The story has two intertwining threads: one about AI and ethics, and another about self realization. The former is about as lofty and familiar as the other three thousand works of art you have seen, but made slightly more relevant with recent develop in the field. The latter is undoubtedly originated from genuine personal experience as someone worked in tech in Seattle. I find the latter more intriguing. In a sense, Nora ending is probably the canon one, since that's the path the creator of this game chose: to be a musician and writer.

Evelyn has a lovely voice that is perfect for therapy. I especially love the way some lines are performed with a subtle chuckle held in. Everyone else also sounds causal, professional, or emotional in all the right way. Massive kudos to the voice actors and director.

I'd always like to think I'm somewhat familiar with eroge, but only recently did I discover the world of western Ren'Py VN. In my defense, the few times I encoutered one of these games, it looked like nothing more than "big dick go brrr". This game certainly is that, but the narrative is far more evolved than I expected. There's a plot that is genuinely interesting and characters whose charm extends beyond physical attributes. There are jokes that actually made me laugh, and scenes that are surprisingly moving. I'd say the porn to story ratio is still on the high end, but it has always been a fine line to walk for an eroge creator, especially for one who was making their maiden work and did not realize the full potential of their own storytelling ability.

The story is interesting enough to take me through the end, though it does come with its own bag of cliches. I swear if I ever see dead wife in a horror game again... It's a shame a large part of the story is just manuscript. Please, developers, don't make me read a novel in your game amid shooting and driving. I find the gunplay solid, if lacking in variety. Throughout the game you shoot at the same old enemies with the same old guns. The gameplay never carries itself as a reason to play the game, but it is not a reason not to either.

Brilliant puzzle game with a wholesome message. The amount of detail put into the grammar and word structure is just right. It does not overwhelm the player, but remains challenging enough to demand some level of creativity and perceptiveness. Beneath the puzzles, the game tells story about misunderstanding and prejudice, about communication and collaboration, a story as old as the Bible. Of course, it is too idealistic to assume all the world's problems can be solved by people simply sitting down and talking, but it is certainly better than not to.

It bears the mark of a studio learning its trade. After several attempts they finally landed on something worthwhile with Stella Glow, unfortunately they were not able to go further. As for this one, I can't find too many positive things to say except that it works. Story could've been less cliche, gameplay could benefit from more depth and balance, and some QoL features such being able to rotate map would improve the experience a lot. Competition was not as cut-throat as it is today, so after a game like this, the studio was still given a second chance. I suspect the artwork did some heavy lifting.

It has updated graphic, but it's still a dating sim from 1998. It came out at a time when visual novel was transitioning away from adventure game and stripping down the gameplay elements. You can see the visage of an old school dating sim in White Album when you have to choose where to go each day, but the outcome of the story is purely choice-based, you don't need to raise your charm point or study point like in Tokimemo.

Each character in this game is vulnerable and lonely, and they seek warmth from the protagonist one way or another. Some just want companionship, some want love, and some prefer something purely carnal. This is all standard dating sim stuff, but the late 90s Japan setting really adds to the atmosphere. The game captures an anxiety that permeated in the air, and imbues it into each character and makes them feel like real people living in that era, not just objects to obtain in a videogame.