Higurashi Ch. 5 Meakashi – Tester’s Corner Vol. 1

Today, we have a tester’s corner for Higurashi When They Cry Hou – Ch. 5 Meakashi from Nurio!

Whew. That’s a bit of a long title, huh? In fact, it’s so long that the width of my list of Steam games literally doubled! And that’s no joke. I was so proud of my Steam game list for being so thin and healthy, but then Higurashi came and it overate and now it’s so thick. And Nurio is scared of thick things!

Just look at that! The red line shows how wide it used to be. Man, I wonder what happens if I get Tsumihoroboshi…

Actually, that’s not entirely true. Ironically, the new sprites introduced in the Hou releases are a lot thinner than the original sprites, and truth be told, the old thick sprites kinda really grew on me. There’s just something about those big hands and those goofy expressions and those, uh… fluid poses. I’m sure everybody and their grandma would disagree with me (especially you, Mrs. Jenkins!), but I can’t help being a weirdo! I dunno… I just had so much fun imagining the sonic booms and tsunamis these characters would cause when they applauded with their freakishly huge hands!

Y’know, I think most guys like girls with small hands. That’s why Bamboo loves me so much!

Onee-chan!? Don’t scare me like that, especially after such an intense game!

Do you know why guys like girls with small hands? It’s bec—

I know! But don’t tell them! This is supposed to be all-ages!

Anyway! Don’t listen to her. Only listen to me, okay? I’m an expert on Higurashi. I’ve played all the games long ago and loved them to pieces. My Onee-chan, on the other hand, knows nothing!

That’s not true! I love Meakashi. It’s my favorite dish!  …Thing!

So… Why do I prefer the old sprites? Well, let’s just look at a comparison…

Not pictured: Sonic-boom-inducing hands (Also, loss of color detail due to it being an animated GIF)

The original sprites just have more… personality to them, I guess? The new sprites definitely are prettier – especially those Rena sprites – but they are too… straight? Clean? Know what I mean? Well, even if you don’t, that’s fine! Luckily, it doesn’t matter whether you like the old and objectively better sprites, or if you have the wrong opinion and like the new sprites! That’s because you can switch between the two styles on the fly. …But anyone who’s reading this already knows that anyway. Why am I telling you all this?

Because you were invited late to the party, Nuri-kyun and it’s new to you…

Ouch, Nee-sama. Ouch.

It’s true, though! I wasn’t involved with the Question Arcs for Higurashi Hou, and I didn’t even know a Hou version existed until I was invited for Meakashi. Actually, fun fact, I was listening to Higurashi Kai music the very day before I got the invitation. Maybe I have some sort of psychic powers? If so, what should I listen to next? Any suggestions? Hmm… Maybe Kanon… Err, anyway… My point is, the fact I didn’t even know Higurashi Hou was a thing shows how much out of the loop I am when it comes to VN announcements…

Poor Nuri-nur… Do you want a banana from Onee-chan?

Banana? Is that the yellow fruit or the green one?

Anyway! Yes! This Hou stuff is all new for me, but the Meakashi chapter is still as good as I remembered it. In fact, when I started up the game and the title started scrolling by after the prologue, and that music was playing… Man, it actually made me cry a little.

Oh, so that’s what the tissues were for!

I told you it was all-ages!

Yep. For those unfamiliar with Higurashi, it’s a title of tension, intrigue, mystery, horror and drama. But above all that, it really made me a bit wistful, wanting to live in such a remote, tightly knit village myself, with a strong group of friends. Y’know, except for all the murder. I could do without that. Though I would want those big hands… Just imagine what you can do with those…

Y’know, I usually hate gore and stuff like that, but I am somehow okay with all the gruesome stuff that happens in Higurashi. I guess it’s because it’s not as graphic. Though it’s very descriptive with everything that it can definitely make you cringe and flinch. …A lot. Trust me. But! If you’re like me, and it’s only the visual aspect of gore that repulses you, then consider trying Higurashi!

It doesn’t really get more graphic than this…

That l—

DON’T SAY IT! I know what you want to say and you should be ashamed!

Uuuu~… Baka!

Interestingly, that’s also about as far as Higurashi goes in terms of “event CG.” Aside from these few drawings of blood or similar, there isn’t any event CG and everything is presented as sprites on a background. Is that a bad thing? I don’t think so! If anything, it’s a testament to how descriptive Ryukishi07’s writing is, since it does a perfect job of telling you what’s happening. If anything, it paradoxically makes the effect of his words stronger, because it allows you to imagine the most gruesome imagery your brain can handle instead of overwhelming or underwhelming you with the pre-drawn imagery.

But maybe that’s just the ramblings of an old fart who doesn’t understand the youth nowadays and their spiffy animations and new-fangled emojis and snapchats and tumblr and—

There are emojis in Higurashi?

No, and that’s a good thing!

Aww… I’ll ask Bamboo to add them!

Actually, I think I’ve done nothing but ramble here. I’m kinda at a loss for words. I mean, what can I say? I can’t say too much about the plot because anything I can say is a spoiler, and I can’t say much about the features, because anybody interested already knows about them! I mean, for example, you all know that MangaGamer managed to get all the original music in the Hou releases, right? And wow, that music is good. Some of the best I’ve heard (which is also why I was listening to it before).

Anyway, no spoiler talk, no feature talk, and I can’t really show you much of the art either… Then what’s left for an old Nurio to talk about but bananas and his Onee-chan?

The banana is the yellow one, by the way. The green one is a cucumber.

Thanks. I absolutely was wondering.

I guess there’s only one thing left for me to say…

Mion is best girl.

Now I’m off to imagine life with big hands…

Praise me more, Original Mion…

Isn’t that a dream come true? Such power from mere applauding… Yes, with this image in mind, I can happily go to sleep.

And so… Nurio, out!

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6 Comments

  1. A Tester’s Corner from Nurio! I’m always happy to see a Tester’s Corner from Nurio!

  2. Good test, but I’m surprise there’s no mention of the much better soundtrack that start in chapter 5.
    The musical director for chapters 5-8 is a lot better and the improvement is more than noticeable.

    • Well, I didn’t compare it to the Question Arcs, but I did mention several times how good the music is in this release and how they managed to get all the original music

  3. When is the 6th chapter coming out?

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