Crimson Waves on the Emerald Sea: Amaranthine Moon

My reviews are usually semi-coherent private notes just for me, but leaving a public review here because I think this game deserves more attention. What I enjoyed about this game: - A fantastic MC, who is amazingly kick-butt but also wonderfully 3D and flawed. - Every single love interest! I enjoyed every route - and that is definitely not always the case for me. Each love interest became more interesting and likable to me as his route progressed. - A MC who both saves and is saved by the LIs; if anything, she does slightly more saving, I loved how balanced the relationships felt to me. - The MC and LIs all get to blush! - A truly spooky forest as well as several murders to investigate. The forest was so, so, so much spookier than I anticipated and I LOVED it. It only really appears in one route, but it definitely made a big impression on me. If you're looking for a pure mystery game, this might not be the best fit: it doesn't have the extended cast of suspects or twists and turns and fake-outs of the most complex mysteries. But if you're interested in well done character work and romance alongside a dash of mystery and an intriguing fantasy world, I definitely recommend it.

Please gather ALL the love in the world and give it to Rowan. Please.

The writing in this VN is great. The whole main cast is wonderful--Lucie is such a fun heroine (the kind of heroine who's worth playing the game for all on her lonesome) and all of the LIs play well off her in different ways. The mystery and the romance are both really good, and I really liked the way that vampirism is treated in the story. [spoiler]I don't know if it's intentional, but the way that vampirism is talked about in the story--especially in Elm's route--made me think it's at least partially a trans allegory. Regardless of whether Lucie stays a vampire or not, there's a lot of emphasis placed on the medication she wants to sell giving people the [i]choice[/i] to alter their bodies. Mostly this is about letting vampires choose whether or not they want to become human, but Elm's route also introduces the concept of humans wanting to become vampires and becoming more at home in their bodies when they do.[/spoiler] The cinematography is really good, although the different art styles between sprites and CGs are a little bit jarring sometimes--all of the art is good, it just doesn't always [i]quite[/i] fit together. But that's the only real complaint I have. While I don't th…

the writing is beautiful, the art is gorgeous, and the game never feels stagnant

I finished Elm's route with vampire Lucie the whole way and really loved it! The art, writing, music, and scene direction work together to create a world that feels really lived in. Every character feels like they're living their own lives outside of what Lucie is up to, which enhances both the mystery and romance plots. On that note, I'm not usually a mystery or an otome game player but I had a lot of fun trying to solve the mystery and getting to know Elm. The two plots are woven together in ways that enhance each other. Getting to know Elm means gaining pieces to solve the mystery and solving the mystery brings you closer to Elm, and both feel very rewarding. I'm very excited to play more and get to know Rowan and Cecil better. I have been very charmed by my beloved Elm and the glimpses I got of Rowan and Cecil from his route make me want to experience their sides of the story. Overall, this was a really fun game. I really liked it. Everyone should play it and fall in love with Elm

A cute and charming Otome game. Cecil was my personal favorite character and route, helped by getting to know him as a viewpoint character in the prequel (which I would encourage reading even if it's not required). As a side note, the developer was very helpful when I contacted them to report an issue I had (which was quickly resolved). If this looks interesting to you, I encourage reading it. The prequel title is freeware if you want to dip your toes into the setting. There's also a demo for this so that's an option too, though I'm not sure how much it covers. Oh also the protagonist is a chaotic gremlin, very entertaining.