1 | [[quoteright:220:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yarudora_logo2_1554.png]] |
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3 | ->''From a drama you watch, to a drama you do. (Miru drama kara, yaru drama e)'' |
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5 | ''Yarudora'' (やるドラ, lit. "A drama you do") is a VisualNovel series of Creator/SonyComputerEntertainment, developped by Sugar&Rockets and Creator/ProductionIG. Initally released in 1998 [[NoExportForYou in Japan only]], at a time the FullMotionVideo game genre had become a fad, it successfully managed to bring back the interactive anime movie genre long not seen since ''VideoGame/DragonsLair'' and ''VideoGame/SpaceAce''. |
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7 | Unlike those two titles though, the ''Yarudora'' games play as a complex branch-system VisualNovel. At various points of the game, the player will have to choose between three options when prompted to answer a question by another character, or when making a move. The player can take all the time he needs to answer, but depending of the choice made, [[EventFlag flags]] will (or will not) be raised, and the string of flags you've raised throughout the game will determine which routes you'll go and, consequently, which Ending you'll get. Upon finishing a playthrough, you get the possibility to watch it in the "Replay Mode", like if it was a drama or an OVA (hence the series' title and motto). |
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9 | The ''Yarudora'' series are well known for their compelling storylines, [[RoundCharacter developed characters]], and [[MultipleEndings their high number of Endings]]. A typical ''Yarudora'' game will have 3-5 Good Endings, 3-5 Normal Endings, and 17-20 Bad Endings. Depending of the game's story genre, those Bad Endings can range from joke endings to TheManyDeathsOfYou. |
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11 | The games are made in nearly Full Anime (with a few still images sprinkled in), with the animation done courtesy of Creator/ProductionIG. Each game has a different art style, depending on the chara designer and teams which worked on a specific title. |
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13 | The ''Yarudora'' series consists of 6 games, and while all of them are gathered under this label, they're all independent stories not linked to each other. They are as follow: |
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15 | [[index]] |
16 | * ''VisualNovel/DoubleCast'' (Platform/PlayStation, June 25th 1998; re-released on Platform/PlayStationPortable and Platform/PlayStationNetwork) |
17 | * ''[[VisualNovel/KisetsuODakishimete Kisetsu o Dakishimete]]'' ([=PS1=], July 23th 1998; re-released on PSP and [=PlayStation=] Network) |
18 | * ''{{VisualNovel/Sampaguita}}'' ([=PS1=], October 15th 1998; re-released on PSP) |
19 | * ''Yukiwari no Hana'' ([=PS1=], November 26th 1998; re-released on PSP and [=PlayStation=] Network) |
20 | * ''Scandal'' ([=PS2=], June 29th 2000) |
21 | * ''Anime/BloodTheLastVampire'' ([=PS2=], December 21th 2000; re-released on PSP) |
22 | [[/index]] |
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24 | The first four ''Yarudora'' games are arranged in a SeasonalBaggage motif (their stories take place during the time frame of one season: ''Double Cast'' is the Summer title, ''Kisetsu o Dakishimete'' the Spring one, ''Sampaguita'' the Autumn one, and ''Yukiwari no Hana'' the Winter one). They also have a recurrent theme of the game's heroine suffering IdentityAmnesia, leading the protagonist to help her in her QuestForIdentity. |
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26 | Compare this series to {{Creator/Konami}}'s ''VisualNovel/DancingBladeKatteNiMomotenshi'' series, released in the same year as the first four ''Yarudora'' games. Also compare to ''VideoGame/AsurasWrath'', which takes the idea of an Interactive Anime to its obvious conclusion. (As well as having two DLC which play out exactly like Yarudora.) |
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29 | ---- |
30 | !!This series presents the following tropes: |
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32 | * HundredPercentCompletion: This series positively ''loves'' this trope. You'll have a Completion Rate meter of 0.00% to 100% to fill, by seeing various scenes and endings, and the higher the completion percentage is, the more bonus you'll unlock. Getting 100% nets you a special "congratulations!" video, and to manage this, you'll have to explore '''every single''' route and branch of the game. Which leads to: |
33 | ** GuideDangIt: If you want to attain the 100% Completion Rate, you'll pretty much '''need''' a strategy guide with a detailed flow chart. |
34 | ** LastLousyPoint |
35 | ** NewGamePlus: Especially since some scenes can't be unlocked on a first run (or even before a ''fourth'' run in some cases!). |
36 | %% * AdventureGame |
37 | * AudioAdaptation: All of the four [=PS1=] games have a Drama CD each. Depending on the game, it can just focus on a part of the storyline ([[spoiler:''Double Cast'']]), be a recap of the whole storyline [[CuttingOffTheBranches following a specific Ending]] ([[spoiler:''Sampaguita'']]), or be a [[SpinOff side-story]] [[TimeSkip chronologically taking place after the storyline]] ([[spoiler:''Kisetsu o Dakishimete'']]). |
38 | * ContentWarnings: Featured on the factory seal of ''Double Cast'' and ''Sampaguita'': "This game contains violent scenes and depiction of gore". |
39 | * GenreShift: Although all games share a love story plot, the importance of it and the overall genre of the stories vary from game to game. |
40 | ** ''Double Cast'' is a [[HorrorVisualNovels suspense/horror story]] with romance elements à la ''Film/{{Scream}}''; |
41 | ** ''Kisetsu o Dakishimete'' is a SliceOfLife LoveTriangle story with [[FantasyVisualNovels fantastic elements]]; |
42 | ** ''Sampaguita'' is an action/romance story; |
43 | ** ''Yukiwari no Hana'' is an adult, somber J-Drama type love story. |
44 | * FlowerMotif: The first four games, save for ''Double Cast'', have a symbolic flower: CherryBlossoms for ''Kisetsu o Dakishimete'', and the titular ''Sampaguita'' ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jasminum_sambac national flower]] of [[{{UsefulNotes/Philippines}} the Philippines]], which has a meaning of "a promise of eternal love between two people") and ''Yukiwari no Hana'' (or [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anemone_hepatica Anemone hepatica]], a flower of Northern Japan announcing Spring when it blooms). Their meanings are crucial to the storyline of their respective games. |
45 | * HelloInsertNameHere: Only available in ''Sampaguita'' and ''Yukiwari no Hana''. The {{Featureless Protagonist}}s in ''Double Cast'' and ''Kisetsu o Dakishimete'' aren't named at all; while the protagonists of ''Scandal'' and ''Blood: The Last Vampire'' aren't player avatars and have their own names, Saki Kitazawa and Saya Otonashi respectively. |
46 | * IdentityAmnesia / QuestForIdentity: The recurring theme of the first four ''Yarudora'' games. The cause and reason of the amnesia varies from game to game, and are a crucial plot point for each of them. |
47 | * FeaturelessProtagonist: All of the first four games let the player incarnate an [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent Ordinary University Student]] whose face is hidden or barely seen. He's also a variant of HeroicMime (in which he does talk, but doesn't have a voice actor unlike the other characters) until the 3rd game, ''Sampaguita''. |
48 | * MercyMode: If you get two Bad Endings or more without having obtained a Normal or Good Ending beforehand, the Hint Marker feature will be unlocked, pointing you out the good choices in branching options so you can reach a Normal or a Good Ending. The feature disappears once you get a Normal or Good Ending. |
49 | * NeverTrustATrailer / TrailersAlwaysSpoil: Each time you finish one of the four [=PS1=] ''Yarudora'' games, you'll unlock a trailer of one of the other 3 games. Some of those trailers don't show the full nature of the game (for example [[spoiler: the ''Double Cast'' trailer in ''Kisetsu o Dakishimete'', which only shows the happy-go-lucky part of the game]]), and others show spoilery moments (like [[spoiler: the ''Kisetsu o Dakishimete'' trailer in ''Yukiwari no Hana'', which shows a main character that only appears after a NewGamePlus]]). |
50 | * TheManyDeathsOfYou: ''Double Cast'' loves this, the second half of ''Sampaguita'' likewise, and as for ''Yukiwari no Hana'' and its mind-boggling '''32''' Bad Endings, it's more like "The Many Deaths of Kaori" (the heroine), as she's often DrivenToSuicide if [[GoMadFromTheRevelation she recovers her memories at the wrong time]]. |
51 | %% * VisualNovel |
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