Get on Steam"Kanon" is a visual novel from Key, known for their emotional storytelling in games like "Clannad" and "Little Busters". This version features HD visuals, retouched CG coloring, and full Japanese voice acting. The story follows the protagonist in a northern town, experiencing small miracles and building relationships with those around him. Languages include Japanese, English, and Simplified Chinese.
Reviews
- Kanon features a beautifully emotional story that intertwines themes of love, time, and miracles, creating a deep connection with the characters.
- The remastered version enhances the original with stunning HD visuals and an exceptional soundtrack, elevating the overall experience.
- The game is a significant piece of visual novel history, setting the standard for emotional storytelling and paving the way for future titles from Key.
- Some routes suffer from pacing issues and convoluted narratives, which can detract from the overall experience.
- The game lacks a true route system, requiring multiple playthroughs to fully experience the story, which may frustrate some players.
- The default resolution is not considered 'HD' by modern standards, which may disappoint players expecting higher graphical fidelity.
- story34 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The story of "Kanon" is praised for its emotional depth, exploring themes of love, memory, and the fragility of life, making it a significant influence in the visual novel genre. While some routes are considered short and pacing issues exist, the narrative remains engaging and quotable, with a strong focus on character-driven storytelling. Overall, "Kanon" is regarded as a must-experience title for fans of visual novels, showcasing a blend of supernatural elements and heartfelt moments that resonate with players.
“Kanon is a story about the fragility and strength of miracles, love, time, and life.”
“Kanon is an incredible story, and it's amazing that it's finally available in English.”
“Heart-wrenching story: follow Yuichi Aizawa as he reconnects with forgotten memories and unfulfilled promises in a town covered in snow.”
“Kanon has some negative qualities, such as pacing issues, but in its defense, they don't really take away from the core components of the story.”
“There is no branching timeline view in this game, so it's all about the skip functionality and making saves if you want to 'optimize' the story unlocking.”
“Which… is kind of what the game becomes in the end to the detriment of its own strong storytelling.”
- emotional13 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of "Kanon" is highly praised for its powerful voice acting and carefully selected music, which together create a deep connection with the characters and elicit strong emotional responses. Each character's route, while sometimes convoluted, delivers impactful narratives that explore themes of acceptance, nostalgia, and personal growth, culminating in memorable and heart-wrenching conclusions. Overall, "Kanon" is recognized as a seminal work in emotional storytelling within visual novels, setting a high standard for future titles in the genre.
“Even if you as a reader have the foresight to predict these events, the emotional delivery of the voice acting combined with the perfect musical choice for each important scene will be more than enough to elicit an emotional reaction through a newfound feeling of connectivity with the characters.”
“Ayu: 8/10 - an emotional rollercoaster; even though I predicted the events in her route, the emotional back and forth along with the delivery of those said emotions was just stellar.”
“Heart-wrenching story: follow Yuichi Aizawa as he reconnects with forgotten memories and unfulfilled promises in a town covered in snow.”
- music11 mentions
- 73 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its emotional depth and atmospheric quality, enhancing the overall experience and connectivity with the characters. The remastered soundtrack and voice acting significantly elevate key scenes, effectively setting the mood for various moments throughout the game. Overall, the combination of beautiful music and strong voice acting contributes to a nostalgic and immersive experience for fans of the genre.
“Even if you as a reader have the foresight to predict these events, the emotional delivery of the voice acting combined with the perfect musical choice for each important scene will be more than enough to elicit an emotional reaction through a newfound feeling of connectivity with the characters.”
“Enhanced soundtrack: the remastered soundtracks and voice acting elevate the emotional depth of every scene.”
“The music has amazing audio, as expected of key's other releases, which really sets the mood for the game's snowy landscapes and effectively portrays a scene, whether it's fooling around or a tense moment.”
- graphics7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 29 % negative mentions
The remastered version of "Kanon" features stunning HD visuals that enhance the original's charm while updating the art style to attract a broader audience. While the background scenes are detailed and beautifully rendered, some players may find the character designs outdated and jarring. Overall, the graphics successfully breathe new life into the game, making it more appealing to both new and returning players.
“The remastered version, released on Steam on June 20, 2024, is everything we loved about the original, with stunning HD visuals and enhanced sound.”
“Beautifully updated graphics: the remaster breathes new life into the snowy, melancholic setting of 'Kanon' with HD visuals that retain the charm of the original while enhancing the details.”
“The artwork of the background scenes has a great deal of detail for the game's age, whereas the character designs can be a bit jarring for some and will likely take time for people to get used to, as seen in the Steam store screenshots.”
“Outdated art style and all.”
“The full artwork is still available; however, which can be viewed by hitting the 'space' key during certain scenes and by either dragging your mouse on the screen or scrolling with a mouse wheel, so you can still enjoy the full art without any image cutting issues.”
- gameplay3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The gameplay features significant quality-of-life improvements that enhance navigation and interactions, while maintaining the core elements of branching narratives and multiple endings. Players can expect a straightforward visual novel experience, characterized by text and voice lines, complemented by an intuitive user interface and customization options, including dialogue history and voice sliders. Overall, the gameplay is designed to be smooth and enjoyable, catering to both new and returning players.
“Improved gameplay: quality-of-life improvements make navigation smoother and interactions more enjoyable, while the core gameplay of branching narratives and multiple endings remains intact.”
“The gameplay and mechanics of the game are fairly straightforward and what you would expect of a visual novel, featuring a wealth of text lines with accompanying voice lines and character illustrations to convey conversations. The user interface is intuitive, seamless, and easy to navigate, with plenty of options to customize your experience (font type, transparency, individual voice sliders, etc.) and a feature to jump back to previous dialogue, akin to a quick-load option, which is a really great addition!”
“The gameplay and mechanics of the game are fairly straightforward and what you would expect of a visual novel, being a heap of text lines with accompanying voice lines and character illustrations to convey the conversations between characters. The user interface is fairly intuitive, seamless, and easy to navigate, with plenty of options to customize your experience (font type, transparency, individual voice sliders, etc.) and a feature to jump back to previous dialogue akin to a quick-load option, which is a really great option!”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, with standout voice acting and a captivating soundtrack that enhance the overall experience, reminiscent of early key titles.
“The voice acting and soundtrack really shine and create an incredible atmosphere, something early key titles excel at.”
“Incredible atmosphere.”
- character development1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Character development in the game features detailed background artwork, but the character designs may initially feel jarring to some players, requiring time to adjust.
“The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the protagonists.”
“I found the character arcs to be predictable and uninspired, leaving me disappointed by their growth.”
“The dialogue options are limited, which restricts the ability to shape the characters' personalities and relationships.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game offers significant replayability, enhanced by its engaging music and art, making it a worthwhile experience for fans of visual novels. Players appreciate the effort put into the English port, which adds to its value compared to its Japanese counterpart. Overall, it is seen as a fun title that invites multiple playthroughs.
“Overall, the game is a really fun title with great music and art (depending on your taste) with plenty of replay value. I'm really pleased with the effort put into this release, with only minor nitpicks at best. I'm also relieved they've finally ported this game in English for fans of key and visual novels alike to enjoy one of the forefathers of modern visual novel games.”
