November 2009 Eroge Releases

Aside from the highly anticipated 2nd Baldr Sky game and Akatsuki Works Hibiki’s debut work Shiden, there are not many games this month. Personally, I’ll be busy with Suzunone Seven! -Sweet Lovers’ Concerto- and seeing if Imouto Smile lives up to my expectations. If you decide to skip a month to catch up on your backlog (including last month’s stash), this is the best time to do so.

All in all a lackluster month, probably due to everyone gearing up to vacuum the money out of your wallets for Christmas. That aside there are a few potential diamonds in the rough for this month which make up for the rest.

Usotsuki to Inugamitsuki

Company: 工画堂スタジオ (Kogado Studio)
Game site: ウソツキと犬神憑き
Release date: November 20, 2009
Comments:
This is an all-ages VN from Kogado Studio. Tsukumo’s father had always told him not to be near the forest when dusk approaches. However, he was curious and often tread near the forest even though he cannot walk well due to an accident. One day, he sees something red along the road… is this blood? Then he could smell the scent of a beast, even though he could not before. Was this the reason why he was told to stay away? The plot’s actually quite interesting and Kogado Studio is one of the better all-ages VN companies out there, so this will be worth your time.

Mm, I do not know whether I should be interested in this game or not. On one hand there may be an interesting story, while on the other I find the werewolf bit a little tacky perhaps. With the game being an all ages VN though I have to assume story is the one and only selling point, therefore with that being the focus I want to at least give this game a chance.

Hikari no Valusia ~What a beautiful hopes~

Company: ライアーソフト (liar soft)
Game site: 白光のヴァルーシア～What a beautiful hopes～
Release date: November 20, 2009
Comments:
Hikari no Valusia is set in the desert city Valusia where no one except for ‘adepts’ can leave the city. It definitely has that ‘Arabian’ feel to it and it shows through the art style. The character cast is HUGE. Personally, it isn’t that interesting to me, but if you liked liar soft’s other games, this one should be right up your alley.

The art for this game intrigues me though the setting and story do not. Art wise I feel that a game like this needs a lot of motion to really bring a bright and vibrant painted look to the story. Story wise I feel there may be much to be desired, with the background feeling like a setup.

Koigoromo ~Mazu wa Kore Kite!~

Company: Catear
Game site: 恋衣～まずはコレ着て！～
Release date: November 20, 2009
Comments:
Catear specializes in crossdressing games and this game is no exception. When Minoru confessed to Chisa, she was surprised and said that it would be fine if he dressed up as a girl. I don’t know how that works. Maybe she is secretly yearning for some female loving. Anyways, the art is bad and the story is bad, so definitely pass.

This plot is just plain lazy. forcing a crossdressing story with such a simple and boring setup should be a crime. Even under the assumption that I desired a crossdressing storyline this game would not be worth the time or effort to so much as skim through. If you are even vaguely interested I suggest watching the OP and leaving it at that, after all you get the entire story right there at the relatively cheap cost of a few minutes of time.

Shiden ~Enkan no Kizuna~

Company: 暁WORKS-響- (Akatsuki Works -Hibiki-)
Game site: 紫電～円環の絆～
Release date: November 26, 2009
Comments:
This is the first game by Akatsuki Works Hibiki, a new team under Akatsuki Works. The feel of the game is the same as past Akatsuki Works games, with a strong protagonist who doesn’t trust anyone and lots of girls who fight and can hold their own. I really like the OP. If you’re looking for an action ADV, this is a good choice.

I will pick this one up if I have the time to see how this new team works out. For the most part though gives a bit of a standard action based eroge feel. With an unproven track record and a game that feels a bit average there is not much more to say at this time. Cannot say I am too fond of muscle men in fundoshi though…

Baldr Sky Dive2 “Recordare”

Company: 戯画 (GIGA)
Game site: BALDR SKY Dive2“RECORDARE”
Release date: November 27, 2009
Comments:
The highly anticipated 2nd story for the popular ACT/ADV Baldr Sky. There’s not much more for me to add since most of you will be playing this regardless anyway.

I like the Baldr series but hate the work I need to do for these games, therefore I shall not be playing this game. So well if you liked Baldr Sky then this should be on your must play list, especially for this month.

airy[F]airy ~Easter of Sant’Ariccia~

Company: RococoWorks
Game site: airy［F］airy（エアリィフェアリィ）～Easter of Sant’Ariccia～
Release date: November 27, 2009 Delayed to January 29, 2010
Comments:
There is a large sacred tree in Alicia Forest near the village of Nemi. Once every year it’ll glow and if a couple vows to love each other under its glow, they will live happily ever after. Elmo is preparing for the the annual Easter of Sant’Ariccia festival. His adoptive father disappeared 3 months ago and he had to take over the graveyard duties. Every Tuesday midnight, he has to participate in the battle of ‘Eremita’. If he loses, Tuesday will be stolen from this world.

Ahahahah…. his name is Elmo! Ahahaha… Um, sorry. I mean… what a weird story. The characters are interesting though, especially Monika who looks like Mio the Mad Hatter. RococoWorks’ art style is quite distinctive and I have no problem with it.

In my opinion the feel of this game lends itself toward the magical girl school type story. Art work is very moe centric with a focus on childish romance. The premise leading towards the battle for Tuesday feels inescapably lame to me, with the scale of the plotline feeling mismatched when compared to the character designs and other story elements.

For once I have to agree with Micchi though, I am a bit intrigued by the characters and especially Monika. The mix of cuteness along with what appears to be a mischievous side I find rather appealing.

…. Elmo…    nuff said.

But if we lose Tuesday, then that’s one less day to play eroge!

Shirokuma Bell Stars

Company: PULLTOP
Game site: しろくまベルスターズ♪
Release date: November 27, 2009 Delayed to December 11, 2009
Comments:
It’s a little early for Christmas, but we’ve got our first holiday season game already. In Shirokuma Bell Stars, some girls act as ‘Santa’ and can grant wishes using magical powers known as “Tree”. Acting as their partners are ‘reindeers’ (not actually reindeers) who help them carry things around using a machine called a ‘cervi’. Touma saw a Santa and reindeer pair when he was small and wanted to become a reindeer. Now he acts as a reindeer to an energetic, but clumsy, Santa named Nanami. Together they head to the Shirokuma village where there is no “Tree”.

So long as I can throw out my initial imagery of Santa as a jolly old (big-bellied) fellow and reindeers as horny horned animals, I’ll be able to enjoy this seemingly fun and light-hearted tale with a magical twist. I don’t mind seeing girls dressed in Santa suits using magic. Nanami is omochikaeri material.

This game is terrible. I suppose with a lead in like that I should give them a little credit for being the first to attempt to cash in on christmas, I swear it gets earlier every year.. With this lone little “Positive” safely out of the way I can begin my usual opinionated bashing of other peoples work.

Frankly this idea is even lazier than Koigoromo. Christmas moe style I suppose would be appealing to middle aged pedophiles looking to recover their lost youth, or alternatively… Micchi. Not only does this game lack any real story, or even a forseeable possibility of interesting characters and their development. I am not one to care about the bastardization of corporate holidays, especially when I much prefer the Japanese method of celebrating the winter solstice . However the mind numbing simplicity that is the plotline of this game means that after a summary you already know the story. I would wager that with a few extra details, such as exact scenarios for the endings and character traits I would be able to write a convincing review on the entire game. Normally I would be done with my comments after a quick “No” however the drought of games this month leaves me with a lot of pent up assholery to vent.

I think I finally understand why you’re such an ass. You were always on Santa’s naughty list and you didn’t even get coal for Christmas due to rising fuel surcharges. Look, you even invented the word ‘assholery’.

Sorafune

Company: だんでらいおん (Dandelion)
Game site: そらふね
Release date: November 27, 2009
Comments:
The world is full of mysteries. Even though the adults laugh and think it’s just pretending to explore and chasing a childhood dream, a group of friends head out to investigate these mysteries and understand the truth behind things in this world. The premise of exploration is definitely one that I find interesting since it reminds me of being a child when you don’t understand how everything works. That being said, I find the art horrendous. Some of the CGs are really disproportionate and I can’t bring myself to play something that I can’t stand looking at.

I like anything that gives me something to think about. In this case I am interested in where they will be going with this story. Assuming the childhood exploration is not emphasized on but rather an interesting world view is developed I feel this may be an interesting game that I will pick up.

I see none of the epic failure that Micchi did in the CG, while there are a few CGs that are off, that is normal in almost every game. Nothing that I witnessed for Sorafune was on the scale of Eden bad.

Atori no Sora to Shinchuu no Tsuki

Company: TOPCAT
Game site: アトリの空と真鍮の月
Release date: November 27, 2009
Comments:
Haito returns to Ashibi-mura and reacquaints with friends after 6 years. The people in the village all worship a god, but there’s a hidden bloody past that the adults are hiding. I’m having Higurashi vibes here, as this game is listed as a rural horror ADV with mystery elements. I’m not too familiar with TOPCAT, so I’m going to wait for some blog impressions before considering this.

Maybe a Higurashi that is not silly, nonsensical, and written for people who enjoy pseudo intellectual rubbish. Ok back on track and I do like the idea of this eroge but I also find the retro art style repulsive. I do not know about the rest of you but I find bishoujos with manly faces a travesty.

I think this is just realistic, unlike Majikoi.

Suzunone Seven! -Sweet Lovers’ Concerto-

Company: クロシェットlumie (Clochette lumie)
Game site: スズノネセブン！－Sweet Lovers’Concerto－
Release date: November 27, 2009
Comments:
This is the fandisk for Suzunone Seven!, which I have reviewed already. It takes place after the end of the ‘Worst Seven’ trial and will have lots of meromero and eroero. In addition to the 4 main heroines, all 4 subcharacters (Riri, Momoko, Shizuho, Kaname) will have routes too. Yesssssssss! More Sumirecchi and Nino! Riri and Momoko-san! I am so playing this.

Fandisk. ZZZzzz

Natsuiro Penguin

Company: リトルプリンセス (Little Princess)
Game site: 夏いろペンギン
Release date: November 27, 2009
Comments:
Since there’s an OP out (and a really catchy one at that), I guess it’s actually coming out this time. After all the stuff I said about this, I actually am considering playing this. The characters are cute and there’s a lot of comedy. And there’s a yandere kouhai idol. How can you not like that?

Not sure on the how exactly, but I am certain at least that I do not like it. With all the delays I am even less interested.. if that is possible than I was when this game was first slated to be released.

Imouto Smile

Company: しとろんソフト (Citron Soft)
Game site: 妹スマイル
Release date: November 27, 2009
Comments:
Living alone in a huge mansion after the death of his parents, our protagonist gazes outside and sees a cute girl. He thinks to himself that life would be so much better if she was his little sister, a part of his family. He then hears a knock at his door and the girl introduces herself as his little sister.

It’s obvious that I like imouto chars, but after being hyped for this game at first, I’ve been sorely disappointed. My main problem is that imoutos are not just younger girls who come to your door and proclaim themselves as such. There’s a very close existing relationship and part of their story is progressing from one type of relationship to another. When there’s 6 imouto in one house (I’m assuming they’ll all end up living together), I’m afraid it just feels like Citron Soft is taking advantage of one moe genre too much, similar to what they did with Mikoko. From the H scene previews on the official site, it seems more like an imouto-nukige than one with a decent plot.

I’ll still check this out though. Just for Haruna.

Wow even in a bad month this game stands out as just plain bad. If you like a good story this is certainly not the game for you. I cannot see anyone enjoying the (and I use this is the loosest possible way) story that was cobbled together from reading too many H doujins. This game is simply a CG with pesky words in between.

Micchi’s Top 3 for This Month

1. Suzunone Seven! -Sweet Lovers’ Concerto-
   
2. Natsuiro Penguin
   
3. Shirokuma Bell Stars
   

Zen’s Top 3 for This Month

1. Shiden ~Enkan no Kizuna~
2. Sorafune
3. Usotsuki to Inugamitsuki