Operation Backlog Completion 2026

Valentine Video Games Festival: Seabed

 Celebrating All Things Romantic, Reviews, Video Games  2 Responses »  Tagged with: ,
Feb 162022
 

I’ll say this up-front: I would not describe SeaBed as a romance.

But by the time I realized that, it was too late to play something else in time for today’s review, and it is a game about love.

SeaBed is described as a yuri mystery visual novel.

It switches between different time periods, showing scenes of Sachiko and her girlfriend Takako on a romantic vacation, their past together as childhood friends, and working with colleagues after starting their own business.

However, it soon reveals that in the present day, Takako has gone missing. At this point, I thought I understood why it was described as a mystery.

I was wrong.

The prologue (which is lengthy, by far the longest chapter) follows that up with another twist, and then another one, leading into one of the most confusing visual novels I’ve ever read.

SeaBed is not an easy visual novel to read. It leaves you wondering exactly what is going on, and even once you start to form an idea, a new detail will arise to make you question it all over again. Part of this is because it’s told through three primary viewpoints. At certain points, you’ll also unlock “Tips,” short scenes worth reading as soon as you unlock them to add to your confusion fuel further theories.

Despite this sense of mystery, most of its scenes are slice-of-life. Casual conversations, simple interactions, pleasant day-to-day scenes with a slight undercurrent that something might be wrong. It has a glacial pace, so keep that in mind if slow slice-of-life isn’t your thing.

Sachiko and Takako’s relationship is a key part of the story. At its core, I’d say SeaBed is a story about love, and about how it feels to be separated from someone you love. There are hints of romance at other points in the story, as well.

Honestly, I still don’t quite understand the story even after finishing it. Instead of bringing everything together so that it all makes sense, it’s more ambiguous, with room for interpretation despite the biggest points fitting together.

Click for SeaBed spoiler
I’ve come to the general conclusion that Takako is really dead and the alternate reality where she lives at the sanatorium is the imagined world created in Sachiko’s heart, but it’s not easy to explain away everything as Sachiko’s own mind working to heal herself. Some parts feel as though they must have been paranormal in nature to at least some degree, yet at the same time, it feels like it doesn’t want you to think that.

SeaBed is a game about love, although it’s not quite a romance. Was it a good fit for a Valentine’s Day celebration? I don’t know. Either way, if you like slow-burn visual novels where the genre can most accurately be described as “confusion,” you might find SeaBed to be an intriguing mystery.

Valentine Video Games Festival: Nekopara Vol. 3

 Celebrating All Things Romantic, Reviews, Video Games  No Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Feb 142022
 

We’ve come this far, so why not keep going? For our Valentine’s Day review, I continued on and played Nekopara Vol. 3.

Just like how the previous main volumes each picked two catgirls to highlight, Volume 3 focuses on Maple and Cinnamon.

Maple has a secret dream she has convinced herself can never come true, while Cinnamon wants to support her in any way she can. It’s up to the protagonist to help them through these conflicts… and of course become romantically involved with them along the way.

(The story acknowledges the silliness of this ever-growing harem and his insistence on prying into people’s business.)

Like in Vol. 2, you might be surprised at the emphasis on the story here, simple though it might be. It has a good message about following your dreams and even digs into the protagonist’s own backstory and motivations a bit. I’d be tempted to call it wholesome, except, well, Nekopara has a reputation for fanservice for a reason.

It has its share of ecchi content as usual, and even the all-ages version makes it very clear when the H-scenes occur in the 18+ version, with the characters even discussing them afterwards.

Aside from that, it tells a nice story with a number of sweet and funny moments (even Shigure had some funny lines, or maybe I’m just getting used to her).

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Nekopara has a very specific audience in mind, but if you aren’t in it for the fanservice, what you end up with is a lighthearted, fluffy romance story. The romance in this one didn’t feel as central, but it made up for that with a bit more following the characters and their new relationship after the main conflicts were resolved.

If you enjoyed the previous Nekopara games, you’ll most likely enjoyed Nekopara Vol. 3 as well, for a new romance story with your group of catgirls. What better to talk about for Valentine’s Day?

(And don’t forget, the whole Nekopara series is among the prizes you could win in this year’s contest!)

Valentine Video Games Festival: Blind Men

 Celebrating All Things Romantic, Reviews, Video Games  2 Responses »  Tagged with: ,
Feb 112022
 

Our next game to discuss is a boys’ love visual novel called Blind Men, written as a parody of spy fiction.

The main character is Keegan, a young would-be super villain who hopes to be accepted into the League of Evil by proving himself with a daring scheme.

However, when it’s time to pull of his evil plan, two enemy spies end up getting in his way.

While Blind Men is a fairly short visual novel and should only take a few hours to get all the endings, choices have a fair impact on the story’s direction. You get to choose one of two possible evil plans, either kidnapping a professor or stealing a diamond, in addition to which of the two spies you end up entangled with.

Each love interest then has a few different outcomes to his route based on your choices, along with the situation being completely different depending on which plan you picked. Some of the choice consequences felt a little obscure, but that’s not too bad when it’s so short to start with.

Blind Men is pretty funny. The whole premise of playing an aspiring super villain (who tries so hard to act villainous and not be flustered by his love interests) together with the spy fiction tropes it parodies results in enough humorous moments that it made me laugh several times.

The romance feels a little lacking, unfortunately. There’s definitely flirting, you can see some chemistry building if you make the right choices, and you might be lucky enough to get an ending with implications of romance, but it comes just short of feeling truly romantic. That might be due to the short length. If the characters crossed paths more times before the ending, the romances might feel more fully-realized.

With that said, it’s still fun. Blind Men might not do the best with its romances, but it’s an entertaining spy parody with several endings to keep you trying different paths.

(On a completely different note, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 exists! I’m so excited! It looks fantastic! Also Front Mission and Radical Dreamers and Live A Live; that was a crazy Direct!)

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