User:Alexandra IDV/A Year of Springs

A Year of Springs is a trilogy of visual novel video games developed by npckc, released individually in 2018–2019 and as a collection in 2021. It includes One Night, Hot Springs (2018), Last Day of Spring (2019), and Spring Leaves No Flowers (2019).

https://www.gamer.ne.jp/news/202112100034/ https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20211207-184801/ https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20210929-177312/ https://dengekionline.com/articles/104562/ https://www.famitsu.com/games/t/45098/ https://www.famitsu.com/games/t/45036/ https://www.ratalaikagames.com/games/ayearofsprings.php https://premium.kai-you.net/article/447 https://jp.ign.com/goty-top-10-p-2021/56859/feature/2021goty

Gameplay
A Year of Springs is a trilogy of visual novels, largely focused on reading character dialogue and making narrative choices.

Make choices, such as how much information to share with strangers

Synopsis

 * One Night, Hot Springs follows Haru, a 19-year-old trans woman in Japan, whose friend Manami invites her and Erika, another of her friends, to a hot springs resort for Manami's 20th birthday. Haru worries about it, as the resort is divided by gender and she has not changed her legal gender or had gender-affirming surgery.
 * Last Day of Spring is set a few months after the first game, following one of the endings where Haru and Erika have become friends. It follows Erika as she plans a spa trip for Haru's 20th birthday, and in the process has to learn about what it can be like to be trans
 * Spring Leaves No Flowers follows Manami, who after Haru and Erika have become a couple starts to question her lack of physical attraction to her boyfriend and wonder if she is asexual.

Development and release
Developed by npckc, who specializes in "cute LGBT+-friendly games".

Reception
Last Day of Spring was among the shortlisted entries at Melbourne Queer Games Festival in 2019, and Spring Leaves No Flowers won the silver award at the festival the following year. The collected edition was one of 80 games selected to be part of the indie game exhibit at Tokyo Game Show 2021, chosen for instilling "a sense of wonder".


 * One Night, Hot Springs was among their favorite games of 2018, and they considered Last Day of Spring a strong companion piece
 * Great for LGBT awareness
 * Considered Haru one of the best LGBT characters in video games of 2018
 * Lets one experience things from a new point of view and learn about what life can be like for a transgender person in Japan; the interactivity makes it more direct than linear media, letting the player inhabit the role of the main character rather than being told about the experience
 * Erika is written as a supportive friend, and as even the "bad" endings are about supporting Haru, they do not feel bad
 * "Smart and touching narratives about queer lives in contemporary Japan"
 * Likes how Spring Leaves No Flowers is aware that coming out is an ongoing process that for many is filed with uncertainty and questioning, something they describe as rare in video game narratives, and avoids common misconceptions about LGBT people.
 * Last Day of Spring "brilliantly draws attention to" how gendered experiences shut out those whose gender is not recognized, and how not having to consider such things is a privilege more than a right.
 * Likes how Last Day of Spring does not end with Erika and Haru becoming a couple, avoiding reducing Haru to an accessory and reward for Erika's growth.
 * Compared the art style to children's books such as Maisy Mouse, and found that it gives a "gentle, sweet tone" despite the heavy and sensitive topics discussed.
 * Delightful
 * Skillfully written characters, likes how Erika, as the protagonist of Last Day of Spring, works as a soundboard for Haru's experiences