Psychedelica of the Black Butterfly contains quite a lot of mystery with romance being only a side dish to this rather intriguing game. Whether or not you are in it for the plot or the boys, we're sure you'll find something in this game that might be for you.

Release Date: 2015Publisher: Idea Factory & Aksys GamesPlatforms Available: PS Vita (Japanese & English)Game Link:Official Site:Psychedelica of the Black Butterfly is the first of three otome releases from Aksys Games as part of their summer mystery bundle. From first impressions, I didn’t know much about the game prior to playing. The only aspects that caught my eye was the appealing artwork, a voiced heroine and that it involved a shooter mini-game.In comparison to their previously heavily marketed titles, I feel Psychedelica has quietly slipped under the radar and not many other websites/reviewers have spoken much about this game. To my surprise, I was very impressed by the immersive storyline, captivating characters and the Psychedelica universe. The artwork in Psychedelica is gorgeous, and definitely one of the highlights of the game. The art style really complemented the ethereal and fantasy-like nature of the universe, as well as the character designs. I liked the attentiveness to detail in the CGS depicting the monsters, and the backgrounds were beautifully drawn.

A few of them definitely looked like a scene that could have come out of a painting.Out of all the characters, I definitely liked Monshiro’s outfit best. It was very mysterious, yet it also captured the innocence of his character perfectly with the cute ears on his cape and the way the ribbon weaved through his clothes. My only criticism would be that there were definitely some discrepancies between some of the CGs and the character sprites.I noticed in particular that the artist at times, doesn’t quite get the anatomy of the side profiles of faces or the correct body/face proportions. I felt this was more prominent in Karasuba’s CGs, in comparison to the other characters.

The inconsistencies were quite noticeable in many of the CGs and it is something for the artist to definitely improve on for their future works. Music and Voice Acting ★★★★★.

The music and voice acting were arguably the best aspects about Psychedelica. The soundtrack is beautiful, especially the piano instrumentals for the more emotional moments throughout the storyline. It set the mood of the scenes so well, and the voice acting is just as good. As I mentioned earlier, I really liked the fact that Beniyuri was voiced as it really strengthened your attachment to her as a character.It was easier to relate to her pain and anguish that were conveyed through her voice. It also made her seem less two-dimensional, as she was a more active participant in the storyline.

I really would like to see this feature being more commonly implemented in future Visual Novels, as it just adds so much more to the game overall.There is very little to criticise about the music and voice acting in Psychedelica, and I really was not disappointed at all throughout the entire game. Contrary to popular opinion, I quite enjoyed the system in Psychedelica and could understand the direction behind it. It reinforces the mystery behind the universe and the fragmented nature of Beniyuri’s memories, as you’re forced to learn them piece by piece in a non-linear order. Although it does force the player to deviate from the storyline at certain points throughout the game, it created a nice balance between the light-hearted moments and angsty plot content.When you do return back to the main storyline, your attachments to the characters are strengthened as you slowly learn more and more of their different backstories. If anything, then I did wish they could have improved the order in which the episodes unlocked as some of them did not align with the main storyline at times.There also wasn’t enough clarity in the gameplay that for some of the bachelors, you HAD to read all their character short stories prior to their route. If you didn’t, then the correct decision at their character branch would not appear in their route. You would then have no idea how to progress with the game, and become completely stuck as a result.The mini-game was quite simple, but it again suffered from lack of clarity with the instructions.

I only realised by my second or third playthrough that you could drag through the touch screen to select multiple butterflies, rather than individually clicking them on the screen. After that, it became incredibly easy to achieve an S Ranking in every mini-game segment.On a positive note, the mini-game is very easy to play and even a complete rookie would be able to achieve an S with some practice. The point requirements to unlock the short stories are not very high either, so you’re not required to grind points very much at all. I played the mini-game whenever it appeared in the main storyline, and ended up with an excess of points by the end of the game.In terms of graphics interface and UI, then I really liked the design for Psychedelica. It suited the themes and motifs of the game perfectly, and was very aesthetically pleasing to look at and easy to navigate. I also liked the butterfly motifs and visual animations that were prevalent throughout the game, as it definitely added to the atmosphere.

ConclusionIn conclusion, Psychedelica of the Black Butterfly is a hidden gem amongst the English otome releases for 2018 and I’m really surprised it isn’t talked about more. It is well-written and refreshingly different from the games that I have played so far. Although it is initially difficult to become immersed in the storyline and universe, I highly recommend finishing the game at least once. The first playthrough in my opinion, is the most enjoyable and there’s a reason why it’s titled ‘the best ending’.It just perfectly captures the themes and questions that Psychedelica attempts to explore and answer. I was very impressed with the world-building, character development, captivating plot and beautiful music and voice acting. The twist definitely caught me off guard, and I quite enjoyed the mystery elements of the game. If you’re looking for a standard otome that focuses more on romance, then this may not be the game for you.In my opinion, then there is still a lot of romance throughout the story—but it pales in comparison to the actual plot itself and the character’s struggles to overcome their grief and the burdens of their past.

At its core, Psychedelica of the Black Butterfly is a tragically moving tale that explores the themes of friendship, revenge, the fragility of life, inevitability of death and the impact of grief on the human psyche.I highly recommend Psychedelica if you love a good mystery/fantasy story with plenty of twists and character angst to keep you on the edge of your seat. My next review will be on ‘‘ which will most likely be posted in the following week or the beginning of June! Overall Rating: 4/5Do you enjoy reading the content of my website? Would you like to help support me in keeping the website up and running, as well as being able to devote more time to reviews and walkthroughs?Please consider, as every little bit helps me out so much every month with website hosting costs. I am forever grateful to all my readers and supporters!Written By Cherry.

Technically, it’s the ‘second’ out of their three mystery releases for the summer. It just came out today, and it’s titled ‘7’sCarlet’. It is another mystery/fantasy that focuses on uncovering the truth behind the heroine’s amnesia and the secrets of her past in her hometown. It’s like a modern-day ‘ghost story’ and quite different in setting to Psychedelica. Where Psychedelica is in a different universe altogether, 7’sCarlet is in Okunezato (based on real world Karuizawa).It’s more light-hearted and less dark compared to Psychedelica, but the mysteries/twists in both games were equally as good in my opinion. I will be posting a review on 7’sCarlet most likely by end of May/early June.

🙂Thank you for the kind words! I’m glad that you find my website helpful 🙂Like. Yes, it’s quite unfortunate that it’s not as popular as it should be 😦 I guess the dark storyline, themes and game format wards off most players as it’s quite different to the standard otome. I also feel Aksys didn’t push it as much as they did for their other games, like Collar x Malice or the Code: Realize fandisc.I can understand both reasons for and against the short stories, but I generally like it for the same reasons as you 🙂 It’s different and the variation is something I’d like to see in more visual novels/otome games!Like.

However, when it comes to providing fun and depth, this stylish title doesn’t make it across the finish line.You experience the world of Desert Child in two ways: racing and wandering. The process isn’t complicated, and once you get the hang of it, the races don’t demand new tactics. Though you can pepper the screen with bullets if you want to, the most lucrative strategy involves shooting certain hazards (like TV monitors that drop money) while trying to bash other hazards with your bike. The races are short one-on-one affairs that make you weigh your boost and ammo as you try to stay in the lead.