I have to admit that overall I’m very impressed with Higurashi’s ability to keep me engaged for this long when a lot of the time the events are pretty much the same. The difference in perspective can really make the difference sometimes…both for better and worse.
Whilst I knew Chapter 6 probably wouldn’t measure up to the previous chapter’s quality, I was still somewhat impressed with it.
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I’m always more interested in the perspective of the villain. Without the villain, there can be no story…after all, what is there to drive our hero forward, to overcome the odds? But the thing about the hero is that they’re reactionary: they’re only doing things to stop the villain. But why is the villain doing what they’re doing? What drives them? I’ve always found that infinitely more interesting, because the villain is always the character who shapes the story.
So yeah, you can probably guess how this is going to read.
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Now, HERE is something I’ve been meaning to cross off my bucket list for at least 20 years. Super Mario Land, whilst it might not have been the first game I ever played – my memory is a bit hazy – was definitely the first game I ever owned, as it came bundled with my original Gameboy, which I got for my…sixth birthday? Might have been my seventh. But damn, I could never finish it – the last boss was just too difficult for me at that age. I bought it immediately when it was released on the 3DS Virtual Console, but I just never found the time for it.
Yes, I know the sequel was better. I still have a fondness for this game, though.
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The problem with having major events in the past sometimes is that a game can rely too heavily on them to tell the story, so it feels like you’re missing a key part of the plot. Or that part of the background can become more interesting than what is going on right now and you’re left wondering why they’re telling you this part when the previous part they refer to sounds so much more interesting.
Higurashi didn’t have that problem for the most part – those early chapters required a bit of patience to plow through – but it’s still good to read about how it all started.
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Whilst it was 10 years ago next month, I can still remember when the first Hyperdimension Neptunia game was released. As a fan of Disgaea who was still relatively new to “niche” JRPGs, I was intrigued by the concept of the console wars being depicted as cute anime girls…said console wars being a huge part of my childhood. Needless to say, after a couple of these games, I was a huge fan of Compile Heart, and I’ve been following them ever since.
They’ve released more than a few bad games since then. Fortunately, Fairy Fencer F is not one of them.
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As a victim of child abuse I have very strong feelings about it, and on those rare occasions when I find it in media it generally makes me uncomfortable for obvious reasons. Disregarding my personal circumstances, it’s a very delicate subject that should be handled in a mature and constructive fashion.
So, let’s talk about Sakoto, I guess.
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You know a piece of media is doing something right when you can’t put it down without wanting to go right back to it again. I have so much else I want to do with my time right now, but I find myself spending a large amount of time on my laptop, reading these old horror visual novels.
Thus far, I haven’t regretted it.
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Visuals novels are a relatively new genre to me, but most of what I have played are horror themed. The genre seems perfectly suited to the horror theme, as it can get away with minimal description and sound effects and leave the rest to the player’s imagination…and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that there is nothing more horrifying than what your imagination can dream up.
…unless it’s someone having their eyes mutilated. That’s awful.
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Don’t you hate it when things just end? There’s nothing worse than getting really immersed in something, only to have it suddenly just stop. Even if there is a good reason behind it, it’s still one of the more annoying things that can happen, especially when you’re playing a video game.
Yep, this is another one of those.
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There aren’t many games I would refer to as “masterpieces” in the same way another person might. It takes very little for me to be pleased, but a lot for me to be impressed, especially when it comes to JRPGs – when you’ve played through as many as I have over the years, it takes a lot to surprise you. You can only see it so many times before it becomes stale and predictable.
With that said, Xenoblade Chronicles remains the best game I ever played.
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Dawn's Video Game Corner 