Katawa Shoujo – Hanako Review

Review and CG pics from the Hanako Route of Katawa Shoujo

So a little pretext before I go into the specifics about the Hanako route is that Katawa Shoujo spawned out of a board in 4chan’s /a board. Which is amazing in itself to see any website go out of it’s way to make a Visual Novel, but for it not to be sex focused, and to contain some of the most breathtaking imagery I’ve ever seen in an visual novel.

Hanako Cover

It’s truly what got me into reading Visual Novel’s because it’s just simply awe striking at moments. Cue your story, where your a boy named Hisao Nakai, who succumbed to a very life threatening heart condition, and transfer’s to Yamaku High School, a school for people with disabilities. Depending on your choices, your paths split into 5 main routes, and can veer off into several bad endings, since each route has a different writer or set of writers here within, and Hisao’s personality turns based on who you pick, I deem it right to split into 5 different reviews of this Visual Novel.

Hanako 2


Until, I get into the main review, I will avoid critiquing music, and focus on Imagery and Writing. Hanako is my first choice solely because she is by far the most well written character of the 5, and suffers emotional issues and social trauma from her scars covering over half of her body from an accident in childhood. In order to cope with the way society treats her when she is outside, she relies on lily during moments of shock, stress, and hurdles that are way to much for her.

Hanako 10

 


 

Cue our main issue, Lily has no choice but to leave Hanako at the school, and she appoints Hisao to become the one she relies on. Which is easier said than done, and the writing tackles this journey in the best way possible, and the imagery accompanied by that is breathtaking. This route has absolute consideration for the life problems Hanako constantly face with her scars, most notably on her face, and brings up several things that even I couldn’t help doing. Which is making a different reaction when you see her and see her scars, and by god your reaction to someone different is hard to change.


 

Hanako 5

 

Hanako 6

 


 

She’s just as cute as a button, and the damsel card is lifted ever so high with her, enough so that some of the choices in the Visual Novel make you plainly debate that what you will say will affect her life, and cause her to have a crazy amount of stress, and psychological shock. Which brings you into the story so hardcore. Even when the sex scenes happen, it’s the pinnacle, and it doesn’t feel like what your seeing is just there for the sex scene, but there for the moment finally connecting the two.


 

Hanako 11 Hanako 8

 


 

Hence if you haven’t played Katawa yet, go play it and discover all 5 routes (without a guide), and enjoy one of best routes, ever made. Its a great starter if your getting into Visual Novels, and want to bring yourself into the experience of being the lucky main character. This route, remains as the most acclaimed in this game, but the other character routes are nothing to be written off the table yet either.

The Hanako route is a 10/10 for me, and serves the best writing, and imagery I have ever seen, good ending or bad, It is completely worth the adventure, and emotional issues that you need to download and enjoy Katawa Shoujo.

Credits, and download from: http://www.katawa-shoujo.com/