Narcissu 10th Anniversary Anthology Project

I went into "Narcissu 10th Anniversary Project" expecting a collection of sad stories about people who are sick and dying. Indeed, that is what this VN is about, but I think it is much more than that as well. These are stories about regret, loneliness, love, friendship, faith, and acceptance. Stories about what people do with the little time they have. It is about simply wanting someone to understand you before it's too late. [h2] Narcissu 1 and 2 [/h2] These two are the heart of the entire series. The first one has such a strange atmosphere. Watching Setsumi and the protagonist leave the hospital and drive around, knowing what awaits them, gives the story a strange feeling and a constant sense of mystery. Of course, it's not a traditional road story where the destination matters. In this case, the journey itself is what matters. Narcissu 2 completely changes the way you look at the first game, especially by going back and showing us a younger Setsumi. Himeko's story also adds so much to the overall experience, and I really liked seeing more of her and her relationship with Setsumi. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3789763279 [h2] Himeko's Epilogue[/h2] After…

This is pretty much just a KEY VN focused on how people deal with death. Instead of students, you usually get a variety of cute anime girls who come down with serious illnesses. Sounds a bit cliched, but it actually kind of worked for me. The music is great and helps a lot with this. I think that's because the writing can tap into something very scary for most of us - what happens when we're about to die? How do we handle our relationships with our friends and family? How do we not give into grief and despair? It seems a bit like cheating, but it can tap into that if you're willing to let it do so. In that sense, if "Gris" was a powerful exploration of what grief felt like for those "left behind" as is stated in this VN, I think this VN does a great job of exploring despair and loneliness both for the people dying and the ones left behind wondering what kind of world they'll have to inhabit afterwards. Again, this probably isn't for everybody (and may come off as forced), but it worked for me, and I can definitely recommend at least reading Narcissu 1, 2, and Himeko's Epilogue. I'll try to update this as I read more of the side tales.

Setsumi

an absolutely beautiful game. I just bought this version because i loved the free one so much 😭

Narcissu, both 1, 2 and Himeko's epilogue, truly impressed me with how it could tell a story that feels so complete and so moving in just several hours. One of the few visual novels that deserves to be a must-read classic of the genre in my opinion.

orz