Visual Novel club!

[Hobbes∞]

Please forgive that last post, I was having difficulty persuading the spoiler function to work on my phone and it just posted it as blank.

GENERAL ENDING SPOILERS

I liked Ace from the start, and I still kind of sympathised with him even after seeing the true ending. I'd read up on prosopagnosia about a year ago out of interest, and I can completely see how it could drive you mad. There's an interesting if not sad autobiography by someone who's name I forget and who had prosopagnosia all her life, called You Don't Look Like Someone I Know, or something similar.

Favourite ending is tough, as the true ending puts them all in context, and is the most conclusive, but aside from that I think it would be the Safe ending. I thought Santa was one of the most interesting characters when I first played it, and the moment when he tells June and Junpei about his sister and about being her Santa Clause was pretty touching, though I guess is a bit weird now that I've seen the full story :) The part with Snake and Ace in the incinerator was genuinely disturbing, and I know it's supposed to be a sad ending but I found it interesting after filling in the mysteries.

I was kind of disappointed with the end of the Alice arc, until the end credits, and then my brain exploded ^_^ I guess it left a lot of mystery for the events after the game bit you gotta give people something to put in their fanfiction right?

Kira Kira I suggest then, something lighter, I'm still pretty phased from Steins; Gate, and the true ending of 999 is still playing on loop in my subconscious. Though I agree, I would be keen to see Ever 17 sometime in the future, it is very well regarded. Kira Kira looks a little bit like K-On to me, but there's nothing wrong with that as a recommendation :D

What does everyone else think?

[Unbanned]

K-On! is the greatest anime series EVER, so any visual novel that even slightly resembles it gets my vote. :D

[Geoff]

Kira [funny star thing] Kira is fine by me. There are a route or two I haven't gone through yet, so that'll give me an excuse.

[Hobbes∞]

Can we agree in advance if we do play it to actually call it 'Kira [funny star thing] Kira' every time? ;)

[Geoff]

Can we agree in advance if we do play it to actually call it 'Kira [funny star thing] Kira' every time? ;)

I'm FOR it.

[Hobbes∞]

I have a sneaking suspicion that the World Cup, Wimbledon and the Tour de France have consecutively stolen away the patrons of this forum. The voting is thus fairly sparse.

Sport, why must you plague me so, even after I so gladly bade farewell to the perpetual menace of Physical Education?!

[Unbanned]

Sorry, my bad! I've been pretty busy this week and just haven't felt like doing the write-up for Kira [funny star thing] Kira. I'll do it tomorrow, unless one of you wants to give it a shot! :D

EDIT: Just to confirm, we will be reading Kira [funny star thing] Kira this month.

[Hobbes∞]

Don't apologise Senpai! I was merely wondering where everyone else was.

I know raguzama is moving to another country, so his absence may be forgiven, but does anyone know where Zash, Manny, blu3s0ul, Mioav and some of the others are? I daresay their negligence will not be tolerated ;)

[Unbanned]

Not sure! It's pretty common for AVENites to leave for long spells, though. Most have a surge of interest and excitement when they first discover the community but it soon wears off and they stop logging in on a regular basis.

[Hobbes∞]

This simply will not do. I'm going to start messaging them :)

Also, do you mind if I borrow your signature? I don't post a great deal on the forums but I guess it would be cool to have a few new people here

[Unbanned]

Sure! Might want to update it, though. ;)

[Hobbes∞]

Merci ^_^

I can get the write up done for Kira [funny star thing] Kira today if you've not got the time. My powers of procrastination are unrivalled in all the land!

[Unbanned]

I can get it up in about 3 - 4 hours, but if you're free now...go for it!

[Hobbes∞]

It takes over 3 hours?!

Crepes almighty, I thought most of the information was available on VNDB. I will try to get it done as soon as possible.

We really ought to be paying you for this :)

[Unbanned]

Oh, no! I meant that I would have free time to do it in 3 or 4 hours. It usually takes me 30 - 45 minutes. :)

[Hobbes∞]

Kira☆Kira

9/07 – 1/08

Kira☆Kira (キラ☆キラ) is a Japanese adult visual novel developed by Overdrive and first released on a Microsoft Windows PC on November 27, 2007. An official English translation by MangaGamer was released in June 2009, only available on MangaGamer's website. A PlayStation 2 version published by PrincessSoft was released on February 26, 2009. In addition, a sequel called Kira☆Kira Curtain Call (キラ☆キラ カーテンコール) was released by Overdrive for the PC in August 2008.

What is it about?

‘Love, Journey and Rock’n’Roll!’

Shikanosuke Maejima is a student at the Missionary school, Oubi Academy. He doesn't attend his club, he doesn't put much effort in his studies, all he does is show up at his part time job; in short, his life could be better. One day, he meets a strange girl, Kirari Shiino, at work and before he knows it, they've formed a punk band.



The band consists of Shikanosuke, Kirari, his childhood friend Chie Isurugi, and a rich but weak young lady by the name of Sarina Kashiwara. The four of them are members of the Second Literature Club, which has hardly any active members and is already scheduled to be disbanded. This band is their chance to stand out and give one final farewell at the Culture Festival.


The challenge was foolhardy, but after eccentric training they managed to succeed and rock out the peaceful Oubi Academy with their debut performance. That should have been it. They were satisfied. They should have returned to their normal lives. However, their final performance at a local Live House became a hit on the Internet and requests for their performance start flying in from far and wide.

One problem: exams are coming up and their parents are opposed to the band!

Who cares! The four of them embark on their final adventure, a long tour of Japan, armed with their dreams and their instruments, all aboard a rickety van that could fall apart at any moment.

"First stop, Nagoya!"

Things to know before you start:

· Kira☆Kira is a decidedly light-hearted novel, with the themes mainly being romance and comedy. There’s lots of music throughout

· It contains several graphic hentai scenes, which is also a theme that runs throughout the novel

· If this bothers you, an ‘All-Ages’ version was released on Manga Gamer in 2009, which contains no on-screen sex or nudity. However, it still contains strong sexual dialogue, highly suggestive themes and some sexual background noises, so it remains an 18+ novel regardless

· There are 8 possible endings based on the dialogue choices made during the novel. To see the true ending you must play through all 3 good endings first

· This is a long visual novel. VNDB states that it takes between 30-50 hours to complete. It supposedly starts rather slow and then picks up later on

Where can I download it?

I believe MangaGamer is currently the only official retail site where you will find this novel. The PC ‘All-Ages’ version is exclusively sold here (at a cheaper price for some reason – the hentai costs extra apparently :)), and an iOS version was released in 2009 for iPhone and iPod only. The iOS version has had lots of nudity and sexual content removed from it; the original cannot be bought on the app store. Kira☆Kira was also released on the Playstation 2 if you can find a copy, but please refrain from posting links to emulators and ROMs on this forum should you choose to procure it in such a method.

Here’s a link to a walkthrough on GameFAQs if you’d like to cheat explore some of the different endings ;)

Allons-y!

EDIT: Sorry it's late, AVEN kept crashing and I had to rewrite it all again

[Geoff]

I want to keep a list of the most amusing typos/grammatical errors we come across, as there are a lot of those and some of them are truly spectacular. I have one from a bit later on in the VN (no spoilers involved), which, while it isn't the height of hilarity, it is a good example...

Shikanosuke: (while everyone else is goofing off) "Don't joke around and listen."

[Hobbes∞]

I wish all of my problems could be anecdotally related to noodles in some way. *sigh*

The English is indeed rather poor. I know, I know, English is a sucky and difficult language, as we've already established, but seriously, could they not find one articulate Westerner who would read this through just for a free copy of a new VN? If you told them there would be breasts in it, then I know hundreds of people who would proofread it in a heartbeat. Not personally, but I know they're all outside, playing sports or whatever normal guys do.

And let's agree in advance, regardless of whether or not one's socks have holes, socks and sandals is a crime. Nobody looks at the hole and thinks, 'How uncouth, that person has a substandard sock'. They think 'BY JOVE THAT SOCIOPATH IS ACTUALLY WEARING SANDALS AND SOCKS IN PUBLIC. DO THEY CARE NOTHING FOR CIVILIZED SOCIETY!?'

Hey Geoff, how do you describe musical genres in America? Shikanosuke says 'Indies', which seems weird because I would say an 'indie band', but do you use the plural there too?

EDIT: Shikanosuke: 'I put my hand up to the moonlight. I open and shut my hand as if I was trying to grab the air.'

How weird, this guy knows Stardust Handshake too.

[Unbanned]

Hey Kai, how do you describe musical genres in America? Shikanosuke says 'Indies', which seems weird because I would say an 'indie band', but do you use the plural there too?

I think it might be a Japanese/East Asian thing. My Korean girlfriend sometimes says "Indies" and I know that the Japanese commonly refer to "Pop music" as "Pops".

[Geoff]

How weird, this guy knows Stardust Handshake too.

Tutturu~!

Hey Kai Geoff, how do you describe musical genres in America? Shikanosuke says 'Indies', which seems weird because I would say an 'indie band', but do you use the plural there too?

I think it might be a Japanese/East Asian thing. My Korean girlfriend sometimes says "Indies" and I know that the Japanese commonly refer to "Pop music" as "Pops".

I think in the US it's "indie." Indie rock, pop rock...

I know, as far as "pop/pops" is concerned, when a classical group plays pop music we refer to it as "pops." [cue response: "No problem, ma."]

[Unbanned]

I think Kira [funny star thing] Kira might be the first visual novel I've played where all of the dialogue is presented in an NVL format. I really like the art in this one, so it's a shame that it's always obscured. Toggling the text on and off gets annoying after a while.

[Hobbes∞]

I didn't realise you could turn the brightness of the backgrounds up, so for the first half hour I was squinting to see them. Then when I turned it up the text became difficult to read, especially when the background is white. Who's idea was this, NVL is so impractical!

Despite this, I do really like the backgrounds, but I think the character sprites are a bit basic. The high contrast, cell-shaded anime aesthetic only really works on top of similar artwork, I think it looks a bit odd in this VN.

What do you think of Shikanosuke? Doesn't really strike me as the rock star type. He's no David Bowie

[Unbanned]

Despite this, I do really like the backgrounds, but I think the character sprites are a bit basic. The high contrast, cell-shaded anime aesthetic only really works on top of similar artwork, I think it looks a bit odd in this VN.

Ah, really? The character sprites are my favourite bit. I agree that they clash a little with the background art, however.

What do you think of Shikanosuke? Doesn't really strike me as the rock star type. He's no David Bowie

I'm not sure. I haven't made it too far in, but he seems like the standard visual novel "everyman".

[Geoff]

What do you think of Shikanosuke? Doesn't really strike me as the rock star type. He's no David Bowie

I agree. I think his becoming a rock star was a bit contrived. "Let's make the main character a rock star because it would be very convenient to the plot that we've already set up before quite fully fleshing out the characters." That having been said, the other characters seem more appropriate rockers.

As for "He's no David Bowie"--someone should punch him really hard in the eye, and then during surgery maybe the pupil will become permanently dilated. That seemed to work before. :P

[Hobbes∞]

Yeah, the other characters are more fun and diverse.

Now we're talking!

The dilated pupil is a nice idea, it worked well for Bowie. I think a solid heroin addiction chic would be pretty good too, but obviously, suicide is not preferable for the protagonist. That would be a short VN.

And the beard; amongst the most important features of them all! I'm thinking he should go along the lines of a Dave Grohl goatee. Too young for a full beard :)

[Geoff]

Heroin addiction is a very solid plan--either that or cocaine would be perfect. And cigarettes, can't forget cigarettes.

I'm not sure if I can visualize Shikanosuke in a goatee...maybe once he puts a few years on? Then again, that would can the "girl band" facade once and for all, so that would have to be taken into consideration. Though if he does go down that route, Iggy Pop shirtlessness would be a must; I imagine that would be a spectacular look for a bass player.

I'm not sure if all of these things should be in spoiler tags...? Whatever, they're integral to the plot and are established before any pivotal decisions, so I think I'm safe.

[Hobbes∞]

Murakami: "Rock 'n Roll was born when the Rhythm and Blues, which is black music, and Country, which is the music, got mixed together."

That sentence is both racially insensitive and grammatically laughable at the same time. Not to mention this guy's constant scowl, which is becoming unnerving.

I wonder where they were going with 'and Country, which is the music...'. The music of what? Perhaps he just meant the music, with emphasis, because it is his favourite. I did not peg him as a Kenny Rogers fan.

[Geoff]

I thought Murakami had referred to country as "the white music," which almost makes some sort of vague sense from an American standpoint. Still racially insensitive, and generally inaccurate since country is certainly not "the white music," but surely one that's made by people all over the world.

Anyway, yeah, half of the explanations of anything given in Kira [funny star thing] Kira are total crap. :P

It would make a bizarre bit of sense of Murakami did turn out to be a closet Kenny Rogers fan, though. I don't know any of his songs, but the image fits just uncomfortably enough to be plausible.

[raguzama]

*peeks in slowly and cautiously* hello friends.. Mind if I join in? This one looks really good ^_^

[Hobbes∞]

Yay, raguzama's back! ^_^

*glomps and fanfare*

Back in China too I assume.

We started this one pretty late into the month so I don't think we are particularly far ahead. As far as I can tell, it's about a group of slightly strange high school students with absolutely no knowledge of music and a racist bear-like adolescent who reads music magazines trying to start a band :)

Hope the move went okay!