Tsukihime translation... RELEASED!

[X-Calibar]

For anyone who knows the word Visual Novel, this is big news! 
Offhand I can't remember how large the script was, but the release of Tsukihime is a great boon to fan-translation history ...! [although Ys is always number one for me ]

"Tsukihime is a Japanese doujin game created by the group Type-Moon. A doujin game, like Doujin magazine, is something created privately among the people with the same hobbies. Tsukihime was also going to be a typical Hgame where they can enjoy the female game characters. However Tsukihime's completeness was far greater than any other Doujin game ever created. The story, the characters, the graphics, and the music, everything was easily equal or greater than what real game companies can create.

Tsukihime takes place in a magical world setting with extreme depth and reality. All the characters are very original yet there's a interleaved background that links them all. It is like putting the pieces of puzzles together to create the picture of the world.

The story begins in a recollection of a boy called Shiki in his childhood years. There he gains a power out of this world. What is the meaning of this power, and what can he do with it? This is his story of finding the missing pieces of the puzzle."

Thought I'd give this a shout ~
[now if I can just squeeze enough money out of my poor wallet and find this on a japanese auction... ]

[ViperD]

I started playing it yesterday, and other then a crash it's pretty damn good. I was lucky enough to find it at a convention a few years back, but I remember it costing like $50. I also got the first Melty Blood there.

[turbofan]

Just A question.why the hell would somebody translate a reletivley obscure game in wich no one has heard of,and nearly impossible to find?

[marus]

Well, it's not like Tsukihime is any more obscure than, say, Ys, and it wasn't too hard to get, at least when the project started.  But I think they were just translating it for their own interests, so they didn't really care if it was an obscure title.

[memoryjar]

actually, it's more like a game made by a team BEFORE they became popular. and the reason people here don't hear about is because we aren't in to erogames where as it's like sport games in japan.

[Platypus]

Great news. I always liked the anime, and now I have the opportunity to understand the game!

[TDOMMX]

I may as well throw in my two cents.

I first saw Melty Blood at the anime club of my alma mater, Dawson College (before anyone asks:  yes, that Dawson College).  I was impressed at how deep and polished it was for an amateur fighting game.  As I started getting into it, I became aware of its roots, an adult visual novel by the name of Tsukihime, and decided to import both Melty Blood and its expansion disc, Melty Blood -Re-ACT-.

Frequent message board visits fueled my knowledge of Tsukihime and Melty Blood's backstory (which struck me as incredibly well thought-out for what was supposedly an "anime porn game").  To date, Tsukihime is regarded as the best amateur game in existence, and puts many commercially available visual novels to shame (Do You Like Horny Bunnies, anyone?).

When I learned that Geneon Entertainment was making an anime adaption with great artwork and music, I was psyched.  Upon viewing it to completion, I was... how to say... less than impressed.  As I said, the art is nice, the music is wonderful, but the plot is half-hearted, at best.  Excellent setup, lackluster development.  To quote Keith from Six Feet Under: "You've just taken a small step forward, and now you wanna take a giant leap back?!?".  Many of the subplots of the original game are hinted at, but none of them are explored.  It's almost as if they were telling fans of the original "see, we didn't forget about this", only to cancel their actions in the following episode (ie: Satsuki's fate, Hisui & Kohaku's dark history).  It's a pity, because it could have been great if they actually followed it through.

The art in the original Tsukihime isn't nearly as impressive as Melty Blood, but its story is superb.  Imagine combining supernatural and mythological creatures (vampires, zombies) with modern day life without seeming ridiculous or contrived (on that note, I cannot call Tsukihime a "fantasy" title in the slightest).  The title has been extremely successful, and has enabled its creators, Type-Moon, to go pro.  Their first commercial venture, Fate / Stay Night, has been well-received and has managed to spawn PS2 ports, an anime adaption, and a sequel (Fate / Hollow Ataraxia).  Tsukihime has also spawned a pretty good manga adaption, which has already been released in the US.

I am pleased that Mirror Moon has come this far with their translation projects.  With a completed Tsukihime patch and the promise of Melty Blood and Fate patches on the horizon, I have plenty to look forward to in the not-too-distant future.

Funny, I always thought Wind -A Breath of Heart- was going to be released first.  Oh well.