This game has put me in a difficult position.
On the one hand, for fans of this type of thing, it would be perfect for them. On the other hand, I disagree with it’s very existence.
Let’s take a look at what it actually is. It’s a pure visual novel – there are no decisions to be made, absolutely no gameplay, no replayability. It’s essentially a story that has voice acting and some animated pictures to go with it.
If you’re into that type of thing, good for you. Personally I’m not. It’s a bit of a halfway house – I either want to read a book, or watch something fully animated. In between just doesn’t cut it. Reading a book slowly, one sentence at a time whilst hitting enter wears thin short. On top of that, the story is not good. It’s a very clichéd anime style tale of a new guy in town, being hit on by lots of girls who find him strangely mysterious, all the while pursuing some sort of quest (in this case, involving a witch), whilst living out their daily lives as students. Of course, there are romantic overtones with some sexual suggestions, but it comes with the territory.
It’s a boring setup, and if you are an anime fan, you’ll of seen it countless times before. I myself am an anime fan, and I find that good anime consists of one of two categories. Either it has an excellent, well thought out story, or it keeps the story simple and has great action or animation. This title has neither a good story nor good animation, beyond the 3 minute opening.
So, why do I question it’s existence? I simply don’t understand why it’s on Steam. What counts as a game? Steam could easily become saturated by these types of titles that are being translated from their Japanese originals, and I don’t think its a good thing. There are alternative sources to get these type of experiences, and I think it should remain that way. Following on from that, I also don’t think films should be on Steam, but I’ll give my opinions on that subject another day.
There is about ten hours of reading time in this novel, and the music and voice acting is generally pleasant enough not to wear on you. Personally, I find the story boring and the entire genre rather pointless, but to someone who knows what they want, a simple storied long visual novel with an anime style, they could probably do worse.
You can purchase Supipara on Steam here.
