or replay the original.
 
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Fata Morgana is one I want to get to eventually.

Last night I reached the end of my first route in Raging Loop, the Yomi route with the ending where Haruaki is lost in the fog with Chiemi. I have so many questions and can’t wait to go into the other routes to figure everything out.

I’ve grown to really like the art style and I do root for the characters even when they’re unlikeable or dumb. Mocchi is kind of an icon.

Also hoping some of the other routes and branches lead to certain characters not dying as early. It would be a little dull if they were early outs all the time.
 
Alright! Just finished Tsukihime's near side routes. I really liked it, but the translation got REALLY rough at the end. Ciel's route in general I felt was a lot more awkwardly translated, but I had fun. Can't believe there are still 3 routes left... And Fate is even longer than this?! It'll take me a month to work on that...

Well, but that's on my future self to deal with. I still have half a Tsukihime to read.
 
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For the amount of years I waited for a Robotics;Notes localization, I really need to start playing through it. Like the Vita, the Switch is the perfect platform for VNs.
 
I love these games. You highlighted the right ones. Though we are missing AI Somnium Files. What a great experience that was. I cannot wait for the sequel.

Currently playing through House in Fata Morgana from Limited Run Games. Pretty intense and I have barely started.
 
randomengine said:
Looks like I will be buying these yet again. I bought it for Vita, then 3DS and now Switch. Love this series.
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I feel like I’m constantly double/triple dipping on VN’s between Vita, Steam, and Switch. Sometimes it’s for good reasons, sometimes I wonder if I just want to show the publishers there’s a western market for them…
 
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Ramune said:
Fata Morgana is one I want to get to eventually.

Last night I reached the end of my first route in Raging Loop, the Yomi route with the ending where Haruaki is lost in the fog with Chiemi. I have so many questions and can’t wait to go into the other routes to figure everything out.

I’ve grown to really like the art style and I do root for the characters even when they’re unlikeable or dumb. Mocchi is kind of an icon.

Also hoping some of the other routes and branches lead to certain characters not dying as early. It would be a little dull if they were early outs all the time.
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I know this is probably blasphemy, but I enjoyed Raging Loop more then Fata Morgana.

I really enjoyed Fata, and there’s no doubt it is a top tier VN, but I just preferred the characters, story, and atmosphere in Raging Loop.
 
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I finished the super hard Boss Rush / final story in the new Melty Blood last night. Super fun and I liked the ending. I really hope we get the new Tsukihime brought over. Sounded like there might be an official English translation in a recent interview though it was also said to be difficult. They have to use all of that Fate/Go money for something! Is it on Switch? I don’t know.
 
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I bought a copy of Fata Morgana for switch off ebay 🤡

I think if I have a stiff drink and pay ~$100 (canadian dollars) for an Asian/Korean version of the new Jake Hunter VN on switch, which I've heard isn't very good, I'll have a complete set of physical English language Switch visual novels.

EDIT: excluding otome games
 
サカナクション said:
I bought a copy of Fata Morgana for switch off ebay 🤡

I think if I have a stiff drink and pay ~$100 (canadian dollars) for an Asian/Korean version of the new Jake Hunter VN on switch, which I've heard isn't very good, I'll have a complete set of physical English language Switch visual novels.

EDIT: excluding otome games
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How much did you shell out for fata morgana, out of curiosity...
 
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I have an embarrassing backlog of these. It’s really out of hand.

I started Yu-No and put it down needle getting sidetracked. I think they may be the next one I work through once I get through Metroid.
 
My backlog is also way too much, not just for vns either <.<

I already gushed about this game in the hopeful localization thread but I'm playing through, or was playing through until I had to send my switch for a repair, Buddy Mission Bond right now and it's freaking awesome, I hope it gets localized for English speakers at some point because the story and characters are just really great so far (about half way through now). Very shounen-esque in a way that's not overboard and does it with a lot of style! It's also absolutely beautiful on the swoled with a lot of brighter colors that pop in some sequences. The presentation is definitely on the higher budget side, with a lot of different areas and character expressions. The characters are also always talking and it's fully voiced in the main missions. It is very much like reading through a comic book or watching an anime because it's so dialogue focused. Only thing that's janky/needs improvement are the 3D sections but that's ~10% of the entire game mechanic so I can let it slide, the focus of the production is definitely on the 2D portions.

Some other games that hasn't been mentioned yet that I wanna get around to are Buried Stars, Kowloon High School, and Steam Prison. Just the last one is an otome and also excited for some good otome games to come over later this year. I think Buried Star is more of a mystery type vn and Kowloon is a remake of an older title I believe. I also have a reservation for a steam deck for next year and I'll get access to so many PC vns I never got to play 👀
 
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Me playing Fata Morgana: A Requiem for Innocence 1 hour ago: Huh. This is way more upbeat and cheerful than the original game.
Me playing Fata Morgana: A Requiem for Innocence half an hour ago: Never mind...

Rave said:
I have an embarrassing backlog of these. It’s really out of hand.

I started Yu-No and put it down needle getting sidetracked. I think they may be the next one I work through once I get through Metroid.
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If you're playing Yu-No, do you think you could help me out with how the time thing works? Would be much appreciated.
 
Technically adventure game by Ace Attorney Investigations 1 is great so far, got 1 case left now.
Also been playing the 3DS Jake Hunter game on the side as well, which is also really good.

Pooroomoo said:
I don't think anyone here has mentioned yet the following VNs that I played on the Switch and had a good time with:
Death Mark (aka the 1st in the Spirit hunter series)
Spirit Hunter: NG
Root Double - Before Crime After Days

The first two are enjoyable horror VNs, the last one is a thriller set in the future, with more than a few twists
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Death Mark was so good. Really surprised me. Great atmosphere and horror writing.

Still need to start Spirit Hunter: NG.
 
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I am compiling myself a list of VNs on Switch on Deku Deals to make it easier to find VNs on sale among all the clutter. It's probably still missing some lesser known titles though.

www.dekudeals.com

Visual Novels | Deku Deals

See all the games in 'Visual Novels' on Deku Deals
www.dekudeals.com www.dekudeals.com

Playing through Robotics;Notes Elite right now, not sure if I like it just yet. Still very early on, but it's not compelling me enough.
 
Finished The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles a few weeks ago and while I think I want things to settle in first, it's probably my favorite in the series now? Especially the second game, it sure went places haha. Herlock Sholmes is one of the best characters like...ever. Definitely one of my favs this year for sure.

I have Aokana and Utawarerumono Mask of Deception on Steam that I should get around to playing. Hear a lot of good things about both. Just gonna clear some things before starting them.
 
Really wish Muv-Luv and Muv-Luv Alternative would come out for the switch, along with the Zero Escape games. Maybe we'll eventually see the ZE series now that the Danganronpa games are coming over but the Muv-Luv ones seem so unlikely :(
 
I love visual novels!

I really enjoyed The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles, it's the most recent one I played. Probably my fav from the Ace Attorney series!

Other than that, Umineko/Higurashi, Danganronpa, Gnosia, House in Fata Morgana, Raging Loop, Ai the Somnium Files, Steins;Gate etc are really solid ones too!
I still need to play Robotic;Notes, but..backlog..

I also have Death Mark, but I'm too big of a weenie to play it 🥲

One I actually kind of regret playing was Buried Stars, but I have to admit the art was too gorgeous not to give it a try! The story wasn't bad per se, but it could have been A LOT shorter haha.
 
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