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Sepia Tears

Sepia Tears Game Cover
89%Game Brain Score
story, music
gameplay, grinding
89% User Score Based on 619 reviews

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Sepia Tears Game Cover

About

Sepia Tears is a single player casual simulation game with romance and comedy themes. It was developed by Scarlet String Studios and was released on January 8, 2016. It received positive reviews from players.

"Sepia Tears: Reprise Edition" is a romantic visual novel, following Mark and Myra's quest for a storybook love, while uncovering a memory that Mark wants to forget. This edition includes new backgrounds, music, animations, and three new chapters. Enjoy a 40,000 word story, vocal ending song, and a CG gallery filled with game and promotional art. Perfect for anime and VN fans.

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Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
Sepia Tears screenshot
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89%
Audience ScoreBased on 619 reviews
story178 positive mentions
gameplay3 negative mentions
  • The game features a beautiful and emotional story that resonates with players, often evoking strong feelings.
  • The art style, while simple, has a unique charm that many players find appealing, especially the chibi designs.
  • The soundtrack complements the narrative well, enhancing the overall atmosphere of the game.
  • The dialogue can be overly lengthy and sometimes feels repetitive, which may detract from the pacing of the story.
  • Choices in the game often lack significant impact on the overall outcome, leading to a feeling of limited agency.
  • Some players find the character designs and backgrounds to be inconsistent or lacking in quality compared to other visual novels.
  • story
    498 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story of this visual novel is a blend of light humor and mystery, featuring a captivating narrative that explores themes of love and personal growth. While some players found it engaging and emotionally resonant, others noted pacing issues and a lack of clarity in certain plot points, leading to mixed feelings about its overall execution. Despite its shortcomings, many reviewers appreciated the heartfelt moments and character development, making it a worthwhile experience for fans of the genre, especially given its free availability.

    • “The story mixes light humor with a touch of mystery, making the few hours of reading feel warm and memorable.”
    • “The story itself has its light moments, but also parts full of intrigue.”
    • “The plot will keep you on your toes until the very end.”
    • “My only gripe is that there wasn't enough explanation or foreshadowing of the backstory until the very end, which you will think of plot holes until you get the epilogue diary stuff after the credits roll.”
    • “The story is very lackluster; the sister could have been cut from the entire story with no problem, and saved on the length of the story.”
    • “The story is so-so; the plot is not entirely worthless and has its merits, but the writing is disappointing, and many of the dialogues feel like filler material that you just want to fast-forward through.”
  • music
    170 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in this visual novel is widely praised for its emotional depth and ability to enhance the storytelling, with many players noting its charm and suitability for the game's atmosphere. While some tracks are described as repetitive or lacking in variety, standout pieces, particularly the ending song, resonate strongly with players, often evoking nostalgia and emotional responses. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a significant asset to the game, contributing to a memorable experience despite some criticisms regarding sound quality and transitions.

    • “A sweet and heartfelt visual novel with charming art and a gentle soundtrack.”
    • “The soundtrack is an absolute masterpiece; it's so reminiscent of those nights I would open the app just to fall asleep to my phone playing the soft and hopeful tunes.”
    • “The music is fantastic, and this game will make you feel emotions you never knew you could feel.”
    • “The music is really repetitive, choppy, and the transitions are really bad.”
    • “The music is standard and weak at its worst.”
    • “The background art and character sprites are fairly simple, the music is repetitive and almost a bit plain, and the story is short and straightforward.”
  • graphics
    97 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the visual novel receive mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the charming and colorful artwork, which evokes nostalgia and fits the story's themes. While some criticize the quality and consistency of the art, particularly noting a blend of styles that can be distracting, others find the visuals appealing and well-suited to the overall experience. Overall, the artwork is generally considered decent for a free game, with standout elements like chibi art and a variety of backgrounds enhancing the visual appeal.

    • “The artwork and the general graphics are awesome and feature many different styles.”
    • “The graphics are awesome; I love how it keeps switching between different forms of artwork. The anime style is creative, and the storyline is fantastic.”
    • “The artwork is downright charming and gorgeous, the music is fantastic, and this game will make you feel emotions you never knew you could feel.”
    • “Moreover, for a visual novel, the visuals are disappointing.”
    • “It's not one of my favorites because I felt the artwork was lacking (looks like they used photos found online and just quickly applied a painting effect in Photoshop for their backgrounds) compared to most visual novels I've played through.”
    • “Unfortunately, it has the 'deviantart' art style, which doesn't look particularly appealing.”
  • emotional
    72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The emotional aspect of the visual novel is widely praised, with many players expressing that it elicited strong feelings, including tears and nostalgia. Reviewers highlight the heartfelt storytelling, charming art, and evocative music that contribute to a deeply engaging experience, often describing it as both heartwarming and heartbreaking. While some noted occasional narrative flaws, the overall consensus is that the game successfully connects players to its characters and themes, leaving a lasting emotional impact.

    • “A sweet and heartfelt visual novel with charming art and a gentle soundtrack.”
    • “Absolutely beautiful story, I cried.”
    • “This has been such an emotional experience, and it's one that I'll not soon forget.”
    • “Boring storyline: check.”
    • “Boring art, boring story, and boring music.”
  • humor
    40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is a well-crafted blend of light-heartedness and deeper emotional moments, often enhanced by clever character interactions and witty dialogue. While some players found the humor to be hit-or-miss, with certain jokes landing perfectly and others falling flat, the overall comedic tone is described as enjoyable and relatable, often drawing on anime and visual novel references. The balance of humor with mystery and romance contributes to a memorable experience, making it both funny and touching.

    • “The story mixes light humor with a touch of mystery, making the few hours of reading feel warm and memorable.”
    • “The humor was good and relaxing.”
    • “Touching and funny in equal measure and blessedly free of silly fanservice to boot!”
  • atmosphere
    19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its heartwarming and immersive qualities, enhanced by a snowy setting and a charming soundtrack that complements the storytelling. While some players note a slow pacing that may not appeal to everyone, many appreciate the surreal tone it creates, contributing to a unique emotional experience filled with themes of grief, loss, and character depth. Overall, the combination of visuals, music, and narrative elements establishes a captivating and memorable atmosphere that resonates with players.

    • “I absolutely recommend this visual novel to newcomers and for veterans alike who just want to enjoy a heartwarming storytelling experience with a really great atmosphere and the comfiness of the snowy themed setting.”
    • “The overall atmosphere of the game, one filled with grief and loss with a light cover of some comedy or awkwardness, is certainly a very interesting one.”
    • “The soundtracks of this game are what create a perfect atmosphere in total...”
    • “The pacing is extremely slow and will probably bore many people to death, but I found it added some kind of surreal tone that contributed a lot to the atmosphere.”
    • “Music isn't anything wondrous or original on the other hand, and do not expect a miracle on sound effects either, but they all serve their accurate purpose of establishing a consistent atmosphere.”
    • “To quote a line from the game: 'funny how simple it all was.' The story proceeds with vague dialogue and an unusual atmosphere that gives a false impression that there is a really deep underlying story or a shocking twist about to be presented.”
  • character development
    14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Character development in the game is generally praised, with players noting that it effectively conveys the personalities of the characters through dialogue and interactions, allowing for a deeper connection despite initial impressions. While some critiques mention inconsistencies in character design quality, the overall writing and character arcs are highlighted as strong points, contributing to a well-rounded visual novel experience. The charming art style and engaging soundtrack further enhance the character development, making it a standout feature of the game.

    • “I've had the original game since 2015, so for 5 years I have had the original - and I can say that in terms of a visual novel - I love it - the choices are not too many, and not too little, the character development is great - you get a feel for who these characters are after a few scenes of dialogue.”
    • “But what this visual novel is good at is character development; even comparing it to some visual novels I have read, Sepia Tears is a great visual novel.”
    • “The story is overall well written, character designs are charming (especially the chibi ones) with nice art.”
    • “At first, I found the characters obnoxious and the weeb humor annoying, but the writing and character development made up for these early-game problems.”
    • “Like, Lukas's and Rin's character design seemed poorly done.”
    • “Art: character design and background are somewhat a hybrid of draft/sketch and CG, which is odd; they could have stuck to one.”
  • gameplay
    12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay in this visual novel is primarily focused on clicking through dialogue, which some users find poorly written and lacking depth. However, others appreciate the slower pacing and emotional engagement, noting that it offers a satisfying conclusion and meaningful choices despite its simplistic mechanics. Overall, players can expect around 5-6 hours of gameplay that emphasizes story over traditional gameplay elements.

    • “The ending, although hidden behind a very nasty mechanic (go for the roof first, it's not a spoiler, it's a life-saver), is satisfying and to some extent caught me by surprise.”
    • “All in all, Sepia Tears is a nice little visual novel, with a few hours of gameplay, and a touching romance.”
    • “As a visual/interactive novel, this doesn't feature any notable gameplay; it's just a lot of clicking through badly written dialogue that would never have been accepted or published in print, which poses the question, 'how did something this badly written end up on Steam?'”
    • “You can safely expect 5-6 hours of gameplay, considering the story progresses very slowly depending on the protagonist's mood and ability to experience occurrences.”
    • “No revelations in dramaturgy are waiting for you here, but the game still has as much time of gameplay as any in the Call of Duty series, and touches you no less in an emotional way.”
  • grinding
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users find the grinding aspect of visual novels and e-books to be tedious and frustrating, likening it to a slow reading experience where progress is hindered by constant clicking. While some appreciate the potential for easy achievements, many describe the process as boring and laborious, detracting from overall enjoyment.

    • “Visual novels/e-books are tedious at best... imagine the best novel you ever read, be that Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy or 2001: A Space Odyssey or Twilight (if you have terrible taste in literature), but then translate that to a format where the words dribble out and you have to click your mouse every time you want to read the next sentence, instead of just turning the pages.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “It's an easy 100% achievement game, but I personally found it tedious and boring, that is before I looked up the 100% achievement guide.”
  • replayability
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game has limited replayability, primarily offering little incentive to revisit beyond exploring different endings. While choices exist, they do not significantly enhance the overall replay value.

    • “There isn’t any replayability despite it having choices.”
    • “It does not have a high level of replayability.”
    • “For a game with almost no replay value, unless you want to try all endings, it has a good place in my list.”
  • optimization
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The optimization of the game has received a mixed response, with a score of 6 indicating that while some players find it satisfactory, others experience performance issues that detract from the overall experience. Improvements are needed to enhance stability and frame rates for a smoother gameplay experience.

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6h Median play time
6h Average play time
5-6h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Sepia Tears is a casual simulation game with romance and comedy themes.

Sepia Tears is available on PC, Mac OS, Phone, Windows and others.

On average players spend around 6 hours playing Sepia Tears.

Sepia Tears was released on January 8, 2016.

Sepia Tears was developed by Scarlet String Studios.

Sepia Tears has received positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Sepia Tears is a single player game.

Similar games include One Thousand Lies, Trick and Treat - Visual Novel, Lucid9: Inciting Incident, Everlasting Summer, Lucy: The Eternity She Wished For and others.