UsoNatsu: The Summer Romance Bloomed From a Lie

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In UsoNatsu: The Summer Romance Bloomed From a Lie, Kaoru's heart is broken by her former teacher, Mirei. Her classmate, Shiori, proposes a solution: find a new love to replace Kaoru's feelings for Mirei. Shiori then asks Kaoru to help her forget her older brother by experiencing her memories and overwriting her feelings for him. This visual novel explores themes of love, adolescence, and self-discovery during a memorable summer.

Play Modes

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

Reviews

97%

Audience ScoreBased on 79 reviews

story40 positive mentions

stability6 negative mentions

The game features breathtaking visuals and high-quality animated sprites, making it one of the most polished visual novels available.
The story is emotionally engaging, tackling heavy themes with sensitivity and depth, and the character development is well-executed.
The voice acting is top-tier, enhancing the overall experience and bringing the characters to life in a relatable way.

The game lacks player choices, making it a kinetic visual novel that may disappoint those looking for interactive storytelling.
Technical issues such as frequent loading screens, lag, and buggy animations detract from the immersive experience.
Some characters and plot points feel underdeveloped or clichéd, leading to moments that may frustrate players seeking a more cohesive narrative.

story
107 mentions
37 % positive mentions
60 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The story is widely praised for its emotional depth, well-developed characters, and sensitive handling of complex themes, including mental health and relationships. Reviewers appreciate the engaging narrative that combines romance with elements of a death game, providing a unique twist. While some express a desire for player choice and note occasional pacing issues, the overall consensus is that the story is beautifully written and leaves a lasting impact, making it a standout in the yuri visual novel genre.
- “The story is a wonderful, heartwarming, emotional roller coaster that genuinely touched my heart all the way through, and it is written so beautifully with its memorable themes and motifs.”
- “The balance of fun, precious memories shared by lovable characters, and a series of unexpected hardships and troubles in understanding one’s feelings make this story so enjoyable from start to finish.”
- “An outstanding yuri story, well-delivered plot, foreshadowing of issues, excellent graphics and fully voiced lines.”
- “The biggest problem is that the whole story is built on a lie… which doesn’t work.”
- “I just wish I misunderstood a point which looks, from my perspective, like a massive plot hole.”
- “The length, the story matter, and the lack of choices (not that it is a big deal to be kinetic but combined with the story and length) and while the subject matter is portrayed relatably and presentation is good I do feel like for the average person this is not worth the price of 24.99 plus length (13 hours or so).”
graphics
16 mentions
50 % positive mentions
38 % neutral mentions
13 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their stunning artwork and high-quality animation, making it one of the most visually impressive visual novels to date. Reviewers highlight the unique and vivid art style, exceptional character design, and smooth CGI that elevate the experience to feel akin to watching an anime. Overall, the visuals are described as breathtaking and inspiring, contributing significantly to the game's storytelling and emotional impact.
- “The game is densely packed with stunning artwork.”
- “The art is very beautiful, the art style has a very unique way of handling color that makes it so vivid, and for some reason, it was also very familiar; I realized I saw the artist's work on an album cover several years back!”
- “The amount of quality they put into the visuals is absolutely inspiring.”
- “It's pretty sad when the character design is just so-so though especially if visual novels are about visuals.”
- “Graphics/sound ★★★★★★★★★☆”
music
15 mentions
47 % positive mentions
33 % neutral mentions
20 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its high quality, memorable tracks, and emotional depth, enhancing the overall storytelling experience. While some reviewers noted a bit of repetitiveness, the soundtrack is generally described as elegant and fitting for the game's mood, with standout pieces that resonate with players. Overall, the combination of music, voice acting, and visuals contributes to a beautifully immersive experience.
- “The music is also of great quality with memorable tracks.”
- “It's a really comfy and elegant soundtrack with emotional pieces that made me love the story even more.”
- “The art is gorgeous, the voice acting and soundtrack is amazing!!”
- “The soundtrack, while a bit repetitive, was a treat.”
- “The soundtrack is simple yet elegant.”
- “I can’t comment as much on music.”
emotional
10 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its heartwarming and beautifully written narrative, which features a touching girls' love story that resonates deeply with players. Users appreciate the emotional roller coaster of personal growth and the impactful themes, alongside memorable character interactions that keep them invested. The soundtrack further enhances the emotional experience, making it a wholesome journey that balances lighthearted moments with heavier themes, ultimately leading to satisfying conclusions for the characters.
- “Usonatsu is a beautiful and emotional girls' love story that I truly fell in love with and has a special place in my heart.”
- “The story is a wonderful, heartwarming, emotional roller coaster that genuinely touched my heart all the way through, and it is written so beautifully with its memorable themes and motifs.”
- “Kaoru and Shiori's interactions are the best part of the story, and the personal growth journey they took is both rewarding and heartwarming.”
stability
6 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The stability of the system is frequently criticized, with users reporting numerous freezes and bugs that disrupt gameplay. Animations are often described as unconvincing and prone to issues, such as characters' mouths not syncing properly and overall sluggish performance.
- “The system is not fluent either, and I have experienced freezes many times when playing.”
- “From a technical perspective, it's quite buggy.”
- “Animation can be buggy, freeze, load slowly, or move unnaturally at times.”
character development
6 mentions
50 % positive mentions
17 % neutral mentions
33 % negative mentions
Overall, the character development is praised for its stunning designs and strong voice acting, contributing positively to the story. However, some users feel that the character design can be inconsistent, with a few expressing disappointment when it doesn't meet expectations, particularly in visual novels where visuals are crucial.
- “I love the art style, the voice acting, and the overall story & character development.”
- “Great character design (in my opinion) and good voice acting.”
- “All the CGs are animated beautifully, and I personally really love the character designs (whoever designed Tachibana-san's clothes should get a raise).”
- “The character design, though, is a problem.”
- “It's pretty sad when the character design is just so-so, especially if visual novels are about visuals.”
optimization
3 mentions
67 % positive mentions
-67 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game features impressive animations and post-processing effects, but many users report random lag and performance issues, leading to a desire for options to disable these features for smoother gameplay.
- “The game randomly lags - the animations and post-processing effects are nice, but given the impact they have on performance, I genuinely wish there was an option to turn them off.”
- “There are significant performance issues that hinder the overall experience.”
- “The game suffers from frequent frame drops and lag, making it frustrating to play.”
- “Optimization seems to be lacking, as the game runs poorly even on high-end systems.”
humor
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is well-executed, complementing the narrative without overshadowing it. It effectively evokes a range of emotions, from laughter to introspection, enhancing the overall experience.
- “The sense of humor is on point, never undermining other aspects of the narrative.”
- “The moments of character growth made me laugh, cry, feel angry, and reflect upon a lot of things myself.”