Starting off our Suhoshin review, it’s worth noting this is the debut visual novel from studio No More 500. Set in Korea’s Joseon dynasty (1392–1910) You play from the perspective of Yuri, a young man who has just returned to his hometown in the countryside after three years from completing the Gwageo. Find out more in our Suhoshin review below:
Suhoshin
Developer: No More 500
Publisher: No More 500
Platforms: Windows PC (Reviewed)
Release Date: April 14 2022
Players: 1
Price: $18.99 USD
The first thing that separates Suhoshin from other visual novels would have to be its distinctive art style. Artist Kageyoshi’s style is a welcomed break from the anime illustrations of other visual novels capturing characters facial expressions and spectacular environments in his art style.
The overall story of Suhoshin is one wrapped in murder, mystery, investigation, and the occult. Yuri’s homecoming is cut short when a series of murders with no apparent motive start in his village.
Yuri must use he skills he learned at the capital to solve the horrendous crimes and bring the criminal to justice.
The environment in Suhoshin can change from peaceful to foreboding by emphasizing its music and prose. Upon arriving home, Yuri is greeted by his childhood friends after a little catching up Yuri reports for duty to the local Satto (TL: Village Ruler).
The story of Suhoshin takes place over 7 days game time with title cards announcing location changes like Yuri’s house, the Market Distract, and others in a plain text on a simple background.
The options found when doing our Suhoshin review are somewhat minimal. You can choose 1-10 text speeds, change the Auto-forward time from 1-5 in 0.5 increments along with music and sound effect volumes.
Suhoshin has an index for quick reference of Korean terms that are used throughout the game, a gallery for unlocked key scenes, and a flowchart so you can choose the point of replaying a day instead of from the beginning if you happen to make a mistake and get merc’d (which can happen just walking around at night).
There is an old saying in the movie industry “Show, don’t tell”, and one of the short falls of Suhoshin is that while the visuals are great – when the narrative describes a murder victim that has been ripped open and entrails strewed around the room, I feel that readers need something more than a bloody hand.
Rounding out our Suhoshin review, I wish they didn’t use the same illustration more then once to describe different murders. Other visual novels like Doki Doki Literature Club and Higurashi: When They Cry had a great handle on this with multiple death scenes – though we’re certainly not unaware of the cultural sensitivities of Korea when it comes to the depiction of sex and violence.
If No More 500 wants to be a contender in the already oversaturated market of visual novels on Steam, I believe they have to step up the blood and gore, as we didn’t find much while doing our Suhoshin review.
If you are seeking to brush up on your ancient Korean culture or looking for a quick murder mystery Suhoshin might be up your alley. If graphic depictions of violence are more your thing, you might find Suhoshin a bit too tame for your taste.
Suhoshin was reviewed on PC using a copy provided by No More 500. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here. Suhoshin is now available on Steam.
