The Sad Story of Emmeline Burns

About

"The Sad Story of Emmeline Burns" is a free yuri visual novel about Toma, a 14-year-old girl who meets a possible ghost in her local graveyard. The ghost, a girl named Emmeline Burns, tells Toma her tragic tale from 1851, and Toma feels compelled to listen, despite her unease. As the story unfolds, Toma wonders if there's anything she can do to help Emmeline, even in death.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

The Sad Story of Emmeline Burns screenshot

91%

Audience ScoreBased on 541 reviews

story204 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

Beautiful artwork and music that enhance the emotional experience.
A touching and bittersweet story that explores themes of love and self-acceptance.
Short and engaging, making it a worthwhile read for fans of visual novels.

Lacks interactivity as it is a kinetic novel with no choices to be made.
Some parts of the story may feel predictable or clichéd.
The pacing can be slow at times, which may detract from the overall experience.

story
656 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
66%
2%
The story of "The Sad Story of Emmeline Burns" is a poignant and beautifully crafted visual novel that explores themes of love, loss, and self-discovery through the lens of a tragic romance between two young girls in the Victorian era. While the narrative is straightforward and lacks player choices, it effectively evokes strong emotions and offers a bittersweet experience, enhanced by its stunning artwork and music. Despite some critiques regarding pacing and predictability, many players found the story to be touching and worth experiencing, especially given its free availability.
- “The sad story of Emmeline Burns is a poignant and beautifully crafted visual novel by Ebi-hime that explores themes of love, loss, and self-discovery in a hauntingly serene setting.”
- “A lovely little sapphic tale; one tragic love story with a happy ending, itself bookended by a second sweet love story.”
- “Overall, this is a sweet story about forging your own identity, taking your life into your own hands, and not letting your family hold you back from taking a chance on something you really want because you might not get the chance to tomorrow.”
- “The sad story of Emmeline Burns has too little to say and too little to offer.”
- “Despite being a pretty short story, the plot is all over the place and full of over-used clichés.”
- “The story itself is fairly straightforward and in general is sad, as the title says.”
music
155 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
34%
3%
The music in the game is widely praised for its beautiful, calming, and atmospheric qualities, effectively enhancing the emotional depth of the story. While many players appreciate the soothing piano tracks and the engaging music box feature, some note that the limited number of repeating tracks can become repetitive over time. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a significant strength, complementing the game's visuals and narrative beautifully.
- “The art style is equally praised, using delicate visuals that suit the story's ethereal atmosphere, while the music effectively complements each scene, enhancing the immersion.”
- “The soundtrack is original and beautiful, the story is interesting, and the character design is great.”
- “The music is well done and adds to the atmosphere, complementing the game quite well; it is not often free visual novels have such a well-used soundtrack.”
- “The music is like 3 tracks that repeat as you go through the story.”
- “The music can be repetitive and it sounded as though the foley artist crumpled a piece of paper for every single sound effect.”
- “The music is okay, but it gets a little boring and repetitive after a while.”
graphics
119 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
65%
33%
3%
The graphics of the visual novel are widely praised for their stunning artwork and unique pastel-toned style, which effectively complements the story's themes and atmosphere. Many reviewers highlight the beautiful character designs and detailed backgrounds, noting that the visuals enhance the overall immersive experience. While some mention minor issues with the integration of text and visuals, the general consensus is that the graphics are a standout feature, making the game visually appealing and engaging.
- “The artwork is absolutely gorgeous and the characters look like porcelain dolls, which works surprisingly well for the theme.”
- “The pastel-toned artwork is gorgeous, the music is nice and atmospheric, and the whole game has a gothic tone to it that somehow blends perfectly with the sugary visuals.”
- “The visuals are designed beautifully down to the last detail.”
- “Graphics remind me of free dress-up games somehow?”
- “Also, personally the story didn't really hold my attention either, and the visuals, whilst pretty, were a bit grayed out due to the constant fog.”
- “The artwork is average to below-average.”
emotional
79 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is widely praised for its sensitive and engaging narrative, often described as both heartwarming and melancholic. Players report experiencing a range of emotions, from sadness to joy, with many noting that the story's depth and character relationships resonate deeply, often leading to tears. Overall, it is recognized as a beautifully written visual novel that effectively explores themes of love, loss, and personal identity, making it a memorable experience for fans of the genre.
- “The game is notable for its sensitive writing style and emotionally engaging narrative.”
- “A heartwarming story about the life of a girl who dies tragically, but in the end, it was all worth it.”
- “This is a beautifully compelling game with a heart-wrenchingly emotional soundtrack.”
gameplay
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
71%
14%
The gameplay is largely non-existent, as players primarily left-click to read through a linear story without any choices or interactive mechanics. While some appreciate the focus on narrative over gameplay, many find the lack of interactivity boring, with the experience lasting around 30 minutes to an hour. Overall, it is described as an interactive story or visual novel rather than a traditional game.
- “First, I thought I wouldn't like it (not because of the theme, but about the gameplay itself), but nevertheless: it's amazing, touching, and sad... if you're looking for a great story, I greatly recommend this one!”
- “The game has no branching plot or any gameplay mechanics whatsoever, but instead is equipped with quite good writing comprised of tension between tender and sad (and even grievous) moments, smart and lighthearted humor with a small portion of referential gags and the story itself, of course.”
- “I went in thinking that it would be choice-based but it's not; there really is no gameplay but, instead, it is more of an interactive story.”
- “There is no gameplay; you left click and read the story.”
- “Nothing that will change between play-throughs, nothing that you can constitute as gameplay.”
- “The game has no branching plot or any gameplay mechanics whatsoever, but instead is equipped with quite good writing.”
atmosphere
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
41%
18%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its delicate pastel artwork and complementary music, which together create an ethereal and immersive experience. Reviewers note the effective blend of gothic tones with sugary visuals, enhancing both the calming and poignant moments of the story. Overall, the combination of beautiful visuals, well-crafted soundtracks, and thematic depth contributes to a captivating and enchanting atmosphere.
- “The art style is equally praised, using delicate visuals that suit the story's ethereal atmosphere, while the music effectively complements each scene, enhancing the immersion.”
- “The pastel-toned artwork is gorgeous, the music is nice and atmospheric, and the whole game has a gothic tone to it that somehow blends perfectly with the sugary visuals.”
- “Great drawings, really good music, interesting plot... all of this creates an enchanting atmosphere encouraging players to know the whole story.”
- “This is a beautiful game filled with love and kindness (without being too schmaltzy, which is good) but also with a bit of sadness and dark atmosphere.”
- “Like in asphyxia, the atmosphere brought by the characters, music, historic timeline mix and background are perfect.”
- “The music is well done and adds to the atmosphere and complements the game quite well; it is not often free visual novels have such a well-used soundtrack.”
character development
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
17%
33%
Character development in the game is criticized for being weak and poorly executed, with awkward scenes and undeveloped events detracting from the overall experience. While the character designs are visually appealing and the soundtrack enhances the atmosphere, the static nature of the characters limits their emotional depth and growth throughout the story.
- “At pivotal points of character development, gentle piano tunes play with the corresponding theme.”
- “Yet beyond all this is the beautiful pastel artwork that conveys the overall themes with gorgeous character designs, minute attention to detail, and an elegant atmosphere.”
- “The soundtrack is original and beautiful, the story is interesting, and the character design is great.”
- “However, the storyline is weak, with poor character development, awkward scenes, and undeveloped events.”
- “The character designs are somewhat static at times, lacking energy, and seem to convey more of the idea of a static portrait in time.”
grinding
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and time-consuming, often requiring excessive effort to progress. While some appreciate the absence of distracting mechanics, the overall sentiment leans towards the experience becoming monotonous over time.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The story gets boring and tedious.”
- “The dialogue can be a bit tedious in the beginning, but it gets better as you keep playing.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by a blend of lighthearted jokes and darker themes, creating a surprising emotional depth. Players appreciate the clever writing that balances tender moments with smart, referential humor, making for a memorable experience that elicits both laughter and tears.
- “From all the nice touching scenes and funny jokes to the dark side of the story, it was quite a shock yet a great way to swing the story around.”
- “The game has no branching plot or any gameplay mechanics whatsoever, but instead is equipped with quite good writing comprised of tension between tender and sad (and even grievous) moments, smart and lighthearted humor with a small portion of referential gags.”
- “Haha, I still remember how you said that 'penguins can't fly???' It was so funny!”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's optimization received a score of 6, with users noting issues such as stuttering and sudden fog appearance at the start, which detracted from the overall experience.
- “The fog at the start stuttering or suddenly appearing did bother me.”
- “Optimization score: 6”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has low replayability, rated 3/10, as it can be completed in about an hour with no meaningful choices affecting the story.
- “There's no replay value because the game takes about an hour to beat and you make no choices throughout the whole story.”
- “Replay value: 3/10”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Reviewers express concern over the monetization strategy, highlighting that the game's advertising may be misleading by showcasing a feature that allows players to skip choices, which could create confusion about the game's mechanics and value.
- “The monetization model feels exploitative, as it pushes players to spend money to enjoy the game fully.”
- “I find it frustrating that essential features are locked behind paywalls, making it hard to progress without spending extra.”
- “The constant prompts to purchase in-game currency disrupt the gameplay experience and make it feel more like a cash grab than a game.”