Lucky Star Net Meister
If any company was to really introduce the slice of life genre it would have to be Kyoto animation. This is a video game adaptation of one of their earlier works that was made. The game was developed and published by Kadowaka Shoten and this is the first time I really played an idol simulator. The menu and much of the dialogue is in Japanese and there are parts in the game you have to select which dialogue option is appropriate and this can impact your fame later on.
It is as plotless as in the anime. Basically, it is the cast of Lucky Star becoming the most popular idol in Japan because a company, Animate, is currently looking for the next internet idol. The main cast of Lucky Star is chosen to be upcoming idols and one of them is going to be the next internet sensation in Japan.
You start of as Konata Izumi and as you progress through the game you’re able to unlock the other main characters. You play a variety of different mini games as part of your growing popularity as an idol. One game have you avoiding obstacles and running away from rabid fans and based on how well you did, you earn animate points to purchase all kinds of items like clothes and accessories. It has the shows trademark extremely over the top pop culture references and weird comedy that could either make you annoyed or laugh hard.
The game has references from Hatsune Miku, Shonen Jump Manga and Hideaki Anno’s masterpiece Neon Genesis Evangelion.
The dialogue is as cheesy and lighthearted as you expect from something that comes from a slice of life. The voice cast is back in their original role and they are excellent. The art its faithful to the original show in its chibi format and the graphics are decent.
There are 3 different endings based on how much fans you have. You could look at screenshots from the cutscenes, listen to the music like the anime opening.
The characters on the background, a common problem in visual novels, look like cut out paste on cardboard boxes and the expressions of the characters could be pretty static. The animation is also like that as well.
The game has a really large amount of replay value and it will take you a really long time to view all the other scenarios as other characters. It could be really grindy to get a large number of fans to make through the next stages and get the best possible ending. This game Is something only a hardcore Lucky Star fan could like.
It gets 3 out of 5 stars.
I purchased this game along with Haruhi Promise because out of respect for Kyoto Animation. I wanted to help with their recovery after that horrific arson that claimed the lives of 36 employees like the director of Lucky Star and Haruhi Yasuhiro Takemoto.
I’m glad that they’ve been doing pretty well in their recovery process especially given this year with covid-19 and one day they’ll be back in full force soon bringing their joy back to the otaku community. S.O.S FOREVER!