In the near future, a technology called Brain-Machine Interface connects the brain and machines. This technology brings about a new paradigm and opens the gates to the digitization of human memory itself.
From these new discoveries, “he” is born. An illegal experiment mixes thousands of memories into a single vessel, creating a wholly new being.
Having only the memories of others, doubts about who he truly is start arising in his mind, until he gathers the courage to go out into the world in search of his true self.
As he steps into the real world, he meets two girls, Kido Tsubasa and Ibaraki Rino.
Both kind souls whose lives have been touched by unscrupulous BMI experiments, just like him.Learning to live together with their secrets, “he” and “they” will bring about big changes…
PARQUET, Synopsis from NekoNyan
Technicalities
PARQUET is a visual novel from Yuzusoft SOUR, an imprint of the developer Yuzusoft that worked on other great titles such as Sabbat of the Witch and Senren*Banka. This visual novel is originally released in Japanese and translated into English by NekoNyan.
Story
Set in a future where a technology called Brain-Machine Interface allows connections between brains and machines, Ibuki Kanato, born from abnormal means, steps out into the real world to learn about what it means to be a human. Having no experience interacting with society, he ventured out trying things he could never do when he was confined as a slave. During his night-time adventure, he met a gentle girl who took care of him after passing out from a rather strong alcoholic drink.
Expecting to never meet again, the two parted ways without even introducing themselves to each other. As fate had it, they meet again but in a rather unusual situation.
Characters
There’s not a lot of characters in this visual novel. There are only three main characters supported with seven minor characters.
The main protagonist, Ibuki Kanato, is a product of a secret experiment combining thousands of memories into one artificial body. Although he was considered a defective prototype, he was able to bring Ibuki Corporation to become a leader of Japanese Brain-Machine Interface manufacturer. Now having served his purposes, he ventured out into the real world to learn more about society and what it means to be a human.
The Night Rose Ibaraki Rino met Ibuki passed out in an alley and took care of him until he woke up. She’s a loner and quiet type who works at a flower shop in the evening. Her unfortunate circumstance keeps her away from the day, making it difficult for her to socialize and make friends. Despite that, she was very fortunate to become a friend of Ibuki on that fateful night.
The Daytime Sunflower Kido Tsubasa saved Ibuki from people with malicious intent. Working at a café her friend’s family owns, Ibuki is introduced to new people working different jobs and, of course, delicious meals. Kido is a cheerful and friendly woman who just clicked with Ibuki on their first meeting. Unfortunately, she also experiences a circumstance similar to Rino but is kept away from the night instead.
Art
Once again, Yuzusoft has managed to deliver another beautiful visual novel featuring an anime-style character design. Complemented with adorable chibi art and wonderful CG art, PARQUET delivers an eye-catching reading experience.
Of course, Yuzusoft continues the tradition of composing dedicated character background music that matches well with their personality. The characters in this visual novel are voiced in Japanese, except for the main protagonist.
Our Opinions
Coming from Yuzusoft SOUR and NekoNyan, it feels like breathing fresh air after reading PARQUET as it doesn’t follow Yuzusoft’s established formula in the visual novels they usually produce. Specifically, PARQUET is a visual novel that doesn’t take place in an academic institution, doesn’t have characters who are students, doesn’t have branching plots, doesn’t involve anything supernatural, and doesn’t mainly involve romance nor sex.
Story-wise, it wasn’t particularly long but I’m glad it wasn’t boring. Featuring a mystery science-fiction linear story, help solve the emerging cases of BMI abuse and figure out how Ibuki can help out Tsubasa and Rino while learning what it means to be human in the process.
On the technical side, PARQUET has the neat features their previous games had: an easy-to-use flowchart for jumping between chapters, a CG gallery for viewing art, a music library for listening to the game’s soundtrack, and a sprite mode if you feel like being creative. As always, they also subtly featured characters from their previous games.
Conclusion
Despite being significantly shorter than most Yuzusoft releases, PARQUET is quite an enjoyable visual novel I didn’t expect to be at first. The story isn’t bad, it has fairly thrilling plots, and I definitely fell in love with the resolution of the story.
With only 9.5 hours of main story and 1 hour of After Story chapter where you can sorta romance either of them, this makes it a beginner-friendly kinetic visual novel.
We’re giving PARQUET the Green Mochi Stamp.
A sci-fi kinetic visual novel with a pair of interesting characters. Its simple plot makes it easy to follow the story which ends in a satisfying conclusion. A great visual novel for beginners!
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