Disclaimer: I first played the original itch.io release of the game, which is a far older release -- and I was also an offhand tester internally of this version (the Steam port of the game), though I didn't have the full, retail-level build at time of testing. Having now looked through some of the things added post-testing, I have a pretty comprehensive understanding.
With that out of the way...

Augma is the VN of All Time.

It exudes massively palpable inspiration from other visual novel series such as Shinza Bansho (by way of chuunibyou superfight and terminology overload as well as some of the distinct worldbuilding / characterization), Science Adventure (deep and absurd science-fiction concepts in tandem with conspiracy / violent serial killings), and Type-Moon (specifically Mahoutsukai no Yoru, with how visually dynamic the in-engine visual sequences are).

It's good. I imagine a lot of readers might find it meandering or lost in the sauce with how heavy-handed and grandiose many concepts / interactions are, along with how there are still much slower or more laid back moments interspersed, though I think the glossary system does a fine job of accounting for the sheer breadth of narrative backdrop accompanying the universe of Augma. This system is a new addition to the Steam port, and it is one that I wholly welcome.

The visuals of the original Augma were already something of great appeal for me, and it's pleasing to say that the Steam port here massively improves and actively overhauls the visual presentation. Visual novels are very oftentimes lacking in even average capabilities to engagingly present their narrative, and I have very few issues with Augma in that sense, at least for the ongoing story elements.

The official soundtrack is very nice as well. One of the tracks you can just absolutely tell is directly inspired by one from Dies irae (Shinza Bansho series), if not just a heavily altered personal take on the song. The size of the soundtrack is good for the length of the game, ideally you'd want at least one track for every hour of reading time for most VNs. Augma I would say is around an 8-10 hour experience at least, and it features 24 tracks in its Jukebox that play throughout the span of the story. This is a very fine ratio of hours:tracks that a lot of mismanaged VNs with enough budget behind them simply somehow don't even come close to reaching (like Raging Loop or Root Double).

The choices in this game are not particularly meaningful on a level of altering the story. It's a kinetic visual novel, really. You'll be starting at Point A and ending at Point B without much in the way of changing how you get there. Personally I think this is fine, if not ideal, especially for this specific title. Free will / branching are an often misunderstood and over-marketed gimmick that simply rarely add anything of value, and only exist because that is usually a staple in the marketplace. I am frankly glad that is not an issue here.

Overall, I think the story and its audiovisual presentation are very intriguing and a genuine homage to some incredibly good VN series out there. It's a massive love letter to its medium, and only just the start to an interesting universe of its own.

As for my gripes, those pretty heavily land in the UI. I think Augma eschews practically all the design theory that's cultivated in decades worth of visual novel history as well as general game design practice. The multitudes of menus present in the game come in various different colors, shapes, and fonts, with very little in the way of stylistic consistency. Compare the in-game pause screen with the settings menu, for instance.
There are also confusing elements like there being two pause buttons in the menu, albeit while on opposite sides, still can be parsed as individual parts of the same element. Those being "BACK" and "LOG," which have very often confused me in my search for just opening the Backlog in the pause menu.
Further, while I appreciate the efforts to create two separate UI layouts -- one dependent on Mouse-Keyboard, and the other dependent on Gamepad (which is used simply if you have a Gamepad detected by your system) -- the use case of a Gamepad would be more adjacent to something like a handheld such as a Nintendo Switch or a Steam Deck. I am sure some people would use the Gamepad for their PC playing of the game, but I feel like the most natural setups to be using this, would actually not benefit to a noticeable degree due to how the UI just actually is. For instance, the Quick Menu buttons alongside the screen are simply too small to be of any assistance on a Switch or Deck display, as well as the fact that for Deck, you would ideally use Desktop mode to launch the game in order to make use of the trackpads since the general layout was not at all meant to be navigated with a Gamepad.
An especially egregious example of what I mean by this is the Save menu. There are 23 buttons located on the Save screen, and only 5 of them are for actually saving in a save slot. The other 18 buttons are for changing to other pages of the menu or changing to another menu entirely. This is obviously a Mouse-Keyboard-only design choice, as scrolling through a couple dozen buttons in a save menu is not fun, especially since the highlight on the text you scroll over before selecting it, is just barely visibly different from non-highlighted text, as the design choice assumes your mouse is already hovering over it, and thus you should be already familiar with where your cursor is. This does not carry over to Gamepads, especially in a massively overpopulated screen whose buttons are already challenging to navigate.
The last thing I'd like to point out is the Log's ability to read full chapters at once in its menu. On my 27"/1080p monitor, it's incredibly, ridiculously difficult to read. I would rather the function not exist than exist in this state, because it's just very inconvenient to use given its poor readability. It does not fare any better on handhelds in my experience, either.
As for things I enjoy about the UI, I think it's actually very nice to have the pause screen elucidate what sound effect or BGM is currently playing, as well as there being a global play-time clock in the opposite corner to denote how long you've had the game open in all your sessions combined.

All in all, I would say Augma is a nice indie experience, especially for the price of Free. It could do with a massive overhaul of its user interface for better readability, easier interactivity, and more stylistic cohesion, but the narrative, the music, the main visuals / art, and everything else about the bulk of the game is just very impressive to me. It's cool. Would recommend.

Possibly one of the most unhinged and author-indulgent works of art ever made, and most definitely the funniest game(?) of all time as a result, for the better. The writer understands the absurdity of it all, and leans in as far as they can, just because they can—while never seeming insincere in their intent to tell a story either. You may not be able to understand a lot of the events that unfold on your first time through, as the plot is surprisingly dense, but that shouldn't stop you from having a fun time. It takes about 10 hours total to see the whole story, and Augma benefits greatly from a more compact presentation compared to the lengthier, loftier "chuuni" visual novels from which it takes inspiration. It rules.

I had a hard time getting into the dense writing. The flow of the narrative is killed by lots of lifeless tangents. Conceptually dense as well, not letting scenes build up a meaningful purpose. The characters come across as detached from the narrative events in an unnaturally flat manner. The visuals were great.

I love the character design. Interesting story with in-depth lore.

Really good kinetic VN, interesting art, nice music.
The work on UI and design is simply amazing, a lot of effort was put into this.

Nice short VN!

I'm currently at chapter 10 and I just ran here to leave a comment (a temporary one i'll come back later i promise)
i had to do it

THIS GAME HAS A FINNEGANS WAKE REFERENCE

i had it coming the paragraphs before and when that 'all lykkehud' popped out i knew it

sorry for screaming in here i just got too excited ;)
Finnegans Wake has been one of my favorite books and I've always dreamt of & been trying to work on creating a work anywhere near it (if possible, which is extremely hard).
Thanks a whole lot for the reference!


Nice and unique work so far!! Thumbs up to the devs!

awesome vn and i recommend everyone try it out due to its currently short (for a vn) amount of time you need to sink into it. the artstyle (i really like the artstyle) is nice and the whole game has a distinct soul to it.

it definitely has its flaws like certain parts are a slog to read but these parts are few and far between. while far from perfect this is most certainly worth spending reading (especially since its free!!!!!)

the general story really is something that was cooked up from somebodys dream and i think thats really awesome and a good idea (and something that inspired a work of my own) and im really forward to seeing what a sequel will do to make the story even better and hopefully farther develop the characters into more 3d beings

in the words of somebody i know: Hop the ♥♥♥♥ on

A really solid kinetic VN that pushes Ren'py to its limits for quality fight scenes.
Augma II is the antithesis to the many ironic dating sims currently on the market: it's absurd, fun, and most of all, genuine.
It might not suit everyone, but those who can enjoy essays on theology followed by fights straight out of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure should feel right at home.
I'm really looking forward to the full game.

action packed story full of intrigue and laughs, a colorful cast brimming with chunniisms, and some of the most unique visuals I've ever seen in a more kinetic novel. I liked it when I first read it in 2021 and I like it even more now in it's re-packaged steam form. will leave you waiting with bated breath waiting for it's next chapter. heartily recommend lets get this vn to one augmillion completions