Umber wrote:
I think he's just trying to get your comment to apply from all directions. You know, straight females having just as much option as straight males. Hisao vs. Hisako. (Shameless plug for Banda, by the way.)
IMO, self-insertion kind of takes a bit out of a story -- only in video games does that seem to work out, and that's because the minimalist depictions of 'the character' make you feel a part of the game, not that you are simply 'in' it. Albeit the fact that you created said character. It's still 'the character', or 'the chosen one', or some other vague, plot-indifferent label that's applied to a person who carries out the decisions you make for them.
That said, Hisao is a person as well, and I'm not sure if I'd be exactly comfortable with taking his place. Though, technically, it wouldn't have been his to begin with.
Ah, now I get it. I thought I said something wrong again.
"The way I see it, every life is a pile of good things and bad things. The good things don't always soften the bad things. But vice versa, the bad things don't necessarily spoil the good things or make them unimportant." ~ The Doctor.
I never cried because i have a generally depressed an uncaring attitude anyway, but Emi and Lily's good endings were very thought provoking to say the least. I probably would've cried if i had experienced Lily and Emi's neutral/bad endings firsthand, but me being the wimp that i am i looked them up on YouTube.
SpunkySix wrote:
Bringing up the legitimately interesting question though, I've given thought as to whether being able to enter your own name would change the experience any, and I'm going to give it a big "slightly". Seeing my own name might have made a minor extra impact in especially feelsy scenes, but after a while I just got used to seeing Hisao's name and it became normal for me.
I think seeing my own name in the story could get kinda creepy, especially in the bad ends.
SpunkySix wrote:
Bringing up the legitimately interesting question though, I've given thought as to whether being able to enter your own name would change the experience any, and I'm going to give it a big "slightly". Seeing my own name might have made a minor extra impact in especially feelsy scenes, but after a while I just got used to seeing Hisao's name and it became normal for me.
I think seeing my own name in the story could get kinda creepy, especially in the bad ends.
I couldn't handle seeing my name in the bad ends or even seeing the bad ends in general right now, (I may later) but that's why I did everything I could not to get the bad ends. They aren't supposed to be fun.
"Spunky at his Spunkyest/Spunkiest" "Tissues to the extreme!"
I love the interpretation of Pac-Man where he's a just a lowly worker retrieving golf balls left all over the course by the rich masters and the ghosts are all previous workers who got conked on the head and killed by incoming golf balls in the line of duty.
I think prompting for a name in a visual novel is inherently problematic, because naming a character is, in a way, owning the character. There's a certain contract formed in which the developer promises a certain amount of agency to the player, but this is something that a visual novel just cannot deliver. It's a limitation of the format, visual novels are very linear for the most part, and choices only serve to deliver slightly different versions of the same story (at least, per path/route). In effect, the actual change is pretty much cosmetic, when something much more was promised.
Kyler Thatch wrote:naming a character is, in a way, owning the character
This is a valid point, but that depends on the level of immersion a person can handle. I can easily associate myself with almost anything, when I get really hooked on with the story. If a person is not immersed, naming the main protagonist won't help. So, it appears like it's more of a cherry on top.
TyronePotato wrote:Happy cry:
MY AVATAR MOMENT OMG
Sad cry:
Hanako Bad ending.
I cryed blood tears
Can second that, Hanako's good ending made me cry like a little girl. I still love it to pieces. Emi's good ending was emotional but not enough to make me cry if I remember correctly.
LemonPirate wrote:Hanako's good ending made me cry like a little girl.
In what unique way does a little girl cry?
I love the interpretation of Pac-Man where he's a just a lowly worker retrieving golf balls left all over the course by the rich masters and the ghosts are all previous workers who got conked on the head and killed by incoming golf balls in the line of duty.
