May 2015 Eroge Releases

I love sappy love stories and SMEE’s PURE×CONNECT shouldn’t disappoint in this month of games where most protagonists are transferring into new schools. Imagination runs wild in Lump of Sugar’s Rensou Relation, Insync’s Mousou Complete! and PeasSoft’s Chuunibyou na Kanojo no Love Equation. For NekoNekoSoft fans, Sumire promises to reacquaint you with your favourite heroines from the past 15 years.

After a few surprisingly good months it is only fair that in exchange we get a bit of a slow month. Not much here but the standard sampling of eroge. While few may be horrifyingly bad, most are well below the normal standards. Here’s hoping that next month is more pleasant.

Hyakugojuunenme no Mahoutsukai

Circle: PINK CHUCHU
Game site: 百五十年目の魔法使い
Release date: May 3, 2015
Comments:
This is the debut title for Mikeou’s doujin circle, PINK CHUCHU. The 150 year old northern capital of Lilac City is home to over 1.9 million people. Katsura returned to this city with his mother Midori after many years and reunited with the three Hoshioki sisters: the dependable Rira, the cool Nadeshiko, and the doting Marika. He transferred into their school, Lilybell Gakuen, then his father explained that their family are magicians who protect Lilac City. However, he must choose one of the Hoshioki girls to serve as an ‘intermediary’ who bestows magic upon him.

Another doujin title from a prominent artist after Sayori’s Nekopara, although this one had been in the works for quite some time. It feels less polished, with amateurish music. The first trial wasn’t voiced except for the cat, although the seiyuus on-board are pretty good (Haruka Sora, Mizukiri Keito, Arisugawa Miyabi). Luckily, they’ve changed the awful orange text. It’s short, so might be decent filler in between games.

Every so often it takes a doujin game to show us the value in the modern system we have going for eroge. Much like a guilt trip commercial for starving children that need to be eaten for a mere twenty five cents a day, they exist to show us how good we have it despite how bad most of it is. The point of this being that normally I get to complain about first world problems, such as the writing sucks, the story is written by and for special people with extra chromosomes, or it’s about magical girls. Then along comes a doujin game that just can’t feel complete without a few pounds of acid flowing through your veins to help along the realization of how lucky you are when reading the repetitive tripe that our grown up corporate machines churn off their assembly lines. So when a doujin company tries to grow up and go through their coming of age ritual, ya know the painful experience of releasing their first game where people can actually bitch about them because it is now officially their job, I expect them to make an attempt to prove they are worthy of adulthood and understand that the bar for minimum standards is set a little bit higher than a carnival merry go round.

And so long rant more or less over the game itself, the point i was trying to get at and make after a lengthy intro? Try harder company named after the worst character in Xenogears. Yes I could complain about the usual problems, because those definitely exist too. For example the story and setting are contrived to get the character in heroines panties, the characters already have off screen emotional investment prior to the game starting and so on. It is just, well they haven’t even reached that starting line yet, so sadly I personally don’t give them permission to ride the big kid roller coaster till they are a little more grown up.

Magical girls are first world problems?

Magical girls are World problems.

ALIA’s CARNIVAL! Flowering＊Sky

Company: NanaWind
Game site: ALIA’s CARNIVAL！ Flowering＊Sky
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
This is the sequel to ALIA’s CARNIVAL!. Spring turned to summer at Sakumodai Gakuen, which is home to the future science curriculum and self-governed by students who possess ‘arcane’ abilities. As usual, Ren is giving it his all in his quest for ALIA, enjoying his school life with his group of friends.

One day, a strange girl Inori appeared, proclaiming that she is a messenger from the student council. After that, his surroundings began to gradually change. What kind of story awaits him?

Not only does this game explain the mystery from the previous game in the grand route, but it also features ichaicha stories for each heroine (plus a story for Shiho) and an episode where they all travel to Yuyukana‘s Aojima. I didn’t play either game, so pass.

The best thing about sequels and fandisks is how nothing really needs to be said when it was all covered with the original game.

Re;Lord Episode 2 ~Cologne no Majo to Kuroneko~

Company: エスクード (Escu:de)
Game site: Re；Lord 第二章 ～ケルンの魔女と黒猫～
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
This is the second episode in the Re;Lord series. After freeing Helfault from the witch Erika, Wilfred continued his quest to reclaim Groeson by attacking Cologne, held by the witch Iris. It is a vast tranquil grassy plain with the country’s fifth-largest body of water, the popular tourist spot Bebra Lake, and has a flourishing fishing industry. However, the residents had all been turned into crow familiars, spirits and imps. He didn’t know the motive behind the witch’s actions, but he attacked nevertheless in order to take back his land. At the same time, the military received news of Erika’s defeat to a mere student and dispatched a hunting unit to suppress the witch in Cologne.

Consider the abrupt ending in the first game, maybe it is worth waiting for the third and probably final episode (there are 3 witches after all) to come out before marathoning them. The battle system has been powered up and it should be pretty fun. Escu:de just isn’t Escu:de without clothes stripping. You can even strip the cute familiars! Now that’s attention to detail!

I just answered this, scroll up one game and re read that, thanks.

Story intro

love,VAMPIRE FLOWERS

Company: COSMIC CUTE
Game site: love，VAMPIRE FLOWERS
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
Nagami Gakuen is a former girls-only boarding school in the outskirts of Nagasaki. Hart is the only boy in the gardening club, joining the flower-loving Kureha, reliable leader Rie and tomboyish Christina. They water the flowers, take care of the greenhouse, transplant the flowers every now and then, and bring flowers and fruits as presents to the adjacent hospital.

The chapel that they call the club room, the gardens and greenhouse, and pretty uniforms were not all that they had inherited from the horticultural classes which were abolished with the introduction of co-education. They also carried on their volunteer activities at the school. Recently, there are rumours of a suspicious person in the school grounds, so they have been tasked with finding and expelling them.

However, Kureha, who had known Hart since she was a small child, asked him if that suspicious person is actually him. That’s because he is secretly a ‘vampire’.

Hart’s not the kind of vampire you have heard lots about. He doesn’t need to sleep and he doesn’t suck blood. However, he needs vitality, which requires him to choose a ‘flower’ (wahl der blume). This is a point that the writer makes sure that you understand… because the first 8 chapters in the trial are pretty much him being undecided until forced to choose one of the girls. It’s mindnumbingly boring. I found the art too shallow and the writing too repetitive with constantly-changing viewpoints and uninteresting characters. The shortcuts also don’t seem to work and the BGMs don’t loop nicely. I have no idea what they want to do with this game, but I know I want nothing to do with it.

If ever anyone wondered what it would look like to put three separate games into a blender, here is your result, and it is certainly as unpleasant as one would expect. It is hard to decide which theme they handled worse, the lame vampire, the small club, or the completely random problem solving. Essentially this game does little aside from making others look good by comparison. If you are going to fail, at least stick to one thing so you can properly fail it. It is always better for a failure to end in an explosion than a wimper.

Ayakashi Contract

Company: アクセル (AXL)
Game site: あやかしコントラクト
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
Due to his parents’ constant work transfers, Yukiya hasn’t been able to make any close friends. This time, he opposed following his parents overseas and decided to live with his uncle’s family in the rural Housenshu-chou and transfer into the school there. After a long train ride, he lost his way in the forest and was helped by a great spirit called the Guardian of the Forest. The next morning, he found the tanuki youkai Shouji by his side, pressing him to fulfill his promised contract of helping solve the spirits’ worries.

Yukiya could see the spirits from then on, causing his first impressions at his new school to be failures. He was viewed as a weird guy who talked with himself, and pushed down the class rep Midori when trying to prevent the spirits’ pranks. As time passed, he adapted to the rural life and gained the friends whom he had wished for: powerless miko Tsumugi, supernatural-sensing Minagi, youkai hunter Haruka, doting cousin Anna, and even the highly responsible Midori.

However, the recent redevelopment in the area have endangered the forest where the spirits are living. Will they be able to protect the forest? This is a heartwarming story about a town where humans and spirits co-exist.

The trial was better than their past ones, with the usual comedy and exaggerated facial expressions, but all of AXL’s fantasy setting ADVs have kinda melded into one for me. In a few months, I will probably remember this one as ‘the one with the cute mascots’. Love the yaeba on Anna!

There was a manga which started out almost the exact same way, Inukami? Inakami? Something like that. Anyway the game could do with a little more depth, a sense of mystery to the setting perhaps to draw the reader in. As is with everything rather front loaded what you see is pretty much what you get. All that can be hoped for is that at least the ride is a pleasant one.

Sumire

Company: ねこねこソフト (NekoNekoSoft)
Game site: すみれ
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
There is a mock school on the Internet for those who love galge and eroge, nicknamed “Galge Gakuen”. The protagonist used to be really into it, but now he only logs in as “Ken-chan” to be with his two friends, the self-proclaimed girls’ school student “Pink” and the indecent talk-loving “Tae”. They used to be no more than friends who loved galge, but now their hobbies and conversations extend beyond just that.

One day, a new student entered the school. Since her actions and speech was like a moe character, they gave her the nickname “Moe”. With the cheerful Moe in the mix, their circle of friends had grown to four. However, they were still only online friends. It was frowned upon to ask about their real lives and it was an unspoken rule to not touch this subject.

Then, Ken-chan happened to meet Moe by chance in real life. He pretended that nothing happened in order to protect the relationship that their group had online. But he met her again once more soon thereafter: this time as her home tutor, and she as his new imouto from his father’s remarriage.

This is NekoNekoSoft’s 15th anniversary work, using characters from all their past games as avatars in this game blending reality and imagination. “Ken-chan” is the protagonist from Mizuiro. Sumire would especially appeal to those who have played NekoNekoSoft’s previous games, as I have (Mizuiro, Sorairo, Yukiiro). Does that mean we can have scenes where all the imouto charas are together!? Anyways, their ‘school’ is more like an online community (glorified chat room) and I’m sure that most people understand the distinction between real life and the internet. Just look at MMOs and all the female avatars. I think the story has potential and the seiyuus are nice (Maki Izumi, Natsuno Koori, Uehara Aoi), so I’ll be checking this out if I have time.

At least the blender is deliberate this time. Still just a game for fans of the company, not something made to stand on its own merit, so I’m going to treat it as a fan disk and assume the people are already know their opinion one way or another.

Note the crossover parts are kinda random, although still enjoyable. They feel like a promotion for their past games.

Natsuiro Recipe

Company: PULLTOP Air
Game site: なついろレシピ
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
New release date after being pushed back from April. This heartful story is the first title by PULLTOP Air. Takefumi lost his mother when he was small, and he hasn’t kept in touch with his father who lives abroad. Unlike his peers, he’s a simple and honest fellow who lives true to himself.

One day, he received a letter addressed to his father from a girl Yuzu who called herself his daughter. Her grandmother had passed away a month ago. She didn’t know how to live by herself and thus, pleaded for his help. Takefumi thought that if he became her guardian, then it would solve many of her problems. Even though he was perplexed at the sudden appearance of an imouto, he did not hesitate a second in helping her.

He headed to the mountain village Shiratama-mura where he was greeted by Yuzu. Just like that, they became siblings. Even though it was awkward at first, their sibling bond gradually deepened as they lived under one roof. Yuzu wished to re-open her grandmother’s restaurant, and together they develop their own true ‘home cooking’.

We call it ‘food porn’ in the West and it’s meshi-tero (culinary terrorism) in Japan, but essentially it’s the same thing. In addition to having delicious bishoujos, there’s also delicious food. I have to admit I’m a ‘hana yori dango’ person, so that sweet red bean donut up there is making me drool. Of course, if my imouto makes delicious food for me, that’s even better. Or we could make it together!

As for the story, I don’t expect too much coming from Takashima Eiji (C@F!, Witch’s Garden) and Orihata Keisuke (1/7 no Mahoutsukai, Koiken). I’ll be happy if it’s just an iyashi-kei game with lots of food. In fact, I didn’t particularly like the pacing in the trial; it was kinda boring and the jokes weren’t funny. I guess it might appeal to you if you like girls who can’t cook.

May I opt out of the bland, tasteless heroines and instead go on the succulent, delicious, much more nutritious, and fulfilling food route?

If I am honest about the game itself however, the main problem with it is the convenience factor of the absent parents as well as any other family. As the setup is pretty much identical to Natsu no Ame, I have to compare how one game deals with how a new, previously unknown entry to the family affects everyone, while the other just says “Here have a little sister as our gift to you”. Adding in the food theme is little more than a shallow gimmick for the game.

Namaiki!

Company: 脳内彼女 (Nounai Kanojo)
Game site: な妹き！
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
The Mikanagi family is a noble family which has recently fallen on hard times. One day, the family elder demanded that Asuma have sex with one of his imoutos in order to continue the blood lineage which has been passed on for generations. However, he opposed it in order to protect his imoutos’ futures and left the house to live alone.

Three years later, he returned after hearing about the death of the elder. However, his cute imoutos have now grown beyond what he had imagined. While he wished to slowly deepen his bonds with them after being away for so long, they seemed to be at the rebellious age and were no longer doting upon him.

He would do anything to return to the relationship they once had, but he tried a little too hard and awakened their ‘onii-chan love’. They constantly made advances towards him. Will he be able to protect his virginity?

But isn’t onii-chan’s virginity reserved for his imouto? There’s plenty of verbal humiliation and ‘punishment’, so this is probably great for do-Ms. They’re all cheeky to some degree, but I like the uzakawaii aspiring idol Hina the most.

I’m not sure if all of you know this, but Nounai Kanojo wasn’t always known for preggo traps. They did a lot of imouto-ge and I’ve played some of them myself. While they’re not among the best, they’re not too shabby either. This might be worth a look. If nothing else, it’ll change your view of sock puppets.

I see nothing.

No wonder you always ignore your imoutos!

What imoutos?

PURE×CONNECT

Company: SMEE
Game site: ピュア×コネクト
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
Hayato has yearned for a heart-throbbing romance for a long time, but instead is bored wasting away time every day. He wishes to fall in love like in an eroge, but everyone around him just makes fun of him for it. But that’s what every guy wants, right? Is it really so wrong to want such a relationship?

In the middle of November, a small chance appeared when he was asked to work part-time at the popular bakery restaurant, La Pivoine. Finding himself in a situation he never imagined being in, he thought to break free of his current norm. He agreed to work there and acquainted himself with the staff: Sora, his osananajimi who has no interest in falling in love; Shiho, the store manager whose lover is her job; Moemi, the moodmaker part-timer who treasures her family over all; Arisa, his kouhai who hasn’t found her ideal partner; and, Ayumi, his cousin who is still early for love.

Finally, he takes the first steps towards his own love.

I’ve been looking forward to SMEE’s next game for some time and this one feels just like LoverAble, with a good balance of romance and comedy. Similar to their past games, there’s plenty of texting and outfit changes. You can also choose between doing the confession or being confessed to. The protagonist is an university student, but still super hetare. He also has an imouto Karina, who isn’t all too smart. I really enjoyed the trial, especially angel ‘Anal Breaker’ Ayumi and the ass sisters, so this is definitely at the top of my list for this month.

A standard job setting romance title. Ignoring the story seems to be the only option as there is none to speak of, thus the game will stand or fall on characters and writing. Obviously this makes it more of a Micchi game, but that doesn’t mean I can’t hope the game turns out well. It is never bad to have more relaxing games that are simply fun and enjoyable to play.

Chuunibyou na Kanojo no Love Equation

Company: PeasSoft
Game site: 中二病な彼女の恋愛方程式（ラブイクエイション）
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
One day in June nearing the arrival of summer, Ryuuichi transferred into Seishin Gakuen and moved into the former girls’ dormitory Fushigi-sou. He heard that he would be the first male to live there and imagined a new life full of girls. However, when he opened the door, he was greeted with a line-up of peculiar individuals: the complete chuuni Aoi and her self-proclaimed sidekick Momo, the dark witch Mion, and Spica who supposedly came from space. The only normal one out of the bunch was Chisato, but it’s not as if their oddities didn’t have their own charms.

However, his room was unfortunately flooded and he was forced to temporarily sleep on a sofa in the common area. Combined with his aptitude for walking in on girls changing or in the washroom, it seemed that his time there wouldn’t last for long. What will be his destiny living under the same roof with chuuni girls?

I’m usually not keen on chuuni titles, but this is chuuni light, focusing more on gags. GOD DRAGON probably has a chuuni side too and they’ll help him awaken to it. I do plan on playing this for one reason only: Spica! She’s very cute and my pace; I’d gladly play along and spoil her to the world’s end. Gotta save the world from being destroyed, after all.

Peassoft really likes to take one character trait and run with it for every heroine in their games. Which I feel is one of the major contributors to making their games rather lackluster. Just as you can’t summon Captain Planet with five hearts (well maybe five imouto hearts…), the value can be greater or less than the sum of its parts. Just by making all your heroines one type does not mean everyone who likes that character trait will be all over your game. Diversity makes each character and trait feel more special and unique. By contrast when they are all the same thing its like rummaging through the bargain bin of overstocked low quality goods. Sure there is a lot but I prefer my quality over quantity any day.

Let our powers combine, Imouto Heart!

Nekonade Distortion Renai Jishou no Dead End

Company: WHITESOFT
Game site: 猫撫ディストーション 恋愛事象のデッドエンド
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
This is a crowdfunded fandisc for Nekonade Distortion. One day, Tatsuki’s osananajimi Yuzu turned into his imouto “Kotoko”. When he went to his mother Shikiko for advice, she was “Kotoko” as well. Then his older sister Yui showed up in front of him… as “Kotoko”. Everyone that he knew had turned into “Kotoko” on the inside.

What exactly had happened!? What should I do!?

“Nii-san, this is the DEAD END world.”
“Soon, you will become me as well.”

Samoto Fuuri voices everyone. That’s really all you need to know.

I am amazed this rather awful game was worthy not only of a fan disk, but of a crowd funded one.

Mayoeru Futari to Sekai no Subete LOVE HEAVEN 300%

Company: Lass
Game site: 迷える2人とセカイのすべて LOVE HEAVEN 300％
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
This is a mini fandisc for Mayosube with routes for character poll winners Nana and Touka. In Nana’s route, Nana comes to live with him when all the other girls (and Subaru) go on vacation under the guise of recovering from their rejections. Touka’s route is a mix of seven stories, both serious and ecchi. There’s even one where she becomes a loli! The H scenes are 300% more ero! 300% more ero!

Fandisk with a whole lot of nope from me.

Mousou Complete!

Company: Insync
Game site: 妄想コンプリート！
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
New release date after being pushed back from March. This is the debut title by Insync. Seiji sees precognitive dreams from time to time. However, since it’s usually only fragments, he doesn’t pay much attention to them and just lives a normal life. One day, he saw a strange dream in which he was very intimate with a girl who he had never seen before. They were both naked and doing what lovers do. When he awoke the next morning, he was puzzled and wondered if it was a sign from the future. He had never dreamt about someone he had not seen before, so he dismissed it as only a delusion to avoid any weird expectations.

He got dressed, walked to school with his imouto Mari, entered his classroom and greeted his classmates. It was the start to another normal day at school… or so he thought. There was a new transfer student in his class, Elica, and she was the girl in his dreams. While he was still stunned, her gaze fell upon him.

“Ahhhh!!! N-No way… You must be joking…!?”

It seems that a strange love story has suddenly begun, with Seiji squarely in the middle of it.

I love the art by Azumi Kazuki! I wanna take Mia home! I originally wanted Mari too, but it sounds like she’s on helium and I don’t like her denpa sounds. This seems to be your standard love comedy and the writer Kobayashi Kouji came from Ex-iT (the patching problems in the latest games weren’t really his fault), so I won’t really expect too much.

Nothing like starting out with the ending. Honestly a pretty weak concept whether it be comedic, charage, or standard eroge. Do try harder next time, maybe with a gimmick you didn’t buy from the eroge template bargain bin.

Koitama

Company: Glacé
Game site: 恋魂
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:

“Be pure, honest, strong-willed and wise!”

Those are the ideals that Aika forced upon the students at the special correctional institute Shindou Gakuen, forbidding love and depriving their freedom in the name of justice. While the ideal sounds great, in reality, the students are completely enslaved by the superhuman-like elite group, “Love Pentagon”.

Ren is flawlessly handsome, extremely sharp and remarkably strong. However, he has one vital flaw: he is weak to girls. He would fall to their charms, be swayed by their tears, and tricked by their lies. The Kedouin family head ordered him to attend Shindou Gakuen to overcome this problem. Will he be able to pass the correctional curriculum and be rewarded with his destined partner, Aika?

It is a struggle between the domineering upper caste and the suppressed masses. Have no fear! Our hero will overthrow the bourgeoisie and then have his way with them! In the meantime, enjoy your S girls. None of the three scenario writers (Kaminokeza, Ki-tan, Aobadai) have written any good stories. To be honest, the trial was boring with an annoyingly forced setup. I won’t be wasting my time with this.

If I am purely honest and share my wisdom, this game is poorly made. To start with the setting is awkward and makes little sense. Could have just had it been a strict school in a rural area to reach the desired effect without the “Love Pentagon” silliness. Next there is the story, or rather the meandering series of events that results in eventual H scenes. With no real direction save get the girl, there is little to develop the characters around. Last there are the characters, heroines being typically conveinently associated, however what is worse this time is the protagonist. It feels like they tried to combine two types of protagonist and failed at both. One being capable the other completely no good as a person. Sure, it is great to have human like flaws and not be too useless. The problem is that he is less of a character and more just an object to enable the setting, story, and heroines to exist. Which is a problem not only because he is the lens through which the reader views the story, but also because it weakens all other aspects that are constructed around his existence.

Rensou Relation

Company: Lump of Sugar
Game site: 恋想リレーション
Release date: May 29, 2015
Comments:
Shinnosuke failed to get into the same school as his best friend Ryou, but he was still positive about his chances in the entrance exams. It’s sad to not with Ryou, but it’s not like they won’t see each other again. Maybe he’ll end up meeting some new friends… possibly a really cute girl!

However, he still hadn’t received a letter of acceptance after the exam result announcement period was over. His cousin Yuuko was worried about his future and he was beginning to have doubts himself. Then, his homeroom teacher called him and told him to take an interview at Amami Gakuen, a new school in Shiroha which is extremely popular. It would be very difficult for Shinnosuke to be accepted there, but it just so happened that a space opened up in the special quota for local students. Taking advantage of this chance, what lies ahead for him? Nothing is impossible!

Lump of Sugar games have been rife with gimmicks lately. This time, it uses a similar system as Furuiro called ‘Hirameita!’, where you have to gather words (max of 3 at any given time). Depending on which words you have, different choices become available at branch points. The protagonist is delusional and a total perv. The trial was relatively short, but nothing really stood out from it, other than that Maji-senpai is really annoying. The system ring is a bit too big for my liking and the flow chart is somewhat useful. I have reservations about the ‘Hirameita!’ system; I feel like it’ll become a chore after a while. The twin cousins are nice, but still probably not enough to make me want to play this.

Lump of Sugar has not made a solid game in ages and it shows when they stray further and further from what can be considered well made. Their plots are shabby nonsense, their gimmicks are just irritations, their writing is bland and shows zero understanding of the chosen subject matter, and their characters rarely change significantly. As much as I complain about Circus and their milking of Da Capo, I understand both the business decision to do so, as well as why people keep buying it. Many games end with a feeling of wishing there was more content about how things turned out after, or following up with different scenarios that were left hanging. It is only when things like poker games start being made that I wish I could backhand the people in charge. In contrast, Lump of Sugar just making new bad games, often very similar underneath the new skin is so much worse than extending a series till people lose interest in your characters.

Micchi’s Top 3 for This Month

1. PURE×CONNECT
2. Sumire
3. Chuunibyou na Kanojo no Love Equation

Zen’s Top 3 for This Month

1. Personally I,
2. Liked April better
3. Than May

Bunny and Kitty went on a picnic together.
Up the mountain they go, they go~
On the mountain, they could smell the scent of their favourite milk.
“Where is it? Where is it?” Bunny hopped around while searching for the milk.
“It smells good around here, Bunny” purred Kitty.
“You’re right! Hopping around here makes the smell grow stronger. Let’s hop higher and higher!”
So, Bunny and Kitty hopped until they found the tasty milk, then they enjoyed it together.

THE END

And so Micchi was never heard from again. Some say he was abducted by the police, others that he kidnapped a little girl he named “Imouto” and ran off, but whatever the truth, he shall live on in our hearts.