Review of Natsuzora Kanata
| Subject | Natsuzora Kanata Yuzusoft PENTA BOX -15th Anniversary Pack- |
| By | Helpfulness: 1 Vote: 6.2sorakado on 2024-09-30 |
| Review | A charming summer island setting, which unironically never gets old for me. First off, this is definitely the best one of the "pre-HD" Yuzusoft eroge. Less experimental, builds on what they must have learned from the previous two, and more towards the direction where this brand ended up settling on. Fairly short and basic common route with a rather early route split. Doesn't really spend too much time to establish the setting other than the immediate surroundings of the protagonist - not that it's a complex or unique one, but makes the routes feel rather isolated from each other even though they share some common elements. There is some heavy variance in quality between the routes however. The slice-of-life moments are enjoyable throughout with some very fun scenes. Yuiko’s route feels weak, with little revealed in terms of story and rather uninspired romance. Just not quite there either in terms of emotion or depth when contrasted with the others. Essentially felt like filler content throughout. Chihaya and Sasara is where the actual plot gets properly touched upon, especially in the latter. Chihaya is where most of the romantic moments shine, and honestly really enjoyed the whole story there - it may be a little cliché, but since it was well executed, that doesn't matter. Chihaya herself is also adorable. While Sasara gets most of the backstory and plot, the romance is still cute, but that is not really the main focus here. Unfortunately this route suffers from severe pacing issues, and could have been trimmed down a little. It's best experienced as the last one, as it's does give a proper conclusion to all that had been built-up to that point. Routes all have 2 endings, but the only really meaningfully different one is Chihaya's. Yuiko's is barely any different while Sasara's gives a different epilogue scene. It's also helpful that it does not try to explain everything around the whole central mystery of the island, just enough to support the story without getting bogged down in lore and technicalities. The art is beautiful, the atmosphere it sets up is supported by a fitting soundtrack as well. This extends to the H scenes too, nothing groundbreaking, but well-crafted and paced. Taking a healthy balance between chara and scenarioge, not exceptional in either - the design goal seemed to be a rather "Key-like" story, centered around one main message. Honestly, it's more or less a success on that front, but at the same time wouldn't call it too impactful. Still, for me, Chihaya and her route stood out as the highlight. |
| 1 point |