iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

I desperately need to finish Control Resonance before GTA 6 comes out and destroys my free time.

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Maybe if you stripped out all the romance it would be more interesting, but there was something cloying about the characters that made me drop it. I was using this as my, “I’m too stoned to read anything deep before bed series.” But even that state of mind couldn’t help me power through.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I’m starting to think that maybe slice of life doesn’t translate well to visual novels. I love them in anime, where 12 episodes on a single topic seems to work quite well, but 15 hours for just the common route was making this tedious.

100

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

For the first time I have abandoned a visual novel with no plans to return. A Sky Full of Stars is a slice of life romance about an astronomy club obsessive and the four girls he wants to be a paternal figure to.

110

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Still, it’s hard to beat Key when it comes to the writing and the visuals so even an incomplete series is punching way above its weight class. I know there are follow ups to the story in Heaven Burns Red so I am slowly making my way through that gacha game to explore them.

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I will say that I was increasingly annoyed with the number of gay choices that included some character making a homophobic joke. Why give me 300 gay choices if the characters clearly uncomfortable with gay characters?

100

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Continuing with unintentionally reading all of Key’s visual novels, I have now completed “Angel Beats: First Beat”. There’s not much to this one, being incomplete, however the insane amount of dialogue options that subtlety alter the story are fascinating.

110

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

I feel suspenders most days. 😎

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Y’all’ve asked for those types of stories before. 😄

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

The textbox for reference.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Reading the remake of “Never7” and the original is clearly from an era before the ability to remove the textbox was popularized. The story is not about aliens invading earth to seduce our women. 😭

110

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

UuultraC has been completed. 1970s Showa Japan: What if “kaiju” was a sexually transmitted disease? Plays like a short film where there’s one concept taken to its furthest extent. A bit dream-like/Lynchian I really enjoyed this super gay story. And dear god is it beautiful.

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

Wow it’s almost been 10 years since the last mainline Mario game.

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

Sometimes a game understands what it is.

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

If I never hear “sailing to Cuba” again I’ll be a happy man. I swear my crew put that song on repeat.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

The only tough thing is Russian naming/nickname conventions. But with only 5 main characters it isn’t too much of a problem after the first hour or so. Highly recommended.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

Z.A.T.O. has been beaten. This may be my new recommendation for starting visual novels. It’s free. It’s about 6 hours long. What starts out as a slice of life mystery slowly turns into sci-fi existential horror. Unlike Song of Saya there’s no sexual horror crap to get in the way of a good story.

100

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

I downloaded every start up movie for steam deck. Most of them are terrible, even more of them have no title to the game it’s referencing. So it makes it really easy to pretend they’re like those fake ads you used to see in old video games. Makes me chuckle more often than not.

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

L♾️pers completed. I didn’t know Ryukishi07 had a bad visual novel. Now I do. Reads like an outline to an idea of maybe an okay visual novel. But the execution is pretty darn boring. It’s pretty at least, high Key production value, but a waste of the talent involved.

030

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

I respect what Mirror Moon did in popularizing Visual Novels by fan translating this beast, but it’s so antiquated at this point it’s not even really worth reading it as a historical piece. Unless you are a masochist completionist like myself go with the remake.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Tsukihime (2000) Review - You don’t need to read the original. The translation is bad, there is a total of about 5 minutes of music that loops constantly. The story is not very fleshed out (possibly an issue with the translation), and is very repetative even for Nasu.

110

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

I don’t just read visual novels.

120

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Example of the stellar Tsukihime 2000 translation.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Man, I’m kind of shocked by how well regarded the original Tsukihime is regarded. The translation is straight up trash. Been a struggle to push through it.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

I’ve read that the other 3 episodes are much better. But I’m definitely holding off on reading them. A shame that I picked up the whole series on sale or else I’d probably drop it. At least they’re very short. I don’t think I cracked 10 hours on the first one.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

Completed 9-Nine: Episode 1 Weirdly my first visual novel where it’s way more of a girlfriend simulator despite the plot being about runaway super powers. Did not like how… submissive the female lead was. “You’re so much cleverer than me I could never figure this out on my own.”

120

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

Mixtape was done in two sittings. Should have done it in one, it all flows together really well. Once you get over the fact that the main character is a teenager, she becomes a lot more likable. Brought me close to tears a couple times. Lots of laughs. Definitely targeting people my age.

030

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

I’ve never seen an uncanny valley on something not human until I saw the Star Fox 64 remake footage.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

I’ve been too focused on visual novels to give Eurovision the attention it needs. I’m going in semi-blind this year having only watched each music video once, listened to the Spotify playlist and couple times, and only taken very cursory notes on each song.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

Finished Steins;Gate. Most of my complaints are with the many dangling threads in the story. Seems to be resolved by the sequel and expanded universe. Not sure if that’s intentional or if enough people pointed them out that they fixed the holes. This one was overhyped but fun.

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

Tomodachi Life may get me to dust off the old Switch for the first time in years.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

Stella of the End has been completed. I think that will be my review of Clannad, I enjoyed it enough that I went into another game by the Key. I think I liked Stella better though. More focused and digestible. But both were excellent.

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

Crimson Desert is the type of game where you will walk up to a door and go, “huh?” And then you google. “That’s fucking dumb, how was I to know that the random stone on the ground was to be picked up and put into a basin when all other stones in the game are crafting materials?” For everything!

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

@portlandpolice.bsky.social could not figure out how to report these drivers so I’m doing it here. 4th and Burnside, went through red light crossed the bridge heading east. 1:16 pm, April 5th.

010

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

I have completed the beast that is Clannad. #exhausted

000

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Wild. 70 hours into Clannad and I finally get the opening credits.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

Marathon is 100% style over substance. To the point where, while there’s a lot of substance, it’s hard to see over all obnoxious style.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

After reading for 3 hours in a day I often go to bed annoyed that I didn’t read more.

120

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

I am in a new round of “what visual novel will win my attention next?” Current contenders: Rewrite+ Fate/Hollow Ateraxia Trails from Zero Steins;Gate Dies irea I’m pushing myself through Rewrite+ the hardest because I’ve yet to finish a Key game despite their pedigree.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

Read again as in maybe in 20 years I’ll reread this. It is definitely a marathon.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

I have completed Fate/Stay Night. It took me about a year of off and on reading. I really wish steam deck playtimes weren’t so broken. I know I didn’t beat this in 59 hours. I would read this again, which I guess makes this a 10 out of 10. Although I think each route could lose 3 days easily.

120

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

I’m so close to finishing Fate/stay night that it’s. All I’ve been reading. Normally I’d come back to it as a bit of fresh air after reading something terrible because the writing is so good. But now I’m at the point that my completionist tendencies are becoming annoyed that it isn’t done yet.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

A dungeons and daddies visual novel would rock.

170

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 10/12/2025

Rhythm Doctor is a game you play with your eyes closed until 2-2 when you give up in frustration. Cool music though, at least from the 4 levels I managed to stumble my way through.

020

Bacchus @paulbarber.bsky.social · 07/12/2025

Sounds like someone had a fun birthday.

010