Higurashi Q & A

[CrimsonMoonMist]

Originally Posted by Kishin

there are always a few mistakes, occasionally I'd notice a spelling/grammar mistake and laughed to myself that their proofreader must have been skimming it, but it's nothing to take you out of the story. There may have been 1 time through all the arcs that there was a mistake that just did not make sense and made me think about it before moving on, which made sense in the next lines context but alone was gibberish.

And about the Kai episodes, each one is stand-alone, so they won't affect each other. As long as you do everything right the music patch shouldn't have any problems. At least to my knowledge. I think what they meant by that warning is that say, randomsong.ogg in ep7 might be replaced properly by the ep7 patch, but in ep8 it might be called somesong.ogg and the patch for ep7 wont work. If you use the proper patches, ep7 = ep7, ep8 = ep8, there shouldnt be a problem

Oh, well then that's a lot simpler than I'd have imagined.
Thanks for clearing that up.

[Yirba]

Originally Posted by Kishin

And about the Kai episodes, each one is stand-alone, so they won't affect each other.

Of course, there's the 'bundled' version or the hardcopy which includes all the Kai episodes… I don't think that would cause problems, though.

And yeah, Higurashi spanned the time during which MangaGamer were improving the quality of their translation. By the end of it, the translation is greatly improved, although probably not as good as their more recent titles.

[Kishin]

Is the bundled actually considered a singular game as the Umineko releases were? when I read it I got the impression it was basically a folder with the 4 separate eps

[Yirba]

Hmmm… I bought them separately, and have yet to get a hardcopy so I didn't know what it was actually like. I had assumed all four episodes were contained in the same game, but it could be that they're just in four separate folders.

[fsior]

Okay just finished watching ep4 of the Demoned Away chapter. And started ep5 where all the characters that died are back alive like nothin happened, I am seriously confused right now, its messing with my head

[Flower]

Might check in the Higurashi subforum: http://forums.animesuki.com/forumdisplay.php?f=55

Should be lots of answers in there.

[fsior]

Hold on a second this series was a game first with multiple routes and endings? If so that would explain the reset on ep5 which I am watching now. Probably starting a new route. Would you happen to know what company made the game? I am extremely interested in this now.

[Flower]

Not off the top of my head ... but again, check out the sub forum I linked above. I am sure there are answers there.

[DanielMors]

Just keep watching. There will be more of those setbacks, so you should get used to it. Season 2 (Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai) will explain what is going on.

Edit: The games (yes, they are more than one) are made by 07th Expansion, who are know for their games revolving around restarting the story.
Edit2: Higurashi doesn't work like your average VN with multiple routes. You just finished watching the adaption of the first game, and are now watching the second one. There are no routes. Just multiple games following each other.

[RandomAvatarFan]

Originally Posted by Kagato3

Higurashi: Its a bit like watching a trainwreck, except you keep getting to see different trains wrecking with roughly the same passengers, into a variety of different objects. Also, the trains are driven by monkeys. On LSD.

Yeah, each "reset" will reveal new clues to the truth of what happened in Hinamizawa, June 1983. You'll get to see things in each arc that you didn't get to see in the others simply because the events played out differently.

Four "question arcs" and four "answer arcs" (Answers = Kai) The anime has the first two answer arcs in the first season, then the final two in the second.

[fsior]

That makes sense now so there are 4 realities then. Is there any connection between all of them? I have just finished watching the first 26 eps. On the ep2 of Kai right now.

[Yirba]

I feel that the anime makes it seem more confusing than the VNs did. I mean, there's none of those All Cast Review Sessions to kinda lead into the next arc.

But yes, by the end of the story, you should understand what's going on. I wouldn't ask other people for the answer, since that's part of the mystery of this story. Try to think of a solution before the truth is revealed. :-)

[fsior]

Oh I have my theories on how the series will turn out. But what makes a story really interesting for me is when I am wrong. Unfortunately most animes I've seen have been way too predictable, but this one seems to have given me a good run. =)

[Dante of the Inferno]

Originally Posted by fsior

Oh I have my theories on how the series will turn out. But what makes a story really interesting for me is when I am wrong. Unfortunately most animes I've seen have been way too predictable, but this one seems to have given me a good run. =)

If anything, the best anime from the last 3-5 years (Madoka Magica, Mirai Nikki, etc) have all used the "central" mechanic that this series started with. Mind you, it's a very risky storytelling mechanic, so it rarely ever works out, but the inspiration is pretty apparent once you've watched Higurashi.

Other series have tried very hard to duplicate that which makes Higurashi so special (including Ookamikakushi, Shi-Ki, and Another), but they are all tepid imitations. Unless your only interest in Season 1 was the violence and the mind-fucks, then odds are high that you'll enjoy Season 2 (Seasons 3-4 are a toss-up).

[Yirba]

That's kinda giving it away, isn't it?

It's worth noting that the Ookamikakushi visual novel was directed by Ryuukishi07, so it goes without saying that it would have similarities to Higurashi.

Also, Higurashi seasons 3 and 4 really aren't part of the main story. A lot of it probably wouldn't even be considered canon.

[fsior]

Well I have to say after finishing the series Hirugashi has to be one of my all time favorites. Which sucks because now I have high expectations and I am going to be comparing other horror genre anime to thish. Sigh. Oh well.

[Dante of the Inferno]

Originally Posted by Yirba

That's kinda giving it away, isn't it?

That of course implies that he watched those anime first. If anything, I gave away the twists the other ones. Then again, if you've already watched Higurashi, you can already see the mechanic's flags a mile away.

Originally Posted by Yirba

It's worth noting that the Ookamikakushi visual novel was directed by Ryuukishi07, so it goes without saying that it would have similarities to Higurashi.

Yeah, I was real annoyed when I found that out. Did Ryukishi07 have to make that story so painfully similar?

Originally Posted by Yirba

Also, Higurashi seasons 3 and 4 really aren't part of the main story. A lot of it probably wouldn't even be considered canon.

Dice-Killing Chapter aside, I did say seasons 3 and 4 would be a toss-up in terms of enjoyment. He enjoyed Season 2, so it stands to reason that he wasn't just in it for the violence and "gore" (because let's face it, the Higurashi anime is actually pretty light on that). As such, he enjoyed the series for its characters, and therefore he may enjoy the silliness that 66% of the OVA's provide.

[CrimsonMoonMist]

Originally Posted by Yirba

Of course, there's the 'bundled' version or the hardcopy which includes all the Kai episodes… I don't think that would cause problems, though.

Turns... out it does after all.
This is all there is in the game's folder

There are no separate folders for each EP,
but simple adding and deleting the music files for each EP with the next one in line should work just fine.

I assume the warning about wrong songs if used for the wrong EP on the Tweaking Higurashi wiki was refering to something like
the original track madeupmusicname1 replaced in EP5 is not necessarely the track madeupmusicname1 replaces in EP6 and so forth.

[Orophin]

Originally Posted by Kishin

Is the bundled actually considered a singular game as the Umineko releases were? when I read it I got the impression it was basically a folder with the 4 separate eps

I have the disc version of Higurashi Kai and all four chapters are combined just like with the original Japanese release. Dunno if it's the same for the download version, though.

Originally Posted by Dante of the Inferno

If anything, the best anime from the last 3-5 years (Madoka Magica, Mirai Nikki, etc) have all used the "central" mechanic that this series started with. Mind you, it's a very risky storytelling mechanic, so it rarely ever works out, but the inspiration is pretty apparent once you've watched Higurashi.

Other series have tried very hard to duplicate that which makes Higurashi so special (including Ookamikakushi, Shi-Ki, and Another), but they are all tepid imitations. Unless your only interest in Season 1 was the violence and the mind-fucks, then odds are high that you'll enjoy Season 2 (Seasons 3-4 are a toss-up).

What I'm about to write might seem a bit weird coming from a fellow Ryukishi07 fan, but Higurashi no Naku Koro ni was nowhere near as innovative as you make it out to be.

Spoiler for Higurashi:

Most might probably know this already, but Ryukishi takes a lot of concepts and ideas from the things he liked. The most obvious example of this is Key's works (One, Kanon and Air) as he himself said that he was influenced by them. Another example would be Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None" which was an undeniable inspiration for Umineko. The story structure he uses in his games is no different. As far as I know, the first visual novel to have a mystery which could only be solved after repeating the story multiple times through something akin to time travel was "Kono Yo no Hate de Koi wo Utau Shoujo YU-NO", an eroge released by Elf back in 1996. Speaking of which, I can't help but feel that Rika Furude was loosely based on one of YU-NO's heroines: Kanna Hatano. ...And I'm not saying this just because of her hair.

The visual novel that inspired Higurashi the most, however, seems to be an eroge produced by Liar-soft titled "Kusarihime ~Euthanasia~". For the record, both visual novels share a similar setting, atmosphere, and plot structure (reset after each ending). Furthermore, I'm pretty sure that the idea of having cat-like eyes while in "Oyashiro mode" came from Kurame.

Lastly, I'd like to point out that the first Shiki novel was published in 1998, four years prior to Higurashi. Also, the writer of Madoka Magica, Gen Urobuchi, liked Kusarihime quite a bit as you can see from this interview.* The guy even co-authored a Kusarihime fanbook back in 2002, so the similarities between Higurashi and Madoka are most likely because of that.

*The interview I linked to contains Kusarihime spoilers so read at your own risk if you're interested in the game. I only skimmed through it myself.

[Dante of the Inferno]

Originally Posted by Orophin

What I'm about to write might seem a bit weird coming from a fellow Ryukishi07 fan, but Higurashi no Naku Koro ni was nowhere near as innovative as you make it out to be.

Spoiler for Higurashi:

Most might probably know this already, but Ryukishi takes a lot of concepts and ideas from the things he liked. The most obvious example of this is Key's works (One, Kanon and Air) as he himself said that he was influenced by them. Another example would be Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None" which was an undeniable inspiration for Umineko. The story structure he uses in his games is no different. As far as I know, the first visual novel to have a mystery which could only be solved after repeating the story multiple times through something akin to time travel was "Kono Yo no Hate de Koi wo Utau Shoujo YU-NO", an eroge released by Elf back in 1996. Speaking of which, I can't help but feel that Rika Furude was loosely based on one of YU-NO's heroines: Kanna Hatano. ...And I'm not saying this just because of her hair.

The visual novel that inspired Higurashi the most, however, seems to be an eroge produced by Liar-soft titled "Kusarihime ~Euthanasia~". For the record, both visual novels share a similar setting, atmosphere, and plot structure (reset after each ending). Furthermore, I'm pretty sure that the idea of having cat-like eyes while in "Oyashiro mode" came from Kurame.

Lastly, I'd like to point out that the first Shiki novel was published in 1998, four years prior to Higurashi. Also, the writer of Madoka Magica, Gen Urobuchi, liked Kusarihime quite a bit as you can see from this interview.* The guy even co-authored a Kusarihime fanbook back in 2002, so the similarities between Higurashi and Madoka are most likely because of that.

*The interview I linked to contains Kusarihime spoilers so read at your own risk if you're interested in the game. I only skimmed through it myself.

Spoiler for The Great and the Good of Mystery:

I have been aware of Ryukishi07's emulation of Agatha Christie and Euthanasia for some time now, but not YU-NO. I'll have to dig around for that one. Actually, I had only known about the Euthanasia one after searching a horror VN/game database for my group of anime friends to play (for some reason, we started watching one of our friends play a horror game ever week after we gathered together to first watch the week's latest horrible modern anime...and Fate/Zero).

As for the other anime series, I'll admit a bias towards Higurashi simply because the anime adaptations all came after Higurashi's adaptation. As such, just from a TV watcher's perspective, it's hard to miss the time-loop mechanic coming up an awful lot in the span of 4-5 years, starting with...well Higurashi. However, regardless of which series came first, my primary distaste for those other series (which are actually all good, in their own unique ways) is in their execution, whether it be the animation style (aka Shi-Ki) or lack of subtlety (Another) or obnoxiously similar storytelling (Ookamikakushi and Another).

Another seems like a particular egregious offender, which I've explained in one of my reviews of the series:

Spoiler for Another Development History:

Produced by Studio P.A. Works, Another is the anime adaptation of the horror mystery novel that was incrementally published starting in August 2006. Just like in the book, a brown-haired 9th grade male is suddenly transferred into a small mountain village in rural Japan just before summer. Then weird stuff starts happening, and people start dying. Funny story, this premise sounded familiar, so I did some digging. It turns out that the Visual Novel for Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni, which has an eerily similar story, setting, character design, main character, and facial expressions, had its first release in August 2002, with its final game release on August 13, 2006.



What an oddly detailed coincidence.

Outlier examples of poor execution of the time-loop mechanic include (of course) Haruhi Suzumiya's Endless Eight. Outlier examples of good execution are Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Mirai Nikki, and Madoka Magica. Madoka Magica is an odd exception, simply because it seems influenced by a lot of sources as the series progresses. The final episodes run the gamut of series conclusions, from Higurashi to Inuyasha to even Serial Experiments Lain.

While it's true that many of the series discussed here have their own fan bases and bring legitimately good points to the table, therein lies the problem. Many of the series are just single points. They don't bring everything (and I do mean everything) together in a way that is as meaningful as Higurashi (and to a slightly lesser extent Madoka Magica). In that regard, I think Agatha Christie's work shows its full influence, because the single most important thing she set out to prove is that nothing (or at least next to nothing) in her stories are events of chance, that everything said has a specific and planned purpose. Being able to consistently prove that, even without explicitly explaining it all right away, shows the mark of a truly polished writer.

It's not necessarily a matter of "innovation" on Ryukishi07's part. It's a matter of creating a consistently cohesive package that makes the overall experience far greater than the sum of the parts. As I had said previously, Higurashi is just one of those series that many other authors (including Ryukishi07 himself with Ookamikakushi) have tried to duplicate, but instead simply imitate.