Neighbor

A simple mystery tale without many surprises but enjoyable to read nonetheless. The text is nicely written, building tension when it's due and the characters interactions have a good flow to them. Its well paced, never boring or wasting any time to move forward. The presentation follow the purest tradition of sound novel : emphasis on the text by having it occupies the entire screen (NVL style), emphasis on the sound atmosphere and sound effects, minimalist illustrations (with occasional beautiful b/w CG). It could have been done better in the sound effects department but all in all, the presentation serves its goal right : carrying its story by accompanying it with an eerie atmosphere.

I had fun reading/listening to this Horror Visual Novel. The atmosphere building is in a good pace, not too slow nor fast. I got jumpscare from sudden sound effects and VAs. It was short... but it really fun.

This game is a slow burner, and builds up the tension brilliantly, starting with just a small incident, then the game devs turn the screw a little and add another strange incident, then another. You play as someone who has just moved into a new flat, and according to Japanese tradition, you take a small gift and introduce yourself to your neighbours. One of your neighbours is a student who decides to help you with your search for an explanation of what is happening. This student also provides some comic relief during the search. The voice-over is in Japanese, and does contribute to the build up of suspense, even if we do not understand what is being said. The art style is minimalistic and limited to just a few colours and lines, and suits the story as it is told. Not being familiar with Japanese social customs, I found that while they were necessary for developing the mystery they were at first a bit off-putting, but its well worth persevering with them as it explains so well how the various characters react in the circumstances they find themselves in and the politeness that Japanese society can impose even in unusual circumstances. There are plenty of save slots, though I am not …

Very spooky and immersive. Experience it at night and with headphones.

Great little visual novel horror story. It's well written, good audio design, a well told story and some chilling scenes. It's completely passive, there's no interaction, it's in the purest sense a visual novel. Takes about 3 hours to ride through the main game and epilogue. What I would recommend you avoid is the DLC. Unlike the main game there is a system of choice to it, and it ramps the gore/direct horrific imagery moreso. But it's abysmally short (15 minutes), has nothing to do with the main game, and isn't really entertaining or satisfying at all. Seems like a cheap money-grab in every sense of the word. But recommend the main game wholeheartedly.

Extremely underrated horror Visual Novel.