Pride Month Picks: Studio Elan Is The Master Of Sapphic Visual Novels

thegamer.com:

This article is part of Pride Month Picks, a collection of pieces that aim to highlight queer representation across games, television, film, books, and more throughout June.

Visual novels have been trading in romance longer than most genres in the medium. What began in Japan has now expanded worldwide with independent titles and crowdfunded translations of classics that had never before seen an official release.

Of course there are also games such as Danganronpa, Persona, and the likes of Hades or Coffee Talk, that adopt and iterate upon the system of building relationships with characters and pursuing romance in a distinct way that expands upon what visual novels first pioneered in a variety of ways. The list nowadays is endless, and it’s wonderful to see a once niche genre find such a varied audience.

Related: Persona 5 Is Finally Coming To Switch So Please Stop Going On About It

We’ve moved away from that original definition as video games begin to embrace more experimental approaches to narrative and how we can come to love characters and find value in the people they meet, befriend, and potentially fall in love with. Shipping is a widespread trend for a reason, with developers having created pairings worth investing ourselves in that goes beyond the games that first introduced them.

It’s a genre that proven to be a place of creative freedom for queer players and creators, paving the way for meaningful representation and smaller titles that explore the beauty of falling in love with the same sex or embracing your true identity. While there are so many independent studios out there today pushing for such inclusion, Studio Elan is one that continually comes to mind. Its games are all about girls falling in love, and