Toki no Kizuna Hanayui Tsuzuri - Review

PSP box art cuz its gongeous I mean gorgeous.

Genre: VN.

Developer/publisher: Otomate

Platform: PSP,switch.
Official Site: https://www.otomate.jp/toki/switch/

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v12141

Release date: 19-6-2025

 

Once upon a time otomate released an otome game called Toki no Kizuna

but then realized it didn't nearly have enough romance which was lost in the sauce

that was the overall story so they released a FD; Hanayui Tsuzuri.

 

--- 

Pro's

- After stories were a much needed epilogue to the original routes.

- Most other side content brought a smile to my face.

- After's are of decent length and didn't really overstay their welcome. 

 

Con's 

- New routes and flower chapter rely on Senkimaru's sad end so you could

feel lost in terms of continuity if you happened to only do the good ends in OG.

- Yachiyo's route is really aimed at a special audience so its not for everyone.

 ---

 

I thought the OP was pretty fire this time around and actually wanted

to listen to it most of the time I booted it up. The original game's OP

was a good jam too but it just didn't hit as good as the FD one. 

 

As for the heroine she mostly has dropped the act of pretending to be a man and she

was much more accepting of herself. Yukina let her feminine side shine through in this FD.

Maybe for some its disappointing but I didn't mind this. The extended epilogue

really did show her at her most badass which was really good IMO. 

 

---  

After stories.

All after stories start with a brief summary of the route but it felt a bit rushed

I suppose it might be good if you need a quick refresher, other than that they were in generally

pretty good as an extended epilogue but that's about it. Doing your fav LI first is recommended. 

There are choices in the after stories but it doesn't affect the outcome.

The only thing it affects is the CG variation so there's not much to worry about

and you can play at your leasure without fear of bad ends which the original had a lot of. 

 

New routes.

As you know there are new routes for Shiyuu and Yachiyo but honestly they're a hit or miss.

I didn't like Yachiyo's because it is really aimed at a specific audience that is not for me.

Shiyuu's route was a lot better and more well rounded, I actually cared about him.

Before I played this FD I wasn't sure when these took place but it made sense

for it to happen after Senkimaru's sad end as she doesn't end up with anyone

and certain characters are alive except someone and Yukina basically is the head honcho.

The new routes didn't have any choices so it was like reading a novel. 

 ---

 

There's a Inbetween chapter that takes place sometime during the original game

with some choices that may give extra CG with the chosen LI.

Honestly I don't really like this sort of content that's supposed to make up for

the lack of fun times in the original. Its hard to get into it so i'd rather prefer a scenario

after endings of the original game and that did exist in this game this just wasn't it.

In terms of length it was maybe about 30 mins to an hour the first time through.

You will pretty much skip half of it when doing another character in this section. 

I only bothered with Kazuya for this and vibed through some of the others

but it was kinda funny how he was constantly so listless, it actually was a problem.😂

 Other than that there's the flower chapter that takes place after Senkimaru's sad ending

 which acts as an extended epilogue but without any romance. After doing both Inbetween

and flower chapter you unlock something called twelve tales which is pretty much the

conclusion of the story as it wrap up the series well enough. I did this last. There's also some

unlockable bonus side stories that you get by finishing every guy's after story/new route.

Plenty of content all around but some of it can be skipped if you had your fill. 

  ---

 

Overall its a solid FD with plenty of content value.

Its okay to play it back to back because most routes needed the extended epilogues

but had the switch port not included this then i'd be disappointed so I am glad it is.

It was nice there's still a scenario that explores one sad end of the original game

but the only thing it was good at was formally closing off the Toki no Kizuna saga. 

The other extra bonus content was nice, it even reminded me of ken ga kimi's FD

but I don't think it was as loaded which was a good thing imo.

If you liked a character in the original its definitely worth to check out their after story

in this FD but its okay to skip the ones for characters you didn't really like.

Personally for me only Kazuya and Senkimaru's afters were worth it as well as Shiyuu's route

others just weren't as engaging or interesting to me. Maybe its cuz I didn't like all LI equally. 

I'll admit I feel like I forced myself through some of these afters and new routes

but I can see this isn't a bad FD, in fact its pretty good addition

since the original left much to be desired.

8/10 

This FD has just the right amount of content that there is not a lack of volume or too much of it.

A lot FD's just tend to stop at afters or new routes. Its rare to get a bunch of

chibi side stories along with an extended epilogue of a less than ideal ending.

This was 20 hours of good stuff which may stretch to 25+ish if you do everything. 

Route babbles after the jump as well as my fav CG's, its not really a digest but commentary.

Also disclaimer i'm sorry if I didn't like every LI we can't all like the same things!

if you don't like what you're reading then just stop and close the browser.

 

Toki no Kizuna Sekigahara Kitan - Review

Genre: VN.

Developer/publisher: Otomate

Platform: PSP,switch.
Official Site: https://www.otomate.jp/toki/switch/

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v9885

Release date: 19-6-2025

 

I don't even know why I got this game  but I wanted something meaty to sink my time into

and this ended up the right type of game for it. Was it worth it? it depends.

Toki no Kizuna also hasn't received any ports since it came out on PSP, it was localized

as demon's bond on mobile but solmare has long pulled the plug on that. Anyway this game 

shares the same setting as Hakuouki but it is mostly stand alone outside of a few references.

 

 

Pro's

- Overall plot is pretty decent but not outstanding.

- The heroine kicked butt and spoke her mind. 

- Gorgeous CG and sprites.

- Most BGM's suit the setting.

- What romance there is present is pretty adorable to see.

 

Grey Area

- High amount of bad endings. Can't decide if good or bad so here it goes.

 

Con's

- Doing all routes can be repetitive and make it feel same-ish.

- Feels more like a non-romance VN for the majority of its runtime.

- Despite trying to create intrigue it made certain stuff easy to put 2+2 together.

- No heroine sprite in the corner, this game may've benefit from that. 

 

 

This switch port also includes the FD which I am glad it did as the base game

really needed it and without it i'd have no motivation to finish all routes. 

As it is just a port of both games there is nothing added other than touching up

the art, I liked that the font was big which is great when it has losts of kanji. 

 

Story: this is set in old japan around the time of the end of the sengoku period. 

The subtitle should be pretty obvious about that, they've given it a slight fantasy spin.

Yukina an oni and head of her clan is tasked with finding a cure for the yasehime who was put 

into a deep slumber. Yasehime also wanted her clan to not deal with humans as she

wished to sever ties between oni and humans or create some kind of non-interference.

Oni's were once referred to as gods but the clans have since lived reclusively away from

humans, some shady people are apparently against this and are generally a nuisance. 

 

Yukina was one of the more capable heroines, while headstrong she could be sort of bitchy too. 

Key point is Yukina doesn't see herself as a woman cuz they tend to be looked

down upon in this era. I think its also kind of sad but she does what she has to do.

Despite that she could still show signs of weakness or indecisiveness but that made her human.

Seeing her repress herself wasn't fun, a big part of Yukina's character is accepting herself for

who she is and that is not trying to pretend to be a man. Some routes do this better than others.

What was amusing was that she would frequently would go i'm a chieftain before i'm a woman

 or get real feisty if the guys would treat her as a woman which she did not want.

At times she would also interject when they were butting heads so she wasn't just

standing there, she really does try to act independently for better or worse.

I wish she had a sprite in the bottom left corner or something or her sprite would appear

next to the guys instead, with her playing such a key role it feels like missed opportunity. 

 

The art was by Miko which was pretty good, the sprites looked damn good

and the guys looked attractive. There's not much to complain about honestly

except maybe some of Senkimaru's CG's looking a bit off.

Music well it was okay, not the best OST i've heard but it served its purpose?

I liked how energetic the battle theme was which wasn't bad

but there one track could be rather sleep inducing.. 

 

 The game had a stellar seiyuu cast and I recognized a lot of names

as well as oh my god Okamoto you're everywhere?!

 

Toki no Kizuna is a pretty long game, it took me around 1- 2 hours to clear

the first chapter, its a very slow and detailed historical fantasy otome game.

Though the length may vary depending on your profiency of japanese language

and sadly Toki no Kizuna is definitely not for beginners. I was fairly slow.

 

Its plot oriented and there is not much time for romance

but the heroine Yukina does grow closer to the LI over time.

I liked that there's a decent amount of suspense like who are the villains?

what is their goal?  their were a lot of characters, they all had a role to play but at times

I was more interested in the shady hooded guy CV:Tachibana Shinnosuke than our heroes

but that changed over the course of the game and I am not looking forward to his route in the FD.💀

There's a bunch of Jiji's/granpas and they always livened up the scene. I found it funny

how all the oni's would be beautiful people but the humans would be normal looking... 

The character interactions were pretty good but comedy wasn't the focus of this game

and for the most part it was pretty dry with only a funny scene here or there

with some romance crumbs too. Due to this Toki no Kizuna can feel like its not

an otome game at all and more like a non-romance VN.

The story was also fairly slow and at times it was testing my patience especially on 

subsequent routes since there was a clear pattern of things that would happen.

Some later chapters did feel shorter so that was a blessing rather than a curse as

the game had eight chapters in total. I think a route was 8-10 hours in terms of length.

Depending on choices a lot of scenes in the common route would change because it would focus

on the LI related to those choices before settling into the character route which starts from ch5.

And that is why even on subsequent plays it can still be a bit long. 

 

It was still interesting to see what character was involved with but overall it was kinda boring

to pursue multiple characters since some things still felt the same just with slightly different flavor.

Its also kind of easy to guess certain characters identities due to who voices them

its unfortunate because this kind of kills whatever mystery the story had.

The masked villains felt like they were team rocket, I couldn't take them serious by route 2.

At times it could make it seem like they didn't really take their own story and setting seriously

and if you look at the official site you can already see their appearance but the game

was generally slow at unveiling it which makes no sense to me. 

Oh well I played my sengoku musous and basaras so I already know who won the war... whatever.

 

TL;DR 

I thought Chitose's route was pretty good but its just too repetitive, there's very little

that would set each route apart from eachother, I know the setting is limited so it can't be that

different but after two routes it all just felt the same in the end. They also focused too much

on the setting or war stuff and not enough on the otome part.  I remember playing stuff like utawarerumono which also had war stuff but it wasn't as dry or boring as this. Even Birushana

had more fun to it. I remember making tomohorny jokes but here all I did was complain what

a psycho Yachiyo is.💀 Anything that was fun in this game was far and between. I'd probably

not recommend this game unless you like story heavy otome games that're slowburn or

are a giant Hakuoki nerd who wants to experience every content related to it.

There's not much sweetness but what's there is adorable, there's also a big emphasis on bonds.

Seeing Yukina develop a bond with the LI and accepting herself is what saved it.

6/10 

If you love historic fantasies as well then it might still be worth looking into but yea just

keep in mind the first game is not very otome-like and go in with low expecations.

 

My play order was: Kazuya > Chitose > Kazutake > Shin > Senkimaru.

Senkimaru's route is locked till you complete one route but his route has the real plot of the game

so its best to do him last. I recommend Kazuya's route first because there's

less reveals  and it following Sekigahara in the traditional sense.

 

Side note: This already came over once on mobile as demon's bond but Solmare

as I already mentioned pulled the plug.  I don't see a lot of people talk about it or

acknowledge it within the Hakuoki series so I think its popularity is up in the air.

It remains to be seen if it will ever get localized again but I think

it deserves better than being an ported to english like that.

 

As per usual character babbles after the jump as well as some of my fav CG's. 

 

Honey Vibes - Review

Honey, there's landmines on da beach.

Genre: VN.

Developer/publisher: Otomate.
Platform: Switch.
Official Site: https://www.otomate.jp/honey_vibes/

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v49600

Release date: 3-10-2024.

 

I wasn't originally going to get this but after the last game I played

something like this seemed appropiate, the premise sounded fun tbh.

Moeyo otome doushi fell off the radar after I learned its really short

so I just decided this would be the last otome of the year instead.

 

Pro's

- Fluffy and Spicy; romance oriented otome game.

- Character focused rather than plot focused.

- Length; doesn't overstay its welcome.

- Gorgeous art & music fits the vibe.

 

Con's

- Plot isn't really its strong point, its hidden away in a corner called the finale.

- Some of the less than good ends can be a killjoy.

 .

Artstyle is pretty unique, at first reminded me of bad apple wars/dairoku but its

not the same artist, I guess its because the eyes and it having a similar look.

While most CG's were gorgeous there were a bunch with weird angles

or with the heroines face not shown or it cutoff near the edge but everyone

had a decent amount so I didn't mind if it that much. I will say that there was

one thing that I find unnacceptable and Theo was a victim of it. One of his ending CG's was not

positioned right which is a criminal offense, I could see another background behind the CG.

Another gripe is that they weren't evenly spread out through the routes and in some cases

there were a lot of them right after the other like at the end of Elijah's route.

Music is nice and felt really relaxing and gave it chill vibes

but I wasn't sure what was with the ar tonelico/NIER bgm's as this

made it seem more ambitious than it was.

Plot:

The protagonist Nagisa seems to be a pretty normal girl going about her day

till she rescues an animal CV:Toriumi Kousuke (Hello Simeon from Kai no kiseki!)

Something appears to be up and Nagisa starts tripping and next she finds herself

in a room full of antique with an unusual chessboard; usually the pawns are only

for two people but this board is for three? weird. The furball introduces himself as Colt

and the room they're in is some sort of space between worlds so he offers her a chance

since Nagisa seems to be a kind person that he wants to place his faith in.

Colt has basically chosen her to help save beings like himself

and hopes that she can offer them happiness till the last moment.

Next she wakes up she is in another world called Libalium and Colt isn't a

furball anymore and a human with wings as ears (Like Meteion I suppose...?) 

Colt is more or less like a priest or kind of like a god.

Meanwhile Nagisa just thinks she is having a dream, lol.

Colt tries to explain she is in another world, and she's not dreaming

and eventually meets a bunch of guys who live in that world.

At first Nagisa doesn't have any idea what is going on really and the games begin.

 ---

 

I liked Nagisa, her reactions to some things were quite natural but I wish she had

a sprite in the corner, its weird since when you go to the backlog she has a sprite there.

She could seem a bit unsure in the beginning but there were times she really shined.

 

With there being a game going on and all I think this game was shameless

about the fact that this was a reverse harem, boys don't fight over me but

then it is literally about that since Nagisa fell into the role of queen

and most guys are divided into different camps red,black and white. 

Nagisa basically made it so the guys have to convince her to choose them

and well gonna say some of the guys had varying levels of how they went about it.

Honey Vibes was for the most part a fun isekai, there's a sense of seriousness but it also

doesn't take itself too serious and just rolls with what it tried to do without shame.

It wasn't too long or that anything dragged, the game's length is fine. Common route introduces

things and there's enough time to get a feel of everyone's personality before going into a route.

Sadly the bad ends were such a killjoy idk what but had I gotten them by accident

the mood would be ruined and I don't think I would even want to see the best end.

This game shared some writers with 9rip and it definitely had a little bit of suspense

so I can see why this game suddenly went off the rails but still I don't remember

9rip being as bad as this?! the bad ends in honey vibes legit killed the mood.

While I won't complain about there being different outcomes some felt out of place or a bit

extreme and not what I initially came here for or fit with the setting. I will admit I didn't

do a lot of research on Honey Vibes but expected it to be dark was the last thing on my mind.

How interesting the plot in the route was varied a lot since Honey Vibes focused more

on romance and the character's personal issue than whatever plot there was which felt

like an after thought to me in routes such as Alvin. Finn's route complimented Alvin's

in a way its like the otherside of the same coin, both routes also had great romance.

 In some routes the bad ends are also worse  like Eno for example. Milo's route still good

not just in terms of romance but since I understood more in the grandscheme of things

and unlike other routes, Milo's bad ends atleast made me understand why its the way it is.

Theo's route was also decent, his personal conflict together with the overall plot was just

beautifully written, unfortunately he has some of the worst bad ends in this game.

Elijah was the only route that I thought was well rounded and actually focused on the

story/lore but even then it was still just character focused like all the rest which means

 even if it seems more involved it isn't. They saved it all for the finale route.

So while in most routes the overall plot was never amazing, it was still pretty decent

since if you do all routes it connects well enough.  If you come here for the

romance & your favourite voice actor is in here you'd likely be satisfied.

Story can peak in some routes and just dips in others, the characters carried this game hard.

As for the game as a whole, its fluff and spicy! I don't play a lot of otomes where things

get THIS steamy but honey vibes was on another level that most others felt tame.

Sadly most desire ends were awful, it just felt like another bad end where the one tied to rationality

is the only good outcome which all things considered is kinda lame.The LI's were all pretty good

but for some I immediately went like oh no! looking at you Milo but he as well

as Alvin were among my fav's so look how that turned out. The only one

I didn't like was Eno really. With 6 LI's there might be a favorite for anyone.

This game could be interesting to play blind but honestly i'm glad I used a guide

since there are just way too many landmine bad ends you could trigger.

Bad ends did at times contain minor plot revelations so I'd say its still worth

checking them out just don't be surprised if you get burned while doing so.

The actual story is left for the finale route which wraps everything up in a grand way

perhaps there is room for a sequel or FD? idk but it may need one since

after the finale most best ends just has me going is that it really?

8/10

I can't hate this game because its literally the best and worst of otomate in one package.

Its likely it will be picked up for english release and will be disappointed if it won't

since there's definitely an audience for this, no I know there is.

TL;DR Honey Vibes is quite enjoyable but if you're just here for an romance novel

i'd stay away from the bad ends if I were you unless you like to live dangerously.

This game is not all sunshine and rainbows and can get surprisingly dark in bad ends.

If this sparks your interest then by all means I will recommend this otome game.......

For playorder there weren't any restrictions so I just picked one in the moment:

Alvin > Eno > Milo >Theo > Elijah > Finn > Finale.

You can do whatever camp you want in any order due to no restrictions

the best I can recommend here is to just stick to one camp before moving to the next.

 

More rambles after the jump, just the usual some of my fav cg's etc

if you want to play don't read further.

 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Utakata no Uchronia - Review

Genre: VN.
Developer/publisher: Broccoli/Licobits.
Platform: Switch.
Official Site: https://licobits-game.com/uchronia/ 

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v40519
Release date: 11-04-2024. 

 

I still decided to get this game but the price... why is this game so expensive?

I even bought it digital but 8000 yen? damn that is the price of a limited edition

from the PS Vita era. Idk if this is just broccoli or the economy tanking

but I can see why people just don't want to blind purchase these games nowadays.

 

I'll say it right off the bat, this game was definitely not another Piofiore yet

it could be its successor in spirit. Also while this is not an otomate game

you can definitely tell this was by former staff of theirs.

 

Pro's 

- Interesting story in the grand scheme of things...

- Most love interests were likable except one.

- Gorgeous art and fitting bgm.

 

Con's

- Needs a high level of japanese to fully understand the story.

- Length, focuses too much on the big picture that it cuts itself short.

- Overall plot/flow of the game gets a bit repetitive with every route.

- Yori, i'm not even going to say anything else here.

 

I really liked the OP movie back in the demo and they finally uploaded it on YT

seems like they waited till the actual release date instead of alongside the demo's release.

I hardly ever skipped the OP, it generally was nice to see everytime you boot up the game.

Like I said in my demo impression post, UtaChro is very scenario focused, I just

did not expect it to be on such a grandscale and the fact it was legit surprised me.

UtaChro is very focused on the world they live in and the relationships of the people

in Hinagiku's life etc. Utachro is rich in worldbuilding and interpersonal relationships

but due to all that makes for a pretty long game, no joke. Due to that the romance takes a

while to develop as well but I generally had no complaints because of the pace of it.

For some routes the resolution could seem rushed or good enough... oh well.

What I also like is the whole main cast is part of the plot and don't just

disappear off the map once you lock onto a route which is great.

System is same as piofiore, lots of choices; 2 main endings a best and bad end.

There's no affection/correct choice indicator so easy to hit a game over end.

It may be best to use a guide if you don't want any surprises. There's the switch the PoV

like in Piofiore but since this is from the same writer/director so its to be expected.

 

In terms of story I was hooked to some extent and wanted to see where it was going

but it was also a bit long-winded and the conversations were not always able to grab me.

In Utachro my attention often waned. I do not know if it was because of the level of

japanese or the dialogue just being... dry. Of course at times jokes were cracked

but comedy is not really the focus in this game and it was far and between.

The level of japanese UtaChro uses often betrayed me, because at times it is simple

but it also won't hesitate to throw some complicated kanji at you.

Haven't played Y7 yet but that's me whenever I encountered Kanji that tripped me up.

 UtaChro is also incredibly slowburn, I am glad I did Awayuki as my first route since it fit

really well and I liked their chemistry somewhat but it wasn't a route to bring out

the full potential of the story which was sad. Good starter but not much else.

I did Yori second because he was the resident trashbag and wanted him out of my hair

after the crap he pulled during Awayuki's route and at the end of the day

Yori just wasn't my cup of tea but it may be someone elses? Tobari on the other hand

was probably one of my favorite characters, the romance with him was just right as well!

It reminded me of non-toxic normal relationships, which after Yori was a breath of fresh air.

Idk what to say about Tsuyukusa without spoilers other than that I am kinda tired of the

friend-type routes but he was one of the more relevant routes in the game, he did take a while

to grow on me and like Tobari I couldn't really see it till like chapter 4/5. Got not much to say about

Yashiro tbh but throughout most routes he was sorta just there, I remember him saying

I'm just an amnesiac guy somewhere which sounds about right till you get

to his own route and he just fucks everything up literally.😨

 

Hinagiku as a heroine was pretty great, good natured and a bit pampered like a princess

but also fearless and not easily afraid of situations she is getting herself into

yet at times she is still a girl you know? don't expect too much of her and I think she was

at her best in Tobari's route! I did prefer her over Naaya from Matsurika.

 

I also made a low effort meme for fun.

Yashiro could be a bit more to the left but for the most part this fits.

 

Overall UtaChro is overly lengthy and complicated, I only really enjoyed&remember the

interactions with the love interest & other fun interactions but there wasn't much of that.

The conflict going on in the town..... sure I was intriguid by what was really going on

but I just was kinda bored with how it was presented. Maybe it really is the dialogue

since it just didn't grab me most of the time. Or I just wasn't interested in the big picture

which just makes it a me problem. Your opinion could differ from this so I will still encourage

this game to anyone that likes scenario driven visual novels of decent length & don't mind politics

but idk the routes are kind of a hit or a miss. The only guy I really liked was Tobari

so I don't know what that says either, probably not much(other than that I might like stupid guys).

 

I know Uta-Chro is scenario driven but it really surprised me that there was

enough romance along the way and this was for me the saving grace.

If I had to be harsh this was a 5/10 due its repetitiveness but it gave me Tobari so... its a 7/10.

Uta-chro was just a really weird game, I came here for the scenario but left with romance.....

I still hope Aksys or someone else still picks up Uta-Chro... I mean its not Piofiore

but it has some of its elements as well as Nicola&Yang's love child Yori

which I am sure people will either love or hate. Even if that person is not me. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There are route restrictions and Yashiro, Tsuyukusa and Yori are off limits at the start.

Yori is unlocked by doing Awayuki, Tsuyukusa unlocks after doing Tobari and finally

Yashiro needs like everyone so no choice but to do him last.

My play order ended up being:

Awayuki > Yori > Tobari > Tsuyukusa > Yashiro >Finale.

I'll just recommend the same except maybe switch Awayuki/Tobari based on preference, this order

may be good to be able to go from those who're available at the start to a more important route.

Whether or not you do Yori right after Awayuki just depends whether you'd like to or not.

This game is even more restrictive than Matsurika and its not even funny.

Route babbles after the jump however the only routes I really wrote about

were Tsuyukusa and Yashiro, but only note-worthy things. This game is too long

someone else can do it if they'd like to but it ain't gonna be me. I'm drowning.

Utakata no Uchronia - Demo Impressions

 Genre: VN.
Developer/publisher: Broccoli/Licobits.
Platform: Switch.
Official Site: https://licobits-game.com/uchronia/

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v40519

Release date: 14-3-2024.(Demo) 11-04-2024. (Full Game)

 

Since I wasn't in the mood to play as Red and Barret in FF7 rebirth

I took a few hours to check out this demo!

I haven't really done a demo impressions/review post in ages and I didn't even know

UtaChro was going to get one! which is good because I was a little on the fence.

 

I only tried out UtaChro to see what it would be like! and also kinda as a vibecheck.

I know things could always turn out different in the full game but whatever

who cares if you only end up liking 1 love interest or route!

UtaChro is developed by a bunch of ex? otomate staff and broccoli/TIS creation.

I like RiRi's art but overall it reminded me more of Piofiore and not Yunohana.

Backgrounds were pretty detailed in showing the environments, art in general was good.

Music? no complaints. The OP definitely catched my attention more and I liked listening to it!

sadly I couldn't find the OP on youtube yet to link here.

 

The demo had the common route & was definitely good for introducing the setting and characters.

The heroine Hinagiku is an Ojou-sama who is good natured...maybe a bit pampered

she gets treated like a princess and earned that nickname, lol.

Yashiro seems to have amnesia and they go around trying to jog his memory for a bit, doesn't

really work out yet. Tsuyukusa bumped into them, he knows Hinagiku and thinks Yashiro

is too close already, oh jealous are we? Tsuyukusa was pretty chill so whatever I guess.

The demo ended after you meet Yori but for the most part its just too early to tell

where any of it was going, romance was definitely not a focus atleast not at this point!

not a lot of fluff yet as well, I figured out from my two-ish hour expedition that UtaChro

is a scenario driven kind of game with romance not really being a focus.

Interactions were good and  it had a decent sense of humor too. Overall it seems UtaChro

 is more or less something like Piofiore but with a bit of steampunk! I kind of liked it?

Not really route impressions but I wrote a little about the love interests?

not all seem to have a lot of screentime in the demo so there's not much after the jump.

Matsurika no Kei Tenmeiin Iden - Review

Intertwined Bloodlines.

 Genre: VN.

Developer/publisher: Otomate.
Platform: Switch.
Official Site: https://www.otomate.jp/mk/

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v47009

Release date: 29-2-2024.

 

Matsurika was the only upcoming otome game from otomate that I was still interested in.

It has a lot to do with the artstyle and a fantasy setting which just really drew me in

as well as a comfortable seiyuu cast with familiar voices that I like.

If this is gonna be my last otomate game... they got me good!

 

This game released on the same day as FFVII rebirth but at the same time

I mostly ended up playing this first because I just missed playing an otome game

and I wasn't in the mood for Final Fanfiction 7 which I only really ended up playing

on and off if the mood striked or when switch was charging which is actually perfect for it.

Pro's

- Well rounded routes, mostly easy to follow the story.

- Compelling characters & OK heroine(considering her situation).

- Gorgeous artwork and fitting soundtrack for that chinese feel.

 

Grey area:

- CeroD for a reason, there's quite a bit of sexual themes and not just suggestive.

Con's

- Long, especially if you do all routes.

- It can be kind of frustrating if you'd like to do the routes of Enrai or Fey since

they basically need all other routes be done but locked for a reason.

- NTR (bad ends only).

 

 

This game had some pretty high production values and good art direction from the CG's to

the backgrounds and sprites they were all gorgeous. Did I mention the cg's were animated as well?

I doubt this game was the product of a year they worked on this for a while

the artist truly outdid themselves not many otomate games have multiple sprite.

It has a great soundtrack that fit the setting/mood. The OP was great and listened

to it almost everytime I booted up the game. The ED's was pretty good too.

The menus were nice as well, it wasn't busy like say cupipara and just easy on the eyes.

The system was standard stuff however I could not find the skip to the next choice option

which ended up being touch pad only which I barely use, it didn't work properly.

Matsurika has a lot of chinese influences as well as the classic four lords.

At first I had a hard time understanding all the lore and it wasn't very clear where

any of it would go, there was suspense and intrigue, it got better eventually when

I got to know the characters! i'd say the end of the common route was a little

frustrating in light of certain developments. Other than that it still has a nice

sense of humor and the character interaction was pretty great right of the bat.

**Once I got into it the story was not particularly hard to follow/grasp.

I'd say the heroine Naaya was decent at best, she can be reserved but also show courage

to go off to another town on her own despite a certain someones protest.

Naaya has a lot of potential but due to the setting can never reach it, she can be stubborn

as well but eh she goes through a lot and doesn't even know wtf is going on

so I can't be too hard on her, she doesn't deserve that and her options are limited.

**I mostly liked her because she was kind but it seems most people don't like

 passives heroines and they only want pro-active ones, Naaya shined only on rare occasions.

 

Despite being an old timey game I didn't find it boring, it only became more interesting

as it went on but it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows there were secrets being kept.

There were twists and turns, at times I wasn't even sure what was really going on.

**It all did managed to fall into place at the end.

Common route wasn't too long, it serves its purpose to setup everything in relaxed manner

however the end of the common route was a little disturbing, the mood whiplash

at the time bothered me. It was at that moment the dumpster catched fire

and in some routes it goes out but in others it never really went out till the end.

Especially you Ruwo.

The story did generally flow well, it had slower moments but I didn't find the pacing

to be that bad. I think it was overall better than in say Tsuitsui.

Individual route was of decent length there's plenty developments good and bad.

If you combine them all then this game is pretty long. I did like that the final route was

not a combination of all but instead something that connects all dots, for better or for worse.

However I would like to emphasize that this game is very old fashioned and

the values of marriage or morals simply don't work in today's world. If the reader

can get past that and accept it then I think this game is much more enjoyable.

Most love interest's are nice enough that I could understand why the heroine

would stay with them because where else would she go? If you hit rock bottom

and someone extends their hand would you not accept it? I would.

 

The story wasn't very nice to the heroine but some love interests were, others did

need more time to grow on me but it was hard to dislike most of them.

Ruwo's route was pretty much the ongoing dumpster fire which was entertaining it its own way

but Zebenera was much more relaxed? it was also more connected to the overall plot

which made me super interested in Bicorn. Bicorn was the route that I thought was really good

and was able to truly present its story beats to its fullest. However it felt

a little longer but atleast Bicorns character got his full development.

I thought Seirin's route was a little boring but even that managed to make itself interesting

it just had one moment were I was like WTF this is awful but Seirin was the saving grace

unfortunately that route was riddled with politics so it took me longer to get through. Seirin route

is probably also another reason for ceroD because most routes except Enrai were... tame.

Meanwhile Fey sits in a corner somewhere waiting for the player to do all routes

and Enrai is mocking him. Wait I am getting off-topic.

All in all without any plot spoilers Matsurika no Kei was a well-rounded otome game!

however one must be willing to accept that in today's world its values no longer work and that

is okay because this is a work of fiction based on myth's and fantasy set in the old world.

The scenario was good, with multiple endings that suit the story/character.

A decent attempt at world-building and of course likable love interest

along with gorgeous and consistent artwork as well as a fitting OST.

-

If I had to ask myself the question of what do I want in an otome game

then Matsurika ticks off some flags of yes this is what I look for.

Not everything may have been my cup of tea nor is it perfect but it doesn't need to be

i'd much rather play an otome game that isn't afraid to have bad things happen

than something that railroads me to a happy end where the choices don't even matter.

**I generally liked most happy ends, they all had good conclusions.

Of course this game still has some classic problems like not every route being as relevant

 but it is handled really well that each route is refreshing and each love interest's situation is

different making it exciting to do all routes. One of MnK's problems is the restrictions

on routes but those are there for a reason. Its still better than not having any at all. I do not

consider the MC being on the passive side a problem at all considering the setting & situation.

-

Also I was reminded of ken ga kimi when I played this game and I think there's some similarity

I specifically liked how there's multiple outcomes good and bad but they all suited the character

plus the routes were all so well rounded that if it didn't get a FD then you still get a full experience.

Turns out a scenario writer of KgK worked on this game. I suppose they still got the magic

but they also worked on CupiPara which has a completely opposite direction of MnK.

This really shows their talent as a writer, playing this game made me realize I am not that

burned out from this genre, and the last one just left me craving for more balanced games.

8.5/10

(I end up dropping it sligtly because of Fey's route... because its unfinished.)

 

Do I recommend Matsurika no Kei?  yes I do but it is difficult to recommend

if you can't stand values and morals that don't work in today's world.

The developers really outdid themselves in crafting up this game, I still can't

guarantee this game will be everyones cup of tea but honestly? it was a solid

historic fantasy otome game, a journey worth taking if you like those genres

**however Matsurika no Kei is not for the easily offended.**

Its a mystery if it will get localized but taking everything in consideration

there's a possibility of this game staying unlocalized. edit: Idk how well

this did in japan but lately I think any otome game has a decent chance.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 I wasn't sure which route to go for so I went for one of the two characters

that were there since the beginning, I followed my intuition which led me to Ruwo

as Fey and Enrai were both missing from the affection screen during my first play. 

There's not a lot of options in the first play so I think Zebenera is the safest

but Ruwo is the easier choice since he is there from the start.

At one point I wanted to put Ruwo upside down into a trash can. Take that as you will

but its best to experience it for yourself, you're in for a trip.

Enrai is locked till Ruwo, Zebenera and Seirin are done.

Fey is locked till Enrai is done.

Bicorn unlocks after one route is finished however I personally do not

recommend doing his till you have atleast done Zebenera.

TFW it is easier to get into masked guy's route than the poster boys...... 🤡

My play order: Ruwo > Zebenera >Bicorn > Seirin > Enrai > Fey.

I think my own order flowed well enough that  I could recommend it as well.

Recommended order: Ruwo / Zebenera > Bicorn > Seirin > Enrai >  Fey.

This game is just restrictive as there's not much choice than to do the poster boys last or

bicorn if you forgot. Its probably for the best if you do Seirin later due to Enrai being locked

but that is just my personal opinion as I did find Seirin route to be very good at explaining things

Bicorn's route glossed over in favor of half-truth's and giving other things more depth.

 

I will be writing about the routes in the next section but this game is best going in blind.

Knowing too much ruins the suspense so I recommend not reading further if you don't

want spoilers. Also trying to write about the routes turns it into a Wall'O Text

because they are pretty long, again spoilers are after the jump.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fate/Samurai Remnant - Review

 Genre: RPG.
Developer/publisher: Koei Tecmo/Type Moon.
Platform: PS4/5/PC.
Official Site: https://www.koeitecmoeurope.com/fate-sr/

Release date: 28-9-2023.

 

I wanted to play this sooner but since it released the same day as Ys X it ended up

being backlogged for the fact that it seemed like it was a pretty long game.

In december this game also got an update with easier/harder difficulties as well as more

servants being playable in a rematch mode which was enough incentive for me to prioritize

it over other games that I still wanted to play, something like now or never I guess? 

Sadly I can not talk about this game without spoilers so uh you're warned right here I guess.

 

Pro's

- Good story & well written charactters(Most of them).

- Takes a while to get going but it does explain everything making it accessible to newcomers.

- Decent graphics and fitting bgm.

 

Con's

- Basically need to play the game like twice(or thrice without proper saves) to get the full picture.

- Hyper armor is a thing in this game.

- Half assed endings, lacking a proper epilogue.

- MC's personality (not that he had much) takes a 180 on NG+.

Oh hey I remember that Fate/stay night anime also starting like this!

Incase you were wondering, no you do not need to watch any anime or read any VN

as Fate/Samurai Remnant is a stand alone entry with its own story in a different time period.

Which makes this game very accessible if you've never watched or read anything fate related!

I should probably put a warning here or something but this game while fiction is quite

realistic about what old timey japan was like as well as... what it means to be a samurai.

---

I consider myself fairly acquainted with the series as I have watched a few of the anime over

the years, this game did an outstanding job at making sense of the lore of the series.

Due to that the prologue took me 2-3 hours to complete... by 30 hours I was

in chapter 5, its quite obvious to me that this game has VN roots since the scenes could be

on the long side and if you add digressions aka side stories its even longer.

It even has a story branch and multiple endings so be prepared to play it atleast twice

and then reload for the final ending. (There's also a joke end but we don't talk about that one.)

You'll be able to find a guide through google for sure but it is generally recommended to do todoroki/yashiro aka rat route first and then snake route on 2nd play along with the NG+ ending.

 

Just doing one route especially rat will probably leave you unsatisfied and it is definitely worth

to do another playthrough as IMO snek route was generally better than rat.

There are plenty of new scenes available giving further context to either characters

or lore while going for the other ending so despite it being a trainwreck it wasn't all bad.

---

If I had to rate the endings it would be Snek > Greg > Rat > 3rd end.

At first I didn't really understand why Snek end just cut Iori out of the picture

but the 3rd end explains it very well and the dude is just dead inside at that point.

Idk this game is missing some sort of true end but I guess Iori's a deadbeat samurai 4lyf

that is if you make the morally correct choice and not pursue something for personal gain.

---

 

While playing the game I generally did like the MC Iori but that kinda changed after the 3rd ending

and now I just can only see him as a deadbeat samurai. Also Iori and his servant Saber weren't off

to the best of starts they would often buttheads early on and while they could work together

to some degree another Master and a rogue servant had to explain all of the basics of

the ritual to Iori. As you can see the story is very slow due to that.

Iori was mostly indifferent and just really wants what's best for the town

so he actually got mad at his servant for destroying a bunch of shacks.

As some NG+ exclusive scenes turns out... Iori is actually a bit of a maniac too

and not much better than your typical ronin he's just more nice about it??? idk how to explain.

If Welkin was one of my favorite protaginists, Iori was one of my least fav's.

Well... Iori and Saber just didn't trust each other very well in the beginning but it did get better.

Because trust doesn't always come so easily and besides I did enjoy their interactions

as well as some of the other characters and the rivalry between masters.

Saber is kind of like a brat, cocky and also a glutton... but does have his heart in the right place.

Also Saber is often described as a woman but I thought she was a guy or like femboy.

Doesn't help that they refer to themselves as boku. >_>; Oh well enough about that

Saber didn't really act like a woman and the game actively shipped him

with someone because of actual history so I am like anything goes amiright.

That explains a lot, no wonder things turned out like they did.

Other masters that I liked was Zheng Chenggong and his servant Archer but honestly

depending on the route Chenggong was like the least developed character in the game. Archer

was great but also underdeveloped which is sad cuz Chenggong and Archer had good chemistry

and were voiced by Maeno Tomoaki and Ono Kensho! too bad plot was rude to them.

I didn't really like Chiemon but Okamoto Nobuhiko did a good job voicing him

and making him really intimidating. His servant was eh... fitting to say the least and despite

not liking him I understand why he did what he did, he's had it up to here like fuck dis shit

meanwhile Lancer is like please accept my affection you are worthy of love and Chiemon

is like no but she will follow him to the depths of hell anyways. How bittersweet.

Takao Dayu was okay but I generally am generally mixed about Yui Shousetsu

who even after the snek route I still feel indiffirent about, mostly cuz they were lowkey

giving shipping fuel at the end but also did nothing with it.

Also this game went too far back with history so some things were lost on me like

Iori's servant saber real identity and everything related to him. I had to google some names

and god I nearly cried like oh no, no no since they sticked to the facts.

A servant even joked about it that it is okay if you don't know who he was... lmao.

 

Literally half of this game in a nutshell.

The story and pacing was pretty slow but had it been any faster I would be overwhelmed?

so I am actually somewhat glad they took their time and I could re-familiarize myself

with the fate universe but I will admit that it felt like it was dragging itself out

and the characters had no idea wtf they were doing or someone got in the way

and oh damn gotta go back to base cuz tired and hungry.

Saber is a glutton...

Fate Samurai Remnant was like a game of cat and mouse and while at times fun

and interesting it ultimately overstayed its welcome and I didn't even enjoy the

final chapter, at this point I was about done with the last minute shenanigans.

Moving on the first playthrough ending only brought a sense of relief that it was over

it didn't really wrap itself up properly only setting the player up for round 2.

Well honestly by this point I was like uh what in the fresh hell? it took me 30+ hours

and I don't even get a decent epilogue and yet you want me to play it again?

Ok sure but give me five to recharge. I realized that at this point the only thing I really

liked was the general turn of events and of course the characters. Except

Chiemon&lightning horse. These two got on my nerves so much I kid you not!

Anyway there were plenty of fun character interactions and the story was unpredictable

that you wouldn't know what was really going on which I really liked kept things interesting.

Also because I know fate already I knew who Boss was but in this game he was a rather annoying

side charactter and mostly used as comic relief, I remember he was a bit stuck up

in the anime series by ufotable but not as bad as in this game.😂

Woah hey there greg, no spoilers please!

TL;DR

Its a good game if you like to be challenged by the gameplay and if not there's always the newly

added easy difficulty so you can just enjoy the story and the like without worrying of performing well.

Iori did not have much of a personality and most of the other cast just stood out to me

more than the protagonist itself including Iori's servant Saber.

I did like the story,characters and the unpredictability of it all while exploring old-timey japan

and the game had a good sense of humor but yea I just have a few gripes with it all.

Iori definitely grew stronger but everytime I faced enemies with shields it seems like that wasn't

the case. By the end of the game I was kinda done with the recycled enemies, there's NG+ exclusive

mobs but they are just supersized versions. I think occasionally enemies with shields are fine

but not every boss-like enemy. I wanted to like Fate/Samurai remnant more but yea...

I think I liked more than enough and it just kinda overstayed it welcome.

Dodging or countering was the only thing I felt like I was good at, breaking shields was a chore.

Still had shields not been there battles wouldn't last as long either maybe it is ok after all.

While I played on normal I briefly lowered the difficulty for NG+ but realized

it became too easy and actually switched back since I kinda missed the thrill of the fights.

((What am I doing to myself?!))

Me after every single battle.

I guess this post is kinda long but this game was long which just leads me to ramble

about the characters a bit and this was only the opening section, whoops.

It may seem like I am kinda mixed and perhaps I am... but it was still

an okay game with a good story and cast, over and out.

 7/10

 

More rambles after the jump i'll just be talking a bit more about the gameplay experience

and characters but the above should be good enough of a TL;DR.

You can skip to my final thoughts to get another gist I guess?

Radiant Tale ~Fanfare~ - Review

 Genre: Visual Novel.
Developer/publisher: Otomate.
Platform: Switch.
Official Site: https://www.otomate.jp/radiant_tale/fanfare/

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v42433
Release date: 31-08-2023.

 

Okay so Otomate decided Radiant Tale needed a FD and since I sort of liked the game

and they added a Liyan route I decided to get it! also it seems like Raditale FD releases

really close to Virche's FD, not even a week apart! 😱😱😱 I didn't realize this

till I was in the middle of Vilio's after and was like no rush right?! 😅

Good thing is this game wasn't that long... phew.

 

Pro's

- Enjoyable FD to compliment the original game!

- Gorgeous art and fitting music.

 

Con's

- After stories have choices but they don't actually matter.

 

 

As this is a fandisc it will have after stories for the main guys and 2 new routes for Liyan and Jinnia

which take place after the common route normal ending of the original Radiant Tale.

After and IF stories are roughly 3-4 hours in length, which honestly was enough as it never

did drag on long enough to overstay its welcome and most of them remained short&sweet.

I did set a good pace for myself and got through an after in a day so I spend

a good week on this which is pretty good value if you ask me but it all depends

how much time you have to want to set aside to sit back and read a little.

 

System is pretty standard as per usual, however I didn't understand why there were choices

in the after stories, said choices seemed to be there for the sake of it. Like congratulation Ion

or telling Ion that he was cool. I'm like... why bother at this point? there's no need for choices

if the outcome doesn't change or there is no dictionary or different scene to collect.

There being choices made much more sense in the new routes...

since there are normal ends but those give no CG.

Art is as gorgeous as ever and Usaba Kagerou and Miko have returned to grace us with more of

their insanely pretty art! Music is fitting enough and I did not have any complaints.

Honestly with most of the after stories I was pretty satisfied and I even ended up

liking certain characters more than I did in the original game which was really nice.

The after stories also further went into matters so yes if you loved the world view and lore

you'll be in for a treat for sure. So I can definitely recommend Radiant Tale to fans of the original

who can't get enough of it! The new routes may depend on tastes of who you were more

interested in. Its good they got routes because I sure was thirsting after one of them back then.

 

However I do think the afters could be either a hit or a miss... in my opinion it felt that

some of them didn't really had a good enough plot, I liked Ion,Zafora and Radie's...

but I had some issues with Paschalia and Vilio's afters and didn't enjoy them as much.

Both IF stories with Jinnia and Liyan were very enjoyable to me so there's that!

Anyway that is just my two cents and I still recommend Raditale FD if you really liked the original

since this is an amazing FD to compliment a good otome game!

9/10

For play order I mostly followed the same order I did in the original with the new routes last!

since this is a fd the order doesn't even matter I just decided this for myself

you could only do your fav's and skip any you don't like too...

Ion > Paschalia > Zafora > Radie > Vilio > Jinnia > Liyan.

 

The non-spoiler babbles end here and from here on i'll be writing about the afters etc!

and sharing my favourite cg's. So be warned there will be spoilers after the jump.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------