Useless rpg recs. A list of favorite visual novels (in order of how much I love them)
A small premise: this is a bit different from my usual useless recs posts, but I really just wanted to share some visual novels as I tend to not play that many - or well, I do play visual novels but I tend to often not enjoy them as much as other types of games. So I decided to share some rpg stories that are visual novels! All of these are queer (as in: they have lgbtq characters and/or a queer romance).
Sorcery! (1-4): (what to expect) Am I cheating? Maybe? This is mainly interactive fiction, where you also move through the map and choose where to go so maybe I am cheating, but this is one of my favorite games ever (and fav romance: Flanker). The story starts simple, a classic hero-journey, but adds some moral complexities later on. Amazing rpg, lots of choices, lots of consequences.
Chronicles of Tal'Dun: The Remainder: (what to expect) visual novel and interactive fiction with text. Amazing replayability, gorgeous art. The game is an exploration of the main mystery (what happened to you? why have you lost your memories?), the lore of the world (which you can put together bit by bit), and feelings of guilt and love. One of my favorite games.
I was a teenage exocolonist: (what to expect) rpg with exploration, and walking around the map so this is another game that is not fully a visual novel, and another of my favorite games. It also has a dating sim element as you can date different characters. You grow from childhood to adulthood, while exploring a planet. This game has so much, but I do not want to add any spoilers. Just know the soundtrack will make you cry.
Solstice: (what to expect) a more classic visual novel compared to the previous 3 games. You play as two characters (both have some romance, one romance is mlm) investigating a mystery revolving around a city locked in ice. The game feels a bit small for being set in a city (only a limited cast), but the investigation was very fun, and the art is absolutely gorgeous.
A date with death: (what to expect) dating sim, free game but you can buy the expansion for extra content. You can romance the Grim Reaper himself. The art is absolutely lovely, and I loved how funny some of the interactions were, plus there is enough story and mystery that I was pretty engaged (enough to play multiple times) trying to find out why the player character seemingly cannot die.
Our Life: Beginnings and always: (what to expect) dating sim, free game but you can buy extra content, and you can romance only one charater. This game lets you live your player character's life in moments, from childhood to adulthood. It added some interesting elements I have never seen in other dating sim (ex. the chance to set your relationship crush status and attitude!)
Salting the Earth: (what to expect) classic dating sim, but the setting is so interesting and the fact that this is a lesbian orc dating sim? Amazing. I played this multiple times trying to put together the small secondary mystery, but also just enjoying the unusual modern military setting and the ORCS.
Amarantus: (what to expect) classic visual novel rpg, amazing art, beautiful characters and multiple romances, alongside a polyamorous romance too! The romances and the characters were for me the best part of the game. The story was interesting enough but the game I think suffered a bit from the same problem of "Solstice": it felt a bit small for something that seemingly had such a big scope. Still, I played it multiple times and I was satisfied by the ending and the explanations too, and as I said: amazing romances.
Dream Daddy: (what to expect) maybe a bit different from the others, but this is such a fun dating sim! It is also the first dating sim I have ever played, if I remember correctly, so it has a special place. The little mini games through the dating routes were quite fun, but also I will always like dating sims hat do not use the same "dating rules" for every character.
Notable mentions:
