Venus: Improbable Dream

[b]Note:[/b] Topics, such as depression, disability, etc., are delved into the story, so it's only fair to give a heads up. [b]Venus: Improbable Dream[/b] is an emotional visual novel developed and published by Borealis. You take on the role of Kakeru Akane, a high school teenager who has a visible birth defect. Because of this defect and the fact that he was bullied a lot because of it when he was younger, Kakeru spends his days at school trying to be invisible. However, one day, his homeroom teacher approaches him, concerned that Kakeru isn't making any efforts to be more sociable at school. It probably doesn't help that his parents have called the school on some occasions to express their concerns as well. Thus, Kakeru's homeroom teacher suggests (although it's more like, pushes) Kakeru to join the music club since Kakeru used to play the piano when he was younger. Reluctantly, Kakeru agrees, silently deciding that he can drop out if things don't work out. Once he arrives at...

Please get this game for yourselves to play, lost for words for how emotionally powerful this story is. Some games have a huge complex of lores to fully understand the underbelly of them, but this game doesn't have that, which works in its favour being tied emotionally to 2 people. 2 people who live very similar lives feeling like they're a bother to everyone else around them due to their at birth conditions. Having dyspraxia myself and going through certain stages in my life where I hated myself solely due to my learning difficulty, this story empathised with me more than most others when looking at a person and their interpretations of what they view themselves as. Kakeru for having hemangioma, along with Haruka for being blind. 2 very different physical conditions, but both giving the individual very similar psychological damage as each day passes, while getting into a routine living with the condition that they have, they resent themselves for having it and how their upsets & worr...

Katawa Shoujo and Missing Stars are one of my most favourite VNs so far, one of the things I love about them is how they handle the topic of mental health. This is I was looking forward to Venus: Improbable Dream and got it as soon as it came out. I am just two hours in and I can already tell this is something special. The story already made me cry like a little baby. I can easily recommend it already. EDIT after finishing the story: OMG this VN is amazing, the ending was so emotional and touching. Just go and buy it, you'll love it. Now excuse me, while I go get more tissues. PS: I'm a very fast reader, you'll probably need more time to finish reading it.

At first, the game felt like it was not for me since this was my first visual novel experience. I couldn't relate to the thought processes of the protagonist but soon I realized it was because I didn't know him yet. The more I played the game, the more I could empathize. Still, all the connections I found between myself and the story was not enough for me to fully understand his situation. As I looked from his eyes, my curiosity went up. Because this game is so successful at telling a story from the perspective that you have never been. Also, our narrator is a sociology prodigy. All the actions of the characters are coherent to their personalities. The world is not fantasized. There are people in this game, you wouldn't be able to tell that they are made up. Nothing feels out of place! A unique story while being natural and realistic... Can't skip the music. There are original pieces and they fit in the story quite well. Since music takes a big part as a topic in the life of our mai...

Venus: Improbable Dream is not only a well-done visual novel. It is also a deep story about human beings and about a rare subject: mental health. How to deal with anxiety and depression. The game is well written and transports perfectly the feelings of the protagonists. This makes this game really special and an amazing experience. The graphics are nice, and the music is well put in the scene. Normally, I'm not too much into VNs, but here I got caught! Well done. I was even thinking about how it would be to have this story as a (real) novel for reading? I guess it could be published somewhere. If you are into VNs, then I would definitely recommend it. And If you think VNs are not your cup of tea, then I would double recommend it!

This was my first visual novel and unfortunately, due to my work schedule I have not been able to complete this game yet, but what I have played is precisely the sort of thing that young person might need to read to learn some new perspective. I don't want to spoil anything so I'll just say this: This game is a story about young man who is dealing with some personal struggles but who realizes through interpersonal connections that he is not the only one. It's very much a story about what it's like to grow up different, and aware that you're different. Story aside, the artwork is well executed, the music is quite nice, and the flow of the story is quite easy to follow. I really didn't find anything worth noting that could be considered negative.

I really liked the game, the music was very nice and fitted the mood. The story was relatable and was transported very well - I was always curious to see what will happen next and could really feel the anxiety of the main character and the transformation. I didn't play a lot of visual novels so far, but after this I may try some more!

Disclaimer: This review contains heavy spoilers for the game. Do not read if you want to keep the plot a surprise. Note: I had to trim this review due to limits, check guides for the rest. Intro: If you’re wondering why my playtime is so short, it’s because I first played through this game in its entirety on a console release and I bought it again here to support the developer. I also just want to say that I actually finished this game over a year ago, in October of 2023. The reason why I waited until now to review it is for very important reasons I’ll get into later on. To start this, I have never written a review for a game on Steam, or even any game in general, before. Usually this is because I feel like my review or opinion on something doesn't really matter, due to so many other people writing reviews and expressing their thoughts in a way more articulate way better than I ever could. However, this beautiful, soulful, and humanistic masterpiece of interactive art has so ...

the soundtrack is incredible, i really enjoyed the story progression a lot, it showed that no matter what if you push yourself out your comfort zone, good things can come of it. the right people wont judge you for being you and thats a beautiful reminder for anyone. it handles mental health and disabilities really respectfully and are incredibly well represented. this game makes you feel so many emotions as its so beautifully written along with the soundtrack which fits perfectly really adds to the players feelings. this game is truly a joy to play and 100% will recommend it to others!

It is good. Spoiler alert The good ending is what I will call as a real ending for me. The true ending is what I will call as a novel fantasy ending for me. The choices are legit. To put myself into the mc shoes, I will pick the good ending for reality reasons but I means its ok to have some fun fantasy and dreams in visual novel (since life is hard to begin with alr, sob sob)