Welcome to JOAT Translations!
We are a small group of people working to bring more Visual Novels to English-speaking audiences, in this case by translating all of the titles in the Sukisho! franchise, a bizarre combination of about 30% fluff and 70% complete grimdark.
JOAT are currently translating the Sukisho! games, audio dramas, and novels.
This tumblr provides the latest news on all of our current projects, as well as links for all of our game/drama/novel releases.
You can download our patched version of the first game (First Limit) here!
We are currently in desperate need of active translators, so please contact us if you're interested!
Hi all! Plot asks above the cut, technical ones (and requested images) below the cut.
Aww, thank you/you’re welcome! ❤
I really wish I could give you a definitive answer about the next game, but I can’t.😪 It’s actually been over 10 years since we released that first one... crazy, huh?
The first game doesn’t have a Matsuri route, just a ‘friendship route’. Actually, all of the games are kind of like that... there’s endings like ‘you’re not alone, you know?’ in the fourth game where the final image is of those two, but iirc they never ‘hook up’ per se (not that that should stop you from shipping them, if you want to!)
I love Matsuri too! 😊 As for his white outfit... I assume you don’t mean his school uniform, so do you mean the one with the red lines on it? If so, that’s just his dramatic sense of fashion, I suppose. 😂
Nw! I’m not sure how to format pictures nicely in a text post, so I’ll put some CGs at the bottom for you. ❤ As for info... I never know what to say for big general questions like this haha, so I’ll throw some things out and hopefully something is interesting!
His birthday is 21st February and his blood type is AB. In the fourth game, he has two dogs called Kuro and Sora (lol). He got top marks in all his classes except Art and PE (though he still got 4/5 for both).
Sounds fun! 😊 Chris was a kid (another test subject) who met Nanami in the lab when he was working under Aizawa, and Chris developed an attachment to Nanami. Obviously when Nanami bailed, he bailed on Chris too, so they’ve not seen each other for a long time.
As for him being an anomaly... you’d have to elaborate on what you mean? He’s not in the first game and is only in the OVA (not the main anime), if that’s what you mean?
Technical/repetitive qus (and Sora/Matsuri CGs) below the cut:
Sorry, I don’t have that one!🙇♀️
Did you have a look at the account before asking? It’s on the first page only a few posts down...
Hi, I’ve checked all the download links and they seem to be working fine. Try Googling how to run .iso files or mount disks. You will likely need to download something like Virtual Clone Drive, and then you can ‘mount’ the .iso and it will act like a disk drive. From there you can play the same way as if you inserted a disk in your computer (if those are even a thing anymore haha. I come from a time before streaming~).
See above.
See above.
Glad to hear it! Thanks for letting me know. 😄 [I didn’t repost the messages you sent before this one but I got them!]
And here are some Matsuri/Sora pics (with the odd Nao) for the Matsuri Anon! 😊
Asks: 'Love' Triangles and the 'fake Matsuri' (Kirito)
Hi, I'm here. :)
Haha, I remember the conflicts on that. Practically it's own micro fandom drama.
Here's the facts as I understand them and you can draw whatever conclusions you will:
-Nanami and Aizawa were close friends (in school) first.
-They both meet Shinichirou when he (currently living in a nearby orphanage) enrols in their school.
-They both find him very interesting.
-Aizawa (a year older) graduates. Shi and Nana get closer/romantically involved.
-Nana worries about Shinichirou as his 'Minato' persona starts to emerge more often. Aizawa is also interested in this (albeit less gently lol).
-Nanami goes to work for Aizawa. Aizawa does 'a very bad thing' to Nanami. Nanami leaves and this results in the events of the game in regards to what happened to Sora and Sunao.
In the games, Aizawa shows sexual 'interest' (/violence, specifically) towards both of them at different points, though with Nanami it's debatable if that's done out of jealousy/spite (since Shinichirou doesn't seem to have any kind of reciprocal interest in Aizawa, but loves Nanami). With Shinichirou though, Aizawa says stuff like 'you were always mine'.... so his obsessive interest is less ambiguous.
Let me know if anything is unclear or you want more details! It's a complicated web lol, and that's just the pre-game stuff (in a nutshell).
Ah yes, Kirito! He's one of the only named characters who's completely absent from the anime. Simply put, he probably got cut for time/relevance. He's primarily a Mou Mattenai Yo character, and he's only in Rain an White Flower. Because of the Mou Matte connection, in White Flower, he's primarily involved in the (largely optional) Nagase/Gaku storyline. He's in love with Nagase, and is working for Aizawa to help Nagase (a wasted endeavour, since Nagase isn't remotely interested).
In Rain, he was an imposter Matsuri (so most of his sprites were just Matsuri's with turquoise eyes). He tricked Sora into putting on an explosive collar (!!) with a 6 hour timer on it (!!!!) for Aizawa, and then tasked him with finding/saving all the main characters' lives before the time ran out. And he seemed to have a jolly good time doing so. Kind of a magnificent bastard!
Well.... I certainly have them, so they do indeed exist! 😊 CG packs for all 4 games have been ripped, though I'm only aware of sprite/background rips for the latter 2 games. As for soundtracks, I'm not sure if they exist for the games, though there is an official sountrack for the anime, and a bunch of image songs for the characters (notably exempting one for Nanami, because Ishida Akira said that 'no-one should pay money for his singing' 😂).
Are you the same anon above? I know this ask is nearly a year old (annual reminder to please send asks with accounts so I can reply privately rather than waiting until I have a batch to post publicly), so not sure if you're still seeing this/looking for it!
Hmm I would suggest trying to run it in compatibility mode for an earlier version of Windows (XP would be my suggestion), and also trying to run it as admin (both can be done from right click->properties). The applications themselves should've 'extract' though- after you've unzipped the original file, the games should be executable.
Honestly, at this point I really can't promise anything. It was partially translated, so either I'll pick it up myself one day, or see about a partial release. But the issue for years was simply that we couldn't find a translator (hence my joke that it would take so long I'd end up getting good enough to translate it myself.... and here we are. xP)
I'm here. :) But unfortunately I don't have rips of the game's soundtrack. Probably doable but I guess no-one has thought to do it (that I'm aware of). It's possible the ones you liked were among those reused for the anime, so you might be able to find them in the soundtrack for that! And thank you for your appreciation, you're welcome! ❤️
How to download? You just click the download button? 😅 Maybe the link is outdated... let me know if you're still around and that's the case, and I'll check it for you.
Looks like the links that are two posts down still work!
Hi! :) You should be able to just unzip and play, provided you change your computer's locale to Japanese first. You may need to run it in compatibility mode for an older OS like XP or '98.
I have capture guides in .pdf format for 2-4, if that works? :) Not made by me, but the original source seems dead.
Today I’m replying to asks from up to year ago. No idea if the askers/anyone will ever see the replies though (sound off if so!)
I do have them! I would have to check what’s allowed to be uploaded on Tumblr (length/size wise). There’s a lot of them though!
I don’t see why not. :) Should function the same as on a desktop.
Aww, thank you for the continued support! I do have them, yes. Are you still looking for them?
As for the last games I posted... do you mean the RAWs? I believe 2 should run like 1, whereas 3 and 4, the .iso should be ‘mounted’ or burnt to a disc (you can google how to handle .iso files for more detailed instructions and suitable programmes to use. :) )
Aww, thank you! So sorry it took so long to reply.
It’s not really ‘active’, but I do keep an eye on it. I might switch to another platform where I’m already active for ease, but I’ll always at least keep an eye on asks here. As for the project in general, it’s not been discarded or anything, but has been stalled for a long time due to lack of translators.
Honestly not sure, I’d have to load up the game and have a read haha. I know in WF Sora has conversations with Yoru ‘in his heart’ (which Sora finds really strange, and I think Yoru says is actually drug induced)... so it’s probably similar logic.
Hi! I added it to the post below this one a while ago (I was the one who didn’t have hands on it at the time, but I’ve since found it). :) Congrats on getting all the routes in the first game! :)
Probably after moving platform. :’) And even then, it’s probably response dependent...
Sure! What kind of thing? Birthdays? Height/Weight? Favourite things? That kinda thing?
It would be kind of odd if I hadn't, no? 😉
I don't know anything about anyone else doing a playthrough, so I couldn't comment on why it was taken down. But if it was, it was either due to copyright (unlikely), or because of adult content (likely). Unfortunately, we'd likely run into the same issue if we were to upload it ourselves.
Anything we do we will post on here! :) And I will try to put some facts together to share. I can probably find some stuff in my own guidebooks to translate (I can't translate the games myself but something like that I could handle!) And thank you, I'm glad that you enjoy the blog! :D
No, it's not the same at all. 😂 Target Nights is the second game in the series, it's a totally different story. There are PS2 versions of the first two games, but with the adult content removed/hugely toned down, and voice acting added.
Spoilery questions/answers under the cut.
Sunao downs lethal poison and gets Sora to do the same. It's a race against time/each other for one of them to get hold of the antidote.
-I believe so, yes. Ran is basically gone pre-White Flower (much to Yoru's disdain), whereas Yoru stays a bit longer. This all depends on what ending you get though, of course. I'm referring to true endings throughout.
-Not sure about that one, I'm not sure if they ever elaborate on it. But they might, we'll have to wait and see as the translations happen! But as it's from Sora's perspective, and he doesn't share memories with Yoru, we may not find out.
-There sure is lol. It's huge spoiler territory, so I'll just say that they had parents and they all died.
They were threatening the chibis, and Sunao volunteered to take their place. :'(
Yes and no (literally). The website (sadly) won't be coming back; its host removed their free website model and we weren't willing to pay to keep it. This is our primary home now.
Regarding the audio dramas, it's definitely on our to-do list, and as soon as our translator translates more of it, we will release it! As always, it just comes down to what we have translated.
I do! It's one of my all-time favourite anime. :) I have a Top 4 list that it is firmly on. My thoughts on it remain unchanged, I just wish there was more of it to enjoy game-wise, which of course is on us!
Spoiler and TW qus/answers below the cut.
Is this ask following up on me being vague here? To be candid, he leaves after Aizawa rapes him (followed by Shinichirou encouraging him to leave).
Yep! Basically. Aizawa is petty and vengeful.
.Haha I don't think so! I've not seen it mapped out though, so there may be more death endings than I'm aware of (especially because of the 'death game' in WF. I suppose you could assume he dies in the endings where he just vanishes. I could be wrong though!
Yoru shows him bits and pieces of his memories in the first two games, so it's not an all-at-once thing. But the 'big reveal' memory (the one with the big chained door like in the anime) comes out in Rain. The memory itself isn't something that's in the anime though- that plot point was altered.
I just uploaded the Love Stories Audio Drama (no. 7) for a signed ask, and it's available here for a couple of weeks if anyone else wants it. :)
I’m still here if that’s what you mean! :) Just as I’ve said a few times- if I get questions via anon rather than signed, then I have to wait until I have a bunch so that people don’t get spammed by me replying to every single one individually.
I love how this ask assumes I am a fandom oldie, especially because it's true it didn't really air in the west afaik, it was straight to DVD. Although I believe most people watched a fansubbed version prior to that. It was one of those... everyone into BL saw it because the options were limited. So it would've gotten some love purely on the basis of that (though 'big fandom' is relative). The lj fandom for it was reasonably active and steady, but like many fandoms, died with lj (well, a bit before tbh).
If you mean the Japanese fandom I couldn't really comment... but it must have been reasonably popular to spawn 4 (+1) games, an anime, audio dramas, novels etc.
Not to be the bearer of bad news, but I truly think there's no chance of that. It's been a very long time since there's been anything new and it's not had much of a lasting influence in terms of fandom. I also know for fact (I didn't sign an NDA we're cool) that the the company that owns the rights are not interested in licencing it, and seem to want to focus on their newer properties. I don't have reason to think the creators are denying its existence or anything, just moved on to other things.
And thank you so much, I'm happy we can help spread the Sukisho love. <3
Screencapping them all takes too long (and it’s a little annoying when I’ve been sent the same question repeatedly... if I haven’t replied yet and there hasn’t been another ask post, please assume I’ve already got it and will reply eventually! Or send me a non-anon ask). :)
Sorry as always for the delay.
Novel/game info under the cut, some personal opinions I was asked for, plus one novel scan. Only one spoilery answer, clearly marked and at the very bottom.
When we did FL, I calculated it as the main ones being 17 at the start and either 18 by the end of the first game or by the second game (I can’t remember which). No idea about the older ones, realistically they’d have to be (at least) in their 30s somewhere. There’s a time skip of 4 years between Rain and WF, so the main ones would be at least 22 (I’m not sure how much of a gap there is between the other games, but you could probably add a year or two to that).
I don’t have any of the novels scanned in full- I have a fair few of the illustrations as scanned by other people (I’ve picked them up over the years). I think I only own one of the novels myself to photograph (I’d have to pull them apart to scan them and I’m not willing to do that!)
Nw! :) The anime is doing its own thing, so the ending is the ending (and of course, what happens is that they all lived happily ever after ;D (except Aizawa, he can burn)). The novels are more aligned with the game’s canon.
“I would love to see you post official art, guidebooks and maybe even more info about the characters? Facts or something like that? It would be interesting...”
Noted! You’ll have to forgive me for my lack of posts, everyone. Keep poking me if I don’t. Random facts sound like a cute idea for a post... maybe a fact/pic of the week kinda setup haha.
“can you please explain more about Shinichiro x Namani past and everything that has happened between them”
I think I covered a bit of this in the last ask set, in the question about Aizawa and Nanami. In addition:
-Shinichirou and his brothers were at an orphanage near where Aizawa and Nanami went to school (which Shin attends too)
-A/N both found him fascinating for some reason
-They go to different universities but are already in love at this point
-They reconnect after an um incident between A and N, S takes him home with him
-Blah blah they meet the kids and then the game happens :)
“Are you still translating Sukisho novel???”
I haven’t heard from the people who were meant to be working on that in years, so it’s probably a no right now, sorry. :(
“How would you rank Sukisho characters and why?”
Objectively or personally? Because my taste is flawless and correct Sunao is my personal fav. :) I’d have to think hard to rank further than that... I used to put Sora second but I’m not sure now. If I had to quickly speed rank the most main characters right now (so as not to be a let down, although my opinion may be a letdown to you, anon!): Sunao>Ran>Matsuri>Sora>Nanami>Yoru>Shinichirou>Gaku>Aizawa>Nagase
I’M SORRY NAGASE FANS, I NEVER UNDERSTOOD THE APPEAL. Also, I discluded Minato (despite including other split personalities, I have my reasons), but if I’d included him he’d have probably been dead last, lol.
Oh wait, you also said ‘why’. Well, maybe if you have a followup about any specific ordering choice just send me another ask? :)
“can you tell us about Tarinai Kotoba?”
“please tell us more about Tarinai Kotoba story”
“Tarinai Kotoba novel is about Shinichirou and Nanami right? are you able to tell us what happens in it? likee any important parts if you have read it”
Now, I know three different people didn’t all ask me about TK one after another. ;) When I get loads of messages, it means I have to find an even bigger chunk of time to reply, so then you end up waiting longer. Please be patient with me!
Anyway, from what I recall/know, TK is basically just fluff with S/N and the kids (when they were little). It’s a pre-game story. It’s three chapters of fluff and then a chapter of porn. Honestly it’s not particularly plot heavy, just a nice little slice of life story.
An image from the novel for you, anon!
SPOILERS
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“Is Sunao/ Ran suicidal?”
He definitely is in WF. Prior to that, I guess it’s debatable, but he does suicidal things like drinking lethal poison for a game and setting fire to buildings while he’s still inside them, so I’d say he’s apathetic about living at best.
As mentioned before, for quicker responses, please send signed asks... otherwise anonymous asks get stored up to prevent spamming people’s dashboards. :)
Spoilers under the cut, but I’ve put the non-spoilery asks at the top and will warn before veering into spoiler territory.
Not sure what you mean! The side story ones?
I wouldn’t say one specific person created Sukisho, though I’m guessing you mean Yuzu Tsutae (the artist/character designer)?
She’s been involved in a couple of other games (info here), and she has a blog here. I couldn’t find any social media for her (at least not under this name).
Thank you for your kind words, and you’re very welcome! ^^ Best of luck with your studies!
You can either buy it second hand (e.g surugaya via a proxxy), or try and see if a download site like aarinfantasy has it.
Uh, actually I just checked, and I have it. So if you still want it and can’t find it elsewhere anon drop me a line. :)
ETA: Uploaded here. :)
Hahaha I feel like I’m not allowed to answer this, almost. xD The anime is one of my all-time favourites with an amazing cast list (that is not in the regular versions of the games).... plus it doesn’t have some of the less pleasant elements from the games.
So those are my thoughts without directly answering. ;) At the end of the day, they’re totally different media so it’s hard to compare them!
Thank you! :) You could check out the audio dramas (some of which are translated on my YT); the anime of course; there is a fan-translation of a short manga Yuzu Tsutae wrote (but didn’t draw). And of course all the fanworks out there. :)
Thanks for your support! I haven’t gone anywhere, just got overwhelmed with all the anon asks and busy with other things (including some stuff related to the games, watch this space ;) ).
If you have any suggestions for things you’d like to see posted on here between games, feel free to send them over! I have a lot of official art/novel scans/sketches/guidebooks and that sort of thing, if that’s the kind of content you mean!
SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT
Sounds about right! There are some post-game sidestories and audio dramas I believe, so the answers are there. The last bit (about Sunao and Aizawa) just sounds like the regular games though!
a) Probably for sexy reasons
b) To protect the chibis :’)
There’s no indication that he did; Aizawa probably has enough pull to make it happen, esp as him and Nagase both work there.
The parents (Sunao’s, anyway), are definitely shown (both as discussed), and it’s actually a really big plot point (the anime went a different route so it’s a divergence from that).
Also Sora’s parents are clearly Nanami and Shinichirou anyway.
Could be any number of reasons! You’d have to be more specific, which drama cd?
Because he basically thought he was a lost cause, so murder/suicide was the kinder approach. :’) Super grim.
Oh BOY. xD
Yes- although I will say that, back in the day, there was a lot of fighting about what the correct interpretation was, so without pulling out some source material and checking it myself, I can’t say with absolute certainty who was right on the minor details, so here’s my best attempt to stick to the facts:
-Nanami/Aizawa went to school together (one year apart) and were besties (oop)
-After school, Nanami starts working with Aizawa because he thinks it will help Shinichirou (and his MPD)
-Aizawa does some gross shit to Nanami (what a delight of a person)
-Because of this, Nanami leaves with Shinichirou
Those are the key Aizawa/Nanami specific backstory bits! Ftr, Nanami was around for a lot of the shady stuff Aizawa did, which is why I always consider him to be quite shady too! He gets away with a lot.
In English? I’m afraid those haven’t been translated (just side-stories and summaries here and there, though not by us). Sorry!
Honestly? No, I think there is zero chance of it getting a reboot. It’s just not a big enough property, and they haven’t done anything with it in literally 15+ years.
As for whether it should.... I mean, new Sukisyo is always good! :) But also, I think what he have is already really good, and there’s no way we’d be able to secure the same stellar cast if they did it now (certainly not Ishida Akira). So I’m pretty happy with just rewatching the show as is! :)
Try running it in compatibility mode for 98 or XP? Your best bet is to read through the previous asks on here (check the tag) and see if there’s anything there you can try, cos there’s a whole bunch of things it could be. I hope something works for you. :)
When I try to download I only get a file, not a game, what do I do to run the game?
Sorry for the delay, anon. Busy time! Did you figure it out? If you downloaded the prepatched version (linked in our sidebar), there should be an unzippable .rar file (just use any unzip programme to open it) and an .exe file that you should be able to run the game with. If you just have a .ini file, then that is the patch without the game, which we don't recommend as it doesn't translate any images.
Hello! I'd like to thank you for translating Sukisho because thanks to you, I fell in love with it :D. My (perhaps dumb) question is, do you know where the savefiles are located?
Huh, you know I’m not sure! I usually just copy over the whole data folder if I want to transfer saves over, although it could also be the sukisyo1.dat file, looking at the ‘date modified’s on my copies. Sorry I don’t have a better answer for you, but glad to hear you love the game! :)
Oh, you mean this thing?
Sure do! It may come as a surprise, but that’s major spoiler territory! So the answer is under the cut. :)
Iiiiiiit’s a camera so Aizawa can keep an eye on everything that’s going on. Which is…. super gross considering how many sex scenes that thing is in.
Some of these are extremely belated, so very sorry to those people! If you have an account, please consider sending asks off-anon, that way I can get back to you quicker rather than waiting until I have a whole bunch to do at once.
I have a copy but it isn’t currently uploaded. Are you still looking for a copy? Aarinfantasy probably have an active link, but let me know if you need to me to upload/retrieve a link.
The manga was translated maaaaaany years ago by another scanslation group and we have no plans to retranslate their work. As for the novels, we did have a novel division after we absorbed another translation group, sadly thought we don’t have anything new on that front.
Amateur as in ‘not a professional’: yes, amateur as in ‘just starting to learn’: unfortunately no. :(
They’re not, sorry. :( Still need a translator.
Thank you so much! This was a really nice message to get. :) The core team haven’t given up and we don’t intend to.... we’ll get the games out one day, we just don’t know when. Worst case I’ll translate them myself when I’m good enough to! But they will absolutely get done, eventually.
Nope. :( We get interest occasionally but then it just never goes anywhere.
Thank you, I hope you’re doing well too! Sadly, as above, nothing yet. :(
Aww thank you! I’m really glad that you enjoyed First Limit. Hopefully one day you can play the rest too! <3
We’re inactive in the sense that nothing is happening. As I’ve said repeatedly, we’re severely lacking a translator, and there’s really nothing we can do without one. It’s honestly at the point where my joke that ‘at this rate, these games won’t get translated until I get good enough to do it myself’ may end up coming true.
We’re active in the sense that the core group members are still around, and we’re ready and willing to restart as soon as we get something else to work with. Alas, right now we have nothing.
Okay, besides doing this to shower you with my unending love and devotion, because God do I love you guys! I also want to ask for some... Instructions, per se. You see, I've managed to get ahold of all Sukisyo games in japanese, but I just can't seem to find the last two CGs of Rain. I know I'm somehow supposed to twist the Kaitou end into a past, or memory, iteration, but all guides have so far failed me. If you know how to get them, would you mind telling me? Please and thank you!
Hi anon!
Aww, thank you for the love! <3 Unfortunately I can’t help you with the CGs for Rain, we’ve not mapped that one out yet. I hope you manage to figure it out! If not, I can certainly provide you with the pictures themselves.
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