Doushin

Visual Novel Community Archive, 2000-2009
#1

Ok, I post this having not yet finished playing through this game. I haven’t finished it, I haven’t found all the endings or all the pics. I’ll probably go ahead and amend this after I finish the game, but I want to go ahead and state my thoughts at this moment. There might be some spoilers, so be warned.

I enjoy Bishoujo games, but in playing them, I occasionally get frustrated by the totally nonsensical reactions of the characters, and the extremely far fetched story lines. I know, part of me enjoys the story lines, but when characters react in stupid ways, I find myself occasionally yelling at the game, as if to give the characters advice. This game is no exception.

There is a part in the game, when 1 character is told to choose between being raped, or allowing her friend to be raped. My thought to this is, call the cops girl! Don’t mess about, run out of the room, and use the phone, call the police. Let the rapists explain what they were doing to the poor girl. As their being hauled away in disgrace. Or if they won’t let her leave, call the police after its over. They’ll use the rape kit, do a DNA match, and bam, them slimes are in the bighouse being some bad mans girlfriend for the next 5 years. Quite the fitting punishment. Maybe its just the difference in cultures between the US and Japan. I just know that a girl who doesn’t report it, is not only allowing the man who raped her to escape justice, but also consenting to the rape of his next victim.

I know I’ve played some games in which this is a theme, and it always irritates me seeing this kind of reaction. I don’t have any problem with Harem endings, rather enjoy them in fact, despite how silly they are. But when women are being forced into sex, and then don’t bother to respond appropriately, this bothers me, all out of proportion.

I’ll go ahead and finish the game, then give a final review, either here or on my own website.

[ 07-12-2006, 09:09 PM: Message edited by: Molenir ]

#2

err, you posted in the JAPANESE bishoujo game reviews forum, which is intended for discussion of games that never made it to the west. i am switching you back to the regular forum

#3

Thank you, sorry about that. I noticed after I posted. Then of course, after I posted saying I noticed that I posted in the wrong message board, I then noticed this.

::sigh::

Today is just not my day.

#4

Ok, Doushin

I wrote a review of this game already. Ended up losing it because of my own stupidity. So I’m rewriting it again here. I haven’t found all the endings. But of them, some of the ones I’ve found are really disturbing. Others are nice.

First let me say that Doushin is an unusual game. You are able to play from the perspective of three different characters.

I’ll start with what I liked about this game, then move on to what I didn’t like, and what I felt could have been better.

First I love being able to switch perspectives between the 3 different girls. Its so unique that it makes what could otherwise be a simple story, 3 different stories in one. The answers you choose as one character, can effect what happens to the others. From a gameplay perspective, I liked having the quicksave button, as well as being able to skip what I’ve already read.

As I noted above, some of the themes in this story are very disturbing and highly unrealistic. I know, I know this is a game, and unrealistic situations are what we like about them. Still, the story could have been better.

From a gameplay perspective, we have a quicksave button, it would have been nice to have a quickload button as well. Loading felt clunky. It almost felt like, what was the point of a quicksave button. Not quite, but almost. I liked that we could skip, but it would have been nice to have an auto advance, hands free type mode as well.

Additionally, I would have liked to have an endings list to go along with the graphics list. I know theres one included in the booklet, but an ingame one, along with maybe a closing graphic would have been nice. Finally, when I got to an end for one character, I would liked to have seen what happened to the other characters as well. Its nice to know that Miho told her guy she loved him, but it would have been nice to know what else happened. For example that Ryokos boss was killed, and that Maki made up with Ippei. Etc

Edited:

Overall however the ability to switch between perspective is such an enjoyable and unique experience that this alone almost makes the game worth looking at. However the dark themes, and nonsensical reactions to the actions of other characters in this game, make it worth missing.

I find myself oddly torn in saying this. On the one hand, I don’t mind playing games in which the main character rapes someone else. Even when their reaction to this is ludicrous. However when the main character is the one being raped, and when I as the player can’t make appropriate choices, in this case, reporting the scum to the authorities either in the company, or the police, I find myself turned off, and angered by this. Had this game included after the first rape, as well as subsequent ones, the option to go to the police, opening up a storyline for Ryoko involving romance with the police detective seen later on. I would have found this to be fine. Then we could have had a dark path, and the option to choose a better way. The lack of appropriate response however puts this game into the will not play again column, despite its unique gameplay.

[ 07-13-2006, 12:35 PM: Message edited by: Molenir ]

#5

I hate the part about being raped and not being able to do anything about it too, I was like WTF? Are all you girls morons?

Anyways I found the three-character persepective quite tedious. Am still playing…

#6

This was a fairly big complaint I had about the Initial D anime; well, the same sort of complaint. In it, someone “challenges” the main character to a race by deliberately ramming a friend of his (and another occupant) off the road at high speed. And this prompts the main character (Takumi) to race the bastard, because he said if Takumi won he would apologize.

… My reaction to this was “and why would I want to give you what you want? I shall instead have you arrested for … let’s see now … Reckless endangerment; vehicular assault; attempted murder (2 counts); hell, let’s throw in improper lane usage”.

But, of course, you can’t do that in a shonen action show …

#7

I agree. Even an “ending completed list” without anything else would have been nice so you’d know how many you’ve acomplished.

As to Ryoko’s path, I agree it would have been nice. But then again having more options for all the paths is always nice. I mean there were some choices i would have liked to have with Maki and Miho as well.

[ 09-21-2006, 03:15 PM: Message edited by: Jinnai ]

#8

Why all of the Doushin rewies i’ve found on the net are - for the most and biggest part - so negative? Perhaps i did well in waiting for my purchase… :frowning:

[ 09-21-2006, 01:37 PM: Message edited by: Italicus ]

#9

Well Molheir said what he didn’t like, Ryoko’s path choices.

Me, I always like more choices and more complex games. It takes a lot of complexity to turn me off.

#10

Jinnai, perhaps i’ve expressed my thoughs unclearly…

Molenir’s reviews was the first half-positive i’ve found on the net.

#11