DRAMAtical Murder: 18+ BL Visual Novel Review
Note: This review contains minor spoilers.
I remember my first introduction to DRAMAtical Murder long ago, stumbling across the anime adaption when freshly dipping my toes into the world of BL. Cue to learning that the anime in fact originated from a visual novel, and instantly jumping to see the game for myself on Youtube. (It was better. So much better.)
Years later, by chance, this game flickers through my mind and I’m compelled to buy it for myself, play it in all its uncensored glory. For $15, what did I have to lose? Having mostly forgotten the plot, it’s like I’m playing for the first time and I’m in complete awe of the stunning visuals and quality. What I expected to be a mediocre pastime became something that took over my mind for weeks. And so, despite the years on this game and the already existing reviews, I decided to still post my own! If only to get more people into the world of BL visual novels and spill my rampant (and definitely biased) thoughts.
Futuristic Sci-Fi World
DRAMAtical Murder (a.k.a. Dmmd) follows the exploits of our protagonist Aoba Seragaki, a junk-shop employee with an enticing voice that slowly learns the sinister secrets of his island home, Midorijima. A futuristic world divided by luxury and gang wars, we follow Aoba as he leaves the constraints of his cozy home to explore the luxuries that aren't all that they seem. The game features five love interests, one love interest being a secret route that can only be unlocked after completing the first four.
I wanna start with praising the technical aspects that made me fall in love with this game. Nitro+CHiRAL is big in the BL game market and for good reason — their games are high quality with little competition! The distinct character designs and art style of DRAMAtical Murder is absolutely gorgeous, and the voice actors truly bring them to life. The graphics and effects left me stunned and made the game that much more of an immersive experience, truly putting you in the shoes of Aoba. And the OST, man, Dmmd is a visual novel with some of the most catchy, unique background music I’ve ever played. I play a lot of visual novels, so when I say the music is iconic, I mean it.
Now, onto the characters and story! There's around 30 hours of content with 4-5 hours per route plus the prologue. I’m gonna briefly go through each route and give my thoughts with little to no spoilers, because each route is its own unique experience. But this game has some HEFTY content warnings, especially the bad endings, (you died endings would be a mercy in this game), so I’ll list them for each route. I suggest looking at them if you’re sensitive to certain content, because, to put it frankly, shit’s graphic and this game features a lot of dark sexual content. I also don’t feel comfortable recommending without giving the proper warnings!
Prologue
CW: Attempted rape
The prologue is our first step into the world of Midorijima through the eyes of Aoba. Here, we’re introduced to Aoba’s potential love interests and an entertaining cast of side characters.
Aoba Seragaki’s our main guy. He grew up in the Old Residential district, an area second to the lavish Platinum Jail, a luxury resort for the rich that overtook half of Midorijima. He lives with his grandmother and his furry allmate, a robot pet companion, Ren.
Koujaku’s Aoba’s long time best friend and potential suitor. He’s a charming, womanizing hairdresser that’s terribly short-tempered, yet a fiercely loyal and caring buddy.
Then we have Noiz, A pierced up hacker who’s crass and volatile, always ready to pick a fight and get what he wants.
There’s Clear, the lovable, mysterious space case who appears from thin air. Though he hides behind a gas mask, his personality is bright and full of glee, there’s never a dull moment with him.
Mink’s the stoic, rugged leader of a gang comprised of escaped prisoners. An escapee himself, he remains imposing and cold, sought on a distant goal he tells no one.
And finally, Ren. Aoba’s adorable puppy allmate that‘s always there for him. Calm, quiet, and rational, he’s the voice of reason and a source of comfort for Aoba. His route is the ‘true’ route, and can’t be reached without completing the others first.
While I would love to say I adore all the Love Interests, I, in fact, despise Mink as a person. Otherwise I think the other four are truly lovable characters, as is Aoba! But yeah, fair warning, this review will not be nice to Mink.
The recommended route order is Koujaku, Noiz, Mink, Clear, Ren, which I also highly recommend as each route slowly reveals more and more background info. Of course, you have the option to play in any order you wish, that's just the popular suggestion!
The prologue is a great introduction to this techno-world and our headstrong characters! It’s fairly easy to get the route you wish, in fact, this game makes the right and wrong choices obvious for a more story-based experience. It's much more 'visual novel' than gameplay. Once you complete the first four routes, you can replay the prologue and you’ll have a new set of options to pursue Ren's Route.
Anyway, onto brief route reviews!
Koujaku
CW: Sexual Assault
Koujaku’s is probably the tamest out of Dmmd in every aspect, from bad endings to route content. In lieu of complete honesty, Koujaku’s route is the most lacking. The plot is much weaker than its peers and I dislike the execution of the content warning mentioned. He’s probably my favorite character next to Clear, a very lovable person, but his route just doesn’t do his character justice. That isn’t to say it’s bad all around. It gets good when we learn more about Koujaku’s past, it just isn’t as continually thrilling as every other route. A lot of it is spent chasing Koujaku while he runs from Aoba to chase his own past.
However, Koujaku’s route is the most romantic and as a romance sap, that saves his route for me. It features a single sex scene (all routes have at least one) and it’s very sweet. I think he’s arguably the best match for Aoba, I just wish his route featured his best aspects more. But I can forgive it for the extended romantic scenes. In terms of overall plot, Koujaku’s route hints at a later reveal, but doesn’t reveal anything substantial. Thus why it’s the starter route. But his character is great and the main reason I think his route's worth playing!
Noiz
Bad End CWs: Blood, gore
Noiz is someone I ended up liking a lot more than I anticipated! He has a sort of sour introduction because of his bratty personality, so it can be hard to get into him at first if you’re not into that type. But the more you go through his route, the closer he and Aoba get and the more you can’t help adoring Noiz as you learn about him. There’s a lot more to him than the mean, pushy front he puts on!
Aoba spends essentially the entire route with Noiz, so each part is interesting in its own right whether it's plot or character focused. His route starts to reveal tiny bits and pieces of the puzzle, and is pretty fast-paced from start to end. I love his backstory sequence, the visuals and effects his route features, and the slow-growing romance between him and Aoba is a delight. (Also, he has my favorite steamy scenes in the game, personally. Sex is mostly used for relationship development in this game, not just spice, and I adore that).
Overall, his route is super enjoyable, and he’s a great character! While I said Koujaku's the best for Aoba, I think Noiz is the one who needs someone like Aoba the most.
Mink's imposing first impression
Mink
These CWs aren’t hidden because I discuss them in the review. The most 'spoilery' review in terms of Mink's initial actions.
CWs: Rape, Physical assault Bad End CW: Mild gore
Look, I’m not gonna sugarcoat this guy. A solid half of his route is him brutally assaulting Aoba physically, verbally, and sexually over and over. These scenes are painful to sit through. They’re slow, very graphic (none of the rape scenes have cgs, although a physical assault scene does), and plain sickening. This route is not romance. (However, I think the sequel game does feature romance with Mink.)
I imagine the point of these scenes is so we feel the same pain and despair Aoba feels. I personally love Aoba, so this route destroyed me. I actually quit halfway through my first time (I heard other people say the same). I eventually managed to finish it, but the scenes were just so brutal and extended I wasn't enjoying the story in the slightest at first.
Once that half of the route is done, we actually get into the main plot. As utterly horrific as the first half is, the second half almost makes up for it. It’s action-packed with non-stop revelations and development. We learn a lot more about the secrets behind the luxurious Platinum Jail, and about Mink’s past. This way, we get an inkling to why Mink treated Aoba the way he did and how he views the world, though it’s still unforgivable.
Some argue Mink’s route is not worth playing. I won’t agree nor disagree, I actually really liked the second portion of his route. I was pleasantly surprised with how good it was. While I hate him as a person, I don’t hate him as much as a character. He's well-made and clearly nuanced, just far too abusive. But if you’re able to stomach or skip through the assault portions, I think the rest of his route is worthwhile. If not, skipping it is fine too! I did so at first with zero regrets. His route isn't imperative to other routes/plot.
Clear
Bad End CW: Non-consensual,,, limb removal.
Clear is my lifeline after finishing Mink’s route. A breath of fresh air. The light at the end of a dark tunnel. His route is lovely from start to finish, featuring a mix of his antics, slowly delving into his secrets and past, and crescendoing to a heart-wrenching climax/ending that brings me to near tears every time. Being the bright, eccentric character he is, we get to see a fun back and fourth with Aoba as the straight man and Clear being a naive delight. They spend the entire route together, and seeing their relationship develop and the two of them grow together as characters makes me melt. Not much to say other than praise, I like everything about Clear and his route. He’s so lovable and his path goes above and beyond. His route is easily my favorite in the game, I don't have a single bad thing to say because Clear is everything I love in a route, romance, and character. He's my 10/10!
Ren
Bad End 1 CW: Sexual slavery, pseudo (allmate) bestiality Bad end 2 CW: Rape, cannibalism
Ren, the beloved allmate that has a human figure in Aoba’s headspace (promise Aoba doesn’t just start crushing on his dog as a dog, lol.) I, for one, absolutely love Ren in every route. He’s the sweetest quiet but caring thing ever and I just wanna squeeze him. I'd love me a Ren. Is it bad I kinda like him as an allmate more than a love interest?
Now, Ren’s the true route for a reason. No ends are left loose, any and all questions are answered in full. We learn about Aoba, about Midorijima and Platinum Jail, and of course about his allmate, Ren! All the information we slowly learn comes together and is explained thoroughly, wrapped in a neat little bow. Wracked with emotion, his route leaves you with a bittersweet feeling in the end. It's essentially a mix of plot reveals and a fraction of Aoba/Ren moments.
It's decently enjoyable, for the lore dump if anything else, though sometimes characters talk a little too much. Ren is a such a sweetheart, but I wish there was a bit more time spent exploring he and Aoba’s relationship instead of trying to cram all the background info in. There's a pattern of Aoba being spoon fed plot information in Ren's route instead of learning it on his lonesome, thus making the reveal feel a bit cheap (and Ren's route as a whole). While it's worth completing for the full picture, admittedly, I think the other four are better handled in balancing characters, plot, and romance (or characters and plot, in Mink's case).
Ren's bad ends are the darkest, naturally, befitting of the true route. I believe the dark content is Nitro+CHiRAL's specialties. Even his good ending has a super questionable aspect, but it's a major spoiler so I spill my grievances in silence.
Final Thoughts
DRAMAtical Murder is an experience from start to finish. If you’re a fan of steamy BL with heavy plot and action that's very character-driven, then this is the game for you! Timeless, the highest quality BL VN I’ve had the pleasure of playing, and fun, I highly recommend! Even if certain parts are lacking, how iconic the characters themselves are and the experience as a whole makes up for it! Of course, do be aware of the content warnings because there’s violence, dark themes, and explicit nudity.
If you find a route ended too quick for your liking and/or you wanna play more, there’s a fandisk sequel, DRAMAtical Murder, Re:Connect! It takes place directly after the good and bad endings, with plenty hours of extended content! Also much more explicit than the og game, which is saying something lol. There’s no official English release, but copies with an English Patch exist online!
If you buy DRAMAtical Murder, be sure to buy it from the JAST USA website and not Steam! The Steam version is censored, so you won’t access all the content unless you purchase a key to unlock it, which costs more than directly purchasing it from JAST to begin with.