Nintendo

I went overboard with VN purchases in the last month, so I'm probably going to keep focusing on those for a while.

Finished Senren * Banka!

Last week I commented about the first three routes, and there were two left:

• Lena: By far the best story of all routes. We finally get a proper explanation for the origins of the curse, an incredibly satisfying resolution, and I love how they even hint that certain events from Murasame's route also take place in this one. The only bad thing is that Lena's romance was on the weak side, but even then I'd say it's a strong contender for best route in the game.
• Roka/Kohaku: This "side" route goes entirely slice-of-life with the main character working a restaurant alongside the heroines, and was a surprisingly enjoyable read. The weakest part of this route is definitely Kohaku, she's the least interesting heroine in the game, but I really liked Roka and wish she had more screentime.

Overall I had a good time with this game and might be willing to try more Yuzusoft titles in the future.

Finished Loopers!

Had one last short VN from Key in my backlog.

It has a very interesting premise - it's about a group of people stuck on a "groundhog day" loop, repeating the same day endlessly, but instead of dealing with the loop itself it's more about their day-to-day lives as they try to keep themselves happy and sane in this situation. It also has a very nice and colorful artstyle that was one of the things that drew me to the game.

Sadly, I think the game is way too short to properly explore this premise or develop its fairly big cast - it has twice as many characters as another similar-length Key VN I played recently (Harmonia). There's also some very questionable story choices, like some out-of-place horror segments in the early parts of the game or focusing too much on the treasure hunting theme.

Not a bad game, but I think it had the potential for a lot more.

Finished The Fox Awaits Me!

A fairly obscure VN I picked because the art and themes looked interesting, and also my first time playing a Korean VN. And I liked it way more than I expected.

It starts with the MC awakening in a bamboo grove with no memories, and he ends up getting involved with a magic fox, a mountain deity and a grim reaper as he tries to piece together his past and figure out what was exactly his previous relationship with the heroines.

One of the most interesting things about this game is how well it maintains tension, even during the more chill segments. You know the heroines are hiding things from you and it's hard to tell how much you should trust their words, plus it's clear from some scenes (including some rather bloody bad endings) that danger is around and you shouldn't relax. There's also the writing of Shua, the titular fox - she's clearly obsessed with the MC, and you often wonder if she's about to snap and do something crazy.

The production values were great, with a good OST, nice backgrounds and animated sprites. The english translation could've used a bit more QA though, I've spotted a few typos and mistakes, and there's bugs like text occasionally going outside the screen. Nothing gamebreaking, but annoying.

Playing The Fox Awaits Me HANA (Link to Japanese eShop)

Direct sequel to the game above.

It has full english support and was originally planned for a US/Europe release, but it was suddenly cancelled with only some vague statements about it.

Decided to play this one first because it's supposed to be shorter than other VNs I have on my backlog, hoping to finish it over the weekend.