Description
Trade ReviewIn this essential volume for scholars of narrative play, Mark Kretzschmar and Sara Raffel take on the complexity of the form of visual novels, exploring well-known exemplars such as dating simulators alongside hybrids and even less-studied erotic works. Offering this comprehensive survey alongside a detailed ludography of suggested works for play spanning the last several decades, this wide-ranging overview can serve as a guide for exploring these works and the growing significance of visual novels as a global form. * Anastasia Salter, Associate Professor of English at the University of Central Florida, USA *
The Visual Novel as a video game genre is widely recognizable and impactful, deceptively simple in its presentation and tricky to truly pin down in its entirety. This book is a great resource for anyone interested in learning more about the rich history of Visual Novels, and how they have through their creators, players, content, media mixing, design, and development made an undeniable mark on modern day video game culture. An interesting read for game scholars, veteran players, and newcomers alike. * Elin Carstensdottir, Assistant Professor of Computational Media, University of California, Santa Cruz, USA *
Table of ContentsPART 1: History and Interactivity 1. Introduction: The Ludic Genre Devoted to Stories Meets Postmodernism 2. Digital Books of the Rising Sun: Cultural and Technological Factors Leading to the Remediation of Manga and Anime 3. Assembling the Nest: Cultural Vehicles that Incubated Visual Novels
PART 2: Subgenres and Tropes 4. The Aesthetics and Functions of Kawaii (Cute)Culture and Dating Simulators 5. Detective Stories, Labyrinthian Puzzles, and Supernatural Horror (Oh, My!): The Rising Popularity of Mystery Visual Novels and Japanese Adventure Games 6. Intimacy, Uncensored Pixels, and Groundhog Day Porn Loops: Erotic Visual Novels and Adult Content
PART 3: Fan-Creators, Open-Source Software, and Genre-Melding? 7. Rise of the Fan/Gamer/Creator: How Open-Source Software Influences a New Generation of Visual Novel 8. Conclusion: The Future of Visual Novels: How Genre-Melders Keep the Dream Alive
Appendix A: The Visual Novel-Adventure Game Starter Kit Ludography Index
