This. Sekai Project usually puts almost all their stuff on sale during any Steam sales. G-Senjou is usually around 30% off I think. I’m not sure if the voice patch goes on sale but at least the base game should.
Thanks for all the responses, deffo seems like a good idea to wait for the next Steam Sale and then make a choice! I am keen to play it anyway 
Also on my wish list from the VNs above is the Zero Escape trilogy and Symphonic Rain ( June 15th release on Steam) and of course the long awaited LB! so I do want to save some cash if I can to get all of these…
While I haven’t played the game yet and can’t vouch for anyone who has, I originally bought this game without voices (and please keep in mind that they also sell a voice patch if you wish to change your mind later on but I don’t know if that goes on sale at the same percentage off as the game FYI) and would do so again if the opportunity presented itself.
I had asked Sekai Project during one of their QA sessions when they still had their forum if they would consider or were going to be releasing other games without voices as an option. It’s likely that they didn’t want to commit to an answer there or that I wasn’t clear enough, but their response was essentially “We like to release our games with voices”. The feedback from Senjou No Maou may have been negative enough at the time, but looking back I should have asked again or for more clarification.
I don’t understand why people want less options for everyone, but it is apparently what happened.
I think people see it as “you’re paying double for the voices” instead of “you can get it half off without voices” so it looks like a cash grab instead of helping people out who don’t have as much money.
1 Like
If some people did, then that’s sad and really frustrating because it doesn’t take much exploration or reasonable discussion to find out that it wasn’t the case.
It should make sense that more people being able to read it is better whether it’s about money or not. It would be nice if honest customers stopped losing though.
@Doublethree1 - That’s a fair point, I think that having voices really does add a lot to the enjoyment regardless of whether you understand the language - even more so in the rare instances where the protagonist is also voiced. Personally though I dislike English dubbing (no matter how good) so I wouldn’t pay more just for that as long as there are subtitles. The option for voiced/unvoiced is good for the buyers but I could also understand it the the creators regarded the voicing as essential for artistic reasons and only offer the full price VN even if it means losing possible sales.
I can think of at least one example where a character pronounces something different than how you would expect the text to read, which ends up being an important clue to the story. I guess that kind of thing is completely lost in translation, but voicing definitely adds another dimension to the medium in ways you sometimes wouldn’t expect.
1 Like
Dlc in general is seen almost always negatively. I think that alone is a big part of it, they see dlc with something they think they should get anyways and it makes them mad. It is caused by some games giving free content updates, so they compare it to that for the most part. Also I don’t think it even helps them much, because if the game doesn’t sell worth crap they can just put it on sale and people will buy it.
I just finished (or mostly finished) Edelweiss, and while the two routes I did (Mei, Haruka) were pretty nice and surprisingly good respectively, most of the common route was not enjoyable and it makes it harder to suggest for most people that aren’t into fanservice comedy and a cast of guys that think the way that they do. This truly is a read that gets better as it goes on and some parts of it are really cringeworthy (I thought about dropping it less than an hour into it - I was quite amazed at how much I didn’t like it at the time), but I don’t see myself remembering much of its score or comedy further down the line and I get the sense that I should.
I would still really like to read more work from Overdrive (and I haven’t decided if I want to do Natsume’s route or not) and all, especially Bokuten, but I would probably not want to read another VN or watch another anime like that for a long time.
I’m currently debating on what visual novel I want to start next while slowing working on getting the platinum for STEINS;GATE 比翼恋理のだーりん. I’m torn between starting Chaos;Head, starting STEINS;GATE 線形拘束のフェノグラム or trying out the demo for The House in Fata Morgana.
Maybe I’ll wait a bit longer before I decide because I know I’ll want to replay Little Busters as soon as it is released 
.
I’d give Chaos;Head a go before Steins;Gate. It’s a bit shorter and is far easier to get the A/AA endings (B end involves a second playthrough) than Steins;Gate, which has a large number of ends.
Both are fantastic reads, although I enjoyed S;G more.
I probably should have put the translated names beside the two Steins;Gate games I listed there, oops! I’ve already played and completed the original Steins;Gate - the one I mentioned wanting to start is Linear Bounded Phenogram and the one I am working on platinum for is Darling of Loving Vows.
Still I appreciate the input
Chaos;Head hands down. Fata Morgana is pretty nice too, but you probably won’t get much from a demo.
I played Fata Morgana a few weeks ago, I’m probably in a distinct minority who don’t fully appreciate it. The story, presentation and Gothic atmosphere are excellently realised but I found it hard to actually enjoy it, especially the second tale which I couldn’t wait just to get through as fast as possible. The much lauded music didn’t do much for me either.
The demo from mangagamer is supposed to be very long though and allegedly takes several hours to complete (whole VN took me over 50 hours). The demo should give a good feel of the VN and despite my personal reservations I would recommend trying the full version because I think very few VNs AFIAK try to offer a similar story-telling experience, and the resolution of the mystery is satisfying which you won’t get from the demo.
Wow there is a sekai project bundle in humble bundle right now https://www.humblebundle.com/sekai-project-bundle
Well there goes my vn backlog lol…
6 Likes
Has anyone here been able to play (The Japanese language version) Chaos;Child yet? I see the English language versions are coming out at the end of the year…
EDITED to add: ‘Symphonic Rain’ now available through Steam.
I have just read through the Steam release of Narcissu ( thanks to @Hixel267 recommendation at https://forum.kazamatsuri.org/t/kazamatsuris-10-favourite-non-key-visual-novels/2835/8). I read 2nd Side first which was a good recommendation to follow. Terminal illness is a brave subject to tackle and the VN approaches it in a very sensitive way, very sad stories but without being at all mawkish or trying for tearjerkers, just opening the stories and characters to the reader to respond with their own thoughts and emotions. Joins a select list of games/VNs that leave a lasting resonance on completion. A great example to show that VNs do not inevitably end up bowing to fanservice.
I thought I’d prefer 2nd side after I was little way into the first story but they have come out equally. The brevity and lack of choices is a benefit as every scene really means something and the reader is not distracted by trying to make the “right” decision; and the lovely music really fits the mood without getting schmaltzy.
1 Like
Narcissu is a lovely series and I’m glad you’re getting into it I definitely recommend checking out the entire anthology as each of the subsequent stories have their own issues that they tackle. I absolutely loved Sumire as the culmination of the entire series so that gives big plus points to my recommendation!
1 Like
The only visual novels I would give a perfect score are Rewrite, Steins; Gate, and Clannad. But I want to put School Days in the honorable mentions because… the ending
Yeah, it had a nice and peaceful ending… definitely a good one.
…
w-wait we’re talking about the boat right?
1 Like
