Past or present tense

[Arithra]

Since I have finished the planning of the game, I will now start writing everything out.

But this is were I encountered a problem.
I am used to writing in past tense, but seeing as the story of the vn is happening just this moment, I wasn't sure which tense I should use.
What do you prefer, if the story is written in the first person?

[Aleema]

I don't think I prefer to read one more than the other in a VN, but when I'm writing, I definitely prefer past tense. It stifles inner monologue, though. My editor has to point out every "in the moment" phrase I write because it's present tense. ^^; So I wouldn't recommend past tense unless you personally prefer writing in it.

[Samu-kun]

It is always past tense, unless you're doing present tense intentionally. Personally, I will go mad within half an hour if your game is in present tense without some clever literary meaning behind it.

[musical74]

I think past tense too...

Unless you plan on doing a *this is my train of thought at this moment*, past tense just seems easier.

[OokamiKasumi]

...I am used to writing in past tense, but seeing as the story of the vn is happening just this moment, I wasn't sure which tense I should use.

Go with your first instinct: Past tense. Fiction in English is always written in the Past tense. The only time Present tense should be used is in a non-fiction / professional document such as a letter, a business report, or an essay.

Other languages use the Present tense, so stories that are poorly translated often show up written that way. (These same stories tend to use em-dashes (--) and ellipses (...) instead of commas and periods.)

[lastmousestanding]

Past Tense - but you can change tenses if you want to create a certain mood and when the narration style changes - e.g. when the POV changes to another character for a short time...

[Applegate]

Writing in past and present tense is indeed different. It's quite possible to write an engaging story in the present tense, but it follows different rules from stories in the past tense - I wouldn't say it's required to write in past tense as that disconnects the reader a little more from the story, and the format of the VN -is- usually "Choose Your Own Adventure", where it would look a little odd if you made decisions that affect the past rather than future actions.

To further illustrate the point of differing writing conventions:
"I watched her scurry away to the classroom." is acceptable in past tense first person.
"I watch her scurry away to the classroom." is not acceptable in present tense first person; instead, it becomes "She scurries away to the classroom." In present tense, the rule is to not describe what the narrator is doing, but what they are actively experiencing.

Write in whatever tense you are most comfortable with, and try to stick to it unless you use historical present.

[Chrizine]

I wouldn't say it's required to write in past tense as that disconnects the reader a little more from the story, and the format of the VN -is- usually "Choose Your Own Adventure", where it would look a little odd if you made decisions that affect the past rather than future actions.

That's exactly my point... I do think it's odd.
I know we are more used to writing in past tense, but why not make it a challenge for the writer to enable the players to go deeper into the story by using present tense?
I'm still unsure what would be better.

[Dreamtale]

You can mix past and present, it's just a good thing to do (dunno about english though, i'm russian lol). E.g. you can't write all text in past - it will be like a manual to the microwave - dry and boring. Present serves to make your story more colourful and dynamic, that reader'll think that it's happening with him right now.