I first stumbled across Winter Wolves whilst I was browsing through Lemmasoft. At the time, I was free and didn't have any visual novels to play. So I thought, why not check this one out? It looked promising enough, with the art drawing me in almost immediately; so I decided to give it a try. All in all, I wasn't disappointed.
Storyline
"Amy is desperate! Her boyfriend Aaron doesn't remember her anymore after a car accident.
Will you be able to make him remember again?
Or perhaps it's time to move on. Maybe Amy will fall in love with someone else?
It's up to you to decide. Play this life simulation game with dating sim elements and shape Amy's destiny."
Basically, you play a college student by the name of Amarantha (Amy) who unfortunately becomes the victim of an accident with her boyfriend, Aaron. He protects her at the last second; leading to him suffering from short term amnesia (he does not recall any events within the past couple of years). It is now up to you to wisely manage your time throughout the summer between your job at the ice cream shop and the hospital. You could either work towards recovering his memories, finding a new love, or ending up alone. Who will you pick? Eddy, the young yet distant Doctor, Lawrence, your kind and soft spoken co-worker, Hugh, a charismatic fashionista, or Aaron, your long term sweet boyfriend?
I found the story line in itself rather cliche, recycling on the plot of 'amnesia' or 'forgetting your memories'. It's not the kind of story that would you leave you thinking 'Wow. I never realised that!' or 'Amazing! I'm never going to forget this.' However, I found the narration and dialogue between the characters to be fluid and entertaining. There were no grammatical errors, or sentence restructuring that I could pick out and the ideas were brought forth very well. The writing was well done, making up for the lack of originality in plot line.
It has multiple paths and endings (with four possible bachelors, one 'true ending' and one alone ending) . This allows for greater replay-ability, and piqued my interest enough to play it several times. Although the story itself is cliche, the game is much more difficult than you will originally anticipate. I myself, struggled at times to find the event scenes, garner the necessary affection/skill points whilst managing my time (the game spans for three months, in game time).
It's a challenging multi-task game that requires many, many replays to achieve the ending you wish.
Character Development
The characters although diverse, didn't have any particular 'side' of them that would immensely capture your interest. There's no 'traumatic dark past' nor is there anything 'out of the ordinary'. They're each four normal guys, with each their own little problems and insecurities.The rest of the cast also, didn't have many redeeming qualities that you'd particularly remember. They're just fleeting presences that appear throughout the story line, and didn't make a significant impact on the story itself.
EDDY: The young 'doctor' graduate, that is assigned to help Aaron's condition. Although sympathetic to their situation, he is almost always busy at the hospital. Initially, he is rather cold and strict due to his opinion of what a 'doctor' should be like, he eventually opens up to you over time. Deep down inside, he's really a soft and innocent guy, who's inexperienced with things outside medicine; since he never really had time for a relationship during med school.
I found his path my favourite, since not only was he the most difficult to obtain but he had the greatest character development. He opened himself so much and put himself out there; confessing his feelings blatantly to Amy (even though he has never done so before). His character event scenes I also found, utterly adorable. Not only that, but I guess what's not to like about a handsome, young, and intelligent guy? Out of the cast, I'd say he's the closest to being a 'tsundere' type character.
HUGH: The typical charismatic, fashionable guy who's not afraid to joke around and quite a 'ladies' man'. Quite a renowned flirt, and not shy at all when it comes to his feelings. Overall, I found his scenes most humorous; since it's airy, light and funny. All in all, he doesn't change much throughout the progression of the story. I found his 'special ending' very cute though, and was a little disappointed at the normal ending.
LAWRENCE: The quiet, 'guy next door' kind of character. He's sweet, soft spoken and kind; whilst secretly crushing on Amy. I found him rather boring (as I usually do with the childhood friend/kind characters) and pursued him last. Although he was rather cute, there was nothing interesting about him that particularly stood out to me. He was also the easiest character to obtain, so I recommend pursuing him during your first run through of Remember Me.
AARON: Your kind and sweet boyfriend who protects you from the accident. I found this path quite nice in a nostalgic sense since it delves into their history together, and their past memories. It is also considered the 'true ending' if you manage to revive his memories and have him fall in love with you again. I felt rather disappointed at the 'true end' though, since I was expecting much, much more. There wasn't that special 'quality' that made it stand out from the rest, to be considered a "true" end, something that would make me consider it truly canon.
Design
One of the most redeeming points about 'Always Remember Me' was the art. It was the first thing that attracted me the most, and what really convinced me to play it. The characters were drawn beautifully, and the coloring was just wow. I felt like a lot of work had been put into it, and it really had paid off in the end. It gave the work that 'final, polished, and professional' look.
It suited the overall tone of the game, which was light, happy and positive; a game suitable for all ages. The CG Art was also very well done, and followed suit with the mood of Remember Me. One thing I've noticed about Winter Wolves' work though is... why the lack of CG art? Usually, there is only one ending CG or none at all; in comparison to other games that generate many CGs, depending on what scenes were unlocked.
Is it the lack of time, or the extra work that must be placed? I feel like many CGs contribute greatly to the overall score of a Visual novel as it is called a 'visual' novel for a reason. I feel like this aspect of the art could be greatly improved. The background art I must add, was also very beautifully done.
Music and Voice Acting
Overall, I found the choice of music to be well picked, as it suited the situations and moods of the Visual novel. There was quite a diversity, so it wasn't the same songs being played over and over. Each particular area had it's own 'song' or 'background music'. A redeeming quality though, was of course; the theme song. I felt that added miles onto the quality of the Visual Novel, and the lyrics were also quite meaningful. It was catchy, and well done. Although it was partially voiced, I found that the little sound effects here and there were cute and added that extra little touch.
System
The text was clearly displayed, and all the controls were clear and well presented. Everything was simple, and uncluttered; a surprisingly important factor when it comes to Visual Novels. I found the map system to be quite intriguing and imaginative whilst the choice animations added a little creative flair to the game. The chibi characters were cute, and added extra points to the overall quality of the Visual Novel. The CG viewer actually allows you re-view the ending scenes, without having to replay the whole game which I found rather convenient.
There were no particular bugs, crashes or errors whilst I played (I completed all endings) so that was a definite plus.
Personal Opinion
Overall, I really enjoyed playing "Remember Me". It really is a solid piece of work, and by far the best from Winter Wolves (I've played Flower Shop, Love & Order and Spirited Heart Deluxe). The art and soundtrack was beautiful, and this kept me occupied for many, many long hours. Each of the characters although weren't particularly interesting; had their own special unique qualities that kept you playing to discover their 'endings'.
I found some of the endings to be rather disappointing (Hugh's Normal Ending, Aaron's Endings and Lawrence Endings as an example) and perhaps, these could be improved in future. The game was initially much more difficult than I anticipated, and really piqued my interest. Where were the event scenes? What were their stat qualities? What actions are best to raise stats? This really improved the game play-ability, which I commend.
Perhaps, in other games/future works by Winter Wolves' could a greater amount of CGs be implemented? All in all, I recommend this Visual Novel for otome players out there especially that are a sucker for great art. It's quite fun and entertaining, but of course can always be improved. I look forward to any future Winter Wolves' projects and perhaps, you may hear from me once again.
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