Long Live the Queen, or Why Impossible Can Be Fun

I had to fall
To lose it all
But in the end
It doesn't even matter

It's no secret to anybody who uses the internet that the Summer Steam Sale has come and gone. While I had a list of modern, graphics-intensive games to test my new gaming PC and time-consuming RPGs planned out to buy during the sale, there were also one or two indie games that caught my eye. Among these was Long Live the Queen, a visual novel by Hanako Games, a relatively unheard group of game designers bent on creating 2D games; "Girl games," to be specific. This does not refer to games for girls, but more for games about and including girls.

The idea of a "girl game" is nothing new. Japanese developers have been creating them for years. Visual novel developers such as Key have created what some consider to be masterpieces. However, while many visual novels are translated and localized, they largely remain under the radar in the United States, or pretty much anywhere besides eastern Asia. Most westerners regard them as pornographic, or tedious, which, to be fair, is true of many of them.

Clannad, arguably Key's most successful title, was adapted
into a beautiful emotional roller coaster of an anime.

Not all of these games are pandering to a bunch of greasy-palmed, neck-bearded, basement dwelling hikokomori, though. In truth, girl games and visual novels in general are a very under-appreciated genre throughout the English-speaking world. So under-appreciated, in fact, that non-Japanese developers of these games are extremely rare. For this reason, I am impressed by Hanako Games' desire to create not only this type of game, but to use the Japanese anime aesthetic, which is rarely taken seriously when crafted by gaijin artists..

Toss all of your preconceptions about this genre and art style out the window, and give Long Live the Queen a try. It isn't a game about dating. There is no pornography. The cuteness of the characters, particularly the protagonist, manifests its usefulness in a surprisingly unorthodox way. I actually felt a little ashamed about some of the things that came across as adorable to me.

The dark sense of humor kept me coming back
again and again.

It is a game about failure. It's not a game of trial and error. It's just error. Sure, you can beat Long Live the Queen. You can beat it in more ways than one, but I imagine it's not very satisfying. That's right, "I imagine." I haven't beaten this game, despite the fact that I have played it for more than ten hours, and started the entire thing over several times.

But that's the thing about this addictive game. I don't really feel like I need to win. Hanako has created an experience where failing is just vexing. Not in the annoying, frustrating sense, but in the puzzling, "I know I can do better if I just xxx" sense. Every failure is a new opportunity to improve your strategy. It's not often a game has me taking notes with a pen and paper.

Time management is core to this game. So many
skills, so little time to learn them.

It may not have the highest production values. It may not be available on PSN or the Xbox Live Marketplace. Maybe that's what makes it great, though. If you're feeling burnt out on all of the shooting, racing, and swordplay of today's mainstream titles, give Long Live the Queen a try. If you have a computer anywhere in your house, it can probably run it, and it costs ten dollars at the most.