Katawa Shoujo Act 1 Preview feedback thread

[Mr. Shine]

Ok, I know this is a double-post but editing is for pansies. ;P

This is a dialogue-related thing- in the scene where Hisao first meets Rin, he references the talk he has with Muto right before that scene...even if you had lunch with Shizune and Misha, meaning that you didn't have that talk with him in the prior scene. (having been sent after art supplies by the Dynamic Duo instead) Just a little continuity boo-boo.


EDIT, like a not-pansy: There's a couple of frames on Shizune's route, in the scene at the festival where they're throwing the balls to knock down the stuff, where Shizune's image is a little blurry. It's just enough to be noticeable, especially since Misha's sprite right next to her is fine.

[Skribbz]

Just some general feedback, my first thought of this game was like "Wtf, man, wtf"
Hentai also isn't really my thing, but when I saw that the demo had no H scenes I just thought "This will be a good laugh"

After playing through it, it seems like a really solid game, and as nerdy as I feel typing it, it almost makes you feel a connection with the characters. Especially Hanako for me, considering that im also an antisocial weirdo that generally avoids people (Obviously she's my favorite, also got her ending on first try :V)

So far a really well made game, and I'm now eagerly awaiting the full version. Isn't it weird how things turn out?

(P.S. New to the forum :])

[TheFreshmaker]

Wish I could have given feedback ages ago, but I only found out about KS a few weeks ago.
Shizune- I loved Shizune's path. Although it was initially hard to pick out where which dialogue was who's, as I paid more attention I really started to like her personality. I feel it was portrayed really well through Misha. Actually it seems like her path was given more attention than the others, especially in the end. That being said I really liked the more romantic ending it has.

Lilly- Aside from the scene where you meet Akira, its hard to feel that she's actually interested in you at all or vise-versa. The initial comment of her beauty when you first see her and being "curious" about her are all I have to go on about Hisao's feelings; In the meantime he calls Shizune cute many times and obviously starts to fall for her by the end, comments on Hanako's cute smile along the way(you even get a choice about how he feels), has a weak spot for Emi being adorable which is brought up almost every scene she's in, or finds Rin's unpredictability intriguing along with the whole "date" end scene. I adore Lilly and how she's represented, but the ending feels like you're going to be just friends. Then again, I don't know anything about the later acts so maybe I'll be surprised.

Hanako- Personal favorite. At first it felt like there wasn't going to be much flavor to the character but I was pleasantly surprised as I progressed in the path. I love the addition of the "tile game" as its something I can personally relate to. The ending is certainly cute without being necessarily romantic, which works well with her. Its hard to imagine Hanako flinging herself at someone, not that I'd mind, but seeing her finally open up to you left me feeling satisfied.

Emi- Also a little hard to see her caring about the main character as more than just a friend. Sure, she's looking out for your health and all, I'd do that for any friend of mine. Again, I don't know where to other acts are going, so I'll wait and see.

Rin- I absolutely love Rin's character and path all the way through. The ending is a bit romantic without really giving away how she actually feels, as if it wasn't hard enough to tell what she's actually thinking at any given time. She's a really intriguing character and I almost wish she intertwined with all the other paths even more.

The artwork is absolutely gorgeous and the supporting cast is really strong, especially Kenji. Muto's face is a little funky. It seems almost like he was drawn in a different style or by a different hand than the rest, but that didn't stop him from growing on me all the same. The music is beautiful, though a little more variety would be nice.
I've shown KS to a few friends of mine with a collective "Sweet!" from all of them.
All in all, I've played through a few things like this before, but this one act alone easily outclasses everything else in the genre.

[madmuffin]

It's been many months since the first time I 100% cleared KS, so I picked up again recently to give it a more thorough play through and examination, but this time around I started to notice all sorts of things I missed the first time through, especially having given the game long enough to drift into my memory so that I'd forgotten most of the details save for the overall plot progression.

I played the girls in mostly reverse order then I did the first time, and I started to notice little things like the music I'd tuned out the first time through or differences in the writing styles and progressions. For example, the word 'Cute' is used in Shizune's route excessively, easily more often then the other routes combined, along with it felt like it was longer then the other ones, but that might have just been because of Misha. One thing it does for sure it progresses much faster then the others, with Hisao having already joined Student Council and considering love, compared to the endings of the other routes where he has only just chosen to join a certain girl's path, be it going to track, going to art club, or going to the tea room. In retrospect Shizune's route felt the most author-insertish of the routes at the rate the character's relationships progressed and the way Hisao think about them. Unlike the other routes I felt more like I was listening to what the writer thought of her, rather then what Hisao would have felt and thought at the time, when compared against the way he behaves in the other routes. Maybe that's just me though, since my favorite route/girl is Rin, so hearing him think Shizune was cute clashes.

I played more attention to the music this time through, I particularly enjoyed the Student Council theme, not to say that they weren't all well crafted. It was definitely worth my time to pick up and read through again and it just further fuels my desire to check on the devlogs and look up the shimmie in anticipation of the final game to be released. Keep to the good work!

[UNIT0918]

I swear, this is the greatest visual novel I've ever played. Heck, perhaps even better than Narcissu. Astronomically better than any commercial visual novel I've played. No other visual novel has motivated me to play through the multiple scenarios without skipping the scenes I've already played. Just about every scene is that good. I skip all the time in the other visual novels I've played because I already grow tired of them once I've seen them.

This is also the most technologically advanced visual novel I've ever played as well. Most commercial visual novels I've played don't even use these special effects. Character "movement" really helps bring the characters to life. The special effects are great. Only problem is when the big scenes come on like the fireworks scene at the end of Shizune's Act 1 ending. Lots of skipping, but that's probably because my laptop sucks.

The features of this game are awesome as well. I love the feature put in the clickwheel. Instead of bringing up a history like most visual novels do, it actually rewinds the scene with music, special effects and all! Perfect for reviewing a nice scene I just witnessed. I did that a couple times during Shizune's ending to soak in the heartwarming scene.

My favorites include Hanako and Shizune/Misha. For some reason, I love characters that are extremely shy, such as Hinata from Naruto (I don't watch Naruto, but Hinata would be the reason why I would watch it), or Nodoka from Negima. And although I though Shizune was a little too harsh on Lilly and Hanako, I found her quite attractive with her playful, challenge loving, and occasional girlish personality. She's also the cutest when she smiles. ^^ I would've loved to see a Misha route, but seeing that you guys aren't, then there's no use complaining. I would've loved to see a Yuuko route too (she's sooo adorable! x3), but that's asking for too much.

One thing I would like to point out is that I think the CGs for the scene with Hisao, Lilly, and Hanako together in the tea room are missing in the Gallery.

A little input on H-scenes. While I think H-scenes totally ruin the story and the feelings I start having for the characters, if the scenes in this visual novel can be tastefully done while making sense for the story, then I'll be fine. In commercial visual novels such as Snow Sakura, my feelings for the characters get crushed simply because of how casually the girls want sex. :/

But if this visual novel has to have H-scenes, then I'd want them to be good. A turn off for me during H-scenes, as well as hentai and pr0n in general is how fake they are. So what I'm trying to say is, if you guys have to have H-scenes in this visual novel, then I'd want them shown in a realistic way like how real people might have sex.

Now that I think about it...is it safe to say Hisao will actually be "participating" in the H-scenes? I know there's quite a few eroge games where, while doing the deed, the main character is either completely invisible, transparent, his upper body is out of frame or his hair is covering his face in a way even Hanako would frown upon. In the Act 1 demo, the few times that the protagonist WAS actually shown, he wasn't displayed in a different way than the other characters on the screen were. I presume the H-scenes will follow this trend?

Agreed. An invisible, transparent, or out of frame main character during an H-scene seems like a turn off if you ask me.

EDIT: Read a forum post from Suriko in a different thread saying that the developers thought long and hard about the H-scenes, and making sure we won't facepalm while seeing them. I'm relieved to hear that.

[Insert-Name-Here]

During the summer break a friend of mine suddenly came up with Katawa Shoujo as a form of joke. After I had a laugh I decided to seriously check it out... And I couldn't beleive what I was experiencing.

I always thought of H-games as something pathetic, an illusion of a world where women are horny 24/7. So with these thoughts I entered the game, and I was surprised. I never thought a H-game would exist with a story that actually reflects reality (in an extreme way )! I was completely sucked into the story of a young guy named Hisao, who had the worst stroke of "bad" luck imaginable. It was as if I was reading a good romance novel, and the endings made me hunger for more (except the Kenji ending, that one tore me apart . Sadistic prick.).

Anyhow, I was completely blown away by this fantastic game, and I do hope you guys will keep up this quality. I am completely impressed by the artwork, the music (especially the student council theme, which was my reason to befriend Shizune), everything.

Here's to hoping for an outstanding final product, I can't wait to play the full game .

[Guest]

This probably isn't the sort of feedback you're looking for, but I felt like sharing it nevertheless on the off chance that I might be wrong.

There are points in the game where the punchline to an earlier set-up leaves something to be desired. 99% of the time the payoff is really good ― "Lilly never sees how fast palm meets face" had me laughing out loud ― but then there's the occasional groaner like "I didn't know joining the Student Council was a heroic deed worthy of Hercules." I don't know if that was supposed to showcase the limit of Hisao's wit, but almost anything else, like "Yeah? Do I get a statue?" or "I want to ask them to share some of the ballads honoring their predecessors with me, but I'm afraid of where that might lead", would have been better. Similarly, when Emi mentions that she was paired with Rin because they "complement" each other, I was disappointed not to see Hisao immediately draw a parallel between himself and Kenji and be promptly freaked out.

So yes this is just a fan wanking because he didn't get what he wanted, but idk maybe it helps you with perspective or something!

[EternalLurker]

...Hisao...Kenji...? I'm missing something here.

(And I wouldn't remember that Student Council one since I've only ever played Shizune's path once.)

[Captain Niggawatts]

Similarly, when Emi mentions that she was paired with Rin because they "complement" each other, I was disappointed not to see Hisao immediately draw a parallel between himself and Kenji and be promptly freaked out.

So yes this is just a fan wanking because he didn't get what he wanted, but idk maybe it helps you with perspective or something!

He wasn't paired with Kenji, he just lives near him. I don't even think he lives immediately next to him, even.

[Guest]

That much is true, but I figured that after learning of Emi and Rin's circumstances, Hisao would briefly entertain the possibility that being the first guy to be lodged along the same hallway as the paranoid misogynist meant that somebody upstairs thought they would make a good match.

Please don't tell me I'm the only one who's thought of this?

[EternalLurker]

They're just the only male students in the entire school aside from Lelouch and co, of course. The male dorm is just one hallway long. Explains everything.

[Bara]

That much is true, but I figured that after learning of Emi and Rin's circumstances, Hisao would briefly entertain the possibility that being the first guy to be lodged along the same hallway as the paranoid misogynist meant that somebody upstairs thought they would make a good match.

Please don't tell me I'm the only one who's thought of this?

Since Kenji and Hisao seem to be the only two in that part of the guys dorm I thought it was simply school policy to segregate the studs from the geldings. All the screaming and moaning of the girls getting laid would disturb the others, ya know.

[Lt. Rand0m]

It kind of sucks that Kenji's ending involves you falling to your death, but... it's actually a bit fitting, in its own weird way... I loved Shizune's ending though, it was quite sweet, and she's not that bad... and before I get any pervy quotes, I mean her personality. She may seem a bit bitchy at times, but all in all she's a pretty good person.

[Ambi07]

I just noticed I got the 20000th view for this thread.

Other than that, carry on.

[Suriko]

I remember when this thread was about Act 1.

Man those were really great times.

Mod note: Off-topic comments have now been removed.