Welcome!

Welcome to /r/Utawarerumono, a subreddit for discussing and sharing things about Leaf's visual novel and anime series, Utawarerumono. We don't get much traffic, but we're glad to have you here! Please make sure you mark your spoilers, and try to link to the sources for artwork.

Wait, What Is This?

Utawarerumono is a trilogy of visual novels with tactical RPG elements developed by Leaf, a subsidiary of Aquaplus. The first two have also had anime series based on them, both of which have received English translations, and the latter two games have been released in English by Atlus. The games are set in a fantasy world influenced by Japanese and Ainu culture. They're commonly praised for having intricate stories, complex character development, beautiful music, and mind-blowing plot twists. In terms of story structure and breadth of plot, they have often been compared to Nihon Falcom's Kiseki / Trails series.

The first game opens with a man who has lost his memories waking up in a forest and discovering that he has a mask permanently attached to his face. He is taken in by the people of a nearby village, and in turn he helps protect them from bandits and would-be conquerers; over the course of the story, he leads a war to unite the country and also seeks to discover the truth of his past. The story explores themes of war, political intrigue, love, and identity.

In terms of gameplay, the games are primarily visual novels and involve reading quite a bit of text accompanied by character and background illustrations. The VN segments are occasionally broken up by tactical RPG battles in the vein of games like Final Fantasy Tactics, Disgaea, or Fire Emblem; I would personally estimate that the games are about 80% VN and 20% TRPG.

By the way, there's also a lot of kemonomimi.

That Sounds Neat, Where Do I Start?

tl;dr version:

1. Watch the 2006 Utawarerumono anime, streaming for free at Crunchyroll
2. Play Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception (PS4/Vita)
3. Play Utawarerumono: Mask of Truth (PS4/Vita)
   • Warning: Don't look at anything about Mask of Truth until you've finished Mask of Deception; there are massive spoilers!

I've got a few minutes, what's the non-tl;dr version?

The original Utawarerumono was an adult visual novel released for Windows in 2002. It never received an official English translation. There is a fan translation of it, and the game is available for sale digitally on DMM (warning: NSFW). In addition, the erotic scenes in the game are commonly considered to be superfluous, if not actively detracting from the quality of the story; the game was developed during an era when the common belief was that visual novels needed to have adult material in order to sell well, and so they are present in the game despite not being a major part of it or important to the overall story.

It was ported to the Playstation 2 in 2006 and had voice acting added to it and the adult scenes removed. That version would later be ported to the PSP in 2009. Neither of these versions received an English release, and these versions are easier to import nowadays, but there is no translation patch for them.

An anime series based on the game was produced in 2006, and an additional three-episode OVA was produced in 2009. Both were officially licensed and released by ADV Films, although the license has since been sold to Funimation. The anime series omits a few details that were present in the original game, but overall it is considered to be a good adaptation in the story, and it's the best way to experience it in English.

The series was then dormant for several years, and fans were surprised when two sequels, Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen and Utawarerumono: Futari no Hakuoro, were announced, and they were released in 2015 and 2016, respectively. An anime series based on Itsuwari no Kamen was announced simultaneously and released on Crunchyroll as Utawarerumono: The False Faces. The anime series received a lukewarm reception; while it covers the same basic story, the general consensus is that compared to the game, the anime has significant changes to its tone and pacing, plus it omits or changes a number of minor but important plot elements. No anime version of Futari no Hakuoro exists at this time.

Atlus later announced their licenses of both games, and they released Itsuwari no Kamen as Mask of Deception on May 23, 2017 and Futari no Hakuoro as Mask of Truth on September 5, 2017.

The three games all happen in sequential order and the stories are tied together. After the original, Mask of Deception introduces a new cast of characters and is set in a different location, but several characters from the original return in minor roles. Mask of Truth is a direct sequel to Mask of Deception and continues with the same characters, but it also has strong references to events from the original and concludes some of its open plot threads. If you really want to jump right into a game, you could play Mask of Deception before watching the original anime, as long as you keep in mind that you'll be missing some references and there will be a few characters it assumes you already know; on the other hand, you definitely need to have finished both before playing Mask of Truth.

On April 26th, 2018, another remake of the original, titled Utawarerumono: Chiriyukumono e no Komori Uta, was released for the PS4 and Vita. This version has retouched character art, completely redrawn backgrounds, an expanded soundtrack, and replaces the original's combat system with a new one that is more similar to the sequels. It also included an all-new animated OVA set a few years after the end of the game.

That brings us to modern day, where even though our resources are limited, it's at least possible to experience the entire story of Utawarerumono in English. Let Atlus know that you want a localization of the remake of the first game!