Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

A forum for general discussion of the game: Open to all punters


Was KS your first real VN?

yes and I haven't gotten into other VNs
128
20%
Yes and I have read other VNs since then
193
30%
No I have read other VN before I discovered KS
319
50%
 
Total votes: 640

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Ingame
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Ingame »

This isn't my first. I've been reading VNs since about 2004. Started with free and sucky flash games on game sites, but eventually found downloadable VNs :P First one was True Love, which is a classic imo. At least in the English VN society ^^ I do keep a list of the English VNs I've read (74 as of today) and going to read. Also got a list of VNs I know are translated but would rather not read for various reasons :P

I do believe that, judging by the impressive first act, people who read KS would be inspired to read more VNs. :)
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Member22
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Member22 »

Ingame wrote:I do keep a list of the English VNs I've read (74 as of today) and going to read
Wow! I only read 12 so far :(
"If Hisao took one thing away from his time at Yamaku it was the fact that people who have handicaps don't actually have handicaps. People like Lilly and Shizune are more able-bodied and well-adjusted than most of the kids at Hisao's old high school. He shook his head slightly. No, students at Yamaku weren't handicapped; everyone else was." - WetCrate
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ContinualNaba
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by ContinualNaba »

I decided to blam away at KS as a first VN since a) It actually seemed story-based, b) I was curious as to how cripples would be portrayed, c) It was free, d) Because 'It's not a VN if 4chan does it, it's a parody', and I still had a stigma against VNs and the people who play them, and e) I'm a sucker for whatever TV Tropes recommends.

Since then, on recommendation, I've given Narcissu a shot, and plan to figure out Tsukihime a little later on.
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Guest »

Katawa Shoujo wasn't my first VN. I actually played Eroges before VNs, but my first VN was True Love (a classic).
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Squirg »

I've read a few before KS.
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Warwick
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Warwick »

Old, but I guess it's worth putting up again. My portfolio of VN's:


Played

Fate/Stay Night
Narcissu
Tsukihime
Princess Waltz
pXt
Katawa Shoujo Act 1
Saya no Uta


Incomplete, probably won't finish

Brass Restoration
Kana: Little Sister
Memo


Playing

None


On computer, will play sooner or later

Chaos;Head
Ever17
Yume Miru Kusuri
Narcissu 2
True Remembrance
Sekien no Inganock


Interested, will check out eventually

Crescendo


Waiting/Hoping for English Patch

Fortune Arterial
Haruka ni Aogi, Uruwashino
Yosuga no Sora
Komorebi ni Yureru Tama no Koe
G-Senjou no Maou
静音是买外夫
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Jojje »

I'd never really given a thought to visual novels previously, I knew of their existence but never tried them.
When I heard of the project I thought it seemed interesting but didn't give it too much thought after that.
But after a while though, I decided to check out Act 1, and I've been hooked since.
Still haven't played any other VNs but I might, later.
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by DESU »

Katawa Shoujo is my first VN. I knew they existed, just never got one, cause i was too lazy to go through the whole torrenting, then downloading an English patch thing, so I never got any, though I am interested in it.

also, someone was kind enough to upload fate/stay night for me to ddl in one complete package (though split up into 3 .rar's, because megaupload)
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by G3n0c1de »

My friend, a former 4channer, introduced me to KS. The concept seemed strange, but interesting enough for me look it over. I immediately was drawn to Shizune's tsurime, so I downloaded the demo back in May when it first came out. My first VN. Until KS I had never heard of the genre. I joined the forums, and got 100% completion.

Upon recommendations from a few threads on here, I played Narcissu, and YMK. I enjoyed both.
It's a good thing Shizune is deaf, she is the only one who can stand (not) hearing "Wahaha~!" over and over.
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by PharaohSauron »

KS is my first VN, but I had been interested in them before, mostly from the anime versions I had seen, and specifically Kanon and Fate/Stay Night. KS came to my attention when I was surfing FAKKU. When I read the posting, I thought, "...Okay...," I began to worry, because the only cripple porn I had seen was guro-type; it was usually on accident, and I needed to bleach my eyes afterward.

When I actually went to the homepage, I saw the characters and thought, "Oh, they actually look cute," read the synopsis, and downloaded the demo. The rest, as they say, is history.

I have yet to read any other VN because I keep forgetting to buy them, find more interesting things to buy that bump VNs off of my "list," or have to pay for more pressing matters. The only ones I'd currently be interested in reading would be Fate/Stay Night, Clannad, and Kanon, if it's been English patched.
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Scarlet Fox
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Scarlet Fox »

Not my first, my second. The story is a irl friend (on the forums as Extremist_Line) told me about this. I thought, "Uhhh... Yeah... No way."

I knew VNs existed before, but was never really interested. I thought I wouldn't like them because I like to be more involved and I usually don't like watching movies because I hate sitting there. He kept on pressuring me, sent me links of people who talked about it (sent me the Kotaku article because he knew I went to that site sometimes), but I was too lazy/just not interested. Out of extreme boredom, I went on another site and downloaded a random VN, thought the concept was actually pretty good, then downloaded KS. I remembered I hated Misha at first, but I think now she's my third favorite, after Hanako and Rin.
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Esa94
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Esa94 »

Scarlet Fox wrote:I hated Misha at first
What
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Smoku
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Smoku »

Esa94 wrote:
Scarlet Fox wrote:I hated Misha at first
What
Oi, Misha was the reason I delayed my first KS try.
I didn't like how she looked xD dunno why. First thing I saw about KS was a pic with Misha and Shizune. First I was like "WTF? no." at Misha, but Shizune on the other hand.. "but this one's nice. Ok, I'll try".
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Member22 »

Smoku wrote:Oi, Misha was the reason I delayed my first KS try.
Damn :shock: ... this is probably the most harmful statement to misha fans..I wonder what they have to say

But I have to admit... misha was a *bit* annoying on the first playthrough
"If Hisao took one thing away from his time at Yamaku it was the fact that people who have handicaps don't actually have handicaps. People like Lilly and Shizune are more able-bodied and well-adjusted than most of the kids at Hisao's old high school. He shook his head slightly. No, students at Yamaku weren't handicapped; everyone else was." - WetCrate
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Re: Is katawa Shoujo the gateway drug of visual novels?

Post by Xuan »

Lol, I remember a similar comment about Kirari Shiino from Kira Kira, they say her voice screeched so high they have to discard their earphones. And then they got used to it, and the story was just epic...

Nothing beats Fate Stay Night in terms of completeness I think, probably would shake first readers like an earthquake plus tornado.

Ever 17 makes you wanna cry.

Yume Miru Kusuri. Bullies, solitude, durgs. By all means READ IT.

Sekien no Inganock. Cool art style, and it draws you like a whirlpool.

Cross Channel. In a way, I can say it's bloodier than Saya no Uta mentally. You really need to prepare mentally to read this.

Finally, my last recommendation Baldr Sky, Baldr Sky 2. Sure it's not translated (It can take 10 years considering it's complex game system AND super long story) but AGTH/ATLAS translates them pretty clearly compared to other Japanese VN. 6 girls in total, 3 each for the two games. All are connected, and the 6th girl is of course true end. Very fun to play, a read rivaling Fate Stay Night mecha style.

... I think I strayed away a bit from the main topic, maybe not. 'Gateway Drug' indeed. >_>
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