Release Date: November 9, 2023 (North America)
Developers:  Otomate
Publishers:  Aksys Games
Platforms:  Nintendo Switch
ESRB Rating: M (Mature)

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SYNOPSIS

Arpéchéle is a small island country surrounded by the sea and black flowers of misfortune called Lycoris Noirges. The people of this country are born with a curse that leads to death at the age of 23. The people of the country lament and oppose their short-lived fates.

After many years of research, a system was created—a “memory download” system where the body that dies by age 23 is discarded, and only the memories live on. Those who live forever through memory download are known as “Relivers” and continue to resist their short lives.

Meanwhile, there is a girl known as “Death,” as everyone she is involved with dies before the curse can consume them. Just as she is about to end her own life in regret, a mysterious man who calls himself the “Watchman of Death” appears before her.

Under the watchman’s guidance, the girl will approach the truth of the various mysteries of death that haunt this country, whether she likes it or not, and without knowing that despair is the fate that awaits those who are loved by “Death”.

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ART AND MUSIC

Virche Evermore stands out as the most beautifully designed otome title I’ve experienced this year, and quite perhaps ever! Yomi, the artist behind the otome game Ken ga Kimi, served as the lead illustrator for Virche. They also recently made the stunning key illustrations for Love Brush Chronicles’ pre-registration. I’m beginning to see the fandom’s adage; that anything Yomi touches turns into pure gold!😆

Also, the soundtrack in Virche was equally remarkable. I got goosebumps when I first listened to the game’s ED theme, “Pure White Salvation”. To be honest, both the opening and ending tracks were bone-chilling in their excellence!

Illustrator/Artist:	Yomi
Scenario Writers:	Satomi Nakayama (Main), Aiko Asami (Sub), Yuzuki (Sub)
OST:	LOVERIN TAMBURIN (OP & ED vocals), aya (Composition)
BGM/Sountrack:	Jun Ichikawa (Main) Yuki (Assistant), Wasa Yoshitake (Assistant)
Director:	Misa Yoshida

Voice Acting

Kohei Amasaki as “Mathis Claude” – Saburo (Hypnosis Mic), Emilio (Piofiore), Aira Shiratori (Ensemble Stars!!), Toka (9RIP), Sylvie Scott (Cupid Parasite SSD), Tweedle Dum (Spade no Kuni no Alice) Kanata (Tales of Crestoria)

Daisuke Hirakawa as “Lucas Proust” – Laito (Diabolik Lovers), Saint Germain (Code Realize), Lucien (MLQC), Oomi (Hiiro no Kakera), Zain (Period Cube), Tower Overlord (Psychedelica AH), Cinderella (Taisho x Alice), Kokindenjunotachi (Touken Ranbu), Ace (Spade no Kuni no Alice)

Yoshimasa Hosoya as “Scien Brofiise” – Shu (BUSTAFELLOWS), Julian (Black Wolves Saga), Loki (Kamigami no Asobi), Hidaka Subaru (Robotics;Notes), Yukimura Sanada (IkeSen), Reflet (FE Engage), Doppo Kunikida (Bungou Stray Dogs)

Soma Saito as “Yves” – Mineo (CollarxMalice), Tsurumaru/Namazuo (Touken Ranbu), Shungen (Birushana), Levi (Psychedelica AH), Yumeno Gentaro (Hypnosis Mic), Kikunosuke (Tengoku Struggle), Ohtaro (Winter’s Wish), Takuma (Kitty Love), Akase (Charade Maniacs)

Taku Yashiro as “Adolphe” – Raul (Cupid Parasite), Buzen Go (Touken Ranbu), Ishikawa Goemon (Tengoku Struggle), Edgar Bright (IkeRev),  Tokio (Paradigm Paradox), Tweddle Dee (Spade no Kuni no Alice), Amir (Money Parasite)

Kazuyuki Okitsu as “Ankou” – Tsukuyomi (Olympia Soiree), Yoji (Sympathy Kiss), Epilogi (Café Enchanté), Hachisuka Kotetsu (Touken Ranbu), Dante (Jack Jeanne), Ray (EPHEMERAL), Kuya (NU Carnival),  Kyrie (Ozmafia!!), Keith Knight (Iris School of Wizardry)

Seichiro Yamashita as “Hugo” – Yagen (Touken Ranbu), Yoichi (Winters Wish Spirits of Edo), Rokuro Yoshioka (Sympathy Kiss), Jeremiah Jenkins (Money Parasite)

Shunichi Toki as “Dahut” – Leo Cavagnis (Piofiore), Yakumo (Dairoku), Hibie (Winters Wish Spirits of Edo), Matsui Go (Touken Ranbu), Mousse Atlas (IkeRev), Yuki Rurikawa (A3!), Hibiki (9RIP)

Chiharu Sawashiro as “Capucine” – Sosuke (7’Scarlet), Yoshinaka Minamoto (Birushana), Banri Setsu (A3!), Cinderella (Another Prince ~A Lost Tale~), Yamato Amana (World End Syndrome), Joe Higashi (The King of Fighters for Girls)

Tomohito Takatsuka as “Jean” – Ulrik (Steam Prison), Akira Taira (LOOPERS), Minori Watanabe (iDOLMASTER Side M), Sousei Arakida (Stand My Heroes)

Hoko Kuwashima as “Salome” – Chizuru (Hakuoki Movies), Fley/Stella/Natarle (Gundam Seed), Sango (Yashahime), Tomoyo (CLANNAD), Saku Kajiwara (Haruka 3), Kei Kamado (Demon Slayer), Elma (Xenoblade 2), Kasumi (Dead or Alive)

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–MAIN CHARACTERS AND ROUTES–

Despite having six main love interests, Virche Evermore has only five main routes. Mathis, Lucas, and Scien’s routes can be played right from the start. Yves’s route in Act 2 will remain locked until you complete the initial three routes. Once you’ve cleared Yves’s route, Act 3 will automatically unlock, granting access to “Le salut.”

Le Salut encompasses Adolphe and Ankou’s routes. This route is also incredibly long, consisting of 7 chapters – quite the contrast to the 4-5 route chapters of the prior four LIs.

For those who love to gradually unravel Virche’s mysterious plot and aim to experience the game at its best, I recommend following this route order (suggested by Otomate’s official blog): Mathis → Lucas → Scien → Yves → Le Salut. This sequence, in my opinion, not only minimizes spoilers at the beginning but also offers what I consider to be a seamless and engaging storytelling experience for Virche Evermore.

Walkthroughs:

• Mathis
• Lucas
• Scien
• Yves
• Adolphe | Ankou (Le salut)

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NOTE: The following content below is spoiler-free. What follows are only my personal impressions of each character while playing their routes within the game.

MATHIS CLAUDE

• not a shota
• 🥺 cinnamon roll but…

Mathis Claude, the meek-natured young man residing in an affluent neighborhood in Chedis’s district. He has a deep love for reading, evident from his room overflowing with books. He is timid, extremely shy, and often finds it difficult to make eye contact with people, sometimes struggling with effective communication.

I must admit – when I initially played through Mathis’s route, I was pretty lukewarm about everything in it. But, after experiencing his SALVATION end, everything flipped into a 180! This was also after I began to recognize the subtle foreshadowing his route offered to the overall plot, which I thought at first didn’t make any sense. His Salvation End’s epilogue, in my opinion, was one of the most satisfying in the game, and I think it’s just outrageous how he wasn’t getting a lot of love from the fandom when the game first came out in Japan.😢 Oh well! More cheap Mathis merch for me then! ha ha!♡

On a completely different note, the voice acting for Mathis was on a whole ‘nother level. I mean, this goes without saying for all of the seiyuus in Virche. But after meeting Mathis in the game, I thought to myself, “Ah, no wonder they cast Kohei Amasaki for this role.” It was totally brilliant seiyuu work! 👏

LUCAS PROUST

• soft
• deserves better

Lucas is a traveling teacher who regularly conducts classes for children at churches, orphanages, and other care facilities. He also visits the orphanage where our protagonist, Ceres, resides. Lucas has an amiable personality, both as a teacher and as a friend to Ceres and the others. He also possesses a strong sense of justice.

Well, if you’re not new to otome games, you already know what Hirarin characters are usually like, right?🤭 Anyway, I thought Lucas’s Despair End (Caged World) was absolutely beautiful and probably one of my favorite amongst all the despair endings in this game – and no, it’s not that kind of “cage” (laughs)😆 It’s unfortunate that he gets the short end of the stick in his salvation ending.😢

SCIEN BROFIISE

• sometimes a god, sometimes Beyonce
• literally, a gilf 😏

Scien is the genius scientist who serves as the head director of Arpéchéle’s National Research Institute. He spearheaded the creation of the “memory download” technology, which grants citizens the ability to extend their lifespan beyond 23 years. He regards himself as a god and views emotions as a hindrance to his research. He is arrogant and is not afraid to cut down anything or anyone he deems unnecessary.

I think Scien played the most pivotal role in every route on Virche. Without him, the plot probably would not move forward. Hence, I feel like his story should’ve been locked or perhaps extended?🤔 Also, despite the heaps of gorefest, his route offered the most crumbs of fanservice, particularly his CGs.😂 I, unfortunately, wasn’t too smitten by how anti-climatic his ending was, or his puzzle pieces,🧩 or Mister Brofiise’s lustrous pecks💦(laughs), but no doubt he will be a fan favorite to many!

YVES

• sad himbo energy
• belongs to Hugo! (change my mind) 😤

Yves, with his youthful energy runs and operates a handyman service called “Courrune” while also being an active member of the Corps, a local vigilante group. He is benevolent to a fault and possesses an untainted, pure heart. He firmly believes that there is goodness within people, even in the presence of their misdeeds.

So while the first three routes are more or less plot builders, it’s in Yves’s route that we actually get to delve into the nitty-gritty of the story. I was so immersed in it that I couldn’t put the game down. 😱However, everything took a downturn for me in Chapter 5, due to the excessive campy despair farts hammered into the story seemingly for shock value.😕 I did enjoy Yves’s very cinematic despair ending ‘Dark Love’ though, which became one of my favorites in this game, tied to Lucas’s ‘Cage World’ ending. Nonetheless, I really could’ve done without the hullabaloo in Chapter 5 leading up to that perfect bittersweet ending but ah well, we can’t have them all, can we?!┐(´～｀)┌

Despite all of my griping above, I wanted to add that Yves set a new standard for me as the ideal love interest in otome games. Seriously, all men in the 2D, 3D, 4D realm should be like Yves! (cackling)😄

ADOLPHE

• not the oniichan route
• …

Adolphe is the esteemed leader of the Corps, who grew up in the same orphanage as Ceres. He now, however, lives alone on the outskirts of town. Although sometimes blunt in his words and actions, he possesses a kind heart and never turns a blind eye to those in need. He plays the role of a reliable older foster brother to Ceres.

Adolphe was actually one of the LIs I was really looking forward to meeting. Unfortunately, his character wasn’t given enough opportunity to shine in ‘Le Salut‘ (though I feel like this was intended for plot reasons). The romance in Adolphe’s arc imo, felt somewhat contrived, perhaps due to all the kerfuffle that happened during this route. It failed to fully capture the nuances of his dynamic with Ceres, thus making their confession scene less impactful for me. On the bright side, his salvation ending sort of compensated for it in the end, so I can’t exactly complain too much!

ANKOU

• deadpool but make it ikemen
• sus

A mysterious being who calls himself, the “Watchman of Death.” He intervenes when Ceres attempts to end her life and offers her a deal: if she can unravel the truth of the various mysteries of death that haunt the country of Arpéchéle, he will grant her wish to become a normal human girl.

Ankou was such a surprise! His arc in ‘Le salut’ embodies the true essence of despair – one that I had actually been longing for. It also came full circle with the game, and that, to me, was enough to satisfyingly conclude the story on a high note.

LE SALUT (ImPressions)

Le salut is pretty much 80% repetition of the previous four routes. It has its own short common route (one you can’t skip) that typically introduces the same scenarios you’ve already seen. It was kind of frustrating how almost everything felt like a reiteration of plot points you already know and aren’t privy to. That said, I was completely bored to tears from chapters 1-4, and I believe it was only in the middle of the fourth chapter that things started to get interesting. This route was also extremely long, giving you seven chapters to explore – that’s seven whole chapters of unending misery porn! While some ‘plot twists’ were great, a couple felt like scenes from a tacky slasher movie jolted into the story for cheap thrills. At one point, I just couldn’t wait for it to end.🤦‍♀️

CERES

• depressed queen 👑
• a ‘sandwich dispenser‘

Ceres has been an orphan since birth, having lost her parents before she could even remember them. She is detested in Arpéchéle and branded as “Death” or the “Maiden of Death” because anyone who comes into contact with her or gets close tends to experience sudden, premature deaths before reaching the age of 23.

Ceres appears to be naturally kind-hearted and has yearned for acceptance all her life but because she was treated as some sort of a grim reaper and has been bullied, emotionally abused, and avoided by everyone in the country, this led her to harbor a lot of self-loathing and would always blame herself for any adversity that befell those around her. It’s pretty impressive how the writers wrote Ceres, actually. Her self-loathing, contempt, and depressive inhibitions were very much on point in depicting someone who has gone through extreme abuse and hatred throughout their life. I loved that as a player, I felt her suffering on each and every journey in Virche.

She isn’t and will never be a fighting heroine like Shanao or a badass marksman like Ichika. The universe in Virche Evermore calls for more domestic roles for women, so she’s going to be fulfilling her role as that. What I love about her is that she tries and wants to be an efficient help to the LIs, so she’ll readily pick up tasks like cleaning, cooking, and doing all the chores for the team! I also love that she can be a bit of a cleaning freak sometimes! Ha!

Another positive note is that I adored the little nuances they gave Ceres. For example, the fact that she has a talent for drawing and is actually good at math. She’s also an amazing chef, and I loved the bits of heartwarming scenes where all the LIs, especially the self-proclaimed god Scien, relished her cooking.🤭

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SYSTEM AND LOCALIZATION

Just like most recent Otomate titles, the game is equipped with a “skip to the next choice” function, making it easier to navigate and unlock different endings. What I liked most about the game’s user interface was the choice to change fonts in the “Options” menu. I hope more Otomate titles will implement this feature in all their games in the future. Since gameplay in most visual novels consists of 99% reading, it’s super convenient to be able to select fonts that are comfortable for the players’ viewing.

There’s a flowchart that helps you track the endings you’ve unlocked, including their titles, and it also indicates whether a chapter consists of game CGs. Moreover, a handy “love-catch” system is available to turn on and off in the game.

The localization was also pretty decent. I rarely came across any misspellings or text typos, and when I did, they were few and far between.

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TRAILER

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OVERALL THOUGHTS

I’ve been playing visual novels at a slower pace lately, so it took me a while to complete Virche Evermore, clocking me around 65-70 hours total on my Switch. I often play with my switch docked, so there’s some idle time during my gameplay. The game offers a decently sized common route, and you can typically complete the first three routes in about 5-6 hours each, give or take. Yves’ route, on the other hand, with its five chapters, was longer than the previous three. In addition to that, Le Salut was a completely different beast on its own, and I believe it took me 3 days to finish this route, playing in spurts.

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Keep Your Expectations in Check

I believe the only way to thoroughly enjoy Virche Evermore is to discard any notions of logic, especially when it comes to science. The game delves into numerous pseudo-sci-fi elements that are outrageously tied to your typical RPG plots, much like Resident Evil, Parasite Eve, and the like (you get the gist). 😂 So, yes, it can become ridiculously and laughably absurd. However, I’d argue that this is actually one of its hidden charms, especially for someone like myself who appreciates that the more ridiculous it gets the better! (laughs)😂

The start of Virche was exceptionally well done! (I got goosebumps!) Immediately, you’re greeted by its forlorn tone as the game sets up a story of a world filled with despair. The intense scenes with Ceres at the beginning pretty much pulled me into the story right away.

Keep in mind that this game features a consistently dark worldview, and will only continue to get darker, offering no light or hope in sight. What I’m trying to say is that if you’re expecting your typical otome game angst, I hate to break it to you, but Virche Evermore has very little of that. What this game offers is an immediate and unrelenting sense of complete misery. It’s not the “slow-burn” type either; instead, expect to be force-fed with “despair” continuously down your throats. The characters endure an overwhelming amount of suffering, and there are absolutely no promised happy endings for them. The game can be mentally draining at times, so it’s best to keep your expectations in check.

A Smorgasbord of Despair

Plot-wise, I would describe Virche as a hodgepodge of every “cool” and “edgy” idea patched together to form one amalgam of a concept. This doesn’t necessarily mean it’s bad. To be perfectly honest, I loved how unexpected some ‘twists‘ turned out. The story at best, was memorable and entertaining. And I will always hold this experience dear when I think back about the game and the characters. However, how the narrative was presented is where it fell short for me.

While I was perfectly fine with the never-ending despair and sadness the game continuously puts you through. I think my biggest issue with Virche lay in how the scenarios were egregiously mounded. It was written in a fashion that relentlessly introduces problems after problems, one after another. This left no breathing room to process what was happening and no space to appreciate what should have been a potentially gripping scene. This issue became apparent, especially in the last two routes where I found some “despair” scenes didn’t naturally progress and sometimes there were no build-ups to it (if anything, they felt way too forced). Numerous subplots were haphazardly hammered down into the story. We’re talking about nonsensical plot points after plot points that sometimes really didn’t go anywhere. They just kept piling up and kept coming on and on with no concise forethought. I sometimes catch myself in the middle of my gameplay rolling my eyes, muttering “Oh boy, here we go again…“😅 The moment you start empathizing with a character or become engrossed in a scene, the game robs you of that momentum as it ricochets you into another supposed-to-be ‘shocking’ twist. It was really overkill, to the point that it became technically exhausting. And because of this, it cheapened the impact of the story’s conclusion for me. 

The Beauty of Miserable Characters

My thoughts above justify why I wasn’t too attached to most of the side characters, with the exception of Hugo, Nadia, and oddly enough, Jean too (laughs iykyk). 😂 With the plot being somewhat all over the place, I chose to focus my energy on the heroine and all the main LIs, and let me just say, THEY WERE ALL REMARKABLY PRECIOUS!😭 All of the LIs are entangled with their own deplorable existence, and I loved having to gradually unravel their miseries as I played through their routes. To add to that, Ceres doesn’t compromise her character to match the guys. With her bleak disposition in life, she has consistently become her own person, and I even felt like it was actually the LIs who had to adjust themselves to match and support her.

Yves’s was my favorite route in the game, and I thought he’d become my oshi as well. However, after completing all of the game’s ‘salvation ends’, I was surprisingly converted into a Mathis simp!🥺

💟Route Enjoyment Ranking💟
Yves ➤ Mathis ➤ Lucas ➤ Scien ➤ ➤ ➤ Le Salut

LI Ranking:
Mathis ➤ Yves ➤ Ankou ➤ Lucas ➤ Adolphe = Scien

As for the romance, Virche Evermore is more plot-centric. So if you’re expecting a full-blown romantic development of the heroine and her LIs with happy endings, you won’t find that here. Due to the nature of the game, any kind of sugar content is often placed on the back burner.

Do I recommend this game? YES. Only if you can handle the TW stated above, as well as a story filled with constant misery.

The game promised a journey of perpetual yet beautiful despondency, and it certainly delivered! All things considered, Virche Evermore will definitely immerse you into an enticing world replete with hopelessness and despair. The technical elements of the game, including its stunning art, bewitching soundtrack, and well-crafted lore, will for sure easily pull you in. With that said, I genuinely think it’s a profound work worthy of praise.

While I wouldn’t go out on a limb and say this is the best game ever, this title has scratched my dark fantasy (lowkey) sci-fi itch – one that I’ve had for a long while. There were moments that I liked, moments I hated, and moments that moved me to tears. Needless to say, it was an experience I’ll certainly remember, for better or worse! If you can overlook some of the drawbacks within the game’s narrative, this title will surely satiate your cravings for a compelling dark otome game, one that’s not afraid to push your squicks to the limit.

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