Nekopara

Nekopara
Nekopara Vol. 1 Cover
Genres	Visual novel
Developers	Neko Works
Publishers	Sekai Project
Creators	Sayori
Platforms	Microsoft Windows
First release	Nekopara Vol. 1 December 29, 2014
Latest release	Nekopara Vol. 3 May 26, 2017

Nekopara (ネコぱら) is a Japanese adult visual novel series developed by Neko Works and published by Sekai Project. The first game in the series, Nekopara Vol. 1, was released on December 29, 2014.^[1] The series is set in a world where humans live alongside catgirls, known as "Nekos", and are able to keep them as pets.

Gameplay

Nekopara is a visual novel series, so the majority of the gameplay consists of the player reading the game's story. Nekopara does not offer choices to the player throughout gameplay, and the player has no influence over the story. The games are fully voiced (except for the protagonist) and use a system called "E-mote" that allows the in-game characters to be animated, instead of stationary sprites.^[2] Nekopara Vol. 0 added a new feature where the player can click on characters in-game, to "pet" them. The characters will react in different ways depending on where the player pets them.

Plot

Kashou Minaduki is an aspiring chef who moves away from home to open his own confection shop. While he is unpacking in his new shop, he discovers that two of his family's Nekos, Chocola and Vanilla, came along with him by hiding in cardboard boxes. After the two Nekos convince Kashou to let them stay and live with him, the three of them work together to run his shop, "La Soleil". Throughout the story, Kashou is frequently visited by his younger sister Shigure, as well as the other Nekos owned by his family.

Characters

Kashou Minaduki (水無月 嘉祥, Minaduki Kashou)

The protagonist of the series. Kashou comes from a long line of chefs, and decides to move away from home and open his own shop.

Chocola (ショコラ)

Voiced by: Himari

Chocola is a cheerful and energetic brown haired Neko. She is very fond of Kashou, and calls him "master". She could not bear the thought of being separated from her master, so she came along with him when he moved to his new shop. She is Vanilla's twin sister.

Vanilla (バニラ)

Voiced by: Amu Nakamura

Vanilla is a quiet and calm white haired Neko. She rarely expresses her emotions, making her a somewhat of a kūdere character. She loves her twin sister Chocola, and will follow her anywhere she goes. Chocola and Vanilla are the youngest of the Minaduki family Nekos.

Shigure Minaduki (水無月 時雨, Minaduki Shigure)

Voiced by: Emi Sakura

Kashou's younger sister. She appears to have romantic feelings for Kashou in an incestuous way. She and her older brother are the owners of the Minaduki family Nekos.

Azuki (アズキ)

Voiced by: Mia Naruse

Azuki is the oldest of the Minaduki family Nekos. Despite being the oldest, she has a mischievous personality. However, she lives up to being the eldest catgirl by effortlessly managing and leading her sisters as they work in Kashou's cafe. She also has a tsundere personality, acting sarcastic and tough to hide her real emotions towards everyone. She is a Munchkin cat.

Maple (メイプル)

Voiced by: Yui Ogura

Maple is the second oldest of the Minaduki family Nekos. She has an independent/mature personality, as well as a hint of tsundere given that she is typically dishonest with herself. She enjoying visiting cafes to try different food and drinks. She aspires to be a singer, but is held back by her own lack of self-confidence as well as the prospect that she will only ever make it big because she is a catgirl. She is an American Curl.

Cinnamon (シナモン)

Voiced by: Yū Arisaka

Cinnamon is the third oldest of the Minaduki family Nekos. She has a dirty mind, so she frequently interprets things in a sexual manner, and ends up becoming aroused. She has the largest busts of all the Nekos. She is closest with Maple, and thus aspires to be by her side to support her life decisions. She is a Scottish Fold.

Coconut (ココナツ)

Voiced by: Ryōko Tezuka

Coconut is the third youngest of the Minaduki family Nekos. Other characters praise her for her "cool" personality, but she wishes she were cute rather than cool. She suffers from low self-esteem because of her klutziness and self-proclaimed lack of skills. She also tries to do more than she can to seem more like an older sister, as well as not seem burdening to Kashou and the other catgirls. She was revealed that she tries to be someone she's not. She is a Maine Coon.

Milk (ミルク)

Voiced by: Emi Sakura

A young Neko who works at a nearby takoyaki stand.

Release history

Nekopara Vol. 1, was released in two versions: an uncensored adult version that includes explicit sex scenes and nudity, and a censored all ages version where the explicit content is removed.^[3] The all ages version was released on December 29, 2014,^[4] and the uncensored adult version was released a day later on December 30, 2014.^[5] An all ages Fan disc titled Nekopara Vol. 0 was released on August 16, 2015.^[6][7] Nekopara Vol. 2 was released on February 19, 2016.^[8] Nekopara Vol. 3 was originally scheduled to be released on April 28, 2017,^[9] but was later delayed to May 26, 2017.^[10] Shortly after volume 3 was released, Neko Works announced that volume 4 was "coming soon".^[11]

Adaptations

In July 2016, Sekai Project announced that it would be running a Kickstarter campaign to fund an all-ages Nekopara original video animation adaptation.^[12] The campaign launched in December 2016, and reached its US$100,000 funding goal "mere hours" after launching.^[13] The campaign ended on Kickstarter on February 11, 2017, and raised US$963,376 from 9,322 backers,^[14] however, was extended in order to reach the final stretch goal. On March 2017, the campaign formally ended on Sekai Project's "slacker backer" service, and raised a total of US$1,049,552.^[15]

Reception

Hardcore Gamer gave Nekopara Vol. 1 a positive review, stating that "Nekopara is a light and fluffy visual novel that fans of catgirls will enjoy," but noted that "some may be put off by the sexual storyline aspect."^[16]

Sales

As of May 2016, the Nekopara series has sold over 500,000 copies.^[17] By April 2017, that number had doubled, surpassing one million copies.^[18]

References

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)
• Nekopara on Steam
• "Nekopara". The Visual Novel Database.