Narcissu 2511634 222233354 2008-06-28T06:29:03Z Smitty 2773571 clean up using [[Project:AutoWikiBrowser|AWB]] {{Infobox VG| title = Narcissu |image = <!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Narcissu.png|Narcissu icon for the Mac OS X version.]] --> |developer = [[stage-nana]] |publisher = insani ([[English language|English]] version) |designer = Tomo Kataoka |engine = [[NScripter]] (JP)<br />[[ONScripter]] (EN) |version = |released = [[2005]] |genre = [[Visual novel]] |modes = [[Single player]] |ratings = |platforms = [[Mac OS X]], [[Linux]], [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] |media = [[Download]] |requirements = |input = [[computer keyboard|Keyboard]], [[computer mouse|Mouse]] }} {| style="float: right; clear: right" | [[Image:Narcissu english Linux title.png|thumb|none|Screenshot from the title screen.]] |- | [[Image:Narcissu english Linux prologue hospital.png|thumb|none|Screenshot from the prologue, showing the hospital.]] |- | [[Image:Narcissu english Linux map sea.png|thumb|none|Screenshot from the chapter ''Maps'', showing the ocean.]] |} {{Nihongo|'''''Narcissu'''''|ナルキッソス|Narukissosu}} is a free [[visual novel]] by the [[Dōjin soft|dōjin]] group [[stage-nana]], telling the story of a [[Terminal illness|terminally ill]] young man and woman. The work was originally written in [[Japanese language|Japanese]] by [[Tomo Kataoka]], and subsequently localized and translated into English, Chinese, and Korean, by various fan translators. Unlike most [[fan translation]]s, however, this was an authorised work. Both the original Japanese visual novel and its English version were released as free downloads over the [[Internet]]. ''Narcissu'' is an experimental work: it uses minimalist graphics in a very narrow window, and includes two full scripts, one accompanied by a voice track, and the other adapted to work without voices. In the English translation, different translators translated each version, to provide different perspectives on the story. The original Japanese version uses the [[NScripter]] engine; for the English localization, the [[open-source software|open source]] clone [[ONScripter]] was used instead, as this has been modified to support English. A prequel named ''[[Narcissu -side 2nd-]]'' was released on [[May 15]] [[2007]]. == Synopsis == The anonymous protagonist is diagnosed with [[lung carcinoma]] shortly after his twentieth birthday, and is admitted to [[hospice]] care at a hospital in [[Mito, Ibaraki]]. There he meets Setsumi, a woman a few years his senior, who is also terminally ill. Finding that they both reject to die either in hospital or with their families, they run away together in a [[Honda Integra (Japan)|Honda Integra]] belonging to the protagonist's father. They travel west across Japan's many highways and [[Prefectures of Japan|prefectures]], initially not knowing where to go, but later collectively decide on taking the [[narcissus (genus)|narcissus]] fields of southern [[Awaji Island]] as a somewhat arbitrary destination. When they eventually reach this goal, Setsumi's condition begins to deteriorate rapidly despite medication, and in a final act of self-determination, she takes her life in the ocean. == Influences == ''Narcissu'' is both stylistically and thematically similar to the opening chapter of ''[[Gin'iro]]'', a commercial title by the same writer, Tomo Kataoka; he himself describes it as essentially a modern-day version of his earlier work (''Gin'iro'' begins in medieval Japan). On a level more familiar to Western audiences, the work has much in common with [[road movie]]s; the screen layout is even intended to evoke a cinema screen. Many of the scenes and events of the story are road-movie [[cliché]]s, and the ending, in which the physical journey itself is explicitly linked with the metaphorical journeys the characters have undergone (their lives, their self-discovery), is typical of the movie genre. == Soundtrack == The soundtrack for ''Narcissu'' includes 12 tracks, composed by various authors, and provide a soothing and refreshing background for the eloquently-written story. They are arranged as follows: * ''"The Emerald Sea"'' - Composed by ''MASA''. * ''"The Silver Coupe"'' - Composed by ''Ebi''. * ''"Narcissu -instrumental-"'' - Composed by ''Ebi''. * Untitled, from ''Shūmatsu no Sugoshikata'' - Composed by Masashi Yano and arranged by Kometto Nekono. * ''"I'm Right Here (vocal ver.)"'' - Performed by Mari Mizuta, composed by Hirofumi Ishihashi and with lyrics by Tsukasa Umitomi. * ''"Lamune 79's (from 'Lamune')"'' - Composed by ''Elements Garden'' and arranged by Kometto Nekono. * ''"#1 Route"'' - Composed by ''Sentive''. * ''"7F"'' - Composed by ''Sentive''. * ''"Sakura (from 'A 120-Yen Spring')"'' (incorrectly listed in-game as "Eightmoon") - Composed by ''Ebi'' and Arranged by Hitoshi Fujima. * ''"The Emerald Sea (ver.2)" - Composed by ''MASA''. * ''"Scarlet"'' - Composed by Noriyasu Agematsu and arranged by Hirofumi Ishihashi. * ''"Narcissu ~Setsumi's Theme~"'' - Performed by ''REM'', composed by ''Ebi'' and with lyrics by Tomo Kataoka, the author of ''Narcissu''. == External links == * [http://stage-nana.sakura.ne.jp/ Official Japanese Homepage for ''Narcissu''] {{ja icon}} * [http://narcissu.insani.org Official website for the English version of ''Narcissu''] * [http://www.keyfc.net/project/cnarcissu/ Website for the Traditional/Simplified Chinese translation of ''Narcissu''] {{zh icon}} * [http://superogira.free-site-host.com/narcissu Website for THAI translation of ''Narcissu''] {{th icon}} [[Category:Visual novels]] [[Category:Open source video games]] [[Category:2005 video games]] [[Category:Linux games]] [[Category:Mac OS X games]] [[Category:Windows games]] [[Category:NScripter games]] [[Category:Non-H visual novels available in English]] [[Category:Dojin soft]] [[ko:나르키소스 (게임)]] [[ja:Narcissu]] [[fi:Narcissu]] [[sv:Narcissu]] [[zh:Narcissu]]