One – also known as Kagayaku Kisetsu e – is one of the legends of the visual novel genre. Originally released way back in 1998, it was one of the early projects by a developer called Tactics, which is notable because many of the creative team moved on from that studio to found Key. Yes, the studio behind Little Busters!,…
Cupid Parasite is one of the stronger visual novels launched this decade. In Matt’s review for DDNet, he writes, “Comedy’s always hard to get right, especially when there’s an underlying subversive quality to it, but Cupid Parasite never falters… This is one of Otomate’s finest.” That was two years ago,…
The remake of celebrated visual novel Tsukihime: A Piece of Blue Glass…
CASCHA Games’ Concealed caught my attention for several reasons. The game has…
Welcome to Digitally Downloaded’s weekly catch-up news feature, the catch-up coffee. With each issue I will bring you the best news that you may have missed. Grab the biggest mug you’ve got, fill it with your favourite brew, and catch up with us (and our favourite news anchor, Dee Dee)!…
Read More
Sympathy Kiss is an otome visual novel about office drama and romance. I get that office romances are often frowned upon, but let’s be real: they happen, and they can lead to successful long-term relationships. That’s not to say that a successful career isn’t important, though, and Sympathy Kiss wants…
Read More
Described as a mottled burlesque fantasy, One Night: Burlesque is a detective/crime story in a unique noir setting. The visual novel has players delving into the heart of a tarry noir tale, where the fluff of peacock features and sequins darken under the influence of crime lurking in the shadows.…
Read More
Reality is increasingly uncertain, and this is fascinating. Anonymous;Code, the latest in the series that has brought us Steins;Gate, Robotics;Notes and Chaos;Head, is a play on this idea, and it, too, is fascinating. Quite possibly the most fascinating of all this series of visual novels, precisely because it is so…
Read More
Thank the maker for Aksys. The publisher of the most niche of niche visual novels has announced that it will be bringing Spirit Hunter: Death Mark II to the Nintendo Switch, PC and PlayStation in late February 2024. Death Mark II is actually the third in the series, after Death…
Read More
I struggle to think of a more consistent developer than Otomate. The Idea Factory otome specialist developer produces games at such a rate that I’m convinced the only reason we don’t get all of them in the West is that the localisers simply can’t work that fast… and that’s a…
Read More
I love a good spooky story; it doesn’t have to have jump scares, it just has to be deeply, deeply unsettling. That’s the kind of story told in Varney Lake, the second in a trilogy of Pixel Pulp games. I reviewed the first game, Mothmen 1966, about a year ago.…
Read More
What happens when you blend the otome visual novel sub-genre with death games like Danganronpa or Squid Games? Essentially, you get Charade Maniacs. This is Idea Factory’s latest to make its way out west and it’s an intriguing and eclectic thing. I don’t know if this particular fusion of ideas…
Read More
Rain is a common motif in noir. Whether it be the grim, dank, and hostile urban decay of Se7en, or the neon-drenched dystopia of Blade Runner, water is so common to noir that there is, to quote Paul Schrader in his book Notes on Film Noir “an almost Freudian attachment…
Read More
Have you ever played a game that feels like it was designed specifically for you? Jack Jeanne is just that to me. In fact, I’m working on a visual novel project myself, and I’m shocked at just how thematically and structurally similar it will be to Jack Jeanne (at least,…
Read More