It blows my mind that people still think visual novels are boring.

Admittedly, I’m biased. I love the Hakuoki series so much, I bought it on three different consoles, and I am currently working on developing one of my own. I’ve followed sakevisual games since I played Re:Alistair++ back in the day, and I forced my boyfriend to play Doki Doki Literature Club because I didn’t have the words to explain what that game put me through on an emotional level.

However, even with that bias, I admit that some visual novels are boring. But the reasons, I think, have less to do with what they are than how they have been put together.

What Makes a Visual Novel Boring?

Whether you’re curious but hesitant to dip your toes into the VN experience or considering creating one of your own, it’s worth taking a moment to consider where (some) visual novels go wrong. Recognizing these potential flaws now will make them easier to spot and avoid later.

Tedious Dialogue

VNs need to strike a precarious balance between brevity and clarity. Dialogue, in particular, needs to be concise without sacrificing personality, and is often the vehicle used to deliver important plot information that can’t be conveyed through the graphics alone.

This is an incredibly difficult magic trick to pull off, and failing to do so is, in my experience, one of the most common culprits behind a boring VN. Filler dialogue that contributes nothing to the reader’s understanding of plot, characters, or setting may feel realistic because real conversations go on tangents that sometimes lead nowhere, but are prime “skippables” in the world of visual novels. Ditto excessive use of ellipses and filler words like “um” and “er.”

A well-written VN, on the other hand, gives you everything you need to know—and nothing more—without ever requiring too much effort (or too much “skip” button clicking) to play through to completion.

Cookie Cutter Characters

Though any story can fall prey to this problem, otome (AKA dating sim) games are perhaps the most notorious for this. The reason, I think, is that it is so temptingly easy to fall into certain familiar patterns because of these games’ shared structures.

Most otome games are set up to have an initial “prologue” period where the player is introduced to various potential romantic interests, followed by a branching section in which a preferred partner is chosen (usually based on who you spend the most time with), concluding with a positive or negative ending based on how effectively you have wooed said partner.

There’s nothing wrong with following this structure—though there’s a lot to be said for playing with it and doing something new when you can. Instead, the problem lies in then copying over certain character blueprints time and time again. The childhood friend, the player with a heart of gold, the jerk who’s secretly just overly sensitive, the shota (a younger, childish-seeming character who turns out to be wiser than their years in some way), and the quiet, mysterious one—these and more will all be familiar to anyone who’s played more than one or two romance VNs.

Archetypes like these are not inherently problematic—but failing to take these vessels and fill them with unique personalities and traits can quickly dry up a story’s potential. Especially because VNs so often revolve around building relationships with characters, romantic or otherwise, how well-developed the characters are can easily make or break the experience.

Shallow Relationships

Let’s say it again for the people in the back: relationships matter, a lot, in visual novels. Even if a VN is not explicitly about relationships, pretty much every VN relies on interactions between the player character and supporting cast to move the story forward.

Even if the characters are fully realized, if the ways in which they connect and clash are not deep enough—or believable enough—the overall experience will likely feel a bit flat. There are few things more frustrating than meeting a really interesting (major) character in a game and not feeling like you ever really got to know them, even if you wound up married with three kids at the end.

Finding Good (Not Boring) Visual Novels

So how do you find the good visual novels—the ones that won’t bore you to tears?

Remember, visual novels are a storytelling medium, not a genre—it’s likely you can find something you will like, if you know where, and how to look. So start by considering what stories you usually enjoy, regardless of format. Maybe you’re a fan of fantasy epics, or maybe you’ve always been a sucker for sci-fi. Picking a genre you like and searching for visual novels in that genre is often a good way to find something you’ll be likely to enjoy.

While I’m the last to say you should always rely on ratings, reviews can provide a good guideline to follow when you’re still new to the world of VNs. Don’t just check the numbers; read some of the feedback and see if how people are describing their experience of a game lines up with what you think sounds fun or interesting.

Forums, discussion boards, and VN groups can also be a good source of information, and are typically pretty welcoming—though you might need some time to catch up on the lingo.

Making Good Visual Novels

If you’re looking to make your own VN, whether just for fun or on a more professional level, keeping an eye out for the issues above is a good first step in making sure your visual novel is not boring. Ask your beta readers and beta testers, too, to look out for problems like these to ensure you haven’t missed something.

And, if you plan to be your own writer or narrative designer for this project, pay attention to your own emotions as you write. You are the first person who needs to feel a connection to this story and these characters. If you don’t care, at least on some level, chances are good your audience won’t care, either.

If you’re into fantasy worlds and unconventional love stories, consider checking out the free demo for The Dragon’s Last Flight—or, for a slightly more traditional narrative experience, try The Harbinger’s Head interactive novel. You can play the first chapter on most devices before you buy. 🙂