Utawarerumono: Prelude to the Fallen (2018)

The first part of my journey with this game was learning how to pronounce its name, to be honest.

Once that was settled, I was very curious to know what was really about. Utawarererumono -translated as The One Being Sung- is a Visual Novel developed by Leaf (part of Aquaplus). What makes this game different from others to me was that it includes certain Strategy RPG elements through the story, but while keeping the Visual Novel aspects.

In terms of Visual Novels standards, it is a good novel. The music is VERY good, and the characters are engaging. The strategy part is just kind of there, but nothing too hard to be honest. You might go hours before even encountering a “playable” part, and then have like… 3 stages one after the other.

The story itself is good, but it does suffer a little bit from “anime” format, and sometimes goes from one place to another with little to no transitions. It really feels like “oh, so now it is THIS character arc…”, and since there’s a lot of slice-of-life moments you might feel lost in what’s the direction. At the same time, it is those little moments that make the overall feeling memorable.

Said all of that, I will definitely continue reading what comes next as I am really curious of where are they taking the story next.

If you are going for this because of the strategy elements I would say drop it and go for something else, but if you are looking for a visual novel with good characters and music I think you will enjoy this one.

I got recommended this series from a friend and he did a good job recommending it. I really enjoyed this game. Filled with heartwarming moments. Sad moments. Happy moments. Funny moments. It makes you like the characters. Pretty much all of them! You feel for them and get to know them. They're your friends. This is the sign if good writing. And I love it. The one thing I don't like is that sometimes it goes on for to long. Obviously if this was just a visual novel then that wouldn't be a problem, but the times between battles and talking come sometimes be a little to much. There are training battles or free bates that you can do that help fill this, but sometimes you just want to continue the story with a story battle instead of doing something different just to break up the pacing.

The combat portions of the games are fun. I really enjoyed them. Nothing unique or crazy here. If you've played an SRPG before you know exactly what to expect. And that's not a bad thing! And while I played on Normal the whole way through there are higher difficulties if you find it to easy and simple.

Overall I am super happy with this game. And that's really something considering this is supposed to be the weakest of the 3 Utawarerumano games! Definitely will be playing the other 2 games.

Utawarerumono is one of the most interesting visual novels I've ever played. If you're a fan of visual novels then it's an absolute must-play, and if you're new to the genre then it's a great entry point.

You play as Hakuowlo, a masked amnesiac who was discovered by a local village. You can't remember your name or anything about the world you're in (and you're totally clueless why everyone has furry ears and tails), but your knowledge of agriculture, smithing and chemistry helps springboard the village from the brink of poverty.

Despite its cliched beginnings, Utawarerumono does not play out the way you'd expect. It's a much smaller and more adult story that focuses more on politics, folklore, and characters.

The supporting cast is by far some of the best I've ever seen in a video game. New characters are introduced right up to the end of the game, but it never feels overwhelming, and the older characters are still just as involved in the story.

It isn't even just the character writing - though that's excellent - but also the VA, the art, the attention to detail in each scene. They all combine to form a cast that is truly wonderful.

Unlike many other visual novels, Utawarerumono also has an "actual game" attached to it. Between story scenes you'll take part in SRPG battles with enemies. It's best compared to the likes of Final Fantasy Tactics and Suikoden Tactics. There's not much to write about this part of the game - it's serviceable, and it does a few neat things, but it's really not what you're here to do.

Thankfully the game seems to realize this. On Normal the game is a total cakewalk, and combat is never obtrusive. Each battle is story relevant and they're short enough to never interrupt your flow.

Beyond the weak SRPG elements, the game also suffers from what I'll call "Too Much Anime".

There's a bath scene. There's some uncomfortable sexual moments. There's furry stuff. Some underage stuff. Some strange incest-y stuff. None of it goes over the line (at least not this censored version - the uncensored original is... yikes), but I'd have a hard time recommending it to someone who wasn't already familiar with these sort of tropes. It can be pretty off-putting.

And while I appreciate the slower and more deliberate pace of the story, there are several 'arcs' that are clearly just filler. Each time I started to feel bored the game would introduce something new (and the endgame was like a bullet train of revelations and twists), so it was never much of a detriment, but I still think the game would have benefited from a tighter script.

Don't sleep on Utawarerumono.