Operation Backlog Completion 2024

Higurashi When They Cry Chapter 3: The Mysteries Deepen

 Reviews, Video games  2 Responses »  Tagged with: ,
Jul 172023
 

Look at that, I actually continued Higurashi without letting another year pass me by again.

So far, each chapter of Higurashi has felt quite different. The first episode was a slow build-up to intense paranoia. The second episode played out like a mystery, with surprises waiting just when it seemed everything was resolved.

That brings us to Higurashi When They Cry – Ch. 3 Tatarigoroshi.

Like the previous episodes, the third entry begins with a slice-of-life section in which everything seems lighthearted and fun. This time, those fun days are cut short by sadness, with an unhappy section of the story that retains the slow pace but sees the main character falling into despair as he’s unable to do anything to help a suffering friend.

The tone felt much more somber than the previous two episodes, and then it took a darker turn in a much different way.

And from there, things start getting strange – adding even more mysteries on top of those from the first two episodes. As I played, I started to develop theories about what was actually going on, only for later developments to throw those theories into confusion again. The ending, especially, left me with more questions than ever.

That’s about all I can say without spoilers.

Click for Higurashi Chapter 3 spoilers
Right now my two major theories that I keep being torn between are “Keiichi is an unreliable narrator with false memories” and “there are parallel timelines and Keiichi jumps between them sometimes,” but neither of those has an explanation for the creepy footstep.

The story Keiichi’s friends tell about him being with them at the festival seem to overlap with what happened in one of the previous chapters, which is why I started to wonder if they could all be running parallel to one another. And the previous chapter, like this one, had people being alive when they were supposed to already be dead; it can’t be all just delusion.

It feels like each chapter carefully builds up to a plausible rational explanation for the curse, only to pull the rug out from under you with an inexplicable incident.

Then there are characters like Ooshi and Takano, who seem to be more sinister in each new episode.

This wasn’t my favorite chapter, because of how long it took for things to really start happening, but the questions raised once they did were worth it.

Higurashi When They Cry – Ch. 3 Tatarigoroshi was sad, disturbing, and confusing all at once, and I’m really curious to see how this will all be wrapped up. Maybe for this October, we’ll actually get through the whole series to see how it plays out!

Celebrating All Things Spooky: Higurashi When They Cry Chapter 2

 Celebrating All Things Spooky, Reviews, Video games  6 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Oct 282022
 

Last year, one of the games we looked at was the first chapter of Higurashi When They Cry.

I enjoyed it quite a bit and mentioned at the end that I might not wait long before starting the second chapter.

…Well, I got distracted by other games and didn’t get around to it.

But then, with the idea already floating around in my mind that I should play Chapter 2 this October, the Silent Hill news came out. The exciting surprise that Ryukishi07 is writing Silent Hill f spurred me into action, and I began Higurashi When They Cry – Ch. 2 Watanagashi.

This chapter doesn’t pick up where the previous chapter ended, but instead starts at an earlier point. Once again, it begins with a lengthy few hours of lighthearted slice-of-life antics. It felt to me like that section actually lasted longer here, but that might just be because my knowledge of the first chapter already had me on edge, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Sure enough, things in Chapter 2 eventually take a dark turn. Both chapters of Higurashi do an excellent job of building up a pleasant atmosphere and then twisting it with unsettling events. Both also involve the same core elements – murders and disappearances rumored to be part of a legendary curse. However, they take these aspects in a different direction.

While the first chapter built up a terrifying sense of paranoia, Chapter 2 almost feels more like a mystery, with piece after piece of the unsettling incidents coming to light.

It’s still very creepy, and the later parts had me invested in what would happen next. The more I think about it, the more interested I am to see what Ryukishi07 will do with Silent Hill. His writing has that blend of occult and psychological horror that Silent Hill did so well with.

Higurashi When They Cry – Ch. 2 Watanagashi is another interesting read, and I don’t think I’ll wait quite as long this time before starting the next chapter. In the meantime, don’t forget that you have up until Monday to join in the conversation and participate in this year’s Celebrating All Things Spooky contest!

Celebrating All Things Spooky: Higurashi When They Cry Chapter 1

 Celebrating All Things Spooky, Reviews, Video games  5 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Oct 252021
 

I’ve been meaning to try Higurashi When They Cry for a long time, ever since I picked up the first five chapters in a visual novel bundle ages ago.

It’s intimidating to get into since it’s so long in its entirety, but I decided the time had come to play at least the first chapter.

Higurashi When They Cry Hou – Ch.1 Onikakushi, which is currently free, starts with a boy who has recently moved to a small, rural town and is enjoying life there with his new friends.

In addition to this entry being the first chapter of the larger story, it is divided into chapters itself, which made it easy for me to keep saying I’d just read one more chapter.

The first part of the story is lighthearted and pleasant, and it lasts much longer than you might expect for a horror story. This is slow-burn horror for sure. There are a few hints that something darker might lurk beneath the surface, but then after a certain point in the story, everything changes.

As creepy things start to happen, it gets more and more unsettling, with a bit of that sense of paranoia I so enjoyed in Chaos;Head (although not to the same extreme).

The end left me questioning what really happened, and I can’t wait to see what will happen in the later chapters. Is something supernatural at work or not? What is this leading up to?

I understand the first few chapters stand somewhat on their own, although they build on one another. I hadn’t intended to play all of the chapters back-to-back, but with how intrigued the end of Higurashi When They Cry Chapter 1 left me, I might not wait too long after all.

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