Approx length: 15-25 hours to fully complete the game, 6-9 hours to complete a single route.
Where to find it: The game can be downloaded for free on Steam and itch.io.
What is it, in summary?: Cinderella Phenomenon is a romance visual novel about Lucette, the crown princess of the fantasy kingdom of Angielle. Lucette is bitter and cruel: she is still grieving the loss of her mother, who died during the Great War, a conflict between fairies and witches; and she resents both her father and her new stepfamily. Things come to a head when one of Lucette's dolls comes to life and reveals herself to be the witch Delora, who inflicts upon Lucette the Fairytale Curse (a name for unique curses based on fairy tales, Cinderella in Lucette's case): every non-cursed person in the world forgets who she is, and the only way to break the curse is for her to do three unselfish good deeds. But Lucette won't be forced to go at it alone: she's helped along the way by Delora herself; Parfait, a fairy who owns the Marchen, a safe haven for Fairytale Curse sufferers; and by the potential love interests, who also have their own Fairytale Curses to handle.
What do you love about it?: The game does a really good job at making early-game Lucette both unlikeable and sympathetic--so that you're rooting for her to become a better person. While she becomes much less abrasive as the story goes on, it doesn't whittle down her edges completely; she remains blunt and honest, but much less self-serving.
What sort of things are you likely to request for it?: While I love the main cast too, I'm most interested in works about Delora and Parfait (both separately and as /).
Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests, or that showcase particular characters and relationships?: You can ignore the fandisc/sequel (I haven't had the opportunity to play it yet). Note that two of the routes (Fritz and Waltz) in the main game can only be played after you've completed two of the initially unlocked routes (Rod, Rumpel, Karma).
Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence): On-screen violence and blood. One of the love interests is the protagonist's stepbrother (they're close in age, their parents only married a few months before the beginning of the story, and also they start off hating each other's guts). Implied rape in a character's backstory.
Cinderella Phenomenon
Title: Cinderella Phenomenon (Visual Novel)
Media: PC video game (visual novel)
Approx length: 15-25 hours to fully complete the game, 6-9 hours to complete a single route.
Where to find it: The game can be downloaded for free on Steam and itch.io.
What is it, in summary?: Cinderella Phenomenon is a romance visual novel about Lucette, the crown princess of the fantasy kingdom of Angielle. Lucette is bitter and cruel: she is still grieving the loss of her mother, who died during the Great War, a conflict between fairies and witches; and she resents both her father and her new stepfamily. Things come to a head when one of Lucette's dolls comes to life and reveals herself to be the witch Delora, who inflicts upon Lucette the Fairytale Curse (a name for unique curses based on fairy tales, Cinderella in Lucette's case): every non-cursed person in the world forgets who she is, and the only way to break the curse is for her to do three unselfish good deeds. But Lucette won't be forced to go at it alone: she's helped along the way by Delora herself; Parfait, a fairy who owns the Marchen, a safe haven for Fairytale Curse sufferers; and by the potential love interests, who also have their own Fairytale Curses to handle.
More info:
VNDB
TV Tropes
What do you love about it?: The game does a really good job at making early-game Lucette both unlikeable and sympathetic--so that you're rooting for her to become a better person. While she becomes much less abrasive as the story goes on, it doesn't whittle down her edges completely; she remains blunt and honest, but much less self-serving.
What sort of things are you likely to request for it?: While I love the main cast too, I'm most interested in works about Delora and Parfait (both separately and as /).
Are there sections of canon (rather than the whole canon) that can be consumed by themselves to fulfil your requests, or that showcase particular characters and relationships?: You can ignore the fandisc/sequel (I haven't had the opportunity to play it yet). Note that two of the routes (Fritz and Waltz) in the main game can only be played after you've completed two of the initially unlocked routes (Rod, Rumpel, Karma).
Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence): On-screen violence and blood. One of the love interests is the protagonist's stepbrother (they're close in age, their parents only married a few months before the beginning of the story, and also they start off hating each other's guts). Implied rape in a character's backstory.