Rate top gamesThere are good things to say about this game,
- You get to hang out with a well defined set of characters, and really get to know them inside-out. That's always something I'm looking for in a VN.
- The game treats you as a tourist, giving vivid descriptions of places, symbols, traditions, folklore, and even the food of Matsue.
But all of that is bogged down by several serious issues at the core of the crux of the game: writing.
- Some scenarios, particularly towards the final chapters, take weird and awkward turns. They either brush off extremely serious topics, or they fail to create suspension of disbelief when presenting a scenario that's completely out there. At times you could be led to believe you're watching a satire, but for the most part that's not the case.
- The meat of the game is the supporting cast. Each member of the cast is dedicated a chapter of the game, so you get to know them pretty well. Only problem is, they're all extremely boring. You even get to know their inner struggles and conflicts, and they're all just as boring. Maybe the problem is not exactly that they're all shallow characters, but rather...
- It's the fact that you're a complete fucking stranger. The supporting cast is a rowdy band of high school friends that went their own way after graduation. Then there's you, a fucking 'tourist' that's never really welcome, awkwardly playing the third-wheel to a bunch of strangers.
It sounds like a lot dragging down the game, and it is, but I can't bring myself to hate it. Despite the drawbacks, it's still the exact game I need to sit back and relax now and then.