Kanon is a Japanese visual novel developed by Key that follows the life of Yuichi Aizawa, a high school student who returns to a city he last visited seven years prior, and he has little recollection of the events from back then. He meets several girls and slowly regains his lost memories.
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mixed bag of routes but the milf makes up for it
Game Review - originally written by Spinner 8
Well, this is a “visual novel” published by key games in Japan in 1999, and republished several times on various platforms (officially and unofficially), including the Dreamcast (which contains voice acting and such).
As the genre implies, this is a novel. Think of a dating sim, but without any actual gameplay. The most interactivity you can have in the game is, say choosing whether you should apologize to a girl or not. Yep, but no one plays this for the amazing gameplay, it’s played for the story. And the cute chickys. And Kanon has both in spades. Yeeeah.
Well, this is a “visual novel” published by key games in Japan in 1999, and republished several times on various platforms (officially and unofficially), including the Dreamcast (which contains voice acting and such).
As the genre implies, this is a novel. Think of a dating sim, but without any actual gameplay. The most interactivity you can have in the game is, say choosing whether you should apologize to a girl or not. Yep, but no one plays this for the amazing gameplay, it’s played for the story. And the cute chickys. And Kanon has both in spades. Yeeeah.
Not my favourite Key Visual VN but still very good.
Kanon is a must-read for people who are visual novel readers as it pioneered emotional storytelling in the genre. It is the classic visual novel that tries to invoke emotion from the reader and one of the most popular games in the genre of the late 90s. It is about a young man who returns to a town he visited seven years prior and his connection with several girls, each with an emotional story and struggles. The art and CG is beautiful and oozes classic 90s goodness. It is a must read for fans of the genre.
99% wholesome
This review contains spoilers
In terms of how I enjoyed each route,
Nayuki > Shiori > Mai > Ayu >>>> Makoto
It felt kind of bad to ignore/shun Nayuki on the other routes. She's so there and always nice and wanting to spend time with us.
Nayuki's route felt the most natural. She's very endearing. But also the interactions and progression were good. Sad we didn't get any Nayuki in a ballgown.
Shiori's was the most romantic I think Probably because she pushed the idea of dates so early on but it made sense given her haste. I also liked getting to know more about Kaori through this route and their family dynamic.
Makoto was ... well, I found her annoying in the other routes and that didn't quite change in her own route. I was able to find her cuter but as she lost her ability to speak the route became rather redundant til the very end.
I actually quite enjoyed all the interactions we had with Mai and Sayuri on her route. The part where we tell her it all in her head and she's done this to herself confused me and I'm not quite sure I understand but overall I loved the character interactions in this route which definitely boosted this route just above Ayu's for me.
Ayu's route did help me like her more overall but I still don't quite see her as fitting in the romance area. The sex scene especially was like... unsure if Ayu even wanted that or understood what sex is. Which is also how I felt about Makoto's. The part where Akiko gets sick and Ayu does all that work and her feelings are shown so clearly to me are probably my favourite parts of this route. Also was a bit surprised to find out that Ayu was not dead but in a coma. I liked her hat and hairdo in this
Overall I really liked Kanon. and it made me eat Strawberry Jam Toast for the first time probably in over a decade
Nayuki > Shiori > Mai > Ayu >>>> Makoto
It felt kind of bad to ignore/shun Nayuki on the other routes. She's so there and always nice and wanting to spend time with us.
Nayuki's route felt the most natural. She's very endearing. But also the interactions and progression were good. Sad we didn't get any Nayuki in a ballgown.
Shiori's was the most romantic I think Probably because she pushed the idea of dates so early on but it made sense given her haste. I also liked getting to know more about Kaori through this route and their family dynamic.
Makoto was ... well, I found her annoying in the other routes and that didn't quite change in her own route. I was able to find her cuter but as she lost her ability to speak the route became rather redundant til the very end.
I actually quite enjoyed all the interactions we had with Mai and Sayuri on her route. The part where we tell her it all in her head and she's done this to herself confused me and I'm not quite sure I understand but overall I loved the character interactions in this route which definitely boosted this route just above Ayu's for me.
Ayu's route did help me like her more overall but I still don't quite see her as fitting in the romance area. The sex scene especially was like... unsure if Ayu even wanted that or understood what sex is. Which is also how I felt about Makoto's. The part where Akiko gets sick and Ayu does all that work and her feelings are shown so clearly to me are probably my favourite parts of this route. Also was a bit surprised to find out that Ayu was not dead but in a coma. I liked her hat and hairdo in this
Overall I really liked Kanon. and it made me eat Strawberry Jam Toast for the first time probably in over a decade