A short waste of smile: Sugao no Hohoemi

(tags game, PlayStation Portable, video, UMD, gal-game)

I finished Sugao no Hohoemi. This UMD video is in a word, disappointing. For about 3500 yen, I expected more than 5 hours of content. Yes I bought the game for the visuals and drawing style, and yes it was good for that. But I expected an interesting story. And this one wasn't.

Those who are used to playing those visual novels are used to plots changing on a player's choice of action, but due to the limitations of UMD video, story branches reconverge at the same points. For example, there is a choice between drinking juice or eating ice cream, but the outcome is essentially the same. This also meant that as soon as I got to the last branching menu, I could replay from there and get all of the endings. There were no "flags" as far as I know.

First, some technical gripes: This all-region UMD disc contains 180 minutes of content. Since it is a UMD video, if you press X at any point, the UMD disc stops and you are dumped out the game. It doesn't resume! Next, it's not possible to fast-forward or rewind at all. Most visual novels I'm used let you skip. Finally, I wasn't able to pause or slow the dialogue. I still don't read and listen as fast I should.

But I was surprised there was a password-resume system. The game lets you input a 3 character password t to resume at one of the branching points. And once you clear all of the heroine's stories, you get a completed password which is a picture gallery.

Also the word display was not static, but much more improved than a typical visual novel/gal-game. The graphics enhancing the static display were pretty intense.

I suppose I'm just disappointed the stories ends on a sad note. "That's the good end?" I shook my head.

I think this is just a test release for Jin. There haven't been many DVD-PG like games for the UMD, and perhaps Jin is advertising its visual novel software to other game makers. Perhaps this will start another niche market?

SPOILERS

If you have a terminal condition, wouldn't you want to be a bit selfish and let out your feelings? I suppose not, though, which is one of the parts of this story that makes sense.

If your friend had a terminal condition and she told you to keep it a secret from the mutual guy friend/love interest, would you feel guilty for doing what she said? Okay, yeah. But don't tell me that kissing in the hospital right after the mutual friend died isn't tacky. Granted, its a kiss to keep the two together despite the fact that they haven't been honest to each other.

If a girl carries another girl like a lifeguard carrying a downed (not drowned) swimmer, would you call her an amazon? Heh. Well, that's one warning sign. The other warning signs are that she wears all black and that she doesn't say where she lives.

Maybe I'm just sad because the heroines that I was interested in didn't have a positive ending.

END SPOILERS

Pure Smile: Sugao no Hohoemi

(tags game, PlayStation Portable, video, UMD, gal-game)

I was disappointed because the Lumines is gone. So I got something else at one of the shops I visited: Sugao no Hohoemi (素顔の微笑み), a UMD video love-sim for the PSP.

Notice the rating: 15. It looks like an old CERO rating, but since this is a video, its an age rating. And why 15 and older? One word: porori (ぽろり), which I figured out means topless nudity.

(photo thanks: Senakablog)

Um. I swear I bought it because the drawing style was attractive. I didn't know about the nudity beforehand, really. Hahaa.

The only place that had a telephone card omake was Messe Sanoh, shown above. I missed out, then again, this was just a purchase on a whim.

According to the blog announcements by Senaka Blog and Akiba Blog, it had some store area. And it was sold out at Messe Sanoh only after two days, heh.

This is the entertainment that made me pause on the Harry Potter book. Well, it's 180 minutes of video, according to the cover, so I should be done by next weekend.

Also I still need to finish the Time Traveller's Wife. Actually, I paused reading the book because of HP, but I started reading it again today. I was actually cry-sniffing on the train, it is so moving.