真实幻象 / Behind The Truth Reviews

The translation is bad as always. As expect from Chanh Quang. This is a ok game worth to buy as their other game. But ARGH I HATE XIN WEN! WHY THE HECK HE IS THE MAIN BOY? At least Ji Zhe didn't seem to like him and Xin Wen is one-side until the end so I can have a little peace, because Xin Wen x Ji Zhe clearly my NOTP now.

A Chinese-produced VN about a fledgeling journalist—a very determined and idealistic one. Now a question: do you like reading newspaper articles? You are put into the shoes of a freshly graduated intern reporter, Ji Zhe, who has dreamt of becoming a journalist since childhood. Honestly, this is the worst kind: frequently idealistic and naive, pushing themselves into dangerous situations eagerly. On the flip side, they're often inspiring and pushing boundaries. Such characteristics match Ji well, and if you applaud her attitude, you are very likely to enjoy her escapades.  The main story unfolds over ten chapters, during which you will conduct journalistic investigations, interview people involved, and 'write' articles relaying what occurred to the public. While you will encounter several choices, they're typically either fake or meaningless, bearing no impact on the story. You will reach the same finale, no matter what. Still, do keep in mind that some of those pointless decisions will yield achievements, so it's worth doing some clicking. The limitation of only six save slots is a bit unfortunate, though, so you can't make a save before every decision.  As you progress through the events, you will encounter several helpful characters who will tag along frequently. An oblivious but reliable policeman, Jing; a top rookie reporter and romantic pursuer, Xin; a well-intentioned but somewhat sexist newspaper director; and many more. The events you'll encounter are more often than not rather dramatic in nature, but some light-hearted and hopeful ones appear too, serving as a counterbalance. Quite a few times, the perspective will shift to another person, presenting you with a complementary narrative. Additionally, the occasional flashback and foreshadowing embellish the experience. There is also a supernatural element: Ji's ability to see the memories of the dead.  Altogether, these literary instruments form a relatively coherent and emotional story that I certainly enjoyed. While the experience was linear and the English translation was iffy, the positives outweighed the negatives easily.  Aside from the main story, there are also three shorter ones, tangentially related to the events Ji experienced. They can be accessed from the main menu. A nice extension, indeed. I can easily recommend this VN to all who enjoy real-life-inspired drama and/or crime and mystery stories. The art accompanying the story is pretty good, reminding me of the Korean webtoons. Most of the cast has several tachies displaying different poses and emotions. Moreover, in some scenes, character sprites were not placed above the textbox, adding more variety to the action. Not a common feature among low-cost VN. The number and quality of backgrounds are also above average. Every location has its own background, and some are big enough to allow the zooming or side-scrolling effects. You can also see location marks or indicators on several backgrounds or maps. Nice and simple interactive elements. Overall design and interactivity are way above average considering the price of this title. The effort put into audio quality does not disappoint either. There is a good variety of music tracks, and while none of them was particularly memorable, the enjoyment of events was amplified by them. There is also a decent opening song in the start menu. A fair number of sound effects add to the experience even further. I certainly have no complaints about the audio side. Well done. No bugs were encountered. Overall, this medium-length VN presents you with the growth story of an aspiring female journalist in China. The rendition of the real-life events was done tastefully and, in my opinion, with a tangible emotional impact. I certainly enjoyed the experience and feel confident the majority would as well, even though the English translation feels a bit off. Very good value for the price: 7.6/10

[h1] Felt Like a Mumbo Jumbo Acid Trip with A Good Message [/h1] As the most reviews mentioned this VN does have a lot of translation problems, but it tried delivering a good message to the society which includes: Illegal Nude Photography, Campus Loan Sharks, Financial Scams targered at students. (probably centered in Chinese society nevertheless worth to know if you are a foreigner like me) The protagonist is a journalist with a passion for justice and she solves cases which includes campus students and their problems. The problem with the VN is that its a messy soup with elements such as: Supernatural, Journalism, Criminology, Otome, Being a Foodie etc. At some point i cannot remember what happened in the story, the flow was so bad. If you are sensitive to themes such as suicide and depression then you might want to turn away from this game. The gameplay had some creative elements such as the map, access to phone, lucky bag, news case etc but too bad the game missed the mark. The art work was pretty great and the inside jokes are decent. The VN is not voice and the music is okay. The VN has an otome romance subplot if you are interested, well the guys are hot (Xin Wen!) that makes the VN less boring a bit but to be honest it is very boring. One moment you are chasing some criminal and the next moment you are solving boring financial math puzzles. It felt like a fruit salad and from somewhere the realistic heroine gets supernatural powers. The achievements are okay and easy to get but you don't know what you are getting since it's titled in chinese. But the guides are super helpful if you are stuck. But tbh you just finish everything and then get them? Idk I got it in one go. There are some extra storylines if you are interested and most of the choices in the game are easy and has no impact at all. It's all so confusing. I liked the main characters personality tho she seemed tough and independent. Well the conclusion is buy it on sale if you want and if you are heavily interested in journalism and illegal photography and criminology. Otherwise just don't save yo money and buy something else. You do learn something new from the game as in how to protect yourself more especially if you are a woman but I feel like the excellent idea is not executed properly.

This game is really deep. It has great art, music, and a compelling story that is applicable to places other than China. I really appreciated the life lessons it was trying to teach. I liked the characters and story quite a bit. The music was nice too. But the best part of this game is the story which by the way is like 4 - 5 hours and is only $3.99. I could understand the translation in English with a little thought and it got better as I kept reading. I really don't care about the side stories but it was nice that they are included. It's probably better to play them as you are going through the game because after finishing the main game, I can't be bothered. It's a great game and I hope I can find more like it!

The game is a little buggy. The last 3 or 4 characters of the sentences in Chapter 6 were cut off, and at one point I had to reload because the whole dialogue box disappeared. Despite that, I think it's worth the price. It deals with serious subjects like predatory lending and other financial scams, but it has a lighthearted tone at other times. For example, your boss wears a sleeveless shirt to work, and probably sandals even though you can't see it. The story explores ways in which people become victims of crime. On the other hand, the criminals lack backstories and are portrayed as one-dimensional evil creatures. But I guess this is necessary to keep the story short and to the point. The pacing of the story is fast so that it never gets boring. Reading one chapter only takes about 20-30 min. (if you're fluent) and there are 10 chapters + 3 side stories. All of the characters are voiced, even the main character! The music is nice to listen to and adds to the story. I would definitely buy the soundtrack, if it were available for purchase.

[i]Behind The Truth[/i] is a VN that tackles the theme of criminalities that happened in real life. Tragedy, suspense, romance, and life struggle, all in one. In this VN, you will play as Ji Zhe, a bold female intern reporter that strive to be better in her job. Ji Zhe who will never give up and full of curiosity will lead you to report intriguing chronological incidents. Honestly for me Ji Zhe is more than just an intern reporter here. She is also a detective that trying to solve the case down to its roots. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2343688475 The best words to describe this VN are "truly beyond expectations". I saw this VN often included in a quite cheap bundle, so people will underestimate its story at first. This VN has compelling stories that rich of moral messages and spirit to defend the truth and justice. It definitely makes you crave for more unsolved cases. Thankfully, through the extra stories your crave will be fulfilled and they are also worth your playtime because Ji Zhe will report and solve other cases. Lastly, I'd say this VN will make you immerse in its story, so prepare your snack and beverage before you jump into the fun journey of a passionate intern reporter! https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2343400151

As of March 17, 2018 the game works just fine in English past chapter 3. The translation is a little wonky, but the game itself is interesting.

Current Version: 18th Feb 2018 Game can only be played up to the 3rd chapter, asks for (non existent) microtransactions to continue.

Well, if you're here for the otome aspect.. it's there but small. You might want to pass. If you're interested in reading about a struggling newbie reporter in China? This might be of interest. [spoiler]Though the superpower angle feels like a shortcut to avoid real research.[/spoiler]The main plotline is honestly pretty horrifying and if that stuff is based on a true story... yikes? It was an interesting read though there's so. many. typos. and strange translation choices. It is mostly readable, but it is really bad in places. If you're interested in like, an expose on chinese internet fraud and such? and can deal with bad writing and bad translations for the sake of a decent-ish story? Pick this up on sale. If not, pass.

Big surprise! I don't even remember how much I paid for this game, probably some ridiculously small sum, therefore I was expecting nothing more than little bit shallow VN that will help me pass 2 hours of my free time and I will struggle to remember what was it all about the next day. However the devs clearly put really much work to the game, it is well written, with cute arts, it even contains few "side quests", mini games and quick-time events. Even though the story is quite dark, there are many funny moments. What I found interesting is the educational aspect of the game - it tries to tutor the player about stuff like "don't send your nudes to strangers on the internet" etc., which sounds irritating, but it is well executed and I believe it can really make impact on certain people. If you find the game interesting by the steam description, I can fully recommend it, great value for your money.