Kaori After Story
- December 3, 2018
- PixelFade
- 2h median play time
Get on Steam"Kaori After Story" is a visual novel sequel to "ACE Academy" that follows Kaori's ending. After being invited to spend Christmas and New Years with her family in the countryside, you'll meet her parents and twin sisters, enjoy winter activities, and learn more about Kaori's past. The game features a full English voice cast, animated sprites using Live2D® technology, and celebrates the holiday season.
Mac OS
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Kaori After Story is a heartwarming continuation of Kaori's route from Ace Academy, filled with humor and sweet moments.
- The use of Live2D technology enhances the character animations, making Kaori feel more alive and expressive.
- The voice acting is top-notch, with great performances that add depth to the characters and their interactions.
- The game is quite short, taking only about 2-4 hours to complete, which may leave some players wanting more.
- There is a lack of branching paths and significant choices, making the gameplay feel linear and somewhat limited.
- Some players may feel disappointed by the absence of a CG gallery and the inability to scroll back through dialogue.
- story278 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 66 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The "Kaori: After Story" serves as a heartwarming and charming epilogue to the Kaori route from "Ace Academy," focusing on the protagonist's relationship with Kaori during the Christmas season. While the narrative is relatively short and straightforward, lasting around 2-4 hours, it is praised for its improved animations, voice acting, and character development, making it a delightful experience for fans of Kaori. However, some players noted the lack of significant plot depth and wished for more substantial storylines or additional after stories for other characters.
“Kaori after story is a very cute romance story for once you finish Ace Academy and want more of our tsundere Kaori.”
“The story is both heartwarming and uplifting.”
“Kaori after story was just a joy to read and play; it was so adorably touching and heartwarming to see how the after story unfolds.”
“The story is so painfully boring I literally cannot play anymore.”
“The part of Kaori after story that let me down was the story.”
“It's innocent enough as a story but I still found it a bit of a slog to get through.”
- emotional41 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by its heartwarming and wholesome storytelling, particularly through the character of Kaori, which evokes laughter and deep feelings. Players appreciate the blend of humor and touching moments, especially during festive settings, creating a fulfilling experience that leaves them feeling uplifted and satisfied. Despite its brevity, the narrative effectively expands on character development and delivers a sweet, emotional journey that resonates with fans of the original game.
“Kaori's after story was just a joy to read and play; it was so adorably touching and heartwarming to see how the after story unfolds.”
“The feeling of experiencing romantic activities during the Christmas season with Kaori as well as her family is really fun, emotional, and precious.”
“The writing is set up to elicit a warm and heartfelt experience with Kaori as a love interest - all in all, you will walk away feeling generally good after playing this expansion.”
- humor40 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in this game is consistently praised for its charm and wit, featuring a blend of adorable, cheesy dialogue and hilarious scenes that evoke laughter throughout the experience. Players appreciate the heartwarming moments intertwined with the comedic elements, showcasing a signature style that fans of Pixelfade have come to love. Overall, the game delivers a delightful mix of humor and romance, making it an enjoyable and entertaining visual novel.
“The dialogue and comedy were just adorable and hilarious throughout the entire novel, with tons of cutesy and cheesy writing.”
“This game has the humor that is trademark for a Pixelfade game but also focuses on the romance, which was a slightly different tone than Ace Academy and Crystalline.”
“I really loved to read through the dialogs, see the funny reactions and experience real character work.”
- music39 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received overwhelmingly positive feedback, with many users praising its upbeat and immersive quality that complements the story and enhances emotional moments. The soundtrack is described as memorable, with standout tracks, including a beautiful opening song that resonates with players. However, some users noted minor issues, such as the background music resetting to maximum volume upon restarting the game, and a lack of a music menu or gallery feature. Overall, the music significantly contributes to the game's enjoyable atmosphere and storytelling.
“The story is just so pure and cute, and the music is super upbeat a lot of the times.”
“It's worth the price for the soundtrack alone.”
“When I heard the opening music, my heart melted and all my stress left my body.”
“Also, the BGM music resets to max volume every time I restart the game or load a save.”
“I find it kind of weird that there's no gallery and music menu, and no option to rewind if you didn't like the choices you made, both features originally present in Ace Academy.”
“I don't think the music is bad, but it doesn't really stand out to me either.”
- graphics18 mentions
- 61 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game have received widespread praise for their significant improvements over its predecessor, Ace Academy, featuring gorgeous artwork, polished animations, and immersive soundtracks. While some background resources are recycled, the new character graphics (CGs) are highlighted as particularly stunning. However, the absence of a CG gallery is noted as a disappointing oversight given the quality of the visuals.
“The artwork is, as usual, nice to look at - some of the background resources have been recycled, but the CGs are all new and they are wonderful.”
“The game has a really good and nice art style and animation, complemented by good soundtracks.”
“The artwork was amazing as ever.”
“The art style is somewhat simplistic but also beautiful.”
“The artwork here has also improved drastically.”
“Compared to Ace Academy, which this story is based on, the animations, art style, and voice acting all showed major improvements.”
- gameplay8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally straightforward and lacks variety, featuring around two hours of well-animated content with minimal branching paths. While it includes elements of challenge, such as timed choices, it primarily serves as a vehicle for the narrative rather than offering complex gameplay mechanics. Overall, players seem to prioritize the story over gameplay depth.
“There is around 2 hours of gameplay, and it is really well animated.”
“Not difficult, but still an actual element of 'fail-able' gameplay.”
“Gameplay is just as you would expect from a visual novel; I play for the plot anyway.”
“There's no branching paths or much variety in gameplay.”
“After story gave me less time and with no gameplay systems.”
“Gameplay's just as you would expect from a visual novel, no matter, I play for the plot anyway.”
- character development7 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The character development in the game is highly praised, particularly for the character Kaori, whose growth is portrayed coherently and convincingly. Players appreciate the heartwarming and humorous narrative that enhances her storyline, offering deeper insights into her character and adding new dimensions even for those who may not have favored her route in the previous game, Ace Academy. Overall, the development is seen as a standout feature that enriches the gaming experience.
“The character development and quirky jokes are great as well.”
“Lovely character development; meeting Kaori's family and seeing her developed coherently and convincingly from Ace Academy.”
“Even if you were not a big fan of Kaori's route in Ace Academy, this game/sequel adds more character development and you'll be surprised.”
“The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the characters.”
“I expected more growth from the characters, but they seem to remain static throughout the game.”
“The attempts at character development often feel forced and unconvincing, leaving me disappointed.”
- atmosphere3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is characterized by its wholesome scenes, beautiful art, and immersive music, which together create a captivating experience. Despite some limitations in content, the voice acting and Live2D elements enhance the overall ambiance, making it feel lively and engaging. Overall, players find the atmosphere to be both charming and immersive.
“It's filled with a lot of wholesome scenes and sweetness to absorb you into the atmosphere.”
“Game story is simple; however, it is plentiful and immersive. The art is beautiful, the music is fun and atmospheric, and the voice acting is perfect. I really like how they add any kind of Live2D; in my opinion, it brings the whole game alive while giving a unique touch to their titles.”
“It is nicely done and retains the original atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking the depth needed to engage players.”
“Despite some interesting concepts, the overall atmosphere fails to create a compelling experience.”
“The game struggles to establish a cohesive atmosphere, leaving players feeling disconnected from the world.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The game offers moderate replayability, particularly due to its multiple dialogue choices and consequences, making it enjoyable for holiday play. However, players should not expect extensive replay value or significant impact from their choices, as the main storyline can be completed in about two hours.
“It has a lot of replayability in my opinion, and it is very special for the holidays.”
“While beating Kaori's after story will only take you about two hours, there is some replayability to it as there are many dialogues with choices and consequences.”
“However, if you go in expecting huge amounts of replayability or meaningful choices, you'll be disappointed.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players express hope that the final version of "Ethereal Enigma" will see improved optimization, noting that the current build performs better on older hardware compared to "Crystalline." The presence of only one live2D character at a time is seen as a contributing factor to this better performance.
“I have only recently started playing Pixelfade games and now I'm a fan. I hope the final product for Ethereal Enigma will be much more optimized than this.”
“Performance-wise, I found this game generally ran better on my ancient laptop than Crystalline did, probably because Kaori is the only Live2D character on screen at any one time.”
