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Dōkyūsei (video game)

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Dōkyūsei
Cover art from the PC Engine CD version of Dōkyūsei released in 1995
同級生
GenreErotic, romance, slice of life
Video game
PublisherELF Corporation
GenreVisual novel, Dating sim
PlatformPC-98, FM Towns, Sharp X68000, MS-DOS, Windows, PC Engine, Sega Saturn
Released
  • JP: December 17, 1992 PC-98
  • JP: February 10, 1993 X68k
  • JP: March 23, 1993 FM Towns
  • JP: November 23, 1995 PCE
  • JP: August 9, 1996 Saturn
  • JP: August 27, 1999 Windows
(updated)
  • JP: May 22, 2008 Windows
(with original script)
  • JP: February 26, 2021 Windows
(Remake)
  • NA/CHN: April 15, 2022 Windows
(Remake)
Video game
Jankyusei
PublisherELF Corporation
GenreVisual novel
PlatformGame Boy Color
Original video animation
End of Summer
Directed byKinji Yoshimoto
Written bySukehiro Tomita
StudioPink Pineapple, Triple X
Released July 8, 1994 May 12, 1995
Episodes4

Dōkyūsei (同級生, lit. classmates) is an erotic dating sim visual novel. It is the first game in the Dōkyūsei series of adult-themed dating sims by ELF Corporation. It was released in 1992, with a heavily altered Windows version released in 1999.

A remake (based on the Windows version)[1] was released on February 26, 2021 in Japan.[2]

Game system

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The gameplay in Dōkyūsei revolves around wandering through different locations in a town, conversing with whatever character the player happens to meet. To finish the storyline of a particular girl, the main challenge is to learn the times of day when the girl will be in a location.

Remake

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Logo of the English translation of the 2021 remake.

An international version of the remake was developed by the company Shiravune, a subsidiary of DMM Games,[3][4] and released on April 14, 2022.[citation needed]Both an all-ages and adult version was released, with the adult version containing erotic scenes and racier dialogue.[5]

The international version was well received by critics, with Ivanir Ignacchitti of GameBlast commenting on the historical value of the title[6] and Thomas Knight of NookGaming noting that the remake does well at fixing most of the issues that would make the game seem dated.[7]

OVA

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There was an OVA series made from Dōkyūsei, which was originally a 45-minute one-shot, but the original release was expanded into two half-hour episodes, with two more episodes added, for a total four. The first two episodes were released as End of Summer, and episodes three and four were released as End of Summer 2 in the North American market by SoftCel Pictures, an imprint of ADV Films. A two-episode sequel, titled Dōkyūsei Climax Files, was also released.

End of Summer is about a boy who seeks after a redheaded girl named Mai and along the way runs into difficulties (and trysts) with several other girls, namely, Kurumi, Miho, Misa, and Satomi. It was renowned for its romantic attributes[8] and quality of animation.[9] The depth of character development has been reviewed as being above average, although the format forced on it by OVA requires some compromises with realism.[10]

An OVA based on the remake, Doukyuusei Remake The Animation, was released in 2022.

Music

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The OVAs use some classical music, including:

Musics in the Dōkyūsei's OVAs
Episode Music
1
2
3
4
5
6

Reception and legacy

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Jun Maeda, co-founder of visual novel studio Key, credits Dōkyūsei as a pioneer in the nakige ("crying game") genre and as an influence on Key's own such games.[11]

References

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  1. ^ "Dōkyūsei Dating Sim Game Gets Remake in February". Anime News Network. 2020-10-23. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
  2. ^ "Romance visual novel Dokyusei remake coming west on March 11". Gematsu. 2022-02-18. Retrieved 2022-02-18.
  3. ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn. "Shiravune to Release Dōkyūsei Visual Novel Remake in English, Chinese". Anime News Network. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  4. ^ "Shiravune Twitter Account". Twitter. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  5. ^ Davidson, Pete (25 April 2022). "Day one in Doukyuusei: Bangin' Summer". Rice Digital. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  6. ^ Ignacchitti, Ivanir. "Análise: Doukyuusei: Bangin' Summer (PC) é a primeira vez de um clássico dos dating sims no Ocidente". GameBlast. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  7. ^ Knight, Thomas (15 April 2022). "Dōkyūsei: Bangin' Summer – Review". NookGaming. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  8. ^ The Animé Café - A Parent's Guide to Anime
  9. ^ THEM Anime Reviews 4.0 - End of Summer
  10. ^ AMR: End of Summer Archived 2008-08-04 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Galbraith, Patrick W. (2014). The Moé manifesto: an insider's look at the worlds of manga, anime, and gaming. North Clarendon, VT: Tuttle Publishing. p. 105. ISBN 978-4-8053-1282-7.
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