Clannad Side Stories

Genre: Visual Novel

Players: 1

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Review:

In my review of the Visual Novel Clannad, I wasn’t shy about flat-out saying I hated it. Hated the story, hated the characters, hated the art style. This may be one of the more popular games in the genre, but I honestly didn’t see what others enjoyed about it. However, my least favorite part about Clannad was its protagonist, so it’s always possible that another game set in the same series but told from another perspective might have better luck, right?

Clannad Side Stories was originally released in episodic format under the title Hikari Mimamoru Sakamichi de in Japan in 2008 on mobile phones, then later ported to numerous other devices. After reaching a Kickstarter stretch goal, these stories were collected together and released outside of Japan for the first time in 2016 on PC, with a port to Nintendo Switch in 2021. These stories show us glimpses into various side-characters of Clannad in various “slice of life” moments, giving us added perspective into the lives of these characters. While the original stories included 13 chapters plus one bonus chapter, that has now been expanded to 16 here.

While I hated the character designs in Clannad, it feels like they’ve been somewhat refined and the exaggerated qualities I so disliked in that game are less prominent here, though I still don’t think the anime-style character designs in this game are anything exceptional. This game re-uses backgrounds from Clannad, which were generally good there and just as nice here.

These visuals are once again joined by a pretty forgettable synthesized soundtrack. However, one change here is that everything in the stories is now voiced (in Japanese), including the narration. I think the voicework here is improved over what was in Clannad, too.

However, while I certainly think there have been improvements here, there are other problems. The game often doesn’t bother telling us who is speaking or narrating, leaving players to judge based purely on voice and context alone, something made even more difficult for those without an ear for the Japanese language.

Another problem is that it is quickly made clear that this game’s story is pretty much made just for those who are already familiar with Clannad and its characters – you’re not given any sort of introduction to the characters and their situation, you’re just expected to know what their deal is from having played the original game. For fans of Clannad looking for a companion piece that may be all well and good, but players just looking to enjoy some “slice of life” story vignettes will be frustrated that no attempt has been made here to ensure that these stories can stand on their own.

Also, I should note that while Clannad had a branching story with multiple endings, Clannad Side Stories has nothing of the sort, and is completely linear, with no choice whatsoever. While this may be fine for some players, it does have the effect of making this seem like a lesser effort, even if it still sells for an astounding $40, only $5 less than Clannad itself.

In the end, all of this leaves Clannad Side Stories as a Visual Novel that feels like an overpriced supplement to Clannad, nothing more. Fans of that game who crave to see more of the lives of those characters will likely get some enjoyment out of this, but anyone hoping for something more substantial befitting this game’s price will be disappointed, and everyone else is better off steering clear of this one entirely – it’s not for you.

tl;dr – Clannad Side Stories is a Visual Novel containing 16 vignettes focusing on side-characters from Clannad. While I think elements of the story and presentation are improved here, I also think this game is overpriced considering its more limited scope, and its story is wholly dependent on players having played through Clannad first. If you enjoyed Clannad and are happy to pay through the nose for extra snippets of that game’s characters, this might interest you. For everyone else, this is one to avoid.

Grade: D

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