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 ...

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 Liar-soft. It was released on November 21, 2008 for Microsoft Windows. ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' is Liar-soft's 24th game. The game is described as a . An English translation patch to the game was released on September 5, 2011. The game includes references to the works of H.P. Lovecraft including mention of

Kadath The Dream Cycle is a series of short stories and novellas by author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937). Written between 1918 and 1932, they are about the "Dreamlands", a vast alternate dimension that can only be entered via dreams. Geography The D ...

and having a character called 'Howard Phillips'.

Gameplay

''Shikkoku no Sharnoths has two modes of

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 pla ...

. The first mode, like other visual novels, requires little interaction from the player as much of the player's time is spent reading the text that appears on the game's screen which represents the protagonist's thoughts or the dialogue between the different characters. The second mode occurs twice every chapter. In this mode, the player is presented with an

isometric view Isometric projection is a method for visually representing three-dimensional objects in two dimensions in technical and engineering drawings. It is an axonometric projection in which the three coordinate axes appear equally foreshortened and t ...

of the protagonist and her surroundings and is tasked with guiding the protagonist to certain spots in the map while avoiding the monsters in the area in a turn-based system. This secondary gameplay feature is rather unique to ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' as the player's interaction with a visual novel is usually isolated to the graphics and audio.

Plot

Setting

''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' is set in 1905 and takes place in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Characters

The player assumes the role of , the protagonist of ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth''. Mary has

heterochromia Heterochromia is a variation in coloration. The term is most often used to describe color differences of the iris, but can also be applied to color variation of hair or skin. Heterochromia is determined by the production, delivery, and concentra ...

eyes, her right eye is gold while her left eye is blue. She originally had blue eyes but her right eye changed colours one year prior to the game's events and she has been seeing strange visions since.

Development

The planner and scenario writer of ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' is Hikari Sakurai. Sakurai has previously worked as a planner and scenario writer for Liar-soft on '' Sōten no Celenaria: What a beautiful world'', '' Sekien no Inganock: What a beautiful people'', and would follow Sharnoth with '' Hikaru no Valusia: What a beautiful hopes''. the following year. The art and character designs of ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' were provided by AKIRA. The background music was composed by Blueberry & Yogurt and M.U.T.S. Music Studio. While Liar-soft's other

steampunk Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction that incorporates retrofuturistic technology and aesthetics inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. Steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the Victorian era ...

games had been set in fictional places, Sakurai decided to set ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' in London as she wanted to approach the game from a different angle. She also felt that London was a very important city in the steampunk genre.

Release history

On October 11, 2008, Liar-soft released a

demo Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film * Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhe ...

of ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' on the web. The game was then declared

gold master Mastering, a form of audio post production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device (the master), the source from which all copies will be produced (via meth ...

on November 6, 2008 and released on November 21, 2008.

Music

''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' has two theme songs, the main theme "Dorchadas" and the ending theme "Saudade". Both songs are sung by

Rita Rita may refer to: People * Rita (given name) * Rita (Indian singer) (born 1984) * Rita (Israeli singer) (born 1962) * Rita (Japanese singer) * Eliza Humphreys (1850–1938), wrote under the pseudonym Rita Places * Djarrit, also known as Rita, ...

Reception

During the month of November 2008, ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' was the ninth most widely sold PC game on Getchu.com. In a countrywide ranking of

bishōjo game A or , is "a type of Japanese video game centered on interactions with attractive girls". ''Bishōjo'' games are similar to ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' books in the way of narrative, in which the game tells a story but the player may make ...

sales in Japan of November 2008, ''Shikkoku no Sharnoth'' appeared in thirteenth place out of fifty.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shikkoku no Sharnoth: What a beautiful tomorrow 2008 video games Eroge Japan-exclusive video games Steampunk video games Video games developed in Japan Visual novels Bishōjo games Windows games Windows-only games Fiction set in 1905 Video games set in London Single-player video games