Katawa Shoujo Forums

I think a number of us have invested a lot of emotion and desire over the past 5 years into this game. I confess coming aboard sometime in 2009 when I heard about the game (I made a joke to some associates that this was probably going to be a tasteless story and Rin would give foot jobs. How glad I was to be wrong.) and deciding it would be worth a bit of a wait.

I played through everyones route and found the introductions (I d/l'd act 1 when it came out) to be quaint to say the least. I didn't care much for Bacon-tans route at first. I still don't too terribly. Especially when Bacon was better off in ANOTHER ROUTE than her own. (I use Bacon endearingly of course, I do't hate her like I do little miss lemons. But I didn't go fanboyish on her either).

If anything, Shizunes route was to the point and when played through at the time reminded me of myself in a certain way. Calculating, down to earth, sees the needs of the many, yet tends to be playful as well.

However, the emotional attachment, if you can call a sense of kinsmanship that, came only after playing Shiz's route really. Yes, it wasn't as much a heartstrings pulling route as Lillies and it wasn't a mindfuck like Rins, but it was to the point. It had JUST enough of a twist that I couldn't help but to smile at it.

When I say kinship, I am of course referring to the fact that the hearing is going for me. At 26, that's kind of worrying. I know why of course, exposure to loud noises and blasting my head with static and loud tones in order to do my job (RF Engineering). Perhaps in a few years I will be deaf, at the rate that it's going (Right now, mostly tinnitus and the inability to hear single conversations in loud environments or when people aren't looking directly at me, that kind of thing, best explanation beyond the feeling like someones got pillows over my ears) that's entirely probable. I look at Shizune as kind of that model, not an ideal figure really, but she didn't let herself get down about it. She doesn't define it as part of her life. Why should I?

When I came to that understanding, my mind was a bit blown. It was a slight shift in the self I hadn't felt since Kana Imouto (Live life without regrets and enjoy each moment, live in the present, so to speak) nor since I graduated basic training (Overcoming intense obstacles, growing a little as a person) nor since I was promoted to Sergeant (Embodying leadership, being willing to put others first and sacrificing of the self for the greater good and needs of others). Hers was a sort of shift to being able to live vicariously through others enjoyment, and being able to be strong willed to the point that no matter the obstacle, the self will inevitably overcome it.

That, I think, is the extent of my emotional feelings. Granted, I played the game through and through, mostly because I like completing what I started, but I've only replayed shizunes route. Her route made me accept the possibly inevitable, and learn a little about the culture I'll end up being a part of. Like it or not.

Her route made me order some books that were a departure from my usual skeptical and critical thinking based, geology based, and theoretical based (I find SETI and Einstein Rosenburg bridges, AKA wormholes, the most likely means of achieving long distance travel and find myself fascinated by the plausibility of their existence despite no direct evidence of them...yet) books. Yes, that's right, I ordered a book or two about Deaf culture. To say the least, the less dry modern day Deaf culture books are the more enjoyable ones. The history of how Sign language came to be accepted is a bit on the dry side, but helped me to understand Shizunes Dad a little better.

I wanted to get that out of the system. Right about now, I just enjoy reading the posts on the forums and unfortunately, I forgot my account information for my old name, You know... everything. But wanted to share my thoughts for the first time in...well 3 years.

Emotional attachment?


That's fair.

I never even heard of this game until a few days after its January release, having discovered it on a complete fluke. And I can safely say that I have experienced precious few works of art (i.e. I can't count them on the fingers of one hand) that have delivered the level of emotional impact that KS has had on me. I also confess that during the course of my first playthrough, I did in fact "fall in love with" the character of Lilly, to the extent that it's possible to fall in love with a fictional character. Funny story - if it weren't for this game, I wouldn't know the definition of the phrase "mai waifu" (since discovering this game I've actually watched the entirety of Azumanga Daioh, so that's cool, too).

In any case, as problematic as that level of emotional attachment was and is, I've found that simply playing through the other paths can help remedy it. Although that first playthrough and its impact on me are two things I'll never forget, and I think that stands testament to the sheer quality of KS. It's definitely one for the ages.

Hello all. First of all, I must admit that I haven't read all the posts from this thread, but I promise I will when I get a chance. It's just that I wanted to get this load off of me before I continue reading.
I don't know if I should mention this or if it's important, but I'll mention it anyway. I think I'm a bit shy with girls, and I've never really had a girlfriend in my life. I do get along very well with them, but I think it's hard to take that final step with them where you find yourself in a relationship. That's probably why I feel a bit identified with this game.
I started playing KS a couple of weeks ago when I came upon a link on Youtube with part of the story. I decided to see what it was all about. I started playing act 1, thinking that I had made some good choices, but I ended up falling from the roof after having some drinks with Kenji. It kinda sucked, but it gave me the picture of what this game was all about, and it left me wanting to know more about Emi and Lilly... and probably Shizune.
So, after a little investigation, I found out the correct path to Emi's storyline. I think I've fallen in love with that character, it's made me want to have someone like her in my life. I honestly wouldn't mind marrying a girl without legs, if we both had the same interests and got along so well. I honestly can't believe that I've fallen in love with a fictional character and now I'm doubting if I should check the other stories out.
So, any comments and advice are welcome.

Thanks, E.

Hi all.

I also haven't read all the posts in this thread, so I'm just gonna put my thoughts.

I've never played any VNs before, I can't even remember how I ended up downloading the game, I think I was just randomly browsing and I saw the name, remembered reading an article about the game a while back and then found that it wasn't long since it came out, so I gave it a try.

First time through I wasn't aiming for any particular girl and ended up falling into the Emi story, which I really enjoyed.
The girl that interested me the most as a character was Hanako, so I did her next, hers was probably my favourite route, and I think I'll replay hers once I finish all the others.
Then I did Rin, which actually felt a little fucked up and a lot of hard work like some relationships of mine have been; I mean this as a compliment in that it captures what some relationships are like.
Last night, well I was intending to do the "Misha route", assuming it would be a branch of the Shizune one, but I read up and found she has no specific route, which I was a little disappointed in, as I don't really like Shizune and despite how annoying Misha got sometimes I do like her (not gonna put any spoilers). Anyway, this route seemed to drag a little, and the characters didn't seem to develop as well as in the others. Some aspects of it still confuse me now, and I didn't really understand why things happen or didn't happen, or reactions to things, and so forth. From the little I've read it seems like a few people have some issues with this route; I can see why as I think its the weakest one but I also didn't like Shizune much so I don't mind too much. That said, I think what you eventually find out about Shizune and Misha's relationship was really good, I actually didn't expect it and was one of my favourite things about this route. Shame it isn't revealed until relatively late in.
I've yet to do the Lilly route, but I also quite like her so I'm looking forward to that one.

So as I said, I've never played a VN before, but I thoroughly enjoyed this a lot and will continue to do so for a while yet. I may even attempt to 100% it. Its certainly thought-provoking, and very powerful emotionally. I think Emi's problems felt the most powerful and affecting, maybe because they didn't seem to obviously affect her life in the way Hinako's did. But I came close to tears on several occasions, which I seem to do more and more these days.

I'm going through a tough time of things at the moment, involving a long term problem with depression which comes and goes every few years. At times this game has made me so incredibly upset that I wasn't able to leave my bed and face the world, yet at other times it gives me a bit of hope. I guess that speaks for how emotionally powerful this game can be. The music is a big part of things as well; just thinking of certain songs makes me a little upset.


Off-topic, but like I said I'm new to this whole VN thing. Can anyone recommend some other good ones (in English please, or with an English version somehow available) that are similar in tone and style to KS? If you can't do it here that's cool, direct me to somewhere more relevant or PM me if you would be so kind.

Recommend a VN thread here

Oh, and guys, help out the professor collecting data for his study! More details in his thread

encrypted12345 wrote:Recommend a VN thread here

Thanks!

So, I decided to give Shizune a try. I just finished her storyline today, both good and bad endings. I also started playing with Lilly, but decided to leave her to the last, since it seems everyone's recommendation in these forums. Playing Shizune's has helped me cool down from Emi's story, in a way because it kinda feels more authentic, like something that could happen in real life.
If you think you're falling for a girl and are afraid to play the rest, I would advice giving the others a try to lose that attachment and actually enjoy the game.

E.

http://shimmie.katawa-shoujo.com/post/v ... ch=bad_end

Reading the comments, it looks like these folks had too much of an emotional attachment to it.

Snow_Storm wrote:http://shimmie.katawa-shoujo.com/post/v ... ch=bad_end

Reading the comments, it looks like these folks had too much of an emotional attachment to it.

Haha, I had no idea the comments had gotten that out of hand.
I don't like the picture for many reasons, but I just don't look at it.