Shuffle!
Shuffle! is a Japanese visual novel developed by Navel. It was originally released as an adult game for Windows on January 30, 2004. It was subsequently followed by an all-ages release for the PlayStation 2 and an expanded adult release for Windows. The Windows version was localized in English by MangaGamer in 2009, and the PS2 version was localized in English by YumeHaven in 2016 on Steam. The gameplay in Shuffle! follows a branching plot line that offers pre-determined scenarios and courses of interaction and focuses on the appeal of the female main characters. Shuffle! has been re-made into an expanded version called Shuffle! Essence+. It has expanded routes for the original five main heroines and new routes for six other characters. Shuffle! also has three spin-off sequels: Tick! Tack!, Really? Really! and Shuffle! Love Rainbow.
Shuffle! has made several transitions to other media. There have been two manga series based on the visual novel. The first was serialized in Kadokawa Shoten's magazine Comptiq between December 2003 and 2006. The second was a comic anthology published by Kadokawa Shoten between July 2004 and December 2005. Two anime adaptations were produced by the animation studio Asread. The first anime was twenty-four episodes in length and was broadcast in Japan between July 2005 and January 2006. The second series was a twelve-episode readaptation broadcast between January and March 2007. Seven light novels, two fan books, nine drama CDs, and seven radio drama CD adaptations have also been produced.
The visual novel was well received, whereas the first anime adaptation received mixed reviews. Across the national semi-monthly ranking of bishōjo games in amount sold in Japan, the limited edition of Shuffle! premiered in second place at the time of its release and remained in the top 50 for an additional three and a half months. The standard edition premiered in ninth place at the time of its release and remained in the top 50 for a further three half-months. Critics of the anime series were divided between whether or not the anime series set itself apart from other series in the harem genre and the quality of its audio and visual aspects.
Gameplay
The gameplay mostly consists of reading and listening to the conversations provided. Now and then, a "Please Select Your Destiny" event will occur, giving the player multiple choices on how to respond. The choices will determine who will be Rin's destined love; depending on which route the player takes, there will be between 8 and 12 multiple-choice questions. At a certain point in the visual novel, a translucent image of the destined character appears when the day changes indicating whom Rin has fallen in love with after which the multiple-choice events become almost nonexistent. Near the end of the game, two sex scenes will occur. After the story has been completed at least once, players can view CG artwork they have observed, skip scenes or endings for characters they have viewed, and listen to the soundtracks they have heard in the game.The PlayStation 2 version varies from the PC version as all the sex scenes are removed. The player may follow two new storylines: Mayumi Thyme's and Kareha's. Additionally, Kareha's younger sister Tsubomi makes her first appearance in the PS2 version during Kareha's path.
Shuffle! Essence+ allows the player to follow the storylines of seven heroines, including four new storylines: Tsubomi's, Sakura Yae's, Nadeshiko Benibara's and Daisy's. In Daisy's path, Erica Suzuran makes her first appearance as a secondary character and Ruri Matsuri appears as the second main heroine, but she does not have any sex scenes.
Plot
Setting and themes
The story is set in a fictional universe where humans coexist with god and devil races. Both races are capable of mystical powers, which astounded humans since they had never seen anything like it. Despite their positive and negative stereotypes, both parties are essentially good-natured. Ten years before the story, the gateway between the worlds of the gods and devils was opened. Since then, people from all races have been immigrating between the worlds. The characters attend the multi-racial high school, National Verbena Academy in Kōyō-chō. All of this is done so that humans, gods, and devils can meet one another and learn to coexist peacefully. Nonetheless, some members of each race had been transported to one of the other worlds, where they married and had children due to mysterious dimensional tears. This is how some students with mixed lineage can be older than the gateway to the human world, such as Mayumi Thyme, whose human parent fell into the world of the Devils through one of those tears years before the gateway to the Human world was opened, and Ama Shigure, Asa's mother. She was somehow transported from the world of the Devil to the Human world.Shuffle! contains a leitmotif of allusions to flowers. All of the characters' names are references to flowers in some way, mostly genera of flowering plants.
Main characters
Rin Tsuchimi, the protagonist of the story, is an average seventeen-year-old second-year high school student. Since a young age, he has placed the well-being of others before his own and dislikes seeing people in sorrow. Since he lost his parents in childhood, he has been living with Kaede Fuyou, a life many of his classmates envied. One of the heroines of Shuffle!, Kaede believes her duty in life is to take care of Rin, which she takes upon herself to atone for her treatment of him in the past and bears a one-sided love towards Rin. Kaede appears again as the heroine in Really? Really!, a sequel to Shuffle!, that continues from Kaede's ending in Shuffle!. In middle school, the two meet and later befriend Asa Shigure, another heroine of Shuffle! who is in her third year of high school. While she has a weak constitution, she makes up for it with her energetic tomboy personality and is an excellent cook. She has a habit of slapping Rin on his back.At the story's onset, two girls Rin had met once during his childhood came to his school as transfer students and began living as his next-door neighbors. Lisianthus, a heroine of Shuffle!, is an energetic and enthusiastic person who can start a conversation with anyone. She comes to the human world as a possible marriage candidate for Rin and as the daughter of the Lord of Gods, thankful for his kindness to her in the past. Similarly, Nerine, who is also a heroine, is a reserved girl with a beautiful voice and a capable magic user. She also comes to the human world to be a marriage candidate for Rin as the daughter of the Devil King. Nerine appears again as a heroine in Navel's game, Tick! Tack!, a sequel to Shuffle!, which continues from Nerine's ending. Soon after the two daughters come to his school, Rin meets Primula, a strange, soft-spoken girl who often carries a stuffed cat around.
Two new storylines are available in the PlayStation 2 version of the game. Mayumi Thyme is a heterochromia-eyed girl who is half-devil and half-human. She is Rin's classmate and is always searching for news. She takes pride in her smallest bust size, a fact often made fun of by Rin and Itsuki, claiming them to be a rarity sought after by a select group of men. Kareha is of the god race and is Asa's friend and classmate who enjoys making sweets and taking on related part-time jobs. Whenever she sees something romantic or cute, she has a habit of saying "Ma Ma Maa!" and starts to daydream, losing awareness of her surroundings.
In Shuffle! Essence+, there are four new storylines available in the game. Tsubomi is Kareha's younger sister, and like Kareha, she tends to space out when she sees something romantic or cute. Her catchphrase is "Kya! Kya! Kya!". She's the same age as Primula, so they quickly become friends. Sakura is Rin's and Kaede's childhood friend; they have known each other since elementary school. That's why she knows about Rin's and Kaede's tragic past. Nadeshiko is Rin's homeroom teacher. She's confident, firmly stepping on the ground, single, attractive, and frequently the victim of pickup lines, including from the Devils King and Itsuki. It appears she has some martial arts training. She has a habit of punishing students harshly, such as writing 100-page reports and dragging a tire around the track for minor offenses. However, when speaking about romantic relationships or cuteness, she can become shy, especially when someone talks about her. Daisy is Sia's cousin. When they were kids, they used to play a lot together. However, because of some circumstances between their fathers, they stopped playing together. Daisy remembers the precious for her time she spends with Lisianthus. However, Sia seems to have forgotten the old days they were together.
Story
The storyline of Shuffle! follows the life of Rin Tsuchimi, a normal seventeen-year-old second-year high school student who finds himself sought after by a variety of girls. Eight years prior to the onset of the story, he lost his parents in a car accident that also took the life of Kaede Fuyou's mother. From that point onwards, he began living with Kaede. At around the same time he lost his parents, he met Lisianthus and Nerine at different times who each were accompanying their fathers on a diplomatic business in the human world. Each girl became lost after wandering through the human world. During that time, Rin befriended each girl after playing with them for a day. As a result of his kindness, Rin finds himself as the potential marriage candidate for both Lisianthus and Nerine, the daughters of the king of the gods and king of the demon worlds, who recently transfer to Rin's school at the onset of the story.Development
Shuffle! is the first project developed by the visual novel developer Navel, and is the first title in the series. Shuffle! development team was largely composed of members involved with Basil's Cherry Petals Fall Like Teardrops. The scenarios were written by Baria Ago, who had previously been in charge of writing the scenario for Cherry Petals Fall Like Teardrops and Long Cube. Art direction and character design was split between Aoi Nishimata, who had previously illustrated Cherry Petals Fall Like Teardrops, and Hiro Suzuhira. The music for the game was composed by Nachtmusik. The opening video was produced by Iris Motion Graphics.The limited edition was released on January 30, 2004 and came with a special artbook featuring original drawings of the cast by twelve guest artists and a special edition box. The normal edition was released on February 27, 2004 on one DVD instead of three CDs and came with an original Shirotama & Kurotama keychain. The Standard Edition was released on December 17, 2004 on one DVD. An Anniversary Edition was released on November 22, 2007 and comes with a phone card of Sia and Kikyō. The PlayStation 2 version Shuffle! On the Stage was released in two versions on October 20, 2005: the regular version including the game and the DX version that included a 12 cm figure of Lisianthus, a Shuffle! On the Stage Mix soundtrack CD, and a cell phone cleaner. The development of a Windows port of Shuffle! On the Stage titled Shuffle! Essence+ was announced on May 9, 2008 and released on October 30, 2009.
MangaGamer released an uncensored, English translation of the visual novel on August 15, 2009. On November 22, 2016, YumeHaven released an English-translated port of the PlayStation 2 version worldwide on Steam. Both versions have been discontinued and are no longer available to purchase, citing a change in management and publishing agreements respectively for the MangaGamer and Steam versions.