The Song of Saya is a visual novel that was originally released in 2003 in Japan only (with the Japanese title of Saya no Uta). For the English release, there are two versions: a Steam version, and a DRM-free version that you can buy physically or direct from the publishers JAST USA. It is recommended to avoid the Steam version as it is heavily censored / butchered to keep a friendly rating system and removes all the disturbing content. The visual novel is written by Gen Urobuchi, the same person behind Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Psycho-Pass, so you know that it isn’t just going to be your typical happy visual novel filled with fan service.
The story follows Fuminori Sakisaka and the story began in a very odd way. It seemed like it was taking place in an apocalyptic world filled with monsters but it turns out that there was more behind this than just the obvious. Fuminori was in an accident and due to the damage his brain received, he has a disorder known as agnosia where he perceives the world as covered in gore (guts, blood etc) and people as deformed monsters, complete with mutilated voices. This affects even his sense of smell and taste. With all five senses transporting him pretty much to hell, it is enough to drive anyone to insanity.
The only shining light in this world of Fuminori’s, and the only thing keeping him sane, is Saya. Saya, for some reason, is the only one that he can perceive as normal, being the perfect beautiful girl that she is. It is hard to go further without getting into spoiler territory but suffice to say, Fuminori promises to help find Saya’s father and this is one of the driving mysteries of the game.
The erotic content comes soon after the beginning of the game and may surprise you if you weren’t expecting it, or were expecting it to be later in the game. While not all of the erotic content can be classified as an absolute necessity, they add a lot of context to the scenario. These scenes are actually fairly important to give an idea of how deep the relationship is between Fuminori and Saya, and of course, there’s a whole new dimension to it that only the viewer is privy to. The erotic content is so integral to parts of the story as it depicts the warping of Fuminori’s mind and personality. Playing the censored Steam version where it unceremoniously just rips it all out will probably make the story less coherent and impactful.
However, erotic content is not the game’s focus. The Song of Saya is first and foremost a horror visual novel. The story will soon make you suspect something is up. There has to be a reason for Fuminori’s plight and the story moves at such a brisk pace that it doesn’t give you the time to be bored or wonder when the good stuff is happening. Its atmosphere and tone turns suitably creepy as it confirms your suspicions. There are some really disturbing and horrible events that take place. Between the subtle horror, the disturbing content that you’ll revile it, and the erotic content, it is surprising that there is no mood whiplash as the game expertly toggles between these different tones.
Fuminori’s personality slowly changes over the course of the game and it is not for the better. You can see insanity is starting to slip in and he can justify all the horrendous acts that he performs. He perceives all his friends as disgusting monsters and it conveys how terrible a tall that would be on his mental health. Most of the story is told via Fuminori’s perspective but there will also be plenty of scenes where it’s from the perspective of an outsider, that is, a normal human being. So, knowing what is reality and what is not, it gives you, as the player, a sense of being all-knowing… and also the burden of knowing the truth.
The game likes to prevent something big, reveling in the impact that the revelation would have on the players as it dawns of them what they’re seeing actually means, and the significance of it all. There are a lot of horrible and cruel things done over the course of the game. Several events are terribly demeaning, it is definitely not a game for sensitive (or even in some resilient) people.
A true hallmark of excellent writing is how you don’t want the story to proceed so that you can have time savor and process it, while at the same time, you can’t wait to see the next development. Things quickly spiral up to crazy levels and you just can’t stop reading. The pacing is excellent and keeps the plot briskly moving. Although a side effect is that Fuminori seems to accept his plight and any new developments with relative ease.
Throughout it all, it keeps you engrossed with its underlying mystery of Saya herself and her father’s disappearance. You’ll probably take an instant liking to Saya, and this is even after her cruel tendencies. Several scenes of Fuminori and Saya can be hauntingly beautiful, despite the horrific circumstances and you easily sympathize with their plight. Even though you know that you shouldn’t, you still cheer on for the pair, and hoping that they can have a happy ending. As the game marches towards its end, you can’t help but wonder if that is possible considering all the things that they have done, and after the nature of everything is revealed.
As a visual novel, the main gameplay is reading the chunks of text. There are plenty of CG artworks scattered in the game. There are multiple endings but it is very easy to navigate through the “branches”. This is because any time that there is a dialogue choice, one will instantly give you an early ending, while the other will continue the story towards the true ending.
As it usually with these types of stories, the anticipation of finding out the true nature of what’s happening can often be better than actually finding it out. However, the surprises do keep on coming until the very end. Out of all the endings, none of them are completely perfect. Yet the final one, and what can be assumed as the “true ending”, is thought provoking as it unveils everything, and more. It seriously leaves you hungering for more, although in all fairness, the ending is not as strong as the first half of the visual novel. This is not an overly long visual novel. It takes around five hours if you read at a decent pace, and will take most people around five to ten hours. There aren’t any extras upon completing the game, only a CG library and a music library.
The game has Japanese voiceovers but most of the text is inner monologue by Fuminori. The mood of each scene is made complete with the music. Certain tracks can be so chilling, while others have just the right amount of morbid and sinister mixed into it to suit each scene.
However, one thing to note is that this was originally a game from 2003 so the CG artworks may not be as aesthetically pleasant. There is also a tendency for the game to make the textbox disappear and then reappear but only adding text to the end of the existing paragraph, and not a new one that starts at the top. This happens when the game needs to accommodate a slight change in the character models such as opening their mouths to indicate that they are talking, but it is still distracting. These are only minor flaws in the presentation and can be easily overlooked considering the overall quality of the story.
Overall, The Song of Saya is a fantastic visual novel and it could be said as one of the best out there. Its plot, when you distill it down, is actually not that crazy and can be described as simple. However, it is the plot developments and implications and arise from them, coupled with the excellent writing and pacing, that makes it near impossible to stop reading. While there are disturbing content, it evokes a sense of contradiction and confliction upon the viewer, as what they’re seeing is beautiful and horrifying at the same time.
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