When I think of Idea Factory otome games, much of what comes to mind is as cute and colourful as the upcoming Cupid Paradise: Sweet and Spicy Darling. Don’t get me wrong, those are wonderful and creative games – but what if an otome visual novel decides to go dark with a supernatural theme? You end up with 9 R.I.P.,…
I would describe Read Only Memories: Neurodiver as a cyberpunk psychic mystery visual novel with point-and-click adventure elements. Or is it the other way around? Either way, use the word psychic in any capacity describing a game and I’ll instantly be interested. (Or the word cryptid, kind of funny because…
Those who have been reading DDNet for some time know that for…
With the same creative team behind it as Olympia Soiree, Tengoku Struggle:…
Ebi-hime is one of the most inspiring VN authors. Specialising in two very niche genres – Yuri and “Grim” VNs, the creator behind the likes of Sweetest Monster, Blackberry Honey, and Strawberry Vinegar has been incredibly prolific for years now: the Steam creator’s page features 26 games alone, with four…
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My Mad Scientist Roommate Turned Me Into Her Personal Robotic Battle Maiden?!? Is a ridiculously long name for a game. It fits, though, because My Mad Scientist… is also a ridiculous game, and I mean that in the most delightful sense. It’s the latest release by Lachlan, of Lached Up…
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It hasn’t taken that long for visual novels to go from one of the most niche genres of all to being something that has a genuine and growing audience behind it. Where once we might get one or two efforts to localise one in a year, now dozens of these…
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I’m obsessed with the paranormal. The older I get, the more interested I am in it. It started as a mortality thing, but has expanded past that into sheer curiousity. I’ll read what I can, watch what I can, listen to what I can. I’m very open to what others…
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Wow did Lover Pretend have the potential to go places. Thankfully it doesn’t, ultimately, but there were more than a few moments on this game’s journey where I felt particularly uncomfortable about some of the flags that it was throwing up despite it being a narrative that is, by developer…
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Well, here we go. I guess this was always inevitable, but “VTubers” – Virtual YouTubers – are getting their own VNs now. I can’t say I can complain. After all, Dee Dee might not be a VTuber, but she’s our site’s mascot, and she’s got a VN on the way…
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I’m a big fan of itch.io for the freedom and open platform that it allows for developers to be creative, experimental, and directly canvas the audience for feedback for games that are not yet ready for primetime on Steam and its ilk. In addition, itch.io allows you to be transgressive,…
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I’m not sure how the initial launch of 7 Days to End with You slipped past me, but it did. The puzzle/visual novel game is all about language, and what does a games journalist love more than games and words? Very little. In a place where you don’t know the…
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The visual novel genre scene of gaming can, at times, be difficult to get into. Poorly made releases, carbon copies, and plainly obvious cash grabs are around every corner, but the good news is that this particular release we’re talking about here is anything but one of those. This is…
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Paradigm Paradox has a smart idea behind it: This is a magical girl story where most of the girls are, in fact, boys! The boys (and love interests) in this otome story magically turn into women when they are out there saving the world, before shifting back to male form…
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