Name: Ikusa Miko (Vestal Virgin) (40.00% in 6 votes)
Type: SIM
Platform: WINDOWS
Company: Alicesoft
Release date: 1997
Reviewed by: Kyubi Fox
Ok first thing first: this is an Alicesoft game BUT it is NOT H (!) and has full voice acting (!!!). Experienced gamers know that Alicesoft has CDDA instead of voices in almost all of their games, even in recent games like Pro Student Good and Pastel Chime. When we think about it, this game is released back in 1997, and up till the beginning of 1999 it's still the only Alicesoft game that has voice...why? Something must be wrong...
Before I go into details, let's talk about the story. You are a devil hunter. You became a hunter because your parents was killed by those devils and so you went to learn how to kill those devils. To became a hunter you became a very lonely guy who wanders around looking for devils, until one day...
You came to a shrine chasing after the devil that killed your parents, but you couldn't use your "power" anymore. A miko (Chitose) suddenly appeared before your eyes. You transfered all your "power" to her and her beat that devil away. Since she saved your life, you began to teach her how to use her "power" ...
So that's the main story, and sadly, that's it. Your goal is to train Chitose to beat that devil that killed your parents. The devil is supposed to be sealed for a year and until then you have to make Chitose and yourself strong enough to defeat it. Every week you pick some activity for Chitose and you to do. The title is pretty decieving: the things you can tell Chitose to do are not the "mikoly" things you would expect, instead, she train her strength by running and fighting with you, and her mind by meditating. It is basically training a magic fighter who happens to be a miko.
OK, on with the ratings: "Shiro san, ikimasu" (*sigh*...)
Ratings:
Gameplay: 4/10 - This game is very repetitive. You set up what Chitose's going to do for the week, then you just watch the result. During the weekends you can go around town for the morning and afternoon, but usually nothing happen and you just go back. It gets boring really quick and you will find that you will use the skip text option very often.
There are also some fightings with the devils, but they are way too rare to be even counted as part of the game. And since your ultimate goal is to fight, the lack of devils means that there is nothing to gauge your progress. You will be wondering if it is good to focus more on physical or mental strength. The good thing is the game is pretty easy like most Alicesoft games, so you will be able to beat the boss as long as you do a reasonable job in the training period.
You can go after three girls in the game. Most of those are based on your choices in events so it's not particularly exciting or anything. btw did I mention that this game is not h?
Storyline: 4/10 - The setting might be interesting, but that's it. Events happen very rare like in Pastel Chime. Most of the events have something to do with the main storyline, but the way the people acts just are not convincing enough. For example if you go after Chitose you will wonder in the end why she likes you because all the conversations are about devils and her will to defeat them bla bla bla. It's ok once or twice but if all the events are like that it becomes really boring.
Graphics: 8/10 - The graphics are wonderful like in Alicesoft games. The pictures about the trainings are especially good. They are done in simple comic style but they are humorous and to the point. Other pictures are great too. One complain is that the fighting with devils are not animated, it's really boring during long battles. Another bad point is that this game is not...
Music/Sound: 5/10 - There is two sides to it. If it's only counting the voice, this game will get a 2. Voice acting is supposed to enchance the atmoshpere. In this game, the voice acting actually managed to make the game a lot less convincing. Chitose only speaks in one tone, she's never excited nor sad... It seems like the old guy and Seki are the only ones who have reasonable acting. Worse yet, Chitose's confession scene is...I recommend you turning the voice off because they totally break the romantic atmosphere. This failure is probably part of the reason why we haven't seen another Alicesoft game with voice since this game.
On the other hand, the music is top-notch. You really get the sense of living in a peaceful little town. Because you live in a shrine, there is an added medium taste of old style (like the use of flute) music which is very nice to hear. The battle music is also to the point with an intense feel. This is one of the few games I played the background music on my computer even when I am not playing the game.
Actually this 5 can become 8 if you decide to turn off the sound...
Overall: -4/10 - This is not a game I would recommend to anyone even if they are miko-lovers (like me). Sure, the second time you play the game you get new types of training to do and there are three girls, but it doesn't cover the boring gameplay to warrant getting.
Japanese Level: Low - It is a much simplified version of princess maker so anybody should be able to play it without problem.
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