Oblivious Garden ~Carmina Burana
- December 12, 2014
- DigitalEZ
Get on Steam"Oblivious Garden: Carmina Burana" is a romance fantasy visual novel where players assume the role of Irell Reis, a former general forced to live as a peasant after a devastating defeat. Summoned by the Emperor of Celantu, Irell seeks to restore his honor and reputation, navigating political intrigue and potentially romancing princesses along the way. The game is set in the mythical land of Latoy, where people live in peace and worship various gods.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a captivating story that blends love, politics, drama, and magic, providing an engaging experience.
- The character design and artwork are praised for their beauty, and the soundtrack is considered outstanding, enhancing the overall atmosphere.
- The game offers multiple routes with unique storylines for each princess, allowing for replayability and varied experiences.
- The translation quality is inconsistent, leading to awkward phrasing and confusion in understanding the story.
- Voice acting quality varies, with some characters sounding muffled or poorly recorded, detracting from immersion.
- The gameplay can feel slow and repetitive, with limited choices that may not significantly impact the story, leading to a lack of engagement.
- story282 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story is a complex blend of love, politics, and magic, featuring multiple routes that explore the lives of a former general and various princesses, each with unique narratives. While some players find the storytelling engaging and deep, others criticize it for being confusing, poorly translated, and occasionally lacking coherence. Overall, the game offers intriguing plot twists and character development, but the execution can be uneven, leading to mixed reviews on its effectiveness.
“The story is a combination of love, politics, drama, and magic, and it gets pretty wild occasionally.”
“The story is intriguing, with a fun bond-building loop before you get into any specific route.”
“The story touches on the horrors of war, redemption, on gods and magic, the lives of these princesses trapped in their beautiful cage.”
“As someone that has only managed one piddly bad ending, I thought the story (what little I learned) was rubbish.”
“There are routes that are so similar to each other in plot that there really is no point in expecting anything mind-blowing... lazy writing at its best.”
“So in the end, this is a visual novel that succeeds in just about every sector apart from its storyline, which is simply confusing and results in it being very hard to connect with the characters.”
- music120 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received a mixed but generally positive reception, with many praising its ability to enhance the atmosphere and storytelling. While some users noted a lack of variety in the soundtrack, leading to moments where the music felt out of place, others highlighted specific tracks as memorable and worth purchasing. Overall, the soundtrack is described as beautiful and fitting, contributing significantly to the game's immersive experience.
“The musical score in this game complements the game’s story progression very nicely and helped to keep the player immersed in the story.”
“The music was superb, recommend buying the soundtrack.”
“The artworks and the music are marvelous, really.”
“There are not enough soundtracks to illustrate accurately the various moments and emotions throughout the game.”
“I turned off all the music and still have to sit through the blaring and hideous music they play for the intro.”
“On the other hand, the translation is absolutely awful, and English-speaking players will need to read a lot of the lines over and over again to understand what's going on, and there are not that many different music tracks in the game, making long playthroughs a little tiring.”
- graphics66 mentions
- 48 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their unique retro anime art style and high resolution, with many users finding the artwork and character designs lovely and memorable. However, some critiques mention that the background images could use more detail, and a few users feel the overall graphics are inferior compared to other visual novels. Despite these mixed opinions, the visuals are often described as aesthetically appealing and well-complemented by the game's music.
“The art style is quite gorgeous if you're into retro anime type art.”
“The artwork is lovely and the character design is well done.”
“Thanks to the real replayability of this sort of 'four-stories-in-one' novel combined with the well-drawn graphics, I can't recommend it enough.”
“The graphics suck as well.”
“To the graphics, I found this game a bit inferior to the other visual novels, but it doesn't matter a lot to me; the most important point is the story.”
“- Graphics not very well made in general.”
- gameplay24 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The gameplay in this visual novel is characterized by meaningful choices that enhance player engagement, despite the genre's typical limitations. While there are no complex mechanics, the inclusion of a baseball mini-game adds a unique element, and overall, players report a solid experience with minimal flaws, rating the gameplay around 8/10. However, some users noted slow loading times when accessing save files, which can disrupt the flow.
“Good amount of gameplay.”
“Gameplay 8/10”
“I'll note that you don't get an option to really 'skip' the gameplay, but in some cases, you might experience a slow time with loading your save files.”
“VNs don't generally have much gameplay; however, this is not a kinetic visual novel: there are choices.”
“This is a visual novel, so there are no mechanics per se; however, there are the usual VN controls such as game saves, HUD remover (for screenshots), and basic audio adjusters.”
- atmosphere14 mentions
- 7 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is characterized by a smooth transition between character models and a formal, mature ambiance, often enhanced by the frequent presence of tea. The music is described as rich and beautiful, effectively complementing the story and contributing significantly to the overall atmosphere, although some players noted a lack of horror soundtracks that could heighten tension in certain moments. Overall, the atmosphere is stable and immersive, making it a standout feature of the game.
“The music is... I don't know how to describe it - it suits the atmosphere of the story; maybe that's what makes the atmosphere of the story rich and beautiful, that's it.”
“The lack of horror background soundtracks can create an atmosphere of fear in some moments.”
“Even if not for the story, just its atmosphere is worth it.”
“It is a mature and stable atmosphere that does not easily fade away during the game.”
- emotional10 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its ability to evoke deep emotions, with players feeling a strong connection to the protagonist, Irell. Unlike lighter visual novels, it offers a serious and touching narrative that resonates on both emotional and mental levels, making it one of the most impactful experiences for many players. The use of static character models that change to reflect emotional states further enhances the storytelling.
“This was one of the most emotional games I have played and really touched me in ways that were both emotional and mental. This game is impressive.”
“This visual novel does just that: it made me feel emotions, as if I was Irell (the main protagonist).”
“From the perspective of comedies such as Nekopara or Sakura series, this visual novel contains less whimsical or funny content. The story of Oblivious Garden is rather serious but more touching and beautiful.”
- replayability8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game offers strong replayability due to its multiple distinct routes and well-developed characters, despite being shorter than some other visual novels. Players can explore different storylines, enhancing the overall experience and encouraging multiple playthroughs. The combination of engaging narratives and appealing graphics further boosts its replay value.
“Although it is a bit short compared to some other visual novels of the same type, the multiple routes that are completely different from each other make for great replayability if you want more of it.”
“The story is well done and has significant replay value because each princess has a complex personality, and the main protagonist has a solid backbone.”
“Thanks to the genuine replayability of this 'four-stories-in-one' novel combined with the well-drawn graphics, I can't recommend it enough.”
“Story is well done and has big replay value because each princess has a complex personality and the main protagonist has a solid backbone.”
“Thanks to the real replayability of this sort of 'four-stories-in-one' novel combined with the well-drawn graphics, I can't recommend it enough.”
- character development8 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The reviews highlight strong character design and well-developed personalities, praising the artwork as lovely. However, there are mentions that the backgrounds could be improved, suggesting a focus on character over environmental detail.
“But overall, excellent character design and personalities.”
“The artwork is lovely and the character design is well done.”
“Excellent character design and personalities.”
- humor6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in this visual novel is generally subdued compared to more whimsical comedies like Nekopara or the Sakura series, focusing instead on a serious and touching narrative. However, Leira's route offers some comedic moments through witty banter, particularly due to Leira's tsundere personality. Additionally, the player vs. AI battle system in Little Busters introduces random and amusing elements that can influence the game's endings.
“If you are to find the funniest route which possesses the most jokes, I will suggest you try Leira's route. The dialogue between Irell and Leira is not too friendly (no bad words) but sometimes funny (since Leira is a tsundere).”
“In Little Busters, there is a player vs AI battle system that takes place (random and funny) and that will affect some endings you can earn in the game.”
