My Top Galgame Picks of 2018

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I played 40 visual novels in 2018 — even fewer than 2017. On one hand that means my real life got more fulfilling; on the other, it means the industry really is done for these days.

Looking back, most of what I played was in the first half of the year. The second half was thin — barely anything out there, and nothing that made me want to pick it up.

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Which is fine. Probably even fewer next year. And honestly I hope the industry croaks soon, so more kids can be freed from it and face reality properly.

Still, I did play some. So, as usual, here’s what I think is worth recommending.

Music first, as always — open this and use it as BGM.

9.Erewhon

Recommending this one is a bit awkward, since it’s packed with elements I can’t really put anywhere else, so it lands at the bottom of the list.

The story itself is complete, and the foreshadowing is placed exactly right. It also weaves in ancient Chinese mythology, bits of Japanese history, and… a whole lot of blood.

This game is genuinely “not for children.” Tons of violence — gang rape, rape, incest are the easy parts, and there’s even cannibalism. If you can’t stomach that, don’t try it.

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That said, the foreshadowing and the story really are pretty good.

8.Deep One

Putting this on the list was not easy. For one, it’s already “tainted” and “dead” over in Japan; for another, the second half of the scenario isn’t great and some of it is downright childish. Even so, I think it’s worth a try, for a simple reason: the direction is excellent.

How good? They poured a lot of money into it, the CVs are all big names, and at least around the middle of the story the battle staging is genuinely worth watching. This year’s flashiest combat direction — skipping it would be a shame. So if you’re curious, give it a shot.

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It’s also not as bad as people say. As long as you can sit through the scenario going insane in the back half, you can finish it. Overall I’d call it “good.” In a way, I’m clearing its name here.

7.Enrite Kono Ha wa Kurenai ni

I think this is the first time I’ve recommended a Lump of Sugar game. There’s not much that stands out, but nothing really wrong either. Production-wise it’s a big step up from their earlier stuff, and it’s very good at building an “atmosphere” — what kind, you ask? The kind that feels like red autumn leaves. It launched in winter, yet while playing I felt the mood of fall. That’s where it succeeds.

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Also the OP is great, the BGM and CV work are solid — a genuinely well-made title. Only complaint: the plot’s mystery is a bit… simple?

6.Sora to Umi ga, Fureau Kanata

A pure sightseeing game from Pulltop.

It’s a diving-guide game set on Ogasawara Island, but it’s actually well put together: short, decent visuals, good OP, solid music, and most importantly it seems to have a Chinese translation, which makes recommending it all the more obvious.

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Perfect for people just getting into visual novels. It happens to be on sale on Steam, so… yeah, worth a rec.

5.Riddle Joker

Recommending a Yuzusoft game feels kind of pointless — it already has too many fans, most of them mindless: “If it’s Yuzusoft, we love it.”

But I actually think Riddle Joker is weaker than their earlier work, a step back especially compared to Senren * Banka.

Not that it matters — even at its worst, Yuzusoft has art/system/character design/voice acting across multiple axes as a safety net. A textbook case of the barrel effect: as long as the scenario doesn’t self-destruct, the game is guaranteed “good.”

So… as a moe-nukige, Riddle Joker is still well worth recommending this year. At minimum, looking at cute girls is nice, right?

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And there’s a kouhai voiced by Natsuwa Koharu!!!

4.Kami Machi Sana-chan

This one was originally a nukige, but it isn’t.

It tells a story about a genuinely thought-provoking social issue, and it ends on a very positive note — which was surprising and delightful.

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The game’s message: “As long as you hold kindness in your heart, you can always be saved.”

3.Amazing Grace -What color is your attribute?-

The artist draws moe stuff, but this is not a moe game. It’s a loop game. A religious game. A game with surprisingly rigorous logic.

Overall this was probably the biggest surprise of the year; it’s just a shame the scenario is immature at “telling a story,” and the middle is way too sleep-inducing.

The CGs aren’t that great either.

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If you like games like Island, you might want to give this one a try.

2.Butterfly Seeker & Fan Disk

I wasn’t sure how to describe this one, then it hit me: “suspense manga” is probably the best way to put it.

Butterfly Seeker’s puzzle design isn’t all that clever, but the process of solving them is genuinely gripping. Oh right — when I say the puzzle design isn’t clever, I mean the original version, not the later Fandisk. I’d recommend playing the original and the Fandisk back to back; the story flows better that way.

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If I had to name a flaw, it’d be the awkward romance writing. Sometimes I think a game this plot-driven doesn’t need so much forced romance…

1.Sora ni Kizanda Parallelogram

I’m a disciple of the great Rukuru, so when he broke new ground in the scenario this time, of course I’m going to sing its praises.

Sora ni Kizanda Parallelogram is a different style from what Rukuru wrote before — no dark background, no malicious character deaths, just honest “storytelling” used to tell a genuinely hot-blooded youth story. The multi-perspective style, the toned-down romance, the focus on plot and confrontation — it all made me feel this shouldn’t just be a game. As an anime or a manga it would be just as good.

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I wouldn’t call it a masterpiece, but calling it the most recommendable game of the year is probably fair.

Honestly, I hate scenario writers who get boxed in by their style — you see a name and immediately assume that’s the kind of thing they write. Like seeing Gen Urobuchi and going “heartwarming.” Everyone assumed Rukuru could only write “dark fairy tales,” but this time he proved otherwise — that he can handle other styles too. That’s the attitude a writer who wants to improve should have, and it beats Shinjima Yū and Maeda Jun, who keep living off past glories and stick to one formula…

I played fewer games this year and started watching more light novels and manga, plus films and anime… Which isn’t a bad thing. The Galgame market gets stupider by the day, so maybe starting next year I’ll shift more toward light novels.

Of the novels I read this year, I’d recommend Kimi Shinitamou Ryūseigun — and I think there’s a decent chance it gets an anime adaptation…

Hope I live to see that day. (Please don’t butcher it.)

Now for some theme songs from games I recommend this year:

Besides the songs, two OSTs are the most recommendable of the year:

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That’s this year’s wrap-up. So… see you next year?

Appendix: index of games played this year (already added to the master eroge index)

Karmalka*Circle /archives/9831/

Kotonoha Maichiru Natsu no Fuurin /archives/9830/

Sora ni Kizanda Parallelogram /archives/9785/

Kokoro ga Tsunagu Koi Shirube /archives/9764/

Amazing Grace -What color is your attribute?- /archives/9665/

Deep One /archives/9323/

Koi wa Mofumofu! Love Me Teddy /archives/9237/

Kiss&Crisis /archives/9236/

Raspberry Cube /archives/9195/

Erewhon /archives/9151/

Butterfly Seeker Chaos Nightmare /archives/9064/

Butterfly Seeker /archives/8955/

Koboreochiru Shoujo-tachi Papakatsu JC Kairaku Ochi no Kiroku /archives/9125/

Dare mo Shiranai Tentai e no Namida /archives/9031/

Shamrock no Hanakotoba /archives/8852/

Onii-chan, Asa made Zutto Gyutte Shite! /archives/8831/

Miagete Goran, Yozora no Hoshi wo Interstellar Focus /archives/8798/

Making*Lovers Geki Icha After Story Volume.01 Ako, Karen, Saki /archives/8760/

Kari Gurashi Ren’ai /archives/8731/

Yakusoku no Natsu, Mahoroba no Yume /archives/8683/

Kami Machi Sana-chan /archives/8596/

Koisuru Kokoro to Mahou no Kotoba /archives/8565/

Natsuiro Ramune /archives/8538/

Sora to Umi ga, Fureau Kanata /archives/8479/

Zutto Mae kara Joshi deshita /archives/8427/

9-nine - Sorairo Sorauta Soranooto /archives/8409/

Kieta Sekai to Tsuki to Shoujo /category/ACG/4/

Riddle Joker /archives/8279/

Hitotsu Tobashi Ren’ai V /archives/8239/

Walkure Romanze /archives/8152/

Hitotsu Yane no, Tsubasa no Shita de /archives/8091/

IxSHE Tell /archives/7978/

Imouto wo Yogoshita Kioku /archives/7957/

Enrite Kono Ha wa Kurenai ni /archives/7883/

Soikano Gyutto Dakishimete /archives/7844/

Shougun-sama wa Otoshigoro /archives/7807/

Kage no Umi no Apeiria Casablanca no Kishi /archives/7777/

Imouto Paradise! 3 /archives/7765/

Nemurenu Hitsuji to Kodoku na Ookami /archives/7733/

Kiniro Loveriche /archives/7675/

Gaming Summary Galgame Recommendations 2018
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