(WHEEZE LAUGHING//LOOOOOOOL)

As we roll into August, the dark and horror gamer part of myself starts to peek out from the shadows. Peering out to see if it’s her time to parade around the blog and other social media outlets to speak about dark fairytales, creepy characters, terrifying novels, and nightmare fuel games. Welcome to the side of Gray’s Otome and Visual Novel Corner that focuses on both VN and Cozy Nook aspects of Gray’s Otome & VN Corner.

Where suspense, thrillers, and horror games take over. While some otome games meet the creepy aspect of the horror criteria, it’s rare… depending on what game you’ve gotten into your hands. Before we proceeded, I’d like to say thanks to Kelly from Another Book in the Wall Blog for making these Halloween themed prompts!

Now…

Reader beware, these visual novels aren’t for those who want romance flair, these are for those who dare to face their darkest nightmares.  

If you aren’t a horror fan please check out my other blogs! Otherwise, if you like terror and creepy stuff…

CARRY ON~!

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‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ TOPIC ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

-ˏˋ♥̩͙♥̩̩̥͙♥̩̥̩ ⑅Favorite⑅ ♥̩̥̩♥̩̩̥͙♥̩͙ˊˎ

-ˏˋ♥̩͙♥̩̩̥͙♥̩̥̩ ⑅Murder/Mystery Books & Games⑅ ♥̩̥̩♥̩̩̥͙♥̩͙ˊˎ

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Anyone watch Murder She Wrote when they were kids, or was that just me and my sister? In this small corner of the blogosphere, I’ve somehow managed to slowly transition a few more areas of media to consume parts of my blog. While we’ve talks about horror, otome, and suspense on the blog, I now want us to unravel parts about mystery or maybe lore. Murder and mystery sometimes goes hand in hand depending on what kind of media you devour on a regular basis, however, they are mostly intertwined nowadays.

As a kid, I remember the good old days with the old blocky TV my parents had bought, and my mom ironing our clothes for the week in front of it. It was rare if she watched movies that were comedic, as most of the time she was watching Murder She Wrote to The Amityville Horror series. While these shouldn’t have been movies a child like me should of been watching, I would peek in and watch from behind her to see these ‘scary shows.’ However, while my mom was alright with me watching horror, she truly didn’t want me to watch murder/mystery type shows, due to how some of them were based on real killers like Ted Bundy and The Zodiac Killer.

Being an adult now (LIES, I’M STILL A CHILD AT HEART MUAHAHA), I’ve learned as to why my mother had her reservations about me watching those kinds of media. I don’t blame her, but because of those shows I’m now also an avid podcast, book, and game-binger for the genre. Including the passionate affair for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie. So come sit down with me at the nook, and let’s have some tea and chat a bit about books and games revolving around mystery and murder.

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-ˏˋ♥̩͙♥̩̩̥͙♥̩̥̩ ⑅Books: An Affair of Drama and Mystery⑅ ♥̩̥̩♥̩̩̥͙♥̩͙ˊˎ

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Whether it was the TV series or the book series, Murder She Wrote was more of a light-hearted murder/mystery series that I still adore to this day. At the time when I first started watching this, I remember the show had grasped my attention because of the typewriter that Jessica Fletcher (the series protagonist) would type on to write her stories. Certain machinery during my childhood like typewriters to the old sliding system for credit cards fascinated me, including the sounds they made. However, after that initial introduction, the show got me hooked as we watched Jessica get pulled into a murder or mystery that needed solving. I appreciate the series and its less than gorey details of a murder, which in thus, I had no idea was called a ‘cozy mystery’ at the time. To say the least, on Sunday mornings, you can catch me watching the show on my Amazon Prime account with a cup of tea and pleasantly enjoying the lazy morning.

Agatha Christie came onto my radar a little more recently, as I didn’t find out about her work until I noticed on the cover of one of my cozy mystery novels, something called the ‘Agatha Christie Award.’ I found myself frowning as I had never heard the name before, and I found myself going to the local library to find a book. My first novel was ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ the reason for it was because it was mentioned a lot more besides, ‘And Then There Were None,’ I decided that since the mystery took place on a train, why not?

Similar to Murder, She Wrote, Agatha Christie crafts her writing in a way that not only is captivating it sparks the mind to think and try to solve the mystery before you find out the culprit towards the end of the book. Agatha was definitely a revolutionary in the mystery genre, and it was good to know she was also friends with Sir Conan Doyle as well. He served as a guide and confidant from my understanding for Christie, even after he had retired Sherlock Holmes. Did you know that Agatha Christie disappeared for about eleven days, creating her own unsolved mystery? It was also amazing to find out that Doyle was also part of the search force trying to find her as well.

Of course you can’t have Agatha without Arthur involved in a blog, LMAO. I was introduced at an early age to the detective when my dad actually rented the Disney adaptation called The Great Mouse Detective, where Sherlock Holmes actually did a cameo, but more as a voice than an actual entity in the movie. The movie inspired a lot of whacky and eccentric ideas for a child like myself, and although the mystery wasn’t a mystery in the movie. It triggered my interest in the actual character of Sherlock Holmes himself and the author who created such a peculiar fellow.

The first story I actually read from Sherlock Holmes was The Hound of the Baskervilles, I hadn’t known there was an order to reading the books so I just went with what had procured my interest in the library. It would only be later that I find out that Doyle also held an interest in the occult and supernatural, and while I can’t say the hound from the Baskervilles was an ode to a hell hound. It certainly did cause a stir for me and my detective heart to solve the mystery.

What’s a little murder and mystery without food? Well, honestly you don’t want to go to a crime scene with food, but what can you do when someone gets murdered in your restaurant in the middle of the night–you’ve got to clear your name and also get your business back on track! Cozy mysteries are a staple in my book shelf, and I’m very happy that Netgalley has also graciously allowed me to review a few cozy mysteries coming out this fall as an ARC. Kylie Logan is an amazing author with a gift for balancing comedy, cuisine, and mystery into her books. It also is a plus is that she pays ode to Agatha Christie in a punny way with her League of Literary Ladies Mystery Series.

I adore both series, as the characters and mysteries are entertaining and not so gruesome, especially if you’re not into all the gruesome and suspenseful type of stories. You also can learn either new cuisines or a thing or two about how to run a bed and breakfast off a tourist island, but there’s always a price to pay whether in scones or in dead bodies.

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-ˏˋ♥̩͙♥̩̩̥͙♥̩̥̩ ⑅Games: A Waltz in Murder⑅ ♥̩̥̩♥̩̩̥͙♥̩͙ˊˎ

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Being a Sherlock Holmes fan, The Adventures of Fei Duanmu was right up my alley, as this point and click visual novel is not only stunning with its art but is also majorly a mystery solver’s dream boat. If you enjoy puzzles and sleuthing, then this game is definitely one to play. Similar to Ace Attorney, you follow Fei in solving mysteries that surround the city while also finishing his college degree. The game is fully voiced and the mysteries that lie within are both captivating, chilling, and also can be sometimes deemed ‘cozy’ mystery status. I enjoyed this game and what it entails, and there’s been a recent release to the game, adding more bonus content and mysteries to solve.

I received Tokyo Dark as a game free awhile back ago on Steam, and I even streamed it at one time, and while this game plays as a visual novel, it’s more intricate than that. The game has a similar vibe to a game called Clea (recently released to Switch!), with the characters being able to move through the scenery and interact with objects and people. However, all decisions in the game are terrifying, as you try to balance It’s mind and reality. CHOICES MATTER, and whatever action you take it can either work for you or against you, as there is a point system in the game that you are engaged with consistently.

This game screams a darker reality of detective work and murder/mystery, capturing you in a narrative that you aren’t certain you can even trust the main character’s POV as things can get difficult in deciphering if the main narrator is telling the truth, or if everything was all a lie since the beginning.

Jisei is a fairly newer addition to my favorite games and I bought it on the Switch, but you can purchase it on steam as well if you prefer to play on PC. Jisei is a murder/mystery visual novel that certainly got my attention very quickly, from the creators of SakeVisual (Backstage Pass Otome Game), this game is definitely one to play if you’re looking for a good and gripping story of mystery and murder. While this game has it’s roots in crime and mystery, there is also a supernatural element in the game which makes it more riveting to play.

Jisei is the first chapter in the game series, and it’s a quick read, you interact with people and items to solve the mystery at hand. The voice acting is good, and won’t distract you from the game but I do suggest that if you don’t like cliff hangers, please by the steam bundle. Since I was a doofus and didn’t know the first chapter ends the way it did, like WHHHHAAAATTTT???! (Tears of frustration, not knowing if I should buy on steam or wait for switch port or buy both LMAO).

*Grabs Megaphone*

MY BABIES!!!!!! I SHIP PHOENIX AND MILES, FOREVER OTP!!! I have this game on every platform, from my 3DS, PC, Ipad, and Switch; I LOVE THIS GAME SO HARD and all the other spin offs that came from it. Ace Attorney is another visual novel master piece, and while I haven’t brought it up in recent blogs, I am now, the only reason I held back is that I was going to incessantly fan girl about it. The game tosses in so many spectacular punches in puns and comedy while wrapping murder and mystery in it. Capcom sincerely knew what they were doing when they produced the series and it’s amazing cast, I could only hope and consistently ship Miles x Phoenix in every game.

If I had enough room in my room I’d probably buy a boat load more of items related to this game and it’s spin offs, I watched the anime (wasn’t happy with the animation but still loved the Dino Crisis Crossover), watched the live action (which was cute LOL), and I have both the manga spin offs for Miles and Phoenix. I DIGRESS, this game balances comedy, mystery, and suspense in the right areas and forces your hand as the detective to solve the puzzles in time to find the truth. I should of added this game to my previous post, but I’ll lay it all out here that this game besides Higurashi is hands down a game that is a MUST PLAY in the visual novel sanctuary.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ GRAY’S CORNER ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

Love this GIF, and indeed that woman is full of it. Anyways, as we wrap up today’s chat in the nook on murder, mystery, and puzzle solving I find myself contemplating about the other games and books I haven’t spoken of yet. However, there will be a time I will more than likely talk about these games and their lovely themes on the blog and add a few otome into the mix as well. My obsession for mystery, horror, and suspense continues in the world of games and books, and we haven’t even scratched the surface yet! Until next time Otomelandians and VNtopians:

Thanks for stopping by in my corner of the blogosphere, and see you on the gaming side~!