I went through all the stages of grief but absolutely love this game.
Quite fire
Xenoblade 3 but worse
In this review I will not be trying to dissect the story of a House in Fata Morgana due to its scope and complexity however I still would like air my thoughts about it.
The House in Fata Morgana is a beautifully tragic story about love, hatred, regret, and forgiveness. The non-linear structure in which this story is told is a notable point of genius, as your perception of certain events or characters drastically shift in unexpected ways as the story develops. A lot of stories often fall into the trap of making characters too faultless or likeable and I think The House in Fata Morgana straddles the line perfectly, by writing characters that have depth and seem genuine. Furthermore, I like how during the story, we often swap perspectives, which again alters our perception of these characters, allowing us to come to empathise with each and every one of them no matter how irredeemable they originally appeared.
The ‘villain’ in The House in Fata Morgana is as equally unique as its plot, both of which I unfortunately can’t discuss without ruining the story. I can however talk about the music! The soundtrack here is extremely effective in creating the atmosphere of this mansion when our view of its interior is so limited. This is due to great compositions, a suitably gothic choice of instrumentation and the amazingly spectral quality of the vocals in these tracks. Furthermore, the way the soundtrack is utilised to better convey the tone during key scenes in absence of voice acting is genius. This is especially evident in its most haunting and memorable moments.
In conclusion, The House in Fata Morgana is a narrative triumph and culminates in a truly beautiful and unforgettable way, and I believe it has left a lasting impression on me as it for has for many others.
The House in Fata Morgana is a beautifully tragic story about love, hatred, regret, and forgiveness. The non-linear structure in which this story is told is a notable point of genius, as your perception of certain events or characters drastically shift in unexpected ways as the story develops. A lot of stories often fall into the trap of making characters too faultless or likeable and I think The House in Fata Morgana straddles the line perfectly, by writing characters that have depth and seem genuine. Furthermore, I like how during the story, we often swap perspectives, which again alters our perception of these characters, allowing us to come to empathise with each and every one of them no matter how irredeemable they originally appeared.
The ‘villain’ in The House in Fata Morgana is as equally unique as its plot, both of which I unfortunately can’t discuss without ruining the story. I can however talk about the music! The soundtrack here is extremely effective in creating the atmosphere of this mansion when our view of its interior is so limited. This is due to great compositions, a suitably gothic choice of instrumentation and the amazingly spectral quality of the vocals in these tracks. Furthermore, the way the soundtrack is utilised to better convey the tone during key scenes in absence of voice acting is genius. This is especially evident in its most haunting and memorable moments.
In conclusion, The House in Fata Morgana is a narrative triumph and culminates in a truly beautiful and unforgettable way, and I believe it has left a lasting impression on me as it for has for many others.
Odio a la humanidad
Very meh for me.
I don't really feel I can say a lot without giving too much away, but yeah, this is an EASY ten outta ten for me, I loved this to bits, and can't recommend it enough
It’s a good VN, with an interesting concept and formula, and it definitely kept me hooked, once I got through the early chapters.
I still find it too wordy in places, it likes to repeat itself a lot, and some of the plotpoints move a tad too slow, even after being firmly established.
But yeah, cool art direction, nice writing.
However I have to say, I do not think that the music here is universally good.
One thing in particular is that you really should think twice before putting vocal songs in your VN, even if the language is gibberish. Those songs consistently distracted me from reading an otherwise fun part.
And generally, the music can be hit or miss, considering the VN and genre choices. Like, the composer definitely felt more comfortable with mellow piano pieces (I heard that Clair de lune reference!), than… whatever the hell was the music in chapter 3.
Anyway, I had fun.
I still find it too wordy in places, it likes to repeat itself a lot, and some of the plotpoints move a tad too slow, even after being firmly established.
But yeah, cool art direction, nice writing.
However I have to say, I do not think that the music here is universally good.
One thing in particular is that you really should think twice before putting vocal songs in your VN, even if the language is gibberish. Those songs consistently distracted me from reading an otherwise fun part.
And generally, the music can be hit or miss, considering the VN and genre choices. Like, the composer definitely felt more comfortable with mellow piano pieces (I heard that Clair de lune reference!), than… whatever the hell was the music in chapter 3.
Anyway, I had fun.
When considering the true ending, the experience is quite remarkable how it ties everything together while providing a satisfying conclusion and strong message. While I was concerned with its handling of dark themes (sexual assault, misgendering and the whole lot), it does make it meaningful and worthwhile although this could be a point of discussion.
However, this is not without its faults. The worst is how uninteresting it can be during its initial hours. Since it tells four unrelated stories centering around the house and a girl, it can be hard to see the game's direction and appeal where it feels like wallowing in misery. Even then the early stories themselves are not as interesting or insightful on their own without the bigger context. Making the wrong choices early on can lock players out of most of the story with the bad endings which feels like a wrong design decision.
Past the early hours, the game still feels somewhat unclear since every main character tells their own story including the ones that already did as well as a true version. It does make sense, but it can really add to the fatigue. The dialogue writing is not particularly interesting which is not a problem but would appreciate it to keep me from reading too fast. I do like how the last act resolves, but starting it made me sigh knowing how much I have to go through. A problem of expectation perhaps, but I feel clear chapter separations like with title cards would make it easier for the player to pace themselves. All this to say, I feel the story and structure could have been tighter and better.
Aside from the story, this only really lacks a skip to choice option as the bad ends are surprising past the early stories. I do suggest at least manual saving at the start and end of each story. I do think the art could be better too but I do not really mind here. The menu animations are a tad bit long or can be skippable which may be a remnant of being an older game.
When the story truly makes me empathize with everyone to some degree specially with the antagonist, I think this is one of the better stories if one does make it through the end.
However, this is not without its faults. The worst is how uninteresting it can be during its initial hours. Since it tells four unrelated stories centering around the house and a girl, it can be hard to see the game's direction and appeal where it feels like wallowing in misery. Even then the early stories themselves are not as interesting or insightful on their own without the bigger context. Making the wrong choices early on can lock players out of most of the story with the bad endings which feels like a wrong design decision.
Past the early hours, the game still feels somewhat unclear since every main character tells their own story including the ones that already did as well as a true version. It does make sense, but it can really add to the fatigue. The dialogue writing is not particularly interesting which is not a problem but would appreciate it to keep me from reading too fast. I do like how the last act resolves, but starting it made me sigh knowing how much I have to go through. A problem of expectation perhaps, but I feel clear chapter separations like with title cards would make it easier for the player to pace themselves. All this to say, I feel the story and structure could have been tighter and better.
Aside from the story, this only really lacks a skip to choice option as the bad ends are surprising past the early stories. I do suggest at least manual saving at the start and end of each story. I do think the art could be better too but I do not really mind here. The menu animations are a tad bit long or can be skippable which may be a remnant of being an older game.
When the story truly makes me empathize with everyone to some degree specially with the antagonist, I think this is one of the better stories if one does make it through the end.
The game starts off pretty confusing and moves at a rather slow pace for the first few doors, but they are important to setup the plot for later parts of the story. If you can make it past the start, your perseverance will be paid off greatly. I was also considering just dropping the game, but I couldn't help but feel it would be a slog to re-read everything I have already read in the future if I decide to pick it back up. Now that I have completed the true ending though, I believe this is one of those games that are truly worth seeing through to the end.
i genuinely have no words to describe, in detail, how absolutely flawless this VN is. absolutely perfect in every way
La OST es un gusto adquirido y la historia te explota la cabeza cuatro veces, pero si tuviese un poquito menos de texto y un poquito más de .pngs tampoco pasaba nada.
whenever neither michel or giselle are on the screen i want to rip my eyes out and do frogger in real life at the daytona 500 but whenever one of them is around this game is peak
- The best story I have ever played through
- The best soundtrack I've heard in a game (NieR Automata has higher peaks, but Fata Morgana has more songs in general and they're equally as fantastic)
- The art that looks the most beautiful to me.
- The best romance, in fact the TWO best romances
- Some of the most charismatic characters
This visual novel is a flawless 100/100, and I will never forget about it.
- The best soundtrack I've heard in a game (NieR Automata has higher peaks, but Fata Morgana has more songs in general and they're equally as fantastic)
- The art that looks the most beautiful to me.
- The best romance, in fact the TWO best romances
- Some of the most charismatic characters
This visual novel is a flawless 100/100, and I will never forget about it.
I have played a few visual novels in the past year or so that really captured my attention and told fantastic stories - 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim being one of the absolute best. I remember hearing, however, that The House in Fata Morgana was one of the greatest stories in gaming, one of the best visual novels to ever be released, and a must play for any fan of the genre. So, once I was able to pick up a Playstation Vita, I decided to give this purported masterpiece a try. After several hours with the game, however, I cannot recommend it to anyone.
Every visual novel I have played started out strong and is typically interesting or at least entertaining from start to finish. There are of course dips in every story and the focus of the narrative is not always on the main plot, but The House in Fata Morgana takes this to a new level. Not only is it barely interesting to begin with, and I'm not sure it was ever entertaining in the several hours I played, the story went nowhere and just meandered along in no particular direction. There was never any true purpose to the story being told and no end goal ever became obviously apparent. Maybe I was unable to read through the lines or missed some crucial backstory, but I seriously doubt it. I likely would have suffered through more of the game if there was at least something engaging to keep me interested, but after several hours there was nothing compelling me to finish the story. It is unfortunate considering the hype this game had, that I simply cannot recommend it unless you seriously enjoy the artstyle and reading hours upon hours of text that likely has nothing to do with an overarching plot that I’m not sure even exists.
Every visual novel I have played started out strong and is typically interesting or at least entertaining from start to finish. There are of course dips in every story and the focus of the narrative is not always on the main plot, but The House in Fata Morgana takes this to a new level. Not only is it barely interesting to begin with, and I'm not sure it was ever entertaining in the several hours I played, the story went nowhere and just meandered along in no particular direction. There was never any true purpose to the story being told and no end goal ever became obviously apparent. Maybe I was unable to read through the lines or missed some crucial backstory, but I seriously doubt it. I likely would have suffered through more of the game if there was at least something engaging to keep me interested, but after several hours there was nothing compelling me to finish the story. It is unfortunate considering the hype this game had, that I simply cannot recommend it unless you seriously enjoy the artstyle and reading hours upon hours of text that likely has nothing to do with an overarching plot that I’m not sure even exists.
jesus. fucking. christ.
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eres perfecta
Our Father,
who art in Heaven,
hallowed by thy name.
I ask of thee, O Father,
to bestow upon their souls thy blessing.
who art in Heaven,
hallowed by thy name.
I ask of thee, O Father,
to bestow upon their souls thy blessing.
Jacopo and Mell are just literally me. (Help me please).
This review contains spoilers
I'll spoiler tag this review just because the story is so full of plot twists that shake up your fundamental understanding of every aspect of itself that it's impossible to talk about basically any specifics without spoilers.
The House in Fata Morgana is an exceedingly earnest story about the power of love and forgiveness. A very emotionally loud drama where our two protagonists have to struggle as paragons of virtue against an incredibly cruel world. And an unabashedly sincere romance about two outcasted and traumatized people completing themselves through each other, in a love that transcends life and time.
It tonally embodies its themes of human connection and redemption through embarrassing, revealing sincerity. It's got a lot of interesting larger themes given how religious zealots within the story are largely violent bigots, while the story itself is full of miracles and comes from a deeply Christian worldview. It gives the impression of, "god is real and good, but the world is full of people who misinterpret his word." And most importantly for my experience, the leads are just fantastic characters who you love and cry for and hope on the edge of your seat that they'll prevail. And this is more of my personal taste, but I adored the labyrinthine haunted mansion aesthetics, and the subject matter of people struggling to hold onto their sanity when cursed to live for huge stretches of time.
This is most of what I loved about Fata Morgana, but any recommendation of it has to be tempered by the fact that it's full of problems, in it's structure, in it's basic writing, and in several of its individual arcs. Those protagonists who I was so attached to by the end, who I think completely carry the story? They are essentially absent from it for the first 40% of the story. It starts with a series of only loosely connected vignettes, and to be blunt, half of them are downright terrible. After chapter 3 I was close to dropping the game. These are partly justified by it later becoming clear why they were important and included in the story at all, but that doesn't excuse how bad they actually are, in terms of bad characters, pacing, and frustratingly trite tragic plots.
The biggest obstacle to enjoying Fata Morgana is the first half, but many of these writing flaws continue throughout the whole thing. Much of the dialogue feels stiff and unrealistic. There's a very inconsistent application of time period dialect that becomes confusing and takes you out of the experience.
And one of my biggest issues was how full it is of long sequences of characters suffering, I think to varying degrees of success in communicating it emotionally. At times it did work quite well, and I felt sick with the horror of what was happening. But from it's ubiquity and failures in many individual scenes to be compelling, I usually felt emotionally dulled by the endless torment, until I couldn't take it as seriously as I was meant to.
I'm still not sure how I feel about Fata Morgana. When I listen to some of the stellar tracks from the ost and think of its best moments, I feel in love with it. But then I think of the dismal lows in its early chapters and the constant small frustrations with its clumsy writing pulling me out of the experience. Do I recommend it? That depends on how put off you are by the flaws I listed, but if you do give it a shot, I recommend powering through at least through chapter 5, even if it seems downright bad at first. Because despite all my issues, by the time it got going, I was moved by its story, and I'll remember Michel and Giselle as compelling and admirable characters for a long time.
The House in Fata Morgana is an exceedingly earnest story about the power of love and forgiveness. A very emotionally loud drama where our two protagonists have to struggle as paragons of virtue against an incredibly cruel world. And an unabashedly sincere romance about two outcasted and traumatized people completing themselves through each other, in a love that transcends life and time.
It tonally embodies its themes of human connection and redemption through embarrassing, revealing sincerity. It's got a lot of interesting larger themes given how religious zealots within the story are largely violent bigots, while the story itself is full of miracles and comes from a deeply Christian worldview. It gives the impression of, "god is real and good, but the world is full of people who misinterpret his word." And most importantly for my experience, the leads are just fantastic characters who you love and cry for and hope on the edge of your seat that they'll prevail. And this is more of my personal taste, but I adored the labyrinthine haunted mansion aesthetics, and the subject matter of people struggling to hold onto their sanity when cursed to live for huge stretches of time.
This is most of what I loved about Fata Morgana, but any recommendation of it has to be tempered by the fact that it's full of problems, in it's structure, in it's basic writing, and in several of its individual arcs. Those protagonists who I was so attached to by the end, who I think completely carry the story? They are essentially absent from it for the first 40% of the story. It starts with a series of only loosely connected vignettes, and to be blunt, half of them are downright terrible. After chapter 3 I was close to dropping the game. These are partly justified by it later becoming clear why they were important and included in the story at all, but that doesn't excuse how bad they actually are, in terms of bad characters, pacing, and frustratingly trite tragic plots.
The biggest obstacle to enjoying Fata Morgana is the first half, but many of these writing flaws continue throughout the whole thing. Much of the dialogue feels stiff and unrealistic. There's a very inconsistent application of time period dialect that becomes confusing and takes you out of the experience.
And one of my biggest issues was how full it is of long sequences of characters suffering, I think to varying degrees of success in communicating it emotionally. At times it did work quite well, and I felt sick with the horror of what was happening. But from it's ubiquity and failures in many individual scenes to be compelling, I usually felt emotionally dulled by the endless torment, until I couldn't take it as seriously as I was meant to.
I'm still not sure how I feel about Fata Morgana. When I listen to some of the stellar tracks from the ost and think of its best moments, I feel in love with it. But then I think of the dismal lows in its early chapters and the constant small frustrations with its clumsy writing pulling me out of the experience. Do I recommend it? That depends on how put off you are by the flaws I listed, but if you do give it a shot, I recommend powering through at least through chapter 5, even if it seems downright bad at first. Because despite all my issues, by the time it got going, I was moved by its story, and I'll remember Michel and Giselle as compelling and admirable characters for a long time.
What an unequivocally sincere story
If there is one piece of media I think everyone should experience, it would be The House in Fata Morgana.
This game has been on my backlog for such a long time and my only regret is that I didn't get to it sooner.
Despite this game only taking me just over a month to complete, I feel like I have been immersed in the world and the characters for far longer than that. It is a game I know I will revisit, so much so I have already bough the switch version to experience all the other games in the series, and will replay this one as well on the switch, too.
I cannot give this game enough praise - for the story - for the characters - for all the plot twists and the standout, the music score for the whole thing.
Everyone should experience this story.
This game has been on my backlog for such a long time and my only regret is that I didn't get to it sooner.
Despite this game only taking me just over a month to complete, I feel like I have been immersed in the world and the characters for far longer than that. It is a game I know I will revisit, so much so I have already bough the switch version to experience all the other games in the series, and will replay this one as well on the switch, too.
I cannot give this game enough praise - for the story - for the characters - for all the plot twists and the standout, the music score for the whole thing.
Everyone should experience this story.
went into this because i have a thing for maids and came out ready to shill this door to door to everyone i know like a mormon missionary
So far so great
I played this on Switch; weird it's not an option.
This was an extremely fine visual novel. I think it may have been over-hyped for me. I played it in October as a gothic option for the month. The visuals were very nice and the writing was OK. I did not find it upsetting or spooky at all.
Every character spoke as if they were 21st century regardless of the time period of the story which threw me off. None of the stories were particularly chilling. There was very little subtlety and the 'twist' was simple to guess.
There are multiple endings so it's possible that if I cared to put more of my time into it then I would encounter some nuance but I'm pretty done with my one ending. I feel like I'm coming down on this harder than I should but it was truly one of the poorer games I've played this year.
This was an extremely fine visual novel. I think it may have been over-hyped for me. I played it in October as a gothic option for the month. The visuals were very nice and the writing was OK. I did not find it upsetting or spooky at all.
Every character spoke as if they were 21st century regardless of the time period of the story which threw me off. None of the stories were particularly chilling. There was very little subtlety and the 'twist' was simple to guess.
There are multiple endings so it's possible that if I cared to put more of my time into it then I would encounter some nuance but I'm pretty done with my one ending. I feel like I'm coming down on this harder than I should but it was truly one of the poorer games I've played this year.
They will never understand what its like to be a true social reject, a creep, a weirdo.they will never understand what its like to be Italian. Nobody understands me because i call movies "films". I am literally the joker, nobody understands me -Jacopo Bearzatti
My first actual VN and woah I'm so glad I took the time to read this. It is what I would call, a masterpiece.
It transported me, every chapters made me feel different things and the end actually made me tear up a bit. I just love it so much aaaaaaaa
It transported me, every chapters made me feel different things and the end actually made me tear up a bit. I just love it so much aaaaaaaa
The House in Fata Morgana é simplesmente incrívell pqp , a poesia desse jogo é linda, os gráficos e a música te transportam para esse mundo gótico cheio de mistério e beleza, é uma daquelas histórias que você não consegue largar.
E a narrativa... eu me surpreendi, é de se elogiar . Tem um enredo supercomplexo com várias linhas do tempo e personagens que se conectam de formas surpreendentes. E os personagens são tão bem desenvolvidos, com histórias de fundo que te fazem sentir uma conexão real com eles.
E os plot???! Impossível adivinhar o que vai acontecer em seguida. A trama é cheia de mistérios e surpresas que te mantêm grudado na jogo
Resumindo, se você curte uma história envolvente, com uma dose saudável de poesia e muitos mistérios para desvendar, é definitivamente um jogo que você precisa experimentar. É uma obra-prima das visual novel , com certeza!!!
E a narrativa... eu me surpreendi, é de se elogiar . Tem um enredo supercomplexo com várias linhas do tempo e personagens que se conectam de formas surpreendentes. E os personagens são tão bem desenvolvidos, com histórias de fundo que te fazem sentir uma conexão real com eles.
E os plot???! Impossível adivinhar o que vai acontecer em seguida. A trama é cheia de mistérios e surpresas que te mantêm grudado na jogo
Resumindo, se você curte uma história envolvente, com uma dose saudável de poesia e muitos mistérios para desvendar, é definitivamente um jogo que você precisa experimentar. É uma obra-prima das visual novel , com certeza!!!
10/10
goated. Exited to play more Visual Novels!
goated. Exited to play more Visual Novels!