Koihime Muso
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese
adult
visual novel
and strategy game
based on the classic Chinese novel
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
. It was developed by BaseSon, and was first released on January 26, 2007, for the PC
as two DVD-ROMs, followed by a re-release on April 11, 2008, containing an extra CD-ROM
. The gameplay
in Koihime Musō follows a linear plot line, which offers pre-determined scenarios and courses of interaction, and focuses on the appeal of the female main characters. A PlayStation 2
version, titled developed by Yeti
and published by Regista
was released on October 30, 2008. A new version of Koihime with many new characters was released on December 26, 2008. European game publisher MangaGamer acquired licensing rights to the first game and released it on February 28, 2011.
Koihime Musō: Doki Otome Darake no Sangokushi Engi has made several transitions to other media. A manga
adaptation by Japanese
illustrator
Yayoi Hizuki was first serialized in the Japanese magazine Dengeki G's Festival! Comic on April 26, 2008. An anime
adaptation produced by Dogakobo
began broadcasting on July 8, 2008, and several seasons have continued.
As the empire finally collapse and warlords wage war with each other, amidst the turmoil several major factions are formed, ready to rule and unite the fractured nation. These major factions (5 in Koihime Musō, 7 in the sequel) are the Shoku faction (Chinese: 蜀, Shǔ
) led by Kazuto Hongō in Koihime Musō and in the sequel, Queen Ryūbi (Liu Bei
) of the Kingdom of Shu, the Gi faction (Chinese: 魏, Wèi
) led by Queen Sōsō (Cao Cao
) of the Kingdom of Wei, the Go faction (Chinese: 吳, Wú
) led by Princess Sonken (Sun Quan
) of the Kingdom of Wu and in the sequel, her older sister Queen Sonsaku (Sun Ce
), the Tōtaku faction (Chinese: 董卓, Dong Zhuo) led by Governess Tōtaku, Governor of Dong province, the En/Yuan faction led by Lady Enshō, Lord of Yuan province, and in the sequel the Kōkintō/Yellow Turban Rebels led by the Zhang sisters, Chōkaku, Chōhō and Chōryō and the Nanban/Southern Barbarians led by Mōkaku. (The anime is set before the Han empire fell and before the power struggle between the warlords began.)
' One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e
. Direction and planning for Kohime Musō was done by K. Baggio, who has also provided scenario used in the game, along with fellow writers Izumi Kumashiro, Takuya Aoyama, Assault, and Shiina Arai. Art direction and character designs were split between five people, Kanan Yatsuha, Kantaka, Hinata Katagiri, Eiji Hikage, and Hokuto Saeki. Music in the game was provided by Takumaru, Ryō Mizutsuki, and Ichinoryū Uehara.
playable only on Microsoft Windows
PCs
as two DVD-ROMs. It was subsequently followed by a re-release on April 11, 2008. While the gameplay and scenario in the game is essentially the same, an extra fandisc not available in the original version titled was included with the re-release as a CD-ROM
. An all-ages consumer port for the PlayStation 2
, retitled as , developed by Yeti
and published by Regista
was released on October 30, 2008. An enhanced re-release of Koihime Musō, was released on December 26, 2008, with extended scenario. An English translation of Koihime Musō was released by European publisher MangaGamer on February 28, 2011. Additionally, Gamania
formally launched a web-browser based MMO strategy game titled on December 7, 2010, which has since been running on eight different servers. The game allows players to control up to 5 generals at a time from the Shin Koihime Musō cast, join one of the 3 warring factions and try to conquer players of the other two opposing factions with the Red Turban Bandit faction acting as a NPC faction. Like most other browser based MMOs, this game is free to play with a Gamania account, however paying users gain access to enhancements otherwise unavailable or very difficult to obtain.
illustrator
Yayoi Hizuki, with its title renamed as began serialization in the second issue of the manga magazine Dengeki G's Festival! Comic published by ASCII Media Works
on April 26, 2008.
began broadcasting in Japan on July 8, 2008 on the Tokyo MX TV
and the Chiba TV broadcasting networks, followed by other broadcasting networks later during the same month. The anime series, with its title shortened to simply Koihime Musō, featured a story very different to that found in the original visual novel. The original protagonist, Hongo Kazuto, is not present in the anime, nor does the grand battle between the three kingdoms take place. Instead, it feature Kan'u's adventure in China, meeting many other characters from the game along the way. The anime is among those noted for sometimes depicting the characters in an exaggerated super deformed manner. After the last episode aired, it was announced an OVA was in production and it will follow the games plot. The OVA was released on April 1, 2009, and actually featured all the characters in an alternate setting - that of a modern highschool. The second season of anime, a series based on the second game, entitled , continue where the last season left off, aired from October 5, 2009 to December 2009. The third season began airing April 2010, titled . The first season has been licensed in North America by Sentai Filmworks; distributor Section23 Films
, who released the first season on DVD on January 4, 2011. This release, however, uses the Japanese TV masters and omits improvements made to the animation for the Japanese DVD release. The second and third seasons of Koihime Muso are also licensed by Sentai Filmworks. The second season was released on March 1, 2011, while the third season was released on May 24, 2011.
. The insert theme was , while the ending theme was , both performed by Chata
. All of the songs were composed and arranged by Takumaru, with the lyrics written by K. Bajjo.
The opening for Shin Koihime Musou is called "HE∀ting Sφul" also by Rekka Katakiri. The ending song is a Piano Arranged version of by Chata.
The anime has two theme songs. The opening theme, titled "Flower of Bravery", was performed by fripSide
, and was composed and written by Chiyomaru Shikura, and arranged by Satoshi Yaginuma. The ending theme, titled was performed by fripSide NAO project!, composed and arranged by Satoshi Yaginuma, and written by Nao, Shinichirō Yamashita, and Satoshi Yaginuma.
The anime adaptation of Shin Koihime Musou also has two theme songs. The opening is titled , also performed by Rekka Katakiri. The ending is titled by Mai Goto
, Nami Kurokawa
and Miya Serizono
. They also voice lead characters Ryūbi, Kan'u and Chōhi respectively.
Japanese popular culture
Japanese popular culture not only reflects the attitudes and concerns of the present but also provides a link to the past. Japanese cinema, cuisine, television programs, manga, and music all developed from older artistic and literary traditions, and many of their themes and styles of presentation...
adult
Eroge
An or Ero-ga is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content, usually in the form of anime-style artwork. Eroge originated from galge, but unlike galge, they feature erotic/pornographic content.-History:...
visual novel
Visual novel
A is an interactive fiction game featuring mostly static graphics, usually with anime-style art, or occasionally live-action stills or video footage...
and strategy game
Strategy game
A strategy game or strategic game is a game in which the players' uncoerced, and often autonomous decision-making skills have a high significance in determining the outcome...
based on the classic Chinese novel
Chinese literature
Chinese literature extends thousands of years, from the earliest recorded dynastic court archives to the mature fictional novels that arose during the Ming Dynasty to entertain the masses of literate Chinese...
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century, is a Chinese historical novel based on the events in the turbulent years near the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history, starting in 169 and ending with the reunification of the land in...
. It was developed by BaseSon, and was first released on January 26, 2007, for the PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
as two DVD-ROMs, followed by a re-release on April 11, 2008, containing an extra CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
. The gameplay
Gameplay
Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it...
in Koihime Musō follows a linear plot line, which offers pre-determined scenarios and courses of interaction, and focuses on the appeal of the female main characters. A PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
version, titled developed by Yeti
Yeti (company)
is a Japanese visual novel producing company which mainly deals in the porting of adult games for the consumer port PlayStation 2 and removing the erotic content in effect...
and published by Regista
Regista
is a Japanese visual novel publishing company founded by Takumi Nakazawa. The company name comes from an Italian word meaning film director, control tower, producer, and game maker. The company mainly ports adult game to the consumer port PlayStation 2...
was released on October 30, 2008. A new version of Koihime with many new characters was released on December 26, 2008. European game publisher MangaGamer acquired licensing rights to the first game and released it on February 28, 2011.
Koihime Musō: Doki Otome Darake no Sangokushi Engi has made several transitions to other media. A manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
adaptation by Japanese
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
illustrator
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
Yayoi Hizuki was first serialized in the Japanese magazine Dengeki G's Festival! Comic on April 26, 2008. An anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
adaptation produced by Dogakobo
Dogakobo
is a Japanese animation studio located in Nerima, Tokyo, Japan. The studio was established on July 11, 1973 and has been involved in the production of a large amount of anime over the years.-Anime involved with:*Aria the Animation: 2nd Key Animation...
began broadcasting on July 8, 2008, and several seasons have continued.
Settings
The game is set in ancient China during and after the fall of the Han dynasty with some major differences, most notably; Most of the male characters in the novel have become female and The Three Kingdoms that were formed after the Han Dynasty, had already been established. Despite each kingdom being ruled by an independent monarchy, the three kingdoms are still loyal to the Han empire. However, the empire is on the verge of collapse as civil unrest, banditry and infighting bring turmoil to the nation.As the empire finally collapse and warlords wage war with each other, amidst the turmoil several major factions are formed, ready to rule and unite the fractured nation. These major factions (5 in Koihime Musō, 7 in the sequel) are the Shoku faction (Chinese: 蜀, Shǔ
Shu Han
Shu Han was one of the three states competing for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period, after the fall of the Han Dynasty. The state was based on areas around Sichuan, which was then known as Shu...
) led by Kazuto Hongō in Koihime Musō and in the sequel, Queen Ryūbi (Liu Bei
Liu Bei
Liu Bei , also known as Liu Xuande, was a warlord, military general and later the founding emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history...
) of the Kingdom of Shu, the Gi faction (Chinese: 魏, Wèi
Cao Wei
Cao Wei was one of the states that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period. With the capital at Luoyang, the state was established by Cao Pi in 220, based upon the foundations that his father Cao Cao laid...
) led by Queen Sōsō (Cao Cao
Cao Cao
Cao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled...
) of the Kingdom of Wei, the Go faction (Chinese: 吳, Wú
Eastern Wu
Eastern Wu, also known as Sun Wu, was one the three states competing for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period after the fall of the Han Dynasty. It was based in the Jiangnan region of China...
) led by Princess Sonken (Sun Quan
Sun Quan
Sun Quan , son of Sun Jian, formally Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He ruled from 222 to 229 as King of Wu and from 229 to 252 as Emperor of Wu....
) of the Kingdom of Wu and in the sequel, her older sister Queen Sonsaku (Sun Ce
Sun Ce
Sun Ce was a military general and warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was the oldest of the children of Sun Jian who was killed during the Battle of Xiangyang when Sun Ce was only 16. Sun Ce then broke away from his father's overlord, Yuan Shu, and headed to...
), the Tōtaku faction (Chinese: 董卓, Dong Zhuo) led by Governess Tōtaku, Governor of Dong province, the En/Yuan faction led by Lady Enshō, Lord of Yuan province, and in the sequel the Kōkintō/Yellow Turban Rebels led by the Zhang sisters, Chōkaku, Chōhō and Chōryō and the Nanban/Southern Barbarians led by Mōkaku. (The anime is set before the Han empire fell and before the power struggle between the warlords began.)
Development
Koihime Musō is the fifth game developed by BaseSon, known for creating their first title, One2: Eien no Yakusoku, sequel to TacticsTactics (company)
Tactics is a Japanese visual novel studio which specializes in the development of dating sim and eroge style games. Tactics is actually a branch of the joint company Nexton. Their debut release was a game entitled Dōsei in mid-1997, followed by Moon. in the same year, and One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e in...
' One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e
One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e
is a Japanese adult visual novel, developed by Tactics, a brand of the joint company Nexton, and released on May 26, 1998 playable on the PC for Windows 95. Much of the staff that created the game later became the founding members of the visual novel company Key. The game was later ported to the...
. Direction and planning for Kohime Musō was done by K. Baggio, who has also provided scenario used in the game, along with fellow writers Izumi Kumashiro, Takuya Aoyama, Assault, and Shiina Arai. Art direction and character designs were split between five people, Kanan Yatsuha, Kantaka, Hinata Katagiri, Eiji Hikage, and Hokuto Saeki. Music in the game was provided by Takumaru, Ryō Mizutsuki, and Ichinoryū Uehara.
Release history
Koihime Musō was first available to public on January 26, 2007, as an adult gameEroge
An or Ero-ga is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content, usually in the form of anime-style artwork. Eroge originated from galge, but unlike galge, they feature erotic/pornographic content.-History:...
playable only on Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
PCs
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
as two DVD-ROMs. It was subsequently followed by a re-release on April 11, 2008. While the gameplay and scenario in the game is essentially the same, an extra fandisc not available in the original version titled was included with the re-release as a CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
. An all-ages consumer port for the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, retitled as , developed by Yeti
Yeti (company)
is a Japanese visual novel producing company which mainly deals in the porting of adult games for the consumer port PlayStation 2 and removing the erotic content in effect...
and published by Regista
Regista
is a Japanese visual novel publishing company founded by Takumi Nakazawa. The company name comes from an Italian word meaning film director, control tower, producer, and game maker. The company mainly ports adult game to the consumer port PlayStation 2...
was released on October 30, 2008. An enhanced re-release of Koihime Musō, was released on December 26, 2008, with extended scenario. An English translation of Koihime Musō was released by European publisher MangaGamer on February 28, 2011. Additionally, Gamania
Gamania
Gamania Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. is a PC online game and digital entertainment corporation with its headquarters located in New Taipei, Taiwan....
formally launched a web-browser based MMO strategy game titled on December 7, 2010, which has since been running on eight different servers. The game allows players to control up to 5 generals at a time from the Shin Koihime Musō cast, join one of the 3 warring factions and try to conquer players of the other two opposing factions with the Red Turban Bandit faction acting as a NPC faction. Like most other browser based MMOs, this game is free to play with a Gamania account, however paying users gain access to enhancements otherwise unavailable or very difficult to obtain.
Manga
A manga adaptation based on the original visual novel drawn by JapaneseJapanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
illustrator
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
Yayoi Hizuki, with its title renamed as began serialization in the second issue of the manga magazine Dengeki G's Festival! Comic published by ASCII Media Works
ASCII Media Works
is a Japanese publishing company in the Kadokawa Group which formed on April 1, 2008 as a result of a merger between ASCII and MediaWorks where MediaWorks legally absorbed ASCII. Despite this, the former president of ASCII, Kiyoshi Takano, became the president of ASCII Media Works. The company...
on April 26, 2008.
Anime
An anime adaptation produced by DogakoboDogakobo
is a Japanese animation studio located in Nerima, Tokyo, Japan. The studio was established on July 11, 1973 and has been involved in the production of a large amount of anime over the years.-Anime involved with:*Aria the Animation: 2nd Key Animation...
began broadcasting in Japan on July 8, 2008 on the Tokyo MX TV
Tokyo Metropolitan Television
thumb|Tokyo Metropolitan Television old headquarters : Telecom Center Building is the only commercial television station in Tokyo, Japan that exclusively serves the city. It competes with Nippon Television, TV Asahi, Tokyo Broadcasting System, TV Tokyo, and Fuji Television, all of which are...
and the Chiba TV broadcasting networks, followed by other broadcasting networks later during the same month. The anime series, with its title shortened to simply Koihime Musō, featured a story very different to that found in the original visual novel. The original protagonist, Hongo Kazuto, is not present in the anime, nor does the grand battle between the three kingdoms take place. Instead, it feature Kan'u's adventure in China, meeting many other characters from the game along the way. The anime is among those noted for sometimes depicting the characters in an exaggerated super deformed manner. After the last episode aired, it was announced an OVA was in production and it will follow the games plot. The OVA was released on April 1, 2009, and actually featured all the characters in an alternate setting - that of a modern highschool. The second season of anime, a series based on the second game, entitled , continue where the last season left off, aired from October 5, 2009 to December 2009. The third season began airing April 2010, titled . The first season has been licensed in North America by Sentai Filmworks; distributor Section23 Films
Section23 Films
Section23 Films is an American home video distribution company specializing in anime and Japanese films. The company is one of five successors to ADV Films, as well as the distributor of titles from Sentai Filmworks and Switchblade Films. ADV had announced that it had sold its assets to a group of...
, who released the first season on DVD on January 4, 2011. This release, however, uses the Japanese TV masters and omits improvements made to the animation for the Japanese DVD release. The second and third seasons of Koihime Muso are also licensed by Sentai Filmworks. The second season was released on March 1, 2011, while the third season was released on May 24, 2011.
Music
The visual novel has four main theme songs, one promotion theme, one opening theme, one insert song, and one ending theme. The promotion theme was , and was performed by ☆396☆. The opening theme song was "Hφwling Sφul", which was performed by Rekka KatakiriRekka Katakiri
, born December 18, is a female Japanese singer. Her doujin circle is called CLOSED/UNDERGROUND.- About :* Influenced by anime, she started working in the fields as a vocal, net seiyuu, composer and lyricist when she first started high school. In 2004, she released the album "Min no Uta." as her...
. The insert theme was , while the ending theme was , both performed by Chata
Chata
is a Japanese singer who has performed theme songs for games and anime.She has also participated in various dōjin music circles. Her own private circle is called Usagi Kinoko.-History:...
. All of the songs were composed and arranged by Takumaru, with the lyrics written by K. Bajjo.
The opening for Shin Koihime Musou is called "HE∀ting Sφul" also by Rekka Katakiri. The ending song is a Piano Arranged version of by Chata.
The anime has two theme songs. The opening theme, titled "Flower of Bravery", was performed by fripSide
FripSide
FripSide a Japanese trance and pop duo, originally formed by composer Sat and singer Nao in February 2002.In a 2008 interview, Sat said that he was a fan of TM Network and its member Tetsuya Komuro in his elementary and junior high school days and began to produce his music at the age of 14.When...
, and was composed and written by Chiyomaru Shikura, and arranged by Satoshi Yaginuma. The ending theme, titled was performed by fripSide NAO project!, composed and arranged by Satoshi Yaginuma, and written by Nao, Shinichirō Yamashita, and Satoshi Yaginuma.
The anime adaptation of Shin Koihime Musou also has two theme songs. The opening is titled , also performed by Rekka Katakiri. The ending is titled by Mai Goto
Mai Goto
is a Japanese actress and gravure idol.-External links:...
, Nami Kurokawa
Nami Kurokawa
is a female Japanese seiyū from Osaka, Japan. When voicing adult games, she is known as .-Anime cast in:*Koihime Musou as Kan'u Unchō/Aisha*Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan as Tamiya-san ; Yuuko-sensei *D.C.S.S...
and Miya Serizono
Miya Serizono
is a female Japanese voice actress specializing in voicing characters in adult video games.-Games:*A Profile*After...*Ane, Chanto Shiyō Yō*Ane to Boin*Baldr Force EXE*Blue*Figyu @ Mate*Galzoo Island*Koihime Musō...
. They also voice lead characters Ryūbi, Kan'u and Chōhi respectively.