Need visual Novel recommendations, translated ones official or not

[delorean2200]

Hi for th holidays i'm thinking of playing some VN's, and would like some recommendations so i can prepare in time, visual novels that i loved where (in this order): Muv-luv (played: Extra, Unlimted, Alternative), Devil On G-String (Haru Usami's Route, simply brilliant), DC (especially the second one) & Katawa Shoujo.

Ones that i thought of trying out are Little Busters, Ef and FAte/Stay Night, any other recommendations ?

PS: i don't care much for eroge little to none in fact, what i want is interesting characters and a nice good/solid story.

[Arturia Polaris]

Steins;Gate. Extremely interesting. Be ready for mind blowings as well.

Arty

[hyl]

Originally Posted by Arturia Polaris

Steins;Gate. Extremely interesting. Be ready for mind blowings as well.

Arty

Does not seem worth it to me ,seeing that the topicstarter already saw the anime.

On topic: what genre do you prefer seeing that all the examples that you mentioned have a wide variety of genres

Also playing through Little busters, Fate/stay night and EF will already take quite some time. Unless you will be reading non stop for roughly 7+ hours per day, I am pretty sure you will be busy with those 3 for many weeks

edit: the title is a little confusing, because i am not entirely sure if you are looking for translated ones or not.
If you are not looking for translated ones, then the better VN's from 2012 that i have read were Hatsuyuki Sakura, Kono Oozora ni Tsubasa wo Hirogete and Grisaia no Meikyuu.

If you are looking for translated ones, then aside from the ones that you played and going to play, i would recommend Sharin no Kuni and Hoshizora no memoria (although those are nakiges) . While i did like those VN's, i am not sure how good the translation is on those VN's because i read those games in japanese.

[delorean2200]

Thank you for the answer, as for genre it doesn't have to be a specific one, it just has to be good, it would be perfect if it had romance or being revolved around romance, you could say that's the things that all those novels i've listed have in common. But i don't mind at all action, fantasy or Sci Fi, as seen from my top two favorite VN's at the moment (Muv-Luv and Devil on G-String).

As for the title i meant that i'm looking for translated VN's either official translations, or fan made one.

PS: yeah i'm going to probably invest 7 hours + a day in them.

[Last Sinner]

If you're going to get into Fate/Stay Night, you should also try Shingetsutan Tsukihime, the title before FSN in Type Moon's works. Also note Witch on the Holy Night, Type-Moon's latest, came out in Japan this year, so expect a translation in the next couple of years and keep that in mind for future targets.

Steins;Gate is also good.

Seinarukana: Spirit of Eternity Sword is a nice one if you're interested in with with a mix of VN and JRPG elements and some very high quality artwork.

Clannad is definitely better in game form than in anime form.

[Arturia Polaris]

I watched the anime, and now I'm playing the VN of S;G.

It's worth it because there are a lot of things that can go different other than the "true ending". A lot more interactions between the characters, an intriguing "choice" system (All through the phone) and different endings make the deal for me. It's like watching clannad and then playing the VN.

Arty

[delorean2200]

^Thanks will keep it in mind then but it will take a bit longer since i finished the anime not that long ago.

Originally Posted by Last Sinner

b]Seinarukana: Spirit of Eternity Sword[/b] is a nice one if you're interested in with with a mix of VN and JRPG elements and some very high quality artwork.

This one caught my attention quite a lot but do you mean the first one:

1. Eien no Aselia – Kono Daichi no Hate de which it seems is only available in english without h-scenes (which i don't mind at all if that means it does not take out anything else from the game like the romance development)

Or the second one: Seinarukana -The Spirit of Eternity Sword 2- ?

Originally Posted by Last Sinner

If you're going to get into Fate/Stay Night, you should also try Shingetsutan Tsukihime, the title before FSN in Type Moon's works. Also note Witch on the Holy Night, Type-Moon's latest, came out in Japan this year, so expect a translation in the next couple of years and keep that in mind for future targets.

Does Tsukihime have a lot of romance as well ?

[delorean2200]

Sorry for double posting but with Ef should i start with the First Tale or with a Fairy tale of two, what would bring the best experience ?

[Last Sinner]

Originally Posted by delorean2200

This one caught my attention quite a lot but do you mean the first one:

1. Eien no Aselia – Kono Daichi no Hate de which it seems is only available in english without h-scenes (which i don't mind at all if that means it does not take out anything else from the game like the romance development)

Or the second one: Seinarukana -The Spirit of Eternity Sword 2- ?

Seinarukana - The Spirit of Eternity Sword 2. The ties to the first game are light so you don't need to have played Eien no Aselia. Also, Eien no Aselia had considerably unbalanced gameplay and green characters were too OP. Serinarukana's gampelay was balanced and required some thought. Art, characters and general vibe of Seinaruaka are just brilliant.

Does Tsukihime have a lot of romance as well ?

Yes, each arc does involve it. But just be warned that Nasu always puts his characters through quite a harsh experience before reaching the light at the end of the tunnel. If you're looking for a textbook definition of romance or what you'd see in your average TV drama or light-hearted anime, that isn't what Tsukihime contains. It is far more intense, as is the case with Fate/Stay Night. However when Nasu does intimate scenes, he tends to make them somewhat hilarious to lighten up the mood. Nasu is referred to as 'the warrior of love', so you get a mix of things with him.

[grylsyjaeger]

I'll chime in and suggest you try ~Ever17: The Out of Infinity~

It was the first visual I ever played and really set the bar high for me. There are also other novels in the series including Never7 and Remember11 that are translated. The stories do support one another but you don't need to play the others to understand the story.


And thanks to Sinner I'll give Seinarukana: Spirit of Eternity Sword a whirl too.

[Tempester]

Would it be possible for you to list all the visual novels you've played, not just enjoyed? It would be frustrating for us to recommend something you've already gone through.

I'm just a beginner to VNs so I don't have much to offer. But I do recommend you play through the following short VNs:

Narcissu
Kinetic novel. Sad story about a chronically ill young couple who go on a journey.
Freeware Download (includes both the original VN and the prequel)

The Dandelion Girl
Kinetic novel. Sci-fi with time travel. This VN is an adaptation of a classic sci-fi short story. The text is exactly the same as the original story, it just has added visuals and audio.
Freeware Download

Planetarian
Kinetic novel. Post-apocalyptic sci-fi. I haven't played it in a long time, but I feel that this is probably Key's greatest work I've seen yet.

True Remembrance
Kinetic novel. Supernatural/fantasy. This is hard for me to summarize, but it left me with a very positive impression. You don't read this for the art, but for the story.
Freeware Download

Saya no Uta
Visual novel with a small number of very important choices. Sci-fi/horror. I'd be surprised if you haven't seen this yet. Written by the famous Urobuchi Gen of Madoka Magica and Phantom of Inferno. Amazing and thrilling, and all of the endings are legitimate.

[delorean2200]

Originally Posted by grylsyjaeger

I'll chime in and suggest you try ~Ever17: The Out of Infinity~

It was the first visual I ever played and really set the bar high for me. There are also other novels in the series including Never7 and Remember11 that are translated. The stories do support one another but you don't need to play the others to understand the story.


And thanks to Sinner I'll give Seinarukana: Spirit of Eternity Sword a whirl too.

Actually i did try Ever17 finished one route, it did had an interesting twist but the rest i didn't like, i dunno how to say this but especially the characters felt empty to me, i will give the other two a try though.

Originally Posted by Last Sinner

Seinarukana - The Spirit of Eternity Sword 2. The ties to the first game are light so you don't need to have played Eien no Aselia. Also, Eien no Aselia had considerably unbalanced gameplay and green characters were too OP. Serinarukana's gampelay was balanced and required some thought. Art, characters and general vibe of Seinaruaka are just brilliant.

I see, but is that one on consoles ? all i saw on PC was an unfinished translation project... Is there an actual full translation patch ?


Also if someone coul answer my previous question i would be delighted, to get the best experience should i play first Ef the First Tale or can i start with Rf a Fairy tale of two ? I know that the First tale is a prequel of sort but what i'm looking for is to get the most out of the main novel, for example: if the First tale would bring some spoilers in that would make a Fairy Tale of Two less interesting then i would start with a Fairy tale of two.

Originally Posted by Tempester

Would it be possible for you to list all the visual novels you've played, not just enjoyed? It would be frustrating for us to recommend something you've already gone through.

Actually except for Ever17 and some DC spin off's that's pretty much all.

[grylsyjaeger]

Well I think the magic of Ever17 is the True Route you get after completing the other four.

When the mind fuck just clicks, I've never felt so entertained.

[Shabutie]

Originally Posted by Tempester

Narcissu
Kinetic novel. Sad story about a chronically ill young couple who go on a journey.
Freeware Download (includes both the original VN and the prequel)

The Dandelion Girl
Kinetic novel. Sci-fi with time travel. This VN is an adaptation of a classic sci-fi short story. The text is exactly the same as the original story, it just has added visuals and audio.
Freeware Download

Planetarian
Kinetic novel. Post-apocalyptic sci-fi. I haven't played it in a long time, but I feel that this is probably Key's greatest work I've seen yet.

True Remembrance
Kinetic novel. Supernatural/fantasy. This is hard for me to summarize, but it left me with a very positive impression. You don't read this for the art, but for the story.
Freeware Download

Saya no Uta
Visual novel with a small number of very important choices. Sci-fi/horror. I'd be surprised if you haven't seen this yet. Written by the famous Urobuchi Gen of Madoka Magica and Phantom of Inferno. Amazing and thrilling, and all of the endings are legitimate.

All of these. These are amazing games and you must play all of them if you haven't already. Also, add Sharin no Kuni, Himawari no Shoujo to that list.