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Anime Review: Shuffle!
“With so many girls it is hard to choose just one”
Note: This review is based off the original release singles of the series and not the current release.
Plot Synopsis:
When two doors are discovered in an ancient ruin, the gateways to shinkai, the realm of the shinzoku (Gods) and makai, the realm of the mazoku (Demons) are irreversably opened. The races of human, shinzoku, and mazoku come together in the mortal world and nothing will ever be the same. One day, two new families move next door to a boy who had previously been living a very peaceful life. In one house lived the family of the King of the Gods, and in the other lived the family of the King of the Demons. Both families had one daughter whose single wish to live next to the boy they had fallen in love with years ago has just been fulfilled. Also living with the boy is his childhood friend. With these three girls vying for his affections, the boy finds that his new life filled with despair, jealousy, and just a little hope is beginning.
Plot:
Harem shows usually fall into one of two groups with anime fans, they either like them or they dislike them. There is no grey area with harem shows it is black or white. Most of the time you can say that most harem shows all follow a similar formula and do not do much to deviate from the standard formula. However there are a few those that do change things up a bit and make it a standout in the genre. Shuffle! is just one of those shows that does change things up and be one of the better shows in the genre.
Well, let me rephrase this in a different way. If Shuffle! was just twelve or thirteen episode series instead of twenty-four episodes I could be safe to say that Shuffle! would just be another show in the genre that does nothing to separate itself from the pace. Why is that you ask? This has to do with the first half of the series which follows a lot of aspects that we see in other shows of the genre. The first few episodes set up the world that our cast lives in and introduces us to cast members including the girls of the harem and the side characters. Right after these introduction episodes we have several episodes that focus mostly on each of the girls in the harem and if you have seen any harem anime before you would be able to recognize these episodes as they do nothing to set them apart from other shows. One weak point with these introduction episodes is that the world of Shuffle! is never fully explained. We understand that the portals to the worlds to the gods and demons were opened, but how did they get opened? How did the initial meeting between humans the demons, and gods go? Or more specifically why did both groups decide to come to the human realm and not stay in their own perspective worlds? I understand that this is a harem show so the girls are the focus of the series, but some information about the world the cast lives in would have been great.
Upcoming Animes. Well, Not Really. Part 2
Anime is the enemy! Credit: Mike Peters
Upcoming Animes. Well, Not Really. Part 2
1. The Daikaiju of Haruhi Suzumiya (American release title: Haruhi vs Godzilla)- A humungous closed space forms just north of Tokyo, & something other than “blue meanies” is stomping around inside. This, as a result of Haruhi retiring after an extended bout with some bad movies & a peanut butter & anchovy pizza. Itsuke & company have more than their hands full.
2. In a universe…..threatened by the ultimate evil…..comes the ultimate heroine.
FAN SERVICE IN SPACE!
Well. She is ultimate after all.
3. Nagakohime- He…..was a future world leader.
The Fujiwara sisters….. were part of his entourage.
She…..was the brash tomboy wanting to tag along.
He…..was at first, turned off, then amused.
They…..tried to disuade her.
She…..would not be denied!
Just another dumb romance/harem anime, right?
For those who get the joke, no explanation is needed. For those who don’t, crack open a history book.
4. Easy Rider Kino- After Kino meets up with Wyatt, Billy, & George, she finds one doesn’t necessarily need a motorad to take a trip. She also spends more than 3 days/2 nights in the Big Easy.
5. Curley, Larry, & Moe’- Moe is out of town & his niece stops by for a visit. Can two stooges cope with a sickenly cute little girl whose disposition is nastier than her uncles’? Soitenly! (NOT!) Nyuk! Nyuk! Nyuk!
6. Paprika Parsley Sage Rosemary & Thyme- Mrs. Tokita? I believe you’re trying to seduce me.
7. Shuffle! Cut! Deal!- Who dealt me this mess?
8. Heck Girl- “You will never know the joys of Heaven. You will wander through a world of aggravation & whiney annoyance. There to remain for eternity.”
9. Full Metal Panic Attack Fumoffu- Due to budget cuts at Mithril, any damage to the school will be paid for out of Sagaras’own pocket. He will owe way beyond death.
10. Attack of the Killer Cicadas- If you watch anime, you know they’re out there. Mostly heard, rarely seen. Watching. Waiting. Massing to strike. Sequel to The Cicada That Ate Kyoto.
Article copyright © 11-9-2010 Jay Agan
This article originally posted on Jays’Tee Vee.
Visual Novel Review: Shuffle!
Shuffle! is a visual novel released by Navel. It’s a rather typical example of any visual novel with branching scenarios and multiple endings. It is an adult game, due to a couple sexual scenes. however, there was a clean version released that would be fine for younger audiences.
Shuffle! is the first of the series. There is also Tick! Tack!, Really? Really!, and Love Rainbow.
An extended special version of shuffle called Essence + was also made, and there is a supposed spin-off game called Shuffle! House.
So anyways, not being able to write a very interesting or informative plot description, I will leave it to wikipedia this time.
Plot: The story takes place in a fictional universe where humans live in harmony with gods, resembling humans with slightly pointed ears, and devils, who have more prominently pointed ears. Despite their respective positive and negative connotations, both races are equally kind and good-natured. Ten years prior to the story, the gateway between the worlds of the gods and devils were opened, and since then, people from all races have been immigrating between the worlds. The characters attend the multi-racial high school, National Verbena Academy in Kōyō-chō .
Shuffle! contains a leitmotif of allusions to flowers. All of the characters’names are references to flowers in some way, mostly genera of flowering plants. Additionally, in Japan, every day has a special flower associated with it, which in turn are associated with certain characteristics. This is called hanakotoba, or “language of flowers”. All of the characters’birthdays and personalities correspond with the flowers of their respective days. For example, the high school that the series takes place in, National Verbena Academy, refers to the genus Verbena, which has connotations of cooperation.
Visual Novel Review: Shuffle!
Shuffle! is a visual novel / H-game developed by Navel in 2004. Like many other games of its kind, Shuffle! involves you, the main character, making various decisions. The decisions that you make determine which one of the girls you end up with.
The girls of Shuffle! From the left: Nerine, Kaede, Primula, Asa, and Sia
STORY
Ten years ago, the door connecting the Human World, the Devil World, and the God World opened. As a result, Gods and Devils now reside among humans in everyday life. Surprisingly, they all seem to accept and get along with each other. It’s much different from what you’d expect, and it’s highly unrealistic, but after some getting used to, I came to accept it.
You play as Rin, the main character and male lead of the game. Rin has been living with his childhood friend Kaede for many years. Both of Rin’s parents and Kaede’s mother died in a fatal accident when they were young, and they have been living toegther with Kaede’s dad ever since. One day while walking home, Rin runs into two girls who somehow know his name. He seems to vaguely remember them from somewhere, but can’t quite put his finger on it.
The next day he finds out that the two girls are new transfer students in his class. On top of that, the girls’fathers are the King of Gods and the King of Devils, which essentially makes them the princesses of the God and Devil worlds. They also claim that they met Rin eight years ago and have loved him ever since. Their fathers have decided that one of the girls will marry Rin, and that Rin has to choose which one: either Lisianthus (called “Sia” for short), the princess of the God World, or Nerine, the princess of the Devil World.
Overall the story is your typical cliché harem with mild supernatural elements added. It’s mostly nothing new, but it’s still lighthearted, fun, and enjoyable. There are plenty of comedic scenes, and there’s more than enough fanservice to keep one entertained.
By the way, SIA IS SUPERIOR
CHARACTERS
As one would expect, the vast majority of the game’s cast is female. Other than Rin, another main male character is his close friend Itsuki, who serves mostly a comedic role. He’s the typical “player” character who’s always talking about how beautiful all the girls in school are, acting like a total pervert all the time.
There are five main female characters in the game, and depending on the path you take, one of them will become your girlfriend. However, the story isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Each of the girls has her own secrets, or a hidden past, which you will learn more about as you get closer to her. Some of the stories get very emotional and are done well, while others are over-exaggerated. Overall though, these emotional “sob stories” help to develop the characters and will make one feel sorry or “moe” for them.
GAMEPLAY
Gameplay is just like that of any usual visual novel. There’s plenty of reading to do, just as if you were reading an actual novel. The main difference, of course, is that you can control how the story unfolds by making various choices, which will determine your fate. In the typical dating sim fashion, acting favorably towards one girl will improve your chances of her becoming your girlfriend later on in the game.
One thing that disappointed me was a lack of keyboard functions. While most people play visual novels with their mouse, I actually prefer to map various keyboard functions to a PS2 controller and play with that. However, without keyboard functions, I couldn’t do that.
What really upset me, however, was the game’s shoddy translation. The game was translated by MangaGamer.com, a new company that specializes in English-translated bishoujo games. Having spent a decent amount of money on the game, I was expecting a high-quality translation with perfect grammar. Unfortunately, I was very wrong. The errors are a-plenty, ranging all the way from simple grammar errors to words being missing from sentences. Clearly, no one proofread this, and that’s really upsetting. Despite this, it’s still possible to understand what’s going on. The errors aren’t all that serious, but the fact that they even exist in a “professional” translation is what bothers me.
A typical day in Shuffle!
VISUALS & SOUND
As expected from a visual novel, the voice acting is superb. Especially during the… naughty scenes. ^_^ The music is nothing special really. Typical visual novel music. But it helps set the mood.
The art, however, is where Shuffle! really shines. The art is incredible and very detailed, and may very well be the best anime art I’ve seen. I’ve actually been following the artist’s blog for quite some time. The artist, Aoi Nishimata, posts plenty of her artwork on her blog, so check it out.
OVERALL
All in all, Shuffle! is a fun game to play. It’s not incredibly entertaining, but it’s good for some light fun. While I am glad that the game did see an official US release, it’s sad that the distributors didn’t do a better job with its translation.
Any fan of harem anime that doesn’t mind hentai will certainly enjoy Shuffle!, so if you’re one of those people, be sure to pick up this gem. It’s available from MangaGamer.com for about $50.
Visual Novel Review: Shuffle!
Shuffle! is a visual novel / H-game developed by Navel in 2004. Like many other games of its kind, Shuffle! involves you, the main character, making various decisions. The decisions that you make determine which one of the girls you end up with.
The girls of Shuffle! From the left: Nerine, Kaede, Primula, Asa, and Sia
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