AsicxArt has returned to Steam after a 3-year hiatus to release a sequel to its previous game with Vampires' Melody 2. It continues the story of the vampire couple Raylan Monroe and Yella Lester following one of the endings in Vampires' Melody in which they have been banished to a deserted island for failing a routine ID check. Raylan and Yella will have to learn to survive in a hostile new environment, and come to terms with the new reality after waking up from their slumber for 300 years.
As with AsicxArt's earlier titles, Vampires' Melody 2 retains many of the charm and highlights from its earlier releases by featuring cute well drawn artwork and having great musical compositions for its accompanying background music. The art will look very nice on any visual novel fan's Steam profile. In addition, this title features fun, casual minigames that add some interactivity and make the player feel invested in the game and characters without being too difficult.
In terms of plot, Vampires' Melody 2 retains many of the cute, comical moments, and fan service as Raylan and Yella work together to survive in an island adventure with a comedy, fantasy, science fiction and mystery narrative. Some players may not like the fan service and romance tropes with a female vampire domineering over a cowardly male protagonist, although I still think the way the script is handled came off as very funny, and the scriptwriter has also given the protagonist several chances to save the day over a vastly more powerful supernatural being which saw me rooting for the protagonist despite his inherently weak and cowardly nature. Many of the scenes are also brought out very well by the excellent voice acting and artwork. They help to lend immersion into the game, bringing out the tense moments during minigame challenges. There are numerous references to events in the prequel, so it is recommended to finish the earlier game first before starting on this one.
Lastly, I would also like to share that I handled the English translation for this game. As a long-time fan of AsicxArt, I was motivated to work on this project after following feedback from my friends in Steam, members of my Steam group (Visual novel, JRPG, Anime), and fans of AsicxArt over a weakness in AsicxArt and SakuraGame's earlier games. The game's excellent production quality and feedback from fans of AsicxArt, together with support by SakuraGame and my friends in Steam helped to build up the sense of pride and excitement to bring a cute and interesting comedy to an English audience. I hope the English translation for this game is an improvement over their earlier titles that will not disappoint fans' confidence in the games by AsicxArt, and would like to thank all the fans for their patience and support all this while.
Thank you to all my friends and family members who have supported me, and to SakuraGame for giving me the wonderful opportunity to work on the English subtitles for the game before release. It was a pleasure to work on this project and we hope you will enjoy reading this cute, funny story, along with the cheery upbeat opening theme song Seaside Melody by idol group Luce Twinkle Wink☆ to lighten your day.
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