I'm honestly speechless. After playing through ef – the first tale. I was even slightly disappointed because I expected a super-duper tearjerker, however, the first entry of ef – a fairy tale of the two. ended up being rather light-hearted with dramatic scenes here and there. Never did I expect ef – the latter tale. to have such a big impact on me. I encountered all sorts of emotions during my playthrough and after completing the whole game, I can say for sure that ef - a fairy tale of the two. truly lived up to my expectations and there is a reason why this visual novel is so popular among a lot of people.

That being said, ef – the latter tale. is the second part of ef – a fairy tale of the two. and is, therefore, meant to be played after ef – the first tale. It is highly recommended to play this game in the right chronological order as a lot of events would not make sense without experiencing the previous entry before. ef – the latter tale. contains the last three chapters of the game, which would be chapter three to five.

Feel free to check out my review for ef – the first tale.


After Yuuko and Yuu met, once again, she reminisces about her past. However, this time, it's Yuu's turn to explain to her what happened on his side and how he spent his life while Yuuko was waiting for him. The purpose of the story was to reveal how exactly Yuu happened to find out about her stay in that specific church, although there were a lot of different factors that made the reuniting finally possible in the end.

Even at the beginning of the third chapter, I immediately noticed that it will be much sadder than in the first tale. You see, this chapter revolves around Chihiro, the sister of Kei whom we already met previously. However, not knowing why the two twins are not living together at the same place, the mystery is finally going to get revealed with this entry. So, this time the protagonist is someone who already has some sort of connection as well - The cousin of Mizuki. Although Mizuki will get her own chapter later, the reader already met her as a friend of Kei before. I absolutely loved that I, as the reader, could relate to both characters as they didn't feel like strangers to me at all. Despite mostly hearing about Chihiro before, it felt like I happened to meet someone familiar once again.

Not only did I already have a connection to the characters from the very beginning, but this visual novel also throws in some hints here and there about the development of Kei's story, as she and Chihiro are obviously staying in touch, despite being far away from each other. I was delighted to experience the other side of the story, as well, especially since I was really curious about what kind of girl Chihiro would be, as I heard a lot about her previously and I have to admit, she definitely met my expectations, and whilst I knew the stories would probably end up being rather bittersweet, I was constantly hoping for a happy end for them, nonetheless.


Admittedly, I loved how everything came together in ef – the latter tale. Until the very last chapter, I still didn't have a clue how everything would be connected, besides the cast already knowing each other. However, I found the connection with the stories wonderfully executed in this entry which didn't only answer all my questions but also managed to utterly surprise me. Until the end, I couldn't predict the past of Yuuko and Yuu, although the hints were definitely spread through the stories. That being said, I enjoyed the rather light-hearted start with ef – the first tale. and it's noticeable that the story progressively continued with the latter half.

The main difference here would be that ef – the latter tale. is definitely a much more emotional game. Whilst I already noticed a few dramatic scenes in ef – the first tale., this entry is entirely different. I felt like there was no hope available for the characters at all and that their time will eventually come to an end. You see, the issue here is that there is always some sort of problem available, that is unlikely to get resolved, even with a lot of time. However, I loved that not everything ended up being gloomy, as a result, but everyone tried to make the best out of the situation, regardless, which greatly motivated me as well, yet, didn't stop me from crying my eyes out in the end.


Like in ef – the first tale., there are choices available throughout the third chapter. However, the last two chapters entirely work like kinetic novels and thus, there is no decision at all the player has to decide on, but can just lay back and enjoy the stories. Whilst I found the fourth chapter slightly unsatisfying, their story gets partly shoved into the last chapter, which delighted me. I wasn't ready yet for it to end but luckily, that part of the game was well-executed, as the conclusion followed later on.


Admittedly, I found one reveal at the end quite off. To be fair, I probably felt this way because there was no real explanation for it at all, given how realistic the rest of the game is presented. However, explaining it properly would require going into the spoiler territory, I wouldn't dare to step in. Luckily, that was only a minor issue as it didn't have an impact on my overall immersion. Other than that, I was satisfied with the story reveals in ef – the latter tale. and found that the game was mostly very logical.


So, those who played ef – the first tale. previously will know exactly what to expect of this successor as well. This game is one of the most lively visual novels I played before with its impressive number of CGs, subtle animations, and other noticeable details such as the characters having multiple hairstyles. Playing ef – a fairy tale of the two. felt like watching an anime with a cast that felt genuine.


I cannot properly put my experience with ef - a fairy tale of the two. into words. This game tore at my heartstrings and made such a huge impression on me. I already expected a sad story, given this visual novel is famous for being a tearjerker, however, it still managed to surprise me and I couldn't stop crying. While ef - the first tale. started off quite slow, the true colors of ef - a fairy tale of the two. gets revealed with the second entry. That being said, ef - the latter tale is such a wonderful conclusion to its predecessor and was a journey I won't be able to forget.

The first four chapters out of five are essentially just a prologue in my opinion. They can trigger emotions and make you worry, but I didn't find them particularly interesting. I was just reading and waiting for it to finally tell us about the most interesting and main characters.
When I finally got to the last chapter, I wasn't disappointed. It touched me very much, right up to crying. The last time this happened was in early 2020 with Summer Pockets. That's why I read VNs. So Ef will now get stuck in my heart. At least the last chapter.

Первые четыре главы из пяти по сути просто пролог и подводка. Они могут тронуть или заставить переживать, но я не находил их особого интересными. Я просто читал и ждал, когда наконец нам расскажут про самых интересных и главных персонажей.
Когда я наконец добрался до последней главы, то не был разочарован. Она меня очень тронула и задела, аж до мокрых глаз. Последний раз такое было в начале 2020 года с Summer Pockets. Ради такого я и читаю новеллы. Так что и Ef я теперь засядет в моем сердце. По крайней мере последняя глава.

well well well
I don't know about anyone else, but this is the instant buy for me.

The story is soul-wrenchingly good, which you probably know that from the first part. But it will be more crushing later on, so don't play it if you are under depression or anything. I warn you.

And music. The music! The moon filled sky probably my most favorite piece from Tenmon. So good that I bought a violin. I have both a score and music on my phone to this day. That's why I'm reviewing the latter part first.

ETCs, UI and all the things. I'd say it's an old game but amazingly well scripted. You can see how they use the camera angle and all that. Full voiced too. About the all-age thing. when I play I skipped all those scenes anyway. It's kinda long-winded and would be faster browsing ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ If you buy the game for those kinds of things.

10/10 Would recommend if you want to cry and enjoy a good story.

Rant: Don't worry about playing hours. I finished the Japanese version (18+) ages ago in 2010ish I think?. Pirated, of cause because a certain company said "play your own country game" That was long ago after the anime come out. (by SHAFT, but the OP of this is by Makoto Shinkai also.. an art director..? not sure about this it's a long time ago) Thanks to this my Japanese was somewhat decent enough to understand the day to day speech. Then the fan translator who translated this released. Also the same team for this official I think? They did a really good job.

A beautiful story that may be the most simplistic phase to describe this Visual Novel. Ef-a fairy tale of the two is a collection of various different tales of people who struggle with life and their desire to find happiness. Old memories shaped who we are today and not all of them are good one, there were many that we wish to forget completely but choosing to running away or denying the past cannot help us to open the door for future. We have to learn to accept it, forgive it and move on.

Full review (including score): https://youtu.be/-_8e5YSqfuI
Written review below!

Pros:
+ Slow and thoughtful story
+ Well-written characters
+ High quality dynamic art
+ Excellent soundtrack
Cons:
- Lack of direction in the first tale
- Technical issues

This is my review for the first tale + the latter tale as a package (as they are meant to be played together). I posted to both store pages, but the review itself is identical.

Loading up Steam one day and seeing the two ef games was quite a surprise. I mean, these are visual novels that have been out for thirteen years in Japan and have been available in English for over seven years, so seeing them come to Steam was definitely some good news. Having never played the game or seen its anime adaptation, it was about time to check it out. And of course, given the significance of Christmas in the game, it only felt right to do this review on Christmas day.

• Slow and thoughtful story. What immediately sets ef apart from similar visual novels is how its story plays out. This is not a story full of random comedy bits or the usual VN tropes. It is also not a story that constantly bombards you with drama. Instead, ef takes a slower and more thoughtful approach to storytelling. The events that unfold do so naturally, in a way that doesn't feel rushed like many other VNs tend to do. It's pacing is very slow as a result, but it is at least consistent throughout the entire experience. And, if anything, it gives the story a nice sense of realism.
  
  It is very comparable to the Makoto Shinkai film 5 Centimeters per Second. In fact, it's so similar in style that it's almost criminal. Given that Makoto Shinkai was involved with ef as its opening movie director, perhaps this game was a source of inspiration for that film. Whatever the case may be, this kind of storytelling is something we don't often see in the medium and really shines here in ef.
  
  
• Well-written characters. Having a slower-paced story does have its benefits, one being that it gives time for characters to be properly developed. This is something that ef does really well, providing a number of characters across its five chapters that actually feel human. There's no cookie-cutter characters to fill specific tropes, no characters introduced solely for one role only to then be forgotten, and no rushed character development. As with the overall story, the characters develop naturally and their actions actually make sense.
  
  Sure, some are better at it than others, but there was never an outright badly written character. This works wonders for the type of story told here, as having such realistic characters make its much easier to relate to them, to get invested in their stories. And of course, when the story throws an emotional moment at you, it's that much more effective. It's a deadly combo and one that ef knows how to use.
  
  
• High quality dynamic art. Coming from studio minori, this shouldn't come as too much a surprise, but ef has some really good art. From its well-done character designs, to its massive assortment of detailed backgrounds, it's got pretty much everything on lock in the art department. However, what's really cool about the art isn't that it just looks good on its own, but that it's so dynamic. By this, I mean that characters, backgrounds, and CGs are constantly changing, never really sitting still for too long.
  
  In fact, I'm pretty sure ef has the highest number of unique CGs I have ever seen in a visual novel. It felt like it was throwing out new ones every few minutes, which, given the length of the game, is actually quite impressive. In chapter one alone, for example, there's 19 pages of unique CGs, with 12 per page. A couple later chapters even exceed 20 pages of unique CGs. Given the high quality nature of the art itself, this must have been an immense workload for the game's artists, but the end result is something quite unlike any VN I've played before.
  
  
• Excellent soundtrack. And as if the art wasn't enough already, ef also has an excellent soundtrack to match. The composers are TENMON and Eiichiro Yanagi, the former of which has worked on several of the earlier Makoto Shinkai films (including 5cm per Second, which is one of my favorite soundtracks).
  
  The ef soundtrack makes use of a variety of styles, but the majority of the tracks are slower, more mellow piano tracks. This not only matches the slow nature of the game's storytelling, but also helps in establishing its winter aesthetic. However, there's also some upbeat daytime tracks, as well as several excellent violin solos that actually serve a purpose in the story. It's got some variety to it and is good to listen to both in-game and out.

• Lack of direction in the first tale. For everything the game does right regarding its story, it does still have some issues. The most notable of these would be the clear contrast between the first tale and the latter tale. First, a bit of explanation is needed. ef - a fairy tale of the two. is the name of the whole game, but it is sold in two parts as ef - the first tale. and ef - the latter tale., with the first containing a prologue and chapters 1 and 2 and the second containing chapters 3-5. Although these chapters do build on each other, it isn't really apparent when you're actually playing the first tale.
  
  By that, I mean that the first couple chapters felt like their own thing. Some hints were dropped with regards to the overall story, but for the most part, they were pretty much self-contained love dramas. Not to say that they were bad love dramas, but rather that the latter tale is just much better by comparison, as it does the whole love drama thing and more. It felt like the first tale just kinda served as a stepping stone for the latter tale, which is evident in the fact that the opening theme does not even play until the end of the first tale.
  
  
• Technical issues. Given that the game has been out for so long, I honestly did not expect to run into as many issues as I did. Although I didn't get anything like full game crashes or fps issues, I did run into a number of smaller, yet still annoying issues. Among these were the fullscreen mode not working properly (instead showing the game in both windowed and fullscreen at the same time on top of each other), the mouse cursor reappearing and disappearing at random without any input, and the first opening theme displaying a black screen while the audio played.
  
  Additionally, I also ran into a few small typos and grammar issues, which again, is a surprise given how long this translation has been out for. Unfortunately, I don't see these issues getting patched given the game's age, so it looks like you'll just have to deal with them if you do run into them.

Not only does ef have some high production values with regards to its art and music, but it does this while also having a slow, yet thoughtful storyline full of well-written characters, quite unlike what we usually see in this medium. It does have some story issues more towards the beginning and some technical issues overall, but it is a solid visual novel all things considered and definitely one I would recommend, especially for the holiday season.

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Ef changed my life

Ef - a fairy tale of the two. is a contradictory visual novel. It has the absolute worst romance drama writing in the first tale and the absolute peak personal trauma/life and death drama writing in the latter tale. The final chapter made me feel both traumatized and peaceful at the same time. I have also become contradictory. I don't know if I should fetch myself some antidepressants or go out and proclaim to everyone that "life is worth living" after finishing this game. God I love and hate this visual novel so much.

This is a nice visual novel. Actually, half of a two-parter. Great characters, music, and art. Does have a bit of an enforced order in completing paths. Recommend. Though getting it in the bundle with the other half and an additional game is probably best.

Classic Minori insofar as it's relaxed, not happy but very emotional. Well written, highly detailed with an excellent soundtrack.
Don't worry that it's all ages. It's certainly not all ages, and not having the adult stuff is probably a better choice in this case IMO. You're not missing out on anything you'd want to see.

It's minori classic and definitely one of the best VNs I've read. Really moving story with great characters. Drama isn't overblown and fits well into the story, characters feel alive and art despite being from 2009 doesn't feel dated at all.