not to be confused with cherry boy | Shigatsu Youka (死月妖花) review

• 9 December 2025
• 5,602 words ・ 29 min read
• visual novels ・ review ・ shigatsu youka ・ new++ ・ satsuki

Shigatsu Youka is a visual novel that warns you about how long it is.

On initial startup, a series of in-depth disclaimers provide the complete lowdown on what to expect in triplicate. This is going to be an exhaustive, expansive epic mystery story spanning 50-120 hours, toe-dipping in all manner of genres, character perspectives and themes. And the writer is nothing if not apologetic about the whole affair. They apologize for their lack of artistic skills, their inexperience with writing and, in general, are overjoyed that you, the reader, chose to give this a whirl on this glorious occasion. They mention that the only reason they even took up the pen was because they had the inclination to make a narrative game, and by their own account, they're not very good at the written word.

As someone who has now, two months later, reached the summit of peak Shigatsu, I can only declare that the author, Satsuki (さつき), has severely underrepresented their own abilities.

What is Shigatsu Youka?

Shigatsu Youka (死月妖花～四月八日～) is a free mystery/horror visual novel released in its entirety in 2019 on a site called Freem!, a website for free doujin (indie) video games. There was an earlier demo back in 2016, and the version we read is hugely——understatement of the century——expanded from that demo with a richer setting and narrative structure. Since 2019, there have been a smattering of updates, adding bonus content and fixing errors and such, but the bulk of this gargantuan work of fiction was simply airdropped on the unsuspecting narrative gaming internet at large.

While there are several doujin visual novels that have earned their keep and notoriety amidst the otaku Zeitgeist, the two front runners are Ryukishi07's work with Higurashi (and of course Umineko), and Kinoko Nasu's Tsukihime. Shigatsu Youka slots quite nicely into this pantheon, though at a glance it certainly shares more similarities with the former; this is a sprawling, multi-route narrative with countless threads of mystery interspersed with horror and action, a sinister plot woven beneath the surface. There's a thematic focus on how friends and family can stick together in the face of adversity, and the importance of accepting the weight of your own sins. [1]

The first arc of the story is about an unlikely friend group of three high school girls in different grades——the boyish, indelicate Niimura Haruka, timid-but-strong-at-heart Kogoori Natsumi, and the (self-described) genius detective Gotou Erina——and the danger they face after a dead body is found in a nearby park under a cherry blossom tree. The sight is gruesome, as the murderer skinned the victim alive before killing them, but perhaps more terrifying is that Natsumi saw all of this coming.

Our setting is the fictional town of Motoki. It's mid-April, the season of sakura petals, and the mere sight of them renders Natsumi ill. Most peculiarly, whenever the sickness hits her, she starts to receive premonitions of danger for those nearby. The killer is still on the loose. And so the three friends must join forces and together, with Natsumi's visions, Haruka's stubbornness, and Erina's brains, tease out the identity of the murderer and put a cork in their nefarious plot.

The first act hits the ground running, and I found myself immediately hooked and eager to know more. There's very little time wasted——no meandering character introductions, no transitional scenes of menial chit-chat shovelled in to fill the space. It's much more akin to a police procedural, with snappy scenes that cut straight to payoff and further escalation, and it's only much later in the story that the tension loosens and the story is more willing to faff about.

But here's the thing: I lied.

What is Shigatsu Youka, really?

While that synopsis covers the first arc, this isn't really where Shigatsu Youka starts at all. I mentioned how on initial startup, the game gives disclaimers about the visual novel's length and themes. These are more literal than you think. About halfway through the very first scene, the player is (quite literally) interrupted in the flowchart menu of the game by an odd figure in a noh mask and red hood.

Apologizing for scaring you, the individual introduces themselves as one Tachiki Mika, the creator of this world. She desires to share it with somebody else, and reached out for you, the player, as an observer. She asks your name, and then in a very literal, meta sense, guides you through the UI and structure of the story you're about to experience. In-universe, Shigatsu Youka is a narrative formed by the joint desires of Mika and you, the player, and she declares in no uncertain terms that while she deeply wishes you enjoy yourself and relate to the characters and their struggles, she does not want you to pursue the truth behind the narrative.

And this is where the bulk of my praise has to be given. This visual novel not only functions on a more traditional, linear narrative level following the three friends and the serial killer, but also on a metatextual level, where the player can chat with Mika on the fly about the scenes taking place and share theories and impressions on the characters and plot beats uncovered thus far. And this is entirely player-driven, too——there is a relaxation space prepared in the visual novel where the player can pause reading at any time to engage in conversation with Mika about a smorgasbord of topics, ranging from specific trifles about the setting and characters, to more casual chit-chat like what Mika's favorite food is, her thoughts on cosplay, which characters are better at dating and so on. In the end, I think I reached well over 700 topics during the course of my playthrough, and many of these had 2-4 responses to choose from.

This conversation system is quite silly, but very cute and entertaining, and rewarding to boot. New discussion topics are unlocked dynamically. Progress in the overall narrative as well as certain player answers will open up new topic options, and Mika will refer back to your previous selections when choosing new topics. It's quite forgiving, too, as the player can revisit previous topics to alter their responses, unlocking branches they may have missed. This seems like an intentional choice by the writer to allow readers to get the whole experience.

Reading this, it might sound like some side gimmick, but this blurring of the lines between static and interactive media is honestly where Shigatsu Youka shines. And it isn't just limited to this talk room. This VN also features a monstrously large glossary and map which slowly reveals itself as the story unfolds, rife with overwhelming troves of information about each location, event and character. Every convenience store, cafe, station, road——nothing is spared from having a multi-paragraph encyclopedia entry about when the place was founded, how the owner came to visit Motoki and their ultimate fate after the narrative's conclusion.

But more impressive than this is what Shigatsu Youka calls its reference system. Similar to Higurashi's TIPS feature, after each chapter the VN unlocks 'references', extra material related to the core mystery of the story. These range from critical plot reveals——what a person was up to behind someone's back, newspaper articles about the incident X years ago, letters from pious monks from ages long past——to trifling side details that enrich the setting, like the first time a character took up sports, or a Youtube video raving about the movie airing in the background of a scene. These aren't just bonus scenes, but proper interactive media too, with many common items such as school IDs, letters, websites, cafe menus, memos and more painstakingly recreated in eye-wateringly mundane detail. As the player, you can inspect these items and hear various character's musings as you click around. Many crucial clues and concealed depths are hidden away in the most benign-seeming pieces of evidence.

Finding these clues is doubly rewarding, as not only do they give vital keys to the mystery at large, but also give you points. These are also received as a reward for fruitful conversations with Tachiki Mika. These points can be spent to unlock special types of references that cut deep at the heart of the narrative. I loved these. There's an entire set of research papers from decades before the story that have been cut into dozens of pieces and you must put them together, jigsaw-puzzle-style, in order to recreate what was written there. It's very Hypnospace Outlaw-coded.

The sheer amount of work that went into this interactive system is mind-boggling, especially considering the frankly absurd scope of the narrative. See, Shigatsu Youka's setting spans over 800 years of fictional Japanese history, and these references and glossary——which, alone, contain well over half of this visual novel's text——dig deep into the weeds of the author's world. It's masterfully done in my opinion. Around the 70% complete mark in my readthrough, I took a break to revisit the references and documents I'd amassed so far and constructed a timeline, reconstructing all the historical events and marking out the figures involved. I made a list of questions, and marked them as answered when I uncovered logical solutions.

It took several hours, but doing this was some of the most fun I've had with a visual novel narrative, well, ever really. And I was rewarded well for my efforts——my experience with the later arcs was a constant satisfying catharsis of having my theories confirmed over and over. The author's passion for their characters, setting and mystery is blazing hot to the touch, and it's hard not to be infected with a feverish energy just from being in the vicinity of the work.

Satsuki mentions in the afterword that they aren't someone who likes to read and write, which inspired them to implement a unique character count system into every aspect of the UX design. Whenever you're reading, there's a progress bar and percentage urging you onwards towards the end of the scene, and each new unlock diligently explains just how long it is and your exact completion percentage. It's rather obsessive, and I respect it a lot. The chapters are short, and the insistent dedication to 'hey just read this chapter and I'll reward you with a new topic, or a new reference' lends the VN a constant inertia. I love the loop: Read a chapter → talk about it with Mika → see new entries in glossary and references → unlock hidden references → return to main screen and ding ding, new chapter unlocked. It plays a satisfying jingle after every action in this cycle, all to squeeze out a few more drops of that all-to-precious dopamine

In general, Shigatsu Youka is a visual novel defined by its systems and structure, and is a masterclass in how to make this medium pop. Many visual novel creators, I think, still agonize over the same-old question: Why a VN? Why not stick to the tried-and-true novel? You don't see many answers to this beyond "I wanted to have choices" or "I wanted more focus on visuals and sound". Shigatsu Youka, conversely, is a curio of the sort that could only exist in this medium, and for that alone I could gush over it forever.

Of course, all of this means squat if the narrative and mystery itself isn't worth your time. So let's talk about that.

I can't believe it's not Uchikoshi

Those well-acquainted with the medium will know cherry blossoms (a.k.a. sakura) are an obsession of many VNs, with famous tentpole series such as Makura's Sakura no ... series, or Palette's SakuSaku coming to mind. For a Japanese audience this makes a lot of sense——April (which is when sakura trees are in full bloom) is the start of the new school term and hiring season in Japan, and has strong associations with a new beginning, a fresh start and a revitalized outlook on life.

So Shigatsu Youka, with its entirely different spin on the theme, is rather fascinating. In-universe, sakura trees are beautiful but terrifying omens of horrible things to come. The VN's name——Shigatsu Youka——can be read multiple ways: the literal title, 'April 8th' (四月八日), but also as an original term 'Bewitching Petals (妖花) in the month of Death (死月)'. And in many ways, understanding this narrative is all about learning why this month of April/Death is such a horrifying thing. The story hounds you with this question from the very first scene, echoing the concept over and over as the narrative progresses. It's honestly remarkable how cohesive it ends up being.

Shigatsu Youka isn't really a single story, but a collection of various arcs and scenarios that span hundreds of in-universe years. Despite this, this isn't really historical fiction, nor a fantasy epic. Instead, the story covers countless variations and 'what-ifs' spinning out from a single event, each story revealing more and more of the sinister mystery that underpins the whole narrative. Very similar stories are bundled together as separate routes into a single 'arc', which generally functions as a self-contained VN of its own, complete with hooks for the next arc. The best example I can think of for this structure is something like the Monogatari series, with its intricate out-of-order timeline of novels, each technically standalone but slotting together as more than the sum of their parts. Shigatsu Youka is like that, but with multiple routes that play out in parallel.

In terms of quality, the individual arcs themselves are all over the place. After the very strong first arc, with its laser-focus on thrilling mystery, some of the other stories were more plodding and character-focused, which was less my cup of tea. An emotional backstory covering how two pivotal characters met. A slice-of-life comedy piece designed to help a trauma survivor move on. Depending on the premise, these stories range from okay to absolutely 'sit up, lock in' fantastic. But the variety of genres and themes is precisely the point, and they all bring critical reveals and hints towards the overall plot. Compared to the absolute slog that is a work like Hundred Line, I don't think my time was ever wasted, and the last third of the VN especially was a train of absolute bangers with no brakes.

To tie all of these stories together, we're given a flowchart to record the branching points and how the events interconnect. Flowcharts are nothing new to the visual novel medium, but in Shigatsu Youka's case this chart is so gargantuan and intertwined I couldn't help but be awestruck. There's a sense of sick elation that hits you when you finish one story with its bombshell ending, only for Tachiki Mika to show up with her characteristic chime to explain that you've unlocked a new story that branches off this point 30 chapters prior. This slow, deliberate unveiling, like dramatically lifting the box around a multi-tier wedding cake, is simply wonderful. Visually, the chart is a treat as well——as you scroll around there's all manner of high-effort unique animations and music associated with each chapter, injecting much-needed texture and atmosphere into what is typically a dry experience.

Not only do we unlock new stories, but the VN has a system it calls 'reverse routes'. After certain critical reveals, the VN will open up alternate perspectives for previous chapters, often from the point of the culprit or an accomplice. And these are juicy; jam-packed full of character motivation. It's very fun to have the curtain lifted and see how things truly went down. The intentionality here is on point, too, as by reading these often you'll unearth yet another clue or hint towards the big picture.

While reading, I joked that this VN feels like Higurashi if it was written by Uchikoshi, of Zero Escape fame. On the surface, this is true. Just like Higurashi, we see a story about the bonds of friendship and family tested by horrific circumstances, where only by working together and learning to trust one another can our protagonists hope to thwart the threat targeting them from the shadows. The rural local town vibes and the tight-knit cast of characters, the fairly amateurish production and the TIPs system especially feel like direct influences. But the focus on revelations and technical detail inspired more by sci-fi concepts rather than mythological ones reads more like an Uchikoshi work. It gleefully turns your expectations on their head, filling your time with encyclopedia entries that range from the reproductive cycle of sakura trees to suspect budget TV shows uncovering the truth behind telepathy. This is a howdunnit and whodunnit mystery first and foremost, with whydunnit still relevant but a distant third in the priorities.

Unlike an Uchikoshi VN, though, the mystery does its best to pull itself together and remain fair. Many visual novels in this space collapse under the weight of their own gimmick, but Shigatsu Youka deftly avoids this pitfall thanks to its precise plotting and constant interrogation of its own premises and conclusions. So, so many times I'd be like "okay, that's bullshit" to one of the solutions, only for the VN to respond to that hours later going "yes, that was bullshit, which is why that wasn't actually the answer". Satsuki has a sense of self-awareness to their mystery writing I rarely see outside of works like Umineko where every logical contradiction is examined and placed on a pedestal, begging for you to ask why it doesn't add up. The rabbit hole goes so deep that some arcs——arc 4, Shigatsu-hen (四月編) in particular——are so mindbendingly difficult to solve that I can't imagine anyone not being caught in its layers upon layers of traps. And it earns this, too, by having every twist and reveal foreshadowed over and over again from the very beginning.

Overall, while the individual plots may have some weaknesses, I love Shigatsu Youka's mystery. It's satisfying, doesn't cheat, and expects a lot from the reader. What more could you want? Well...

Sour grapes

I like to think that the brain of a writer comes in two different flavors. There's the logical, puzzle-oriented mind, the kind driven to make their scenario orderly and meticulous down to the finest detail. And there's the yearner, the man-in-the-moment, who splashes their characters on the page like watercolor on an elementary school art canvas and watches the pretty colors trickle across the page. Satsuki is unequivocally the former, and despite their attempts to achieve otherwise, the lopsidedness of their talent shines through.

This is a line in the sand between Shigatsu Youka and Ryukishi's writing, for sure. While Ryukishi07's strength lies in digging deep into the past and psyche of his characters and questioning their own biases and place in society, Satsuki is unwilling——or more likely, too inexperienced——to pull that feat off here. This isn't to say the characters are bad, by any means. The core trio's interactions, notably, are memorable and fun to watch, and many of the emotional beats to do with this bond between the trio do land. The standout here is the strained connection between Erina and her older sister, which felt like it came from a place of earnest regret towards a real life sibling. Many of their conversations have an edge to them that the rest of the VN is lacking, and I would love to see the story hit more of those notes.

Unfortunately it's when it comes to the whydunnit and some of the critical emotional moments that Satsuki's writing is at their weakest. As an amateur writer, I think much of the inspiration here was drawn from other anime-related media. Much of the dialogue in these scenes has those tell-tale hallmarks. The classic old yarn of the protagonist delivering impassioned tirades about the importance of friendship, or a character suddenly disowning a close friend of theirs over a brief slight that could've been resolved by a moment's chat. This stood out like a sore thumb in some of the chapters that dealt with the adult characters and their deep-set problems and trauma. Some stories cover decades of a protagonist's life, but the writing isn't mature enough to capture how that person would realistically change and develop in that time period, leading to an imbalance. The narrative very rarely had logical issues, but as I played through I sensed countless missed opportunities character-wise, which was disappointing.

The comedy and slice-of-life elements, while not horrible by any means, were a mixed bag. Some scenes were gems, but generally I found myself going 'uh-huh' instead of outright laughter. Comedy is the hardest thing to write, so I don't want to be too harsh here. But I do think there's only so many times you can make a "She's a big eater" or "She's a genius detective but annoying to be around" and similar 'quirky character trait' jokes before the story takes a toll.

And the obvious anime inspirations here really don't help. The girls in the bath arguing over boob sizes, the family grandmother who's obsessed with cosplay, Erina being 'abducted' by one of the cousins because she's too adorable to not want to play with——none of these are particularly original, and they cheapen many of the scenes by eliminating tension while not contributing much to the characters involved. Many times it's only later, when shit starts to hit the fan, that they come alive and deactivate their tropey selves. I think Satsuki would have been better off here avoiding the cliches and gunning for a completely original spin on the fomulae, and developing the humor naturally from there.

As another minor gripe, I also didn't enjoy how the Tachiki Mika system overly rewarded flirting and agreeing with her opinions over being able to stick to your guns. The flirting is very much written from a heterosexual male perspective, which is fine if that's how you want to identify yourself, but segmenting certain elements and conversations behind that was lame and locks some players out from meaningful content. It was a missed opportunity, I think, not to let players choose more freely here as a means of expressing their honest selves, to nail that sense of immersion, like you're actually talking to this individual.

Now. There is one particular inspiration taken from Higurashi that I truly could've done without, and that's the lolicon influence. To its credit, this isn't anywhere near as bad as Higurashi's situation. There's no Angel Mort here, with underage characters being openly sexualized and joked about like they exist just for the sake of men. (Really, the worst the VN gets sex-wise is a bunch of ribbing between our main trio about their three sizes, and some cleavage and heavy sexual references with Tachiki Mika.)

Rather, there's an ongoing joke about a pedophile cop in denial in his 30s, who completely drops his spaghetti whenever encountering any underage girls he considers adorable. I have no clue what Satsuki was trying to do here. I think the comedy is meant to lie in the dramatic irony? He's coded as competent, handsome and successful, but all of his coworkers know about his tendencies and whisper behind his back, and his girlfriend dumps him having gotten the creeps. There's a plot point in which Erina gets him to do her bidding by dressing cutely and making puppy-dog eyes, but it comes off as generally confused, as though the pedophilia was just an embarrassing hobby like being into collecting dolls or being a furry. To be clear: it isn't, of course. But it doesn't read like something written by a lolicon writer either. So confused is about all I can describe it as, frankly; another element influenced by anime rather than inspired by real-world experiences.

Normally I wouldn't even bother mentioning this, but unfortunately it gets way worse. There's a bonus cut-content scenario involving this cop that gets unlocked after completing the VN, and oh Lord what were we thinking, Satsuki? It features a 14-year-old runaway side character and the aforementioned cop becoming buddy-buddy in order to resolve her family drama, and I thank the heavens it was cut. Written not-unlike one of those terrible airport thriller novels, this teenage girl is made to slowly develop and swoon for this creep's charms, and the story ends 2 years later with her confession and a 'let's chat one day when you're older' sendoff. Quite gross stuff——but again rather than exploitative it comes off like a writing flub. The story has so much empathy for the runaway——it's from her perspective, and never sexualizes or objectifies her——and if we hadn't established beforehand this unfunny running gag about him being a pedophile, we could chalk all of this up to a spot of pubertal infatuation, but this overly dark undercurrent makes the whole scenario icky and uncomfortable. I'd really rather it not be here.

And it isn't. It's not canon. But it's still in the VN, just tucked away after the end credits with a disclaimer about it being removed. So I'm at a loss, honestly. In the end, it's one blemish on the side of a much greater work, but one that will be a complete dealbreaker for some, and I couldn't blame them, really.

Sovl Music

Let's talk about art. Following indie visual novel tradition, all of the visuals in Shigatsu Youka are either stock assets or drawn entirely by Satsuki themselves. At the time, their ability to draw was quite lacking, and faced with their limits they settled on a number of compromises. Very characteristic compromises, I have to add.

Rather than typical character sprites, the vast majority of Shigatsu Youka is told entirely using color-coded silhouettes, clearly traced from real people. Each character has their own color, and it's matched to their text color as well. The use of easy-to-pose shadow people allows for an immense variety of expressive poses and actions, whose variations number in the hundreds over the course of the story, and I soon found myself quite fond of them. These aren't a lazy cost-cutting measure. Painstaking effort went into these, and I'm sure if Satsuki had the talent and the time they would've jumped at the chance to draw every one of these. But they were economical, and it's only in the most dramatic scenes we get a proper, hand-drawn CG or character portrait.

From this description, you could be forgiven for thinking of this VN as a static affair, with its visuals playing second fiddle to the text, but you'd be dead wrong. Shigatsu Youka is a visual feast. How is this possible?

The answer is that Shigatsu Youka is animated. While it may just be shadow people, these characters grab at each other, slam into walls, jump off buildings, trickle with blood, tremble with fear——there's no end to the motion work on display. Even the hand-drawn aspects of the story are animated, with cute little flourishes when starting a chapter, or a memorable scene of a character looking back, hair dancing in the wind. There's clear inspiration taken here from older works like Mahoutsukai no Yoru or Muv Luv, and the use of these animation spots alongside immediate, flow-of-consciousness narration makes for a harrowing, intense ride.

It even uses real-life video in some scenes, which was cute and effective. I love the little night scene the writer clearly recorded from the street outside their apartment, edited together to look like a found-footage piece; it's not something I've ever seen in a VN before, and is a great match for the tone of the references.

The sound is no slouch, either. The SFX library is almost limitless, and the music, though all licenced from cheaper sources, is all quite catchy and effective. It even has vocals for the pivotal scenes and ending songs, which is true dedication for something just... out there for free.

While the visuals may seem like a bit of a joke on the surface, once you begin to read you can't really help but be struck by the attention to detail and backbreaking effort pouring from every single scene and UI element. It's a rare breed, Shigatsu Youka. In some ways, improving how it looks might instead remove some of the charm, as it will inevitably result in core aspects being revamped and simplified. As-is, the amateurishness on display is raw, honest and unflattering, and it owns it. Shigatsu Youka has no idea what it's doing artistically, and in the scramble to make itself competent, it's made something truly one of a kind.

Closing thoughts

This isn't a work of fiction. This is a piece of somebody's soul; a labor of love many, many years in the making. Much like when you touch Umineko, you're touching the essence of Ryukishi07's being, this visual novel, too, burns bright with Satsuki's strength of will. And that passion is far from dying down, as to this day the author runs a Ci-en blog where you can donate to see the latest short stories they've made, all in the Shigatsu Youka universe. They have this entire setting on lock, and seem perfectly content to make perfect content for as long as the lights stay on.

And the future seems bright for Shigatsu Youka. Just last year (2024 for you future people), Satsuki announced a full remake on Steam which boasts entirely redone art, full voice acting, and some massive story restructures intended to solve some of the issues I've mentioned throughout this review. This has potential to be big, and I'm very excited to see how that turns out. If this comes out and has an English translation——which they've expressed interest in——we could be looking at the release of one of the greatest visual novels of all time.

Overall, I'm so happy to have read this visual novel. I can't say it was peachy all the way through——there were plenty of missteps stemming from inexperience and the general otaku malaise——but it was an experience that reminds me of why I love this medium. There are few narrative games on this level capable of keeping me on my toes for so long and rewarding me so deeply for engaging with its mechanics. I would recommend this to nearly anybody, especially those who are big fans of either Ryukishi07's or Uchikoshi's work, with only that one cop subplot as an asterisk. If you're willing to overlook that, then there's nothing stopping you enjoying this masterpiece.

There's a memetic concept called a 'Homestuck'——an overbearingly long, mind-flooding brainworm-y feast of fiction that is almost irresponsible to recommend to others. A body of text which pulls people into its orbit via the weight of its existential well. Umineko and Higurashi are Homestucks. The 'Nasuverse' is a homestuck. But most visual novels, despite their length, lack the all-encompassing nature to reach this notorious Homestuck status. Soukou Akki Muramasa? Baldr Sky? Black Sheep Town? They're too consumable. Too comprehensible. They're willing to occupy your mind only for a week or two, ready to move on once you've internalized them, digested them completely and spat out the bones.

Shigatsu Youka is a Homestuck.