Operation Backlog Completion 2025
Jul 032023
 

We were hoping for exciting news from Anime Expo, and a few announcements certainly stand out to me as a visual novel fan.

While there was no live stream of Idea Factory’s panel, fortunately Twitter was working again so I could wait for tweets about the news, since they’d teased at least one otome announcement.

They turned out to have not one, but two otome localizations to announce. The first one announced was Sympathy Kiss, an office romance about a woman who starts working for a mobile app developer. Sympathy Kiss has gotten some criticism from fans because the protagonist has an eyeless design presumably intended to make self-insertion easier. She also has no written dialogue, only dialogue indicated through the narration.

Despite this, fans who have played it in Japanese says she does have her own personality instead of being a complete self-insert. It sounds interesting enough that I’ll probably try it.

Sympathy Kiss will be out in early 2024.

Idea Factory’s other announced otome title will be out even earlier, with a winter release window, and that is My Next Life As a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! – Pirates of the Disturbance.

This extremely long title is because it is based on the anime My Next Life As a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, which I know little about except that it’s a reincarnation isekai “otome” anime that has little to do with actual otome tropes, so it’s ironic that an actual otome was developed based on it.

I’ve seen people say the game is a good comedy, so I’ll be keeping an eye on it (and looking up whether or not I should have greater knowledge of the anime before playing it).

As I mentioned, it’s set for winter 2023, so the second half of this year is even more stacked than it was before. Idea Factory has Limited Edition pages up for both titles, so it seems both Sympathy Kiss and My Next Life As a Villainess will receive Limited Editions.

Meanwhile, let’s swing our attention away from Idea Factory and toward Type-Moon, as it was announced that Tsukihime: A Piece of Blue Glass Moon will be released in the west for PS4 and Switch in 2024.

The original Tsukihime came out in 2000, and this is the first half of a two-part remake. (That’s right, Final Fantasy VII isn’t the only game getting a multi-part remake.) Apparently it was rewritten for the remake, with new characters and additional content that brings it to 45+ hours despite being only the first half.

After Witch on the Holy Night received an official translation (which I quite enjoyed) last year, I wondered if more Type-Moon visual novels would follow… and it seems the answer is yes! Who knows, one of these days we could be discussing an official Fate/Stay Night localization.

There might be more exciting news yet to come, but as a visual novel fan, these three announcements already have my attention. Are you interested in any of the three?

Dec 302022
 

Today we’re going to talk about Witch on the Holy Night, the first Type-Moon visual novel to ever get an official English translation.

It follows two mages living in a mansion on top of a hill, and a boy who gets mixed up with them while struggling to adjust to life in the city.

The story premise sounded interesting enough for me to want to try it, especially since I wanted to show my support. I ordered a physical copy from Play-Asia, because I thought it was too niche to get a physical release in North America.

I was wrong about that, and the North American physical copy will be out on January 27.

But for those playing digital copies from the eShop or an import like mine, Witch on the Holy Night is already out. I decided to play it now, making it possibly my last game of 2022, and I’m glad I did.

Witch on the Holy Night is an interesting visual novel. It has its share of funny slice-of-life scenes, but also some intense dramatic parts and exciting fight scenes. After just a few hours, I was invested in the characters and wanted to know how things would turn out. I almost regret trying the demo first, because the demo’s presentation of several out-of-context scenes meant I had an idea of where certain aspects of the story would go, even if I didn’t know how they’d get there.

I know there’s a connection to other Type-Moon works, but I haven’t played them, so all of these characters were new to me. I also found the world fascinating, mainly the magic system it presents through both action and explanations.

Aside from the compelling story and characters, I also have to praise the presentation. I’ve never played a visual novel with such high production values before. It has constant CGs, unique backgrounds, and animations – it’s incredible!

(I also love the chapter select screen, which is presented as a bookshelf, with more books added as you complete chapters.)

Now, it’s a kinetic novel, which means there aren’t any choices to make. You start at the beginning and read all the way through to the end. There are some optional chapters unlocked along the way, which provide more of a look at the characters and their lives through non-crucial scenes.

The one exception is the bonus chapter unlocked after you finish the main story. This final extra chapter is a standalone story that does have choices, as you try to solve a murder mystery. That was a bit of unexpected fun on top of an already-great visual novel.

Witch on the Holy Night was originally released in Japan in 2012, and apparently the writer intended to make two sequels. Those haven’t come out yet, but with the remake bringing new attention and new audiences to it, there might be new hope. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Witch on the Holy Night, so I have my fingers crossed that we’ll see those sequels eventually.

Apr 132022
 

Witch on the Holy Night is a visual novel that first came out in Japan in 2012, with no official translation ever released.

Now it’s receiving an HD, fully-voiced re-release for the Switch and PS4, due out later this year.

That was all already known, but this week brought the unexpected announcement that it will also have Japanese, English, and Chinese language options available.

Witch on the Holy Night is a visual novel from Type-Moon, the same company that developed Tsukihime and Fate/stay night.

While Tsukihime and Fate spin-offs in other genres have been localized with some frequency, no actual Type-Moon visual novel has been translated before, to the point where some fans claimed the writer was actively opposed to having his work translated.

Apparently that’s not the case, at least not now.

There’s no word yet if Witch on the Holy Night will be actually released outside of Japan, but since both platforms are region-free, it will certainly be playable in English. Here’s hoping an official release will be announced, for convenience and ease of access.

I don’t know a lot about Witch on the Holy Night, but the plot has something to do with magic and witches, and it sounds interesting enough for me to both be intrigued and want to support such an unexpected translation.

First Broccoli and now Type-Moon, in addition to all of the other “never ever” translations that have materialized lately. Who will be next?? (I’m still hoping RGG is the next one to join this list with translations of Kenzan and Ishin.)

Meanwhile, my site was recently included on a list of the Top 25 Visual Novel Blogs and Websites, so that’s pretty cool. I’ll keep on spreading the good word of visual novels.

What do you think about the surprise English translation news for Witch on the Holy Night?