In a town beset by eternal winter, the people are separated by their loyalties to either the Wolf or the Hawk clan families. The villagers are also quick to turn violent against anyone rumored to be involved with "the witch" - the source of the town's suffering and never ending snowfall according to local legends. Jed, a jack-of-all-trades and childhood friend to the Wolf heirs, happens to be the fabled witch. To protect herself and her family, Jed regularly dresses up as a man and takes on odd-jobs. Jed's latest job is to locate a missing church relic, a task that will require her to speak with members of the Hawk clan. To gain the Hawk's trust, Jed pretends to be a woman allied with the Hawk clan.
This game is a visual novel with a bit of romance thrown in. It is set within the same universe as the previous Psychedelica game but is not a direct sequel. I liked the heroine in this one much more than Black Butterfly; Jed is strong, independent, and hardworking. The story starts off as a charming slice-of-life story until about half way through, when it drops a bombshell. Events unfold that completely shatter the happy atmosphere, sending the story down a progressively darker path (highlight to read): Sororicide, patricide, serial killings, mass murder, witch hunts... it goes on. Once the plot starts rolling it doesn't stop! Everyone, including the heroine, has their darkest secrets revealed, forever changing how you perceive the cast. None of them are the people they initially seemed to be, and these revelations can be downright heart-wrenching at times. Practically every ending is one of tragedy, loss, or carnage and each one contributes to the overarching story; unraveling or expanding upon the bigger mystery, and it was fun trying to figure out how everything intertwined.
The story progresses with minimal input from the player until the latter part of the game. I didn't mind how long it took to get to the initial choice options because I was so engrossed in the story and characters up to that point. The story progression is arranged in a much more linear fashion than the previous game, so everything more or less goes down a singular path. The lack of branching paths has resulted in character routes that are more akin to "character endings" since the player's choices only impact the end results. This means that the order you complete character routes in doesn't matter like it did in Black Butterfly (the first game) because they are no longer locked behind arbitrary milestones. A flowchart keeps track of the branching story paths and acts as a means for the player to jump in-between chapters they have completed. There is also a fast-forward feature that stops automatically whenever choice options appear.
One of the unique aspects of Ashen Hawk is the town map where Jed can visit certain areas to move the story along. Green markers will progress the main plotline, while blue markers trigger story skits with the various characters, and pink markers open short interviews with the townspeople. I especially loved the character skits because they helped to flesh out the personality quirks and daily shenanigans of the cast, which in turn deepened my attachment to the cast. This system really lends itself to the feeling of Jed going around town and getting to know the locals. The pink markers also award points that can be used to purchase additional short stories from the peddler’s Antique Shop. Not every location is available right away; some are unlocked by viewing certain skits, while others are unlocked by alternating between Jed and Eiar on the town map.
Ashen Hawk is a hauntingly beautiful piece set in an otherworldly realm of grief and death. There are a few holes and inconsistencies in the plot, and more than one ending had tragedy shoehorned in for the sake of a sad ending, rather than letting the narrative flow naturally. Regardless, I became engrossed in the story and loved the relationship Jed/Eiar had with her adoptive family. It was an emotionally confusing roller coaster ride, and figuring out how everything intertwined was immensely fun. Ashen Hawk is fine as a standalone game, but having played the previous game does help to enhance the experience.
The character designs, art style and color scheme are much more refined and elegant than they were in the first Psychedelica game. The language is in Japanese with English subtitles and I only encountered a couple of spelling errors.
First posted to videogamegeek.com
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