Recent reviews by Nekochi

I've spent years looking for another game that will give me the "console Harvest Moon" feeling that I've been missing since Yasuhiro Wada left Marvelous in 2010. I think I just found it.

This is an excellent game. The writing is nuanced, the characters are likable, and there is a TON of content. I've played dozens of hours and still haven't seen it all yet.

HOWEVER, and this is a pretty big however, the gameplay itself is terrible. There are about a million stats, each of which you can earn up to 100 points in. For every 10 of those points, you gain 1 point for that particular stat that can be used when going up against challenges in capers. Unfortunately, even on easy mode, challenges will show up that require more than 10 points of a stat to pass. This is where inspirations come in. Inspirations give you an extra boost to certain stats to help you pass challenges.

This doesn't sound so bad in theory, but there are a few caveats to this: You have limited spots for holding inspirations, you have somewhat limited control of the exact inspirations you get, and there are often multiple challenges in a single caper. This is compounded by the extra factor of stress. You gain points of stress when you fail challenges and each point of stress is an additional point you need to in order to pass challenges. So, while you don't actually NEED to pass all of the challenges to continue capers, failing them makes it harder to pass the rest of the challenges and means you miss out on any stat increases you'd get for passing.

All this makes the gameplay frustrating rather than merely just challenging and makes the game as is almost impossible to play without having the Wiki (http://applesauce.wikia.com/wiki/Capers) open at all times while you are playing.

Fortunately, there is another solution. Ren'py games are pretty easy to mod, so I put together a mod that makes all inspirations give +90 general. The mod can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/dnuvvj74s7iiojo/inspirations.rpyc?dl=0 In order to use it, just download the file and paste it into the game folder in your Scheherazade directory. When it asks you if you want to replace the file, say yes. You will have to start a new game before the changes will have any effect. If you would like to go back to the vanilla game later, make sure you save a copy of the original file in another directory, or just repair the game using Steam.

This is a really amazing game that I think more people should play, so hopefully my mod will help other people who want to enjoy the story without having to spend the whole time feeling frustrated or with a guide open.

A fun film noir take on the Oz series that will have book fans clapping their hands in delight at each reference. If you are a fan of the L. Frank Baum novels, do not want to miss this game.

Original, humerous, and emotional, Aviary Attorney is so much more than Ace Attorney meets Hatoful Boyfriend meets Les Mis. The puzzles and intrigue are enough to satisfy those looking for a challenge, while the "no game over" system that continues the story after a loss with all the consequences that come along with that allows even a beginner—or someone looking for an especially heartbreaking playthrough—to enjoy the game.

Perhaps the most heartrendingly beautiful game I have ever played.

On the twelfth day of Holistar, Hatoful Moa gave to me…

Twelve shrine visits,
Eleven trials to face,
Ten stories to read,
Nine Christmas trees,
Eight fangirls a-fighting,
Seven dreams a-dreaming,
Six hours a-playing,
Five cracking eggs,
Four cooing birds,
Three-nine reference,
Two almost-doves,
And a murderpartridge in a pear tree!