The best written route?

[Hanako Scars]

This topic has probably been made a lot of times, but I'd like to see what you people think.

Shizune's route gets a lot of hate, and I have no idea why. It covers the school year right until the last day. This is a big plus for me. Also, I love Shizune and Misha.

I don't know if I could pick a best written route atm as I have played them all in the last 2 or 3 days so I have still got 'the feels' (I hate that term but can't help but use it) from all of them.

[hitman555z]

ive only played emi's route and so far i have to say its pretty well written.

the reason why people hate shizune, atleast from my perspective, is that she is basically the law of the school. no one likes the law, or atleast i have issues with coppers myself. i just dont like them. an the fact that misha backs up shizune to the extent where its a bit too much, it makes me hate student counsel that much more. and i never got along with any members in my high schools student counsel group. maybe it was because i didnt like people who were all happy-go-lucky and always smiling. plus they were a bit... odd.

with that being said, im sure theres a reason shizune is all up tight like that. i will possibly change my mind about her once i start that route.

[dewelar]

Best-written route for me is Rin's, hands down. There's just so much there. The sheer range of emotions that are there for the feeling is amazing if you're willing to immerse yourself. It's not for everyone, mind, but for me, none of the other routes felt quite as real as Rin's.

As for Shizune, I didn't care for it much on first read. I didn't think I understood the writer's intent as much as I might have. Honestly, I'm still not certain I do, but it's grown on me a lot.

[ZXNova]

Best-written route for me is Rin's, hands down. There's just so much there. The sheer range of emotions that are there for the feeling is amazing if you're willing to immerse yourself. It's not for everyone, mind, but for me, none of the other routes felt quite as real as Rin's.

As for Shizune, I didn't care for it much on first read. I didn't think I understood the writer's intent as much as I might have. Honestly, I'm still not certain I do, but it's grown on me a lot.

That is something I certainly agree with. No other route gave the feels more then Rin's. I thoroughly read through all the routes and yeah, I felt hers is the best written.

Honestly, it's a matter of opinion. Some would say Hanako, Some would say Lilly. All of the routes are well written. Wouldn't people agree on that?

Also, I never knew Shizune's route got hate. I don't really see why.

[ewx]

All the routes are well written and I imagine that during production of the game, they all underwent intense scrutiny by developers, editors and the other route writers.

I don't think the hate for certain routes like Shizune's springs from bad writing, just that people did not necessarily like the way it concluded or just did not sympathise with the characters or just didn't like it.

Personally, I didn't mind the fact that Shizune was often very competitive and could be very business-like at times.

Impending spoiler wall:
It was the Good Ending for me that just didn't feel "good".
Far from being an advantage, the route ending at the same time at the school year serves to remind the player that we've reached the end of the game. With the shorter routes we can almost hope that Hisao and whoever's route he is on are able to spend more time together enjoying their time at school, arguably one of the simplest parts of life.
It also doesn't help the way Shizune acts in the final "Good" scene. From re-reading it just now, it reminds me of friends I've had in high school who have slowly drifted away. It's an almost painful memory and to imagine that is what Hisao will have to go through does not symbolise "Good" to me. For a last day of school with her best friend and boyfriend, she also seems to display very little emotion which just makes her feel like a robot. While it might be "in character", it doesn't make the player feel like they've reached a good end.


I'm sure we would all hope that some of the fan-fictions that continue from Shizune's "Good" end are canon, but all I see happening afterwards is the slow drifting apart of Hisao, Shizune and Misha.

[marian11]

All routes are well written.Lilly's and Hanako's are my favourite, but I like Hanako's a bit more than Lilly's.

So my vote is Hanako's route.

[dewelar]

Probably should have some spoiler tags there, ewx.

First off, yes, all the routes are well-written. As was said above, I think very few people on the board would deny this honestly.

It also doesn't help the way Shizune acts in the final "Good" scene. From re-reading it just now, it reminds me of friends I've had in high school who have slowly drifted away. It's an almost painful memory and to imagine that is what Hisao will have to go through does not symbolise "Good" to me.

This was my issue exactly, at least on first read. While it's realistic, I can't exactly call it optimistic, at least not as presented. Perhaps the most painful bit was when Hisao said "I love you" at the end without signing it. Unlike the other routes, I was never convinced that Shizune returned that sentiment, even today. Again, not that it's poorly written, or that it didn't ring true, just that it didn't leave me in as happy a place as the others. If you can get past that, there's still a lot to enjoy there.

Oh, and don't underestimate the fact that Everybody Hates Jigoro.

[Mirage_GSM]

It covers the school year right until the last day.

the reason why people hate shizune, atleast from my perspective, is that she is basically the law of the school

Neither point has anything to do with the quality of writing, though...

I agree with Rin's route being the best-written - probably the most difficult to write as well given Rin's personality.
Second best in my opinion is Emi's route - none of the other routes gave me the same feeling of realism, enabled me to identify with the characters more.

Shizune's route is not bad, but it does have some weaknesses that other routes lack.
It has several side-characters that do not really add anything to the story and only serve as comic relief and to draw the story out unneccessarily.
Both Jigoro's and Hideaki's parts could have been reduced a lot and the story would have probably been the better for it. Also, there's Shizune's relationship to Lilly which doesn't serve any purpose in the story either.
As for the writing style, there are some run-on sentences that make some scenes a bit tiring to read. Not really a big issue, but noiceable nonetheless.

[dewelar]

Second best in my opinion is Emi's route - none of the other routes gave me the same feeling of realism, enabled me to identify with the characters more.

I would agree with this. Emi's route is written very tightly. It doesn't get sidetracked, it's paced perfectly, and it accomplished exactly what it sets out to do. It's just not as all-encompassing a story as Rin's, but a solid #2.

[Ritter Delorges]

Difficult question. Perhaps I would need to reread more to answer that. I am still too new to this.

Shizune's route gets a lot of hate, and I have no idea why. It covers the school year right until the last day. This is a big plus for me. Also, I love Shizune and Misha.

Shizune is hard to relate to in universe. Of course that is intentional, but I suspect that it doesn't exactly help her with the readers either. Then there is the idea that she has no true good end and many don't like that. I think that's unfair because hers is the only route that acknowledges that those are kids in their final year of school and any "happily ever after" ending comes with a huge asterisk behind it. At least her good end shows that they truly part way on good terms and we can be confident that their time together will stay with them as a positive memory for the rest of their lives.

I think Rin's route is excellent and emotionally very intense. She is a unique fascinating character. There are many unforgettable scenes, both good and bad.

Perhaps I am seeing it through rose-colored glasses because she is my favorite character, but I like the writing in Emi's route a lot. It is a bit more understated and lacking some of the life or death drama, but at least to me it feels very true. It explores their relationship very well and I think Emi is a very well-rounded, strong and altogether beautiful character.

[Hanako Scars]

I didn't think people hated Jigoro

I always considered him to be a bit of comic relief, a bit like Kenji.

[dewelar]

I didn't think people hated Jigoro

I always considered him to be a bit of comic relief, a bit like Kenji.

People hate Jigoro because of how he treated Shizune when she was growing up (and even to the time of the game, to an extent). It's not shown directly, but it's mentioned in-game.

[Xanatos]

Also, there's Shizune's relationship to Lilly which doesn't serve any purpose in the story either.

I always thought that served nicely to show Shizune's flaws early-on. Her constant stubbornness, competitions, inadvertent selfishness...All of which destroys what relationship there was between them.

At the risk of being predictable, I can't pick out any one as "best written". They all have great effects upon the reader, they all tell a fine story, they all have numerous flaws upon close inspection. Forced to choose though, I'd have to say Act One is the best because it's the most lacking in flaws.

[Hanako Scars]

Just out of curiosity, which writers wrote which routes?

[KeiichiO]

Rin's route.