9-nine-:Episode 1

(Note: this is more of a review of the entire series.) 9-nine- is a popular visual novel that's a blend of action, mystery, and supernatural genres. This isn't something I normally read (I mainly read slice-of-life), so I don't have anything to compare to, but in a vacuum, it's pretty solid. Pros: The mystery and supernatural element- The mechanics are explained clearly and in detail, and everything was slowly revealed, making it easy to understand and follow along. This made me much more invested in the story and thinking about everything that happens. The characters- I often get more invested in the characters than the actual story. Every heroine gets their moments to shine, especially in their own episode. I enjoyed getting to know the characters, and watching them interact with each other. This extends to the protagonist Kakeru as well. He has a clearly defined personality, so he really stands out among a sea of generic VN protagonists. Him being voiced further emphasizes that he's his own character. The action- You can't have an action story without the fight scenes, and for the most part, they do their job well. Even as someone that struggles with attention span, duri…

i'm here only for the sister

Review of the whole series because I'm lazy. [b]Tech part[/b]: The target resolution is 720p and it can be seen on 1080p monitor, especially in it's text. Version from DLSite supports 1080p, has all episodes in one pack and uncensored. So I would recommed to buy it from there if you want to play it in Japanese. Played on SteamDeck most of the time so 720p was perfectly fine on it. I didn't encounter any other technical problems, but I know that some problems occurred for some people. On the other hand, you can select not just Japanese language (unlike some other games), but 2 supported languages at the same time, which is perfect for a guy who still learns nihongo. Sadly, the localization has the calssic moments, where localizators changed what didn't need to be changed or put some cringy lines. And of course, eroge elements were cut, but the patches returning them are free on Palettes site and easy to install. [b]Story part[/b]: The first episode starts slow, weak and boring. It's is a build up for the future episodes, but it is worth enduring until the 2nd episode because the story will develop in geometrical progession after that point and at the last episode you won't be able…

This series is something I'd have loved when I was 18. It hit all the tropes I loved in VNs. As a 30 year old though all the dates and downtime bits feel a bit long an drawn out. But the series at least knows when it's bordering on obnoxiously slow pacing and decides to slam a bunch of action. This is a good opening to the series and the themes it presents. It doesn't really have any thematic throughlines, but I won't say the writing is bad. It's actually quite good at crafting the villain and compelling love stories. The only part where the writing falters is when you think real hard about the fantasy bits - and the writing itself basically says to the reader what I admittedly always want to say when writing fantastical elements myself: "I could come up with a billion reasons why this works the way it does but none of them would be satisfying, it's just something we're rolling with." So in that regard it can be a little lazy; it's not like magic circuits in Tsukihime and Fate, it's not thought out impressively well or anything. But if you can ride with "magic things that are essentially bound to one person" as the main way the magic works, then you'll enjoy the series. Overall,…

I would give it a 7.5/10. It's a great start to the series. The story is cool with the romance and those supernatural stuffs. The illustrations and soundtracks are nice as well. I'm looking forward to the other episodes. Also, if you're reading this, there's a free DLC on Denpasoft (keep in mind that it's nsfw)

Good.