Tsukihime

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Tsukihime
Cover of Tsukihime
月姫 (Moon Princess)
Genre	Fantasy, Mystery, Romance
Game
Developer	Type-Moon
Publisher	Type-Moon
Genre	Dojin, Eroge, Visual novel
Rating	Ages 18 and over
Platform	PC – NScripter engine
Released	December 2000
Tsukihime, Lunar Legend
The anime and manga adaptation

Tsukihime (月姫, lit. Moon Princess^?) is a Japanese eroge dōjin visual novel game created by Type-Moon, which was originally released in December 2000. A remake of Tsukihime is planned by Type-Moon for a future release in 2009 with updated art and story. It was adapted in 2003 into an anime series, Shingetsutan Tsukihime, produced by J.C. Staff and Geneon, and a manga series, which has been serialized since 2004 in MediaWorks' seinen magazine Dengeki Daioh, with seven bound volumes having been released so far.

Tsukihime's official subtitle states: "Blue Blue Glass Moon, Under The Crimson Air". Its fame and renown is often attributed to its comprehensive and expansive storyline and its writer Kinoko Nasu's unique style of storytelling. As well as its anime and manga adaptations, it has also spawned numerous merchandising and memorabilia franchises.

Type-Moon released Tsukihime Plus-Disc in January 2001, a light-hearted addition to Tsukihime that featured three side-stories and assorted multimedia. In August 2001, Type-Moon produced and published a sequel to Tsukihime, Kagetsu Tohya (歌月十夜, Kagetsu Tohya^?). In April 2003, Type-Moon released Tsuki-Bako (月箱, Tsuki-Bako^? lit. Lunar Box), a specially packaged three-disc set that included Tsukihime, Plus-Disc (in an expanded version) and Kagetsu Tohya, a remixed soundtrack and other assorted multimedia.

An unofficial translation patch for Tsukihime was released on November 5, 2006.^[1]

[edit] Story

Tsukihime chronicles the story and life of a teenage boy named Shiki Tohno. As a young boy, Shiki suffered a life-threatening injury. As a result of this injury, Shiki became able to see "death lines" on objects and people; if Shiki traces these lines with a sharp object, the person or object that they belong to will be cleanly and easily cut. Soon after discovering this power, he is given a special pair of glasses by a mysterious woman. While wearing these glasses, Shiki cannot see the lines, and can thus live life as normal. Later, Shiki discovers that he can also see a place where the lines meet known as "points" on objects and people; these act as more immediate and powerful versions of the "lines." Eventually, it is revealed that Shiki is not merely killing a person or destroying an object when he cuts its lines or stabs its points, but is instead annihilating the victim/object's existence, therefore killing the victim/object as a side effect.

The game plot begins during Shiki's second year of high school. After spending eight years away from the Tohno household, which he was banished from after his injury, he moves back home following the death of the head of the Tohno family, Shiki's father. Shiki's sister, Akiha, assumes the responsibility of being the new head, and decides to let Shiki come back. As the story progresses, Shiki gradually discovers his mysterious past, and becomes implicated into strange adventures.

[edit] Gameplay

Tsukihime works as a normal visual novel. The player is presented with choices, some affect the story in large ways, others do not affect the story at all or affect it in small ways. Changes that affect Shiki's opinion on the characters and heroines usually change the direction of the story drastically. There are two scenarios: the Near-Side Route (as in "near-moon") which includes Arcueid and Ciel as selectable heroines, and the Far Side Route (as in far-moon) which includes Akiha, Hisui, and Kohaku as selectable heroines.

[edit] Characters

See main article: Characters in Tsukihime

Shiki Tohno (遠野 志貴, Tōno Shiki^?)

The protagonist of the series. He has Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, which allow him to see the death of things in the form of "lines" and "dots" on objects and people; cutting the lines destroys the portion cut, while piercing the dot destroys the existence of the object itself. He carries a pocketknife named Nanatsu-yoru (later learned that it can also be pronounced "Nanaya") and is quite skilled in its use. He has been living with the Arima family, one of the branching families of Tohno, since an accident 8 years ago. At the beginning of the game, he moves back home with his sister, Akiha.

Young Arcueid Brunestud and Zelretch

Arcueid Brunestud (アルクェイド・ブリュンスタッド, Arukueido Buryunsutaddo^?)

A beautiful blonde with ruby red eyes, Arcueid (or just "Arc" sometimes) is a mysterious vampire princess. But since she is a True Ancestor, she lacks some vampiric qualities, such as that of needing to consume blood to survive, and being nocturnal. She seems to be quite knowledgeable about many things, but is very naive when it comes to modern ideas. She is killed by Shiki in the first chapter, but she doesn't actually die (because she's a vampire) and, in turn, recruits Shiki to help her fight Roa. Arcueid was originally created as nothing more than a weapon to eliminate the True Ancestors that had fallen to their vampiric impulses. She was taught nothing except what was necessary to eliminate her target, and when she returned to the millennium castle even that knowledge would be erased before she was put to sleep. Originally did not have the vampiric impulses that all True Ancestors had, but this changed when Roa tricked her into drinking blood hidden within a rose, as she did not know she was not supposed to do that. After that, Roa, turning into a Dead Apostle, used his power gained by having his blood drunk by the strongest True Ancestor and wiped out most of the True Ancestors. From then on Arcueid had to use a large portion of her power to suppress her vampiric impulses. By the time of Tsukihime, she is only at 30% of her full power as she must use the remaining 70% to suppress her vampiric impulses. She is one of the two True Ancestors capable of using the Marble Phantasm, which allows the user to re-create the effect of anything that is naturally possible, (not counting the creation of living beings) and summon the Millennium Castle Brunestud, the home of the True Ancestors.

Ciel (シエル, Shieru^?)

An upperclassman of Shiki's, or so it seems. She is the only member of the Japanese tea ceremony club. She is actually an executor for the church organization, where she is part of "The Burial Agency" a group of skilled assassins feared even within the church itself, and finds Arcueid detestable (but is torn, because she likes Shiki). Her body was used in Roa's last incarnation, and until Roa dies, she cannot. Her outfit is not a uniform, but the result of one of her hobbies.

Akiha Tohno (遠野 秋葉, Tōno Akiha^?)

Shiki's younger sister and the current head of the Tohno family. She is very prim and proper and carries a grace and nobility about her. As the story progresses, the viewer discovers that she has had mysterious powers since childhood. When her Tohno blood awakens, her hair turns a crimson shade and she can literally suck the heat out of her surroundings, which creates a burning effect on the object.

Hisui (翡翠, Hisui^?)

The younger of the two twin maids in the Tohno mansion, Hisui is a childhood friend of Shiki. She wears a western maid uniform and attends to Shiki when he comes back to the Tohno mansion. She acts cold and unfeeling, but it is only an act to hide her kinder nature for the sake of her sister. Her name, Hisui, is the Japanese word for jade, referring to her eye color. She is a Synchronizer, a person that can give someone life energy through exchange of body fluids.

Kohaku (琥珀, Kohaku^?)

The older of the two twin maids in the Tohno mansion, Kohaku, along with Hisui, is a childhood friend of Shiki. She wears a Japanese kimono and is always seen to be smiling and cheerful, being especially gifted with medicine. She hides her tragic past behind a cheerful face and Hisui's cold demeanor. Her name, Kohaku, is the Japanese word for amber, referring to her eye color. Like Hisui, Kohaku is a Synchronizer.

Michael Roa Valdamjong (ミハイル・ロア・バルダムヨォン, Mihairu Roa Barudamuyōn^?) 

Nicknamed "The Serpent" for his reincarnation ability, Roa was a priest of the church that sought immortality and tricked Arcueid into drinking blood hidden within a rose, turning Roa into one of the most powerful Dark Apostles which allowed him to kill most of the True Ancestors, and to the point where he was strong enough to defeat Altrouge Brunestud when she tried to "teach him a lesson" as the rest of the Dead Apostles saw him as an upstart. His original body was finally defeated by a coalition comprised of Arcueid and the Burial Agency, and he has been re-incarnating ever since then. By the time of Tsukihime he has already re-incarnated 17 times and been destroyed by Arcueid each time as she seeks to gain her stolen power back, and perhaps to achieve some measure of revenge. Roa has two requirements for choosing the host of his next reincarnation, his family must have a high social standing so he would be born into luxury, and a body with a high potential. His last host was Ciel, who was chosen in haste and thus was born into a bakery's family but instead had a body with an extremely high physical and magical potential. Can be considered a friend or acquaintance of Nrvnqsr. He only shows up in the Near Side of the Moon scenarios.

Nrvnqsr Chaos (ネロ・カオス, Nero Kaosu^?)

Pronounced "Nero Kaos", this vampire is known as the tenth of the twenty-seven Ancestors of Dead Apostles, the highest in rank of the vampires in Tsukihime. Has 666 beasts on his body, from deer and wolves to mythological creatures like unicorns. The only conventional way to kill him is to destroy all 666 beasts at once or he will constantly regenerate, however this is practically impossible. Roa taught him a reality marble known as "The soil of genesis" which requires a destructive power that can destroy a continent. It functions as some kind of cage or restraining device. Can be considered a friend of Roa. Nrvnqsr Chaos is a name that was given to him by the Church. When he was still human, his name was Fabro Rowan.

Aoko Aozaki (蒼崎 青子, Aozaki Aoko^?)

A mysterious red-haired woman who always carries a suitcase. She met with Shiki eight years prior to the start of the series, and to this day, is the only person he will call "Teacher". She gave Shiki a pair of glasses (stolen from her sister Tōko), the Magangoroshi (Mystic Eye Killer), that blocks out the death lines and allow him to live a normal life. Current title holder of Beef-Eating contest in an unspecified steak restaurant in Japan. Her nickname is blue gunner.

Arihiko Inui (乾 有彦, Inui Arihiko^?)

Shiki's classmate and best friend. His parents died when he was young, and he lives with his sister, Ichiko. In Kohaku's scenario he isn't seen after the first day in the game.

Makihisa Tohno (遠野 槙久, Tōno Makihisa^?)

The patriarch of the Tohno family. Dies just prior to the events of Tsukihime. He severely abused Kohaku when she was young.

Satsuki Yumizuka (弓塚 さつき, Yumizuka Satsuki^?)

Shiki's classmate, who has had a crush on him since middle school. In the Far Side of the Moon scenarios she's revealed to have been turned into a vampire. Shiki is forced to kill her.

During development, when Satsuki had her own scenario, she was to to be capable of a rare, powerful type of sorcery, a Reality Marble in the name of Depletion Garden (枯渇庭園, Kokatsu Teien^?), which literally dries up the mana of the environment. In Melty Blood, this skill returned as her last resort in battle and was adapted to the fighting game to actually deal direct damage.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Type-Moon's official Tsukihime website (Japanese)