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narcissu

Title
narcissu
Aliasesナルキッソス, ナルキ, 水仙
Play timeShort (2h55m from 179 votes)
DeveloperStage-nana & Regista & Sekai Project
PublishersStage-nana & Kadokawa Shoten & Sekai Project & NekoNeko Soft & Sekai Games
Haeleth & insani & Agilis & Sekai Project & Sekai Games & Jake Probst & ShinseiTom & Studio Daoluong
TaMaNoKi
Key Fans Club
Key Fans Club & Fengling Chinese Localization Group & Zhai Jiejie Hanhua Zu
Kawa-Soft
Sonako-Hako
Edwin Crowley & Ono & RM.project
Ricz/Ronin Factories
Doitsugo Trans & OneManArmy & Hikari
Yukihime & Zero Force Translations
Red Squirrel
Deep Blue
Polish Route
Cimosoft Codelicious
BakaYume Çeviri Ekibi
Relations
Prequel

narcissu -SIDE 2nd-

narcissu 0

Same series

narcissu Sumire

LinksWikipedia (en), Wikipedia (ja), Wikidata, MobyGames, IndieDB, HowLongToBeat, IGDB, PCGamingWiki, Lutris, VNStat
Shopssponsored links» US$ 62.90 @ PlayAsia (bundle)

Description

The anonymous protagonist is diagnosed with a terminal illness shortly after his twentieth birthday, and is admitted to a hospital in Mito, Ibaraki. There he meets Setsumi, a woman a few years older, who is also terminally ill. Finding that they both reject to die either in hospital or at home, they steal a car and run away together.

[Edited from Wikipedia]

Mini reviews

By m0lnarr on 2020-12-28Vote: 9.2
<report>I knew how this would end.

This is the story
of a girl whose heart was standing still
and a boy whose breath was being stolen away,
both of whom die.


I knew how this would end, so why? Why am I crying this hard? Maybe because it's not about the destination, but the journey itself. To surrender, to resign. Will you, knowing your end is near, fight? or will you accept it as it is? A beautiful tragedy, bittersweet until the end, masterful in its subtlety, "Narcissu" is worth your time. Realistic to the core, it will make you go through a concoction of emotions accompanied by gorgeous background melodies and minimalist imagery. What are you waiting for? - our time on this earth is short, so enjoy it while you can.
0 comments 8 points
By kanjieater on 2022-02-18r22Vote: 7
<report>ナルキッソス was a short ride that lasted just long enough to make it's points well. Personally I found the long drive to Awajishima very nostalgic, as it's the last place I visited with my wife in Japan when we lived in Hyogo. The long drive, late nights in cars, health struggles, difficulty reading someone else even in the simplest things, and an uncertainty in their future and your own - all of it - really hit home with me.

As Setsumi burns her limited time staring at a meaningless screen, I can't help but see the irony in own lives. When she was talking about how the donkey outlives the wolves because they are useful, I couldn't help but think that a short life with meaning far outweighs a long life without meaning.

So choose your next VN wisely :)
0 comments 5 points
By ewokonfire on 2022-03-11Vote: 9.1
<report>This was one of the first visual novels I ever read, and I still come back to it every now and then, and I still think it might be one of the best VNs I've ever read. It's as minimalist as a VN can really be, with a short running time, no choices, and images that don't even fill the entire screen. I think that's why it still stands out in my memory among all the bloated full-featured commercial VNs out there. The writer knew what they wanted to do with it and didn't mess around.

And then there's the ending, which I think elevated Narcissu to one of the most genuinely nihilist pieces of literature I've ever read. I'm very conflicted as to whether to give it 9/10 or 10/10 on this site. I'm sure I'll flip-flop on that again.
0 comments 3 points
By catseternal on 2022-02-01Vote: 8
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0 comments 1 point
By Lostsdc on 2022-06-05Vote: 7
<report>A short but pleasant experience, a little exciting but not enough to make me really emotional, not that it's bad, far from it, btw for those who like short things or want to read some drama, here's the recommendation.
0 comments 1 point
By TheEnjoyer on 2023-11-13Vote: 6
<report>it's mid

great atmosphere, decent music, art does its job well enough. the story is pretty straightforward, without any particular twists. the 2 characters are pretty annoying: the guy is the typical anime mc beta simp with no personality, and the girl barely talks, and when she does she says nothing of substance at 0.33x normal speech speed.

i admit that there were some pretty great lines/ideas, especially towards the end, but not enough to make this read worthwhile for me. author's notes were more interesting than the actual vn.

maybe if you're a "nihilist" or if this is your first piece of fiction that makes you introspect about mortality then you'll get something out of it. otherwise it's just a passable way to spend 2-3 hours reading stuff.
1 comment 0 points
By VisualNovelRN on 2021-05-14Vote: 7
<report>I think this game is awesome but he didn't move me, the end was so fast and anticlimatic that it spoiled my experience, i like the art, soundtrack, history and the characters of this game but for me the main purpose has not been fulfilled
0 comments 0 points
By jmdemisana on 2022-07-15Vote: 9
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0 comments 0 points
By lexaed on 2021-04-25Vote: 7
<report>A good short story and that is it. There are not a lot of meaning in it, you don't have to find an analysis on this game. You should complete it and that is it. That was pretty enjoyable. I don't think that it's too good, the story itself is fine and in the end I suggest you play in it. 7/10
0 comments 0 points
By Kojaku on 2022-07-01r73917Vote: 10
<report>this VN goes straight to my favorites.
He really manages to express feelings in everything, music, text, voices, everything is perfect.

It is a peculiar visual novel in artistic approach, although quite unique
0 comments 0 points