Visual Novel Review: Cuttle Bone
2/27/2018
Name: Cuttlebone
Developer: Kuroonehalf
Date: May 17, 2015
Genre: BxG, comedy, romance, slice-of-life
One thing that’s surprisingly surprising about this visual novel is how polished the art is. This was done by just two people, take note. The sprites and the backgrounds are all quite high-quality and very pleasing to look at. I love how the backgrounds totally complement the sprites. Even the CGs are all very polished. The art is definitely this game’s strongest point, in my opinion.
Developer: Kuroonehalf
Date: May 17, 2015
Genre: BxG, comedy, romance, slice-of-life
STORY
I just love the relationship between Shu and Inami. Sure, it's not the kind of grand, sweeping love that we see in other love stories on the media, even in other visual novels, but, see, there's this kind of comfort in their relationship, after being close friends for so long. We don't see any evidence here of their romantic relationship, to be honest, but theirs is something that not all short-time romantic flings have: a sense of security, comfort, and contentment.
WRITING
I like how the whole visual novel is written. The writing feels very laid-back, same as how the two characters are. It definitely feels like you’re just looking into the story of two random people doing their own random thing in their daily lives. It’s a slice of life through and through, but a nicely written slice of life at that. Even though nothing particularly spectacular or outstanding happens, I didn’t feel bored at any point in the story.
ART
GUI
The GUI matches the theme of the game very well. It’s also easy on the eyes, and like the rest of the art, polished and well-done. I really, really liked all the summer-y feels this visual novel evokes.
MUSIC
Like everything else in Cuttlebone, it’s pretty laid-back too. I think we could’ve done with a bit more choices in the soundtracks though, as they sounded a bit too repetitive at times. Perhaps an addition of one or two more tracks could’ve solved this problem.
WRAP-UP
I honestly wish it was a longer, and also, the hopeless romantic in me sort of wishes that we had seen more of the romance between Shu and Inami, but I guess the open ending does work, somehow. We never really find out whether the two will end up together. It was like we were just given a glimpse into their lives, and it’s really all up to us to imagine what would happen next. And strangely, even though some part of me wishes for a definite resolution, I’m actually pretty happy with the ending.
Six out of 10 strawberries. It’s too short and the scenes are too mundane for it to actually make an impact or stay on my mind for long, but if you’re just looking for a lazy summer story to pass the time, Cuttlebone is a pretty good choice.
0 berries
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