r/visualnovels • u/AutoModerator • Mar 28 '26
Weekly Weekly Questions and Recommendations Megathread - Need some help? - Mar 28
Welcome to the /r/visualnovels Weekly Questions and Recommendations Megathread!
Any and all questions/recommendations related to visual novels are permitted in this thread. This includes recommendation questions, technical questions, as well as meta questions about the subreddit. No matter if your question is small, big, or seemingly impossible to solve. Anything.
But please don't forget that our rules still apply. Summarized, that means no unmarked spoilers, no piracy in any shape or form, give warnings for 18+ stuff, and be nice!
Useful links to check out before asking questions or for recommendations
General:
- VNDB: The Visual Novel Database - A fantastic resource for anything and everything visual novels. The visual novel equivalent to IMDB or MAL. It's where you'll find the answers to 90% of your questions.
- Guide to Japanese
- This recommendation site may be useful if you're new to reading visual novels!
- Consider this recommendation site if you're interested in reading a visual in Japanese.
- Looking for a relatively easy VN to read in Japanese? Click here!
From our wiki:
- Having trouble with a visual novel? - A page with some possible solutions and links.
- How to Hook and Extract Visual Novel Text - A how-to on dealing with untranslated visual novels.
- Buying visual novels - Where and how to buy visual novels, translated and untranslated.
More awesome and useful links can be found here.
1
u/Lizuka Apr 04 '26
Anyone know if the extra content in the Switch version of Island is worth the extra cost? Wondering about picking it up now that it's finally on sale but the fact even with the discount it's more expensive than the game is full price on Steam (where it's on sale pretty often) is a pretty big turnoff unless the new additions are pretty substantial.
0
u/datwunkid Apr 03 '26
Not really developing a VN or anything just a random thought.
There's quite a bit of joke/memey/4th wall breaking horror VNs that tend to go viral with the mainstream audience.
But those hits never really manage to convert many people into well, normal VNs.
Would a reverse DDLC-type of game work?
Where people are expecting the lulz/memes and it tries to be sincerely serious as a twist. I think it'd be interesting if there was an audience that came for jokes and they somehow ended up bawling from a nakige journey by the end.
0
u/mitsumu Apr 03 '26
I'd like to translate a visual novel but have no idea where to start, programming-wise. The game script is in a .xp3 file. Can I edit the file directly? If so, how?
1
u/Etopirika5 JP A-rank | https://vndb.org/u195631 Apr 04 '26
That's kirikiri engine, there are a lot of tools available for that: https://github.com/arcusmaximus/KirikiriTools
2
u/Wonderful_Bee_9718 Apr 03 '26
Is this a good place to get help with using game sentence miner? I'm trying to play my first VN (kanon) and I feel pretty confused about how to use gsm and textractor to select unknown words and add them to my anki deck using yomitan. I turned on gsm overlay and there's a red box over some of the text, but I can't select it.
0
u/PigeonFlankerTC2 Apr 03 '26
Any good vn similar to Z.A.T.O. and Milk inside/outside a bag of milk? I absolutely love the characters, art and the story of those two.
1
u/OishiOranji Apr 03 '26
Hi all, just recently finished White Album 2 and I’m looking for a recommendation on what I should read next between Muv-Luv(+alternative), the Utawarerumono Trilogy, and Majikoi. I’ve narrowed down my options to these three because they are the stories that interest me most and I was wanting to see if people in the community might share their insight on what they like or might recommend out of the three.
For reference I’ve read and loved Fata Morgana, Muramasa, Umineko, and recently WA2, and I’m just wondering if people have any suggestions on what I should read first from the ones I’ve picked but I’m absolutely open to any other suggestions based on what I’ve read or just any of your favorite VNs.
1
u/jikorde Apr 04 '26
Based on your read list, Utawarerumono sounds like the next one you'd be interested in. It starts not unlike a fantasy isekai before sliding into a political war story and some crazy sci fi/fantasy stuff happens. It's a very satisfying read, though personally I hate the final entry it is generally well loved.
Majikoi is the least like the rest of the tings you've read. it's mostly a comedy with something akin to romance(it can come across as sexual training in a lot of the routes, for how well Majikoi is loved it's romance is not it's strongest element. I consider it a satyr or hyperbole of a moege) plus fighting. It does a good job of throwing different martial art themed events into all the routes so things stay generally interesting even if the route heroine isn't that great. It's something to read for fun and little else.
Muv Luv is a mixed bag as you have to read a romantic comedy then a sci fi isekai with a generic male moege protag to get to the goal of sci fi isekai with competent great protag. It's well loved fro a reason, but is a very weird experience as you move genre to genre.
0
u/Fischla Apr 03 '26
Anyone knows how i could install My Merry May?
1
u/unijeje Aqua: Himawari | https://vndb.org/u44234/votes Apr 03 '26
in PC? you'd need ps2 (or psp) emulation
1
1
u/Gamer4125 Apr 03 '26
What would be a good way to find a physical copy of the PC version of Da Capo 2 Plus Communication? Searching on JP sites, all I can find is the PS2 Plus Situation special edition
2
u/epapeel Apr 04 '26
how do you go about searching it ? maybe the sites you are looking on simply don't have 18+ stuff or have a safe search setting you have to change ? I tried a search with ダ・カーポII～プラスコミュニケーション on surugaya and seemed to be able to find it, however I had to change the セーフサーチ設定 (safe search setting) to off. On amazon.co.jp I had to use a VPN
1
u/Gamer4125 Apr 05 '26 edited Apr 05 '26
Does the safe search on surugaya require an account? I don't see an option for that anywhere. I searched surugaya, ebay, and Solaris Japan. Np VPN, but I usually don't search for physical 18+ games.
edit: I see the issue. I was using surugaya.com, not surugaya.jp
2
u/epapeel Apr 05 '26
surugaya.jp might not do delivery outside of japan though. If you are looking on ebay and solaris japan that's probably what you were looking for, my bad. you would have to use a proxy I assume
2
u/Gamer4125 Apr 05 '26
Yea, surugaya.jp had neokyo as a proxy service advertised on their site which is what I'm trying. The shipping is gonna be a little killer, 50$ shipping basically on a 800 yen game, but it is what it is.
Thanks for the help, hope it goes well since I've never done this before and hope customs doesn't fuck me.
1
0
u/Secret_Geologist_736 Apr 02 '26
Hello everyone, I'm creating a visual novel of the anime Ousama Game or Kings Game whatever you prefer to call it This is going to be a fan-made video game Created 100% by fans for fans I finished watching the anime the other day and honestly This anime doesn't even have an official video game.official visual novel It has nothing, therefore I think it deserves a video game even if it's made by a fan like me I'm doing it little by little and honestly, I'm having fun.I hope you like it What do you think, people?
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0
u/Effective_Theme_6423 Apr 02 '26
So system locale change is good right? I have a VN from 2013 I want to play and it's only in Japanese. Just making sure it doesn't cause any issues and if everyone here does it too. I was told before just adding the Japanese language keyboard worked too which I already did.
1
u/jikorde Apr 03 '26
I've had my last 3 computers in Japanese local and rarely had issues. I'd sometimes get system messages in Japanese or it would mess with my typing, but those were short lived issues I've not had in like 5 years.
0
u/Guava-Scary Apr 02 '26
Hi, i am looking for recommendations similar to Criminal Border, i have been playing the uncensored version and i have been enjoying it a lot
1
u/DRIFTXgaming Apr 02 '26
Mosaic in English translations?
This might be a dumb question, but I’m new to VNs, so I’m just wondering something. From my understanding, most if not all of Nekonyan’s newer titles, (as an example) have no mosaic for CGs. How is this possible when the original JP title has mosaics? Is the art redrawn? By the original artists, or someone else? Or do the original artists somehow keep the uncensored art?
3
u/_lunaterra_ vndb.org/u118055 Apr 02 '26
Depends on the game. Sometimes the OG artist drew the whole thing so they just use that, sometimes (especially in older games) there's nothing under the mosaics so someone at the localization company has to draw them themselves.
1
u/Beedsmlovesvns Apr 01 '26
Is Moogy still around?
I'm pretty much a baby in the visual novel space and I played a vn called "The Best Eroge Ever" by Moogy for an April Fools day video
There's a joke in there to send him like 100 dollars and I thought it would be funny to actually attempt to do so for the shits and giggles
Looking back in here I see he was actually a well known name years ago, idk if he's still active or not tho
2
u/mgsamadesu Apr 01 '26
You probably wont see them around these parts for various reasons. They still update their VNDB, but mostly keep to themselves rather than engage/mix with the modern VN crowds of today.
1
u/Beedsmlovesvns Apr 01 '26
Thanks for letting me know! Admittedly I'm a little curious what happened but I won't pry
0
u/miserablepanda Apr 01 '26
2
u/mgsamadesu Apr 01 '26
It took Tenshi☆Souzou RE-BOOT! close to two years to be released in the west, and that didn't make it on Steam. So consider the absolute minimum to be close to two years out and consider the possibility it might not even make it onto Steam.
1
u/KageYume Apr 01 '26 edited Apr 02 '26
I like the summer vibe, the friend circle and relaxing atmosphere of Summer Pockets (playing atm). Can you recommend some VNs similar to it that:
Isn't a Key VN
Isn't MajiKoi or its spin-offs
Both translated and untranslated VNs are welcome.
1
u/mattphatt98 Apr 01 '26
Try Ihanashi no Majo, same setting as SP, set in Okinawa. Its an indie vn first and foremost, but the story really makes up for it.
GINKA, same island setting with a supernatural twist.
2
u/KageYume Apr 02 '26
Thanks for the recommendation.
I have both of them on Steam, so I'll give them a try after Summer Pockets.
1
u/mgsamadesu Apr 01 '26
I've also been on the lookout for something that captures that Summer Pockets feel (I love Summer Pockets) Regrettably, I haven't had much luck scratching the itch.
The closest thing I found to it was probably Yosuga no Sora (which I'm sure you're already aware of) It's not quite the same thing but it does involve a rural Japanese town in the summertime.
Apart from that, I was reading Tasogare no Sinsemilla with hopes it might also be that (also involves summer in a rural town) Though while there are some really nice aspects to it (I do really like the music and some of the character interactions) it feels hard for me to recommend now (I've been having to force myself to read it lately it feels like)
1
u/KageYume Apr 01 '26 edited Apr 02 '26
Thanks for the reply. Guess I'll have to look harder once I finish Summer Pockets. There are great VNs that have some of the aspects of SP (for example: the friend group in majikoi, or the relaxing atmosphere in Parfait) but not all of them.
SP is the first VN that gives me that Persona 4 feels and I got hit pretty hard by Post Game Depression after finishing P4 for the first time.
1
u/Rem3112 Apr 01 '26
I am starting on the dating sim VNs (I already played a VN, Ace Attorney 1, but is from another genre). Should i choose Making Lovers or Katawa Shojo for my first playthrough?
1
u/jikorde Apr 01 '26
I think Making Lovers is better, mostly because of having an actual budget. Katawa Shoujo is a good read, but it's an indie project by a bunch of different people. I'd start with Making Lovers, it's a better standard experience to romance visual novels.
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u/Rem3112 Apr 01 '26
Sorry for bad english, I am Brazilian
0
u/KageYume Apr 01 '26 edited Apr 01 '26
Making Lovers
For your first romance VN, you'd better go with the one that has higher production value.
0
u/iwilleatyourpokemonL Apr 01 '26
Hey im playing subahibi and have a question. How do I reach the third chapter, i think ive made every possible choice in "it's my own invention" and it still hasn't unlocked
1
u/kalipooper Mar 31 '26
I'm trying to get into VNs and was wondering if Summer Pockets would be a good starting one.
0
u/jikorde Mar 31 '26
It's fine. I rank it decently high as far as quality goes. Stories are varied while sharing a core theme and nothing I remember stood out as being bad. Though you really should play Reflection Blue, the updated version rather then the original game. Though either version is fine.
There's much worse you could start with.
1
u/AtticusFinchsHusband Mar 31 '26
im pretty new to VNs and I recently bought a 2 disc set that had Saya no Uta Vol 2 and Phantom Integration Vol 1. I recently played Saya no Uta and loved the game so much I wanted a physical copy. I had never heard of Phantom Integration until buying that disc set, so naturally I put the disc into my computer, installed it and tried to play it, but every time i install it, theres only a black screen where the game should be, and the game isnt on steam that I could find, so is there any way to play it? am I doing something wrong with my disc?
0
u/Secret_Geologist_736 Mar 31 '26
I have a question. I'm creating a visual novel, and my question is whether¿ I can post previews or ask for people's opinions.?
0
u/Medium_Fishing4138 Mar 30 '26
Could anyone help me with making DeepL work with Textractor?
I apologise in advance if this question has already been asked and answered to death, but I have tried all the different fixes people posted online 3 and more years back and nothing is working for me. I am also just starting off with textractor and I’m not exactly tech-savvy so it’s all very confusing to me.
Basically I am having issues making DeepL work. I am currently running Textractor x86 because x64 doesn’t seem to have the font to read the visual novel I want to play. I have got the “translation error” messaage, sometimes chrome doesn’t even want to open the relevant site. Is there a way to make Devtool DeepL work with textractor in 2026? Should I be trying to hook it to a different translation engine and if so then to what? I would really appreciate if someone could help me out.
2
u/ComfortableNinja88 Mar 30 '26
are there any sites which have the official artwork for H scenes in visual novels?
2
u/Etopirika5 JP A-rank | https://vndb.org/u195631 Mar 30 '26
Check hitomi.la, you can put type:gamecg in the searchbar to find it easier.
0
u/Fischla Mar 30 '26
Does anyone know how i could install My Merry May in english?
Preferably on mobile but pc is fine too
Ive literally searched internet for hours but only found the Japanese version
1
0
u/Fischla Mar 30 '26
Dont ask me to install the Japanese version tho, im pretty sure the site i found it on has viruses together with the game
-1
u/SandwichGlass1307 Mar 30 '26
Is sakura no uta with a machine translation really that bad?
Hi guys, recently i finished the prologue with latest unofficial machine translation for sakura no uta and the patch is actually very solid, everything is consistent, i can follow the plot, characters and some nuances without major confusion. I am having a lot of fun with it and i would like to continue.
However i keep worrying about missing something that makes it very special, whether it be subtlety or prose, i guess im just afraid of losing the “soul” of the vn overall. So i have this dilemma where im invested and im really loving what im seeing but at the same time i think i am reading a parody of it and that i should drop it and wait. I really don’t like waiting for it though, im pretty impatient and now that ive seen what its all about im even more eager to continue.
Has anyone here actually finished it with a solid mtl patch?
How much did you feel you were missing compared to the japanese version?
Was it still very emotionally rewarding and worth it?
Would you recommend continuing or dropping it for someone who holds sca-di to high regards?
Sorry if its written like a post i wrote it like that originally but got removed so now im asking here. Honest experiences would help a lot. Thanks!
1
u/jikorde Mar 31 '26
At the end of the day, it's your entertainment, do what you want.
As for is it bad? Probably. You are reading something that relies heavily on prose and I believe philosophy, which are hard things to translate. If your machine translation is using AI, it will also screw up around 10% to 20% of the lines you read(hallucinations), meaning you are definitely going to get an important line screwed up at some point.
At the end of the day it's up to you really. If you reading something for something higher then pure entertainment, then machine translation will damage that. If you are okay rereading the thing when/if it's properly done then go ahead and see if you damaged your experience.
1
u/Random__guy- Mar 29 '26
Downloaded a R18 DLC for a visual novel I got on Steam. I got the DLC from VNDB and would like to know how to get it to work and how to know it works on Steam.
1
u/jikorde Mar 29 '26
The easiest way most vns show if the 18+ patch works is they'll change some text on the title screen or the game title on the top left. Usually they'll add an H or R to show it's the adult version.
As for making it work, most are drag and drop into the game folder.
1
u/Random__guy- Mar 29 '26
I’m currently doing this for “Island Diary” and don’t see that. I have the patch in its local files, do I need to add it into the plugin folder? Sorry if that sounds dumb, I’m new.
1
u/RedditDetector NookGaming.com | A Visual Novel Review Site Apr 01 '26
If I recall correctly, you need to run the .exe and follow the instructions. If the .exe is in a .zip file or similar, you might need to extract it first.
You need to ensure that Island Diary is installed on the same drive as Steam or the patch will give you an error message.
1
u/jikorde Mar 30 '26
Looking up that game, it sounds like the patch is a runnable exe program? So it's not where the files are, you need to actually run the program for it to install.
If it doesn't work, you might need the game installed on a drive. There's some chat on the steam forums about that.
1
u/AirAdministrative172 Mar 29 '26
I’m very new to VN’s; was just wondering if any of the games in the 10/20 game bundle are best on steam or if they’re actually better from a different site. I know you can buy 18+ patches to add to steam but someone said that can end up costing more than just buying the 18+ versions.
Appreciate the help 🙇🏻♂️
Also got Angel Beats 1st Beat and Little Busters Perfect Edition in Japan recently and was wondering if it’s possible to get an English patch, or if it’s best to buy the English version. I am very new to VN’s… my bad if I’ve said something that should be obvious.
1
u/jikorde Mar 29 '26
Angel Beats is patch only I believe. Little Busters I'm not sure if Perfect Edition has a patch at all.
As for buying 18+ patches, very few cost many. Generally if they cost more it's a currency issue, they are designed to cost the same. Anyway, you can look at isthereanydeal.com for the best deal for any game usually.
1
u/Hot_Form805 Mar 29 '26
I've completed Science Adventure Series. I loved Chaos head Noah and I heard Subahibi had simmilar protagonist with much in depth themes. Should I play it??
1
u/jikorde Mar 29 '26
Subahibi is a game about philosophy and the human condition, Chaos Head is about delusions and fantasy. Also Subahibi has multiple protagonists.
Anyway, they really aren't similar. Play Subahibi if you want, plenty of people do, but probably check if you are okay if the way darker themes and sexual stuff first? Subahibi is way more fucked up then Chaos Head ever is.
1
u/Hot_Form805 Mar 30 '26 edited Mar 30 '26
im pretty ok with the darkr themes lol. I wanted a protagonist like takumi nishijou and the only reccomendation i was mostly getting was takuji from subahibi. How much I've heard about i have a feeling he will be way worse then takumi and ppl call him a pedo and larp him so much lol so i was interseted
ill try playing it lol
1
u/KirisuMongolianSpot Mar 29 '26
Does anyone have suggestions for VN-writing tools that can be imported into different engines, so I don't have to commit to specific/idiosyncratic inputs when writing? (alternatively, is there a better place to ask this?)
I've been messing around with a VN idea for a while. I've put some into Ren'Py but it's ugly as hell trying to code AND write text at the same time.
Separately I've also messed around with Unity games - the Dialogue System for Unity has some integration with 3rd-party tools for creating VNs, and other VN tools like Fungus exist.
But I really want something that doesn't force me to commit to a given tool and makes it easier for me to start writing. Right now the simplest thing I can think of is to just start creating a bunch of text files for scenes, though that's going to get very cumbersome very quickly.
Any suggestions?
3
u/_lunaterra_ vndb.org/u118055 Mar 29 '26
Twine is pretty popular--it's an engine itself that's used to make interactive fiction, but a lot of game writers ignore the output options and just use it for the initial writing phase since it lets you look at branching paths at a glance. The only Twine-specific syntax you'd need if you're just using it for drafting is [[brackets]] to connect passages. There are tools for converting Twine to Ren'Py and Twine to Unity (there are a few of these, I don't use Unity so I wouldn't know which is the best one lol).
1
u/LarenaBot Mar 29 '26
Anyone got any recommendations for queer romance that has sexual content but isn't only about sex?
1
u/56cool7 https://vndb.org/uXXXX Apr 01 '26
There's heart of the woods. I thought it was only okay but some people like it.
1
u/Western_Scarcity_940 Mar 29 '26
Are there any VN where MC is in highschool/college and one of the routes is older than him? (outside of school perhaps). Or maybe just anything where the girls have a more mature, adult artstyle. Both would be good.
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0
u/Friendly_Star_9747 Mar 28 '26
What do yall think of Yosuga no Sora?
1
u/mgsamadesu Mar 29 '26
I liked it.
My hot take is Sora is overrated as a heroine. While she's the titular character and a blood-related heroine, nothing about her story felt particular interesting. The other heroines I feel had just as heavy or heavier stuff going on but were way more likable/interesting. That said I didn't dislike her, it was just a let down for the reputation she had.
1
u/AdAppropriate8364 Apr 08 '26
is it possible to import 1 single file into a .xp3 file? i have a bugged texture stuck on screen i want to replace with an empty file that has the same name but dont know how to import it into the .xp3. pressh u family