Eternal Hour Demo

Interactive stories have become very popular in the last few years, mainly because it’s so easy to get a game together using modern tools and engines that do almost all the technical work for you. However, the actual story, the writing and the artwork are very important elements, which is why not every release is worth the bother, especially if you know what to look for in a visual novel.

Eternal Hour is a colorful visual novel in which you play the role of a regular boy as he goes through a transformation. The game is not yet complete, given the fact that this is merely a demo, but you can already tell that the story is worth a listen, especially since there are multiple routes you can take and just as many endings that can be reached, depending on what you do along the way.

The plot revolves around Yasu, a nice boy from a good town with a pretty tame social life. One of his hobbies is climbing mountains with his friends, and the plot actually starts after one of these trips. As it happens, Yasu has a revelation on top of a mountain and falls as he tries to climb down. On the other hand, he ends up with special powers instead of dying, which is how his life starts to change.

As mentioned before, you can make decisions that affect the story, even if this is not very obvious in the demo at hand. There are plenty of characters to interact with along the way, and they can all have different sentiments toward you by the time the story comes to an end. It’s also possible to pursue a few romantic endeavors if you are so inclined, and it’s hard to say no when you take a look at the girls in Yasu’s life.

Lastly, the artwork is worth a mention as well, because every landscape is dreamy and full of color, especially the outdoor ones. The characters are well-designed and quite expressive as well, even if they are a tad stereotypical in certain aspects. Not much can be said about the soundtrack at this point, but more music is certainly going to be added when the project is complete.

All things considered, Eternal Hour is definitely on the right path in terms of storytelling and artwork, and we can only hope that the final game is going to feature as many endings as the developers promise. You can support the project by participating in the game’s Kickstarter campaign.