Buy Nameless ~The one thing you must recall~

this game is lovely, cheritz is lovely and all of their other games are lovely. with the new craze around mystic messenger, im hoping people give love to their earlier games, especially this one.

aka 'me wanting people to love lance and yuri as much as i do'

If you enjoy Mystic Messenger, Nameless will destroy you with an emotional ride.

I accidentally named a crucial character McPigeon. 10/10 would ruin a great and emotional game with my own stupidity again.

Nameless ~the one thing you must recall~ is the second game by indie developer Cheritz, widely known for their very popular otome dating sim, Dandelion ~wishes brought to you~. Unlike Dandelion, however, Nameless is a straight visual novel with very little game play outside of making decisions at key points in the story. There is a LOT of reading, so anyone expecting a similar experience to Dandelion may want to do a little more research before purchasing. For those who enjoy well crafted visual novels, this is just the title for you.

Our story begins with the protagonist, 16 year-old Eri, living alone since her grandfather passed away nearly a year ago. Her parents have worked abroad her entire life, and even now at this critical time of loss, they leave her to manage alone save for the benevolent, although slightly oblivious, school principal who keeps casual watch over her as he resides in the same building. But life goes on... until Eri wakes one morning to find her treasured ball-joint dolls, the only beings who have kept her company these many lonely months, have magically come to life. Now she must figure out how to work her new "family" into her daily life without drawing suspicion from those who know her best.

At its heart, Nameless is a tale of loss and abandonment, but it's also one of hope and renewal. And despite it's very romantic narrative, the underlying themes elevate it to something more than your standard "feel-filled" dating sim. The premise may seem a bit odd, but it works, albeit slowly. The novel's greatest strength is in how every thread ties together the fabric of the overall story, but in a sense it is also its greatest weakness. It is only through reading and experiencing everything the novel has to offer, including the multitude of bad endings, that one can fully grasp the scope of the story and realize just how closely every event is intertwined and how damaged each character truly is. And it's only by reading the final hidden chapters that it's revealed how deeply our protagonist is scarred by the neglect she's dealt with her entire life. These revelations breathe new life and meaning into the characters and will have you examining the story long after you've closed it for the final time. Unfortunately, some may lose interest well before those threads begin coming together, especially considering how slow the reveals prove to be.

Despite the absurdity of the situation, by outward appearances this is a slice of life tale. As such, the narrative pace is slow but nuanced with details that build upon another painting a portrait of Eri and the world she lives in which is explored through each additional story route. It takes well over half of the game to see the inklings of an overarching narrative, however, but patience is handsomely rewarded. Your second and third readings of the common route will reveal new dialogues with characters whose routes you've previously finished, further developing their personalities now that we understand them a bit better. And once you unlock the final two characters, things get quite a bit more interesting when darker undertones surface as you piece together just what has been going on all along. I found it incredibly intriguing how precarious the entire situation is, with tragedy often arising from the most innocent of decisions. Make no mistake these darker aspects of the story will hook you like nothing else.

Nameless is indeed much darker than it first appears. Themes of abuse, obsession and abandonment play prominently throughout the character routes and are most apparent in the numerous bad endings. Some scenes made me incredibly uncomfortable while others had me close to tears. There's also quite a bit of sexual innuendo and suggestive language as well as some mature situations. Although nothing explicit takes place on screen, I feel at times the narrative may be inappropriate for younger readers.

For the romantics, there is no shortage of romance here. The story will play at your heart, twist it into knots, break it in two, and when the final confession of feelings plays out, race faster than it ever has as you wait with bated breath for that first lovely kiss between Eri and her chosen beau. By the time the credits roll, you'll have fallen in love with each of the boys along with her, even the ones you couldn't stand from the start.

The presentation is phenomenal with artwork that is both detailed and emotive. Each character is creatively designed and drawn over beautiful backgrounds. Gorgeous CG's highlight important story points while the pastel palette paints a soft picture of youth and innocence with sepia undertones lending a nostalgic lens to the scenery. Delicately crafted acoustic music selections complement the imagery with romantic, yet somber, melodies. Most themes have multiple versions that intensify at key moments enhancing the emotional resonance of the story to great effect.

As one who normally turns voices off in these types of games, I found myself spellbound by the incredible performances. After turning them briefly on to get a feel for the quality, I couldn't bring myself to shut them off again. The actors do an incredible job of bringing each character to life with top notch performances that fit their personalities perfectly. Every piece of dialogue is Korean voiced including all minor characters, something that is altogether uncommon for non-Japanese visual novels.

If I had to complain about one thing it would be the typos and awkward phrasings that are sprinkled throughout. Most are rather minor and do not disrupt the narrative flow much, if at all, but they can be a bit jarring when they pop up during important emotional scenes, briefly pulling you out of the experience. Odd phrasings (most likely due to sticking to the original Korean meanings a little too closely) can take a bit of getting used to as well, but everything is coherent and understandable, even if in a slightly roundabout way.

And now the nitty gritty, the price. $33 is a hefty sum for any game, and considering Cheritz has never been known to offer a discount on their titles, you're unlikely to pick up it up for less than that. So then, is it truly worth it? In my opinion, having played at least a good 10-15 visual novels on Steam, and pretty much all of the otome available here (and elsewhere), you're not going to find better value for your dollar when it comes to the genre, at least not unless we start getting official Japanese localizations. Fast readers generally log around 30 hours to completion while slower ones may take upwards of 50, assuming they're letting the voice actors play out their dialogue. Given the high quality of every aspect from the artwork to the voice acting and music, Cheritz probably could have asked for more and I would maintain it's still worth the price. There are some who feel that no matter how high the quality, visual novels should never ask as much due to the nature of the genre itself. In that case, perhaps this game isn't for you. But for anyone else, do yourself a favor, save up that $30 and buy this gem. Every penny is worth it as long as you allow Nameless the time it needs to win you over.

Bottom Line: Highly recommended for both otoge and visal novel fans as well as anyone who enjoys a complex and well-written narrative.

I'm a straight male

played and Loved this game

No regrets

“In vain have I struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.” ― Jane Austen, Pride And Prejudice

This "review" that I will be trying to write shall be a genuine blabber gathered from my jumbled up thoughts and still strained heart, as this astonishing visual novel left me stranded and stole all and any coherent words that I may use in an alternative situation. For a girl who grew up as a wise loner with working parents and only a kindly grandmother to attend to her, Nameless was a game too close to home for me.

Our protagonist is a young girl named Eri - It's MC's default name, but you can give her any name that you wish. As our story opens its curtains for the first time, we learn that she's been living with her grandfather for a long while since her parents have been working abroad constantly. She isn't extraordinary, or even bright; but she is very kind and patient as any generic sob story anime heroine - remember Clannad? Seeing her parents once or twice in a year, Eri grew up as a lonesome child and picked up an odd hobby of collecting ball jointed dolls to relieve her from the burden of the deafening silence in her home after the passing of her grandpa. Her silent, routine and unremarkable little life was the same each and every day. She wakes up, goes to school, cleans and washes, talks to her dolls and bring the end of another day... until one morning she wakes up to find all her dolls magically turned into young boys! With this absurd event, the surreal becomes the new real for Eri as she tries to adapt to a new life of living with her new family.

Nameless is a visual novel at its core: an incredibly well-written psychoanalytical + mystical sob story with fable-ish character and environment design. Yes it is also a dating simulation, but you really shouldn't expect common cheesiness of a casual otome. The game carries a definite undertone with themes such as abandonment, innocence, self-image, memory, the otherness and personal growth. None of these themes are taken light heartedly. If you are to pick this one, you really should be warned:

1. You are in for a possibly heart and mind wrecking experience if you complete the game.
2. It is required for you to complete game more than once to accomplish different character paths, and all stories come together to paint the grand picture little by little.
3. There is a TRUCKLOAD of reading for a really slow pacing story and some well put choice options in dialogue or action now and then. So be ready to read big time.

As a personal note: I am genuinely speechless. The narration, the storyline, the atmosphere, thematic choices, the soundtrack, the character design, the in-depth character analysis and progression + background are the best that I've ever seen in this genre. As if the actual game wasn't overwhelming enough - with at least 4 different endings for each character - we are given the option of collecting diaries of different characters in game to have some insight on their personal train of thoughts. I've just completed the game and noticed that I have 61 hours of playtime. Sixty - ♥♥♥♥ing - one! And this is me using skip option for some dialogue that I've already seen in different game progressions.

This was my first VN from Cheritz. Thank you Cheritz. You are an ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥. You ripped me a new tear duct.

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WARNING: If you suffer from an intense fear of dolls, Nameless will justify every single one of your fears and manage to create many, many more.

How to review a game without a name? A game in which you read extensively rather than running around smacking things with a giant sword or building stuff out of blocks that definitely aren’t arranged in a way to suggest inappropriate aspects of human anatomy? By saying IT’S TOTALLY AWESOME, that’s how. You’d think I’d have far more sophisticated vocabulary after so many hours of visual novels, but no.

Yes, Nameless (if that is, in fact, its real name) is a visual novel, and unlike its predecessor, Dandelion, there’s absolutely no stat-raising at all. Some people weren’t fond of the excessive, sometimes tedious stat-raising in that game, but here there aren’t any stats to raise, part-time jobs to do, or gifts/power-ups to buy. That may be a plus (if you’re like me) or a minus if you enjoy some sort of “real” gameplay in your visual novels (and/or are a masochist—kidding!). Still, I’d wholeheartedly recommend playing Dandelion before Nameless if you can afford both, not just because it’s also awesome but because there are some lovely references sprinkled throughout Nameless—but they each can be enjoyed completely separately. There's a certain character you'll appreciate a LOT more if you've played Dandelion first, however.

You might have noticed the distinct lack of giant…bosoms featured in the art on the store page for this game. Yes, those are all guys, even if some of them are exceptionally pretty. No, this is NOT boy’s love/yaoi/dudesquared or whatever the proper term is. You play a lonely, secretly grieving high school girl, Eri (or whatever you choose to name her), who takes solace in her collection of ball-jointed dolls. (Google "Crobidolls" if you want to gaze upon their beautifully creepy splendor.) Thankfully, Eri's not your typical crybaby doormat “n-no it’s embarrassing” otome protagonist. Her “seriously unimpressed face” (you’ll know it when you see it—and you will see it often) alone has endeared her to me forever. Though, like many otome game protagonists, she does seem to have issues identifying basic human emotions and physical responses sometimes. Yes, why does one's heart beat faster when an especially hot guy is nearby?

Those pretty boys in the pictures--Eri's ball-jointed dolls who ~somehow~ turn into hot human guys and end up living in a house with her (potential band name: Dolls II Men)--are her romantic interests, and they all have interesting and varied personalities. The doll-guys aren't your usual one-note, wish-fulfilling otome game love interests, either, with some of them having serious psychological trauma that needs to be worked through in their specific routes--but they can all be extremely entertaining and heartwarming too. If you’re familiar with Dandelion, you may already be prepared for them to make you laugh, cry, and possibly curl up under your desk until the pain goes away.

What’s a visual novel without choices? Probably something along the lines of a moving picture book. Luckily, that’s not the case in Nameless. To replace the stat-raising, dates, and stuff-buying of Dandelion, Nameless offers a lot of choices for the player to make. Sometimes it’s not entirely clear which choice leads to which outcome, which is exacerbated by the absence of some sort of “love meter” common in similar games—like Dandelion. I’d recommend Googling something along the lines of “nameless [doll dude’s name] walkthrough” if you want to make sure you’re on the right track the first time around.

Each character has a “happy” ending (relatively—the developer, Cheritz, is deliciously evil, as you will soon discover) as well as MULTIPLE bad endings. Yes. Multiple. Bad. Endings. ENJOY. They’re still worth seeing, however—the story and universe are fascinating and elaborate and it’s worth digging deeper, even if you have to spend a few hours crying under your desk afterward. If you encountered Jisoo's "bad end" in Dandelion...you ain't seen nothin' yet.

Others have mentioned the top-notch voice acting (in Korean), the gorgeous art and CGs, the lovely music, and the fleshed-out supporting cast of characters. One of my main criticisms of Dandelion (and various other otome games) was that once you choose your guy and start down his path (which doesn’t begin until after you finish the prologue and a small number of “common route” chapters in Nameless for the first three available routes), everyone else sort of fades into the background or disappears entirely. It’s just you and your man. Okay, looking at these men, that may be nice, but still. It's definitely not a problem in Nameless at all, since the story will keep the other guys and supporting cast around. Other people live in this world too, and they’re worth getting to know!

One last thing: please go easy on the super-enthusiastic reviews from people with very little playtime—as mentioned elsewhere, Nameless originally came out in November 2013 on Cheritz’s website, and is one of the VERY, VERY few (excuse me while I wipe away a tear) otome games made outside of English-speaking countries to have an English translation provided right off the bat. It was released on Steam on Christmas Eve, 2014. (A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE!) Otome fans tend to be very eager to support future possible releases (like the next game Cheritz is working on...!) and are often overflowing with enthusiasm for their favorite games and game characters.

My original review was too long it didn't fit, so I've cut parts.

Considering that
a) not many English translated otomes have been released (small target audience)
b) many otome prices regularly spike up to $60
c) you’re in for at least 25-30 hours of gameplay &
d) the effort put into this game by a small indie company as well as the efforts the company puts into listening to its fans & improving their products is amazing...the money spent on this is well worth the buy. Dandelion will forever be in my heart, but Nameless was an incredibly fun & thoughtful journey.

Unlike Dandelion, Nameless doesn't rely on interactive simulation stat-raising and instead is a traditional visual novel where the choices you make determine which ending you get. The prologue is long, don't worry over not getting to the OP right away. Most scenes appear in Eri's school, house, and the café Tei works at. The recommended playing order is Lance>Yeonho>Yuri>Tei>Red. Routes average 3-6 hours each.

(THE MEAT. THE TURKEY. THE LETTUCE TO YOUR SALAD)
What’d happen if your dolls suddenly became human & lived with you in everyday life? I’m pretty sure they've done this already (coughLife-Sizecough) but now as a dating sim by Cheritz bounds are, things are going to be…interesting. Each of the dolls can, for the most part, function normally due to their doll concepts (interesting thing, as someone who is picky about typical tropes/illogics I found that any appearing worked well for the game because the guys were actually limited dolls with unconditional love). However, two have come from previous owners & ALL of them, being dolls-recently-become-human, are VERY MENTALLY FRAGILE/INSECURE. Every guy was fleshed out enough to be understandable and loveable. They all developed very nicely & EACH surprised me despite first impressions. I loved how character “opposites” ended up complementing each other in each other’s routes.
The routes are also tied to a deeper plot. It made playing them have meaning, which overall is a very smart thing, making the game end feel more complete & satisfying (well, it’s Cheritz, so...semi-satisfying & partly angry).

Ironically enough, in comparison, the actual human characters end up not being as human. The bonus diaries help, but I would’ve liked a little bit more meat (heh) with some of the side characters, ex. Shinbi. The ones worse off hands down, however, is Eri’s –incredibly shallow- schoolmates-cough-sheep. Oh my gosh. I get why they appear like this, but WHY. WHY DO THEY HAVE TO BE SO SUPERFICIAL
Another of the issues I have is with some of the bad endings. A few, though creepy, were unclear/unbelievable on how they might’ve unfolded. They also kinda overdid it with one of the characters & led me into believing that he knew more than he did, & it was really unclear what he was trying to do with some of the things he did in his route. The last problem is more of a nitpick, but is just questioning why the MC is many times described as “plain” when she’s friends with the 2 most beautiful girls in school. I know it’s a thing regularly used but…gah.

Although the cast is younger, the script is more...perverted...heh...

Press CTRL to skip unread text, right-click to access menu. It'd be nice to have a little picture of a keyboard & mouse on the options screen showing keys you can press to do things. Would’ve LOVED to be able to go through text by pressing arrow buttons instead of clicking only. Changing the screen to the minimized “window” version also made it difficult to access the quick save/load buttons at the bottom of the screen.

A few minor spelling errors (the diary has a bit, also at some instances they mention a girl speaking when a male voice is used & I still can’t get over the phrase “He is my fist doll”), but these appear significantly less often than Dandelion’s. Yay for improvement! :D
A few other things:
- Texts on Eri’s phone that pop out on-screen during scenes have to be clicked again after in order to be recognized as being read.
- After some Bad End titles appear, & midway through the transition to the title screen, the bad end’s music plays again for a couple seconds.
- Some awkward white transitions
EDIT: Major issues have been fixed and I've removed them. Still some small spelling errors but not so many that the ones left are more of a nitpick. THANK YOU FOR RESPONDING QUICKLY <3

Extra features included Eri's texts and diary being readable in-game, and in the Special section being able to read other character diaries as well, which was great and added some more depth. Unfortunately there was no translation for the audio clips in the Bonus section, so I didn't look into this that much.

The gameplay expects you to start a new game completely after finishing one route in order to grab a few more tidbits. The problem with this setup, though, is that most people are tempted to just start over at a common route save file instead, because going through the entire thing again with not much new content is really t e d i o u s

ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL, this is what many people are raving about. Lovely cell-shaded character designs, & soft hues of purples, reds, & greys. The character animation is done very well – I notice a lot more movement while characters talk to one another & it’s not sudden or awkward at all. A good variety of facial expressions & they blink, too!
The rain & snow animation is excellent, maybe a little too good, because the feather animation looks a little too cartoon-y in comparison. Backgrounds are nicely detailed. CGs are well-drawn. Personally I didn’t like the MC’s non-uniform outfits, but that is my own preference. Other people might find them very nice.
Opening & ending videos, for some reason, didn’t appear as high-def as the rest of the game. They were nice but a little grainy.
(also, there are VERY SUBTLE references to Dandelion, both in background, plot, & even once in casual script…”an orange, an apple, &…cat.”)

Soundtrack
I am someone who is a huge fan of game OSTS. This one did not disappoint, it's wonderful. Being someone who’s listened to quite a few drama/video game/anime OSTs, however, I was hard-pressed to find one that really stood out to me. Regardless I am still heavily considering buying the soundtrack.
In contrast to the mellow OST, the opening & ending songs are pop-py & upbeat. Like Dandelion's, the lyrics relate, something that I always look for. There are 3 regular end songs shared among the dolls, & all the songs are sung by the dolls’ voice actors which was A REALLY NEAT IDEA.
NOTE: The opening song is sung by Red’s & Tei’s voice actors. They also sing their shared ending song. Same goes for Yeonho & Lance, & Yuri's is with him &...the creepy doctor Yujin both…

Voice Acting
I became highly invested in Dandelion & its characters in large part due to its EXCELLENT voice acting, Nameless proves superb as well. It is very WELL. DONE. DO NOT TURN OFF THE VOICE ACTING. THIS IS THE THING THAT MAKES YOUR PURCHASE WORTH. SO WORTH. (I think one evilly laughing voice actor had way too much fun)
I also liked how the MC’s name appears in the script, & therefore –seemingly- appears in the voice acting, although it’s not actually mentioned.
The one problem I have with the voice acting, however, is that the MC has none. It also made it difficult sometimes to discern whether she was talking in her head or out loud. I guess this is to get players to “become” the MC themselves, but emotional voice acting on their part actually helps me identify with them more because then I can get how they feel in a situation. They feel more humane & realistic this way.

Due to a cut review I am pointing out issues/opinions more, but aside from these, this game is great. I cried a bit.
Play it.
Enjoy the ride.

This game is quite special.

The protagonist is a kind, lonely girl named Eri, whom has five dolls that she loves. One day, those dolls become humans!

And so we have our love interests:

Lance- Eri's first doll. He's a cleanly, uptight...tsunkuudere? Is very good at throwing.
Yuri- A successful, if somewhat cheesy, ladies' maaan. Has good taste in television.
Yeonho- A stupidly cute guy, (Cheerful, big watery eyes, clings to Eri.) Also a cookie monster.
Tei- A friendly, smart guy. He does the ♥♥♥♥ nobody else likes (ex: waiting tables and doing the laundry.) Quite naggy.
Red- The SENTAI ACTION HERO AND DEFENDER OF JUSTICE. His smile and singing skills can heal souls.

After Eri copes with the fact that they've seen her naked as dolls, she decides to let them live in her house. (Whilst her parents are working thousands of miles away, "researching." ) Hooray!

Your story choices affect the route you go on, though some routes are locked until certain requirements are met. The recommended order is Lance>Yeonho>Yuri>Tei>Red. ~Yeonho and Yuri have some bad ends that show a plot point rather early on, which may lessen the impact of later scenes for the reader. I recommend getting them after finishing Red's route.~

One thing about the writing I'm not fond of were the guys' fans at the academy. They're jealous of anybody getting too close to them and mob them every day. It was featured in every route, so it got tiring to read about, and said fans weren't very interesting.

HOWEVER, the game's side characters are cool, especially Eri's best friends. Them, along with the Banjul workers and Yujin, give the game world a more lively feel. Aaand they're important!

The game's backgrounds aren't super special, but the character sprites are beautiful. The coloring and art style give a nice "fairy tale" feel that is easy on the eyes. A few CGs looked awkward (those noses), but not enough to "take me out" of the game.

The music adds a lot to the atmosphere and helped me connect with the mood of the story. The morning theme tells of shiny, refreshing new days. The song that plays in the bad ends is like a voice shouting in your head, "You ♥♥♥♥ed up dude!" Soi's theme is adorable, and Red's theme makes mundane ♥♥♥♥ like running to a bus stop awesome. I can't think of a track that I dislike!

I'd put this game somewhere in my top 5 favorite Steam games. So unless you dislike some shoujo cliches or romance, you should check this out. It's given me quite a bit to think about.

(P.S. I recommend leaving the voice acting on.)

Five dolls, Five butts to touch, Five times more tears shed.
What's there not to like?