”I am never going to play that fucking shit in my life,” I said after reading Cab’s review on Tsukhime, circa April 2022. However, regardless of telling myself that, the morbid curiosity of playing whatever this game was has lingered in my head for quite some time. Probably not helped by me getting a bit into Melty Blood at the time, alongside watching the Ufortable adaptation of Unlimited Blade Works. But, if you know me at all, the biggest roadblock was of course the adult content. Not that I mind a story reflecting sexual themes, as those are important stories to tell, but more in the fact that the way Tsukihime presents those themes is gross and immature. However, my friend DomencioDovanna let me know of a fan patch that entirely skips the pointless time sink that is the adult scenes, while still not undercutting the themes, and he helped me set it up. Thanks!
It’s truly fascinating seeing Nasu’s humble beginnings in the VN industry. While not his first written work (that would be Garden of Sinners, iirc?), it was the first of his stories to be in the Visual Novel format. Context is very important to Tsukihime’s release, as it was a game made by about less than 10 people on a shoestring budget. In fact, all of the visual assets were made by one person, that being Takahashi Takeuchi. Both his artwork alongside Nasu’s writings share nice parallels in being extremely earnest, but still very amateurish and yet to fully bloom into their greatest potential. And that’s what’s so endearing about Tsukihime. Behind the blurry photographed backgrounds, the poor handling of sexual themes, the sometimes janky spritework, the occasionally repetitive prose- there’s a clear effort here to tell a memorable story. It’s probably one of the most honest and impressive games I’ve played, and it’s that context of its development that heightens my respect for it overall.
I don’t want to delve into the story very much here, because ultimately I would like you, the reader, to see what lies under the moon yourself. It’s a story about how important the choices in our lives matter. It’s a story about overcoming our trauma and finding a greater understanding in ourselves. And yes, it is a story that is telling us that life is worth living. It has these wonderful heroines, and each route is truly unique. It’s a game that’s both comfortable yet unnerving, fills us with sorrow but also gives us joy, it can disgust us yet can be so beautiful.
If you have ever wanted to try out Tsukihime, now is the time. The english patch by mirror moon has been out for years, and even offers a SFW patch for the game as I described above. You can play it on a multitude of platforms, even including a fantastic web version that is soon to be the definitive edition of the game. The plus disc also has a translation by mirror moon, and is also worth checking out after the main game, alongside a translation of the sequel(?) Kagetsu Tohya, by Mr Fortayee. And of course, the remake is going to be getting an official translation next year, which I am very excited for! If you don’t have the patience though, there is an already existing translation patch for the Switch version by Tsukihimates.
Despite all of what I’ve said, I can’t exactly recommend Tsukihime. It’s absolutely not a game for everyone, and your enjoyment of the experience is going to vary. But I think if you can look through the cracks, you can find a fantastic narrative that may stick with you for a long time. And lastly, a thank you to Dr Delicious who sat through all of my liveposting throughout my playthrough, and gave me much more insight into the story that made me appreciate the experience even more as a whole.
” - —- Thank you. I’m glad I met you, Sensei.”