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Higurashi no Naku Koro ni

ひぐらしのなく頃に

Titles
ひぐらしのなく頃に
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni
Higurashi When They Cry - Question Arcs
Le sanglot des cigales ~cycle des énigmes~
Higurashi - Quando piangono le cicale - Archi di domanda
Gdy zapłaczą cykady
Когда плачут цикады
Kogda plachut cikady
Khi Ve Sầu Khóc
寒蝉鸣泣之时 出题篇
Hanchan Mingqi zhi Shi Chuti Pian
AliasesWhen the Cicadas Cry, 寒蟬鳴泣之時, 暮蟬悲鳴時
Play timeVery long (50h from 323 votes)
Developer07th Expansion
Publishers07th Expansion & Alchemist & Taito Corporation & Seams & KAGA CREATE & MangaGamer & ENTERGRAM & Inside-cap & 07th-Mod
Pbsaffran & Seams
MangaGamer & Seams & Sonozaki Futagotachi & anonl & 07th-Mod
Hanbing Hanhua She & ycx Studios Hanhuazu
Hanbing Hanhua She
-07- & Otorhin & VienDesu Porting Team
Higurashi Eternal & 0Mateus
Hoshi Translation
Bir İsen
Margus
CTH Translations
dailyrana
UVNT & OniUA
WJ-Collect
Relations
Alternative version

[unofficial] Ogranichenie

[unofficial] Canadian Higurashi

Shares characters

[unofficial] Onikakushida yo! Dokuro-chan

[unofficial] Gyakuten Higurashi Saiban ~Curry Naru Gyakuten~

[unofficial] Hinamizawa Kaiki Navigator Tsumikegare

[unofficial] Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Fun

[unofficial] Futago ga Ii ne★

[unofficial] Take Rena Home

[unofficial] When Glitch Cry

Sequel

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai

Same setting

[unofficial] Higurashi no Naku Koro ni ~Ikiutsushi Hen~

[unofficial] 5Nights no Obieru Koro ni

Side story

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni: Console Arcs

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Jan

[unofficial] La neige

[unofficial] Higurashi no Naku Kisetsu ni

LinksWikipedia (en), Wikipedia (ja), Wikidata, VNStat
Shopssponsored links» US$ 0.00 @ MangaGamer (partial)
» US$ 5.95 @ MangaGamer (partial)
» US$ 7.95 @ MangaGamer (partial)
» US$ 7.95 @ MangaGamer (partial)
» US$ 7.95 @ MangaGamer (partial)
» US$ 32.99 @ PlayAsia (bundle)
» US$ 36.99 @ PlayAsia (bundle)
» US$ 44.99 @ PlayAsia (partial)
» US$ 51.99 @ PlayAsia (partial)
» US$ 51.99 @ PlayAsia (bundle)
» US$ 58.99 @ PlayAsia (bundle)
» US$ 59.99 @ PlayAsia (partial)
» US$ 60.99 @ PlayAsia (bundle)
» US$ 96.99 @ PlayAsia (bundle)
Related anime[DB-ANN] Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (TV Series, 2006)

Description

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni takes place during June 1983, at a fictional rural village called Hinamizawa, which has a population of approximately 2000. The main character, Keiichi Maebara, moves to Hinamizawa and befriends his new classmates Rena Ryugu, Mion Sonozaki, Rika Furude, and Satoko Hojo. Keiichi joins their after-school club activities, which consist mostly of card and board games (and punishment games for the loser, usually him.) Hinamizawa appears to be a normal, peaceful, rural village to Keiichi. However, the tranquility abruptly ends after the annual Watanagashi Festival, a celebration to commemorate and give thanks to the local god, Oyashiro-sama. Keiichi learns that every year for the past four years, one person has been murdered and another has gone missing on the day of the Watanagashi Festival. Keiichi himself soon becomes drawn into the strange events surrounding the Watanagashi Festival and Oyashiro-sama. In each story arc, he or one of his friends become paranoid, and a crime is committed. Usually, the crime involves the murder of one of their own friends. While it seems impossible to tell their delusions apart from the mystery of Hinamizawa, slowly the truth is revealed.

[from Wikipedia]

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (proper) is the first set of stories, including the "Question" arcs.

CurseS 3.0 HomicideS 3.0 No Opening Movie 3.0 Psychological Horror 3.0 Suspense 3.0 Unoriginal Soundtrack 3.0 Kinetic Novel 2.9 Friendship 2.9 Episodic Story 2.9 DenpaS 2.9 MadnessS 2.9 Murder Mystery 2.9 Ambient Sounds 2.9 Group of Friends 2.9 Thriller 2.9 Summer 2.9 Photographic Backgrounds 2.8 Death of HeroineS 2.8 Death of ProtagonistS 2.8 NVL 2.8 Yangire HeroineS 2.8 Male Protagonist 2.8 No Sexual Content 2.8 Violence 2.8 Descriptions of ViolenceS 2.8 Festival 2.7 HorrorS 2.7 Mystery 2.7 Fear of Death 2.7 80's 2.6 Shouwa Era 2.6 Twin Sisters as HeroinesS 2.6 Unreliable NarratorS 2.6 Detective Work 2.6 Multiple ProtagonistsS 2.5 Disappearance 2.5 Other Perspectives 2.5 Student Heroine 2.5 Student Protagonist 2.5 Multiple Route MysteryS 2.4 Traditionalist Family 2.4 School 2.4 Police 2.3 Shinto Shrine 2.3 Student Club Member Heroine 2.3 Fictional Modern Day Japanese Countryside 2.3 Varied Title Screens 2.3 Loli Heroine 2.3 Bokukko Heroine 2.2 Miko Heroine 2.2 Ponytail Heroine 2.2 Non-sexual Child AbuseS 2.2 No Event CGs 2.1 Japanese Mythology 2.1 Bloody ScenesS 2.0 Child AbuseS 2.0 Class President Heroine 2.0 ConfinementS 2.0 Desperation 2.0 Domestic ViolenceS 2.0 Existential CrisisS 2.0 Flashback 2.0 KidnappingS 2.0 Natural DisasterS 2.0 Orphan HeroineS 2.0 Student Club Member Protagonist 2.0 SuicideS 2.0 TortureS 2.0 Waitress HeroineS 2.0 Twins as Support CharactersS 1.9 Torture ChamberS 1.9 Past 1.8 CorporationsS 1.7 Temple 1.7 Food Discussions 1.7 Heroine with Shorts 1.6 Asian-style Manor 1.6 No Romance Plot 1.6 Yakuza HeroineS 1.6 Mischievous Heroine 1.5 YakuzaS 1.5 DiscriminationS 1.5 Heroine with a Fang 1.5 No Sense of Direction Heroine 1.5 Police Officer ProtagonistS 1.5 Transfer Student Protagonist 1.5 Heroine with Tights 1.5 Protagonist with Voice Acting 1.2 Baseball 1.0 Comedy 1.0 Daughter Support CharacterS 1.0 Forced Auto-Read Sections 1.0 Non-explicit Nudity Only 1.0 Slice of Life 1.0 Slice of Life Comedy 1.0 Protagonist with a Face 0.9 Tsundere Heroine 0.9 Naked SpritesS 0.8 Few ChoicesS 0.8 Censored Text 0.8 Mahjong as Story Element 0.8 CannibalismS 0.7 Ojousama Heroine 0.7 Jump ScaresS 0.5

Mini reviews

By prrg on 2020-11-20r51427Vote: 9
<report>This VN is a horror masterpiece. While the anime adaptation manages to capture some of its charm, it doesn't come close to how tense and terrifying the VN truly is. Compared to the anime, the VN made me feel so much more attached to the characters through stellar comedy scenes at the beginning of each arc. This is an all-star cast, and everyone has a little bit to offer. The plot itself is also very thoughtful and surprisingly topical.

I recommend playing with the 07th Mod on PC for the better art and extra content. The console ports and patch include 3 new arcs: Taraimawashi, Tsukiotoshi, and Someutsushi. The first two are not very good and actually kinda spoilery, but Someutsushi is pretty great, original and very much in the spirit of the original arcs, so it gets my recommendation.
0 comments 4 points
By nemorir on 2022-03-23Vote: 9
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0 comments 3 points
By cheekyman07 on 2021-12-07Vote: 9.4
<report>Higurashi is one of those VN's that take a little time to really set off, it takes a little patience to get through the first few hours. But when the story takes shape you are in for a ride.

The VN has a lot of roughness to it, but it has had touch-ups in the sprite and art department and I think added voice acting as well. However, I read this without voices.

The world of Higurashi had me completely and utterly immersed from start to finish, there were more than a few incredible scenes that I will never forget. The genre that Higurashi evolves into is what made this VN a very special one to me. The sense of dread, uneasiness, anxiousness, and so on. Nothing else I have read has been quite like it.

Note - This review is for both question&answer arcs, so the game as a whole.
0 comments 2 points
By exoticbankai on 2020-10-05r62475Vote: 10
<report>Hard to write a review because the two higurashi are actually one, this first game aka "question arcs" i love and think is so awesome because i have played the answer arc and can in my mind re contextualize everything.

Writing ishigurashi's best thing, made me feel all type of emotion, from fear to happiness to empathy and much more.

I liked the art and chara design, (ps3 art), i don't know if i would liked the game as much with the original art.

Great music and voice acting (ps3 patch).

A classic, one of the best duology of vn ever, glad i finally played it, will likely never forget it, absolutely recommended !
0 comments 1 point
By ignor on 2023-12-17r62475Vote: 10
<report>Higurashi will always remain in my heart. I love them for EVERYTHING. The story, the characters, the plot, the Hinamizava village, the graphics (both original and console graphics, though for beginners I'll recomend reading with console art), the music (in Questions arc it's not that amazing, but still really good and nostalgic, also the Matsuri (PS2) OST REALLY good), the AMBIENT SOUNDS (I love Higurashi cry ambient SO MUCH I can't even describe).
This novel never gets old. It have some problems, of course. Maybe too much dragged, have some boring episodes, and can be somewhat sharp at the edges. But it's my first REAL VN experience, and forever be my absolute favourite.
P. S. I still have more to say about Higurashi at the Answer arcs review.
0 comments 1 point
By psm3l0 on 2023-05-11Vote: 9
<report>Honestly, I never really had significant expectations about Higurashi. I had never watched the anime, but it seemed edgy and silly.

Noticing my score, it must be clear that reading it changed my mind. I wasn't expecting such a compelling story and skillful manipulation of my emotions. I'll never forget the first jump scare and how it made me feel all the loneliness and paranoia of Keiichi.

What surprised me the most was how Higurashi explored different genres of horror so masterfully. Perhaps it wasn't the creators' intention, but it sounded like a great homage to me.

Yeah, the beginnings are always slow and dull. And I wish it didn't have some nasty fan service moments. But I can't wait to read the answer arcs.
0 comments 0 points
By theaugusthail on 2020-10-20Vote: 9.5
<report>Higurashi no Naka Koro Ni is a visual novel that will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions, filling you with heartwarming and joyful moments before dropping you off the deep end with its disturbing and horrifying scenes.

While excellent in building up to and selling those moments, its reputation as a horror visual novel is a double-edged sword. People dislike the slower slice of life segments due to their eagerness to get to the horrific scenes. But even then, the slice of life is imperative to the narrative and is meant for you to be attached to its characters and their struggles.

It's also highly recommended to install the 07th Expansion Mod, which adds new sprites, backgrounds, video openings, and even voice acting.

Full Video Review: link
0 comments 0 points
By Icewallowcome49 on 2022-07-21Vote: 9
<report>what happens when a guy who like mystery novels like that of Agatha Christe and like anime, manga, and such. Inspired by visual novels like tsukihime and decide with his passion and dedication to make one? You get this absolute of a mystery VN. This is part 1 out of 2 in this review since this game is split in to 2 parts. The question arc and the answer arc. So my brief review here is that it's quite an excellent question arc. More details would be in the answer arc, but the question arc is very engaging. The lore is quite exciting and fun to learn and the world setting is quite comfy. This VN is notorious for the violence but dependin on your version of the game, it could be presented tamer. But yeah other than that. I can say the music is quite Bangin.
0 comments 0 points
By KitchenCoach on 2023-11-06Vote: 8
<report>Visual Novel>Manga>Anime

Anime: I will only recommended it to people who wants something fast pace, simple, edgy, and shallow, the anime is basically just for shock value but it's still enjoyable on it's own especially to those who are new to anime and normies (Also the watch order is to watch it by release order).

Visual Novel: A well written masterpiece, the best way to experience this series to the fullest, the voice acting and soundtracks are really good.

Manga: it's actually a really good adaptation much closer to the Visual Novel, it's an alternate option if you don't have time to play the Visual Novel, however the only downside is that you won't hear the amazing voice acting and soundtracks from what the Visual Novel has to offer.
0 comments 0 points
By Zenbofication on 2023-07-27Vote: 10
<report>honestly its the perfect story to me, ive seen the anime like 3 times, played thru all of the vn in a couple of days and am now looking to buy the manga and binge read that. i love higurashi so much and will never tire of it! sure its really long and it could be argued that some of it could be trimmed but honestly i loved all slice of life stuff that happens, seeing them all be friends is so nice and makes what happens later impact me more.

i wish i could forget everything about it and read it for the first time again
0 comments 0 points
By Tintan100 on 2023-01-04Vote: 10
<report>this VN is so good I recommend to all mystery thrill genre enjoyers many segments kept me up reading till sunrise truly an amazing VN my only gripe with it however is that some parts to drag that also seem to have seemingly no relevance to the characters and plot really noticeable in chapter 8 and some other chapters before it
0 comments 0 points
By arturklesun on 2020-10-17r253Vote: 9
<report>It was boring at start, but after first Watanagashi festival it started to gain the pace.

The text describing feelings was real juicy, Ryukishi-sensei did a good job making reader experience the story from characters' point of view.

Even parts where they were just friends playing games brought some warmth, probably due to contrast with the chapters that start after first murder. This unique repeatative story-telling for episodes made me strangelly treasure these pre-murder slice-of-life moments same as Rika did, even though I hate slice-of-life genre.

I did not initially catch this while watching the anime, but Mion's story with the doll was very sad. Oh, yeah, Mion best girl, btw. Reading the masterfully foreshadowed answers arc was also rewarding.
0 comments 0 points
By SoulRobin on 2023-07-01Vote: 7
<report>This half of the visual novel could be very boring and drawn out at the worst of times and a compelling story you can stop reading at the best, the story did get kinda repetitive during the third chapter but it is still an enjoyable experience.
0 comments 0 points
By D4di-kun on 2022-11-03Vote: 9
<report>Didn't still finished all higurashi chapters, i already played only chapter 1 and 2, i'm gonna start the third. This classic of visualnovels have a really exciting and misterious plot, the only bad thing is that on every start of a chapter it repeats the things that u already know but i know this is essential. I STRONGLY recommend playing it with the 07th-mod for full experience and voice acting!!
0 comments 0 points
By tertyyy on 2020-10-17Vote: 7
<report>It's hard to review just the Question Arcs especially for me as I am not the biggest fan of horror so I can't say I enjoyed those aspects even if they were well written. That said, there are many great aspects to this half of Higurashi. It covers a lot of interesting topics and presents an extremely interesting mystery. That is this half's greatest strength, its setup, but because of that it is hard to rate highly on its own.
7 comments 0 points
By ALIp19 on 2022-01-10r62475Vote: 8
<report>1.first of all i highly recommend installing the 07th mod fully voiced amazing CGs the OG osts ps3 sprites
2. the most negative thing i can say about the game is the slice of life moment are boring i know they exist because the build up but dose not change the fact thats its a turn off for new players
3. ch 4 arc suck not good as the first three
0 comments 0 points

Full reviews

By waffletown654 on 2020-11-15Vote: 9
<report>Higurashi completely changed my perspective on horror.

The first four chapters--the question arcs--are definitely horror stories. The format is interesting, because each chapter can stand alone as its own short horror tale, but reading each chapter concurrently creates something more than the sum of its parts: a gripping mystery. As you read Higurashi's question arcs, you will find yourself getting sucked deeper and deeper into the lore of the small village, Hinamizawa, and into the secrets that the characters are hiding--the protagonist included.

While the Higurashi anime adaptation is famous for its gory horror, I find that the visual novel's most suspenseful and climactic moments are... Read more »
0 comments 8 points
By zany25 on 2022-04-12r26024Vote: 10
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0 comments 3 points
By vanse on 2021-07-23Vote: 8.5
<report>This is a combined review of ‘Higurashi no Naku Koro ni’ and ‘Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai’. Both were played with the 07th Mod attachment.

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Higurashi tells the story of a group of individuals whom fate had decided to toy with. Trapped within a village of madness and an unending maze of stagnation, they struggle desperately in search of a light at the end of the tunnel. But all their efforts were for naught – denied by the cruel shackles of their world. To even have a chance of defeating their fate, they must first tread an arduous journey to learn the true nature of their fate – and more importantly, what it means to trust another.

How long have you been sitting there, motionlessly... Read more »
0 comments 3 points
By Sclane321 on 2023-03-18Vote: 10
<report>Higurashi is a wonderful experience in more ways than one, once you're on the edge of your seat trying to make sense of the horrifying incidents that happen in it, and at last you're crying for the characters who even you yourself didn't understand when you grew so close and attached to

I'm gonna be honest with you, i don't enjoy horror stories, but Higurashi really wasn't just a horror story, every horrible incident or horrifying moment feeled earned as I just grew to know and finally love it's diverse cast of characters, and even in the starting arc where you know next to nothing about them, it manages to showcase each character's core personality traits and foreshadow some of the most... Read more »
0 comments 1 point
By edgeyboi on 2022-01-20r80821Vote: 6.9
<report>This review will not mention the synopsis or try to introduce the characters since vndb has a rather good spoiler-free version of that.

Instead, it will include a subjective evaluation of the game, with priority as followed:
plot > characterisation > storytelling techniques > enjoyment >>>> voice acting/sound effect
Visuals are mostly pleasing for the MangaGamer (no lip sync) and PS3 (flatter but with lip sync) since I used the 07th mod.

Question Arc: 6.85/10

Overall, all question arcs served well as prologues to the mystery... including the Himatsubushi arc, which I personally considered as a long TIP rather than an arc in itself. More on that later.
One small issue I had with all the... Read more »
0 comments 1 point
By Blossomfall on 2024-03-27Vote: 9
<report>An absolute masterpiece, ryukishi (the author) truly is a good writer. Just skip the anime and go straight to the vn, if you care about deep and intricate characters, and stories about relationships between them you will not regret it. If you only started this series just because you heard it was "cute lolis killing eachother" and you want to see gore I recommend just watching the anime, as the vn is extremely long and has a lot of slice of life moments. I also personally don't find it that gory, while the scenes that are gory are extremely brutal, they aren't that many, especially in these first games, and a lot is left to the reader's imagination.

Overall i really recommend it, but keep... Read more »
0 comments 0 points
By Lambdadeltum on 2023-02-02Vote: 10
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0 comments 0 points
By quplet on 2022-12-02Vote: 3
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2 comments 0 points
By Laogui on 2023-06-29Vote: 3
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3 comments 0 points
By hansfranz77 on 2021-01-13Vote: 4
<report>FYI: This is a review for the 4 question arcs of higurashi, steam version chapters 1 - 4 only.

This thing is the furthest from "well written" i might have ever played or even seen. (I need to think about that once i'm finally done with all of it). I honestly have no idea how this series got the great standing it has these days in the west. But despite its age this is "modern writing" as in plot driven writing of the worst possible kind.



There is nothing too stupid or over the top to pull out of left field, in favor of the all encompassing "plot" for this thing. With no setup, believability or rationality on any end. Even if the plot involves Keiichi the protagonist going utterly mental... Read more »
16 comments 0 points