VN - Others - Completed - The Shell Part III: Paradiso [v1.0.0H + IP] [Innocent Grey]

(Not a great conclusion to the series, you can still read it fine.)

Kara no Shoujo - The Last Episode (KnS3) only has one real problem, as far as i'm concerned: Being the end of a beloved trilogy. After some "soul-searching", i realized that enjoying the prequels increased the chances for "self-entrapment with intents of disappointment". Let's look at this VN (somewhat objectively) and gauge the quality of what's provided: Well beyond average, at least. Then why did large sections of the VN failed to meet my expectations? If i consider Cartagra to be fairly engaging, the first KnS to be an eye-opening experience, in regards to what the medium could provide, and the second episode to be one of the best VNs ever, then there wasn't a lot of room for anything beyond anticlimax.

Naturally, this doesn't mean a complete case "of beauty in the eye of the beholder", the point is that a serious case of it, was already guiding my hand.

Positive:
(Not to downplay the strengths of the VN, but being a sequel entails many mentions being repeated.)

- Toko's presence - Personal and dependent on how you feel about the character but she (and everything related to her) is a sub-conscious constant on the reader's mind.

- Production Values (in general) - Like voice acting (voiced protagonists is the way to go) and more preferences that carry over from the prequels like OST, art style, pleasant SoL with characters you already like. Writing style as well even if I'm gonna complain below, they are PARTIAL complaints.

- KnS3 is not lacking literary value - It has subjective content that matches the main literary inspiration (as well it should), a large cast where many contribute something meaningful to the story (KnS2 was better at it though) and multiple POVs throughout the story (another personal remark, i enjoy it).

Neutral:
- TL - To keep it simple, the entire matter is a question of personal taste (yet again). Believe it not, simply arguing that a TL should be as faithful as possible to the original, while actively avoiding any "taint" by the new hand, means little (a translator who follows a mechanical role, if you will). Sadly, I'm not well versed in translation ethics, or Japanese culture, or what comprises a VN reader base, and its needs. What i can say, is that what was done here doesn't work for me, and some of the more austere deontological principles of the profession, fit the medium and its idiosyncrasies perfectly, in my opinion.

(In other words,complain about translations as much as you want, but there's an entire "technical iceberg beyond", keep that in mind - There's a patch too.)

Negative:
- VN structure model that mixes new material, with large sections of repeated text, in the second playthrough and beyond - First, "the skipping" is not the main issue, QoL exists to address that. The problems are human memory and immersion. Skipping the common route and going straight to a heroine's is one thing. Dozens of skips to reach unseen content, each time in a new run, are something else entirely, and a serious test to your interest in the VN.

Second, this model was not working properly 20+ years ago (think Cross Channel), but it was passable given some fantastic premises, and widespread use (you could excuse it, in short). KnS3 doesn't have old age as an excuse. Lastly, if you want to argue that reading everything again, and "not skipping" is also one of the options, i'll refute by claiming that the narrative itself is not blameless in this debacle:

(Without spoilers)

Imagine several segments on some crime victims experience, that tie to the subtext of a small arc based on real life literature (2 main sources), and then multiple coincidences connect these 2 realities to previously established facts (prequels), plus solutions to current mysteries (this VN). If you understood that immediately, then you are well prepared to deal with convoluted in your fiction.

Simply having a single logic connection each time, and a binding thread that can be followed is not enough. It's a question of artificiality (as in affectedness) or illegitimacy (from the reader's perspective) when trying to obtain plot device closure. The sad conclusion is that KnS3's narrative is failing (partially) in both technical terms, and substantive devices.

Score: 7/10, and you can think of the score as something that applies to the end of the trilogy, not to KnS3 standing by itself. At the end of the day, entertainment needs to be fun, engaging, rewarding... The fact that elements not directly connected to this VN's inherent value are getting in the way, doesn't change the previous statement. Regardless this is still recommended. If something simple like a "true ending CG" has me wavering in regards to score, then it's safe to say it wasn't all bad.

This was a fantastic way to end this trilogy. i came into this with low expectations since i've seen a lot of people call this bad but man.... i've never cried while having a big goofy smile on my face in my life like i did when i unlocked the true ending. I would prefer to avoid spoilers so if you've read the first 2 Kara no Shoujo VN's this is 100% worth it.

This is probably the most mature storytelling I've ever seen in a visual novel. It isn't as long or as complicated of a story as the 2nd game in the series was, but it really felt like the absolute perfect ending to the series, and to drag it out any further wouldn't have made much sense.

The few "sex scenes" that are in the game are nothing you wouldn't see in a typical R-rated movie. The camera remains above the waist, and they're all 100% relevant to the plot. So if that's what you come to this looking for you're bound to be disappointed.

But if you're looking for a great story, this series is as good as it gets, and this is pretty much the perfect conclusion to it, IMO.

Thought I'd write my first review here as a sendoff for a trilogy that is my obsession, no pun intended. I'll put up a spoiler for the review section as there are too much words for those who's only interested to know if the VN is good or not. Also, translated walkthrough and save bundle here. I do not take credits for this; it belonged to Seiya-Saiga.

Overview:
The game has 15 endings technically, although one is not counted in the official ending list. This makes for a lengthy VN, which is sort of a rare breed in the 2020s with how "VN blizzard" loomed across eroge studios for quite some time now. There is enough content, further extended with the need of multiple playthroughs if you are going for the complete experience.

From a VN / game standpoint Paradiso leans closer to the former, meaning that the gameplay is not going to be the focal point of the product, and so if you are interested with immersive detective sleuthing games this is not going to scratch your itch as its mostly about clicking objects on a 2D image during investigations much like a find-the-difference puzzle, or the more common "pick your evidence/suspect" deduction phase style, then repeat these multiple times in one playthrough, repeated again through multiple playthroughs.

I am no artistic connoisseur to review the art style of Paradiso. Sugina Miki is a relatively well known artist in the industry by now. I would simply say the artwork itself is very well made, more so when the context of the story is considered, but might not impress if your preferences are computer enhanced 2D/live 2D/3D images, or AI based. Specifically for Paradiso, some of the character models might also come across as monotonous despite how the story was meant to be told.

That said, unlike the previous 2 works, Paradiso has very softcore sexual content. Even from a horror/violence perspective, the depictions are significantly less graphic than its predecessors. Instead, the acts are enhanced with audios, which isn't much in today's standards. The lack of scenes in the gallery also suggested a shift in focus of the game, and might not sit well with new readers who's expecting them in a standard eroge. Just like Sugina's gamemaking philosphy, Paradiso is made to satisfy a certain niche, and the art and game direction for this product made it clear that its not meant to serve as the common gory erotic VN in the market these days. The VN might come across as average, or downright unimpressive if you have not previously experienced the prequel works, specifically Inferno and Purgatorio.

To close, Paradiso did what it has to do - it is the final sequel of a trilogy, made to provide closure to fans that expected a conclusion of the characters that they've known and loved over the course of two works and several arcs. To do that, Innocent Grey has released this 8 years since Purgatorio, and there are some noticeable new elements in this product compared to the prequels while maintaining a standard of high quality music and artistic expression, important traits of a good VN. For the fans Paradiso might score higher than what is rated here, but the work is not without its problems from an objective point of view, hence a 4 star on this platform is what I would rate as a fair score in general.