Never got around to playing this game (even without translations) despite going through the second game first (I was shamelessly enticed by Chidori's character design and seiyuu), but with Aki-hen having been recently released, I figured now was a good time as ever to pick up this game.
When I started playing the second game, I already knew about Mayuri's disappearance, despite not having played the first game. Therefore, when I picked this game up, I felt like I already knew what to expect... but it was surprisingly more heart wrenching than I thought. Despite hating Mayuri's seiyuu in the beginning, I slowly grew to like her. Now she has become my favorite character along with Chidori.
Anyhow, I really enjoyed this game. So many things about this game make it easily one of my favorites, such as the writing style, references to literature, beautifully composed soundtrack, aesthetically appealing artwork, incredibly detailed characters and finally, I really love how everything was woven together so well. Although the mysteries were tacky in that they would typically play out in the same way every time, I thought it made the game all the more interesting (and especially since Innocent Grey seems to have a knack for incorporating mystery-genre elements into their games).
What I liked the most about the game was definitely the character development of Shirahane Suou. I found her character especially relatable, since I was practically the same as her when it came to social situations. It really impressed me how subtle her changes took place throughout the game. Little by little, the cowardly, ever-so-paranoid and always self-doubting Shirahane Suou took a couple steps closer towards something she originally thought was unattainable for her and closed the gap that separated her from her much-admired Amitié, Kousaka Mayuri. Although I started the game completely uninterested in the main character that reminded me much of myself, I finished it feeling nothing but compassion for Suou. I'm glad that the game revolved around her - a girl who deserves nothing but happiness and friendship.
As for the character of Kousaka Mayuri... I didn't have the best first impression about her, but I thought it was super interesting how relaxed and calm I felt towards her character. Like Suou, I quickly came to recognize the things she admired within Mayuri. She was sociable, humorous, honest, straightforward with her thoughts and highly respectable. On the outside, she seemed like the perfect girl who was easy to get along with, much like the protagonists that Suou admires from her books. But it took me halfway into the game to realize that even someone as unreachable as her was still, at the end of the day, just an ordinary schoolgirl. In my opinion, her character was beautifully written. Strong, but gentle and reliable, you could depend on a loyal friend like her for any occasion. However, she is not without fault, and it really shows in the later parts of the novel. As a random note, how she acted towards Suou after realizing her feelings for her was super adorable... and Rikka even noticed it immediately.
Overall, to me, the game was very enjoyable. Suou, Mayuri and Rikka were very interesting characters and very much so worth learning about. Given that the whole game was basically about Suou and how her surroundings have influenced her, I definitely love how it was played out. There were very few things that left a sour taste in my mouth, (one of these things being Mayuri's sudden disappearance... oh and I felt like I was sucker-punched right in the gut by Innocent Grey when I saw the ai ai gasa and expected what was to come) so I'm very pleased with the game.
It's time for me to replay the second game and then move onto the third. I'm super hyped for the final game in the series, but since 2017 is still so far away, it seems I will have to rely on these three games to keep me busy for a while.
