An Octave Higher

So... some notes... First of all, and I don't know if this was intentional or not, but constantly referring to one of your main characters of color as a beast is a bit... well... it's not a good look. Secondly, I don't know why liberals have such a hard time understanding this, but the difference between bourgeoisie and proletariat is not an amount of money, it's their relationship to work itself. The bourgeoisie own businesses, and make money from the labor of their employees. The Proletariat perform labor to earn a wage. During the ending portion, when Elise is employed as a piano player she is still proletarian, same with Aretha. Hell even Franz is seemingly proletarian. Again, the distinction is owning or not owning a business. As for other classes that make an appearance: Nobility (the Aristocrats) make money from taxing those who reside on their inherited property (land "lord"), and Lumpenproletariat (Amadeus, pretty much all members of Libertad, the beggars) are those who make money from crime or who can't make money because of a disability. The distinction is the relationship to the means of production, not the amount of accumulated wealth. Parting notes about Libertad: Any group that is Communist/Anarchist/Absurdist coded, while they certainly would have a resentment for the bourgeoisie, that is not going to be their primary motivation. The purpose of the "no god is comming to save you" talking point is to imply that we collectively as humanity must save and look out for each other as equals. It is a call to action, to be in solidarity with your fellow oppressed siblings, not just for blind rage against the universe. Lastly, and this is another thing liberals never seem to understand, for Anarchist and Absurdist coded groups specifically, while they may believe in certain extreme actions, they by no means follow a policy of "the ends justify the means." Rather (and many expound upon this, like Emma Goldman) they believe in the idea of a "unity of means and ends" meaning that the means one uses to achieve an end must necessarily conform to the desired political outcome. This is why anarchists don't for vanguard parties like Marxists, because any such organization will necessarily be used to build the world that is created from the act. This is why anarchists (typically) do not employ indiscriminate violence (despite the medias attempts to portray it as otherwise) because anarchists do not seek to create a world built on arbitrary violent action. In fact, the absurdist view is that the only justified political violence is that which is done to protect the life or freedom of another fellow victim of the absurd. also, this story is dripping with labor struggle. Where are the radical unions??? The world building and characters are interesting and compelling but like... If you're gonna touch so heavily on the politics you gotta have that stuff solidly researched. all in all: Amadeus did nothing wrong, All Dragoons Are Bastards, 5/10

TLDR: Disappointing. I really wanted to like this game. The main thing I enjoyed about this game was its interesting magic system that also included science. The game had so much potential, and while there were some good moments in the story, an interesting steampunk world, and a great opening scene, there were some things I just couldn't overlook. One of my issues was the innocence of Elise, one of the main characters. She willingly went along with everything with little consideration of any risk, and the amount of times she trusts male strangers is unbelievable (it's not like she isn't aware of the risk either, she even acknowledges this isn't a good idea at one point,but it happens to be maybe the fifth time she's already done it!). The second is the conflict between the classes in society. The whole main plot revolves around a revolution beginning by the proles, however Elise, a prole herself, is willingly accepted and sought after by two bourgeoisie and an aristocrat, and she willingly accepts them too. If there is truly that much angst between the classes to start a revolution, then why would these characters instantly behave like they are good friends? Convenience of the plot at times was another. One or two convenient things happening I can overlook, but not this many. Plus I'm not sure why a highly decorated commander would readily allow young inexperienced students to help her qualified and powerful team infiltrate a rebel hideout and rescue the son of an important lord. Things like this that had no valid reasoning or explanation made the story less believable for me, and ultimately took me out of the experience and made it difficult to enjoy the story. Just to name a few things... Other things to note: - On my first play-through, I got the neutral ending with no achievement, which was disappointing. Some of the other endings are also very short, whereas others have a whole lot more story (maybe an hour's worth?) to conclude with, though these parts seem to drag on. - The skip feature is also a bit tedious, with every image and sound still needing to be displayed, so it takes a while to replay to get all achievements. - The story changes between three characters' perspectives, and sometimes this was a bit jarring. - There are limited choices within the story. - Sometimes it feels like there is an information dump happening and it can be a bit of a draining overload at times. - I personally felt like the true ending was strange and disappointing. Also, the short part with the piano after the credits should have been great, but with no context on how that intriguing mystery was solved and whether there truly is more to magic than just science, it just made me feel even more disappointed with the story. It felt like several parts of the plot were never fully completed. I just wish this VN lived up to its potential, it would have been a nice breath of fresh air if it had. I don't think I'll be replaying it unfortunately.

[h1]I guess the writer wanted to create a legendary story, but the characters (except for Franz) are frustratingly undeveloped, and Frederic, in particular, sucks.[/h1] Most main characters are flat, and sometimes, their choices are irrational. [spoiler] For example, Frederic breaks the rule and abruptly rips off Franz's hands(essential to use magic) in the final two endings without satisfactory foreshadowing and explanation. Frederic should have dignity in fighting and a softer heart, as he is sentimental, proud, and can love. However, to advance the story, he becomes a vicious prince with a cold heart and dirty hands. [/spoiler]And Elise, I am still determining her personality. She is adorable, only if you haven't played the final two endings. [h1]作者想要创作一个史诗故事，但是人物写得太糟糕了，Franz稍微好些，其他人物都不太行，而Frederic直接让人厌恶。[/h1] 大部分人物都没有充分发展，有时候你会觉得他们的行为不合逻辑。 [spoiler]在最后两个结局里，Frederic在魔法比试中胜之不武，用刀切掉了Franz的双手，但是，在之前，Frederic一直被塑造成一位骄傲的，有着贵族尊严的王子形象，有时还多愁善感，不应该会做出这样懦弱的事情。这一切都是人物为情节发展而服务了，使人物脱离了本来应有的性格。[/spoiler]女主角Elise，如果没有玩最后两个结局，会觉得她可爱，但玩了最后两个结局后，她的性格也变得非常模糊。

魔法が日常的に使われている世界を舞台としたヴィジュアルノベル。 ジャンルはスチームパンク、ファンタジー。日本語非対応。 3人の登場人物の視点から語られる群像劇。 正直に言ってしまうと最初舐めていましたが、いざ蓋を開けてみたらめちゃくちゃ面白いファンタジーでした。たぶん見かけで損してますこのゲーム。 『An Octave Higher』の魅力についてですが、まず魔法に関する設定の作りこみが非常に凝っています。 例えば『An Octave Higher』の世界では空を飛ぶバスが登場しますが、ただ魔法で飛んでいるという描写ではなく、どういう原理で飛んでいるかまで説明があるのには普通に関心しました。 魔法が登場するお話は数あれど、その魔法の原理までを細かく作りこんでいるものは意外と少ない気がするので、こういうの好きな人にはたまらないと思います。 世界観の緻密さで言えばあの『fault』シリーズにも引けを取らないかも。 面白いと思ったのは、この世界は体内のマナを消費して魔法を行使しますが、マナは自然回復しないという点。マナポーションが無ければいずれ魔法が使えなくなってしまいますが、肝心のマナポーションは下級の労働者階級には手が届かない代物となっています。つまり貧富の差が同時に魔法の差にもなっています。この魔力の格差社会という構図は『An Octave Higher』の物語において重要なファクターとなっています。 [b] 気になった点 [/b] このゲームは3人の登場人物の視点から語られますが、1人だけクソ野郎がいます。主人公面してますがまじでクソです。嫌い過ぎてこいつの視点の話だけは読むのが苦痛でした。彼の脚本はもうちょっとどうにかならなかったのか...。Frederic、お前の事やぞ！ [b] その他 [/b] ・プレイ時間は約19時間ほど ・選択肢ありのマルチエンディング(6個) ・対応言語は英語のみ ・単個数は12万語(文庫本1冊分) [b] 総評 [/b] 非常に重厚な魔法とファンタジーの世界が楽しめました。作風は少し古臭く感じるかもしれませんが、それ以上に読者を引き込む物語の魅力が本作にはあると思います。セール時は230円くらい(2023/2時点)で買えるので、ファンタジー・魔法が好きな人にオススメです。 『An Octave Higher』の数十年前を描いた前日譚『One Small Fire At A Time』を先に読んでおくと、本作を150%楽しめるのでこちらもオススメ！ https://store.steampowered.com/app/476410/One_Small_Fire_At_A_Time/

Рядовая анимешная какашка. Хз, что она делает у меня на аккаунте. Лучше книжку нормальную почитать.

[h1]A memorable game with simple choices[/h1] I started An Octave Higher initially dubious it was ever going to entertain me, but by the end I was pleasantly surprised. It starts out easy enough, but it has a strange way of swapping character perspectives so it can be a little disorienting to begin with. The 'story tellers' are Frederick, Franz and Elise, but Aretha is an important character as well. The story starts harmlessly enough but gradually builds up to themes of revolution, liberty, friendship. Admittedly, it doesn't [i]look[/i] like a great game. The art is average, nothing really stands out about it, and there is no voice acting. But look at what it does do right - believable characters and story (even though magic exists), choices show a visual points guide in the corner showing how friendly the characters are with each other, and there are a couple of different endings (but not too many). As an added bonus, there isn't too much over-the-top girl-teases-boy rubbish to read through. Aretha does take the cake for teasing Franz though, but I feel like the writing has been tempered to keep the script enjoyable. Thank god. There is a bit of swearing as well but don't let it stop you from a decent story. As magic takes a central role in the story, naturally magic combat enters into the equation. Magic takes the form of five elements (cliched, true, but I didn't care), with people typically only being strong in two of the five. Mana potions are a thing as well, otherwise no one can cast anything. Even though the game has choices, when it comes to magic combat you don't get any choice in what happens - all you can do is watch as characters single cast, or double cast, or combine elements, or nullify or amplify things. It can be entertaining but some of the ideas, and even some harmless dialogue seems to refer to other games or movies. Meteor being a myth from the past has a striking Final Fantasy VII vibe, for instance. ________ I think the relationship points system being visible is handy and makes replays for different endings less tedious. I got the true end first time, and I found most of the endings fairly easy to figure out. In hindsight it probably wasn't needed. Nothing kinky about this VN either - no nudity or sex scenes. Just good storytelling. Recommended.

This Visual Novel took me on a ride that I thought would be enjoyable but because of all the issues that appeared, I decided not to continue on it. I feel that An Octave Higher shows a lot of promise but does not deliver. The start of it was alright and engaging. However, the writing and overall storytelling kept on bugging me. There were places where information was dumped onto me, which is never a good sign for any type of writing. It would have been better to spread information out throughout instead of trying to hammer it in all at once. That way, it's more engaging rather than feeling like you're being force-fed content that may or may not be important to the overall plot of the story. The switch between the three characters was confusing too and I can't say whether or not it added anything to the story. It's easier to focus on one character—as your main—and getting to know them as a person rather than more. It might have been better to let the player choose from whose perceptive they wanted to experience instead of the forced switch. The text is what made me quit in the first place. It's highly inconsistent in so many different ways. It also had no character whatsoever, which means that it fell flat. The text kept telling me things instead of showing, which in writing is a sin. Many words were repeated when they didn't need to be and some parts made no sense at all. I had to look up certain terms, which I should not have had to do. One may think that using complicated words that mean simple things will make you appear smart, it actually has the opposite effect. It shows that the writer is naïve. In the end, nothing was really memorable about An Octave Higher—unless you wanna count it for being unforgettably bad. If you want to play it though, then don't let my review stop you. Just don't be surprised if your experience turns sour.

Spoiler Free: Let's start with the good: The art style is very charming, the world seems vibrant and interesting. The music isn't anything special, but it's generally well done and pleasing. However, the story itself is another matter. The first half shows good promise, but as you get towards the various ends you have to wonder what went wrong. Most ends are barely what you can call an end, they aren't satisfying, the story just gives a brief glimpse of the future and then it's over. However it's the true end that is mind-boggling bad. I don't think I've ever read a VN with such a poor route, I wasn't sure whether to be angry at myself for wasting my money or to laugh at the decisions of the characters. The standout of the routes is So Beautiful and Lost, the only one that felt like it had a decent story. In fact I feel like this route communicated the meaning of the story far better than the true route did thanks to a much better epilogue. The writing also has issues with being bogged down by all the specifics of how magic works. Sometimes it's enjoyable, but at other times it just became an infodump. With the way the magic system was detailed, I had hoped to see some interesting and complex spells, but barely anything of the sort is ever witnessed, and the most impressive one can't even be explained. To get into any more details would be spoiler territory. All I can say is that the one consistently good character in this story is Franz. The others felt poorly written. A great example is Aretha's behavior in the True End; she was an otherwise fine character.

Интересная и весьма своеобразная визуалка. Впрочем, имейте в виду, что это не комедия, а весьма серьезное чтиво. Я вот сейчас почитал отрицательные отзывы людей - о том, что описанию окружения уделяется куда больше внимания, чем персонажам, о плохой истинной концовке и вопросах, остающихся без ответа. Я могу ошибаться (в конце концов я - не автор и не могу знать наверняка), но мне кажется, что тут нет никакого противоречия. Дело в том, что речь в визуалке идет о социальном неравенстве и расслоении общества, которое вдобавок усиливается наличием магии в этом мире. Да, здесь есть персонажи, но они скорее играют роль проводников - их устами мы узнаем историю этого мира и происходящих изменений через изменение взглядов персонажей. То есть в отличие от большинства визуалок, здесь основное действующее лицо - это окружающий мир, а персонажи в значительной степени вторичны. И финал в этом случае вполне логичен - мы видим выступление рабочих, которые не могут дольше терпеть подобного расслоения. Причем восстание, заведомо обреченное на провал, поскольку терпение у людей кончилось, но решения проблемы нет ни у кого. И мир нам показывается с очень разных ракурсов. Часть персонажей, как например молодой лорд, тратящий большую часть времени в попытках себя развлечь, фактически не меняется в процессе чтения. С другой стороны - молодая девушка, проведшая детство в достатке, но с приходом прогресса скатившаяся до бродяжничества, ставшая рабочим и ближе к финалу вернувшаяся в высшее общество. Как противоположность ей - Франц, учившийся в академии и потерявший руки и способность колдовать - то, чего он боялся больше смерти. Опустившийся на самое дно общества и ставший новым лидером восстания, используя свои познания в магии для помощи другим. Джуди, как противоположность молодому лорду, зарабатывающая себе на жизнь работой на заводе, чьи слова при встрече с подругой у сломанного рояля можно считать пророческими. :::::Понятное дело, что в прочитанном каждый из нас видит что-то свое, поскольку опирается на собственный опыт и знания. И мнения безусловно будут отличаться довольно сильно. Мое мнение я изложил выше и со своей стороны визуалку рекомендую. Она вполне достойна прочтения.

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