Onna Bugeisha

Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi Tsuzuri - Visual Novel

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Mon, 15 Apr 2024 15:32:00 +0000

Since I'm already here, I'm trying my best to be motivated to post stuff in this blog so I might as well have an expounded version of what I posted on Instagram. I will say ahead of time that things said/posted on here may or may not be necessarily be true to everyone as these will just be based on my experience on the game and how I felt about them. I might touch some story spoilers so just a fair warning to those who read.

Synopsis:

Also known as Akaya Akashiya Ayakashino (AkaAka). Yue is a young boy, born in a mountain shrine in the town of Utsuwa. One day, he attends the winter festival together with his childhood friend, a black fox named Kurogitsune. The lanterns burn bright red, and the people are buzzing. As Yue sees the outside world for the first time in his life, he meets two mysterious boys. Upon returning to the mountain, the owner of the shrine, Mikoto, told him. Prepare the "meal". - Steam

My Take:

I was excited when this game was announced as I have a soft spot for stories that touch on the supernatural, ayakashi, and just dark stories in general. When I was younger, I tend to gravitate to that kind of genre so this was just my kind of thing. I found this game very decent, and I ended up being invested in the story more than I expected myself to be by the time I finished. I did find the first few two hours or so to be very slice-of-lifey and kind of slow burn so there were times that I zoned out and had to read back the logs to see if I missed anything. It wasn't really an issue as I've played some slow-burn VNs before like The House in Fata Morgana, which did end up as one of, if not my favorite.
To be honest, and as previously stated in recent blog posts, I had a really tough time playing through this as there wasn’t any complete guides out, just the Japanese one that I stumbled upon on Reddit. There was an EN one and another Vietnamese guide but I found their endings list weren’t complete so I had to make do with Google Translate/DeepL. There were also times when the translated text was not making sense so I had to cross-reference it with the Viet/English guides, and so I did manage to get all of the endings and the CGs, just not the Index section. I spent an extra 4hrs+ on top of my 21hrs+ chasing after dialogues just for it, and eventually just found the whole process really tedious; honestly I'd rather spend that extra time and effort whittling down my backlogs.

Things did start to get interesting as Sagano's (third) route and Kurogitsune's (fourth) started to unravel things though, and I can only be glad I stuck with the game. The game has been giving you clues but it's when you really realize that you've been played. Sagano is probably my favorite character out of all of them as I find his personality really interesting (totally not because Kohsuke Toriumi voiced him *cough*). Kurogitsune is probably my second fave, which came as a surprise since he was kind of annoying at first. Yue as the central character was kind of boring for me, probably because he's sleepy most of the time and he came off as apathetic, which is a real shame since his character and circumstance is tragic.

And since I'm already here, I might as well acknowledge the voice actors. I didn't realize that this game was star-studded, I'm familiar with most of the cast particular the ones voiced by men since they also frequent otome titles. I do feel like Junichi Suwabe's voice acting talents is wasted on Tomori's character though rofl, he should've given more lines IMO.

Going back, Togo's and Akiyoshi's routes were a little weak compared to the last two IMO, and it's a shame since Togo and his family history came off as a very important character at the start, but it wasn't explored and there wasn't any explanation as to why their family was important to ayakashi. The game could have also explored Akiyoshi's family history, what led to the sealing of Utsuwa, why Sagano inhabited his body, etc. There are things that the game left off, and I am just left thinking about them and how they could have made the game longer to expound on those things. It should come as no surprise that my favorite endings belong to Kurogitsune's first and Sagano's second. I feel like Kurogitsune's touched me a little bit more than Sagano's did, and it was sad to know that he still lingered around carrying Yue's mask in the Susuki Plains. As for Sagano's, I did really like his best ending visiting the lonely Yue in the temple. It's a little sad, but I believe it's the best ending overall.

My Switch Lite with the physical copy and the acrylic standee from the Stellaworth set

In terms of localization, it’s okay-ish. I found on VNDB that they used a fan translator’s work which I have no problems with. It’s fine since you still get the gist of things, but it needs a bit more polishing IMO. The translator followed the Japanese grammar so the placements of English words in the sentence can be weird. They are understandable of course, but it's not usually how it is phrased in a day-to-day conversation. There are also some untranslated parts, eight or so lines somewhere at the start and then a chunk of the dialogue at one of Kurogitsune’s endings when the credits started rolling in. I got by with the first bit, but I really missed what was being said at the latter since it was only audio and no text to help me ;_;

UPDATE: They rolled out a patch last April 18 to fix bugs. I checked the ones mentioned above and while the eight or so lines were corrected, the dialogue at Kurogitsune's ending was not so it still needs a bit of guess work and context clues to make out what the characters are saying 😅😭

Also I would have to clarify that this is not BL as some people claim as there is no romance - just strong friendships with the characters. Fujoshi-bait, sure; but as far as subtext goes, there is hardly any shounen-ai in there. I will recommend this game if you’re looking for something dark that doesn’t go deep that much and/or something short enough to pass the time, but it is a bit pricey for a decade old game. Probably get it on a sale, or when they roll out a patch to fix things. I still had a great time with the story though, so 7/10 😊

Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi Tsuzuri | Akaya Akashiya Ayakashino - Goldfish Walkthrough + CG Clean-Up

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 07:40:00 +0000

As stated in my very recent come back post, there hasn't been any guides out for this game - at least not a proper/complete one in English. I have found one in Vietnamese (PC), one in English (PC), and the last one in Japanese (PSP) courtesy of a post on Reddit. The Japanese guide is probably the most complete out of the three mostly because the Switch (and Steam) versions and the platform it was ported from are the same in terms of content, But just using DeepL/Google Translate, I found that there were times that the translated text were kind of hard to decipher so I had to cross-reference it with the previous two I found so I also have to give them credit.

Some things to note before starting:

The guides posted on this blog will get you 100% on Endings and CGs, but not the list of Index found in the Collection Box. The Japanese guide has them, but the process was just too tedious for me so I gave up in getting all of them; the CGs and endings were enough. To fill up the Index, you need to explore each and every stall during the festival on Day Zero, as well as exhausting/visiting every place in the town map to see every dialogue by saving and a lot of re-loading.
Have a separate save file before the first option of Day Zero. That way, you can simply reload that save if you need to go back at the start without going through the Prologue.
If you do go back and replay routes, some characters will have additional dialogues though not that extensive.
Please do credit me when you re-post this guide somewhere else (on Steam or another site/blog). It was still a lot of work matching the texts/guide up to the updated Switch/Steam version. I would greatly appreciate it!
These first two paragraphs will be copy-pasted on all of the AkaAka guides with some variations.

Guide Start:

Day Zero
Lottery
Main Street
Yakisoba
Candy Apples
Stop it
I would like to

Day 1
Shrine Office
That's not true.
Hallway
Own Room
Utsuwa Station
Back Alleyway
Suspicious store
Let’s try waiting a little
Ignore
I’m interested in those two.

Day 2
Don’t clean up
Take a walk to wake up
Garden
Shrine Office
Utsuwa Station
Nah, I’m good
Mansion
Utsuwa High School
To find Tsubaki
Eat

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Wortship[sic] Hall
I don't want to know
Garden
About the meal person
Utsuwa High School
Railroad Crossing
Akiyoshi’s House
Try to talk
Park
Go with him back home

Ending 13… Goldfish’s Meal – Keeping the Small, Innocent Lie

==========================================

CG Clean-Up

Go to Title Page -> Fun Stuff -> Goldfish Sleep
Choose choices and places as you please, they won’t matter. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to save here. When you get to the specific prompts, choose:

- Go with cannibalism | Run to the octopus (Both choices have CG variants. Do another play through of Goldfish Sleep to get both)
- Let’s think about it a little more (CG)

---

Play Momiji’s Room to get the last background CG. (This is just character descriptions so you don’t need to read everything if you don’t want to)

Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi Tsuzuri | Akaya Akashiya Ayakashino - Kurogitsune Walkthrough

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 07:27:00 +0000

Some things to note before starting:

This route will unlock after clearing Tsubaki's, Akiyoshi's, and Sagano's routes
The guides posted on this blog will get you 100% on Endings and CGs, but not the list of Index found in the Collection Box. The Japanese guide has them, but the process was just too tedious for me so I gave up in getting all of them; the CGs and endings were enough. To fill up the Index, you need to explore each and every stall during the festival on Day Zero, as well as exhausting/visiting every place in the town map to see every dialogue by saving and a lot of re-loading.
Have a separate save file before the first option of Day Zero. That way, you can simply reload that save if you need to go back at the start without going through the Prologue. I did start a new playthrough with the prologue after getting Kurogitsune's first ending though.
Some of the text in light red I found in the Japanese guide did not pop up during my play through, but they might pop up in others so I left them in the guide. Interestingly, some of them pop up if you replay routes.
~~I'm not sure what "Land Day" means, but I can't seem to place a proper translation for it.~~
Edit: An anonymous commenter on this post has pointed out that the Land Day probably means 6th day as the original guide uses the same Japanese character for the word land. My thanks to whoever you are <3
If you do go back and replay routes, some characters will have additional dialogues though not that extensive. It's interesting though.
Please do credit me when you re-post this guide somewhere else (on Steam or another site/blog). It was still a lot of work matching the texts/guide up to the updated Switch/Steam version. I would greatly appreciate it!
These first two paragraphs will be copy-pasted on all of the AkaAka guides with some variations.
Also, yes. Kurogitsune's endings are, unfortunately, untranslated when the credits roll ;_;

Guide Start:

Day Zero
Food Stands
Takoyaki
Yo-Yo Fishing
Mysterious Stand
Food Stands 2
Fox
Masks
Candy Apples
Stop it
I don’t know

Day 1
Shrine Office
That’s not true.
Hallway
Own Room
Telephone Pole Area
Back Alleyway
Suspicious store
Let’s try waiting a little
Ignore
Maybe there are.

Day 2
Don’t clean up
Take a walk to wake up
Hallway
Well, be careful anyway
Garden
Utsuwa Station
Nah, I’m good.
Stone Steps Area
Utsuwa High School
To find Tsubaki
Hang out with Kurogitsune

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Living Room
Hang out with Kurogitsune
Own Room
About the meal person
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Railroad Crossing
Sennen Mart
Try to talk
Park
Go ahead to the park

Ending 14… Kurogitsune’s Meal – The Chosen Future is Lovely

============================================

After clearing Ending 14, go to Title Page -> Fun Stuff and clear Kurogitsune’s Room. After clearing, start a new playthrough.

Day Zero
Food Stands
Takoyaki
Yo-Yo Fishing
Mysterious Stand
Food Stands 2
Fox
Masks
Candy Apples
Stop it
I don’t know

Day 1
Shrine Office
That’s not true.
Hallway
Own Room
Telephone Pole Area
Back Alleyway
Suspicious store
Let’s try waiting a little
Ignore
Maybe there are.

Day 2
Don’t clean up
Take a walk to wake up
Hallway
Well, be careful anyway
Garden
Utsuwa Station
Nah, I’m good.
Stone Steps Area
Utsuwa High School
To find Tsubaki
Hang out with Kurogitsune

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Living Room
Hang out with Kurogitsune
Own Room
About the meal person
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Railroad Crossing
Sennen Mart
Try to talk
Park
Go ahead to the park

Day 4
Small Shrine
Shopping Street
Utsuwa Shrine
Mansion
Togo's house

Day 5
*Save 1*
I'm conflicted
I’m not going back

Day 6
Ughh…uuu (Under the Overpass)
Uhh… ahh… (Park)

Ending 16… Kurogitsune’s Memories – All I Wish For is Your Smile, Even Now

==========================================

*Load Save 1*
I won’t make him a meal
*Save 2*
I’m not going back

Day 6
Ahhh… (Susuki Plains)
Ah…Ahh (Telephone Pole Area)

Ending 17… Kurogitsune’s Memories – Morning Comes, Not Forgetting Your Warmth

===========================================

*Load Save 2*
I’m going back

Ending 11… Ranchu’s Meal – Peace Someday, to You Who Long For It

Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi Tsuzuri | Akaya Akashiya Ayakashino - Sagano Walkthrough

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 07:18:00 +0000

Some things to note before starting:

This route will unlock after clearing Tsubaki's and Akiyoshi's routes
The guides posted on this blog will get you 100% on Endings and CGs, but not the list of Index found in the Collection Box. The Japanese guide has them, but the process was just too tedious for me so I gave up in getting all of them; the CGs and endings were enough. To fill up the Index, you need to explore each and every stall during the festival on Day Zero, as well as exhausting/visiting every place in the town map to see every dialogue by saving and a lot of re-loading.
Have a separate save file before the first option of Day Zero. That way, you can simply reload that save if you need to go back at the start without going through the Prologue.
Some of the text in light red I found in the Japanese guide did not pop up during my play through, but they might pop up in others so I left them in the guide. Interestingly, some of them pop up if you replay routes.
~~I'm not sure what "Land Day" means, but I can't seem to place a proper translation for it.~~
Edit: An anonymous commenter below has pointed out that the Land Day probably means 6th day as the original guide uses the same Japanese character for the word land. My thanks to whoever you are <3
If you do go back and replay routes, some characters will have additional dialogues though not that extensive. It's interesting though.
Please do credit me when you re-post this guide somewhere else (on Steam or another site/blog). It was still a lot of work matching the texts/guide up to the updated Switch/Steam version. I would greatly appreciate it!
These first two paragraphs will be copy-pasted on all of the AkaAka guides with some variations.

Guide Start:

Day Zero
Food Stands
Cotton Candy
Paper Lanterns
Food Stands 2
Racoon Dog
Wind Chime
Rest Area
Candy Apple
Watch
I don't know

Day 1
Main Shrine
Juyosho (Japanese Amulet Office)
What a bother
Own Room
Back Alleyway
Stone Steps Area
Suspicious store
Let’s try waiting a little
Ignore
Maybe there are.

Day 2
Clean up together
Go with her to the main shrine
Main Shrine
Butt in
You’re both cute.
Juyosho (Japanese Amulet Office)
Nah, too much trouble.
Sennen Mart
Utsuwa Station
Yeah
Utsuwa High School
To play
Shopping Street
Along the River
I want to punch him.
Eat

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Main Shrine
About the meal person
Juyosho (Japanese Amulet Office)
About meals
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Telephone Pole Area
Susuki Plains
Park
Go ahead to the park

Day 4
I wanna go outside
Under the Overpass
Telephone Pole Area
Utsuwa Shrine
For Myself

Day 5
Definitely want something different

Day 6
Uhh… ahh… (Park)
Ahhh… (Sagano Kindergarten)
Ah…Ahh (Telephone Pole Area)
Ughh…uuu (Back Alleyway)
*Save 1*
Intervene
Ahhh… (Susuki Plains)

Ending 01… Sagano’s Memories – Spring Footsteps, Softly

=======================================

Day Zero
Food Stands
Cotton Candy
Goldfish Scooping
Mysterious Stand
Candy Apples
Watch
I don't know

Day 1
Main Shrine
Hallway
Own Room
Telephone Pole Area
Back Alleyway
Suspicious store
Let’s try waiting a little
Ignore
Maybe there are.

Day 2
Clean up together
Go with her to the main shrine
Shrine Office
Garden
Stone Steps Area
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
To find Tsubaki
Eat

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Shrine Office
About the meal person
Garden
About meals
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Stone Steps Area
Susuki Plains
Park
Go ahead to the park

Day 4
I wanna go outside
Under the Overpass
Telephone Pole Area
Utsuwa Shrine
For Shin

Day 5
*Save 2*
Definitely want something different

Day 6
Ahhh… (Sagano Kindergarten)
Uhh… ahh… (Park)
Ughh…uuu (Back Alleyway)
Just watch
Ahhh… (Susuki Plains)

Ending 04… Sagano’s Memories – Never-Healing Wounds, Like a Dream

======================================

LOAD SAVE 1
Just watch

Ending 07… Mikoto’s Memories – If I May, One Wish

=====================================

LOAD SAVE 2
I’m good with fried tofu

Day 6
Ah…Ahh (Telephone Pole Area)
Ahhh… (Sagano Kindergarten)
Ughh…uuu (Back Alleyway)
Intervene
Ahh…ahh… (Utsuwa Shrine)

Ending 09… Mikoto’s Meal – Let the Fruits of Memory Ripen

=====================================

(Optional: I followed this but it didn't unlock any CGs. It did give me new dialogue options though, so this is probably for the Index section)

Day Zero
Goldfish Scooping
Yo-Yo Fishing
Candy Apples
Stop it
I don't know

Day 1
Shrine Office
Yeah…
Hallway
Own Room
Back Alleyway
Stone Steps Area
Suspicious store
Let’s try waiting a little
Ignore
Maybe there are.

Day 2
Clean up together
Go with her to the main shrine
Garden
Hallway
How’d you stop them?
Sennen Mart
Utsuwa High School
To find Tsubaki
Hang with Kurogitsune

Day 3
Time for a nap
Hang with Kurogitsune
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Telephone Pole Area
Susuki Plains
Run Away
Park
Go with him back home

Day 4
I wanna go outside
Sagano Kindergarten
Telephone Pole Area
Utsuwa Shrine
For Myself

Day 5
I’m good with fried tofu

Day 6
Uhh… ahh… (Park)
Ughh…uuu (Back Alleyway)
Just watch
[Even the way back is gone]
[Far away in front of it]
Ahhh… (Susuki Plains)

Ending 04… Sagano’s Memories – Never-Healing Wounds, Like a Dream

Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi Tsuzuri | Akaya Akashiya Ayakashino - Tochika Akiyoshi Walkthrough

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 07:07:00 +0000

Some things to note before starting:

The guides posted on this blog will get you 100% on Endings and CGs, but not the list of Index found in the Collection Box. The Japanese guide has them, but the process was just too tedious for me so I gave up in getting all of them; the CGs and endings were enough. To fill up the Index, you need to explore each and every stall during the festival on Day Zero, as well as exhausting/visiting every place in the town map to see every dialogue by saving and a lot of re-loading.
Have a separate save file before the first option of Day Zero. That way, you can simply reload that save if you need to go back at the start without going through the Prologue.
If you do go back and replay routes, some characters will have additional dialogues though not that extensive. It's interesting though.
Please do credit me when you re-post this guide somewhere else (on Steam or another site/blog). It was still a lot of work matching the texts/guide up to the updated Switch/Steam version. I would greatly appreciate it!
These first two paragraphs will be copy-pasted on all of the AkaAka guides with some variations.

Guide Start:

Day Zero
Lottery
Goldfish Scooping
Shooting Game
Masks
Festival Entrance
Candy Apples
Watch
I would like to

Day 1
Shrine Office
That’s not true.
Hallway
Own Room
Back Alleyway
Utsuwa Station
Suspicious store
Who should I ask…
Okay
I’m interested in those two.

Day 2
Don’t clean up
Take a walk to wake up
Shrine Office
Main Shrine
Butt in
But I’m not really uneasy.
Telephone Pole Area
Stone Steps Area
Utsuwa High School
To play
Shopping Street
Along the River
I want to break his glasses
Eat

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Shrine Office
About meals
Living Room
Watch TV
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Akiyoshi’s House
Stone Steps Area
Park
Go ahead to the park

Day 4
Sennen Mart
Watch a little
Along the River
Utsuwa Shrine
Go

Day 5
*Save 1*
Trust Sagano
Look for Akiyoshi
*Save 2*
Forgive Sato

Ending 02… Akiyoshi’s Memories – Under the Clear Afternoon Sky

===========================================

*Load Save 1*
Trust Hina
Wait with Tsubaki
*Save 3*
Ahhh… (Utsuwa High School)
Uuu…? (Togo’s House)
Uhh… ahh… (Akiyoshi’s House)

Ending 05… Akiyoshi’s Memories – City Distorted by Peace and the Color of Morning Glow

===========================================

*Load Save 2*
Do not forgive Sato

Ending 08… Sato’s Meal – That Red Flower Also Blooms Today

===========================================

*Load Save 3*
Ahh…. (Utsuwa Station)
Ah… (Sennen Mart)

Ending 15… Kage’s Memories – Now, As If Woken from a Dream

Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi Tsuzuri | Akaya Akashiya Ayakashino - Tsubaki Togo Walkthrough

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 06:54:00 +0000

Some things to note before starting:

The guides posted on this blog will get you 100% on Endings and CGs, but not the list of Index found in the Collection Box. The Japanese guide has them, but the process was just too tedious for me so I gave up in getting all of them; the CGs and endings were enough. To fill up the Index, you need to explore each and every stall during the festival on Day Zero, as well as exhausting/visiting every place in the town map to see every dialogue by saving and a lot of re-loading.
Have a separate save file before the first option of Day Zero. That way, you can simply reload that save if you need to go back at the start without going through the Prologue.
If you do go back and replay routes, some characters will have additional dialogues though not that extensive.
Please do credit me when you re-post this guide somewhere else (on Steam or another site/blog). It was still a lot of work matching the texts/guide up to the updated Switch/Steam version. I would greatly appreciate it!
These first two paragraphs will be copy-pasted on all of the AkaAka guides with some variations.

Guide Start:

Day Zero
Yo-yo Fishing
Snow Cone
Mysterious Stand
Masks
Candy Apples
Watch
I would like to (*after clearing Togo or Akiyoshi)

Day 1
Juyosho (Japanese Amulet Office)
It's fine every now and then
Hallway
Own Room
Back Alleyway
Shopping Street
Suspicious Store
Let’s try waiting a little
Talk
I’m interested in those two

Day 2
Don’t clean up
Take a walk to wake up
Juyosho (Japanese Amulet Office)
I’ll indulge you
Hallway
How’d you stop them?
Utsuwa High School
Small Shrine
*Save 1*
Along the river
Take a bath

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Juyosho (Japanese Amulet Office)
About the meal person
Hallway
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Railroad Crossing
Togo's House
Park
Go ahead to the park

Day 4
Take a nap here
Shopping Street
Along the River

Day 5
Ah…Ahh (Telephone Pole Area)
Ahhh… (Utsuwa High School)
No way

Ending 03… Togo’s Memories – Goodnight, Quiet for Now

============================================

*Load Save 1*
Park
Tsubaki, what are you always listening to?
Take a bath

Day 3
Go visit everyone
Juyosho (Japanese Amulet Office)
About meals
Hallway
Small shrine
Utsuwa High School
Railroad Crossing
Togo's house
Park
Go with him back home

Day 4
Go to the school
Togo's House
Sagano Kindergarten

Day 5
*Save 2*
Ah…Ahh (Telephone Pole Area)
Ahhh… (Utsuwa High School)
*Save 3*
No way
*Save 4*
If nothing else, I want to help Tsubaki

Ending 06… Togo’s Memories – Praying as if Chewing Sand

=============================================

*Load Save 3*
Sure

Ending 10… Yaichi’s Memories – Fox, Fox, Only one Fate

===========================================

*Load Save 4*
I want to help everyone in the shrine

Ending 12… Mr. Abe’s Meal – As Much if You Call it Guilt

=============================================

*Load Save 2*
Ughh…uuu (Small Shrine)
Uuu…? (Stone Steps Area)

Bad end

Ending a 5-year Hiatus

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Wed, 10 Apr 2024 05:57:00 +0000

My CG Completionist rosette customized by Yume Holic

Hi! It's been a really long time and if you're surprised I'm doing a revival for this blog, then you're not alone as I'm also surprised at myself for deciding to do this rofl. It's been five long years (pre-COVID time!) since I last posted, and honestly I'm not that inclined to post my thoughts as much as I did many years ago.

I've have been posting a lot on Instagram in case anyone is wondering. And though I'm no professional when it comes to photos, my content is mostly about the ~~otome~~ games I've played and I've pretty much included my thoughts on the game on there (with walls of text!). I'll try to do the same here if I do have time, but I will probably not be posting every game I play. I expect that I will mostly be copy-pasting with edits/addenda since the character limit is pretty much limited there. BUT (a very big but) I do have to put a disclaimer that I will not be delving on every aspect of the game and will just be focusing on my thoughts and how I feel towards them unlike to what I've done before.

And so I recently bought and finished playing Akaya Akashiya Ayakashino, and while playing I wasn't able to find any proper guides out. Even people on Steam were looking for one; I'm not even sure I can post on there since you need to buy the game on the platform and I played on the Switch. Over the years, there had been arguments on the legitimacy of "playing on another platform" and I completely understand their sentiments. With that, I hope some of the Steam players will get a guide soon, or at that this'll pop up in one of their searches.

So yeah, it is with that reason that I have suddenly remembered (rofl) my blog after all this years. I do remember it from time to time, but have not felt any desire to post anything until now. If in any case I have not posted again for months after many otome games have released, I may have probably lost that desire again and will probably be still posting in Instagram.

Guides for AkaAka will be posted right after this :)

Cinderella Phenomenon - Otome/Visual Novel

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Sat, 16 Feb 2019 20:37:00 +0000

I got to play this game around last month while I was grinding to tier on UtaPri Shining Live. Lately, grinding on SL can range from taxing to tedious, or both. To lessen the feel of that burden, I play it in front of my PC and either play a visual novel or read manga online at the same time.

Supposedly, I was to review Amnesia -Memories- because that was the otome game that I played after Nicole, to which was the last game that I did a review in this blog. When I finally found the motivation to write a blog post, I found myself wanting to make a write up on Cinderella Phenomenon. I do have to warn you that I still feel a bit lazy, so I’m just putting it out there that the game synopsis and character descriptions are copy-pasted from this site. The rest will be my own opinions, so yeah.

I am also going to letting you know that I will talk about some stuff that may or may not be spoilers for the reader, so (mild) Spoilers Ahead!

Synopsis:

Four years after the end of the Great War and the loss of her mother, Crown Princess Lucette of Angielle is still struggling to come to terms with her new life and step-family. Cold-hearted and bitter, Lucette fails to recognize the suffering of those around her as she is consumed by grief and resentment. But when Lucette’s life is once again turned upside down by the Fairytale Curse, she is thrown into a battle to regain her crown in a fractured kingdom where nothing is as it seems…

My Take:

Let me clarify that the order of characters and their respective routes are accorded to the guide that I followed. Before, I would go after guys’ routes based on how I like them at face value. Recently, I search around the internet for route order recommendations as there was one time I nearly got spoiled with in-game events. Ever since then, I follow guide recommendations – usually the ones I find are spoiler-free which still allows you to enjoy unfolding of events.

In this game, the first character I would like to introduce would be Karma, and I honestly thought that his name was kind of off for a guy’s name, but found that it's aptly justified when you play his route. Out of all the characters, he is the most interesting for me and thus he is my favorite out of all the available guys to go after. One of his quirky habits is how he dresses up as a transvestite which may seem off-putting, but trust me that there is a reason for that one.

His curse can be somewhat confusing to guess as he is rather reluctant to say what it is, but how it unfolded was rather enjoyable. His narcissism can be pretty hilarious and I greatly enjoyed how he flaunts his beauty around. It’s ironically funny how he holds himself as the prettiest when he himself dislikes being treated like a woman (and Rumpel’s initial advances for that matter).

To be honest, I had thought that I would place him as second or third in terms of ranking the guys. I initially had my eye on Rumpel because he looked a lot like Ren Jinguji of UtaPri. I already was starting to like him because of his attitude, but my heart stopped when I saw this particular CG later on his story route.

He resembles Kurama of Yuyu Hakusho so much, and those who know me know that my forever anime husband is Kurama 💖. It was like a sign and I embraced it rofl.

Moving on, the next character is Rumpel. If you are familiar with Rumpelstiltskin’s fairy tale, then guessing what his curse is will be easy. He is the oldest out of all the guys (I think) and I found his route was the least I liked, which was disappointing. As previously stated, I liked him first because, as already mentioned, I was playing UtaPri SL alongside playing this game and he looked a lot like Ren Jinguji (with glasses), my favorite character in the UtaPri franchise.

Surprisingly, Rumpel even has the same player personality that Ren has, but sadly the character designer/story writer wasn’t able to capture the same charm that Ren exudes. Whenever Ren turns on his charm, I feel giddy and feel like a teenager; when Rumpel flirts, I often cringe and sometimes want to smack him (to which Karma has the same sentiments as I do). I know that I’m comparing him to Ren too much and I understand that the two of them are different, but Rumpel just falls short on this aspect for me.

Next is Rod who resembles Wolfram von Bielefeld from Kyou Kara Maou! in a lot of ways. He is a tsundere (like Wolfram is) and has the mermaid’s curse. I find him okay, and although I find his route cute and all, I didn’t like his “happy” end. I know this may seem unfair, but I can’t say much about him to be honest. His character appealed the least to me, and his saving grace was his story route (to which the “happy” end kind of ruined).

The fourth character would be Fritz, and to this day I’m still wondering from which anime his character design spawned from. He has the Red Riding Hood curse and I find him very interesting character-wise. Initially going through the first three routes mentioned above would already give you hints on what to expect with his story route, and honestly it was fascinating to go through – next only to Karma’s that is. I have to say, though, that his story route is also the most devastating. There are so many deaths involved, no matter whether you end up with the Bad or Happy ending.

Last but not least is Waltz, my second favorite, whose character design seems like a combined version of Kaname Kuran and Zero Kiryu of Vampire Knight (I can barely remember the plot and characters of this anime rofl). He has the Peter Pan curse and has the best story route overall. His character and story development have that real feeling of a “happily ever after” ending out of all the characters that I seem to think the game developers are slightly biased towards him – he alone has this CG with Lucette as a scene transition lol.

As for Lucette, the female protagonist, I find her quite relatable. For the most part of the game, she is wary, cautious, and very cynical to which I think are normal feelings of people in a general sense. I found her reactions to strangers very normal as opposed to being kind and inherently good as a main character. Don’t get me wrong though – I think that being kind and good is still a good formula to be a like-able main character.

I just think that Lucette’s traits are a breath of fresh air and she’s in quite a nice place to be for character development. Admittedly, there were times that I was frustrated with her naivete. I do find her relatable in some ways, but I am usually assertive when it comes to a lot of things. While playing, I found myself frowning at her indecisiveness and other decisions, or lack thereof.

For the game's artwork, I think it could still be improved but over-all it’s pretty good. Personally, I have no talent when it comes to art and drawing (honestly, the most I can do are stick figures) but the art is definitely above decent. I find the similarities to other anime characters flattering rather than offensive.

As stated earlier I played this game while playing UtaPri Shining Live which is a rhythm game on mobile, so I’m not able to review on the OST of this otome game. Also, there is no voice over for the characters and their respective dialogues for those who are wondering.

Choosing who you want to end up with is pretty simple, and it doesn’t really require a complicated elimination process as you get to pick which character route you want right after the prologue ends. It’s interesting in itself because the stories of all the characters are not the same as soon as you hit chapter one. I believe that this is the only way that the game as a whole doesn’t go stale as you switch routes whenever you’re finished with a character.

The story routes have no branching-off multiple results depending of the choices you make. However, the choices (usually there are two or three for each prompt) generate different responses from characters depending on what choice you make, and it acts like a tally on a board whether you’re going to end up on the Happy or Bad ending. As you go through each story, you have no way of knowing where you’re going to end up as there is no indicator of the choices made. You’ll just have to wait and see when chapter ten (the final chapter) comes.

Overall, this is good game to play as visual novel/otome games go. Honestly, I was quite surprised that this is a crowd-funded FREE game on Steam. They certainly put a lot of effort in, and, albeit the game has some room for improvements, I sincerely have no complaints. The twist in the fairy tales were interesting and I loved how there was little to no revelations of how each character got their curse – it simply made me want to play the next story route after finishing one. I have to say that the Dicesuki team knows what they’re doing in order to come up with a visual novel/otome game like this, and I wish them luck on their next project(s).

If you have time to play, I do recommend this game. It’s free so you won’t lose anything ^_^

Links:

Get the free game on Steam

Cinderella Phenomenon Walkthrough and Achievement Guide

Dicesuki Official Website

Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Fri, 09 Nov 2018 20:17:00 +0000

Synopsis:

Female college student Aoi inherited her deceased grandfather's ability to see ayakashi. One day, while Aoi is feeding some ayakashi, a demon appears! He declares that Aoi's grandfather owed a great debt, and as compensation, Aoi must marry the demon! Aoi refuses, and decides to pay off the debt by working. - MU

My Take: (MILD SPOILERS AHEAD – READ AT YOUR OWN RISK)

Truthfully, I picked this title to watch because I wanted to watch a rom-com/shoujo anime. My S.O. and I watch most of the anime we see together – the process usually starts with us looking over the anime line-up two weeks before the season starts then we pick titles individually. I usually pick stuff that we might both like; if he doesn’t like an anime and I’m still interested, I can just simply continue watching it on my own whenever I’m able. Anyway, I digress.

I have quite an interest for Japanese folklore and other myths, so I was interested with this anime when I saw the title (my S.O. wasn’t, so sad). The first anime that pops in my head when I watched this was Kamisama Hajimemashita aka Kamisama Kiss, and I have to say that they’re similar and dissimilar in some ways. Obviously, the similarity starts with the Japanese folklore, demons, and the supernatural involved in the main story. However, one can ascertain that both titles have a certain charm of their own.

While Kamisama Kiss concentrates on the fluff and shoujo aspect, Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi touches more of that. I guess this has to do with the age difference of the female main leads, Tsubaki Aoi being (basically) an adult and Momozono Nanami being in high school. I am not saying that Nanami is naïve and immature, rather Aoi has a lot more experiences, being older of the two, and the anime shows that there are more issues in adult life as compared to still being a minor in society.

You might ask me: are the ages of the two different female leads really that important? My answer is: no. What I’m saying is that Kamisama Kiss concentrates on the romantic aspect of the shoujo genre; on the other hand, Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi, while still in the shoujo genre, focuses more than the romance. I believe that this has something to do with the target audience between the two titles as the former tends to be picked up by the younger demograph, and younger people in that age range usually have very little to worry about. Anyway, I digress again.

In its early stages, the anime is a bit episodic. What I do like about its pacing is that there are these questions that are presented right from the first episode. While they are not really deep, super-secret, plot-twisting mysteries, they are ones that can keep you wondering as you progress through the series, and have some additional more to boot.

One particular puzzle that seemed to stretch throughout was: who was the youkai that saved Aoi when she was still little? This mystery was answered on the very last episode of the series; and what I do appreciate about this particular thing is that every time Aoi has a flashback on it, the voice of the youkai changes (in the Japanese dub at least). So, is it really Oodanna (the Ogre Master), or is it Ginji? The voice dubbing is distorted of course, but if you strain your ears and concentrate, you can hear either Oodana’s or Ginji’s voices in different flashbacks. I really love how the anime kept me guessing on this one, and I’m glad that my initial hunch was the answer (although it was only heavily implied and not openly stated by the characters, but come on…)

One other mystery to name a few that wasn’t answered in the series is: is there a hidden reason why Tsubaki Shiro promised his granddaughter to Oodanna? It’s so sad that the manga is still ongoing, and from what I read somewhere it’s not that popular a series to be considered a localization to other countries. The fan-translated manga is still on chapter 4 (to which I haven’t read yet) and I am hoping it gets finished because I want to know what Tsubaki Shiro’s deal was (considering Oodanna didn’t really like Aoi’s grandfather).

Despite the fact that there is an abundance of male characters, not to mention that the series gives off a reverse-harem aura from a mile away, I am greatly surprised that the male characters do not scramble to Aoi’s good graces nor do they try to seduce her whatsoever. Not even Ginji, whom I was so sure was going try and be more than a friend to Aoi. Evidently, Oodanna is her significant other in this series no matter how Aoi denies that she is the Ogre Bride. Moreover, everyone else steer clear of Aoi’s affections and do not attempt to woo her in any way.

I think that really appealed me to this anime: no further drama in the romance aspect. Seriously, I was going to be so pissed if Aoi breaks Ginji’s heart. I support Oodanna to be Aoi’s future husband, but I also like Ginji as a character and I don’t want him to be heartbroken. Oodanna, as Aoi’s fiancé, also is very gentlemanly when it comes to Aoi, which is very surprising for a youkai ogre. He is very respectful of her decisions and tries to make her happy when he can, as well as do whatever Aoi likes. He simply waits at the sidelines and try to see if she can do things on her own, or if she requires any help. More often than not, he helps her indirectly with Aoi finding out later but only when the problem passes.

What’s endearing about his character is that he never did anything untoward to his fiancé apart from addressing Aoi as his fiancé/bride, to which Aoi denies (then later does not later in the series). The only thing frustrating about it is that they never kissed or hug or anything a couple does, not even on the last episode! They also never said any words of love between them *pfft*. Despite the lack of those, Oodanna is clearly in love with Aoi and he shows his affections in little ways through his actions and the way he speaks with Aoi through their moments together. Aoi does reciprocate those feelings, but not often enough. Gah!

Admittedly, I have this love/hate relationship with Aoi’s character. Sometimes I like her as the female lead, but there are also times when her actions are very frustrating. What I do like about her is that she solves her problems on her own and in her own way i.e. cooking food. The only times that she plays damsel-in-distress are when the problems themselves are supernatural in nature.

Ginji is one of the plethora of characters in the series that I really like, but I will not be expounding on his character – he is simply a very nice, well-likable guy who has the potential to steal Aoi away from Oodanna but does not. The other thing that I simply like about this anime is that you can’t really hate the many characters that pop-up throughout the series. Whenever they’re introduced, they’re all up-in-arms against the human girl who suddenly appeared in the Hidden Realm and most of them are very antagonistic against Aoi. They don’t redeem themselves in a grand way either, but simply come to understand the female lead and her strange ways and accept that she does not bear them any malice. Except Raijuu – he is simply bad, apparently. Even Oodanna got really pissed off with him with what Raijuu did to Aoi.

Another thing is I simply like about the series is the OST, most especially the Opening songs and the (many) Ending songs. First off, the first opening song Tomoshibi no Manimani (In the light of the Light), sang by Aoi’s voice actress Touyama Nao, was already good with it’s wagakki-style of music, but nano’s Utsushiyo no Yume (Dreams of Netherworld) took it to another level (I already mentioned this song in a previous post); I really love the song so much and it’s one of the reasons why I liked this anime more than I should have. Here’s hoping that the videos do not get taken down:

OP 1

(Sidenote: Every video of the OP2 I found has been taken down :( However, I found this god-send of a website and I couldn't find any way to embed their video here so just click the link to view the OP2 - I love it so much.)

Second, there are quite a number of Ending songs for this two-season anime which really surprised me – ten in fact. There are two EDs for each respective season, added by eight character theme songs which were featured on separate episodes as the ending song (you can look up MAL or YouTube for these). What really struck me the most was Akatsuki & Suzuran’s character theme song Toki no Suna (Sands of Time) on episode 5:

A little backstory: Akatsuki and Suzuran are spider siblings in the series, and they are voiced by real-life siblings, Uchida Yuuma and Uchida Maaya. In this song, they are nostalgic of the person (Aoi's grandfather) who saved them from their past hardship and took care of them for a while. Anyway, I don’t want to be in trouble with YouTube and their respective companies, but the rest of the endings songs are really good, too.

So, do I recommend this anime series? Yes, I do BUT this anime may not be for everyone. My sentiments in this post are purely my personal opinion but I do quite like the anime, and I want more people to see and like it as well. It's very underrated and I'm hoping a lot more people will pick this title up ^_^.

P.S. I meant this post to be very brief but I got carried away. I spent almost 5 hours for this review D:

7 Horror Anime to Binge for Halloween

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Thu, 18 Oct 2018 14:55:00 +0000

Obligatory spooky (sexy) music: Kuchizuke (くちづけ) /Kiss by buck-tick. I hope it doesn't get taken down ;_;

This is an extremely late post for the season, I know, but I have always wanted to do this since… two years ago? Might as well get on with it before October ends. So why seven titles? Well, the number obviously didn’t reach 10 rofl. Honestly, I originally planned it to be five, then found two more titles on my list. I wanted it to reach 10 to get this even number, but sadly it didn’t.

Before I start, I’d like to explain that I am a fan of the horror genre, however, I am kind of squeamish. I do not like to watch stuff that overly show blood, guts, and gore, but appreciate more of the psychological/mindf*ck, creepy, crawls-in-your-skin type. To give concrete examples, stuff I like: Shutter (Thai movie), Junji Ito materials, The Wailing (S. Korean movie), A Quiet Place, Get Out, It… you get the idea; stuff I don’t like: Saw, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Hostel, etc. Eww, please get those away from me.

I’d also like to point out that I don’t appreciate a lot of Western horror flicks as they rely immensely on jump scares. Not saying that all of them do, just a lot of them. I, however, do not like to play horror games because I go into panic attacks when I’m in control of the character rofl. I prefer to watch no-commentary gameplays on YouTube.

Now on to my list in no particular order:

1. Monster (2005)

74 episodes

This is more on medical-ish, mystery, thriller/suspense, but the psychological attack it does is too good. Johan Liebert is just brilliantly creepy for a character that I got chills a lot of the times when he does something unexpected on-screen – makes you go WTF. I always seem to recommend this anime next to Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood whenever someone asks for a recommendation.

2. Shiki (2010)

22 episodes

Fun fact: the video at the top is this anime's opening song.

This has some blood and gore, but only to a minimum to which I think the majority of it was at the ending of the series. What’s shockingly interesting about this is that the viewer already knows who the perpetrators of the small town are, but the town community does not. You get to watch them solve mysteries which you already know who the guilty party is, but you have no idea how they’re going to solve the problems they encounter. It is bloody brilliant, pun intended. I’ve already mentioned this title before, and it still is one of my favorite horror anime to watch, however, I’m still not satisfied with how the ending went.

3. Berserk (1997)

25 episodes

I’m late to the party for this one. My S.O. kept bugging me about this and I finally caved two years ago. I have to say that the entirety of this anime is highly deceptive, but not in a bad way. If you’re into medieval conquests and/or the like (like my S.O. is), then you probably watched it at first because of that. But, oh boy, things get a creepy, weird turn at some point. The manga (which I opted to follow because the story is really good) is still ongoing and I can understand why fans are frustrated with its constant hiatuses. And no, I did not bother to watch its latest installments even though they continue from where the anime left off. The animation looks… hmm.. Σ(￣ロ￣lll)

4. Perfect Blue (1998)

This is another classic psychological horror that I really like. I only watched this once many, many years ago, but it kind of has a lasting effect because I (also) still recommend this title to people whenever I can – Paprika doesn’t even compare. It’s only a movie so it’s easy to watch if you don’t have enough time to binge-watch one whole season. All I can say is that someone please bring Satoshi Kon† back alive.

5. Ghost Hunt (2006)

25 episodes

Okay, at first this episode starts off slow and normal which makes you go “Ok, this is a supernatural/spooky series. Fun. Cool.” Until the Bloody Labyrinth arc comes, that is. WTF. Frankly, this series isn’t that too scary to watch, keeping in mind that it’s still a shoujo title – but it will still scare you one way or another.

6. Mononoke (2007)

12 episodes

This is kind of hard to explain: Mononoke is simply unique from its art to it story-telling. Honestly, the art was much to be desired when I first saw this years ago. Gradually, you become used to it until you appreciate it for what it is and how they seem to go well with the series. The whole series is cut into arcs where the main character tries to solve mysterious cases involving evil spirits (mononoke). The series itself is not spine-chillingly horror, but it’s nicely done which is more focused on the psychological aspect. I re-watched this last year just for kicks and I found myself still intrigued with the series. Originally, this is a spin-off sequel from Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror. If you take time to watch the prequel, the Bakaneko arc is where the Medicine Seller is first introduced.

7. Jigoku Shoujo Futakomori (2006)

26 episodes

Hell Girl is one of my many guilty pleasures. I admit that this franchise as a whole isn’t really that compelling, but I still quite enjoy watching this. Although, this particular title is the sequel of the first Jigoku Shoujo franchise, Futakomori is the strongest installment out of all the four seasons. Only disappointing thing about this is that the sequels, Mitsuganae and Yoi no Togi, weren’t able to replicate the success Futakomori was able to achieve.

You might have noticed that some “great titles” aren’t included in this list. Again, these titles are selected because of reasons stated above. I have watched other horror anime, like Another and Tokyo Ghoul, but I don’t really like them as much (no offense to fans). Also, I haven’t watched other titles, like Tasogare Otome X Amnesia and Sankarea, but I will soon.

Stay spooky ^,…,^

A Return from Nowhere

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Thu, 18 Oct 2018 09:48:00 +0000

Cute Jizo statues I found in Kiyomizu-Dera last April <3

It’s been such a long time since I last posted on my blog – not just a random blog post, but a lengthy, wordy, one. I have to admit, though, that my interests lately wane fast. I find myself being interested in too many things that often times I don’t dwell on stuff as much as I would have a couple of years ago in order to go to the next thing that I want done. In some way, I am still a hoarder of things: in this case, this involves interests, anime, games, books, and sleep. In other words, I have too many things to do and what have I done? ;_;

Before I forget, I’d like to thank my S.O. for an amazing job with the layout of my blog. I don’t know a thing or two when it comes to HTML codes and frankly I’m too lazy to learn. I’m no graphic artist, either, thus I still have no banner until now rofl.

Also, I just want to acknowledge the music video at the top of this post. I discovered nano (ナノ) as an artist because she did the opening sequence of Bad Apple Wars and I was so surprised that she was female (I really thought the vocalist was male O_O). For this video, I discovered this song from Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi that I'm still currently watching. I'm very happy to hear this from her - I love this song and she's still a bad ass!

Edit: I had to move the said video closer to this paragraph because it has become a pain.
Edit 2: I removed the video because it's taken down. Check it out on YouTube instead >_>

As mentioned, I’m still into a lot of my interests. Lately, I have been into otome games; I know that I’ve already played some games before (namely Hakuoki, YoJinBo, and Nicole), but just this year I have been playing a lot of these. I got a Vita earlier this year (too late for the console, I know) as a birthday present for the sole purpose of playing otoges rofl. As the Vita is dying, I’m planning to buy a NSwitch so that I can play more otoges, hahaha; a lot of otome titles have migrated and are planning to transfer on the Switch when Sony announced the discontinuity of (physical) Vita games, so I might as well go with the flow to satisfy my needs (my S.O. is so supportive <3). Also, I’m a bit hesitant but I do plan on playing the ones on Steam. I find that most of the titles are not that appealing to me, also most of my friend roster on Steam are my guy friends IRL and I’m not exactly open to them about playing any of the stuff. I will manage somehow rofl.

I will no longer be doing any walkthroughs – it’s simply too much work and I have a lot of (useless) stuff to do. I will try to slowly do reviews on each of the games that I’ve played and will try to be unbiased about them. I might tend to be biased though, hahaha. Speaking of reviews, I will also try to do reviews on anime that I’ve watched and liked so far(?). I’m not exactly sure if I will follow through on this, though, as I don’t dwell too much on series like I used to before.

Also, if you noticed, I do read a lot of books; I’m positively sure I won’t be able to do reviews on books. I don’t want to disappoint and/or anger fans of any book/s since I merely read books for fun and seldom try to think of any symbolism/deeper meaning of the stuff that I read. I have tried to do a book review before and I didn’t really enjoy nor like it – I felt like I didn’t do a good job at giving a reading material justice and frankly I’m afraid of fans roasting me for it rofl. I just opt to give out a simple, personal opinion and read the reviews of others.

As you can see on my sidebar, I’m playing those games but I’m putting the ones on Steam on hold because my video card got busted. I am actively playing Shining Live though (free player here!), so if you want to add me up here’s my in-game ID:

Try to guess my favorite UtaPri character 8D

I think that wraps up my thoughts on things for now. Thank you, random person for giving time to read this ^_^

edit: permalink is stupid. forgot to add post title when I posted >_>
(Disclaimer: video is not mine and is credited to Victor Entertainment Inc. <.<)

In Memoriam

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Fri, 21 Jul 2017 07:19:00 +0000

Linkin Park is one of the reasons why I like listening to music. I'm not really a hardcore fan, but I'm much of a fan enough to like them. I went through high school listening to their songs in Hybrid Theory and Meteora phase, and I've always been able to distinguish Chester Bennington's voice when I get to hear a new song of theirs.

So sad to hear about the tragic news. Rest in peace, Chester.

Nicole (Otome Game)

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 19 Mar 2017 20:13:00 +0000

Heys! It's been such a long time; thought I would make a blog entry °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

First and foremost, I would like to say that I won't be making any updates on the Hakuoki games on iOS/Android and PS3. You can send me a message for help about it though (as I've been getting some recently) and I'll gladly help you to the best of my knowledge.

Sooo after not getting over my FFXV hype yet, I got this game this month and played for a week in order to finish it. I've been eyeing this game on Steam among several others, but I think I kind of got motivated to get and play this game.

Synopsis from Steam:

Nicole is thrilled that she managed to get into her first choice school and is looking forward to experiencing college life there. However, as soon as she moves into the university dorms, she finds out that there’s been a series of mysterious disappearances going on around the campus! So far, three girls have already gone missing and Nicole could be next if she’s not too careful – not quite the ideal college experience Nicole had in mind.

Essentially, there are four guys to go after. Go pick one ladies:

I have no idea why Jeff has long hair in this image

First off, let me be clear that I first went after the guy who first came across my screen. Although. I do recommend going after him during your succeeding playthroughs after your first. In other words, don't go after him the moment you see him and hold him off until you went after the others. You'll see why if you play the game. Jeff is a science-freak so he likes spending time at the school laboratory. *MILD SPOILER* Jeff is basically your typical nice dude-turned-creep. He's entertaining to go after but his personality is infuriating. I hated the way he gets pushy with Nicole. I don't even know why he's a candidate to go after, and I regret going after him. To be fair, he does get some decent character development in his route.

Second in the image above is your typical jock, Kurt, who has some ego. I wouldn't really say he's way over his head, but he tends to be full of himself at times. Out of all the guys, his personality was the most entertaining that I experienced. I personally wouldn't be a jock-type of girl, but he's worth running after.

The one with the glasses is Darren, who's as shy as he looks. I'm not going to mention what his hobbies are as that would spoil the game, but if you're reading in-between the lines and are playing the game (or has played the game) then you know what I'm talking about. Darren is really cute as a person. During my first playthrough, he stole my attention away from Jeff because he seemed adorable as a character, causing me to go after him during my second. What I dislike about him though is that he's too meek for a guy. It's cute, yeah, but personally I wouldn't be the one pushing the guy IRL. Some of his personalities do mirror mine though, so I guess that's why I was drawn to him.

The last of the bunch is Ted. I can't really say much about him, except that he's a country boy who runs a local small grocery store. I don't really like him that much; truthfully, he appealed the least to me. He often wears a stern face and has an uptight personality. However, he is the token tsundere of the group, so expect him to be flustered when Nicole pays him a compliment.

As for Nicole, I can say that she's not your typical bland heroine that are found in every reverse-harem anime. However, I'm not sure if I personally like her. She's likable enough, but she greatly reminds me of Selphie Tilmitt from Final Fantasy VIII, who is basically energetic, loud, and upbeat. I do understand that this is crucial in the guys' character developments though (they all do). Don't get me wrong, there's nothing with these types of people; I just prefer a different type of personality for female main characters.

One thing I noticed in this game is that the dialogues in-between characters do not change when you're giving them presents (yes, you give them presents to raise the affection level). *MILD SPOILER* There is a point in-game where some guys will avoid you in their respective routes, but they'll talk to you normally when the prompt to give the present pops up when it shouldn't be so. I think this is something the programmers/writers/and quality assurance team overlooked. It's really not something to be overly concerned about, but I was kinda bothered by this aspect.

Speaking of giving presents, this is not unique since most dating sims have this feature. However, I was also bothered where you have to buy presents for a guy (not to mention work your ass to acquire the money) in order to greatly increase the level of affection. I would have preferred more dialogue exchange and guess the correct response. It would make the relationship between characters meatier. (*•̀ᴗ•́*)و ̑̑

I wish I could give my own feedback for the game music. Sadly I played this game with the sounds muted since I was listening to my own playlist while playing the game. I know I shouldn't have done that, sorry. (⌯˃̶᷄ ﹏ ˂̶᷄⌯)ﾟ

The artwork is pretty decent. The characters are appealing enough, but nothing for me to gush over. I don't mean to bring down the work of the graphic artist. but it's simply not my preference. With that, kudos to the hard work on the art.

What I also don't like about this game is that the 'mystery' was too easy. I was able to guess the perpetrator during my first playthrough. When the succeeding playthroughs came, I was already bored and just wanted to see what changed in the dialogue (which is not much).

Progressing through the game is pretty much straight forward, The story itself follows a main story route and forks off to the your desired guy when the affection level reaches 50 and above. There are 10 endings in total: 2 for each guy (1 normal ending and 1 true ending) and the bad endings. Personally, I didn't bother getting the bad endings so I wasn't able to see it.

What I do like about this game is that the affection level does not drop whenever you make an incorrect response to the prompts. Unlike Hakuoki, I would be stressed whenever I picked the wrong answer. Then again, getting the affection level up is easy once you access online buying in-game.

I did follow this blog's guide to progress the story though. I read through her posts and it seemed people are having a tough time getting the true endings. If you are planning to play this game sometime in the future, I suggest you read her guides thoroughly and follow it faithfully to a T without the need to read her text in red. You might even finish the game earlier than December 21 like I did.

I'm sorry if I might seem like I'm bashing the game, but that isn't my intention. It does have its merits but it's my own personal review. I did enjoy progressing through each character's story though, so I can say my time wasn't wasted playing this game. Do play it when you have a chance (/^▽^)/

THE ORAL CIGARETTES - 狂乱 (Kyoran) Hey Kids!! (Stopgap #5)

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Thu, 12 Nov 2015 05:50:00 +0000

This is the current opening song of Noragami Aragoto. Welp, LSS again. I could listen to this song all day.

(And holy crap, it's been 6 months @_@)

Hakuoki on iOS/Android

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 31 May 2015 12:35:00 +0000

Soooo there has been an activity at Okita's post (walkthrough/guide) at the comments section and my curiosity got the better of me. I decided to download the iOS/Android version of this game on both my iPad and android phone, but then decided to play it on my iPad since it runs smoother. (Don't get me wrong though, I'm a huge android user!) However, I was kind of dismayed that you have to make several purchases in order to get all the routes, and it's really not that exciting to purchase a game that you already know the content about.

I was having doubts about playing the game since I already bought the PS3 version which I have yet to play through, so I decided to contact the game publisher to get things clear. Basically, I asked them to compare the game content in terms of story, extras, and other unlockables from the PS3 and iOS/Android versions. Here's what they replied:

Interesting. ( ★ω★)

And now, the story begins. Mou ichido.٩(•̤̀ᵕ•̤́๑)ᵒᵏᵎᵎᵎᵎ

Getting addicted with Books (AGAIN)!

noreply@blogger.com (kunoichi_hime) — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 01:59:00 +0000

the girl in the pic may not be me, but it's basically me right now. i so, so, so LOVE books and i find myself buying books at least twice a month. bookstores make me really happy and i'm so lucky that my husband puts up with my book-shenanigans XD

Noragami

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 26 Nov 2014 05:45:00 +0000

Synopsis:

Yato is a minor deity who lacks even a single shrine. In order to build his own shrine and gain recognition as a god, he scrawls his cell number on the wall of a downtown bathroom telling people he will help them in exchange for a 5-yen offering, becoming a self-styled "delivery god." Hiyori, the daughter of a respectable family, is almost killed in a traffic accident, but is rescued by Yato. This causes her to become a "hanyou," a person who can exit her body in soul form. She chases Yato down, and they begin to work together to help Yato be recognized. Yato also finds a boy named Yukine who becomes a Regalia, a "sacred treasure" that can be used by a god as a weapon to fight. The three of them battle phantoms who bring harm to humans as Yato's dark hidden history is gradually revealed.

- ANN

My Take:

I saw this anime when it aired on the spring of this year. This was on the line-up of the (then) upcoming titles and I got intrigued with it's synopsis.With all the mediocre anime that seem to pop up lately, I have to say that this did not disappoint me as I am also currently updated with the manga.

First off, the anime is good visually and it’s quite pleasing to the eyes. Comparing the anime from the manga, I have to say that the art is equally good. I wouldn’t really say that it’s uber stunning, but everything looks clean and the background looks very detailed. The animation also looks fast-paced: from the transformation of weapons to the actual fight scenes.

Similar to most titles, Noragami has arcs that are intertwined with one another. Although, I’m disappointed to say that the anime only touched one arc (the introduction arc) and then followed by a filler arc (Rabou arc). Then again, I suppose it’s only fitting since the Bishamon arc is extremely profound for just a remainder of its 12 episodes. It stands as a great looksie to the whole series and to the whole characters as a whole. I just don’t like how they followed up the anime with an OVA that's basically set at the end of the Bishamon arc. The pacing of the anime is good, though, and it doesn’t bore the viewer with excessive explanations.

For a shounen anime, the plot of this title is definitely deep and it doesn’t focus on mere exchanging of blows. The whole series and the characters alike are enshrouded with deeper backgrounds that make you want to know more of their stories, including side characters alike. As of the latest chapter released, Yukine’s personal story has not been revealed yet.

Though, a lot (if not most) of the stories revolve around the character’s background stories, Noragami does not let you brush off side-characters as Yato and his comrades meet them along the way. Most of the characters in this title are given traits and personalities that makes you remember them, and it gives more meaning as to why they were introduced in the story. In a way, they are not easily forgettable and each is truly unique of their own.

Yato, as a loser in terms of how gods are ranked, serves well for both as a shounen-type main character and comic relief. He switches between being god-like (that is, how gods are supposed to act like gods), and being not the best role-model for children. Though not having multiple personas per se, it’s fun watching him switching between different sides as he comes out with good character development.

Yukine, for me, is a character who stands somewhere along being the bland “default” character whom everyone can relate to. His character development is rather obvious since it’s practically being shoved in your face starting from the first arc, and him still wanting to improve as a shinki (sacred treasures aka weapons) that Yato can use.

Hyori is the third main protagonist that I’m torn between liking and not. There are often times that I’m annoyed with her personality, and yet she provides massive help to the main characters. Not to mention she plays a major role in their character developments. That being said, it’s safe to say that she plays an important part to Yato’s very existence.

There are other notable characters, namely Bishamon whom I’ve already mentioned, that are significant in the series. However, enumerating them all would probably give too much details of the plot.

For its art and genre, it’s quite surprising that the authors, Adachitoka, are both (yes, there are two of them) biologically female. I’m always intrigued with female authors who contribute to the shounen genre (Magi, Natsume Yuujinchou, etc) since it kind of breaks the stereotype. If you’re looking for a shounen anime that’s not typical and not hell-bent on exchanging complicated techniques, then I would definitely recommend Noragami. Yato could really use your faith in him, and he would undoubtedly deliver entertainment. After all, he’s fast, affordable, and reliable!

I'm Alive~! Here's Hakuoki to Celebrate!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 15:58:00 +0000

Am I still alive? Why yes, very much so. Juggling in-between full-time and part-time work, love life, finalizing wedding plans, watching anime, reading manga and books, watching GoT, finding companions in Journey and saving Cocoon, I'd very much like to die now, thank you very much. With things going as they are, my schedule's going to be even more hectic from now on. Just. Kill. Me. Now. x_x

Here's the official trailer for Hakuoki: Stories of the Shinsengumi to make all fangirls happy. I'm late in updating, but better late than never. Then again, I'm not too entertained by how they recycled scenes from the anime and the original game. I will be buying the game, though. I'd like to buy the limited edition, but I have to admit that the package doesn't look that tempting. Just give me SSL and I'll shut up complaining.

(WTF YT deleting videos again @___________@)

Tanjoubi.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 30 Jan 2014 06:15:00 +0000

first post of the year + first post in over a month rofl. so, a happy birthday to hyde-sama of Laruku (albeit a month late). may you stay young forever and may you keep serenading me and the rest of your fangirls <3

L'Arc~en~Ciel - Hurry X'mas

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 25 Dec 2013 03:17:00 +0000

Obligatory post for Christmas. Also, I have no idea why they have an Alice in Wonderland theme for this particular song. o.o

New Hakuoki Game!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 02 Dec 2013 01:15:00 +0000

Okay, I have to admit that the announcement for this new game isn't entirely new since the news came out sometime late October 2013. "oTL

I happened to stumble across this title at the Aksys website since I was trying to find some updates on the SSL game. 'Lo and behold, this game came up.

The official English title of this game is Hakuoki: Stories of the Shinsengumi which apparently is just a compilation of short stories from the characters as well as some SSL(?!?!) mini-games. I'm not exactly sure what these mini-games are, nor do I know if they are going to merge the SSL content, but I'm a bit hyped for this game. ☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

As you can see from the screencap that I got from the Aksys website, the game is soon to be released on the PS3 with a tentative date. I did a little bit of research and the game is set to be released next year (2014), we just don't know exactly when, though.

To those of you who want to know the Japanese counterpart/title of this game, it's Hakuouki: Junsouroku. Sadly, no news of an English release for the SSL game has been stated yet. ಥ_ಥ

FT Island - Madly

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 18 Nov 2013 01:12:00 +0000

Another FT Island song that they recently released that I came to like. They released an earlier song, but I didn't really like it that much so I wasn't as excited as I am regarding this. I really like how Hongki's voice becomes really powerful especially when their singing a song about pain and heartaches (Bad Woman etc). And that mop of hair Hongki has deserves to die =..=

Lyrics English translation:

I really tried going a day without you but

The unbearable pain holds me in

I have to try loving without you there but

I don’t have a small enough amount of space

I shout out to you, but it’ll go unheard

Even so, today, I again, only shout your name

You’re the only one I Madly miss, You’re the only one I miss to death

I try forcing you out but you’re there’s only you

You’re the only one I Madly miss, You’re the only one I miss to death

I tell myself that I’m over you but it’s only you

I keep missing you

You’re the only one I miss

I try making myself feel better, telling myself to just quit it

But I can’t get you out of my head

Because my heart still yearns for you

I go wild but I keep thinking of you

You’re the only one I Madly miss, You’re the only one I miss to death

I try forcing you out but you’re there’s only you

You’re the only one I Madly miss, You’re the only one I miss to death

I tell myself that I’m over you but it’s only you

I keep missing you

The words of yearning that reach my throat are,

“Oh I love you”

You’re the only one I Madly love, You’re the only one I love to death

Though I say foul words, or get mad, but it’s only you

You’re the only one I love, the only one I miss to death

Because it’s a foolish love, it’s only you

Because you’re the only one I love

Because You’re the only one I love

15 Anime Series...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 03 Nov 2013 16:38:00 +0000

so i got this kind-of challenge from Facebook from some friends and i was tempted to make a list of my own even before anyone has tagged me. i will simply re-post this on my wall if someone does. (edit: already posted, hah!)

these anime will probably stay with me for the rest of my life. a lot of them are old (like decades old), but they have touched my life and they helped shaped my views on a lot of things. they are not in order as i just thought of them from the top of my head. most of these titles are old to our new breed of anime otakus, and these are just a few of my favorites that have really touched my heart. i know that i may have forgotten other titles that i consider as one of my favorites but the list is pretty much limited so just refer to my anime list to see the rest (ones that have a score of 8 and above).

The rules: Don't take too long to think about it. Fifteen anime you've seen that will always stick with you. List the first fifteen you can recall in no more than fifteen minutes. (going to skip the rest of the rules since they don't apply to blogs or so)

1. Fushigi Yuugi - don't ask why. personally, this is one of my favorites no matter how anybody else say that it's cheesy. this anime touched my heart so much that it both broke my heart to pieces (even to this day!) and damaged my childhood. this is the first anime that i've seen so many hot guys around and this is also why i respect Yu Watase-sensei so much, both as an author and an artist. anime fans, do take the time to watch this series. Miaka and Tamahome may get on everybody's nerves but it's one heck of a story.

2. Natsume Yuujinchou (and it's sequels) - one of the many feel good shoujo-shounen anime that i really love. this anime is so so SO good that's unbelievably under-rated/unpopular with anime otakus that i know of. this anime needs more LOVE!

3. Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood - one of the few epic animes that exist in our age. people who haven't seen this yet should definitely see this. the plot is just too awesome for this to be skipped.

4. Hunter X Hunter (+ 2011 remake) - an anime that's a lot more complex than it's synopsis lets on. the original art was definitely better but fans can't refuse the remake.

5. Sukitte Ii na yo. - a rare gem of a shoujo anime. i have this certain dislike for shoujo titles but this is one of the few exceptions.

6. Yu Yu Hakusho - if Fushigi Yuugi was about a decade old, then this is older. it's a crime for any anime fan not to watch this. this probably started my addiction to watching anime at the age of 9 or 10 and it's one of the few which really stayed with me since then. Kurama still makes my heart doki doki even after all these years ♥

7. Rurouni Kenshin - no excuse to skip this anime as not watching this is a sin. probably also started the whole craze for katana-weilding characters. also one of the grandfathers of anime.

8. Chihayafuru - this is a recent title which is another rare gem that isn't gender conscious nor age conscious. i kind of swore off sports-related anime but this shoujo anime is a definite feel-good exception.

9. Sailor Moon - this is just my nostalgic self speaking here. i wouldn't really say that i this is one of my favorites but this did have a big impact on me while i was growing up as a child. those Saturday shows are kind of hard to forget and Sailor Moon is just one of them. i think any girl would have loved to be like one of the Sailor Warriors.

10. Scrapped Princess - a lot of people (my koibito for one) would disagree with me saying that this is a good anime, but i actually quite like it. in fact, i've already seen it thrice already. it's not actually a favorite, but it's one of the few that i wouldn't mind rewatching again thus this is on the list.

11. Gate Keepers - i found this show quite enjoyable when i was a teen and probably the reason why this was on the list was that i was thinking of old animes that i watched during my high school days. overall, not that good of a plot but quite an enjoyable show to watch.

12. Kaichou wa Maid-sama! - this anime restored my faith in the shoujo genre. also, Usui is ♥

13. Shiki - i love horror shows and this anime didn't fail me. the ending was just frustrating though @_@

14. Slam Dunk - probably dates back along with Yu Yu Hakusho. it has a whopping 100+ episodes but it still entertains me to this day. yes, this is definitely sports. i watched this way before i swore off any sports-related anime. it's a really good shounen anime that seems timeless even to the younger generation of anime otakus.

15. Saiyuki - truthfully, i thought that this was on par with Weiss Kreuz which i came to love when i was still a kid. but this year, i saw the latest installment of this title and i have to say that the story of this anime exceeds that of Weiss. Saiyuki Gaiden also had me crying my eyes out, so yes, this is closer to my heart. i saw this first when i was still in high school so this is also consider as a "oldie but goodie."

some of you would probably have the same titles as i have listed, and i'm pretty sure you would disagree with me on some titles as being "good." it's my list after all and, like i said, these titles made a huge impact on my life. feel free to share your own list and let's walk down the nostalgic road as i'm pretty sure one or two old titles are going to be mentioned. XD

edit: this is my 100th post on this blog! waaaiii~

Buck Tick - Kuchizuke (Stopgap #3)

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 02 Nov 2013 04:38:00 +0000

a (late) post for Halloween, i feel that this song needs to be here. and i feel like it's now okay to move Okita's picture down the page, teehee. it's also a tribute to one of my favorite animes of the horror genre, Shiki.

I love you…could I say I love you?
Shut your mouth, close your eyes
To the kiss of my sin

I love you…I’m sure I love you
Close my eyes, piercing your throat
With the kiss of my sin

I can never go back
But it’s fine by me
Gazing deep in the night
Drinking down the wine

I love you…I love you more and more
Driven mad by a vicious thirst
Close your eyes to the kiss of my sin

Driven mad by your scent
Waking deep in the night
Drinking love and lunacy

Come into my arms…that darkness is bitter
You’re bewitched yet you waver
Come, be now forever…this darkness is sweet
I’ll pierce you so deep

Driven mad by your scent
Waking deep in the night
Drinking love and lunacy

Come into my arms…that darkness is bitter
You’re bewitched yet you waver
Come, be now forever…this darkness is sweet
I’ll pierce you so deep

Come into my arms…that darkness is bitter
You’re smiling a little
This will make you forever…this darkness is sweet

I’ll pierce you so deep

~*~*~*~

Happy Halloween, everyone. ^,..,^

Hakuoki: SSL

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 19 Sep 2013 05:10:00 +0000

Here's one hoping that Aksys will release this game soon. For PSP I hope, since I don't have a PSVita ;_;