Narcissu
 

First of all, it feels good to be back. Finally got around to re-registering. Anyways, on to the meat of this post...

Narcissu is a doujin visual novel made in 2005 by stage-nana. Unfortunately, I can't really give a sypnosis without spoiling, but I'll copy and paste from their story page.

This visual novel is surprisingly well done, complete with voice acting for Setsumi. While the pictures don't exactly vary much, they're beautiful in their own right and fit the mood and location of the scene. Most of the pictures are of the scenery where the protagonist is. The music is very, very good and well composed. The melodies range from melancholy to somewhat cheerful, but, given the genre of the novel, most scenes are accompanied with melancholy tunes, not like there's anything wrong with that. The music definitely sets the mood for the scenes in the novel and adds to the more emotional moments of the novel. The music itself is good enough to be in a motion picture.

Of course, the best part of the novel is the story itself. While it's only eight chapters long, it's more than long enough to keep you interested in the story, but short enough to complete in one sitting. Like I said earlier, I can't really give details or else it would be spoiling. However, I will warn that this story is heart-wrenching, and, unless you're a robot, will probably make you cry. The sheer emotion one feels for the characters is outstanding; I felt as if I knew these characters personally and felt what they did. I'm not afraid to admit that the end of this novel made me cry; it truely is a beautiful yet melancholy story without being overly melodramatic.

Do yourself a favor: download this visual novel and read it. You'll be glad you did if you enjoy a good drama story.

Discuss when you're done reading.

Links:
Main page
Download page

That sounds interesting. I never heard of a visual novel before so this might be a good experience for me.

Is the translation good? I'm usually bothered by poor translation because it takes the effect away.

As a general rule, if it's translated by insani, it's gotta be good. I've read through this one and was impressed.

The translation seemed to very true to the original meaning of the words. Then again, I don't speak Japanese, but all of the sentences flowed well with one another and were never awkward at all. Seems like the translation is done very well and is spot on.

SETSUMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

A little while back I was on something of a visual novel spree, and I encouraged everyone I talked to to get narcissu, among other things.

All I can say is, ;_______;

This was a pretty thought-provoking story. Right from the very first lines of the story, you can tell that things are going to be slightly darker tinted. The reader then becomes curious as to how the protagonists are going to react, how they'll change over the course of the tale. The ending didn't quite reduce me to tears, but it was powerful.

The group who did this translation recommend you play through the game twice, as there are two versions: One which is voiced, and one which is unvoiced. I've only played through the voiced version, so far... I've yet to muter up the mental strength to go through it one more time. ._.

How long does this take, and do you guys recommend playing it with someone else (like a friend)? Is this a game?

So, it's not really a "game" in the sense that most of us think. There's not really any interaction going on here -- you are simple reading a story presented to you, along with some side illustrations, voice acting, music and sound effects. You could basically be reading the script on paper and accomplish the same thing, though the effect is of course greatly lessened.

As for how long it takes, well, I'd set aside a few hours. Visual novels aren't really things that I like to stop in the middle of, because the story is often pretty compelling and it's hard to get back into the right mindset. There's quite a lot of text here (8 chapters, as mentioned), so... yeah, a few hours.

I personally wouldn't go through the game with a friend, since I think of this as a pretty personal type of thing. But of course, that's just personal taste. If you're someone who appreciates having someone else there (preferably someone who can appreciate the game) reading along with you, then go for it. I just like things to be private.

This is probably a silly question, but is it possible to "save" the story and then pick up from the same point later on?

Yes, it is. Probably all visual novel software allow you to bookmark your progress.

Yes, there is. Simply right click anywhere and it brings up a list of options.

And Saka, you mentioned that the unvoiced version is "different"? How so? Did the developers mean that the emotional effect of the characters is different when not voiced, or are some scenarios different? I'd love to know... if you know that is.

On a side note, the ending itself didn't bring me to tears... it was...

In the game itself, the translation team left a note about the nature of the voiced and unvoiced versions -- you should take a look at it because it'll explain the significance much better than I can.

In brief, though: the voiced and unvoiced versions were translated by different people. Thus, there are a lot of subtle differences in the translation and interpretation of what's going on, enough to the point where the translators feel it would be worth it to experience each version.

Personally I like the voiced version, because it saves me from reading the lines ^ ^ and also it kind of enhances the emotion because you can actually hear the emotions portrayed by the VAs.

The silent one is also quite powerful because of the 'death-burding' feeling when you reading it.

I suggest reading unvoiced first then go back to voiced version ;)

There are a few more good novel games out there, like planetarium (sp?) or a lot Leaf's work are all good starting points. Some of these novels will take you more than 8 hrs to read, but with music as enhancement you often loose time and want to finish the story.

Unfortuantly no English company are willing to take up translation these novels because it takes too long and not worth it.

I highly recommend if you have nothing to do, give Narcissu a go ;)

Whoops, I think I went through the first chapter without saving. Sigh. 15 minutes that I need to click through again. I right clicked on the screen which I think took you to a new chapter but instead took me to the menu and I didn't know how to save from there. :(

EDIT: Oh, it took me to the 2nd chapter. Yay!

I noticed stage-nana is selling a CD-ROM version for 500 yen, but it's 300MB as opposed to the web edition's 110MB. What's the difference?