Great game, but just like Kyoto Winds, the translation is WTF. I can speak Japanese so at least I can understand what they're actually saying, but I'd probably hate most of the characters if not for that.
Like, for example, in Okita's route he reassuringly says something in Japanese which means "You're over exaggerating. I just went to grab the katana over there", and they translated it as this ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ mess:
"Jeez, just give it a rest. Stop throwing a ♥♥♥♥♥-fit every five seconds. I'm just grabbing my sword."
Like WHAT? What???? I can't even comprehend wtf the translator could have been thinking. Another example, he says you jump to conclusions fast and reassures you that he wasn't going to do anything stupid when he'd end up just dying if he did. The translator decided this should be "Holy hell, all you do is jump from one conclusion to the next. I'm not doing anything stupid..."

The translations make normal, reassuring or calm statements super ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ aggressive and ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥-y. So, if you're playing this and something someone said made you go "wtf is this ♥♥♥♥", chances are it's the horrible translation. :(

Note: Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds is the first part while Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms is the second and concluding part of the remake of Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom.

Played Character Route Order: Chikage ◈ Sanosuke ◈ Hijikata ◈ Iba ◈ Souji ◈ Ryouma ◈ Yamazaki ◈ Saito ◈ Shinpachi ◈ Heisuke ◈ Sanan ◈ Souma

I was lucky and got a beta-key for this VN and I was so happy about it that I literally cried. This otome is just perfect, at least in my opinion.

After I've listed the improvements in comparison to other versions in my first review, I will only rate the story and gameplay this time, or rather how I feel about the whole game.

I had very high expectations, especially for the new routes and I didn't end up disappointed. I've gone through a variety of feelings while playing: Happiness, desperation, sadness, anger, love... I laughed and I cried... a lot. Of course, you have to build up affection to the characters in order to feel this way, but I think Kyoto Winds did a great job for this purpose.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1789682366

I've played the other Hakuoki Games, so I knew what will happen in some routes, but I'd really wished that they would drop a certain ending... because of the chosen soundtrack, it was even harder to endure it till the end. Some moments were so intense that I got goosebumps even on my face, I will not even mention how many tissues I needed to dry my tears.

The love for my favorite characters (Chikage, Souji, Sano) grew, even more, even Hijikata which I didn't like THAT much before was able to sneak his way into my heart along with the new characters Iba, Sakamoto, and Yamazaki. Even Sanan whom I really disliked before, was surprisingly one of my favorites after playing his route. This game is full of surprises, even if you've already played other versions.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1512148208

But the other routes were also worth playing and had many fantastic moments, although I felt kinda disappointed with some characters, but that is probably more because I simply can't get enough romantic moments and routes like those of Saito (Why are you sooo cold? ._.) and Souma are more focused on the story of the Shinsengumi. I mean there are some moments that will make your heart beating faster but they are just not as numerous as in Souji's or Sano's routes, for example.

In my opinion, it's a good thing that there are guys/routes like Saito and Souma in order to offer variety and that every woman can give her heart to at least one of the twelve guys.

The soundtrack is absolutely beautiful, I especially liked the newer ones like Farewell for now and the Opening/Ending songs.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1757302625

The game setting and the story are very captivating and interesting, the characters are easy to like/love and you can always be prepared for a good laugh or a session of crying (Definitely prepare some tissues!) You really hate one character? It will probably not last for a long time.

Hakuoki is and remains especially with the new version, my all-time favorite Otome and I really wish that Hakuouki: SSL and Hakuouki: Reimeiroku Nagorigusa will be localized someday as well. *-*

Thanks Idea Factory that you've localized Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms.♥

For returning veterans that just want to know what’s new in this version of Hakuouki, I offer a glowering review:

Because of space limitations, this review was continued from the Kyoto Winds page. See the first part here.

Includes:
⠀⠀ ✿ Demon of the Fleeting Blossoms, Part I
⠀⠀ ✿ Demon of the Fleeting Blossoms, Part II
⠀⠀ ✿ Stories of the Shinsengumi: bonus scenes
⠀⠀ ✿ New scenes, routes, music, and CGs

Does Not Include:
⠀⠀ ✿ Zuisouroku (Shimabara, snow, festive night)
⠀⠀ ✿ Adventures of the Shinsengumi (cat scenes)
⠀⠀ ✿ Stories of the Shinsegumi: letters
⠀⠀ ✿ Hakuouki Memories: Short Stories
⠀⠀ ✿ Memories of Love
⠀⠀ ✿ Various hilarious CD dramas
⠀⠀ ✿ Reimeiroku (with Ibuki)
⠀⠀ ✿ Urakata Hakuōki (different cast)
⠀⠀ ✿ Yuugiroku (chibi mini games)
⠀⠀ ✿ Sweet School Life (high school version)
⠀⠀ ✿ Bakumatsu Musouroku (3D hack&slash)

The new artwork doesn’t have quite the same, natural aesthetic as the old, but it does look like quite a bit more effort was put into it, and not just on the costumes. They do all have new recolors and fancier clothes; Shinpachi looks less like a clown. And there are -lots- of new backgrounds and CGs, all of which are lovely. Most impressive to me were the new character models though. Their eyes express their feelings and personality superbly well: suspicion, disappointment, expectation. They can seriously read your soul.

It’s a port, so expect bugs and unnecessary demands on your CPU. Fullscreen didn’t work for me. It warped the image so badly that I had to play windowed. Running Borderless Gaming (from Steam) was the only workaround, but then I had to fight wonky Steam overlays and a fussy Application Frame Host. Big mess. Many lag.

There is now more and better sounding music. New animations (blood spatter, mist, snow, character overlays) and sounds (crows, cicadas, dogs, etc) add to the atmosphere while flash-bang sword animations detract because you are too blinded to read half the combat text. The characters still blink, but they don’t breathe or look particularly animated as they did in the PS3 version.

Don’t be fooled by the cringe-worthy old-man puns in the achievements; it’s still a classy game--just not committed enough to find an experienced translator, it would seem.

Which brings me to the really, really terrible translation. It’s grammatically accurate (mostly), but someone had the bright idea that peppering random slang into the text makes it seem more relatable or something, but then used that slang completely out of context and at all the wrong moments without understanding the nuances, culture, social appropriateness, and feelings associated with it. It feels like someone played Russian Roulettes with a thesaurus from the 60s, and lost. This was by far the most disheartening aspect of the entire game because it is pervasive. It just makes me sad because I love this game and how it so reverently yet entertainingly deals with a very sad and serious period in time, so I am embarrassed by such an unprofessional translation waffling between purple prose and Scooby-Dooh vernacular, knowing people won’t be able to see past it to the much better writing in the original Japanese. The respectfully literal translation of the original content was perfectly fine. I can see that they made an effort to brighten this version by using action, romance, and slang specialists, but the Frankenstein script that came out of it is nauseating.

Blue Language Alert: in Japanese the language is probably at a PG rating (officially CERO C ≈ ESRB T). In English, the game is rated MA for language. Why?? In the new scenes, even sweet, innocent little Chizuru cusses…all the time. Kazama is no longer the suave anti-hero he was; now he just sounds like a schoolboy hooligan with a potty mouth. It’s profanity to the point of distraction, a symptom again of an over-confident translator thinking that Japanese tough-guy language is the equivalent of English ⁴chan vulgarity. This game is for ‘maidens,’ not truckers. The inappropriate and out-of-character word choices (e.g. Okita) actually make me like the characters less. A simple native check is all it would take to fix this. I’m sorry to be so critical, but this is a novel: the words are important.

Speaking of language, I would have previously put this game at a PG13 for swearing (I’m looking at you, Hijikata), mild innuendo, and, well, blood-fetishes. But it’s gone way beyond that into MA territory this version by including Hijikata’s metaphors in Technicolor, strongly suggestive vocabulary, and a raρe scene—or I assume that’s what it was; but, once again, it might have just been the really awful translation.

Whereas before I would have said that every route was fantastic and worth playing through, I can’t say the same for the new content. They spared no expense on the voice actors for the new routes; the three new heroes all being from the top five list in Japan. However, the routes, in general, are considerably shorter and by far more poorly written: too preachy, absolutely too tell-and-not-show info-dumpy, rushed, and lacking the character depth and sincerity of the originals. While they do add a deeper look into the mythology of the furies, they’ve lost the theme and quality of meaning the old routes had, and are now merely lazy recaps of better writing. They consistently have terrible wording and, to put it simply, are just plain boring. But some routes are better written than others (Sakamoto, Sannan). I admit that it was hard to feel attached to any of the new characters; the brief but imposing appearances of the original crew just made me want to go back to them—every time.

Yukimura is quite a bit more spunky throughout. I suppose the devs were listening to everyone’s complaints about her passivity since the new characters frequently tell us how clever, strong, and capable she is (unconvincingly). But she has changed a great deal in one thing: her thirst for romance in Edo Blossoms is by far more erotic (though that’s a strong word here) than I remember the previous routes being, losing the endearing innocence of the older stories.

If you haven’t played since PS2, then you’ll be very happy with the new scenes first released in the Vita version. They blend in perfectly, expanding the story and quietly leading into the romance later with the characters we know and love. You’ll know you’ve hit the new content for this version when the mic can no longer handle Nagakura’s manliness, and the translation suddenly sounds as awkward as a stoned baby-boomer trying to fit in with high schoolers. Then Yukimura will proceed to explain the personalities of our heroes to us because the writers thought that would be easier than actually writing story. There really is nothing original or interesting about the new content except all the editing errors: sentences cut off and missing, often conflicting. Real sloppy copy. In addition, the sudden interjection of ‘nibbling’ in every single romantic scene as they swap out writers for added lustiness is indescribably annoying and disruptive. With such an old and successful franchise, it truly surprises me how unprofessional this new content is.

For more specific details, you can find my review of the individual routes here.

If you’ve taken the time to read this absurdly long review, then yes, for you, it’s worth it to get this game—one more time—with all its added flaws, for no reason more than that there’s more Shiranui.

The single most depressing thing you've ever read in your life happens in this game and then you find out that's the good ending

Okay, first if you have played Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds, this game is a must! You get to see what happens to the Shinsengumi and is finally able to romance your man. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
I had the pleasure of beta testing the game and I can assure you the story is beautiful, the quality of the game overall is fantastic, the voicelines are perfect and you can actually feel like you're watching an animated series where your choices matter.
There is also a new mechanic called bloodlust where you control the corruption level of your suitor and it is worth trying all options for extra CGs.
If you ask me "is the game worth buying?" my answer is DEFINETELY YES! The game is pretty neat and well made. Idea Factory International really did a great job on this serie.

The new content is well done and the music is excellent. I enjoyed it very much.

A word of warning: the translation still leaves something to be desired, and can be frustrating. It is still better than a lot of localizations, and in many places the language is quite nice. [Edited to clarify that the English is acceptable; I just expect more from a big name game.]

The game design allows you to go straight to the route of the partner you wish to select. At that point, it's up to you to maximize affection and minimize the Corruption of those partners who are furies. Unlike with Part I (Kyoto Winds), there is no repetitive common route.

The new content for the original 6 characters - and Chizuru / the protagonist - is a major bonus for returning fans and new fans alike.

The controls generally feel and work better than they did with Kyoto Winds. I found I could control more things from my mouse. I still had to go into button control to discover that "I" would give me my Top Menu.

I recommend this game. I am also - once again - left wondering why Otomate / IF / DF / IFI won't hire a strong English editor to fix grammar issues (tenses and prepositions especially) and the (mis)use of idiomatic expressions. Just as examples, English distinguishes between "the floor" and "the ground"; also, people do not "thin" their eyes - they "narrow" their eyes (easy to fix, but found throughout both KW and EB). It wouldn't be so jarring, but the original translation (of Hakuoki pre-KW) is much better.***

It was great to dive back into Hakuouki though!! I found the tone/style of the translation jarring at times (overly crude, as if the Urban Dictionary was used a bit too often), but the whole is still a lot of fun for fans.

Seriously, these stories are still great, and the additions are generally well-done.

~ Imp

I love this game.

It's a great ending to the first part of the series here on Steam.

I won't go into too much detail, mainly because there's just so much story in this game that it would take forever to write this. Just know that this game has a lot of plot and padding to make it worth the £24 or whatever you pay for it.

The characters are well written and built upon nicely from Kyoto Winds, even those I wasn't particularly fond of in KW made an impression on me in this sequel. I especially love Souma and his route <3
I really don't want to say much more about the characters and the story for fear of spoilers! Just know that you will need tissues for some routes, they are that frreaking sad :( The story is equal parts ridiculous vampirism (that's not a complaint), creative battles, romance, camaraderie and tears.
Some routes are more romantic than others, but that's just a reflection on the guy's personalities, romance doesn't start until quite late on in some routes. Worth the wait though, for sure.
I feel like Yukimura matures quite well in this game, although she's still frustratingly naive sometimes, but then that's part of her charm.

The artwork is still of a high quality like its predecessor, and the CGs are beautiful and really capture the atmosphere and emotions of the scene. The voice acting is brilliant and really makes the game worth it's price tag! The music is also great and pairs nicely with the atmosphere and time frame of the game.

I'm super glad they decided to localise this and add it to steam!!

BUY IT!!!

i want to romance hot japanese men: the sequel

nnnagfh... lkl l l l kmjkd kazamaaaaaaaaa nahagfhsf

only downside is that i love souji too much and it hurts