Rewrite & Harvest Festa

[Randrak42]

Originally Posted by Magicflier

So I played Rewrite just a few days ago, and finished my first play-through today... but I seemed to have ended up in a route that is labeled with my own name (Kotarou). After that it shortly led me back to the front page of the visual novel.

Did I just trigger a bad end?

Any thoughts from those who are knowledgeable of the game would be appreciated. D:

You just got yourself a Bad End bro.

Tip 1: You can only pick Kotori, Lucia and Chihaya in the first playthrough. Kotori's route unlocks Shizuru's and Chihaya's route unlocks Akane's.
Tip 2: Pick a heroine...and become a total stalker. Every option involving her just answer positively (and if you don't know the effect of an answer, save and load), while disregarding the other girls.

[Aspirety]

Here's a question.

Spoiler for Common & Moon:

Back at the end of common route, where Kotarou looks up into the moon and seeks Kagari, do you think that was supposed to be Moon Kagari?

[Randrak42]

Originally Posted by Aspirety

Here's a question.

Spoiler for Common & Moon:

Back at the end of common route, where Kotarou looks up into the moon and seeks Kagari, do you think that was supposed to be Moon Kagari?

Spoiler:

No, in the end of the common route the one he sees and is "saved" by is Earth Kagari, even Kotori acted like she knew her.
Moon Kagari doesn't show up until Moon.

[Aspirety]

Originally Posted by Kirayuki

It is not theory, It was already stated plain clear in the game by Kotarou itself, I think you are missing some lines here. You should try read again starting from the part where there was one familiar trying to attack Kagari until the part where Kotarou talk to himself in the forest.

Spoiler for Answer:

That and you should note that Kotarou suddenly let the familiar went past him unconsciously, he concluded that somehow his body purposely allow Kagari to be almost killed.

It's because his existence was still tied to Kashima Sakura's order, which is why he tried to cut that connection and resulting in unable to re-materialize again after dying.

Okay it took me a while to get around to investigating this, but I found what you're referring to.

Spoiler for Moon:

http://i.imgur.com/acWt5W0.png

Honestly, my interpretation of these lines is completely different to yours, but it's helped me gain some clarification. There's no way he's saying that Kashima Sakura literally created him. The first time her familiar encountered Kotarou, she was surprised, stating that he's not the Key. Kashima continued observing, trying to figure out what was going on in that world. And that's when Kotarou spoke to her. He told her how he finally managed to gain a purpose in that world, to fight to protect Kagari and secure a happy future for humanity. If Kashima Sakura hadn't sent those familiars to fight Kagari, he wouldn't have been able to realize how important the situation was, and how he was needed there. This importance gives Kotarou definition. He knows he has a purpose here, and that purpose has caused him to be 'created'. In other words, he has stopped being a transient being without any reason to exist, but a fixed individual with his own motivations and desires. Having become more than a causality and gained a form, he is no longer able to reform. He will die if he is killed. He actually explained this in the next scene if you pay attention. He wants to call those 'ghosts' (his friends) into existence, giving them the mission of defending Kagari, knowing that once they've manifested they won't be able to reform after they die.

So, two questions remain. First, why did he empathise with the familiars trying to kill Kagari? It's his memories. In Kotarou's words, he always appeared as her opposite. In many of the branch worlds he helped kill Kagari, but he tells Kashima how he's changed. How he now respects Kagari and wants to protect her. It was his memories, his natural instinct to kill her that made him empathise with the familiars in the beginning. Remember Kotori's route, where he felt an overwhelming desire to kill the Key, despite trying to protect her? It's pretty much that again.

Second, the question I was asking earlier. Why did Kotarou manifest in the first place? I don't have any solid evidence, but my best guess is his connection to Kagari. We remember Kotarou's friends were able to manifest as ghosts because of their small connection to Kagari, so I can only assume that Kotarou's manifestation follows the same principle. As Kotarou said, his existence is a reaction to Kagari's existence. He met the Kagari of earth many times and was bound to her by his aurora. It could be said of all the people, Kotarou had the strongest connection to Kagari, even if they never spoke. It's kinda open to interpretation at this point, but maybe you could stretch it to some kind of destiny. Kotarou and Kagari held the same desire to save everyone, but were never able to communicate that to each other. Maybe Kagari even took an interest in Kotarou, I'm not sure. Contrasting Earth Kagari, Moon Kagari shows genuine emotions and intelligent thought, and actually shows love to Kotarou in the end. She said that by bringing them to the moon, she gave into her 'selfish emotion'. So maybe she summoned him there. Ahh, in the end I have no straight answer, just a bunch of ideas. Maybe you guys can work something out where I'm still a bit lost.

[Shinn Kamiyra]

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

Terra was never intended to be the game's "grand finale", and ultimately it's not supposed to be about "stirring the heart" as it is supposed to be thought-provoking. I suggest reading that interview posted on the Amaterasu Blog...
Also, screw you. There's a lot of apocalyptic stories, sure, but Rewrite is probably among the best in that regard I've ever read. Just because you don't care about the world ending doesn't mean that anyone else doesn't.

Spoiler for Furthermore,:

Moon-Kotarou's love for Moon-Kagari is the entire reason that Terra happens to begin with, so...

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

Terra was never intended to be the game's "grand finale", and ultimately it's not supposed to be about "stirring the heart" as it is supposed to be thought-provoking. I suggest reading that interview posted on the Amaterasu Blog...

Followed your advice and read the interview on Amaterasu. All things considered though, my overall opinion hasn't changed and I'll explain why.

Spoiler for Tanaka Quote:

Tanaka: In the original plan a lot of routes had sad endings where the heroines died, so I wanted to make a happy end where everyone came back to life. But it's hard to bring characters back to life. So instead I wanted to make a route where all the heroines end up together with far less emotional baggage. So the last scene in Terra was my goal from the beginning. I was happy with the route as long as it ended up there. All the heroines are there, they go to see Kagari, and all the problems have been solved......that's the happiest end I could come up with.

To be clear, I have absolutely no intention or desire to get into a pointless debate about what-ifs, but... seriously? That's the happiest ending they could've come up? Pardon me, but I don't buy that for a second.

In hindsight, it seems while Tanaka has the general idea for what the ending should be like, there's also the sense of a self-imposed restraint with respect to the characters and how they might've been reintroduced. Take this quote for example:

Spoiler for Tanaka Quote:

But it's hard to bring characters back to life. So instead I wanted to make a route where all the heroines end up together with far less emotional baggage.

I understand the concept of wanting to liberate characters from their "emotional baggage," but not at the cost of undermining a central, underlying plot point; in this case being the Occult Club.

Throughout the whole Common Route and through most of the Character Routes, that was central to Kotarou's character and his motivation. Regardless of who he ended up with, we understood where he was coming from and the pain he endured whenever he ended opposing another friend.

Spoiler for Moon/Terra:

Now if you want to argue (not to say that you are arguing it, but simply for the sake of argument) that that's not relevant in Terra as the Occult Club and its initial problem were resolved in Moon, I would say you're only half right.

True, their separation was finally resolved, but Terra takes that conclusion and turns it on its proverbial head by reintroducing the characters in way that, IMO, has the reader itching to see the gang back together again; and for the relevant majority of the story, that just didn't happen.

As I said in my previous comment, with the exception of Kotori, everyone else either made one brief appearance or just didn't show up at all.

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

and ultimately it's not supposed to be about "stirring the heart" as it is supposed to be thought-provoking.

I understand that, but a thought-provoking scenario is second to the emotional satisfaction one demands from their investment in the characters.

If you don't have that, then why in the world would you suffer through the boredom of reading the scenario otherwise?

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

Also, screw you. There's a lot of apocalyptic stories, sure, but Rewrite is probably among the best in that regard I've ever read. Just because you don't care about the world ending doesn't mean that anyone else doesn't."

First of all, let's avoid needless insults and try to keep this discussion civil, shall we?

Secondly, I admit that I may not have been specific enough when I mentioned in my previous comment about no one caring about the end of the world. My apologies for that, and I will try to clarify.

When I said that, I meant to imply that as apocalyptic scenarios are so common these days, they don't surprise you anymore. There's nothing terribly mind-blowing about them that's going to have you jump out of your seat.

Spoiler for Little Busters!:

That being said, that's in part what made Little Busters! ending so splendid. The 'world' ending wasn't an overarching plot point like it was in Rewrite rather than it was the closely guarded secret to tie everything together at the very last moment and have you go

In the end though, it was still about the characters and that's what made it so memorable.

That said, I do concede that Rewrite shows at least some imagination in its apocalyptic scenario. It's just that I believe that, with respect to Terra, they let the scenario carry the characters rather than the characters carrying the scenario; which is, IMHO, a mistake.

[Tyabann]

I agree with you that Terra should probably have been more emotionally significant, but that wasn't the point and furthermore I didn't find the scenario boring in the least. Most people here don't either from what I can tell; this is your opinion. Please don't try to make it anything more than that.

Spoiler for Additionally,:

Terra is deliberately trying to subvert the themes and concepts introduced in the rest of the game, as it's only through rejecting bonds, which Kotarou is so dependent on, that he can end up bringing humanity into the future.
Personally I think it's rather clever storytelling...

[Dirty_Harry]

I understand that, but a thought-provoking scenario is second to the emotional satisfaction one demands from their investment in the characters.

This is subjective and each person has a preference when it comes to storytelling.

And there is the goal of the route, narratively speaking. Tanaka on Terra subverted the classic cliche of true endings. (true for Key VNs, where almost always resolves the final conflict with an ass pull)

[Kirayuki]

Originally Posted by Aspirety

Okay it took me a while to get around to investigating this, but I found what you're referring to.

Spoiler for Moon:

http://i.imgur.com/acWt5W0.png

Honestly, my interpretation of these lines is completely different to yours, but it's helped me gain some clarification. There's no way he's saying that Kashima Sakura literally created him. The first time her familiar encountered Kotarou, she was surprised, stating that he's not the Key. Kashima continued observing, trying to figure out what was going on in that world. And that's when Kotarou spoke to her. He told her how he finally managed to gain a purpose in that world, to fight to protect Kagari and secure a happy future for humanity. If Kashima Sakura hadn't sent those familiars to fight Kagari, he wouldn't have been able to realize how important the situation was, and how he was needed there. This importance gives Kotarou definition. He knows he has a purpose here, and that purpose has caused him to be 'created'. In other words, he has stopped being a transient being without any reason to exist, but a fixed individual with his own motivations and desires. Having become more than a causality and gained a form, he is no longer able to reform. He will die if he is killed. He actually explained this in the next scene if you pay attention. He wants to call those 'ghosts' (his friends) into existence, giving them the mission of defending Kagari, knowing that once they've manifested they won't be able to reform after they die.

So, two questions remain. First, why did he empathise with the familiars trying to kill Kagari? It's his memories. In Kotarou's words, he always appeared as her opposite. In many of the branch worlds he helped kill Kagari, but he tells Kashima how he's changed. How he now respects Kagari and wants to protect her. It was his memories, his natural instinct to kill her that made him empathise with the familiars in the beginning. Remember Kotori's route, where he felt an overwhelming desire to kill the Key, despite trying to protect her? It's pretty much that again.

Second, the question I was asking earlier. Why did Kotarou manifest in the first place? I don't have any solid evidence, but my best guess is his connection to Kagari. We remember Kotarou's friends were able to manifest as ghosts because of their small connection to Kagari, so I can only assume that Kotarou's manifestation follows the same principle. As Kotarou said, his existence is a reaction to Kagari's existence. He met the Kagari of earth many times and was bound to her by his aurora. It could be said of all the people, Kotarou had the strongest connection to Kagari, even if they never spoke. It's kinda open to interpretation at this point, but maybe you could stretch it to some kind of destiny. Kotarou and Kagari held the same desire to save everyone, but were never able to communicate that to each other. Maybe Kagari even took an interest in Kotarou, I'm not sure. Contrasting Earth Kagari, Moon Kagari shows genuine emotions and intelligent thought, and actually shows love to Kotarou in the end. She said that by bringing them to the moon, she gave into her 'selfish emotion'. So maybe she summoned him there. Ahh, in the end I have no straight answer, just a bunch of ideas. Maybe you guys can work something out where I'm still a bit lost.

Well, you have a point. The game didn't clarify it clearly too so I will leave it on that.

As about your 2nd question

Spoiler for Answer:

It might be possible it was Kotarou that called their friends on the Moon, remember he managed to learn some knowledge from Kagari's theory of life. It was even Kotarou's idea to call them. A connection with Kagari's existence might be one of the requirement too, but using Aurora to achieve this feat is most likely one of the essential requirements. Note that Kotarou even managed to call Yoshino and his gang, who I doubt ever have connection at all with Kagari.

[Aspirety]

Spoiler for Moon:

Maybe the connection with kagari initially manifested the girls ghosts, but it was everyone's connection to Kotarou that allowed him to summon them. I think that makes sense.

[DmonHiro]

I never got around to playing this game. I've just started Rewrite. I'm going for Kotori's rute... because GODDAMN is she adorable. I've never heard a sweeter, cuter voice then this performance from Chiwa-san. I just want to hug Kotori, forever.

[Magicflier]

Originally Posted by Randrak42

You just got yourself a Bad End bro.

Tip 1: You can only pick Kotori, Lucia and Chihaya in the first playthrough. Kotori's route unlocks Shizuru's and Chihaya's route unlocks Akane's.
Tip 2: Pick a heroine...and become a total stalker. Every option involving her just answer positively (and if you don't know the effect of an answer, save and load), while disregarding the other girls.

Thank you.

[Tyabann]

Did you guys hear? Rewrite is a subpar VN that reads like it was written by a 15-year-old.

[Randrak42]

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

Did you guys hear? Rewrite is a subpar VN that reads like it was written by a 15-year-old.

This guy is quite hilarious...an idiot, but still a funny one nonetheless.

[Tenoia]

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

Did you guys hear? Rewrite is a subpar VN that reads like it was written by a 15-year-old.

While the person makes decent points about the jarring difference between the lightheartedness of the common route and the severity of the later routes, some production issues, and perhaps even that point towards the end about the nature of VN production, the poster overplays all the bad things about Rewrite (some of which are actually issues with Rewrite and some actually not) and severely, severely downplays all the good things, even stuff that was in the common route.

[Tyabann]

He also (probably) hasn't finished the game, if that wasn't obvious from the way he talks about it.

[Randrak42]

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

He also (probably) hasn't finished the game, if that wasn't obvious from the way he talks about it.

I got that feeling too...as I read it I couldn't help but think "This guy rushed through the Common Route, got a Bad End and quit."

[Tyabann]

Originally Posted by Randrak42

I got that feeling too...as I read it I couldn't help but think "This guy rushed through the Common Route, got a Bad End and quit."

He certainly played more than just the CR, but the way he talks about the environmentalism, and how I know he hasn't been playing it for long enough to get more than two or three endings to begin with, is pretty solid evidence that he hasn't finished.

[Kirayuki]

Okay, I only need to read his screenshot and the caption below it to basically sum up what his thought is.....so

[Von Himmel]

The line used in that caps is really Ryukishi like IMO. I wonder if he also feels that way for every works that Ryukishi writes

It's from tumblr anyway so I don't really give a damn.

[Aspirety]

Spoiler for Full game spoiler:

Did anyone notice that the Earth Dragon battle from the Moon OP never happened? From the looks of it it occurred inside the future earth shelter, and was part of some large-scale battle between guardian and gaia. I kinda would've loved to see that eventuate, haha.
Referring to 0:59-1:02 of this video http://youtu.be/xeZVm8fnvhg?t=59s
Looks epic @_@