Since EvilDragon is such an ass and decided to port an amazing visual novel to the Pandora (Narcissu), I've been absolutely addicted to these things. The stories of the ones I've played to far are absolutely brilliant. More than that, they piqued my interest in the Japanese language in general and I'm now studying it. That probably sounds like typical anime nerd crap, but it's not quite like that for me. I'm studying it pretty vigorously, partly because it's a pretty language, but mostly because it's a very interesting challenge.
Anyways, I was wondering what visual novels others have played. I'm kind of out of ideas of where to look for them now. The problem with these kinds of games is that you're either going to find ones that are mind-blowingly awesome or crappy excuses for looking at anime porn.
Here's what I've enjoyed so far, best to worst:
CLANNAD - Bawled at this one. Beautiful, sad story. And takes a crazy long time to beat. I think this one took me like 40 hours or something like that.
Ever 17 - Great sci-fi story, which is my favorite genre. Pretty heart-wrenching scenes in it, too. First one I played, and I don't think I'll be forgetting it any time soon.
G-senjou no Maou - Fantastic, frightening. It's got a kind of a generic character list (the protagonist being a Yakuza member seems pretty cliché in my opinion), but the characters have a lot of depth to them. This one can be pretty disturbing.
Sharin no Kuni, Himawari no Shoujo - Very good one here, too, but only for 18+. This one, unlike the other ones, can make you feel pretty tense and angry. Lots of emotion in this one, but not nearly as tear-jerking as CLANNAD.
Narcissu - Another pretty sad one. Not much really happens, but it's still a good story. Don't expect some kind of magical resolution, though.
Don't Take it Personally, Babe. It Just Ain't Your Story - Bottom of the list, but definitely not a bad game. Good story, good food for though, but half-baked ending. The character sprites can look pretty funky too.
If you guys have played any good ones, let me know! Oh, and if you want to play one of these for kicks, I'd recommend any of these, but you might want to go with Ever 17 first.
Anyways, I was wondering what visual novels others have played. I'm kind of out of ideas of where to look for them now. The problem with these kinds of games is that you're either going to find ones that are mind-blowingly awesome or crappy excuses for looking at anime porn.
Here's what I've enjoyed so far, best to worst:
CLANNAD - Bawled at this one. Beautiful, sad story. And takes a crazy long time to beat. I think this one took me like 40 hours or something like that.
Ever 17 - Great sci-fi story, which is my favorite genre. Pretty heart-wrenching scenes in it, too. First one I played, and I don't think I'll be forgetting it any time soon.
G-senjou no Maou - Fantastic, frightening. It's got a kind of a generic character list (the protagonist being a Yakuza member seems pretty cliché in my opinion), but the characters have a lot of depth to them. This one can be pretty disturbing.
Sharin no Kuni, Himawari no Shoujo - Very good one here, too, but only for 18+. This one, unlike the other ones, can make you feel pretty tense and angry. Lots of emotion in this one, but not nearly as tear-jerking as CLANNAD.
Narcissu - Another pretty sad one. Not much really happens, but it's still a good story. Don't expect some kind of magical resolution, though.
Don't Take it Personally, Babe. It Just Ain't Your Story - Bottom of the list, but definitely not a bad game. Good story, good food for though, but half-baked ending. The character sprites can look pretty funky too.
If you guys have played any good ones, let me know! Oh, and if you want to play one of these for kicks, I'd recommend any of these, but you might want to go with Ever 17 first.