Visual Novel Review: a2 ~ a due ~

6/12/2013


This is the second visual novel I've downloaded from the Google Play Store, and I have to say, if all visual novels are as good as this, then my phone's 12GB memory will surely be filled with VNs.

It's been years since rocker girl Sona Song last talked to her father, a famous classical music conductor. So she's shocked, and a bit annoyed, when he leaves his orchestra to her after he dies. Though Sona just wants to slack off, she's soon visited by Yin Le Hao, her father's musical protégé from China. Hao doesn't speak any English, but he's determined to whip the orchestra into shape no matter what. 

A2 ~a due~ is a story about music. Music and everything that comes with it.

I am shamefully guilty of not downloading this when I first saw it. :( I am so sorry! It's just that, even though I love music, "rock" is not my style (unless you count Tokio Hotel as rock hahaha) and in the LSF screenshot, it showed that Sona is... a "tough" (literally) girl type, so I guess I kinda overlooked the fun factor in this. 


For weeks it was on my bookmarked to-download list, although I never did manage to really download it. It was only when I was browsing through the app store in my phone when I saw this and thought, "Hey, wasn't I planning to download this before?" Since (unfortunately) download speeds on my phone are quicker, I downloaded it for Android.

And you know what guys? Don't repeat my mistake. ^^

The story is one of the best stories I've ever read. I mean it. And I mean this in a non-romantic way. Hahaha. If S-Morishita's A Troll's Fairy Tale was one of the best romantic VNs ever for me, then this one is... well... I don't know what to call it yet, but it's really, truly good. The story is captivating, and it made great use of the musical references and Chinese dialogue (yes, it contains Chinese! <3 It's a language-lover's dream come true) that made it shine so much brighter than diamonds in my eyes.

At first, it started out pretty slow, but when Ye Lin Hao, the Chinese cutie in glasses, appeared, things started getting interesting.

(Warning! Spoilers ahead!)
Sona, although of Chinese descent, doesn't know how to speak Chinese. Apart from words like "Bye" and "Practice", at least. And Hao can't speak English. Disaster, right?

Well, not really, since it made this story so much more unique. The language barrier between the two proved to make sweeter moments, and I found myself thoroughly engulfed in the storyline. In the part where Hao was being teased by the other orchestra members and Sona defended him, I truly felt sympathy for both of them. And in the part where Gerald Ko's amazing We Are Legend started playing and Hao began telling Sona, in halting English, about her father's love for her, I totally cried. Ugh. And I mean totally cry. Like, I was making cry-cry sounds. Sheesh. Maybe it's because I've always been a daddy's girl and I can't believe how she "hated" her father so much.

It seems silly that my favorite stories are always the ones that make me cry, but I guess it's because I only cry because of "extreme" things, and when a story is so good that I cry at the heartfelt moments, then that's proof that it managed to capture my heart. <3 Like this one. <3

All good things have to come to an end though, and although the ending was really wonderful, I'm a bit disappointed that... Hao had to go back to China. :( And like with her father, Sona never actually told him her feelings, and vice versa. I kinda teared up a little at the end too, because of that. I really wish they meet again someday. *sigh* (Goshdarnit, I wish there would a sequel! Sequel! Even just a mini-story! Sequeeeeel!)

(End spoilers)

Anyway, there goes my schoolgirl ranting. On to the... err, "proper" review.

Likes:
- The story. THE STORY. Please read my fangirling above for more info. :)
- Well, this story was heavily attached to music, so, of course, one of the things I loved is the music. <3 Especially the theme song, We Are Legend, by Gerald Ko. His voice is awesome. Ooooooh. I totally love it. I find myself going to the music gallery over and over again just to replay it. And that song still makes me have goosebumps. Haha. I just love it so much I made a separate post about it. All the other classical songs collection was also very nice, and very fitting for the scenes.
- I used to play the piano when I was younger, and I recognize some of the pieces here. And, some of the musical terms as well. I guess that, in itself, made me even more attached to this story.

- The art is really nice. <3 Although there are only 2 characters, I absolutely loved them. And the CGs. Ooooooooh. <3 Plus there are chibis. Chibis are always a plus for me. :3 And those chibis are not just cute, they're also sweet, because they were presented as handwritten notes used by Sona and Hao to overcome the language barrier.
- The incorporation of Chinese language in this story. I don't speak Chinese, although I do recognize some of the words here (in Latin alphabet haha), and it was really great to see it here. :)

- The extras! Hahaha. I love extras. <3 Oh, and according to the LSF thread, there's a translation mode! I really don't want to get the other endings because I'm happy with the ending I got but... oh well. :) There's a walkthrough, from Veebie's site.

Dislikes:
- None! This is one of my favorites now. <3
- Hm, come to think of it, I have a dislike. Why is there no sequel?! Huhuhu. </3 I wish they would meet again.

Okay, so that's all I have to say (and I had a lot. Hahaha) but anyway, I give this 10 out of 10 strawberries! Can I give this 11? Hahaha. :))


Please give it a try! I mean it! Music lover or not, I think there's a good chance that most of you can relate something in your lives to this story. <3 It's captivating, it's enchanting, it's beautiful. And like music, it conveys feelings well. So please, give this a try!

Lemmasoft thread. :")

P.S. This is a super late review. I played this on June 4, but we had classes on June 5, and I didn't have time to write a review until now, June 12, which is also our country's freedom day. <3 Happy Independence Day beloved Philippines!

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4 berries

  1. I love A2 too!

    ...and yes, a sequel is needed HNNNNGGG

    //fivesfellowfilipino

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oo nga e! Haha. There should be a sequel to this! It's just way too beautiful. <3 Haha.
    Thanks for dropping by, Ellone! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh, but they do meet again! If you get all three endings, there is an epilogue, and you can probably guess it's a happy one. ;) Get the other endings just for the sake of it, and you'll see. :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Really?! Oh, that's awesome! Thank you for the info Jadeitea! :) Although, I think I already got all the endings because I already unlocked the translations (which made the whole thing so much funnier! And more touching as well. :)) But I haven't seen the epilogue yet! :(

    Where could I find it...? :)

    ReplyDelete

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