is a Japanese

visual novel A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustratio ...

developed by , and was originally released in Japan as an erotic game on January 27, 2006, for

Microsoft Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

. A

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...

version titled ''Yotsunoha: A Journey of Sincerity'', published by Gadget Soft with adult content removed, was released in 2008, and an English version for Windows was released by Sol Press in 2018. The story in ''Yotsunoha'' focuses on the appeal of the four female main characters. The

gameplay Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game. The term applies to both video games and Tabletop game, tabletop games. Gameplay is the connection between the player and the game, the player's overcoming of challenges, and t ...

follows a linear plot line, which offers pre-determined scenarios and courses of interaction. ''Yotsunoha'' has since then spawned two

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

titles, ''Osananajimi to no Kurashi Kata'' and ''Nono to Kuraso'', and has made several transitions to other media. A

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

adaptation illustrated by Japanese

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating the work of art. The most common usage (in both everyday speech and academic discourse) refers to a practitioner in the visual arts o ...

Bow Ditama is a Japanese manga artist and illustrator, best known for the creation of the '' Kissxsis'' series. His first major commercial work was in collaboration with writer Bunjūrō Nakayama as the illustrator of '' Mahoromatic''. He has been active ...

was first serialized in the '' Megami Magazine'' on January 30, 2008. It was followed by an

original video animation , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and special episodes of a series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the ...

series animated by

Hal Film Maker was a Japanese animation studio founded in August 1993 by former Toei Animation is a Japanese animation studio primarily controlled by its namesake Toei Company. It has produced numerous series, including '' Sally the Witch'', '' GeGeGe n ...

. This was released on two single-episode DVDs on February 29, 2008, and March 28, 2008. There were also two Drama CDs, and two

Internet radio Internet radio, also known as online radio, web radio, net radio, streaming radio, e-radio and IP radio, is a digital audio service transmitted via the Internet. Broadcasting on the Internet is usually referred to as webcasting since it is not ...

shows hosted by Yui Sakakibara in order to promote the game.

Gameplay

Gameplay Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game. The term applies to both video games and Tabletop game, tabletop games. Gameplay is the connection between the player and the game, the player's overcoming of challenges, and t ...

in ''Yotsunoha'' requires relatively little player interaction as most of the duration of the game is spent on only reading the text that appear on the screen, representing the

dialogue Dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog in American and British English spelling differences, American English) is a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people, and a literature, literary and theatrical form that depicts suc ...

between the numerous characters in the game. Similar to

role-playing video game Role-playing video games, also known as CRPG (computer/console role-playing games), comprise a broad video game genre generally defined by a detailed story and character advancement (often through increasing characters' levels or other skills) ...

s, the player is allowed to navigate through the school in a

top-down perspective A variety of computer graphic techniques have been used to display video game content throughout the history of video games. The predominance of individual techniques have evolved over time, primarily due to hardware advances and restrictions ...

, and is allowed to enter different areas such as classrooms. At times, the player will come to a point, where he or she is given the chance to choose to navigate through the school with different female characters. During so, gameplay pauses until the player makes a choice. Depending on the choices the player makes, different events might occur as the player enter different areas, effectively progressing the plot in a specific direction. There are four main plot lines that the player will have the chance to experience. To view all of the plot lines, the player will need to replay the game multiple times, picking different girls and access different areas to progress the plot in an alternate direction. One of the player's objective in the original version of the game is to view the hentai scenes depicting the main character Makoto having

sexual intercourse Sexual intercourse (also coitus or copulation) is a sexual activity typically involving the insertion of the Erection, erect male Human penis, penis inside the female vagina and followed by Pelvic thrust, thrusting motions for sexual pleasure ...

with one of the heroines.

Plot

Setting and themes

The main part of ''Yotsunoha'''s story takes place in an abandoned school named and its surrounding area. The school is a four-story building, housing facilities such as classrooms, the art room, the home economics room, and the light music club's room. There is also a small field outside of the school building, housing the small garden where the characters buried their time capsule prior to their separation. Childhood friendship plays an important role in the story. Throughout the story, characters are constantly reminded of their childhood memories by different locations in the school. This is further expressed by the characters' emotions before and after their separation, and the time capsule they have buried.

Principal characters

; :''Voiced by:'' Hideki Tasaka (OVA) :Makoto is the male protagonist of ''Yotsunoha''. Despite being friendly, and always thinking for his friends before himself, he has trouble of expressing his feelings to others. Makoto choose Nono over everyone else before she left. ; :''Voiced by:'' Yui Sakakibara :Nono is the main heroine of ''Yotsunoha''. Despite being one year younger than Makoto, she is really helpful, taking tasks such as cooking and homemaking for Makoto and Iori, who lived next door to her prior to their separation. She moved to the

Kansai region The or the lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The metropol ...

after the school's closure. ; :''Voiced by:'' Junko Kusayanagi (game),

Yūko Gotō is a Japanese actress, Voice acting in Japan, voice actress and singer who was contracted to Production Baobab and is now signed to Axlone. In direct contrast to her cute-and-vulnerable moé Typecasting (acting), typecasting, Yūko in real life i ...

(OVA) :Iori is one of Makoto's childhood friends, and is the oldest of the group. Prior to their separation, she lived in Makoto's house, and despite being older than him, when at home would always refer him as her elder brother. She has an affection towards sweets and snacks, to such an extreme that she brought only tidbits despite her plans of staying at the school overnight. ; :''Voiced by:'' Shizuku Ibuki (game), Mai Gotō (OVA, PS2 game) :Matsuri is another childhood friend of Makoto's. She has the highest academic scores among the group of friends, and stayed at a local school after their school's closedown. Matsuri is considerably more inarticulate and anti-social after the reunion, as a result of taking Makoto's comments before their separation too seriously. ; :''Voiced by:'' Miru (game),

Sayuri Yahagi is a Japanese voice actress affiliated with I'm Enterprise. She is the narrator of Animax. Biography Yahagi lived in Hachinohe, Aomori. She thought "Anime is a picture talking" and said that she had no idea about voice acting until her frien ...

(OVA, PS2 game) :Arisa is a weak and quiet girl who has transferred into Makoto's class shortly before its closure.

Story

The story of ''Yotsunoha'' revolves around a group of friends, reunited after being separated for three years as a result of the closure of Mochizuki Academy, the school they have attended in together. Upon arrival, Makoto Yūki, the protagonist discovers that the

time capsule A time capsule is a historic treasure trove, cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy ...

the group of friends buried prior to their separation has been dug up. In its place is a note left by his former teacher Yamamoto, informing him that he has dug up their capsule and hidden it elsewhere in the school. After being reunited, Makoto and his group of friends decide to stay overnight, looking for clues left behind by their teacher, and find the time capsule.

Development

''Yotsunoha'' is the second commercial project of the then

dōjin soft is software created by Japanese Fan-made, hobbyists or hobbyist groups (referred to as "dōjin circle, circles"), more for fun than for profit. The term includes digital , which are essentially the Japanese equivalent of Independent video game de ...

developer Haikuo Soft, following their previous work on ''Sukumizu Police''. Tatomu and Keikei, two writers who have previously worked on '' _Summer'', planned the scenario used in ''Yotsunoha'', while work on the computer graphics, in addition to character designs, were split between four members, Hīde, Xsara, Koshino and Akira Kasukabe. The music used in the game was composed solely by Ryō Kyōna. Several improvements have been made to the PS2 version of the game. Gadget Soft hired Suno, a scenario planner to provide additional scenario after the adult content in the game is removed. Hal Film Maker, the studio that has previously adapted ''Yotsunoha'' into OVA, was also hired for the computer graphics used in the game.

Release history

''Yotsunoha'' was first available to the public as a free game demo, released online on September 24, 2005, which gives the player a glimpse into the story and gameplay of ''Yotsunoha''. The game was later released as a limited edition containing a set of three CD-ROMs for

on January 10, 2006. It was later followed by a regular edition, released on September 1, 2006, as one DVD. This version of the game contained new computer graphic scenes and additional voice acting for side characters, which was later available to the limited edition through a patch. A

version titled ''Yotsunoha: A Journey of Sincerity'' with adult content removed published by Gadget Soft was originally released on August 28, 2008, as both a limited edition and a regular edition, after it was delayed from its original July 24, 2008, release date. Sol Press released an English version of ''Yotsunoha'' on July 27, 2018.

Adaptations

Drama CDs

There have been two sets of Drama CDs based on ''Yotsunoha''. The first Drama CD release was titled . It was first available to the public at

Comiket , more commonly known as or , is a semiannual Doujinshi convention, ''doujinshi'' convention in Tokyo, Japan. A grassroots market focused on the sale of ''doujin'' (self-published) works, Comiket is a not-for-profit fan convention administered ...

71, and was later released in stores on January 26, 2007, as a set of two CDs, and featured the

voice actors Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...

who have previously provided voice acting for the game, in addition to Kazutaka Ishii who provided voice acting for the character Makoto Yūki. It was later followed by a second Drama CD release, released on April 23, 2008, featuring the voice cast of the OVA adaptation.

Manga

''Yotsunoha'' was also adapted into a manga series, illustrated by Japanese

, known for his previous work on '' Mahoromatic''. The manga series was serialized in the

manga magazine are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics an ...

'' Megami Magazine'' between March and December 2008 issues, and a single bound volume was published on September 29, 2008, by Gakken.

OVA

''Yotsunoha'' was first announced to be adapted into a two-episode OVA series on July 3, 2007, at the Rondo Robe convention hosted in Tokyo. A preview to the series was then streamed online on February 22, 2008, followed by the first volume's release on February 29, 2008, one week later. The second volume was then released on March 28, 2008. Both volumes contain the episode itself and a book containing illustrations by Hīde.

Music

''Yotsunoha'''s soundtrack was composed solely by Ryō Kyōna, who has previously also worked on ''Suku Mizu Porisu'', the first commercial project of Haikuo Soft. Aside from the in-game soundtrack, he has also composed the two theme songs used in the game, "Yotsunoha", the opening theme sung by Chata, and "Shining Orange", the ending theme sung by Yui Sakakibara. The lyrics of both of the songs were written by Keikei, one of the scenario planners. An original soundtrack disc, containing the music used in the game and the opening and ending themes, were included as an extra in the limited edition release of the game. The OVA adaptation of ''Yotsunoha'' featured a new set of soundtrack, written by artists from

I've Sound I've Sound, or simply called , is a Japanese techno/trance music production group based in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan. Led by Kazuya Takase, it features the talents of seasoned "sound creators" and many different vocalists, known as to their fans ...

. In addition to the new score, two new pieces were used as the theme song. , sung by Yui Sakakibara, and , sung by Chata, who has also written the lyrics for the song herself, were used as the opening and ending theme respectively. A

maxi single A maxi single, maxi-single, or maxi CD (sometimes abbreviated to MCD or CDM) is a music single release with more than the usual two tracks of an A-side song and a B-side song. Maxi singles are often mistaken for extended plays (EPs), especial ...

containing both of these songs was released on February 29, 2008, while the soundtrack used in the OVA was released on March 28, 2008. New theme songs were also used for the

version of the game. The opening theme "Soon" was sung by Yui Sakakibara, with composition by Yūki Mizukami, and lyrics by Himiko. While the ending theme was sung by Chata, with composition by Pējun and lyrics written by Yuka Matsumoto. A maxi single containing the two songs was released on July 23, 2008.

Reception and sales

Based on the sales on solely Getchu.com, ''Yotsunoha'' was placed at fourth place out of twenty when it was first released in January 2006, and while it did not make any further appearances on the monthly charts, it was placed at thirty-six out of fifty, out of all sales recorded during the first half of the year on the same website. According to a national ranking of bishōjo games based on sales in Japan, the limited edition of ''Yotsunoha'' was ranked eighth out of fifty when it was first listed. It was then dropped to the twenty-ninth in the next issue, making its final appearance on the chart.

References

External links

''Yotsunoha'' official website
* * {{Hal Film Maker 2006 video games 2008 anime OVAs 2008 manga Bishōjo games Drama anime and manga Eroge Hal Film Maker Japan-exclusive video games PlayStation 2 games Romance anime and manga Romance video games Seinen manga Video games developed in Japan Visual novels Windows games