''A Good Librarian Like a Good Shepherd'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese

adult An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of maj ...

visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

developed by

August August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, and the fifth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. Its zodiac sign is Leo and was originally named '' Sextilis'' in Latin because it was the 6th month i ...

and released on January 25, 2013 for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for se ...

as a DVD. The

gameplay Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and pl ...

in ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' follows a branching plot line which offers pre-determined scenarios with courses of interaction, and focuses on the appeal of the five female main characters by the

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

. A

fan disc A fan disc (sometimes called fandisk or simply abbreviated as FD) is a package of additional content, usually released by a game company after the successful launch of one of its titles. The contents of fan discs varies, but often includes new i ...

for Windows titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Hōkago Shippo Days'' was released in August 2013. A second, adult fan disc titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Dreaming Sheep'' was released in March 2014. A

PlayStation Vita The PlayStation Vita (PS Vita, or Vita) is a handheld video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 17, 2011, and in North America, Europe, and other international terri ...

port of the original game and fan discs featuring additional content was released in February 2015. There have been five

manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is ...

adaptations based on the game published by

ASCII Media Works ASCII ( ), abbreviated from American Standard Code for Information Interchange, is a character encoding standard for electronic communication. ASCII codes represent text in computers, telecommunications equipment, and other devices. Because o ...

, Ichijinsha,

Kadokawa Shoten , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing based in Tokyo, Japan. It became an internal division of Kadokawa Corporation on October 1, 2013. Kadokawa publishes manga, light novels, manga anthology magazines ...

and Media Factory. Comic anthologies and

light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a '' wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the English languag ...

s were also published, as were several music albums. An

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

television series adaptation animated by

Hoods Entertainment is a Japanese animation studio that was established in February 2009. Works Television series *''The Qwaser of Stigmata'' (2010) *'' The Qwaser of Stigmata II'' (2011) *''Manyū Hiken-chō'' (2011) *'' Mysterious Girlfriend X'' (2012) *'' Fant ...

and

Felix Film is a Japanese 3DCG-focused animation studio founded on May 14, 2014 in Mitaka, Tokyo 260px, Inokashira Park in Mitaka is a city in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 190,403, and a popul ...

aired between October and December 2014.

Gameplay

''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' is a romance

in which the player assumes the role of Kyōtarō Kakei. Much of its

is spent reading the text that appears on the screen, which represents the story's

narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether nonfictional ( memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travelogue, etc.) or fictional ( fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller, novel, etc ...

and

dialogue Dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog in American and British English spelling differences, American English) is a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people, and a literature, literary and theatrical form that depicts suc ...

. The text is accompanied by character sprites, which represent who Kyōtarō is talking to, over background art. Throughout the game, the player encounters CG artwork at certain points in the story, which take the place of the background art and character sprites. ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' follows a branching plot line with multiple endings, and depending on the decisions that the player makes during the game, the plot will progress in a specific direction. There are five main plot lines that the player will have the chance to experience, one for each of the heroines in the story. Throughout gameplay, the player is given multiple options to choose from, and text progression pauses at these points until a choice is made. Some decisions can lead the game to end prematurely and offer an alternative ending to the plot. To view all plot lines in their entirety, the player will have to replay the game multiple times and choose different choices to further the plot to an alternate direction. Throughout gameplay, there are scenes depicting Kyōtarō and a given heroine having sex.

Plot

Set in the vast and prestigious , Kyōtarō Kakei is a student and the only member of the . When Kyōtarō was young, he aspired to read all the magic books in the world which were kept in the magic library. He was given a bookmark by a shepherd, which was his entry ticket to access the magic library. He must show kindness and bring happiness to people he encounters. As the sole member of the Library Club, he enjoys the fact that he can read peacefully by himself. After receiving a text from the 'shepherd', which reads his fate is going to change, Kyōtarō encounters a second-year girl named Tsugumi Shirasaki, whom he saves at the train station. Later that day, Tsugumi enters the Library Club, she thanks him, and asks for his help to make Shiomi Academy a more enjoyable place. Like Kyōtarō, Tsugumi has also received a text from the shepherd. With the shepherd's guidance, more students end up joining their group.

Characters

Main characters

; : (anime) :Kyōtarō is a second-year student majoring in

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at t ...

. He is a bookworm, and is often seen reading a book in public. He was originally the sole member of the Library Club. Kyōtarō likes to help others and is a kind, collected person. He is the object of affection for most of the girls in his club and doesn't seem aware until Tsugumi's confession and noticing the other girl's affections. ; : (PC),

Madoka Yonezawa is a Japanese voice actress and singer from Osaka Prefecture. Personal life On 30 August 2017, she announced her marriage and first baby. In 2020, she announced her second baby. Filmography Television animation ;2005 * ''Shuffle!'', Schoolgirl ...

(anime) :Tsugumi is a girl with long brown hair tied in twintails, whom Kyōtarō encounters at the train station. She later becomes the official leader of the Library Club. She is good at sewing and cooking. Tsugumi makes it her job to make lunch for the others every day. She has feelings for Kyōtarō and confesses to him in episode 10. ; : (PC), Yuka Saitō (anime) :Tamamo is a girl with very long black hair tied into a ponytail. She later becomes one of the many students who joined the Library Club. She is the type who gets jealous easily. Tamamo is quite independent, as she lives alone in a luxury apartment, and has high practical skills. She develops feelings for Kyōtarō after he helps her overcome a need to work and she sees his kind side. ; : (PC),

Nozomi Yamamoto is a Japanese voice actress affiliated with VIMS. Voice acting roles Anime television series ;2011 *'' Haganai'' as Yukimura Kusunoki *'' Un-Go'' as Rie Kaishō ;2012 *'' Girls und Panzer'' as Satoko Nakajima *'' Joshiraku'' as Tetora Bōhate ...

(anime) :Senri is a girl with short, pretty lilac-colored hair. She becomes a member of the Library Club. Most of the time, she is expressionless, and seems to have a cool attitude. Senri enjoys crossword puzzles, though she is not necessarily very good at it. She develops feelings for Kyōtarō when he persuades her to make her own path. ; : (PC),

Eri Sendai is a Japanese actress and voice-actress from Japan. Her major roles in anime include Mimino Kurumi/Milky Rose in ''Yes! Precure 5'', Saotome Rei in ''Yu-Gi-Oh! GX'', Sa Kōrin in '' The Story of Saiunkoku'', Morita Yukari in ''Rocket Girls'', Sh ...

(anime) :Kana is a girl with long, wavy blonde hair with a white Alice band, and is a member of the Library Club. She has a bright, polite personality. She has a part time job as a waitress. Kana has a mild

allergy to cats Allergies to cats are one of the most common allergies among human individuals. Among the eight known cat allergens, the most prominent allergen is secretoglobin Fel d 1, which is produced in the anal glands, salivary glands, and, mainly, in sebace ...

, so she cannot come into close contact with one. She develops feelings for Kyōtarō after he advises her to truly be herself. ; : (PC),

Atsumi Tanezaki is a Japanese voice actress formerly affiliated with Toritori Office. She is represented by Tokyo Actor's Consumer's Cooperative Society. Biography In an interview with ''Repotama'', Tanezaki revealed she watched ''Sailor Moon''. She explained ...

(anime) :Nagi is a girl with short reddish hair, tied into twintails. She is a member of the Library Committee, not a member of the Library Club. She lives next door to Kyōtarō, making them next door neighbors. It is later revealed that she is Kyōtarō's half-sister, from whom he was separated many years prior, having the same father, but different mothers. Despite initial attempts to impede him on being a Shepherd, she shows that she truly cares for him.

Secondary characters

; : (PC), Showtaro Morikubo (anime) :Ikkei is Kyōtarō's classmate and best friend, who joins the Library Club. He used to be part of the karate club, but had to quit because of a foot injury. He is aware that all the girls prefer Kyōtarō and is jealous of it. Nonetheless, he is a good friend to Kyōtarō and is pleased the club has a good effect on him. ; : (PC), Saki Nakajima (anime) :Maho is a girl with long white hair, and is the student council president. She is often trying to recruit Kyōtarō, suggesting that she has feelings for Kyōtarō. ; : :Miyu is a girl with long pink hair. She is a member of the broadcasting unit and drama club. ; : (PC), Miyu Kashiwagi (anime) :Sayumi is a short girl with long, light blue hair. She wears a hat at all times, which she slams on the floor whenever she's angry. She is shown to be fond of

first-person shooter First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...

games. ; : (PC), Kei Mizusawa (anime) :Aoi is a girl with long blue hair in a low ponytail. She is the student council vice president. ; : (PC), Yō Taichi (anime) :Sayori is the sickly younger sister of Tsugumi. Despite being ill, she has a bright, positive personality, like her sister. ; : (PC), Satoshi Tsuruoka (anime) :Gizaemon or as he is called Giza, is a fat, male cat with a black and white coat. He is seemingly a stray cat that wandered into the school library and is often seen hanging out with the club members. He is particularly close to Takamine who is often seen holding him. He is very perverted, as he poked fun at Kana's small bust and seems interested in well-endowed girls like Kodachi. ; :The shepherd is well known throughout the school, and is rumored to appear in front of those who are working hard, and grant wishes. ; : (PC), Taiten Kusunoki (anime) :Nanai is the man whom Kakei met in his childhood, and was the one who gave him the way to the magic library. In the present day, he is Kodachi's supervisor, and though he initially didn't approve her acts of indirectly forming the library club for Kakei, he comes to see they had a good effect on him. He is later revealed to be the biological father of Kyōtarō and Kodachi, born from different mothers.

''Hōkago Shippo Days''

; :Kei Kirishima is a cat lover. ; : :Nozomi is a girl with long light pink hair, she is Kei's childhood friend and lives in the same apartment as him. ; : :Sakuya is a girl with long brown hair, and is also a childhood friend of Kei's. She has a very straightforward and honest personality. Sakuya is good when it comes to housework.

Development and release

''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' is the ninth title developed by the visual novel developer August, after their previous titles such as ''

Fortune Arterial is a Japanese adult visual novel, developed by August, released as a limited edition version on January 25, 2008 playable on Windows PCs as a DVD. ''Fortune Arterial'' is August's fifth game, preceded by other titles such as '' Tsuki wa Hig ...

'' and ''

Aiyoku no Eustia is a Japanese adult visual novel developed by August for Windows and was released on April 28, 2011. ''Aiyoku no Eustia'' is August's eighth game, preceded by ''Fortune Arterial'' and '' Yoake Mae yori Ruriiro na: Moonlight Cradle''. It w ...

''. The project was overseen by game director Rune, and the scenario was written by three people: Taku Sakakibara, Hiroyuki Uchida, and Hideaki Anzai. Character design and art direction for the game was provided by Bekkankō, and CG supervision was handled by Michi. The game's

background music Background music (British English: piped music) is a mode of musical performance in which the music is not intended to be a primary focus of potential listeners, but its content, character, and volume level are deliberately chosen to affect behav ...

was produced by members of Active Planets. ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' was released on January 25, 2013 as a DVD for

as a limited edition version. The regular edition was released on January 31, 2014. A

for Windows titled , rated for ages 15 and older, was initially sold at Comiket 84 on August 10, 2013 and later for general sale on January 31, 2014. An

fan disc for Windows titled was released on March 28, 2014. A

port of the original Windows game and the two fan discs under the title ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Library Party'' was released on February 15, 2015. The port also contains additional content, such as the addition of a new heroine.

Adaptations

Print media

adaptation, titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' and illustrated by Akane Sasaki, began serialization in the May 2012 issue of

' '' Dengeki G's Magazine''. The manga ended serialization in the magazine's May 2014 issue and continued serialization in ''

Dengeki G's Comic was a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by ASCII Media Works. The magazine was first published digitally on August 9, 2012 with volume 0, and started monthly publication with the following issue released on October 15, 2012. From April 201 ...

'' between the June 2014 and January 2015 issues. The first volume of ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' was released on November 27, 2012; two volumes have been released as of July 27, 2013. A second manga, titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: The Little Lutra Lutra'' and illustrated by Shiroi Kusaka, was serialized between the July 2012 and June 2013 issues of

's ''

Comptiq is a Japanese computer game magazine, first published in 1983, by Kadokawa Shoten. The name "Comptiq" came from combining the words "computer" and "boutique". Originally a PC magazine, its focus shifted from computers to computer games. As of S ...

''. Two volumes of ''The Little Lutra Lutra'' were released between December 26, 2012 and June 6, 2013. A third manga, titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Lovely Librarians'' and illustrated by Rico, began serialization in the September 2012 issue of ASCII Media Works' ''

Dengeki Hime was a Japanese magazine published monthly by ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) publishing information mainly on adult visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often a ...

''. The first volume of ''Lovely Librarians'' was released on March 15, 2013; two volumes have been released as of December 12, 2013. A fourth manga, titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Library 4 You'' and illustrated by Wasabi, began serialization in the October 2012 issue of Ichijinsha's ''Manga 4-koma Palette''. The first volume of ''Library 4 You'' was released on July 22, 2013. A fifth manga, titled and illustrated by Norio Tsukudani, was serialized between the November 2012 and October 2013 issues of Media Factory's '' Monthly Comic Alive''. Two volumes of ''Hitoribotchi no Diva'' were released between February 23 and October 23, 2013. Ichijinsha published two volumes of a manga anthology illustrated by various artists titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Comic Anthology'' between April 25 and June 25, 2013. A 56-page "super prelude" book for ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' was published by

Enterbrain , formerly , is a Japanese publisher and division of Kadokawa Future Publishing founded on 30 January 1987 as . Magazines published by Enterbrain are generally focused on video games and computer entertainment as well as video game and strategy ...

on July 27, 2012. A

titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Overture'', written by Noritake Tao and illustrated by Bekkankō, was published by Enterbrain on August 30, 2012. A 63-page ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' heroine profile book was published by

on December 20, 2012. Enterbrain published two volumes of a light novel series adaptation of ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'', written by Noritake Tao and illustrated by Masao Aona, with cover illustrations by Bekkankō, between January 30 and April 30, 2013. Enterbrain also published a 320-page visual fan book on June 28, 2013, consisting of detailed story explanations, character introductions, rough illustrations, stage commentaries and interviews from the staff and cast.

Anime

television series adaptation animated by

and Felix Film aired in Japan between October 8 and December 24, 2014. An

original video animation , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA ...

episode was bundled with the first DVD and Blu-ray compilation volumes released on December 25, 2014. The direction, character design and animation direction is shared by five people under the collective name Team Nico: Ken'ichi Konishi, Tomomi Kamiya, Asami Sodeyama, Kaori Hayashi and Yū Nobuta. The screenplay is written by Kiyoko Yoshimura and the music is produced by Active Planets. The anime has been licensed for streaming in North America by

Funimation Crunchyroll, LLC, previously known as Funimation from 1994 to 2022, is an American entertainment company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony as a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex that specializes ...

, and was released on Blu-ray and DVD on July 12, 2016.

Episode list

Music

''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' has nine pieces of

theme music Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...

: two opening themes, two ending themes, and five insert songs. The first opening theme is by Ceui, and the second opening theme is by Hagumi Nishizawa. The sub ending theme is "Dear Smile" by Ceui and the main ending theme is by Nishizawa. The insert songs are credited to the five heroines: by Tsugumi Shirasaki, by Tamamo Sakuraba, by Senri Misono, by Kana Suzuki, and by Nagi Kodachi. The opening theme for ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Dreaming Sheep'' is by Mitsuki Nakae. The first ending theme is , also by Mitsuki, and the second ending theme is by Wagumi Nishizawa. The single for "Straight Sheep", which also contains "Yume Kai Biyori", was released on August 24, 2012. The single for "Ashita e no Shiori", which also contains "Dear Smile", was released on January 25, 2013. An image song album titled ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Vocal Collection'' was released on March 29, 2013. The game's original soundtrack was released on May 24, 2013 in a three-disc collection containing 41 tracks. The anime has two pieces of theme music. The opening theme song is "On my Sheep" by Mitsuki Nakae, and the ending theme song is by Hagumi Nishizawa.

Reception

In 2012, ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' ranked four times in the top ten in national PC game pre-orders in Japan. The rankings were at No. 4 in September, No. 3 in October, and twice at No. 2 in November and December. ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' ranked first in terms of national sales of PC games in Japan in January 2013. ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' was No. 1 in the 2013 sales ranking on Getchu.com, a major redistributor of visual novel and domestic anime products. The game maintained first place in sales ranking for the month of its release, and in February the ranking dropped down to No. 11. The fan disc, ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Dreaming Sheep'', ranked at No. 1 in sales for March 2014. In April 2014, ''Dreaming Sheep'' ranking in sales dropped down to No. 20. In January 2013, ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' was voted No. 1 in Getchu's Bishōjo Game Awards as the best game of the month. It was voted as the best overall title of 2013, and ranked fourth in the vote results for the best scenario. ''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai'' has also been ranked third in the 2013 game ranking for system, third in the 2013 game ranking for graphics, first place in the 2013 game ranking for music, and second in the 2013 game ranking for best movie. In the 2013 character poll held on Getchu, Suzuki Kana was voted No. 2, Kodachi Nagi at No. 12, and Ureshino Sayumi at No. 20.

Notes

References

External links

''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai''
at

''Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai: Library Party'' official website

Anime official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Good Librarian Like a Good Shepherd 2013 video games Anime television series based on video games ASCII Media Works manga Bishōjo games Dengeki Comics Dengeki G's Magazine Eroge Famitsu Bunko Funimation Felix Film Harem anime and manga Hoods Entertainment Ichijinsha manga Japan-exclusive video games Kadokawa Dwango franchises Kadokawa Shoten manga Media Factory manga OVAs based on video games PlayStation Vita games Romance anime and manga Romance video games School life in anime and manga Seinen manga Tokyo MX original programming Urban fantasy anime and manga Video games developed in Japan Visual novels Windows games August (company) games