Going from the manga to the VN version of Higanbana is a good way to realize that more isn't necessarily better.
They both have the same story and the same characters, but in the VN, pretty much everything is toned down. What kills the manga, as noted in the review below, is its horrible lack of subtlety. Everything, from the art to the characters' reactions, is so distorted and exagerated that you just can't take it seriously. Nothing really works.
Now in the VN, even though most of the scenes are the same, the more over-the-top parts (like Higanbana "eating" Marie and dislocking herself at every occasion or Kanamori raping Marie's corpse) are removed, and the fact that the sprites offer a more limited set of expressions is rather a good thing in this case. Even the narration is more subdued overall. Add to that sober and effective musics, and re-reading the first story in VN, I actually felt sorry for Marie. The scenes that are supposed to be scary and/or disturbing, well, actually are, although midly. And there are some truly heartwarming scenes in several stories. I did not feel that at all in the manga, who just seemed to constantly scream "BE DISTURBED!!!".
So, yeah, Ryūkishi07 is probably better at writing VNs after all. Or maybe he's just better when working with the whole 7th Expansion staff.
Awful manga, much better VN
Going from the manga to the VN version of Higanbana is a good way to realize that more isn't necessarily better.
They both have the same story and the same characters, but in the VN, pretty much everything is toned down. What kills the manga, as noted in the review below, is its horrible lack of subtlety. Everything, from the art to the characters' reactions, is so distorted and exagerated that you just can't take it seriously. Nothing really works.
Now in the VN, even though most of the scenes are the same, the more over-the-top parts (like Higanbana "eating" Marie and dislocking herself at every occasion or Kanamori raping Marie's corpse) are removed, and the fact that the sprites offer a more limited set of expressions is rather a good thing in this case. Even the narration is more subdued overall. Add to that sober and effective musics, and re-reading the first story in VN, I actually felt sorry for Marie. The scenes that are supposed to be scary and/or disturbing, well, actually are, although midly. And there are some truly heartwarming scenes in several stories. I did not feel that at all in the manga, who just seemed to constantly scream "BE DISTURBED!!!".
So, yeah, Ryūkishi07 is probably better at writing VNs after all. Or maybe he's just better when working with the whole 7th Expansion staff.