Genre: Otome Game Visual Novel.
Developer/Publisher: Otomate.
Platform: PS Vita.
Official Site: http://aksysgames.com/baw/
VNDB: https://vndb.org/v17344
Release date: 2015-11-19(JP), 2017-10-13(ENG).
Well I bought the english version... since I didn't bother with the japanese version
and wanted to try it since I passed on other localizations this year such as Pcube
or CxM, I already played those and not buying something twice
that aside it seems it would've been better for me to pass on this.
The setting seems strangely similar to a certain anime... as for our dear heroine Rinka
I haven't exactly heard great things about her and can be quite annoying so before I started
I hoped she wouldn't be that bad but alas, the story is about life and death
and she ended up being quite an annoyance on my first play.
Pro's
- Characters... even the side ones have interesting backstories.
- Gorgeous art and catchy music.
- Interface.
Con's
- If you expect an otome with a solid story and unique individual routes look elsewhere...
- Bad/good split was pointless.
- Short, some routes may leave to be desired coughShikishimacough.
- Copy pasta, after a few routes you might've just seen it outside of character stuff.
- Protagonist in general, no backstory either because apparently her life was that boring.
Saw other people have mentioned that the font of the text seems kind of an odd choice
which I agree with but in all honesty its not that bad, its surprisingly easy to read for me
but maybe for those with eye problems it can be an issue I guess.
The localization was overall pretty great?! for aksys standards... very little typos but its sad
Well I bought the english version... since I didn't bother with the japanese version
and wanted to try it since I passed on other localizations this year such as Pcube
or CxM, I already played those and not buying something twice
that aside it seems it would've been better for me to pass on this.
The setting seems strangely similar to a certain anime... as for our dear heroine Rinka
I haven't exactly heard great things about her and can be quite annoying so before I started
I hoped she wouldn't be that bad but alas, the story is about life and death
and she ended up being quite an annoyance on my first play.
Pro's
- Characters... even the side ones have interesting backstories.
- Gorgeous art and catchy music.
- Interface.
Con's
- If you expect an otome with a solid story and unique individual routes look elsewhere...
- Bad/good split was pointless.
- Short, some routes may leave to be desired coughShikishimacough.
- Copy pasta, after a few routes you might've just seen it outside of character stuff.
- Protagonist in general, no backstory either because apparently her life was that boring.
Saw other people have mentioned that the font of the text seems kind of an odd choice
which I agree with but in all honesty its not that bad, its surprisingly easy to read for me
but maybe for those with eye problems it can be an issue I guess.
The localization was overall pretty great?! for aksys standards... very little typos but its sad
that this had to be the one that was given extra care except for the following
you might want to skip reading this its a minor spoiler.
White Mask's family name... its notshou but iku like, he even says Iku
I know translators can't hear this but how did they mistranslate this?!
maybe they thought lol...Iku is pretty odd so let's roll with Shou *tilts head and rolls eyes
...its a key aspect of his character like how did the editors not realize this!
and like it was at the end of his route which out of all I enjoyed a bit more, sigh
you might want to skip reading this its a minor spoiler.
White Mask's family name... its not
I know translators can't hear this but how did they mistranslate this?!
maybe they thought lol...
...its a key aspect of his character like how did the editors not realize this!
and like it was at the end of his route which out of all I enjoyed a bit more, sigh
thank you aksys games for completely ruining the meaning.
Next... the font or a name is the least of your problems, if you don't know a lick of japanese
soul touch scenes could be a problem. Thing is they don't have subs
so the dude would say stuff and you might not be able to understand.
Its just lazy you know? they should've added text boxes but they didn't
I can understand japanese so I get by easily but other people might not. >_>
System, standard VN stuff such as choices, some map movement and you apparently get
the choice to join the disciplinairy commitee or a group of odd balls fighting against it
some routes are only available if you pick a certain side of course.
You can pretty much play this without a guide, its impossible to miss stuff or get lost
and to get bad ends just touch the spot he doesn't want to be touched.
Well the common route was very simple yet informative, I liked the introductions
and most of it didn't feel longer than needed it all was quite straight-forward but
there is just so much shared throughout the routes even if you join the other side
the writer really didn't care to give everyone a unique route, a shame...
Art... despite setting its colorful and different than most otome games, I sort of liked it.
the BGM seems to fit the setting as well, no complains and a catchy OP by nano.
Here comes the ranting...
This... is a depressing game but I found Rinka's entrance to be not sad at all?
I can't say I liked the heroine in general either I know she's supposed to be this girl
who has never suffered in her entire life but still got by but because of her constant negative attitude
in the first route I did and her lack of actual backstory/development I just shook my head.
If I liked anything about her it would be her design, she does look adorable but that's it and
part of me should be able to relate to her but I don't think I want these type of otome game heroines.
Just so you know I tried to like Rinka and find positive traits, she had little of it.
I am not lying when I say she does not have much of a personality and just goes with
the flow of things in some routes the whole I am empty thing is more annoying than others.
Rinka doesn't really have much of anything, no interests can't fit in and is easily jealous of others
but she doesn't do much on her own, instead she brings herself down time and time again
if I hadn't done Higa's route when I did I probably would've raged quit but weirdly enough
after his I did a disciplinary route and Rinka was a lot more tolerable than most bad apples routes!
I wish we saw knew more of Rinka's life though... it can't have been that boring
like did she have hobbies or friends? she didn't because she can't fit in.
Early on she says she wants to return to her everyday life but to what exactly?
Well apparently she does like cute things like the gothic girls dress... but I guess Rinka being passive
makes it easier to get into her (like self-insert) I just wish she wouldn't be so negative is all like in
bad apples routes she's wahwah i'm empty I haz nothung! yet in disciplinary she thinks like a proper
human being and mentions having tv,manga and games would be better wow... the difference.
I too can get real depressive and say I have nothing... but i'd see something in my life
that would snap me out of it, can be as simple as a material thing.
In truth there are people who really have nothing but those prob wouldn't be playing this...
depression is not fun, still BAW does a bad job of showing it atleast for Rinka's case
because some of the other side characters are much better written.
Also mostly everything goes her way because somehow she's not limited like the others
because SHE HAS NOTHING and somehow this empty shell manages to heal
all the guys problems too because who else possible could, just because she is warm and gentle
on the inside which makes the guys comfortable for some reason! everything makes sense now right?
In all honesty its amusing how Rinka knows her own flaws and doesn't do much about it!
No... the problem is she doesn't get many opportunities for that because the time for that
went to the sub characters and the love interests. I didn't even understand why some of the guys
fell for Rinka... maybe its because she's a natural good kid with an empty heart of gold
but is just so insecure about everything and somehow when she sees people in their weakest
moments she racks up the courage to help them if that ain't mary sue-ish idk what is. >_>
I found myself the most frustrated with Rinka in the bad!common routes because its the same
just with a different guy at your side and then the fact the routes themselves are so short
it becomes almost unbelievable in terms of romance coughShikishima&Satorucough.
Next... the font or a name is the least of your problems, if you don't know a lick of japanese
soul touch scenes could be a problem. Thing is they don't have subs
so the dude would say stuff and you might not be able to understand.
Its just lazy you know? they should've added text boxes but they didn't
I can understand japanese so I get by easily but other people might not. >_>
System, standard VN stuff such as choices, some map movement and you apparently get
the choice to join the disciplinairy commitee or a group of odd balls fighting against it
some routes are only available if you pick a certain side of course.
You can pretty much play this without a guide, its impossible to miss stuff or get lost
and to get bad ends just touch the spot he doesn't want to be touched.
Well the common route was very simple yet informative, I liked the introductions
and most of it didn't feel longer than needed it all was quite straight-forward but
there is just so much shared throughout the routes even if you join the other side
the writer really didn't care to give everyone a unique route, a shame...
Art... despite setting its colorful and different than most otome games, I sort of liked it.
the BGM seems to fit the setting as well, no complains and a catchy OP by nano.
Here comes the ranting...
This... is a depressing game but I found Rinka's entrance to be not sad at all?
I can't say I liked the heroine in general either I know she's supposed to be this girl
who has never suffered in her entire life but still got by but because of her constant negative attitude
in the first route I did and her lack of actual backstory/development I just shook my head.
If I liked anything about her it would be her design, she does look adorable but that's it and
part of me should be able to relate to her but I don't think I want these type of otome game heroines.
Just so you know I tried to like Rinka and find positive traits, she had little of it.
I am not lying when I say she does not have much of a personality and just goes with
the flow of things in some routes the whole I am empty thing is more annoying than others.
Rinka doesn't really have much of anything, no interests can't fit in and is easily jealous of others
but she doesn't do much on her own, instead she brings herself down time and time again
if I hadn't done Higa's route when I did I probably would've raged quit but weirdly enough
after his I did a disciplinary route and Rinka was a lot more tolerable than most bad apples routes!
 |
| Does being a good or bad apple mean much in Rinka's case? not really just another perspective. |
like did she have hobbies or friends? she didn't because she can't fit in.
Early on she says she wants to return to her everyday life but to what exactly?
Well apparently she does like cute things like the gothic girls dress... but I guess Rinka being passive
makes it easier to get into her (like self-insert) I just wish she wouldn't be so negative is all like in
bad apples routes she's wahwah i'm empty I haz nothung! yet in disciplinary she thinks like a proper
human being and mentions having tv,manga and games would be better wow... the difference.
I too can get real depressive and say I have nothing... but i'd see something in my life
that would snap me out of it, can be as simple as a material thing.
In truth there are people who really have nothing but those prob wouldn't be playing this...
depression is not fun, still BAW does a bad job of showing it atleast for Rinka's case
because some of the other side characters are much better written.
Also mostly everything goes her way because somehow she's not limited like the others
because SHE HAS NOTHING and somehow this empty shell manages to heal
all the guys problems too because who else possible could, just because she is warm and gentle
on the inside which makes the guys comfortable for some reason! everything makes sense now right?
In all honesty its amusing how Rinka knows her own flaws and doesn't do much about it!
No... the problem is she doesn't get many opportunities for that because the time for that
went to the sub characters and the love interests. I didn't even understand why some of the guys
fell for Rinka... maybe its because she's a natural good kid with an empty heart of gold
but is just so insecure about everything and somehow when she sees people in their weakest
moments she racks up the courage to help them if that ain't mary sue-ish idk what is. >_>
I found myself the most frustrated with Rinka in the bad!common routes because its the same
just with a different guy at your side and then the fact the routes themselves are so short
it becomes almost unbelievable in terms of romance coughShikishima&Satorucough.
atleast she has more personality than the protagonist of AMNESIA... yeah I went there
because even if Rinka is irritating she does grow and you know actually talk outside of choices.
IF ONLY they fleshed out Rinka more so that she got proper development too but alas
Rinka is no Cardia Beckford, if anyone gets development its the guys
heck even the side characters got more development than our dear protagonist.
A protagonist can make or break a game, clearly this one is breaking it for me
because a narrative can only be as strong and/or good as the person at the center.
When you think Rinka gets better she gets worse again, this sort of repeats and then
you do another route also yeah she is special, most otome game heroines are
but with Rinka I just wish they actually fleshed her out. >_>
Also there are hardly any choices except as to where to go and whether ot not you do
the soul touch thing depends on which ending you get, this combined with Rinka's personality
going with the flow never improving cept a little at the end just makes it worse.
Maybe its because she has nothing she can take in their problems but in reality that's not the
way it should work, I found Rinka's character to be quite shallow compared to everyone else.
If its supposed to give people struggling with depression a little hope then
it might have done so in the worst way possible, atleast flesh out your protag please.
If anything this game shows even if you have barely anything you can be someones light...
Okay that aside on my first play I did like the mystery aspect what little there was
the soul touch thing depends on which ending you get, this combined with Rinka's personality
going with the flow never improving cept a little at the end just makes it worse.
Maybe its because she has nothing she can take in their problems but in reality that's not the
way it should work, I found Rinka's character to be quite shallow compared to everyone else.
If its supposed to give people struggling with depression a little hope then
it might have done so in the worst way possible, atleast flesh out your protag please.
If anything this game shows even if you have barely anything you can be someones light...
since this is not the focus of the game nor was romance btw it was just shoehorned in in some routes.
So yeah at NEVEAH gakuen those that died early get another shot at life if they get expelled
or join the cycle of samsara if they graduate but for that they have to let go of everything.
Bad apples are people who don't follow the rules of this school and then there are the
people of the disciplinairy commitee who try to make sure everyone follows the rules
and try to correct the bad apples, huh this sounds awfully like angel beats! they even had a freaking
concert, lmao I think this game may be better if you are not familiar with that franchise. >_>
Its up to Rinka(or better put you) to decide to be a reject or a goody two shoes... not that it matters.
In some routes like Higa's I'd say the romance was believable but whether or not
some of the other guys are is a whole different matter entirely.
Also trashy sugitan and creepy koji yusa sub characters, check...
So now to the important part do I recommend it?
Not really but if you are in desperate need of another ENG otome then yeah go for it.
I am not even sure what I liked about this otome game as a whole... but I think
the one thing that shined are the characters even the sub chara's! but as for the whole
war thing may have been a bit overhyped I guess, because neither side goes THAT far.
The story well... after two routes you might've just seen it all since it stays the same
no matter what guy you go for the only difference is scenes with him and his past etc.
Outside of the characters past, I still found most chara's to be plain except some of the side
characters like Naraka for example imo he was a great sub chara.Also there are no real individual
routes so if you thought Code:realize was great for having a unique story for each guy
then you'd probably be disappointed here by the amount of copy pasta to the point by route four
litte amazed me. I've played lots of otome games some also have content that just repeats
no matter what but then something else made up for that, I can't find that here.
BAW has some touching moments which could make you think about stuff but that's it
I hardly found much to be memorable it pretty much focuses on the characters over anything else.
Rinka needed more development but if I think really hard it wouldn't have worked in another way
that aside I need not repeat myself to how much of a disappointment she was for me right?
Yeah sorry I cannot fully recommend this otome game when the protag is literally an empty shell
from begin to end- the only thing that helped her realize her purpose was the guy of her choice.
Don't want to be that person but the guys aren't that interesting outside of their (sad) past...
nor is the otome part that satisfying, in other words imo this is a mediocre game.
Well that ends my probably spoiler free section, I recommend to not read any of my
character babbles if you want to play the game yourself because I did wrote done their past
so there are definitely detailed spoilers of stuff including the endings.
I used the following play order:
Shikishima > Higa > Satoru > Alma > White Mask.
This was recommended but honestly I feel like it wouldn't matter who you did first
just pick someone you fancy if you don't care about fully completing it any time soon.
''Bad apple wars is a story about a girl who doesn't have much of anything never despaired
and a bunch of kids who gave up early in life due to shit getting too much for them.
They all get another chance in limbo(neveah) and there the forbidden rules exist
to make them try and fight for something they want aka the forbidden apple
to get to that point they need to fall and stand up countless times to get back the right to live.''
So yeah at NEVEAH gakuen those that died early get another shot at life if they get expelled
or join the cycle of samsara if they graduate but for that they have to let go of everything.
Bad apples are people who don't follow the rules of this school and then there are the
people of the disciplinairy commitee who try to make sure everyone follows the rules
and try to correct the bad apples, huh this sounds awfully like angel beats! they even had a freaking
concert, lmao I think this game may be better if you are not familiar with that franchise. >_>
Its up to Rinka(or better put you) to decide to be a reject or a goody two shoes... not that it matters.
In some routes like Higa's I'd say the romance was believable but whether or not
some of the other guys are is a whole different matter entirely.
Also trashy sugitan and creepy koji yusa sub characters, check...
So now to the important part do I recommend it?
Not really but if you are in desperate need of another ENG otome then yeah go for it.
I am not even sure what I liked about this otome game as a whole... but I think
the one thing that shined are the characters even the sub chara's! but as for the whole
war thing may have been a bit overhyped I guess, because neither side goes THAT far.
The story well... after two routes you might've just seen it all since it stays the same
no matter what guy you go for the only difference is scenes with him and his past etc.
Outside of the characters past, I still found most chara's to be plain except some of the side
characters like Naraka for example imo he was a great sub chara.Also there are no real individual
routes so if you thought Code:realize was great for having a unique story for each guy
then you'd probably be disappointed here by the amount of copy pasta to the point by route four
litte amazed me. I've played lots of otome games some also have content that just repeats
no matter what but then something else made up for that, I can't find that here.
BAW has some touching moments which could make you think about stuff but that's it
I hardly found much to be memorable it pretty much focuses on the characters over anything else.
Rinka needed more development but if I think really hard it wouldn't have worked in another way
that aside I need not repeat myself to how much of a disappointment she was for me right?
Yeah sorry I cannot fully recommend this otome game when the protag is literally an empty shell
from begin to end- the only thing that helped her realize her purpose was the guy of her choice.
Don't want to be that person but the guys aren't that interesting outside of their (sad) past...
nor is the otome part that satisfying, in other words imo this is a mediocre game.
Well that ends my probably spoiler free section, I recommend to not read any of my
character babbles if you want to play the game yourself because I did wrote done their past
so there are definitely detailed spoilers of stuff including the endings.
I used the following play order:
Shikishima > Higa > Satoru > Alma > White Mask.
This was recommended but honestly I feel like it wouldn't matter who you did first
just pick someone you fancy if you don't care about fully completing it any time soon.
''Bad apple wars is a story about a girl who doesn't have much of anything never despaired
and a bunch of kids who gave up early in life due to shit getting too much for them.
They all get another chance in limbo(neveah) and there the forbidden rules exist
to make them try and fight for something they want aka the forbidden apple
to get to that point they need to fall and stand up countless times to get back the right to live.''
Well there you have it! I just summed up this games plot without even being detailed.
Shikishima.
CV： Ishida Akira.
Seems like a genuinely nice guy... going at his own pace, he carries a sketchbook with him
and is often seen painting things he finds beautiful, these types can go both ways but he doesn't
appear to have ill intent, Shikishima is gentle and knowledgeable. Part of him seems different
or odd as he put it as he himself put it, Shikishima is neither a good or bad apple but neutral
and only ever joins the bad apples in his own route in others he's just a bystander going
where he pleases, to me it felt like he was the least relevant storywise. I do like his character
and the advice he gives Rinka, it made me want to continue but all this in my opinion makes him
a poor romantic interest even if they did form some sort of connection it was platonic at best.
So Shikishima's origins are complicated as he is from the taisho period... the people
at Neveah don't all come from the same generation, as of now Shikishima is the oldest but that
doesn't mean he arrived first, well let's stop there as the matter is best not to think too much about.
No matter where he goes he has but one purpose... to paint, he apparently finds Rinka beautiful
but its hard for me to feel any sort of chemistry other than her being like a muse at times
and he offering Rinka mental support like a responsible adult, always speaking in a positive way
but that's really it there's not much else I liked except learning about the side characters
and Shikishima's past, mind you both got more development than Rinka ever did.
This was such a bad route to do first... not only was Rinka annoying it was a pain seeing
such a nice guy having to put up with her, don't get me started how they handled
the romance but if I did it later down the line it would've been even more wasteful.
Atleast his past was interesting, quite sad its not easy being an oddball and to like things others
would find gross such as insects, so then one would choose to not say anything at all & close
themselves off that is untill he met his uncle and was introduced to paintings which he found
was the only way to express himself because no one understands his feelings in another way.
Shikishima chose the same life as his uncle or atleast he thought he did and met his end the same way.
Unable to communicate with others properly he choice to isolate himself to avoid disappointment.
Yet here at neveah he seems to have no problem acting like a responsible adult.
So because of the limit no one but him can see his pictures all else will just nothing but black
so his pictures must've been filled with affection but who knows! so when his route started
I felt even more disconnected since Shiki became obsessed with painting hoping to break his
limit and end up like Sanzu and disappear after everyone has seen his affection for the world
and then there is Rinka who doesn't want him doing that there should be romance here right?
THEN HOW COME I AIN'T FEELING IT? Shikishima would be better off as a side character
because I did like the non-romantic common route scenes with him, he was so positive
towards Rinka but then came his route and most of that disappeared! also said route
was hilariously short it was barely even two hours. I did Neveah end aka the bad one first
but lol it was hilariously convenient, Rinka decides to stay at his side and become an odd apple
like him, she gets accepted even thoughshe doesn't understand his paintings
They're content together till the end... till they lose themselves, wow that was an abrupt ending!
In reality its just the unfinished version of the good end! because that gets a whole extra chapter.
Shikishima's being content with doing what he wants and probably dying without leaving anything
behind but if he really didn't have any regrets then why is he at Neveah? perhaps deep down he
regrets everything to not trying harder to communicate outside of a painting brush, spoiler
he did have regrets of not making friends/reaching people. Also somehow Rinka manages
to break it to him let go and over come his limit and get him to join the bad apples for real
so when they find the forbidden apple, Rinka will give it to him. so he can redo his life
and finish a damn painting so it can touch peoples hearts beyond his time
but Shikishima is still fated to die of an incurable illness(for its time).
Rinka promises to look for that painting if she gets back too, well that all happens
he finishes his painting and somehow gets reincarnated and pulls some strings
to put it on display at a gallery and some how he meets Rinka by a string of luck.
While part of Shikishima's route is touching, mostly his past I didn't really find it to be anything
special, romantically almost everything was platonic, of course Rinka means a lot to him
since she's the only one who ever tried to understand him, still I can't find much romance
and the good ending didn't make it much better because its literally a beginning for them. >_>
TL;DR there was little I liked except Shikishima's character maybe, all the romance was so
sudden his reincarnation suffered from love at first sight and some how Rinka feels the same.
Shikishima sure lived up to being an Ishida Akira character that's for sure because oh boy is he
stubborn going about his ways and somehow our empty little heroine made him see. >_>
Its not that I can't stand love at first sight but not in this case... you know its bad
when not even the protagonist, Rinka in this case gets why she loves his split image.
Shikishima was mostly just a nice guy always being positive towards Rinka but its hard
to understand him and before I knew it, it was the end! proper romance? nuhuh not here.
Romance ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot ★☆☆☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★☆☆☆☆
~
Higa.
CV: Suwabe Junichi.
The resident tough guy with a baseball bat and wears no shirt, has more muscles than brains
a fitting sidekick for Alma, though if this was not otome they'd be a great couple.
Well since this is my second route... most of it flew by the common route scenes
are just from another perspective, okay some stuff is different. :P
The level of copy pasta actually irritated me because I been there done that its just the game classifies
it as new because you're with guy x and thus I force skipped everything I knew I already saw
don't worry I missed nothing because I knew which parts would be worth the read.
That aside Higa's scenes felt a lot more otome to me like him catchng a spaced out Rinka
who almost fell down the stairs all while he doesn't seem to be interested in Rinka at first
but looks out for her anyway since she's part of the gang but at the same time insults her
for being an airhead so their relationship flowed more natural and not instantly like each other.
Alma forces Higa to protect her during the welcoming party whether he likes it or not
ow well guess it all starts rolling from here also I am grateful for Higa being honest
at how annoying Rinka is for trying to keep up with him but failing and slowing him down.
One fo my favorite scenes early one might have been him dragging her to play catch
only to accidently hit the ball in her face, he was like you're not dead right? of course not
since you can't die and injuries get healed... leading to him being oh right i'm stoopid
the other being Higa wanting Rinka to slap him again... but it turned out to be a weak one
since there was no need to slap him silly to get him back to normal like before
when he got corrected during the welcoming party trying to protect her.
Some may say he's inconsiderate but I do value honesty over someone being overly kind
after the last route this was a blessing, okay every guy probably has their own way of
getting the message across but so far I like Higa's way more the only bad part
may be him treating his bro Alma like he's a god or something turns out this is just
Higa mixing up reality with this place so Alma is like a real bro to him. >_>
This route was much much much better than Shikishima's, their relationship flowed
more natural and then he slowly shows despite that tough look what a big softie he really is. ๐
Yeah I actually enjoyed this route like they actually had chemistry! and Naraka oh my god
he was being such a shipper on the deck throughout the route, these two are meant to be!
There was also some puns about Higa filling the hole inside Rinka... to be honest
her admiting this fact how being with him improves her self made it even better. ๐
I never noticed her saying something like this in the previous route...
where it more or less was all about understanding the odd ball Shikishima.
After the whole thing with Sanzu the route starts with him becoming distant, stubborn and
trying to go on a rampage around the school cue Rinka blaming herself for causing it. >_>
Well it seems this route had an actual antagonist for once, mr gas mask...
I guess the whole thing brought these two idiots even closer.
As for his past... apparently his mom died of an illness and was left all alone
Shikishima.
CV： Ishida Akira.
 |
| Its painfully obvious Shikishima is not the main guy and his route sort of exists to have one more love interest. |
and is often seen painting things he finds beautiful, these types can go both ways but he doesn't
appear to have ill intent, Shikishima is gentle and knowledgeable. Part of him seems different
or odd as he put it as he himself put it, Shikishima is neither a good or bad apple but neutral
and only ever joins the bad apples in his own route in others he's just a bystander going
where he pleases, to me it felt like he was the least relevant storywise. I do like his character
and the advice he gives Rinka, it made me want to continue but all this in my opinion makes him
a poor romantic interest even if they did form some sort of connection it was platonic at best.
So Shikishima's origins are complicated as he is from the taisho period... the people
at Neveah don't all come from the same generation, as of now Shikishima is the oldest but that
doesn't mean he arrived first, well let's stop there as the matter is best not to think too much about.
No matter where he goes he has but one purpose... to paint, he apparently finds Rinka beautiful
but its hard for me to feel any sort of chemistry other than her being like a muse at times
and he offering Rinka mental support like a responsible adult, always speaking in a positive way
but that's really it there's not much else I liked except learning about the side characters
and Shikishima's past, mind you both got more development than Rinka ever did.
This was such a bad route to do first... not only was Rinka annoying it was a pain seeing
such a nice guy having to put up with her, don't get me started how they handled
the romance but if I did it later down the line it would've been even more wasteful.
Atleast his past was interesting, quite sad its not easy being an oddball and to like things others
would find gross such as insects, so then one would choose to not say anything at all & close
themselves off that is untill he met his uncle and was introduced to paintings which he found
was the only way to express himself because no one understands his feelings in another way.
Shikishima chose the same life as his uncle or atleast he thought he did and met his end the same way.
Unable to communicate with others properly he choice to isolate himself to avoid disappointment.
Yet here at neveah he seems to have no problem acting like a responsible adult.
So because of the limit no one but him can see his pictures all else will just nothing but black
so his pictures must've been filled with affection but who knows! so when his route started
I felt even more disconnected since Shiki became obsessed with painting hoping to break his
limit and end up like Sanzu and disappear after everyone has seen his affection for the world
and then there is Rinka who doesn't want him doing that there should be romance here right?
THEN HOW COME I AIN'T FEELING IT? Shikishima would be better off as a side character
because I did like the non-romantic common route scenes with him, he was so positive
towards Rinka but then came his route and most of that disappeared! also said route
was hilariously short it was barely even two hours. I did Neveah end aka the bad one first
but lol it was hilariously convenient, Rinka decides to stay at his side and become an odd apple
like him, she gets accepted even thoughshe doesn't understand his paintings
They're content together till the end... till they lose themselves, wow that was an abrupt ending!
In reality its just the unfinished version of the good end! because that gets a whole extra chapter.
 |
| I'll admit this is probably my favorite CG even if its a bad end. |
behind but if he really didn't have any regrets then why is he at Neveah? perhaps deep down he
regrets everything to not trying harder to communicate outside of a painting brush, spoiler
he did have regrets of not making friends/reaching people. Also somehow Rinka manages
to break it to him let go and over come his limit and get him to join the bad apples for real
so when they find the forbidden apple, Rinka will give it to him. so he can redo his life
and finish a damn painting so it can touch peoples hearts beyond his time
but Shikishima is still fated to die of an incurable illness(for its time).
Rinka promises to look for that painting if she gets back too, well that all happens
he finishes his painting and somehow gets reincarnated and pulls some strings
to put it on display at a gallery and some how he meets Rinka by a string of luck.
While part of Shikishima's route is touching, mostly his past I didn't really find it to be anything
special, romantically almost everything was platonic, of course Rinka means a lot to him
since she's the only one who ever tried to understand him, still I can't find much romance
and the good ending didn't make it much better because its literally a beginning for them. >_>
TL;DR there was little I liked except Shikishima's character maybe, all the romance was so
sudden his reincarnation suffered from love at first sight and some how Rinka feels the same.
Shikishima sure lived up to being an Ishida Akira character that's for sure because oh boy is he
stubborn going about his ways and somehow our empty little heroine made him see. >_>
Its not that I can't stand love at first sight but not in this case... you know its bad
when not even the protagonist, Rinka in this case gets why she loves his split image.
Shikishima was mostly just a nice guy always being positive towards Rinka but its hard
to understand him and before I knew it, it was the end! proper romance? nuhuh not here.
 |
| Its not that I don't like Shikishima... but it feels like he got the short end of the stick in more ways than one. |
Plot ★☆☆☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★☆☆☆☆
~
Higa.
CV: Suwabe Junichi.
a fitting sidekick for Alma, though if this was not otome they'd be a great couple.
Well since this is my second route... most of it flew by the common route scenes
are just from another perspective, okay some stuff is different. :P
The level of copy pasta actually irritated me because I been there done that its just the game classifies
it as new because you're with guy x and thus I force skipped everything I knew I already saw
don't worry I missed nothing because I knew which parts would be worth the read.
That aside Higa's scenes felt a lot more otome to me like him catchng a spaced out Rinka
who almost fell down the stairs all while he doesn't seem to be interested in Rinka at first
but looks out for her anyway since she's part of the gang but at the same time insults her
for being an airhead so their relationship flowed more natural and not instantly like each other.
Alma forces Higa to protect her during the welcoming party whether he likes it or not
ow well guess it all starts rolling from here also I am grateful for Higa being honest
at how annoying Rinka is for trying to keep up with him but failing and slowing him down.
One fo my favorite scenes early one might have been him dragging her to play catch
only to accidently hit the ball in her face, he was like you're not dead right? of course not
since you can't die and injuries get healed... leading to him being oh right i'm stoopid
the other being Higa wanting Rinka to slap him again... but it turned out to be a weak one
since there was no need to slap him silly to get him back to normal like before
when he got corrected during the welcoming party trying to protect her.
 |
| Precious boy... |
after the last route this was a blessing, okay every guy probably has their own way of
getting the message across but so far I like Higa's way more the only bad part
may be him treating his bro Alma like he's a god or something turns out this is just
Higa mixing up reality with this place so Alma is like a real bro to him. >_>
This route was much much much better than Shikishima's, their relationship flowed
more natural and then he slowly shows despite that tough look what a big softie he really is. ๐
Yeah I actually enjoyed this route like they actually had chemistry! and Naraka oh my god
he was being such a shipper on the deck throughout the route, these two are meant to be!
her admiting this fact how being with him improves her self made it even better. ๐
I never noticed her saying something like this in the previous route...
where it more or less was all about understanding the odd ball Shikishima.
After the whole thing with Sanzu the route starts with him becoming distant, stubborn and
trying to go on a rampage around the school cue Rinka blaming herself for causing it. >_>
Well it seems this route had an actual antagonist for once, mr gas mask...
I guess the whole thing brought these two idiots even closer.
As for his past... apparently his mom died of an illness and was left all alone
without her he doesn't see much of a purpose in life but then was taken in by someone
claiming to be his dad who had a family of his own, Higa eventually was introduced
to baseball when he had trouble fitting in, he looked up to his new brother a lot
he wanted to make his dream of going to the nationals a reality.
Then some nasty rumors spread about Higa being the son of one of his dad's mistresses
and all Higa wants is to help his new family not cause trouble for them so he starts to feel useless.
So then one day this chick at school confesses she likes Higa but he's like you must be joking
don't mess with me! his brother saw him make her cry and hit him and calls him an idiot
leading to Higa blaming himself for screwing up yet again, lovely.
So after the summer break, his bro will quit baseball to focus on his studies
since he's aiming for a college in another prefecture this makes Higa wish summer
would never end because the brother he so idolized will move away from him
then one day he ends up saving some kids on the road and got injured when a car hit Higa
he feels relieve but at the same time a regret no he's not exactly dead yet...
Higa can is alive yes but he can't do anything like he knows his bro is talking to him
but he can't hear well its all muffled but he can tell his bro is upset.
Depending on the ending you go for you will be able to hear it and well his brother is actually
proud of him, he tried his best at the nationals for him but they lost and he is able
to be strong because he was there, Higa helped out his brother so much without knowing
and in the end the two want to repay each other for what they did for each other.
Then Higa let's despair get the better of him and wishes he never met his bro
because all he does is cause trouble for him IF ONLY I HADN'T EXISTED.
All he wanted was to help the people dear to him he doesn't want to be
useless and regret doing nothing, he failed doing that and simply gave up.
As usual I did the neveah end first and its basically another quick exit without them
getting to the route of the problem, Alma disbands the bad apples, Higa totally twists
reality with this place and thinks Alma is his real bro and agrees with him completely
Alma doesn't want that but he's like whatever about it, later the Higa and Rinka realize
they both need each other in this place even if they don't move forward
Rinka goes along and let's him become her knight, that's it disappointing huh?
In the good end, Rinka manages to hear what his brother was saying to him
and she relays how proud he is and how much he wants to repay Higa for all he did.
Higa realizes how much of an idiot he's been and even Rinka realizes that she's been stupid
and can finally like herself because the reason she was empty may have been for this moment.
To let Higa know what his bro was really saying. WAIT wtf why is this dialogue
so much better than the previous route? anyway they play some catch and then go find Alma
so Higa can tell him to rely on him more but they end up fighting since Alma is being indifferent.
So now this one they think of a plan to break the remaining rules and get the apple
and after they get expelled/graduate they get seperated right...?
claiming to be his dad who had a family of his own, Higa eventually was introduced
to baseball when he had trouble fitting in, he looked up to his new brother a lot
he wanted to make his dream of going to the nationals a reality.
Then some nasty rumors spread about Higa being the son of one of his dad's mistresses
and all Higa wants is to help his new family not cause trouble for them so he starts to feel useless.
So then one day this chick at school confesses she likes Higa but he's like you must be joking
don't mess with me! his brother saw him make her cry and hit him and calls him an idiot
leading to Higa blaming himself for screwing up yet again, lovely.
So after the summer break, his bro will quit baseball to focus on his studies
since he's aiming for a college in another prefecture this makes Higa wish summer
would never end because the brother he so idolized will move away from him
then one day he ends up saving some kids on the road and got injured when a car hit Higa
he feels relieve but at the same time a regret no he's not exactly dead yet...
Higa can is alive yes but he can't do anything like he knows his bro is talking to him
but he can't hear well its all muffled but he can tell his bro is upset.
Depending on the ending you go for you will be able to hear it and well his brother is actually
proud of him, he tried his best at the nationals for him but they lost and he is able
to be strong because he was there, Higa helped out his brother so much without knowing
and in the end the two want to repay each other for what they did for each other.
Then Higa let's despair get the better of him and wishes he never met his bro
because all he does is cause trouble for him IF ONLY I HADN'T EXISTED.
All he wanted was to help the people dear to him he doesn't want to be
useless and regret doing nothing, he failed doing that and simply gave up.
getting to the route of the problem, Alma disbands the bad apples, Higa totally twists
reality with this place and thinks Alma is his real bro and agrees with him completely
Alma doesn't want that but he's like whatever about it, later the Higa and Rinka realize
they both need each other in this place even if they don't move forward
Rinka goes along and let's him become her knight, that's it disappointing huh?
In the good end, Rinka manages to hear what his brother was saying to him
and she relays how proud he is and how much he wants to repay Higa for all he did.
Higa realizes how much of an idiot he's been and even Rinka realizes that she's been stupid
and can finally like herself because the reason she was empty may have been for this moment.
To let Higa know what his bro was really saying. WAIT wtf why is this dialogue
so much better than the previous route? anyway they play some catch and then go find Alma
so Higa can tell him to rely on him more but they end up fighting since Alma is being indifferent.
So now this one they think of a plan to break the remaining rules and get the apple
and after they get expelled/graduate they get seperated right...?
They promise to look for each other but the problem is he is from the showa period
so uhm dat age gap but atleast they ended up in a relationship even if
there's no time for actual dates at Neveah also sasuga Higa the over-protective BF.
For some reason Higa managed to graduate the same way Sanzu did because when they all
played catch together everyone was having fun and realized his love for baseball or whatever.
so uhm dat age gap but atleast they ended up in a relationship even if
there's no time for actual dates at Neveah also sasuga Higa the over-protective BF.
For some reason Higa managed to graduate the same way Sanzu did because when they all
played catch together everyone was having fun and realized his love for baseball or whatever.
Juuust great! this idiot gets to make a dramatic exit oh well Rinka promises to find that apple
and meet this old fart so he can go straight to jail for tapping the jailbait that is Rinka.
I gotta admit I did get teary-eyed when Rinka told her message to the graduates...
After a year of rehab Rinka finally goes to school for the first time and meets his reincarnation?
he may not remember her but she does but they made a new promise.
In the end it wasn't much better than Shikishima which is probably the worst part
but atleast a decent amount of time passed and he confessed, can't say I felt much for
the destined to meet you part though again its really not much better.
Despite me enjoying some parts of the route I still can't help but say
well it wasn't that bad but its not exactly great either just the fine inbetween.
Maybe its because he has a huge brocon towards his brother... and well i'll say it again
atleast this time their relationship developed naturally but that's it really
I didn't really feel the romance that much but still better than insta-like Shikishima.
Another good thing to mention Rinka was less annoying in this route and it felt she
actually grew more (how little it may have been) here so that's another plus but other than that
it could be a little boring, Higa's past didn't exactly stand out that much but everything else was good
sadly when I look back Higa isn't that relevant storywise which is such a shame that aside
I still like this dork a whole lot you know so you can't say nothing good came out from this game.
Romance ★★★☆☆
Plot ★★☆☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★★★☆☆
~
Satoru.
CV: Hanae Natsuki.
Seems like a cranky bookworm... my first impression of him was that he's sort of broken
always studying, reciting lines and wanting to be left alone.
Satoru is anti-social but seems to be aware of his surroundings since he does pick
up what's being said even if it looks like he is not paying attention.
Unlike others I sort of was interested in him to find out WHY he is like that and it was nice
to take a break from the bad apple scenario with Rinka being a member of the disciplinaries
but the general writing was the same just told from another perspective. >_>
Being a member of the disciplinary commitee this time made no difference in the end, Rinka
would never correct someone and still go along with Naraka to the bad apples base at one point
because she thought it wouldn't hurt since hey they're not bad people and I skimmed
through most of the common scenes because no need about Alma explaining limits etc.
Rinka wasn't that annoying this time atleast... which I didn't thought was possible! Though
she mostly was thinking about if it was a dream or not, I lost count how much she brought it up lol.
Also Satoru telling Rinka to get lost in most of his scenes with his nose in his book made me barely
feel any chemistry between these two... except Rinka acting like a big sis looking out for her younger
brother, yep it was really hard to see the romance early on at most they'd be friends I guess?
I'd have to say it was a slow burn since i'd be lying if I said there was no romance at all.
Even though she's a prefect Rinka had no problem hanging out with the bad apples
in fact she liked doing so after she knew they aren't bad. I'd say they're a key point
in the route but more time with Satoru please? yeah ok he was studying so hard
all the time and wants to be left alone, i'm like so be it! ๐
As you can see the common route wasn't much fun this time and everything proceeds
like as usual the only thing that wasn't predictable was the reaper game.
I suppose most of the nice scenes are during the school festival which might've
been the place their relationship actually progressed! Sanzu's graduation was
Satoru's wake up call to the reality he is in now but even then was still pretty rushed.
In all honesty Satoru's common route was pretty boring cept for the bits about his past.
Now for his past: Satoru gets triggered by the word drop-out because he desperately wanted
to go to this specific school however his IQ isn't high enough so no matter how much
Satoru would study he'd probably never pass the entrance exam and even if he'd pass
would he keep up with the rest? doubtful but its important to remember someone doesn't
need to have an IQ of 100+ to be smart there's plenty of people that get by below that.
Why does he want to push himself so hard? is it his parents? i'd figure that much atleast
and well I wasn't far off since his mom's part of the reason, he does his best for her so she smiles.
Satoru doesn't want to disappoint his mom so he tries soo hard even if it means forgetting to eat or
lack of sleep, Satoru doesn't care what his teachers say he just doesn't want to disappoint his mom
because then she just gets depressed since he doesn't want to see his mom cry over bad grades.
His mom doesn't want Satoru to end up like his dad so she begs him over and over to stop
but he just says its fine, i'll grow up and make you proud. So at the store he realizes
his favorite manga has gotten soo far ahead and there's even a new game of a series he liked
but all that doesn't concern him, studying is all he can think about now not even friends matter.
I'd put this behavior as: I am different, I have to be reliable and be an adult even though I am a kid.
A kid shouldn't have to push himself so hard and his mom should've been clearer with him
but strangely enough I do find his situation to be relatable, Satoru died of overworking
trying to make his mom happy after his dad passed away.
After his wake up call he starts to turn into a depressed moeblob saying all is meaningless
but he doesn't wanna see Rinka get hurt when white mask corrects her for being a poor prefect.
so now its like he's turning into a real good apple, as usual Neveah end is done first:
Due to bad touches, Satoru further falls into a slump wanting to graduate and disappear.
So after Rinka figures out his past she tells him its ok to let go and now that she is no longer
a prefect she will stay with him forever so they can graduate together like all the normies.
They're reborn but they repeat the same cycle and then they're at neveah again...
Well atleast it clears up the what if they follow the rules and graduate but that's it.
So in the good end Rinka decides to not let Satoru become a good apple and the bad apples
helped her out like I thought they would sigh they're prolly going to break the rest of the rules
too while saving Satoru and get that forbidden apple to get expelled how predictable!
I literally skipped a chapter and a half till they crashed the ceremony to snatch him
nothing important happened and the overall romance already felt rushed the end further proved it
so when Rinka kissed him after she touched his heart and others with her speech I was like WUT
can't help yourself my arse, there is little chemistry between them but I guess
they ran out of time and have to cram everything right after another.
Aside from the story being better and wao Rinka wasn't annoying? they actually went
and answered a question in the nevaeh end most but the rest was pretty much the same
as always and I can't say I liked the romance because there was little of it but hey
atleast its not love at first sight or something like that anyway they convince the rotten apple
that tomorrow means another chance and the two promise to meet each other in the real world
after they eat their apples. Much like Rinka, Satoru wasn't dead yet just in a coma from malnutrition
his classmates all gave him a present when they came and wrote in the notebook to get well soon
so even if he ignored them they still cared for him so that was touching.
For some reason when he enrolls at his new school he ends up sitting next to Rinka
at the entrance ceremony, they both missed each other and no reincarnation/destiny crap either
since even if there was someone stuffing a love letter in his shoe box Rinka is definitely
the only one for Satoru now besides his mother I guess which made it that much more
believable to me, to the point i'd say its canon(maybe) okay well its was decent.
Only bad part is he gets no kiss CG even tho they did kiss but eh it didn't register in Rinka's brain, lol.
Romance ★★☆☆☆
Plot ★★★☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★★★☆☆
~
Alma.
CV: Sakurai Takahiro.
Cool guy, seems to be in charge of the bad apples atleast everyone treats him like
the leader even if he's sort of like whatever about it, he asks the protagonist
do you want to live? then come with us and fight the power, lol.
Alma has this natural chill air around him... the feel you can trust him
and despite him looking scary he's surprisingly gentle and chill also this being my
second to last route I am really tired of this games same-ish plot but I want
to move on to better things so gotta finish it so uhm... Alma's the type
to not talk about his issues he holds it all inside even if he's at breaking point yeah this
seemingly perfect level-headed leader ain't so perfect and not without his own problems!
So spaced out Rinka finds herself on the roof, Alma boy thinks she's gonna jump
so he tells her that no matter what they can't die nor exit da place
he even slits his own fucking throat in front of her to proof it wao wtf yo.
You know the drill, common route shit she joins the bad apples, more shit gets explained
but this time she's with leader boy again I skimmed through a lot of stuff so I was only left
with some stuff here and there, also there's this weird bias where the protagonist
feels nostalgic around Alma the more she gets to see his memories to make it worse
Rinka gets to see Sanzu and Yoh's concert up close, CG and all like its the complete version.
He falls in a slump after Sanzu's graduation, almost everyone leaves and Alma's ok with it
I literally could skim through Alma's first chapter and still get what's going on. wow
So by chance Rinka gets to look more into his soul and convinces him to not give up.
Alma gets reality mixed up with this place and thinks Rinka is the girl from his past.
Yeeeeeeeeeah we going that way...
Ahem since there's not much to write let's go over his past:
Apparently Alma used to play cat's cradle with a girl, hench why his soul totem is
a piece of red thread she was bad at it but he still helps her because they're friends.
She goes on about a rumor how some people may be destined to end up together because they're
connected by an invisible red thread, he apparently really treasured spending his time with her.
Maybe we are connected she says, Alma bluntly says he will always be with her
to the point they promised with a pinky swear. He thought it was a simple one
that there wouldn't be anything to keep him from it... but fate had other plans or so to speak
so Alma decided he wanted to be a doctor, he always got the highest scores on his tests
everyone admired him but he thought they're obnoxious, he's doing it for that girl
he hopes to make it before its too late, Alma sort of has the same mindset as Satoru
that he doesn't care much for his own health... work comes first.
He went to go to highschool in her place but he doesn't want to so he became a delinquent
causing trouble to the point his father doesn't see him as a son, Alma is literally
one step away from dropping out but this girl is his reason to keep going
he really loved this girl so much he'd be at her side till the last moment
but that didn't happen, the day her condition was critical he was beaten up by punks
he'd been forcing his anger out on, Alma couldn't even keep the promise he made.
So now he starts to blame himself, eat himself up over it becoming an empty shell in the progress
even if he had the chance to not meet her he'd still do it over and over again.
Alma couldn't let go of her and tried to remember her always but he started to forget
and then he found himself on a roof.. and he jumped trying to freeze time.
So that neveah ending... Alma now thinks Rinka is that girl and doesn't want her to go away and
the worst part is Rinka is fine with that because she pities him that much! plus she doesn't have a
place to go back to so she plays pretend since she doesn't have a self she's empty, the others?
Alma doesn't want to trouble them and so they stay at this cursed place forever unable
to move forward idk why but I was sad and happy at the same time.
Now to that good ending... because Rinka didn't touch where he didn't want she sees
the true version of his memories not much different but now she realizes how much
he cherishes the other bad apples and herself so she gets that feeling back across to him.
So now they got their shit together the bad apples plan to break the remaining rules
and get that forbidden apple they make a promise to meet agai-
So Alma doesn't have anything to go back to so Rinka brings up the red thread thing
so now, Alma is a bit stubborn but they make the promise, its funny Rinka has to tell Alma
all the stuff he knows very well continue to forgive himself, live and meet Rinka in the real world.
So after they made everyone cry and face the forbidden apple and they all eat it Alma wakes up
and realizes his dream to continue to become a doctor... SO MANY YEARS LATER
They get an emergency call and the victim is Rinka, Alma is the one who did the surgery
when she wakes. AT HER SIDE IS A GROWN MAN in a white doctors coat there's
no doubt about it but its ALMA who saved this highschool girl, Rinka. So after her graduation
which is 3 years later she returns to the hospital to confess to the doctor that saved her life
who patiently waited for her all this time! they both remember their promise, they confess
and our now going out because Rinka's legal and he can't get in trouble wow wao WOW.
Thanks for ending it there because I honestly do not even want to know if it worked out.
The best part about Alma's route may have been Sakurai's soft voice+his past everything else
just flew by which may have been a blessing in disguise, some of the bonding felt natural
BUT I started to realize how wrong it was by the ending especially for a modern setting game.
I didn't even mind that he had someone precious in his life before and part of me
wished he could've ended up with her or someone else even BUT destiny UwU.
Yes Rinka and Alma did have a connection but most of the time it felt like Rinka was an outsider
trying to help poor Alma get his thoughts straight. As for the good end and the route as a whole?
IDK it might be fine but romance wise I have questions, yeah she told him its ok to let go
but it all comes down to it Rinka was there when no one else was and told him the truth
cuz she saw his memories then he presumebly fell for her because she started to be as stubborn
as that gi- WOW fuck this. Alma even babbles about the possibility but kills the thought and just say
don't worry you're you and I want to live with you. HOWEVER I HAVE MIXED FEELINGS.
I suppose there's bias towards Alma like compared to all the routes I did his is the most
relevant storywise but... for some reason I feel its better for Rinka to end up with anyone but him.
Romance ★★☆☆☆ (Yeah its there I guess...)
Plot ★★☆☆☆ (If anything I liked his past.)
Enjoyment overall ★★☆☆☆ (By the end I was just like really? REALLY?!)
~
White Mask.
CV: Shinnosuke Tachibana.
Leader of the disciplinairy commitee... Alma's rival and out to correct those who stray
from the path saying to wish to live would be meaningless in a place like neveah.
His identity is mysterious and I was actually interested to see how it would play out.
So on the way to the guidance room Rinka gets lost... guess what happen? she runs into him!
Rinka asks for his name to make it easier to remember him because every prefect almost
looks the same but apparently white mask-san doesn't remember his because its not necessary
being given a number is enough. He gets mad when she tells him his name but after
a simple apology he's like ok fine you're new I let it slide and let you slowly learn the rules.
Basically Rinka is being a burden to him... but he helps her anyway since she is a prefect now
but she is stopping him from correcting tha baddies so white mask-san was really
angry at her but she just admits her mistake and that's that.
Most common scenes are shared with Satoru but I guess you are used to this by now
Rinka will hang out with the bad apples behind White Mask's back wow what a bitch
but how else would it work out? like Rinka has to see both sides and ask him about it
only to be met with you need not know anything, do as you are told don't have doubts. /kabedon
Sure White Mask was interesting and I kept going to see how it would develop
which was slow at first he acts so cold and distant to everyone and his constant
way of saying you need not know anything stay as you are early on nearly ruined it
he's also rough with her when he does find her with the bad apples. >_>
White Mask and Rinka's goals are different, he is very serious about correcting baddies
Rinka just... isn't sure about anything and White Mask tries to control her if she does something
wrong. Of course White Mask's has a heart even if it may not seem like he has.
Everything got better after Sanzu's concert which touched everyone hearts including White Mask.
The start of his route was good and bad, Rinka brings a necklace to him she found earlier
which turned out to be his soul totem, this triggered him since he rejects it.
Rinka sees his painful memories and starts to see how fragile he is but the next day
he's back to normal these days continues on for a bit till Rinka realizes he's not the same
but really frustrated at the baddies for doing what they do because he sees himself in them.
Romance wise it was slow but its there... Rinka slowly caring for him like she
does for the guys in everyones route which made stuff one sided, some more than others.
Then one day Watase just waltz into the bad apples HQ, takes his mask of and ...
I want you to let Rinka join you completely out of nowhere just to keep her away from him.
Despite me enjoying some parts of the route I still can't help but say
well it wasn't that bad but its not exactly great either just the fine inbetween.
Maybe its because he has a huge brocon towards his brother... and well i'll say it again
atleast this time their relationship developed naturally but that's it really
I didn't really feel the romance that much but still better than insta-like Shikishima.
Another good thing to mention Rinka was less annoying in this route and it felt she
actually grew more (how little it may have been) here so that's another plus but other than that
it could be a little boring, Higa's past didn't exactly stand out that much but everything else was good
sadly when I look back Higa isn't that relevant storywise which is such a shame that aside
I still like this dork a whole lot you know so you can't say nothing good came out from this game.
 |
| Honestly I liked this route A LOT prolly the best. |
Plot ★★☆☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★★★☆☆
~
Satoru.
CV: Hanae Natsuki.
 |
| Same Satoru... same. This is basically how I looked at Rinka in the first route of the game. |
always studying, reciting lines and wanting to be left alone.
Satoru is anti-social but seems to be aware of his surroundings since he does pick
up what's being said even if it looks like he is not paying attention.
Unlike others I sort of was interested in him to find out WHY he is like that and it was nice
to take a break from the bad apple scenario with Rinka being a member of the disciplinaries
but the general writing was the same just told from another perspective. >_>
Being a member of the disciplinary commitee this time made no difference in the end, Rinka
would never correct someone and still go along with Naraka to the bad apples base at one point
because she thought it wouldn't hurt since hey they're not bad people and I skimmed
through most of the common scenes because no need about Alma explaining limits etc.
Rinka wasn't that annoying this time atleast... which I didn't thought was possible! Though
she mostly was thinking about if it was a dream or not, I lost count how much she brought it up lol.
Also Satoru telling Rinka to get lost in most of his scenes with his nose in his book made me barely
feel any chemistry between these two... except Rinka acting like a big sis looking out for her younger
brother, yep it was really hard to see the romance early on at most they'd be friends I guess?
I'd have to say it was a slow burn since i'd be lying if I said there was no romance at all.
Even though she's a prefect Rinka had no problem hanging out with the bad apples
in fact she liked doing so after she knew they aren't bad. I'd say they're a key point
in the route but more time with Satoru please? yeah ok he was studying so hard
all the time and wants to be left alone, i'm like so be it! ๐
As you can see the common route wasn't much fun this time and everything proceeds
like as usual the only thing that wasn't predictable was the reaper game.
I suppose most of the nice scenes are during the school festival which might've
been the place their relationship actually progressed! Sanzu's graduation was
Satoru's wake up call to the reality he is in now but even then was still pretty rushed.
In all honesty Satoru's common route was pretty boring cept for the bits about his past.
to go to this specific school however his IQ isn't high enough so no matter how much
Satoru would study he'd probably never pass the entrance exam and even if he'd pass
would he keep up with the rest? doubtful but its important to remember someone doesn't
need to have an IQ of 100+ to be smart there's plenty of people that get by below that.
Why does he want to push himself so hard? is it his parents? i'd figure that much atleast
and well I wasn't far off since his mom's part of the reason, he does his best for her so she smiles.
Satoru doesn't want to disappoint his mom so he tries soo hard even if it means forgetting to eat or
lack of sleep, Satoru doesn't care what his teachers say he just doesn't want to disappoint his mom
because then she just gets depressed since he doesn't want to see his mom cry over bad grades.
His mom doesn't want Satoru to end up like his dad so she begs him over and over to stop
but he just says its fine, i'll grow up and make you proud. So at the store he realizes
his favorite manga has gotten soo far ahead and there's even a new game of a series he liked
but all that doesn't concern him, studying is all he can think about now not even friends matter.
I'd put this behavior as: I am different, I have to be reliable and be an adult even though I am a kid.
A kid shouldn't have to push himself so hard and his mom should've been clearer with him
but strangely enough I do find his situation to be relatable, Satoru died of overworking
trying to make his mom happy after his dad passed away.
After his wake up call he starts to turn into a depressed moeblob saying all is meaningless
but he doesn't wanna see Rinka get hurt when white mask corrects her for being a poor prefect.
so now its like he's turning into a real good apple, as usual Neveah end is done first:
Due to bad touches, Satoru further falls into a slump wanting to graduate and disappear.
So after Rinka figures out his past she tells him its ok to let go and now that she is no longer
a prefect she will stay with him forever so they can graduate together like all the normies.
They're reborn but they repeat the same cycle and then they're at neveah again...
Well atleast it clears up the what if they follow the rules and graduate but that's it.
So in the good end Rinka decides to not let Satoru become a good apple and the bad apples
helped her out like I thought they would sigh they're prolly going to break the rest of the rules
too while saving Satoru and get that forbidden apple to get expelled how predictable!
I literally skipped a chapter and a half till they crashed the ceremony to snatch him
nothing important happened and the overall romance already felt rushed the end further proved it
so when Rinka kissed him after she touched his heart and others with her speech I was like WUT
can't help yourself my arse, there is little chemistry between them but I guess
they ran out of time and have to cram everything right after another.
Aside from the story being better and wao Rinka wasn't annoying? they actually went
and answered a question in the nevaeh end most but the rest was pretty much the same
as always and I can't say I liked the romance because there was little of it but hey
atleast its not love at first sight or something like that anyway they convince the rotten apple
that tomorrow means another chance and the two promise to meet each other in the real world
after they eat their apples. Much like Rinka, Satoru wasn't dead yet just in a coma from malnutrition
his classmates all gave him a present when they came and wrote in the notebook to get well soon
so even if he ignored them they still cared for him so that was touching.
For some reason when he enrolls at his new school he ends up sitting next to Rinka
at the entrance ceremony, they both missed each other and no reincarnation/destiny crap either
since even if there was someone stuffing a love letter in his shoe box Rinka is definitely
the only one for Satoru now besides his mother I guess which made it that much more
believable to me, to the point i'd say its canon(maybe) okay well its was decent.
Only bad part is he gets no kiss CG even tho they did kiss but eh it didn't register in Rinka's brain, lol.
Plot ★★★☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★★★☆☆
~
Alma.
CV: Sakurai Takahiro.
 |
| Wha- indeed... |
the leader even if he's sort of like whatever about it, he asks the protagonist
do you want to live? then come with us and fight the power, lol.
Alma has this natural chill air around him... the feel you can trust him
and despite him looking scary he's surprisingly gentle and chill also this being my
second to last route I am really tired of this games same-ish plot but I want
to move on to better things so gotta finish it so uhm... Alma's the type
to not talk about his issues he holds it all inside even if he's at breaking point yeah this
seemingly perfect level-headed leader ain't so perfect and not without his own problems!
So spaced out Rinka finds herself on the roof, Alma boy thinks she's gonna jump
so he tells her that no matter what they can't die nor exit da place
he even slits his own fucking throat in front of her to proof it wao wtf yo.
You know the drill, common route shit she joins the bad apples, more shit gets explained
but this time she's with leader boy again I skimmed through a lot of stuff so I was only left
with some stuff here and there, also there's this weird bias where the protagonist
feels nostalgic around Alma the more she gets to see his memories to make it worse
Rinka gets to see Sanzu and Yoh's concert up close, CG and all like its the complete version.
He falls in a slump after Sanzu's graduation, almost everyone leaves and Alma's ok with it
I literally could skim through Alma's first chapter and still get what's going on. wow
So by chance Rinka gets to look more into his soul and convinces him to not give up.
Alma gets reality mixed up with this place and thinks Rinka is the girl from his past.
Yeeeeeeeeeah we going that way...
Ahem since there's not much to write let's go over his past:
Apparently Alma used to play cat's cradle with a girl, hench why his soul totem is
a piece of red thread she was bad at it but he still helps her because they're friends.
She goes on about a rumor how some people may be destined to end up together because they're
connected by an invisible red thread, he apparently really treasured spending his time with her.
Maybe we are connected she says, Alma bluntly says he will always be with her
to the point they promised with a pinky swear. He thought it was a simple one
that there wouldn't be anything to keep him from it... but fate had other plans or so to speak
so Alma decided he wanted to be a doctor, he always got the highest scores on his tests
everyone admired him but he thought they're obnoxious, he's doing it for that girl
he hopes to make it before its too late, Alma sort of has the same mindset as Satoru
that he doesn't care much for his own health... work comes first.
He went to go to highschool in her place but he doesn't want to so he became a delinquent
causing trouble to the point his father doesn't see him as a son, Alma is literally
one step away from dropping out but this girl is his reason to keep going
he really loved this girl so much he'd be at her side till the last moment
but that didn't happen, the day her condition was critical he was beaten up by punks
he'd been forcing his anger out on, Alma couldn't even keep the promise he made.
So now he starts to blame himself, eat himself up over it becoming an empty shell in the progress
even if he had the chance to not meet her he'd still do it over and over again.
Alma couldn't let go of her and tried to remember her always but he started to forget
and then he found himself on a roof.. and he jumped trying to freeze time.
So that neveah ending... Alma now thinks Rinka is that girl and doesn't want her to go away and
the worst part is Rinka is fine with that because she pities him that much! plus she doesn't have a
place to go back to so she plays pretend since she doesn't have a self she's empty, the others?
Alma doesn't want to trouble them and so they stay at this cursed place forever unable
to move forward idk why but I was sad and happy at the same time.
Now to that good ending... because Rinka didn't touch where he didn't want she sees
the true version of his memories not much different but now she realizes how much
he cherishes the other bad apples and herself so she gets that feeling back across to him.
 |
| ๆฐๆใกใใ。。。his mind said while he found his one and only pillow. |
and get that forbidden apple they make a promise to meet agai-
So Alma doesn't have anything to go back to so Rinka brings up the red thread thing
so now, Alma is a bit stubborn but they make the promise, its funny Rinka has to tell Alma
all the stuff he knows very well continue to forgive himself, live and meet Rinka in the real world.
So after they made everyone cry and face the forbidden apple and they all eat it Alma wakes up
and realizes his dream to continue to become a doctor... SO MANY YEARS LATER
They get an emergency call and the victim is Rinka, Alma is the one who did the surgery
when she wakes. AT HER SIDE IS A GROWN MAN in a white doctors coat there's
no doubt about it but its ALMA who saved this highschool girl, Rinka. So after her graduation
which is 3 years later she returns to the hospital to confess to the doctor that saved her life
who patiently waited for her all this time! they both remember their promise, they confess
and our now going out because Rinka's legal and he can't get in trouble wow wao WOW.
Thanks for ending it there because I honestly do not even want to know if it worked out.
The best part about Alma's route may have been Sakurai's soft voice+his past everything else
just flew by which may have been a blessing in disguise, some of the bonding felt natural
BUT I started to realize how wrong it was by the ending especially for a modern setting game.
I didn't even mind that he had someone precious in his life before and part of me
wished he could've ended up with her or someone else even BUT destiny UwU.
Yes Rinka and Alma did have a connection but most of the time it felt like Rinka was an outsider
trying to help poor Alma get his thoughts straight. As for the good end and the route as a whole?
IDK it might be fine but romance wise I have questions, yeah she told him its ok to let go
but it all comes down to it Rinka was there when no one else was and told him the truth
cuz she saw his memories then he presumebly fell for her because she started to be as stubborn
as that gi- WOW fuck this. Alma even babbles about the possibility but kills the thought and just say
don't worry you're you and I want to live with you. HOWEVER I HAVE MIXED FEELINGS.
I suppose there's bias towards Alma like compared to all the routes I did his is the most
relevant storywise but... for some reason I feel its better for Rinka to end up with anyone but him.
 |
| THEM APPLES... |
Plot ★★☆☆☆ (If anything I liked his past.)
Enjoyment overall ★★☆☆☆ (By the end I was just like really? REALLY?!)
~
White Mask.
CV: Shinnosuke Tachibana.
 |
| Rinka y u do this?! |
from the path saying to wish to live would be meaningless in a place like neveah.
His identity is mysterious and I was actually interested to see how it would play out.
So on the way to the guidance room Rinka gets lost... guess what happen? she runs into him!
Rinka asks for his name to make it easier to remember him because every prefect almost
looks the same but apparently white mask-san doesn't remember his because its not necessary
being given a number is enough. He gets mad when she tells him his name but after
a simple apology he's like ok fine you're new I let it slide and let you slowly learn the rules.
Basically Rinka is being a burden to him... but he helps her anyway since she is a prefect now
but she is stopping him from correcting tha baddies so white mask-san was really
angry at her but she just admits her mistake and that's that.
Most common scenes are shared with Satoru but I guess you are used to this by now
Rinka will hang out with the bad apples behind White Mask's back wow what a bitch
but how else would it work out? like Rinka has to see both sides and ask him about it
only to be met with you need not know anything, do as you are told don't have doubts. /kabedon
Sure White Mask was interesting and I kept going to see how it would develop
which was slow at first he acts so cold and distant to everyone and his constant
way of saying you need not know anything stay as you are early on nearly ruined it
he's also rough with her when he does find her with the bad apples. >_>
White Mask and Rinka's goals are different, he is very serious about correcting baddies
Rinka just... isn't sure about anything and White Mask tries to control her if she does something
wrong. Of course White Mask's has a heart even if it may not seem like he has.
Everything got better after Sanzu's concert which touched everyone hearts including White Mask.
The start of his route was good and bad, Rinka brings a necklace to him she found earlier
which turned out to be his soul totem, this triggered him since he rejects it.
Rinka sees his painful memories and starts to see how fragile he is but the next day
he's back to normal these days continues on for a bit till Rinka realizes he's not the same
but really frustrated at the baddies for doing what they do because he sees himself in them.
Romance wise it was slow but its there... Rinka slowly caring for him like she
does for the guys in everyones route which made stuff one sided, some more than others.
Then one day Watase just waltz into the bad apples HQ, takes his mask of and ...
I want you to let Rinka join you completely out of nowhere just to keep her away from him.
So then he talks with Rinka and says he's quiting the prefects and so should Rinka
because he wants her to life wow... all because she made him realize what he's been doing
he wants her to be happy so now there's atleast one more route in this game with decent romance.
Since Watase decided that all on his own Rinka goes on a wild goose chase she's let to the
science lab thanks to a tip from Alma and he's in there, Gas mask sensei is letting him despair
for all the sins he commited so now he wishes for death and he got it.
Since his memories are out of order I tried to get the events of his past in the right order:
Watase used to be known as a reaper all because his mom died giving birth to him
and his dad died saving him from a burning house, the people around him thought
he was cursed since he lost all his relatives people would tell other people
to avoid him and they did leaving him all alone and he's fine with it.
Watase really liked his dad because at least he was there for him when his sister's relatives
blamed him for their relatives death, wow thats just so wrong and childish.
Watase forces himself to act like a robot answering to he act without feeling all to prevent
people to get close to him because of his presence causing misfortune.
At his new school he doesn't try to make friends just act the same as always
but the person who sat next to him tries to befriend him and gives him a keychain despite
Watase saying there's no need he'll try and return it. The kid somehow fell and drowned
in a river, the only person that tried to be his friend in a long time is now dead.
During highschool when he finds a letter in his shoe box he simply tears it up even if
his homeroom teacher says he should've been interested Watase just denies.
This teacher tries to understand him... he even would give himmore lunch because
a convenience store sammich ain't enough for a kid but Watase just makes a swift exit.
His teacher is trying to get him to open up...so one night he spots him near the convenience store
as his teacher goes on about stuff this girl from his school crawls from the shadows
its the one that has sended the letters he always tears up, she's been looking at him
but he won't notice her then she suddenly shows her yandere side and pulls out a knife
and begs Watase to accept her loooooooooooooove but he doesn't reply so she
lunges at him but his teacher jumps between them taking the hit.
Watase believes the instant he cares for someone he loses them, he blames himself for everything
and some time later at a cross walk he notices a girl with a pure aura(Rinka) she spaced out
so now she rushed to the other side, he didn't want to look at her but she got into an accident.
Watase ran away and he blames himself for killing someone he didn't even know its not certain
how he ended up at neveah though maybe he despaired so hard ah well whatever.
So that Neveah end: Rinka jumps in does a bad touch and saw his last moments, realizes
its her fault and blames herself to the point she wants the same punishment Watase
has been getting, Alma saves her but Rinka just waits and then decides to continue
being a prefect till she overhears gasmask finishedmaking his greatest work to usher in
a new era of despair for nevaeh so Rinka decides to stop it so in the lab she learns that
if Watase enters the device his soul will be destroyed this is what he himself wants...
but Rinka in the heat of the moment ends up in it herself trying to save Watase. *facepalm*
Her soul was reduced to particles that now float around the academy, Watase decides
he no longer needs to disappear and just wanders this place as if to comfort her
she's trying to tell him to stop but he just says he won't ever leave her alone.
Okay... I'll admit this was a damn good bad ending perhaps the best in the game next to Satoru's.
In the good end because of no bad touch she ended up understanding his memories better
she wants to give him hope and love even if no one else will. Alma saves
the day and tells her she can save him another day which is what she'll do
since she can't do it alone she asks the bad apples much like in Satoru route*sigh*.
Much like in neveah end she finds herself overhearing that gasmask-sensei is almost done
but this time she uses her brain and tells the other bad apples to crash gasmask's party
Not everyone could come but uh Higa counts for two right?
Rinka tells him even if the world/fate whatever doesn't want them to be together
she still wants it and kisses it to prove it breaking an unbreakable rule in the progress
and together they kick gasmask's ass now that Watase has his soul totem aka his mom's necklace.
After they head back the others have made the graduates cry thus all rules have been broken
either way as always they face the forbidden apple and tell them that even if there's despair
they will still live cuz that ain't all to it so now everyone gets an apple to eat so they can go back.
Watase ends up disappearing before Rinka can say farewell so she searches
and finds him in a class room, he says he won't eat it because he will return for sure
and wants to go ahead and eat it already, Rinka promises that she will be waiting for him.
In the epilogue Watase finds himself crying looking at a cherry tree only to be called
back by the siren of the ambulance and gossiping townsfolk, he tells himself he won't run
and dashes of to the hospital and when Rinka wakes he's there, he continues to visit her
everyday after school while she recovers and is a real worrywart, aww that's so sweet.
They go for a walk and promise to go to an amusement part and experience many different things together.
Watase used to be known as a reaper all because his mom died giving birth to him
and his dad died saving him from a burning house, the people around him thought
he was cursed since he lost all his relatives people would tell other people
to avoid him and they did leaving him all alone and he's fine with it.
Watase really liked his dad because at least he was there for him when his sister's relatives
blamed him for their relatives death, wow thats just so wrong and childish.
Watase forces himself to act like a robot answering to he act without feeling all to prevent
people to get close to him because of his presence causing misfortune.
At his new school he doesn't try to make friends just act the same as always
but the person who sat next to him tries to befriend him and gives him a keychain despite
Watase saying there's no need he'll try and return it. The kid somehow fell and drowned
in a river, the only person that tried to be his friend in a long time is now dead.
During highschool when he finds a letter in his shoe box he simply tears it up even if
his homeroom teacher says he should've been interested Watase just denies.
This teacher tries to understand him... he even would give himmore lunch because
a convenience store sammich ain't enough for a kid but Watase just makes a swift exit.
His teacher is trying to get him to open up...so one night he spots him near the convenience store
as his teacher goes on about stuff this girl from his school crawls from the shadows
its the one that has sended the letters he always tears up, she's been looking at him
but he won't notice her then she suddenly shows her yandere side and pulls out a knife
and begs Watase to accept her loooooooooooooove but he doesn't reply so she
lunges at him but his teacher jumps between them taking the hit.
Watase believes the instant he cares for someone he loses them, he blames himself for everything
and some time later at a cross walk he notices a girl with a pure aura(Rinka) she spaced out
so now she rushed to the other side, he didn't want to look at her but she got into an accident.
Watase ran away and he blames himself for killing someone he didn't even know its not certain
how he ended up at neveah though maybe he despaired so hard ah well whatever.
So that Neveah end: Rinka jumps in does a bad touch and saw his last moments, realizes
its her fault and blames herself to the point she wants the same punishment Watase
has been getting, Alma saves her but Rinka just waits and then decides to continue
being a prefect till she overhears gasmask finishedmaking his greatest work to usher in
a new era of despair for nevaeh so Rinka decides to stop it so in the lab she learns that
if Watase enters the device his soul will be destroyed this is what he himself wants...
but Rinka in the heat of the moment ends up in it herself trying to save Watase. *facepalm*
Her soul was reduced to particles that now float around the academy, Watase decides
he no longer needs to disappear and just wanders this place as if to comfort her
she's trying to tell him to stop but he just says he won't ever leave her alone.
Okay... I'll admit this was a damn good bad ending perhaps the best in the game next to Satoru's.
In the good end because of no bad touch she ended up understanding his memories better
she wants to give him hope and love even if no one else will. Alma saves
the day and tells her she can save him another day which is what she'll do
since she can't do it alone she asks the bad apples much like in Satoru route*sigh*.
Much like in neveah end she finds herself overhearing that gasmask-sensei is almost done
but this time she uses her brain and tells the other bad apples to crash gasmask's party
Not everyone could come but uh Higa counts for two right?
Rinka tells him even if the world/fate whatever doesn't want them to be together
she still wants it and kisses it to prove it breaking an unbreakable rule in the progress
and together they kick gasmask's ass now that Watase has his soul totem aka his mom's necklace.
After they head back the others have made the graduates cry thus all rules have been broken
either way as always they face the forbidden apple and tell them that even if there's despair
they will still live cuz that ain't all to it so now everyone gets an apple to eat so they can go back.
Watase ends up disappearing before Rinka can say farewell so she searches
and finds him in a class room, he says he won't eat it because he will return for sure
and wants to go ahead and eat it already, Rinka promises that she will be waiting for him.
In the epilogue Watase finds himself crying looking at a cherry tree only to be called
back by the siren of the ambulance and gossiping townsfolk, he tells himself he won't run
and dashes of to the hospital and when Rinka wakes he's there, he continues to visit her
everyday after school while she recovers and is a real worrywart, aww that's so sweet.
They go for a walk and promise to go to an amusement part and experience many different things together.
I thought his route flowed really well because it was interesting to know more about Watase
because everything is shrouded in mystery, the romance was a tad slow but other than that ok
it felt like it was the most well rounded route in the game to me next to Higa maybe.
Sadly this was no true route since it doesn't really explain everything like for one if he really
died or not but I admit Watase and Alma's route are the only ones that are relevant storywise.
Also just to be clear White Mask's real name is Iku Watase not Shou Watase
like you must be really daft to not hear that when he said it. GDI here I thought
there was no major typo in bad apple wars, I was proven wrong yet again.
Romance ★★★★☆
Plot ★★★☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★★★☆☆
~
Fave route:.
White Mask > Higa > Satoru > Alma > Shikishima.
I found Alma's story to be pretty touching and the most relevant story wise
among the bad apples but I may've just enjoyed Higa's route more. _(:3」∠)_
In terms of ending Satoru is above everyone else though since IDK it felt right?
If I had to do rank the story/ending it would be:
White Mask > Satoru > Alma > Higa > Shikishima
Fav character:
White Mask > Naraka > Higa /Alma > Satoru > Sanzu/Yoh > Enishi > Shikishima > good!Rinka > bad!Rinka.
Nothing against Satoru but I never really liked him that much even if his route/end was ok.
As for Shikishima I think he was shoehorned in last moment or something like even if
I personally liked part of his character I always find another character to play a better
part in the game as a whole except Rinka. Higa's a dork and I loved his route
but when I really think about it he doesn't rank that high overall.
Alma he's great in everyone elses route but his own OH BOY that aside I do like him just not
romantically. Also tfw not even Sakurai Takahiro could save Alma for me.
In the end White Mask might have been my favorite...
Final thoughts
because everything is shrouded in mystery, the romance was a tad slow but other than that ok
it felt like it was the most well rounded route in the game to me next to Higa maybe.
Sadly this was no true route since it doesn't really explain everything like for one if he really
died or not but I admit Watase and Alma's route are the only ones that are relevant storywise.
Also just to be clear White Mask's real name is Iku Watase not Shou Watase
like you must be really daft to not hear that when he said it. GDI here I thought
there was no major typo in bad apple wars, I was proven wrong yet again.
Plot ★★★☆☆
Enjoyment overall ★★★☆☆
~
Fave route:.
White Mask > Higa > Satoru > Alma > Shikishima.
I found Alma's story to be pretty touching and the most relevant story wise
among the bad apples but I may've just enjoyed Higa's route more. _(:3」∠)_
In terms of ending Satoru is above everyone else though since IDK it felt right?
If I had to do rank the story/ending it would be:
White Mask > Satoru > Alma > Higa > Shikishima
Fav character:
White Mask > Naraka > Higa /Alma > Satoru > Sanzu/Yoh > Enishi > Shikishima > good!Rinka > bad!Rinka.
Nothing against Satoru but I never really liked him that much even if his route/end was ok.
As for Shikishima I think he was shoehorned in last moment or something like even if
I personally liked part of his character I always find another character to play a better
part in the game as a whole except Rinka. Higa's a dork and I loved his route
but when I really think about it he doesn't rank that high overall.
Alma he's great in everyone elses route but his own OH BOY that aside I do like him just not
romantically. Also tfw not even Sakurai Takahiro could save Alma for me.
In the end White Mask might have been my favorite...
Final thoughts
 |
| Yeah once is nice, twice is ok but by the 5th its so blatantly obvious how much was the same. |
but that's it. I do not even know why this was chosen for localization, clearly it was forced.
The story was so-so, life and death stories are difficult, atleast they TRIED to make an otome
version of angel beats!
not really. Part of me thinks I am too old another part thinks maybe they should've put more effort
into the protagonist huebackstoryhue or not make half of the cast so plain outside of their past.
Couldn't take the it was destiny endings seriously for the least relevant characters either.
Then there's the setting and the general dialogue... okay sure some of the
dialogue could get deep but even then its surprisingly easy to follow like a lonesome girl
who has nothing, no sense of attachment can understand the guys and in turn help them
because their memories flow into her by touch, can't mention it enough but
Rinka's character was really plain and her negativity annoyed me in the bad apples routes
except in Higa's because he actually out right told her to stop being so stupid and she actually
found a damn reason for existing, which made me smile. Sadly she doesn't grow much
only the guy gives her reason to try and get some sort of fulfillment, if anything she did
get better by the end of the route but that's it no real development. That aside the overall flow of
the game was the same no matter what, except for some small parts the more routes I did
the easier to predict what was going to happen since there are no unique routes and the general
ending is the same, just different character so many times I was like I HAVE READ or I ALREADY
KNOW THIS wut da point? they clearly cut and pasted key dialogue and just said NEW.
True other games have it too but unlike something like harukanaru they don't allow you to readskip
common scenes, at BAW they force it down your throat as new because they programmed
it that way but man its so lazy to give every guy near identical scenes. Like norn9 for example
allowed you to skip identical stuff and I found the characters interaction to be actual fun
and most of the romance made sense even if the story was full of holes.
Its ok if some stuff doesn't change... that's normal but its really immature of the writer
because they can't come up with unique dialogue.๐ก The more routes I did here...
the naggier I got to the point I skimmed through anything familiar.
You'll get a cookie from me if you actually sat through it all patiently.
Can't say much was memorable except(maybe) the guys past, some scenes here and there
and just when romance gets good BAM its the end, heh atleast it knows where to end.
It took me 2 and a half days to finish the first route, so its not long either even then the first route
I did barely felt otome-ish to me even maybe it was just Shikishima since Higa was better atleast
but its blatanly obvious that neither two are a special case, especially the former.
Also i'd love to say there's no true end but there's a blatant bias for Alma and White Mask, still
everyone could be canon in a way especially with some routes riding on the whole
it was destiny for us to meet again trope which I have a love/hate relationship with
but nothing else really stood out. Much like Period Cube, Bad Apple Wars really wasn't
that great but its good to have variety in english otome games not all otome games have stellar
stories or well written protagonists, at times the chara's/seiyuu and art are main attraction.
I don't want to say don't buy this... you could give it a try but don't expect THAT much.
5/10
BAW was a so-so experience for me...I wouldn't say it was that awful but it gets close.
The only thing it had going for it was the characters past... everything else is mediocre
and a one-track split road with the same general stuff. I'd go as far as say something like
Black Wolves Saga is better even if it has a 90% common route 10% individual
because atleast it surprises you with many different revelations despite how short their routes are
but that too had some copy pasta problems due to how much you skip to get there, lol.
Here everything always ends in the same way... which might be irritating for completionists.
BAW might be better if you can stand themes that involve finding your soulmate/ the
one to live for and it was destiny for us to meet again... or can stand an extremely
negative protagonist (who might get better) which will make or break this game for you
again it might be better if you do not know Angel Beats then it might be a little unique.
Characters ★★★☆☆ (It depends...)
Art ★★★★★
Scenario/plot. ★★☆☆☆ (Could be better... )
Music ★★★★★ (Catchy...)
System ★★★★★ Its comfy can pretty much do without guide...)
Enjoyment overall ★★☆☆☆ (Its quite shallow, memorable? saa...)
Now that I got this out of the way, I am actually looking forward to a more
normal otome game with an actual decent protagonist and writing.
No comments:
Post a Comment