Episodes Versus Full Length VNs

[rainbowcascade]

For the people who play visual novels: How do you feel about purchasing/playing visual novels that are released in episodes? Do you prefer full length games to episodes?

My thoughts:

I feel like creators will have a disagreement with players for differing reasons.

Creators who wish to tell a story through a long running saga that will last for a couple seasons want their story to be long lasting and build a fanbase that will stick around for a while. I think these creators are thinking of the life period of TV shows or the super hero comics industry where Batman/Superman will always have another adventure. If it works, episodes are a good way to create franchises that can profit and really get into the details and world that the creator wishes to tell. A story that is finished in one game will only last based on how well the marketing for it goes. So once players play the game and participate in the fandom, the interest in that game dies off.

So TLDR; if well executed, episodic franchises have a longer lifespan and are likely to profit more versus a single full length game.

However, I have heard players who bemoan the existence of episode visual novels. They dislike them because:
1. It costs more. Like 5 dollars per episode over a whole season. On the other hand, a $20 dollar full game is easier to swallow since you don't have to worry about continually paying to see the rest of the story.
2. How the story wraps up in episodes. In episodes, it is pretty likely that there's going to be a cliffhanger at the end, leaving players frustrated that they'll have to buy another episode to see how the story ends. Unless the player REALLY LOVES the creator's story, there's going to be some resentment.

I can understand the appeal but also the cons of episodes. How do you guys feel about them?

[Rozume]

I prefer Full Length VNs because I want to finish what I start and not have to wait for the next installment. However, an episodic story can work if executed well. If the story's good, and the episode's a reasonable length, I wouldn't mind paying $5 per episode. If the episodes keep ending in cliff hangers then that can get tiring really fast and I would lose interest. Also, if it takes too long to release the next installment then I would lose interest and move onto something else.

I want to try an episodic VN myself. I'm personally not a fan of the format, but I want to see what I can do with it.

[Asceai]

I don't like episodes all that much; I just don't trust the developer to be able to bring all the episodes out to wrap a story up and I'd rather not get too invested in something if I don't even know it will all be made.

Most VN players, when they think of episodic series', think of ryukishi's Higurashi and Umineko series' and the recent ChuSinGura46+1. That's fine, but when I think of them, I think of Supipara, Oujou Ibun and the countless other things that never got past episode 1.
Plus, there's nearly always a compilation release eventually that's cheaper than buying the episodes individually. So I'll wait for that.

[Greeny]

I think Episodic works best when you have a set up that allows for "sub-stories" to be started up and resolved within an episode, while slowly developing an overarching plotline.

[Katta]

I hate episodes and never play such games until all episodes are finished, because chances are high they won't. Also I'm not sure how creators (especially indie) go about choices in episodes, it seems to me that most such projects only have small choices that doesn't affect the story, so that each episode could be played separately - it makes their game a kinetic, which I also don't like.

[Green Glasses Girl]

I don't mind a series as long as there is an established length. Like if the story is just WAAAAY too big, and the creator says "This is episode 1 of 4", with 2-4 still in production, I'm okay with that.

But if it's just to add bonuses with no exact end in sight, I'll be like "meh". It becomes egregious with purchasing used just for different routes or "what if" scenarios. "Oh, you know that character you liked in the prologue? Well, he has an epilogue available! And a side story! And a prequel/backstory! And epilogue part II and III! And an alternate universe edition where he's a samurai! And schoolboy! And CEO! $2.99 each, please!" Oh no no no.

[KittyKatStar]

I prefer full VNs myself, since that's the whole game right there. Episodic, I always worry staff members will leave, the series will get discontinued, or the next installment will get delayed to the point I'm no longer interested and won't return to the series. If the entire episode series is finished, I'll be more likely to purchase it.

But if I trust the developers (i.e. they finished an episodic series before) there's a chance I'll start with the first episode from the beginning. =)

[papillon]

Episodic games from non-established creators are practically a guarantee of failure. It's a self-reinforcing cycle, since the expectation of failure means people refuse to buy into it, which makes it even more likely to fail.

My advice has always been - don't even consider releasing a game in episodes unless you have *multiple* episodes already completed before you start selling any of them. You are going to have to work hard to win people's trust, you absolutely have to have that story lined up and be ready to deliver it in steady updates to show people that you're serious.

If you have the conviction to write a whole series before releasing any of it and THEN put it out in episodes, go for it. But please, please, don't try to sell a half-baked "episode one" with a vague promise that you'll continue the story "if it sells well".

[SundownKid]

Pretty much the above. If a newbie goes in and sells "Episode 1" as their first game, all I take out of it is that the game is over extended and likely to fail.

They really have to be a trusted developer of games before people will believe that Episodic games will come out on time. And even then, the track record for episodic games isn't exactly stellar. *CoughHL2EP3Cough*

Personally I dislike episodic games. They just scream "unfinished!" to me. Or that the creator doesn't think it's likely to succeed or it will be delayed to kingdom come.

[Asceai]

Episodic games from non-established creators are practically a guarantee of failure. It's a self-reinforcing cycle, since the expectation of failure means people refuse to buy into it, which makes it even more likely to fail.

My advice has always been - don't even consider releasing a game in episodes unless you have *multiple* episodes already completed before you start selling any of them. You are going to have to work hard to win people's trust, you absolutely have to have that story lined up and be ready to deliver it in steady updates to show people that you're serious.

If you have the conviction to write a whole series before releasing any of it and THEN put it out in episodes, go for it. But please, please, don't try to sell a half-baked "episode one" with a vague promise that you'll continue the story "if it sells well".

Is there still a plan to release more Magical Diary games?

[PyTom]

A bit tongue in cheek:

It's fine to release a game in episodes - just don't tell people what you're doing. I mean, even if you are releasing a game in episodes, each episode has to stand alone anyway - it would be deeply unsatisfying to play a game, only for it to end without any resolution. But once you have a good resolution to your story, what does it matter that you conceived it as episodes?

I mean, look at Star Wars. The original 1977 release of Star Wars didn't include any sort of episode number. Then when The Empire Strikes Back came out, they retroactively added the Episode IV: A New Hope subtitle to the first move. I don't know if Lucas actually meant to make six or nine movies - but since Star Wars worked so well by itself, it didn't really matter, except insofar as Lucas had the money to fund the making of the rest of the movies by himself. (In some cases, to disastrous results. )

[planktheory]

I can say that I enjoy episodic content, be it television, games, comics... and I don't think it would be any different if a VN were delivered in that format. I agree with Greeny, that as long as the episode is still broken into a nice story-arc with larger story arcs being hinted at. I'm down for that. I think long-form narrative webcomics would be a the most comparable medium. And there's plenty of evidence that suggests people on the internet enjoy that sort of thing.

Even Telltale's the Walking Dead, and the Wolf Among Us is delivering pretty well on their episodes and now Seasons. They're slated for a Borderlands game and Game of Thrones... game. Doublefine will be dipping their toes in on Episodic Content with Last Life.

Fiscally? If a game had my interest, I wouldn't have a problem supporting the creator to make more with their stories and characters.

[2dt]

A bit tongue in cheek:

It's fine to release a game in episodes - just don't tell people what you're doing. I mean, even if you are releasing a game in episodes, each episode has to stand alone anyway - it would be deeply unsatisfying to play a game, only for it to end without any resolution. But once you have a good resolution to your story, what does it matter that you conceived it as episodes?

I mean, look at Star Wars. The original 1977 release of Star Wars didn't include any sort of episode number. Then when The Empire Strikes Back came out, they retroactively added the Episode IV: A New Hope subtitle to the first move. I don't know if Lucas actually meant to make six or nine movies - but since Star Wars worked so well by itself, it didn't really matter, except insofar as Lucas had the money to fund the making of the rest of the movies by himself. (In some cases, to disastrous results. )

I agree. I think especially given the unreliable nature of indie game development, these sort of things should grow organically. Make a "first episode" that's standalone. If for whatever reason (popularity, creative inspiration, LUST!?!?!?) you decide to make a second or third episode, do it and make those standalone. If it becomes so popular that making it episodic becomes sustainable, do it then. Basically, I think episodic is fine as long as you don't get ahead yourself. But don't ever go overkill with episodes (IE don't promise 12 when you've only really written 6 episodes worth of outline)

[Hazel-Bun]

I'm fine with them, no major hang-ups with episodic works. I have a short attention span and limited time to sit in front of a computer so, if you break your story up into segments/routes, it's usually easier for me in the long run. Plus, I'm always wary of purchasing a full game unless it's something recommended to me by a close friend and by a developer I've purchased from multiple times before.


But again, that's just me haha. I think episodic VNs (the few I've played) should either read as kinetic stand alone stories (with choices if you'd like, but no major plot changes), or self-contained plot lines in a larger arc to make the player feel some sort of "completion" near the end, a pay off for their hard work.

As a creator yet to have tried to sell an episodic VN, I can only speak from a consumers point of view.

[trooper6]

One of my favorite VNs is episodic: Cause of Death. And it has been running for ages now. But note: the episodes are free until the next episode comes out. Old episodes cost 99cents, to get an episode early is 99cents. You can also buy an entire season after it is finished for cheaper. Also the first chapter is completely free. They also do a good job of allowing the player the illusion of choice while still making so that you end up in the same place at the end of each episode for continuity's sake.

So I love Cause of Death, but I wouldn't pay $5 an episode. I am also not generally in love with episodic VNs because it often limits player choice to effect plot due to the need to be able to go on to the next episode. My path to visual novels comes more from RPGs than it does from books (unless we are talking Choose Your Own Adventure books), so I don't prefer railroad-y sorts of VNs. I like to know that my choices matter...and in episodic VNs my choices don't tend to matter as much. So they aren't my favorite and I'd be wary of playing them...and that chances are very low I'd spend money on them.

Caveat I always make: I will spend money on things for political purposes. For example I bought all of the episodes of Leviathan: Last Days of the Decade, even though I don't now if they will ever come out for my little iPad, not just because the art is gorgeous and the story compelling so far, but because these are Russians making gay positive work in a place where doing so is illegal and I wanted to support them for that, even if they never finish the story I paid for.

But chances are slim I'm going to pay money for an episodic game in general.