Over seven years after the release of Gahkthun of the Golden Lightning -What a Radiant Brave-, MangaGamer is set to release another entry of Liar-soft‘s ~What a Beautiful~ series with Sona-Nyl of the Violet Shadows ~What Beautiful Memories~. The release will feature both content from the original adult version and HD assets from the all-ages release Refrain.
In the ~What a Beautiful~ series’ alternative history, smog blots out the sky as steam-powered engines represent the pinnacle of technology even at the start of the 20th century. As if that weren’t enough already, supernatural incidents frequently plague its inhabitants’ daily lives. In Liar-soft’s steampunk world, each entry of the series takes place in a different city with its own set of abnormal events to explore.
Sona-Nyl of the Violet Shadows ~What Beautiful Memories~ is the fifth entry in the ~What a Beautiful~ series. Set in the ruins of New York, the protagonists Elysia and Lily each attempt to make their way to Manhattan, the epicenter of a recent catastrophe. It is there that they encounter a city they’ve never seen before…
Difference between MangaGamer and Steam Version
MangaGamer listed Sona-Nyl to be available in two versions: Sona-Nyl of the Violet Shadows ~What Beautiful Memories~ on their official website and Sona-Nyl of the Violet Shadows Refrain on Steam. To clear up possible misunderstandings from this, they posted a thread that explained the differences between the two versions. You can view the twitter thread here.
To summarize, there is no real difference between the two versions. MangaGamer’s Refrain release on Steam is based on the all-ages console version of Sona-Nyl. It features upscaled graphics, rewritten scenes to replace the adult content, and an adaptation of the epilogue story After Sona-Nyl that was originally published as text-only on their website. The ~What Beautiful Memories~ version has all of these along with the adult content cut from Refrain. There will be a patch available for free that converts Refrain into the 18+ version.
Sona-Nyl of the Violet Shadows ~What Beautiful Memories~ is now available on Steam and Mangagamer. It will retail with a price tag of $34.95 with a limited discount on release. Take advantage of the discount and get your copy now!
Story
The year is 1907. The 20th century is still young.
This is a world that experienced a 19th century very different from our own. A world of innumerable steam-powered Engines. The unnaturally rapid development of this steam civilization filled the air with smog, robbing humanity of the blue skies they’d once known.
There is one place in particular where the sky is darker than anywhere else: the ruins of the Engine city New York, perpetually shrouded in grey clouds and polluted rain. Five years ago, a mysterious disaster known as the “Great Disappearance” reduced this entire metropolis to a deserted, crumbling wasteland. Sealed off from the world by the United States government, it stands in utter silence. Not a single soul now walks its streets.
But today, a woman named Elysia quietly sets foot inside it – guided by a singular purpose. Her destination: old Manhattan, said to be the epicenter of the catastrophe.
Unbeknownst to her…There is a place said to be the city’s “Underground.” This is an enormous subterranean realm, permeated with a dim purple light. No one on the surface world knows of its existence. In this place, the Skyscrapers that crumbled five years ago still stand tall; but their forms are warped and twisted. “Underground New York” is a place of black and violet shadows. A prison with no exit. And beneath its unnatural “sky,” the men and women who vanished five years ago still exist…
Cowering in fear of the seven monsters known as the “Messengers.”
Suffering terror, agony, and death at the hands of the “Messengers.”
They linger on in this twisted underground city, as if waiting for something.A girl named Lily sets foot in this place, her mind devoid of memories. There is only one thing she’s certain of. She doesn’t have a reason. She doesn’t know who or what awaits her. She doesn’t even know why she feels this way. But even so, she’s absolutely certain.
“Manhattan. The ends of the violet sky.”
“I have to go there. I’m the only one who can.”─The girl sets off for the tower of violet shadow looming far in the distance.
MangaGamer Official Website
─With every step, she finds the shades of those yet to fade away.
─She isn’t aware of the tears she sheds.
Features
- Visual Novel with a mix of fantasy and the historical real world.
- Vividly drawn CGs to explore!
- 25 hours of average reading time.
- Developed by Liar-soft, acclaimed for their Steampunk series!
- Written and directed by Sakurai Hikaru
- A translation by Koestl, the Grisaia translator.
Gallery
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