Dies irae (visual novel)

For other uses, see Dies Irae (disambiguation).
Dies irae

Dies irae ~Amantes amentes~ Windows cover art
Developer(s) Light
Publisher(s) Light
Designer(s) Takashi Masada
Artist(s) G Yuusuke
Writer(s) Takashi Masada
Composer(s) Keishi Yonao
Platform(s) Windows, PSP
Release date(s)
  • JP December 21, 2007
  • JP July 24, 2009
  • JP December 25, 2009
  • JP June 28, 2012
  • JP August 31, 2012
Genre(s) Visual novel
Mode(s) Single-player
Distribution DVD-ROM, UMD

Dies irae (ディエス・イレ) is an adult visual novel developed and published by Light.[1] There are several different versions of the game.[2]

Gameplay

A screenshot from Dies irae ~Acta est Fabula~, showing the distinctive visual style of the game and of the artwork by G Yuusuke. The text represents the narration of the protagonist. Game options such as saving and loading are in red above the main text box

As in most visual novels, the gameplay mostly consists of reading text on the screen (representing narration or dialogue) accompanied by images showing characters and locations. At certain points in the story, the player can choose options which influence the path, or "route", the story takes.

Plot

This game sets its storyline in alternate history, and based on Nazi Germany historical events. In 1945, upon the inevitable downfall of the Third Reich, some Nazi loyalists tried undergoing an ancient, mysterious and forbidden ritual to revive so-called "Longinus Dreizehn Orden (13 Holy Lancers)", attempting to change their doomed fate. But those Nazi loyalists became missing after the ritual has been undergone till now.

Six decades after World War II and the downfall of the Third Reich, the mystery of those resurrected phantoms summoned by those missing Nazis is still unknown. In modern Japan, the protagonist fought with his betrayed friend and become hospitalized in a psychiatry hospital; he usually dreamed nightmares of those resurrected 13 Holy Lancers and their connections to the Nazi. The protagonist also dreamed of the guillotine set by 13 Holy Lancers, which is used to execute considerable victims under their horrible and irresistible forces. The protagonist thought he has no choice but to fight back against those 13 Holy Lancers, and a horrible epic has begun...

Release

Reception

The original version, Dies irae Also sprach Zarathustra, was 2007's 12th best-selling game on Getchu, a popular Japanese online shop,[4] and was also given an Award of Excellence in the Background Music Division of the 2008 Bishoujo Game Awards.[5]

Dies irae ~Acta est Fabula~ won the gold prize in the background music category in the 2010 Moe Game Awards.[6] It was Getchu's 25th best selling game of 2009.[7]

During the week it was released, Dies irae ~Amantes amentes~ sold 5,669 copies. This made it the 3rd best selling PSP game (and the 20th best selling console game overall) in Japan that week.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Windows版　Dies irae ～Amantes amentes～" [Windows Version: Dies irae ~Amantes amentes~] (in Japanese). Retrieved 2013-02-09.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "【G-netプレイレポート】PSP版『Dies irae』をレビュー！ これこそ珠玉の中二病バトルAVGだ!!" [G-net Play Report: Review of "Dies irae" PSP version! This adolescent delusion battle adventure game is a gem!!] (in Japanese). Dengeki Online. 2012-07-05. Retrieved 2013-02-04.
  3. ↑ Dies irae (visual novel) at The Visual Novel Database
  4. ↑ "Getchu.com ：PCゲーム館 2007年・年間セールスランキング" [Getchu.com: PC Games 2007 Sales Ranking] (in Japanese). Retrieved 2013-02-04.
  5. ↑ 美少女ゲームアワード2008　結果発表特設ページ [Bishoujo Game Awards 2008: Results Announcement Page] (in Japanese). Retrieved 2013-02-04.
  6. ↑ 萌えゲーアワード2010　結果発表特設ページ [Moe Game Awards - 2010 Results Announcement Page] (in Japanese). Retrieved 2013-02-04.
  7. ↑ "Getchu.com ：PCゲーム館 2009年・年間セールスランキング" [Getchu.com: PC Games 2009 Sales Ranking] (in Japanese). Retrieved 2013-02-04.
  8. ↑ Anime News Network (2012-07-04). "Japan's Video Game Rankings, June 25-July 1". Retrieved 2013-02-04.

External links