Which are your favorite Visual Novels?

[dynastystar]

Excluding exceptions like Danganronpa and Phoenix Wright which are more gameplay-focused. There are alot of Visual Novels on Steam that look very similiar. Alot of them have an aesthetic that I like, but there aren't that many Visual Novel reviewers that I've been able to find so for the most part, I have to rely on screenshots/trailers on Steam, and Steam reviews for information on whether the story/characters are worthwhile. With games like Danganronpa, not only have they gotten alot more coverage to tell what the game has to offer, but there's more to Danganronpa than just story/characters that can be shown in trailers/screenshots.

[mimizukari]

Steins;Gate>Clannad Series=Grisaia series>Megadimension Neptunia VII

{2nd place is tied but 1st place is undisputable}

[dynastystar]

引用自 Shiki Ryougi：

Steins;Gate>Clannad Series=Grisaia series>Megadimension Neptunia VII

{2nd place is tied but 1st place is undisputable}

Should I be playing the Grisaia series in release order? Will probably pass on the Steins;Gate VN as I've seen anime and I don't feel the need to retread the same ground.

[Hextravert]

I've actually never been slightly interested in visual novels.

But I can't help but feel I might be missing out on something.

Which one would you recommend to the uninitiated? I really enjoyed Hunter X Hunter.

引用自 dynastystar：

Excluding exceptions like Danganronpa and Phoenix Wright which are more gameplay-focused. There are alot of Visual Novels on Steam that look very similiar. Alot of them have an aesthetic that I like, but there aren't that many Visual Novel reviewers that I've been able to find so for the most part, I have to rely on screenshots/trailers on Steam, and Steam reviews for information on whether the story/characters are worthwhile. With games like Danganronpa, not only have they gotten alot more coverage to tell what the game has to offer, but there's more to Danganronpa than just story/characters that can be shown in trailers/screenshots.

[dynastystar]

引用自 Hextravert：

I've actually never been slightly interested in visual novels.

But I can't help but feel I might be missing out on something.

Which one would you recommend to the uninitiated? I really enjoyed Hunter X Hunter. :AWESOME:

引用自 dynastystar：

Excluding exceptions like Danganronpa and Phoenix Wright which are more gameplay-focused. There are alot of Visual Novels on Steam that look very similiar. Alot of them have an aesthetic that I like, but there aren't that many Visual Novel reviewers that I've been able to find so for the most part, I have to rely on screenshots/trailers on Steam, and Steam reviews for information on whether the story/characters are worthwhile. With games like Danganronpa, not only have they gotten alot more coverage to tell what the game has to offer, but there's more to Danganronpa than just story/characters that can be shown in trailers/screenshots.

I'd recommend you start with something like Danganronpa. It'll probably take some doing to get used to being used to games that are more gameplay-focused to stuff that is nearly 100% dialogue. So try something that is good on gameplay but heavy on dialogue in a visual novel format. Danganronpa V3 has a demo, haven't played that yet but it should allow you to taste the Danganronpa series for free. What Danganronpa effectively is, is where a class of students are stuck inside a school(or on an island, it Danganronpa 2's case) and are told that in order to be able to get out("graduate" as the game terms it), they gotta kill one of their fellow classmates and get away with it. In between chapters you get "free time" where you get to hang out with one of the other classmates. Stuff happens in apart from the freetime in between chapters too of course. Then somebody gets killed, investigation starts where you talk to people to get their statements and gather clues. Once you're done all that, the class trial starts where you take the clues you gathered and present it in a battle royale-style trial where everybody discusses/debates the case with each other, you present the clues/statements you've gathered to agree or contradict with the other characters and there's other gameplay stuff mixed in there too. One thing I really like is that the difficulty is seperated between its logic and its action. People often say that the characters are their favorite part of the series which is hard to disagree with.

[cinedine]

引用自 dynastystar：

Excluding exceptions like Danganronpa and Phoenix Wright which are more gameplay-focused.

Clannad and Steins;Gate are definitely up there in the top X lists. Fate-series is another good one.
If you want too look more into the Japanese Adventure genre (like Danganronpa - VNs with actual gameplay), the Nonary Games series is very solid.

That's coming from a guy who generally doesn't like the Anime style nor VNs that much.

[mimizukari]

引用自 dynastystar：

引用自 Shiki Ryougi：

Steins;Gate>Clannad Series=Grisaia series>Megadimension Neptunia VII

{2nd place is tied but 1st place is undisputable}

Should I be playing the Grisaia series in release order? Will probably pass on the Steins;Gate VN as I've seen anime and I don't feel the need to retread the same ground.

fruit, labyrinth, and whatever rakuen gets translated to in english, yeah, release order. and really, you should read the steins;gate vn if you enjoyed steins;gate... first off, the anime only covers true ending, secondly, there's WAY more detail in the vn, and of course far more routes (and they're all fantastic)... you rarely if ever hear okabe's inner monologue in the anime, but it explains so many things and his mannerisms, as well as the character breaking down mentally over time is so fantastically portrayed.

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

I'm a big fan of fault milestone one and Dysfunctional Systems episode 1. I haven't read their other episodes yet.

引用自 Hextravert：

I've actually never been slightly interested in visual novels.

But I can't help but feel I might be missing out on something.

Which one would you recommend to the uninitiated? I really enjoyed Hunter X Hunter. :AWESOME:

First, I'd make sure it's clear to you that visual novels basically aren't games in any usual sense -- if you think of them as games you'll just be clicking through dialogue waiting for gameplay that never happens, because the point is the dialogue itself. Take it, instead, as a story to sit back and read. Because that's what it is.

Probably the biggest distinction in format between different types of VNs is ones with and ones without choices. Ones with choices are sorta like a choose-your-own adventure book, but with much more potential for complexity of course. Some VNs use this to make a "dating sim" style setup where you get scored and get an outcome based on points accumulated from your choices, while others use some accumulation of decisions to pick one of several routes to show you for an ending. Some people strongly prefer VNs with choices, but I personally don't have that strong preference -- if anything I think I kinda prefer ones without choices, sometimes called "kinetic novels", because then I can really just sit back and let the story flow by me and not fret over decisions.

Unfortunately I haven't seen Hunter X Hunter so I don't know what to rec based on that. If you're just looking for VNs that are related to anime series, try Steins;Gate or Fate/Stay Night (the all-ages version rather than the original 18+ one, apparently); these two are sorta really famous. I also know of a few more (e.g. Clannad, Angel Beats, Planetarian, The Fruit of Grisaia, Devil on a G-String) but I know even less about them. (I think Planetarian is well-regarded.)

Some VNs have gameplay. Beyond just dating sim type stuff, I mean. Frankly, the VN interface is basically just text boxes, often with character portraits, so it's essentially just dialogue cutscenes in videogames, so it comes as no surprise that a number of VN/game hybrids exist, such as the battleship-like War of the Human Tanks, the word-guessing game 99 Spirits, and the strategy RPG Aselia the Eternal.

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

引用自 dynastystar：

引用自 Hextravert：

I've actually never been slightly interested in visual novels.

But I can't help but feel I might be missing out on something.

Which one would you recommend to the uninitiated? I really enjoyed Hunter X Hunter. :AWESOME:

I'd recommend you start with something like Danganronpa. It'll probably take some doing to get used to being used to games that are more gameplay-focused to stuff that is nearly 100% dialogue. So try something that is good on gameplay but heavy on dialogue in a visual novel format. Danganronpa V3 has a demo, haven't played that yet but it should allow you to taste the Danganronpa series for free. What Danganronpa effectively is, is where a class of students are stuck inside a school(or on an island, it Danganronpa 2's case) and are told that in order to be able to get out("graduate" as the game terms it), they gotta kill one of their fellow classmates and get away with it. In between chapters you get "free time" where you get to hang out with one of the other classmates. Stuff happens in apart from the freetime in between chapters too of course. Then somebody gets killed, investigation starts where you talk to people to get their statements and gather clues. Once you're done all that, the class trial starts where you take the clues you gathered and present it in a battle royale-style trial where everybody discusses/debates the case with each other, you present the clues/statements you've gathered to agree or contradict with the other characters and there's other gameplay stuff mixed in there too. One thing I really like is that the difficulty is seperated between its logic and its action. People often say that the characters are their favorite part of the series which is hard to disagree with.

Personally I'm not much interested in Danganronpa because it seems like it runs on stylized insanity, but that's just my taste.

Also I hate that teddy bear thing.

[dynastystar]

引用自 cinedine：

引用自 dynastystar：

Excluding exceptions like Danganronpa and Phoenix Wright which are more gameplay-focused.

Clannad and Steins;Gate are definitely up there in the top X lists. Fate-series is another good one.
If you want too look more into the Japanese Adventure genre (like Danganronpa - VNs with actual gameplay), the Nonary Games series is very solid.

That's coming from a guy who generally doesn't like the Anime style nor VNs that much.

I've never even heard of the Nonary Games, is that a studio or a series?

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

引用自 dynastystar：

引用自 cinedine：

Clannad and Steins;Gate are definitely up there in the top X lists. Fate-series is another good one.
If you want too look more into the Japanese Adventure genre (like Danganronpa - VNs with actual gameplay), the Nonary Games series is very solid.

That's coming from a guy who generally doesn't like the Anime style nor VNs that much.

I've never even heard of the Nonary Games, is that a studio or a series?

I think that's a series also known as Zero Escape: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero_Escape . The "Nonary" part comes from the name "Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors".

[dynastystar]

引用自 Shiki Ryougi：

secondly, there's WAY more detail in the vn, and of course far more routes (and they're all fantastic)... you rarely if ever hear okabe's inner monologue in the anime, but it explains so many things and his mannerisms, as well as the character breaking down mentally over time is so fantastically portrayed.

I'm not really interested in such things. I actually got into an arguement with a now-former friend a long time ago. She generally only watched LONG series(Naruto, Bleach, DBZ, etc.) and I only watch shorter anime for the most part. She considered shorter anime to "have nothing but fights without meaning" because they didn't scope out every small detail to umpteenth degree. I had said that I haven't seen the Dragonball Z anime(or Dragonball for that matter), that I was satisfied because I feel I have the jist of things from games like Dragonball Z: Bodukai 3 and Dragonball Z: Bodukai Tenkaichi and she made a big deal about how you "miss so much" from not watching the anime. That you never learn what Goku's grandpa's name is and stuff and I just told her that I don't care about that.Thats what you just said reminded me of.

[dynastystar]

引用自 Quint the PSY Duck：

I'm a big fan of fault milestone one and Dysfunctional Systems episode 1. I haven't read their other episodes yet.

Just looked up Dysfunctional Systems(I do have Fault mile stone episode 1 and episode 2: above side or w/e), for the one that I looked up, it said: "Dysfunctional Systems: Orientation is a kinetic novel and a prequel to Dysfunctional Systems: Learning to Manage Chaos. It uses text, sound, and illustrations to tell a story and follows Winter Harrison during her first week at mediator school.", which do episode do you suggest I play first? There was only two on Steam, and Prequels are difficult to judge with that. The one its a prequel to people clearly read before the prequel and it turned out okay, but it also makes sense to read it chronologically.

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

引用自 dynastystar：

引用自 Quint the PSY Duck：

I'm a big fan of fault milestone one and Dysfunctional Systems episode 1. I haven't read their other episodes yet.

Just looked up Dysfunctional Systems(I do have Fault mile stone episode 1 and episode 2: above side or w/e), for the one that I looked up, it said: "Dysfunctional Systems: Orientation is a kinetic novel and a prequel to Dysfunctional Systems: Learning to Manage Chaos. It uses text, sound, and illustrations to tell a story and follows Winter Harrison during her first week at mediator school.", which do episode do you suggest I play first? There was only two on Steam, and Prequels are difficult to judge with that. The one its a prequel to people clearly read before the prequel and it turned out okay, but it also makes sense to read it chronologically.

The devs made episode 1 first, then ran a kickstarter to make episodes 2 and 3, which succeeded, then they made episode 0, then the devteam fell apart, then very recently they got their act back together and released episode 0, and they say they're still working on episodes 2 and 3.

I've read the beginning of episode 0, but I'm not sure how it is overall.

I'd suggest starting with episode 1. Episode 0 might not be quite as engaging if you haven't seen the setting in action first.

[dynastystar]

引用自 Quint the PSY Duck：

Personally I'm not much interested in Danganronpa because it seems like it runs on stylized insanity, but that's just my taste.

Also I hate that teddy bear thing.

I disagree. Danganronpa very much is more than just "stylized insanity" but its difficult to really explain it without spoiling anything but I assure you, in ALOT of the cases, the people have a reason for doing what they did and isn't just because they're insane(of which only one character besides the antagonist I'd classify as "insane" which that person never did anything wrong in the end).

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

引用自 dynastystar：

引用自 Quint the PSY Duck：

Personally I'm not much interested in Danganronpa because it seems like it runs on stylized insanity, but that's just my taste.

Also I hate that teddy bear thing.

I disagree. Danganronpa very much is more than just "stylized insanity" but its difficult to really explain it without spoiling anything but I assure you, in ALOT of the cases, the people have a reason for doing what they did and isn't just because they're insane(of which only one character besides the antagonist I'd classify as "insane" which that person never did anything wrong in the end).

I fail to come up with a good way to describe it, but the reason I don't feel interested in Danganronpa seems to be very similar to the reason I'm not interested in the Persona series. I have never figured out a good way to describe this reason, or to describe what's common between the two, especially aesthetically, so if you have a better phrasing, please suggest.