Siscon Saturday Sister of the Week

Siscon Sister of the Week

Takanashi Ako

 This weeks Siscon Sister of the Week goes to Takanashi Ako of the Visual Novel 'Making Lovers'. Making Lovers was released on Steam on April 3, 2020 and was developed by SMEE and published by NekoNyan Ltd.

Making Lovers unlike most Visual Novels is a straight up love story between the protagonist and one of 5 different love interests. Where most games tend to focus on the before the relationship starts and ends when the dating begins, Making Lovers focuses on the relationship after dating begins.

To that end Making Lovers protagonist has the ability to fall in love with and date his sister Ako. Even before the two start their more romantic relationship they have a special relationship and even their parents seem to have noticed it early on and played the silent observers.

Ako is a friendly, fun loving and straight forward girl that isn't afraid to work hard and do what needs to be done to get what she wants. She is very supportive of her brother and her family and can be embarrassed easily by talking about the more 'sexual' aspects of life.

Their relationship begins to build steam after they start working together at the same restaurant and as other women take a small interest in her older brother she begins to realize that she has more than the standard 'sisterly' feelings.

Ako is a very reliable and cute girl that its no wonder that the brother could fall for her. 

If this Visual Novel isn't in your collection I do highly recommend it.

 

So I have been placed in a bit of a position where I am having to consider where exactly I am getting my Adult Contented games. I try really hard to support Steam and its Indie Content creators because for years it has been a very well constructed gaming platform that allows a lot of indie game developers to put their games out there for people to get them and for the Indie groups to earn some money and get noticed.

Sadly recently over the past couple of years STEAM has decided to do a lot of content blocking and even dictate a great deal of the content that games can use. The most recent case of this was the delayed and possibly the complete removal and release of Evenicle 2.  Developed and Published by Alicesoft, they released the 'Clinical Trial Edition' for supporters of Steam to try the game out and to help them do some quality control.

After months of the team at Alicesoft working on the game to get it ready for release on Steam and in the US Market, a post by a lead developer from Alicesoft stated they would not be releasing the game on Steam. Their reason was because that STEAM had changed its ToS and what it would allow on their marketplace. They wanted Alicesoft to create a 'watered down version' of the game removing the more adult oriented content and then have that content available as a patch like many do, or offered on a different site. 

Alicesoft stated they would not do this and instead they would seek out a third party storefront to sell the game. However, after that was said there has been back and fourth between supporters and the dev team due to the fact that Alicesoft has still yet to state what storefront will have the game and when the US Version will be released. Many thought it would have been last year...but it still has not been released.

Steam has taken an unusual stance on games recently by allowing some games to make it through with adult oriented content intact while others are treated as a plague. Because of this there is growing concern that eventually Steam will not allow any form of adult oriented content forcing those that do have it in their games to seek out third party storefronts to sell their games. While this in most peoples minds would be a form of capital suicide, we can not say that it's still something they may do simply because of the current political and social climate.

So I recently have been looking and finding several third party sites that are dedicated to the selling of adult oriented content games and many offer free or paid DLC content for games you can obtain off STEAM. Most times though if you get the game through the third party storefront you don't have to get any DLC content due to the fact that the game will already have the adult oriented content supplied with the game. This means that you will get the game without the need of worrying about if you get the H-Scenes or get to see those tig ole bitties. 

The problem however is though that there are many indie groups that will not use these third party storefronts because they do have a higher rate they charge to sell through their storefront. I don't know the exact numbers but I was put under the impression that STEAM's take on games old through their storefront isn't as much as these third party storefronts are.

I have bought a few games from Denpasoft which is a third party storefront that sells all kinds of different Adult oriented Visual Novels. I have also obtained more than my fair share of DLC content from Denpasoft for games that I have gotten from STEAM. If I had to hedge my bets on which storefront would have the game your looking for it would Denpasoft. 

Cherry Kiss Games technically isn't a third party storefront, but it is an example of another option to obtain games with adult oriented content. CKG is a developer that takes Hentai based Visual Novels and games from Japan, localizes it in English for US based fans and then sells them directly to the consumer via this website. Now CKG also has games that it sells through STEAM, but they also have their own storefront that sells only their games. 

All three of these are some examples of different ways to obtain Hentai or Adult oriented Visual Novels and games and while I still would prefer to get games from Steam I am debating if it is still technically worth it or if I should go direct to the company and order from their storefront like CKG or if I should spend my time looking at third party storefronts and get what I want from them instead. 

Usually the third party storefronts are a little more expensive and they don't tend to have as many sales on games like STEAM would have but the chance of you getting the game in full content without the need for any dlc's is greater. 

I want to think that STEAM will eventually grow up a bit and tell people to just grow up and allow all types of games to be posted on their site and not take the stance against indie content like others have done. I will continue to consider all my options while I wait for my new computer to come in and then we'll decide to go from there.

Gear of Glass

 

Gear of Glass just recently released its English Version upgrade allowing English speaking and reading players a chance to get into this Visual Novel. Gear of Glass was developed and produced by Remnants of mosaic and the original language is Russian. The game offers multiple endings for multiple characters as well as multiple romances. From what I have played through so far for the majority of the characters you can interact with there are good, neutral, and bad endings, however I haven't played through all of them.

The Visual Novel allows you to pick between a Male or Female character and then allows you to place points into certain area's like an RPG such as Strength, Agility, etc. Though I like this aspect I haven't found a great deal where these come involved or if they do they are done so without really knowing what activates them. This game also has a high probability that you will end up dying multiple times through the process of playing through a single play through so I advise saving often or at choice scenes to make sure you can pick a different choice.

The game doesn't say exactly what situation or state the world is in but it would appear to be a alternate world in which technology is post Imperialist Age but not quiet that of the WWI Era. From what information is given there are a couple of powerful nations currently at war with one another and one such nation is attempting to create super soldiers and to some extent better humans. This is led by a secret group in an underground bunker facility. Part of this groups methodology is to use children found on the streets as test subjects.

Economically speaking based on the game's story that is given there is a growing disparity between a group of elites and the common people, so much so that there is an ever growing poor population. With more and more families choosing to send children to orphanages or to force them on the streets in order to be able to feed themselves. 

The MC and the sister (as you can choose to be male or female) are orphans that fled the confines of an abusive orphanage in the hopes of obtaining freedom. However, in this world Freedom comes with a high price, that price being poor and downtrodden. Because of this the MC and the sister end up living on the streets and with little to no food and no shelter they end up malnourished and sick. It is at this time when both are on the doors of death that they are saved by a young man that appears to be a doctor and researcher. It is after they are rescued that things start to happen. Taken to an underground facility the MC is separated from their sister and can take injections, (not sure if you can refuse it or not though I am thinking you can). 

One of the things that makes this VN unique is that there are so many different endings pending on the choices you make through the game. There is a walkthrough that you can find in English on Steam if you wish to use it to get to the ending you want. Currently I have just started so I have not actually gotten many of the endings but I plan on playing through more and seeing about getting more endings.

So what are my thoughts overall on this game? The graphic quality is not as good as higher end Visual Novels but as an indie developer it isn't that bad. I do think that a later updated adapting it to better resolution would be a good thought though. Sound quality wise I am pretty impressed with, while there is no voice overs which personally isn't a requirement, the sounds for the back ground and music used is pretty good and does a good job of getting the player in the mood for what is going on around them.

The story and character development can be a bit rough around the edges, and the story is a tad bit short and doesn't explain a great deal of what is going on in the game world to really get the players mindset to be in the game. That said, I think the game still has a lot of promise and is still well crafted for what parts of the story is being told. I think the story is very engaging and makes for a good starting point for some expansion later if the developer decides to do that.

My only real complaint is the lack of time given to convert all text to English as well as the grammatical errors. Also I there is a lot of switching back and fourth between genders. Playing as a Male MC there were many instances when the MC had 'her' and 'she' instead of the needed 'he' and 'him'. I figure this will be the same on the Female MC as well.

There is one thing that I must warn possible players of though, there is a great deal of violence, suicide, description of scenes of blood, guts, and more. People with weak stomachs or constitutions probably will want to avoid this game.

I would recommend this to people that enjoy a Visual Novel that has a lot of endings and a lot of those endings are you most likely dying, because you will die a lot in this VN.

 Christmas Eve is Here

Good morning everyone (at least it's morning at the time of this post) I hope you all are having a great Christmas Eve day! It has been a few days since I last posted any reviews, but please be aware it is because I am still playing through several games as we speak to bring you some interesting reviews and previews. All that said however I want to take a moment to say thank you to everyone that reads my blog and those who glance at it from time to time.

With Christmas Eve here and Christmas tomorrow it reminds us that the end of the year is almost here, and with 2020 being a year to remember (not for the best of reasons mind you) it is this time of the year we take a moment to appreciate our families and loved ones. Just like Thanksgiving teaches us to be thankful for that which we have, Christmas teaches us to remember those that mean the most to us.

This time of the year can be hard on those that have lost a loved one over the past year or someone that has been gone for a time. In today's society, we are quick to dismiss these things as well as to take away the meaning of Christmas. Too many using the term 'Merry Christmas' is an enduring statement that shows respect and reverence to the holiday, sadly there are those out there that don't see it that way.

Despite the differences in political, social, religious, or racial differences Christmas is a holiday to remind us that even in today's harsh world there is a beacon of hope even in humanity.

I hope everyone has a great Christmas Eve and an even better Christmas. I will be working on some things today and will be posting later.

Thanks!

Why the West (America) is a joke to the East (Japan)

Recently I was talking with a couple of friends of mine online over some different upcoming releasing Anime and Manga. Now personally I don't read Manga that much but that is just my own personal thing and I think everyone should have the right to pursue whatever medium they prefer. During our discussion though we started talking about a couple of upcoming Visual Novels that had some mature content including things such as 'Siscon' and 'Lolicon'. There was also some other mature content we discussed, but the point of the discussion turned to why the Western-based nations mostly the US has such an issue with such media content.

Recently an article posted discussing that Nintendo's CEO and current President when asked about them allowing 'Indy' publishers and developers to put games on their market place and the allowing of 'mature' content the CEO responded like you would have expected. "I will allow this content, it is up to the person to decide on what they wish to see and play, and I don't understand why the US has a problem with this concept."

That's right, even Japan has grown and surpassed the USA when it comes to the concept of personal freedom to the point that they make just about anything and let the individual decide on their own if it is something they want to view or not. Japan underwent a great deal of change after the end of World War II, with the help of the United States, Japan flourished as a powerful Democracy of the East. Even now it has one of the most powerful political Democracy's in the East followed closely by South Korea.

The idea and customs of Japan while modernizing has also maintained and grew its traditional bases. While westernization did see the end to a lot of the traditional values, the Japanese people continued to hang on to many traditions that survive even today. The people of Japan thrive under a combination of tradition and modern values and while Japan does have its own skeletons in the closet so to speak, they still have a wide variety of freedoms and values that we as Americans have seemed to forget about.

There have been continued attacks against Anime and other Japanese based media by politicians here in the United States and most of those politicians have no clue what they are really even talking about and yet they see it as a way to reach out to people who don't fully understand the media or the logic behind it. So the question is what is it that is causing this issue? Well, it is obvious that there is a huge difference in cultures and morals. This leads to a misunderstanding though America likes to think it is 'Progressive' in the sense that it leads the world in freedom that isn't the case anymore. 

In most cases, the United States has actually gone backward for personal freedom over the past couple of decades. Now while we could guess as to what it is that has caused this, I am not going to go political for one side or the other. So let's just go with this, in Japan personal freedom is viewed with more regard than we do here in the United States. When Japan talks about America they do so with guarded words because Japan has and does rely on the US for many things including its defense. That said Japan also regards the US as a nation that is falling behind the times in regards to the use of personal freedom of choice.

Anime, Visual Novels, Manga, Video Games, and many more things that come from Japan all have things in them that some moralists in the US will find distasteful, but such is how things are. You can not squash the freedom to view or read content that you find distasteful to yourself. Media production and art have to remain free or we as a society and culture have failed in our mission to ensure that freedom continues.

That is why America is made fun of because we say we know what freedom is then we censor and judge things that we just don't understand, and honestly we deserve to be made fun of for this very thing.

How Morality is Killing the Industry

How Morality is Killing the Industry

While there will be many try to say that this is not true, I would argue that the evidence would actually prove that what is stated here in this article is correct. As the title suggest this is an opinion piece about how the current 'Cancel Culture' and Social Justice Warriors through the use of 'morality' is attempting to destroy a vast amount of industries. 

Now when you think of 'morality' you would normally picture someone that is more Conservative and holds a Christian based moral compass that when able to see some of the content in modern Anime, Manga, Light Novels, Visual Novels, and video games, that they would cringe and be the ones that would seek to have them removed. However as more and more articles are published we are seeing that is just not the case at all.

More and more companies in an attempt to 'fit in' and obtain the 'back pats' from the Modern Liberal Movement, are taking more and more of these items down from their shops. As time is going by we are seeing, primarily here in the west, the continued removal of works of art in the name of "Social Justice". 

This is being seen by many in the East as an insult, which rightfully so it should be. A nation that claims to be 'Free' is lecturing a nation about 'Morality' over freedom. When Nintendo's current President and CEO was asked about Nintendo allowing Indy Developers to post games on their platform, including ones that are for 18+ players, he made it clear that the problem isn't the game or the platform but the people in the West. 

Now we are reading articles where Amazon and others are removing content from their stores, without saying why of course, but as has been indicated by several Japanese based companies that license to American sub firms to make Manga and Light Novels, the recent string of removals are most likely related to the more 'adult' content'. Even though these are being clearly labeled as such Amazon has decided to remove them anyways.

While I agree that morality plays a big role in culture, it can also be the reason a culture falls apart. In the United States we pride ourselves on the fact that we have the freedom to do what we want, see what we want, hear what we want, and say what we want and if it offends someone then they can move along. However as time has went on we are seeing more and more people no longer following that line of thinking but instead they, 'get their feelings hurt' and are quick to dismiss anything they do not like or find that doesn't adhere to their moral way of thinking. 

To that end morality is killing the industry and our nation here in the United States. We are allowing it to happen in front of us and if we are not willing to stand up now and be heard about how this is nothing short of oppression than when all outlets for us Weebs, Geeks, Nerds, and Kinksters, is gone we will only have ourselves to blame for it.

Morality should not be used to curtail freedom. Morality should benefit the free flow ideas and support the freedom of thought, media, and most of all the people.

Hanapon Princess

Hanapon Princess is currently unreleased in the Steam store but is slated to come out very soon. I was asked to give the game a run through as a Steam Curator and upon accepting the request I went to work playing through the content so I could bring this entry to you.

Hanapon Princess is a fast-paced, short, multiple-choice, and ending Visual Novel that has the protagonist (that as no name) into the fantasy-like nation of Hanapon. You are summoned there by a dragon-like being referred to as Poncho and he explains to you that the nation is in need of a King to rule it alongside one of the daughters of the former King.

You quickly find out that you are to be the King and that your task is to find which of the four daughters that you will take to be your wife and the future Queen of the nation. As if that wasn't already nerve-racking enough, you also have to do this at the end of the day prior to a festival to be held that will be your wedding announcement. 

Each of the four princesses has unique characteristics and personalities. You get to select between two girls at the start to converse with and learn about, you then will get to see what that particular girl believes in and have a chance to either be truthful with them or not. I haven't tried the less truthful route yet but I would assume it would ultimately effect if they decide to accept your marriage proposal at the end of not. 

After time with the first girl, you will encounter them all again and then be given a second set of two girls to choose from. You again will converse with your chosen girl and make the decision of being upfront or not. 

Ultimately you will have to decide which of the two girls you decided to get to know more about that you want to be your wife and the Queen of Hanapon. 

 

The game while short and fast-paced is a nice change of pace from more long and drawn out visual novels. While the character depth is not as extensive as others, the music is also a bit dated and doesn't change much, it isn't a bad thing. 

I did enjoy this Visual Novel for what it was, a short, multiple ending, VN that doesn't add a lot of contexts and focuses on a single goal. While I do think the characters could have been worked out and fleshed out a bit more, I am accepting that this VN wasn't designed to bring a great deal of depth to the player. I also enjoyed the artwork as it wasn't as serious a design as other VN's. 

All in all, I would recommend this to anyone looking for a time killer VN or someone new that is looking to get their feet wet on multiple-choice / multiple-ending Visual Novels. 

Lolicon and the Great Misunderstanding

Lolicon as defined by the community at large states that it is, " is a slang word for the phrase "Lolita complex"" which denotes the interests in a younger female by a man or the interests of a young female in another young female. It is derived from the term 'Lolita' which was a word used by an Author to denote a story written about a professor that took an interest in a younger female. 

While in some cases this will refer to the interest taken into females in a prepubescent stage others will say it may simply refer to a female under the socially acceptable age for intimate relationships while every country tends to view this differently. Because of this common understanding of 'Lolicon,' there have been several nations that view it as a form of Child Pornography and have attempted to ban all forms of Lolicon from Anime, Mangas, and Light Novels in an attempt to further push back against the trend. 

Currently, to date, there is no evidence that the viewing or reading of Lolicon materials has led to or caused anyone to develop an interest in real-life habits of pedophilia and therefore all information about the subject matter is currently being debated. The United Nations has even taken up the subject matter and while they have openly condemned the concept they have no legal standing to push nations to adopt their proposed ban on the materials.

Lolicon and those like it are caught in a constant battle between 'Moralist' and 'Artists' alike due to the generalized idea that if you view or support the idea of Lolicon you are someone to be viewed with some suspicion of being a pedo or someone that would support the act of it. While I can see this from the perspective of a 'Moralist' I can also say that subjectively there is no evidence to prove any of the arguments. As someone that supports the absolute freedom of self-expression and exchange of ideas I find it to be restrictive to say that the use of 'Lolicon' breeds or creates pedos.   

Lolicon by an artist is the exploration of a social taboo on a different level and in many cases the story arch is directed in a way to nurture and foster a relationship between the main characters. In essence the main characters have a loving committing relationship and intend to be with one another only and therefore creating a love story that transcends the modern moralist view of love. Also the use of Lolicon as a medium in art and media isn't new and has only within the past decade been viewed with such disdain: while this is due to current 'moralist' or because society is starting to view censorship with a more positive note is not clear. 

 

I think that even someone like myself that doesn't prescribe to the standard idealism of 'Moralism' agrees that the forced sexual activity of an adult or person in power upon a minor without consent or for other purposes in real life is not acceptable and should warrant arrest and incarceration. That said, the mentioned material of Lolicon which is art and or writings that pertain to the idea of a committed, loving, nurturing, sustainable, consensual relationship between two people of different ages should not fall under the same scope. The fact is that stories harm no one in real life and the fact that people make it sound like it does only makes things worse. 

While this subject matter isn't one that can be settled easily, it is one that deserves a closer look. People that apply this concept to their art and writings are not inherently doing anything wrong but exploring a new route of thinking, even that said though it is really not all that new. The point I want to make is that despite one's personal moral convictions the idea that 'Lolicon' is seen as some sort of illegal practice only is short-sighted and narrow-minded. I actually hope to see this ban lifted at some point to see the freedom of creativity come back to the world.