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I've never read a visual novel. Where do I start?

Dest

Dest

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Jun 4, 2018
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I've never read a visual novel from start to finish and I feel it's time to change that. Where should I start? I own a few already, Steins;Gate, Clannad, The House in Fata Morgana but I've just not read/played (what's the proper word here) any of 'em! Where should I start, Era? I'm down for the weird shit but I'm also not at all adverse to cutesy love stories.

I should edit: I have played Danganronpa, 13 Sentinels, 999. tbh, didn't know that those would be considered visual novels given the gameplay mixed in with them, but makes sense! I'm looking for things that are more just pure readin'. I've also got access to all platforms.
 
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DNAbro

DNAbro

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Oct 25, 2017
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If you never played one I usually recommend the more gamey ones like Ace Attorney or Danganronpa.
 
Lumination

Lumination

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Oct 26, 2017
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Yup, Ace Attorney, Danganronpa, or 999.

Then move onto Fata Morgana if you have the appetite for all reading no gameplay.
 
Viale

Viale

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Oct 25, 2017
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House in Fata Morgana is one of the best stories I've experienced in any medium personally. It *is* all reading though. If this is your first go at a VN, something with a mixture of gameplay like Danganronpa, ace attorney, or the Zero Escape series might be a better starting place.
 
Yasumi

Yasumi

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Oct 25, 2017
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Planetarian is available on mobile, fairly cheap, and the perfect length for someone just getting into VNs.
 
Dice

Dice

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Essential-Visual-Novels-Featured-1280x720.jpg

www.rpgfan.com

RPGFan's Essential Visual Novels | RPGFan

So, what are some of your essential visual novels? Did we miss anything that you think is "essential"? Let us know
www.rpgfan.com www.rpgfan.com

We did a feature not too long ago! It's not perfect (there's just so many good VNs out there) but IMO these still feel like a good place to start as far as "essential reading" goes, and when trying to break into the genre (i.e. most people SHOULD like em).

Romances, spooky-wookies, mysteries, the pigeon one, etc. lol
 
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Ultimate Bear Cub

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The first case of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney can be completed in 15mins or less. Plus, the series has enough mechanics to lean a little more on the game side of things.

The House in Fata Morgana is a long epic novel that will take you a while to get through and leans very much novel-side. I forgot how long it took me and I'm not up for digging out the Vita. Totally worth it though.
 
Tailesque

Tailesque

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Ace Attorney, absolutely. There's plenty of interactivity in there and the writing is entertaining. Great games, and a perfect entry point into VNs.
 
Rosebud

Rosebud

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Apr 16, 2018
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People saying Ace Attorney, it's fine to start and a great franchise but not a true visual novel

If you want a real one, like with no gameplay at all, just reading, I recommend Fata Morgana and When They Cry series (Higurashi/Umineko). Many people also praise 428: Shibuya Scramble, but still on my backlog.
 
Ultimate Bear Cub

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I tend to agree. Even 999 has puzzle elements and mechanics that make it more of a game than Ace Attorney.
 
Doggg

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I'm a huge fan of think The House in Fata Morgana and think it's one of the absolute best and a must read, but I kind of wish that it wasn't the first one I had read. People will not infrequently advise that it not be your introduction to the medium, as it can really skew your expectations of other visual novels. So I'd recommend something Ace Attorney first.
 
Yam's

Yam's

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Oct 27, 2017
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Well as you already own Steins;Gate and The House in Fata Morgana pick one of them. Both are among my favorite VN.
 
ghostcrew

ghostcrew

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Oct 27, 2017
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Dest said:
All of 'em!
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Amazing! Well I'd echo a lot of the suggestions then. Maybe start with one of more game like ones like 999 (it's part of The Nonary Games collection on PS4 - it's great and goes pretty cheap fairly often in PSN sales).

Also check out Danganronpa on Game Pass. You'll see it recommended a lot, might as well play it at no extra cost if you're already a sub.
 
Shiz Padoo

Shiz Padoo

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Oct 13, 2018
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I've tried them and I can't seem to get into them. I was the same with anime, then it clicked. So maybe I haven't found the right game yet. Last I played was Doki Doki Literature Club. I keep seeing that it's not for the easily disturbed but I've not got far enough to see why yet. Must get back to it.
 
RROCKMAN

RROCKMAN

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Oct 25, 2017
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Real tired of the Steins Gate, House of Fata Morgana recommendations but I guess mainstreams gotta mainstream.

I do Second Ace Attorney as a good gateway drug
Though. If you really want a unique swing at it though give 428 a shout. If you hate anime art styles this is done with photos and movies of live actors so there shouldn't be an issue. Somehow manages to be Funny, Scary, and Serious all at once.
 
Lunchbox

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Steins;Gate Elite or Fata Morgana if you don't struggle with mental illness.
 
Ultimate Bear Cub

Ultimate Bear Cub

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Shiz Padoo said:
I've tried them and I can't seem to get into them. I was the same with anime, then it clicked. So maybe I haven't found the right game yet. Last I played was Doki Doki Literature Club. I keep seeing that it's not for the easily disturbed but I've not got far enough to see why yet. Must get back to it.
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Doki Doki isn't a very long game, so keep going. I played the free Steam version, which I'm glad I did because I was considering the Switch Plus version, before I knew anything.

Not that it's bad, but I think I would have been disappointed for the amount of content vs price point. The way the game is designed also makes it preferable on PC, much like Undertale (my first play of that one was on Switch).
 
Tater

Tater

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Oct 30, 2017
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I'm playing through Steins;Gate right now, and while I like it a lot, I personally don't like it as much as Ace Attorney since there isn't as much interaction. But since you're going for pure reading, I'd imagine that would fit the bill.

Ace Attorney seems a lot more like some of the old "point & click" games of long ago during some of the investigation scenes. I know that can drive some people away.
 
Rosenkrantz

Rosenkrantz

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Jan 17, 2018
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Ace Attorney, especially older games, are closer to classic adventure games, so, as others pointed out it's, along with Danganronpa and Nonary games, are more suitable for beginners.

Then I'd recommend some SRPGs like Utawarerumono and Tears to Tiara that are very heavy on VN side, but have gameplay.

After that you can try pure VNs, 428 would be my first suggestion because it's probably the best adaptation of the script on a VN market, just great job all around and flow chart is fantastic.

Just don't start with really long ones that have sky high scores on VNDB. VNs writing is an acquired taste and can be really damn awful at times.
 
Ailanthium

Ailanthium

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Oct 27, 2017
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Play The House in Fata Morgana. It's not an insanely huge commitment but it'll give you a taste of what the genre can offer without dabbling in too many cliche anime tropes (which I personally don't mind, but are an acquired taste for sure). If you own it and you've already played the "gateway" VNs (Danganronpa, 999, 13 Sentinels) then you're good to go. Ace Attorney is great but it has a very different atmosphere from most VNs and probably isn't a great indicator of whether or not you'll like visual novels.
 
Unknownlight

Unknownlight

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Rosebud said:
If you want a real one, like with no gameplay at all, just reading, I recommend Fata Morgana and When They Cry series (Higurashi/Umineko). Many people also praise 428: Shibuya Scramble, but still on my backlog.
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The When They Cry series is way, way too long to recommend as a first/early visual novel to someone. In terms of word count, Umineko is longer than the entire Harry Potter series combined. I adore it, but still.
 
sanhora

sanhora

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Oct 25, 2017
485
Dest said:
I should edit: I have played Danganronpa, 13 Sentinels, 999. tbh, didn't know that those would be considered visual novels given the gameplay mixed in with them, but makes sense! I'm looking for things that are more just pure readin'. I've also got access to all platforms.
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AA, Danganronpa, 999, etc. aren't actual visual novels but rather point and click adventure games. For some reason people in the west call them VNs just because they have a lot of text.
For actual recommendations I'd go with Utawarerumono, Planetarian, Steins;Gate, Umineko and Baldr Sky. Look them up on VNDB and see which ones interest you. Planetarian is by far the shortest, Baldr Sky and Utawarerumono have some gameplay.
 
Rosenkrantz

Rosenkrantz

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Jan 17, 2018
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sanhora said:
AA, Danganronpa, 999, etc. aren't actual visual novels but rather point and click adventure games. For some reason people in the west call them VNs just because they have a lot of text.
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AA sure. But Danganronpa and 999 (iOS version doesn't even have puzzles iirc) are much more in line with Visual Novels than P&C. I guess you can add them to a relatively small pull of Japanese adventure games thanks to the gameplay elements, but narratively they're a bit different from AA or Hotel Dusk.
 
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