MAMIYA -Visual novel review

Welcome to my review regarding the visual novel MAMIYA. Well lets get right into it, shall we? 

MAMIYA will be available on steam April 30th of 2021. It's a visual novel centered around some rather heavy psychological themes. So I do want to make sure to put a small trigger warning of sorts. It deals with things related to abuse, self-harm, gender identity and things in that realm. If you find these subjects extremely hard to handle then I recommend you skip this one for a bit. Otherwise then I highly recommend this game. I've always been pulled towards things involving psychology. Which this game does a very good job with that. Some very realistic and relatable   thoughts and feelings. Well with that warning, let's get into the details of this dark tale.  

Plot

  The story of this mysterious click adventure has a unique take on the psychological impact on one's mental health. Therefore its main focus is the death of a boy named Natsume and the friends and acquaintance of him starting at his funeral. You'll explore firsthand the life's and personal thoughts of each character. As well as the aftermath of this event and one's own life problems tangling into the events that unfold. Full of deep emotions and gripping guess work. Furthermore you'll be introduce to Mamiya during this and the huge impact this character has on every single character. Sometimes even life or death. This tale touched on many different genres. Some elements I did not expect at all. Captivating for sure.    

  Though I will say it has this teen anguish vibe to it. This made it feel nostalgic to me. Not saying this is a bad thing by any means. Just with the heavy themes and the charming characters, it reminded me how much I enjoy these type of stories. Though do not let that scare you off. This game impressed me on how relatable it truly is. Definitely targeting at older audience's. 

   

 The decisions on who and what you do will unravel different pieces of the story at separate times depending on you. All engaging and will have you intertwining everyone's stories. Truly intriguing! I don’t won't you to think it's all depressing and dark throughout. This game has a good balance between slice of life humor moment's among the character as well as heart wrenching moments that will get you involved in these characters. I love the choice to explore the character I'm most interested in first as well. Overall the stories and the exploration of mental health really gripped me in this visual novel.  

Gameplay

The gameplay is pretty standard for a visual novel I'd say. As you play along to the story. You'll have options to auto read and or skip. Also screenshots, among others. Which comes in handy in this game. You often have to reply a scene and it's nice to be able to skip or auto read for you if you forget to save. Saving will help speed things up some. There are multiple ending's you get to reveal. So it can be lengthy depending on how much time you take to process all the information. Definitely worth taking your time. Overall pretty standard gameplay you’d expect a visual novel to have.  

SAVE 

LOAD 

AUTO 

SKIP 

LOG 

Music/Artwork

   MAMIYA's artwork and music are some of my favorite experiences in the game. The artwork is styled in anime fashion with a smooth charming finish. They don’t always show the big detailed art pieces but when they do, I feel ungrateful for wanting more. They are magnificent and fit the time they show up. Usually important and emotional moments. So you appreciated it even more. However I do find myself slightly bored with the normal backgrounds at times. Though usually there is a lot of dialogue during these times so not a big problem overall. The art does an amazing job at showing its world and characters. So ten out of ten for me.  

  Now the music is everchanging throughout the story. It seems each location or even character has its own music. Or at least it feels that way when playing. It fits well with the moments. Really gets you in the mood its portraying in those scenes. I often found myself just either rocking to it or memorized by the emotion it brought out in me. The opening song is a complete banger by my standard that is. I advise you to use headphones for the best experience.   

  However I warn you may want to mess with the sound settings or turn it down some. My only complaint to this game is specifically the sound effects. The walking, running , slamming, and rain effects are extremely loud. The sounds aren't super high quality per say, they get the job done but with how loud and random they appear it sort of jump scares you. I appreciate most of them but I did want them to go away sometimes. Not game breaking. This game makes up for it with everything else. Just keep that in mind folks.  

Final Thoughts

MAMIYA is a dark psychological tale. The stories you unravel of the characters are the true gems here, and will keep you coming back to get the desirable outcome. Music and art are somber and yet captivating. Fitting for this game. If you are interested in dark and psychological themes, this game will satisfy you. If not then you might find a new genre or might even help understand loved ones a bit more. My overall rating if we are using numbers would be 8/10 .  

If you are interested then keep an eye out April 30th for MAMIYA to hit steam stores and give this dark adventure a try.