[A copy of my Steam review, written before the release of Act II]
A well written and engaging visual novel with a fictionalised historical backdrop.
I originally played the demo of this game (basically the first chapter with far less polish) a few years back, looking for otome games that went deeper than just pursuing your crush of choice and then living happily ever after.
And all I can say is that this game delivered that, and delivered it in such a way that I've been loyally following the development ever since.
As stated before, this is a more polished release than the one I played before, and I think it is worth the money asked. Act I is a bit on the short side, with the promise by Studio Elfriede that future chapters will be longer.
I must admit to missing the old CG art, but the new art is still serviceable. The backgrounds are simple and drab, which works well with the bleakness of the war.
The writing is where this game shines. Varied characters with different reasons for signing up for the war (or not doing so, as the case may be), not all of them necessarily likeable. I notably like Elfriede, our protagonist, a lot. She actually has a better idea about how the whole thing will turn out than most of the people in her home town, but assumes that she must be overthinking things when almost everyone else is so excited for the war. She has her funny quips (mostly in her internal monologues) early on, but doesn't force them into the later, more sombre scenes, where they would feel out of place. I do hope that her sense of humour comes back in future acts, though, to alleviate some of the heavy mood once she gets more used to the general atmosphere in the trenches.
I wholeheartedly recommend this game (though if you hate episodic releases, you should probably hold out until it is finished), as long as you can handle a story where your favourite love interest might not make it to the end.