Shizuku (video game)

Shizuku (雫) is an adult visual novel by Leaf originally released for DOS on January 26, 1996. It has since received releases for Windows, including an enhanced version featuring voice acting and enhanced graphics called Shizuku Renewal in 2004. It is the first game in Leaf's Visual Novel Series, the origin of the term "visual novel".

The game translates the format of Chunsoft's "sound novel" titles such as Otogirisō and Kamaitachi no Yoru, in which players read text and select choices in order to advance the narrative, into an eroge. The story focuses on psychological horror, exploring themes of mind control, conspiracy theory, sexual assault and social alienation.

Characters

 * Yūsuke Nagase (長瀬 祐介)
 * The game's protagonist.


 * Saori Shinjo (新城 沙織)
 * A cheerful and talkative member of the volleyball team. She is an eyewitness to a certain event and is quickly swept up in the aftermath.
 * A cheerful and talkative member of the volleyball team. She is an eyewitness to a certain event and is quickly swept up in the aftermath.


 * Ruriko Tsukishima (月島 瑠璃子)
 * A former classmate of Yūsuke's. She can often be found reading books in a secluded area.
 * A former classmate of Yūsuke's. She can often be found reading books in a secluded area.


 * Kanako Ota (太田 香奈子)
 * Yūsuke's classmate and vice-president of the student council.
 * Yūsuke's classmate and vice-president of the student council.


 * Mizuho Aihara (藍原 瑞穂)
 * The shy student council secretary with a hidden stubborn side. She has been best friends with Kanako since middle school.
 * The shy student council secretary with a hidden stubborn side. She has been best friends with Kanako since middle school.


 * Genichiro Nagase (長瀬 源一郎)
 * Yūsuke's uncle and a teacher at the same school. He often provides useful advice in relation to the game's events.


 * Takuya Tsukishima (月島 拓也)

Legacy
The game was the first game to incorporate "erotic content" into the visual novel genre, using the format used in Otogiriso. It has also been described as similar to the visual novel Kizuato, also produced by Leaf, with themes of bloodshed, violence, and humiliation, with a "dark narrative." The game has also been described as a "landmark" for Leaf, in the company's visual novel genre, and mentioned in the anime adaptation of 16bit Sensation.