Overall favorite Key character routes?

Key Discussion
#1

This poll was closed on September 26, 2018 due the options being outdated. We will make a new one if there’s interest.

  • Nayuki
  • Makoto
  • Mai
  • Shiori
  • Ayu
  • Minagi
  • Kano
  • Misuzu
  • Misae
  • Tomoyo
  • Yukine
  • Kotomi
  • Kyou
  • Kappei
  • Sunohara
  • Fuko
  • Koumura
  • Nagisa
  • Komari
  • Mio
  • Kurugaya
  • Kud
  • Haruka
  • Rin
  • Saya
  • Sasami
  • Kanata
  • Kotori
  • Chihaya
  • Lucia
  • Shizuru
  • Akane
  • Iwasawa
  • Yui
  • Matsushita

0 voters

So let’s have a megapoll! Tick your 5 favorite key character routes from any of their novels. Main plot routes are out as well as minor subroutes. Novels with no clear character route distinctions are out as well (sorry Tomoyo After). With all that in place, let’s see which routes are the most beloved in our community overall!

Please vote by route only. This is no waifu war, no best girl poll, the only thing that matters is what you thought of the character’s route.

In order to keep this topic spoiler-friendly towards anyone who may not have read some of these novels yet, please mark storyline spoilers for ANY Key route with [spoiler] tags, providing adequate context in parenthesis.

5 Likes
#2

Lucia>Komari>Shizuru>Akane>Kurugaya.

Lucia’s ans Komari’s route are top tier, Lucia’s route being my all-time favorite character route. Also, I think those routes are also my favorites from all the VNs I’ve read… Haven’t found any route that lived up to their quality yet…

#3

Pretty hard to choose actually. Now that I think about it, none of them really feel top-tier outside of the moment. Nevertheless I voted for Lucia, Mai, Tomoyo, Yuiko and Yukine. They all have flaws (oh boy do the Lucia, Mai and Tomoyo routes have flaws) but instead of talking about them as individuals (we have topics for that) I’m gonna try and link them all together. Figure out if there’s a pattern in my likes.

The biggest link I notice is that they all (bar Yuiko) relate in someway to my first “favorite” VN route, Mai’s. Lucia, Tomoyo and Yukine all share traits with Mai’s route, Lucia being the combat component, Tomoyo sharing a similar approach to drama, and Yukine being the day-time half of Mai’s route. Yuiko from Litbus however relates to the second VN route I liked enough to call a favorite, Misaki Kawana’s.

So they’re all either super chill maybe romance tinted routes, or they’re focused on a edgy fighter girl who wants to go-it-alone for some dumb reason and needs someone to smack some sense into them but hey the protag is dumb so that doesn’t happen until it’s past being painful to read through. Those routes have a bad second-half.

Really the core reason I like them is the romance… the entire reason I read VNs.
Lucia’s had an amazing date scene, one of the best I’ve seen. I normally hate the standard date-scene episode, but Lucia’s route timed it perfectly.
Mai’s slow-changing speaking habits showed the impact Yuuichi had on her, and Yuuichi’s change in actions showed the impact was mutual.
Tomoyo’s focused a lot on the romance between her and someone with a similar name and character, and a drama that kept them apart.
Yuiko’s route was just oodles of romance that showed strong when contrasted with the rest of the VN, and it hearkened back to an old favorite of mine.
Yukine’s route was just a sweet relaxing read with a charming couple and a strong atmosphere.

3 Likes
#4
  1. Haruka
  2. Saya
  3. Misuzu
  4. Shizuru
  5. Yui

Note - I spoiler tagged the songs, just in case

Haruka’s route is definitely one of the highlights in Little Busters!, having beautiful messages about family and friendship. The execution of her route was beautiful. And the songs that were used were very fitting for her route. Faraway is definitely, a beautiful song. It was such a powerful and strong route.

Saya’s route was definitely one of the better routes of of the added Ecstasy heroine routes. Her, not appearing in the original Little Busters!, made her route very hyped, and also made her route very powerful imo. Her route was very enjoyable with all the content in it, and her personality was a better tsundere-like personality. You can feel for her, when you find out about her backstory and the reasoning for her route. I personally believe Saya’s the best heroine and most logical true heroine. Then we have the Saya Song too, which is just lyrically and melodically beautiful and stunning.

Misuzu’s route is definitely the best one in AIR to me. The other routes seem like side-routes, just to add the mystery to Misuzu’s route. Misuzu’s route is the highlight of AIR. Misuzu’s personality makes it all better too. It was beautiful when we saw that relationships were tested in this route. All kinds of relationships. And the ending, it was just beautiful. I am happy with the ending of Misuzu’s route. Once you get to the ending and understand the message that Misuzu’s route gives, its beautiful, and I love it. And we also have Aozora playing at the ending, which is fantastically and lyrically beautiful.

Shizuru’s route was the highlight in Rewrite for me (excluding Moon & Terra). Her route had a beautiful message about family, and relationships that though could have been better expressed, was worth it. The ending of her route was definitely the highlight. When she looses her family, Touka, her friends, and last but not least, human Kotarou It was beautiful because of the message it gives. We also have when Koibumi plays in the ending. Beautiful ending song for Shizuru’s route. Her route is no masterpiece, but the message is powerful and beautiful.

Last but not least, we have Yui. If you think about it, Yuzuru’s kinda rude for trying to obliterate her first in the anime. I did love that he was willing on helping her achieve her impossible dreams. With Baseball being the last (of course, Jun Maeda’s baseball love). But he was able to help her so it was nice. Then at the ending of her route when Ichiban No Takaramono plays when Hinata is confessing to her with her with that beautiful and unchangeable quote that is one of the highlights in Angel Beats!, when he says he’d marry her no matter what disability she had and even if the chances were slim Was definitely a beautiful moment, with that final picture/CG in the Anime/VN.

#5

I immediately ticked off 3 (Shiori, Haruka, Tomoyo) and really had to think hard about the rest, and I think if you asked me this maybe a week from now my answer might be a little different. Anyways, I ended up going: Shiori, Haruka, Tomoyo, Kotomi, and Nagisa.

I think it says quite a bit about the general quality of character routes in Clannad that 3 of them made it up there. I might just sort of be biased towards Nagisa since her route functions as a precursor to After Story and I’m just really fond of the character in general. Kurugaya comes pretty close, as an honorable mention.

#6

Hmmm…

This is where I have to really stress the subject of the difference between having favorite characters, and favorite routes. Key has some characters that I absolutely adore; but their respective routes simply lack that something needed to make a great route.

Ideally, a route should either show really great character development, really great plot/world development, or simply be something so refreshing, beautiful, or memorable that you can’t help but fall in love with it. There are some exceptions to these; as there are always exceptions to anything. However, the core elements pretty well stay the same no matter what’s going on. You need to do more than just “Protagonist and Heroine do a thing with [Insert Adjective Here] results”. You need to create something with which the reader can really latch onto; and provide enough depth of flavor to really make the ideas and/or events presented in the route stick with the reader for years to come.

That said; I give my top 5, in no particular order, to Kurugaya, Yukine, Haruka, Rin, and Akane.

If I had an option to give a few more votes, Shiori, Tomoyo, and Nagisa would have definitely made it in as well.

#7

This… is a very difficult question for me. T.T It’s easy for me to say who my best girls are, but when it comes to the stories, it’s just a matter of whether I like it or not – it’s hard for me to say which routes I liked the most.

I’ll just vote for a later time, when I’m fully decided… and if I actually get around to read Clannad. (I’ve read Kappei route somewhere… and it was really good.)

However, I guess among those I have read, it’s Kotori route who stood out the most. (I used to be salty about it for an obvious reason, and Akane route used to be my favorite route in Rewrite, but I just grew to appreciate Kotori’s meaning. Plus the route has a lot of feels). In LB!, it’s Komari’s, Haruka’s, and Kurugaya’s who stood out for me. In Air, it was Minagi’s.

#8

I…I can’t pick o_o it’s like picking a favorite child I can only do by game. Oh crap I didn’t read pick 5 ,it let me pick more than 5…

Kanon: Ayu, Shiori, Makoto, Saiyuri, Mai

AIR: Misuzu, Minagi

Clannad: Nagisa, Fuuko, Kotomi, Tomoyo, Kappei, Misae, Yukine, Komura

Little Busters: Mio, Saya, Sasami, Kurugaya

Rewrite: Kotori, Akane, Chihaya

Angel Beats: Yui, Iwasawa (haven’t played game)

Worst routes are easier for me lol

1 Like
#9

At this point I think it is impossible for me to pick five of my favorite character routes. While there are definitely routes that stand out to me, they do not amount to 5 quite yet. Everything after those, however, I see as on an equal level, thus bringing my top routes list to about 8. So I don’t have a line to draw yet that would single out just 5 routes for now, so I’m going to have to abstain.

For now, I figure I can just mention the routes that are my favorites at the moment.

Kyou Route (CLANNAD): This right here is what I see as the best character route that Key has ever written. Why do i like it? Because the writing is able to make me feel the same emotions that Tomoya feels during the entire route. You can feel his guilt, his stress, and his desperation as the events in the route start to unfold, and I think that kind of connection is what gets the emotional impact of the story to such a high level, and I simply can’t give enough praise for that.

Shiori Route (Kanon): While this may be a primarily romance-centric route, this route allows the reader to give his own introspection about his lives and the lives of those around him. The way the story starts and progresses is something that I feel can happen to any of us, and that also makes it more relatable to the point of the message being something we can more easily apply into our lives.

Lucia Route (Rewrite): While many view the date scene as the highlight of this route (and what a very good date scene it was, if I may say), I see the very cathartic ending given adds to this route’s value. I’ve stated before how I disagree with many on how the ending was and how I thought it a very good pacing that allowed us to relate more with Kotarou… but perhaps that might be something I just see for myself :stuck_out_tongue:

So those are my top three routes. After that, I have a bunch of other routes I see highly (namely Kotomi, Sunohara, Minagi, Shizuru, and Haruka) but I don’t think I can see any two of those being better than the others. I do have hope for some of the future routes. Saya’s route, for example, is something I see that is rated quite highly and despite knowing nothing about it, I am quite hype for it and wouldn’t be surprised if it ends up on my top 5. Yui’s route in 1st Beat is something that I am also looking forward to! While I’ve only seen the anime, and I have no doubts that the VN can only improve the quality of this route, unlike other people (I’m looking at you, @Totoro_Futaki), I refuse to vote for it until I’ve actually gone and read the route in the VN. :yukismil:

4 Likes
#10

Ive heard from reviewers say that Yui’s route is pretty much the same thing in the VN from the anime, with only an extension to the SoL elements and heartwarming scenes for the first few parts.
With me, that quote alone highlighted her route for me. It also made me realize the events in the route wasn’t wasted at all.
Of course, that’s just them. But I’ll just judge solely on the anime ver. Until the release of the 1st beat English edition.

Edit - Feel free to move this on the Yui route topic. My device is being stubborn and not letting me copy this, so I can’t post this on the Yui route topic.

#11

Picked Akane’s, Kurugaya’s, Lucia’s, Haruka’s and Chihaya’s routes. Why? Hmm… Akane’s my favourite because I like how ‘dark’ it felt and I also love Akane and her route just became first for me. And Kotarou was so badass in that route. Kurugaya’s route is my second. Actually, it’s so close to Akane’s but I still prefer the other one. I mean, RikixKurugaya’s my favourite Little Busters! couple and the romance was really good in that route. The endless day thingy might’ve make no sense until Refrain is read but still, I liked it. As for Lucia’s route… I still don’t get why I like it. I mean, the plot of Lucia having poison is just… kinda lame. And I don’t even like Lucia to begin with (least favourite heroine of Rewrite) but I just get excited whenever I remember that route. Well, I did always have this love feeling for Drama queens… I guess that’s how it is for Lucia’s route. Haruka’s route is probably the most interesting one of Little Busters! but Haruka… was just annoying. I do like Drama queens but not extreme cases. But still, I liked this route. And so… Chihaya’s route! How can I explain this? It’s Chihaya’s route, how can I not love it? How can I not hate it? Argh! I can’t explain this feeling for Saku…I mean, Chihaya’s route… It’ like it’s my favourite route but also my least favourite route. It might’ve felt too shounen-ish but Sakuya! Midou might’ve been a lame vilain but Sakuya! Akane, my favourite heroine, might’ve lost it but Sakuya! There wasn’t enough Chihaya although it was her own route but Sakuya! Okay, I know, it was all about Sakuya but still… Chihaya’s route fans should get what I mean. And so, I guess I’m done. Air and Kanon weren’t really… good to me. Clannad’s routes all felt equally nice. And I still didn’t read Angel Beats 1st beat and the three EX routes. That’s probably why it was mostly Rewrite and Little Busters! for me.

#12

I look forward to tearing down Haruka from its pedastal in the Little Busters Bookclub :wink:

2 Likes
Little Busters! - Haruka Saigusa Route & Character Discussion
#13

I don’t care for the route, but I don’t think you’ll have much to throw at it that won’t be thrown back at you. Every problem that route had was an even bigger problem in every other Litbus route, and in a lot of Key routes.

2 Likes
#14

Well I personally think that’s a wrong way of interpreting the voting results; it doesn’t mean it’s the best route, it just means that it has the most people who really like the route. For all we know, everyone who voted it has it as their 5th favorite route, which I think means a lot less.

#15

Kud, Haruka, Tomoyo, Kyou, Lucia.
The reason is simple: Feels. These were the routes I found to be the most intense, ones that made me feel the most for the characters involved. They really have moved my heart the most. They also have a high amount of romance, which I dig.

Apart from that, Kud route had intimacy and powerlessness, Haruka route was full of despair, Tomoyo route - the pain of separation and the joy of reunion, Kyou route - the painful side of love and Lucia route had a lot of different things that all stood out while still maintaining a proper balance.

In the end, it wasn’t just those aspects that mattered the most to me. It was the impact they carried. I mostly approach things from an intellectual standpoint, but the things that sway my heart are still more effective than those that impress me intellectually.

1 Like
#16

Wow this is so interesting that people like routes that I found to be the weakest in certain games. Such a range!

If I HAD to pick 5 it would be

Kanon- Ayu: Ever since seeing 2002 anime I was enchanted by the whole concept and was floored by the reveal of her story.

AIR: Misuzu: The whole story, her charcter and the progression of it towards the end is so brilliant. so many emotions and the complexity fantastic.

Clannad: Nagisa: I connected with her character, her struggles and her life journey. But I like so many Clannad routes it’s hard to pick the best one.

Little Busters: Saya: Love the mystery of her route and the whole dynamics of it.

Angel Beats: Yui: Her back story is so tragic and then the little things that lead up to the final moment is perfect.