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Gift (visual novel)
Encyclopedia
is an adult
Japanese visual novel
developed by Moonstone
which was released as a limited edition version on May 27, 2005 playable on the PC
as a DVD
; a regular edition followed on June 10, 2005. The original game was a collaboration project where the company Circus
helped to produce it, though Moonstone did the majority of the work involved. Gift is Moonstone's fourth title, and was followed up with a fandisc called Gift Rainbow-colored Stories released on January 27, 2006 for the PC. A PlayStation 2
version named Gift: Prism was released on October 19, 2006 by Sweets with adult
content removed. The gameplay
in Gift follows a plot line which offers pre-determined scenarios with courses of interaction, and focuses on the appeal of the five female main characters. The story revolves around Haruhiko Amami, a male high school student living in a town where a rainbow is always seen in the sky.
A set of five drama CDs, one for each heroine, was released by Lantis
between September 2005 and February 2006. There have been five light novel
s written, two Internet radio
shows produced, along with a manga
series serialized in Kadokawa Shoten
's seinen
magazine Comptiq
between January 2006 and February 2007. An anime
adaptation, produced by Oriental Light and Magic
, aired in Japan between October 2006 and December 2006, containing twelve episodes.
between the various characters, or the inner thoughts of the protagonist. Every so often, the player will come to a "decision point" where he or she is given the chance to choose from options that are displayed on the screen, typically two to three at a time. During these times, gameplay pauses until a choice is made that furthers the plot in a specific direction, depending on which choice the player makes.
There are five main plot lines that the player will have the chance to experience, one for each of the heroines in the story. In order to view the five plot lines to their entirety, the player will have to replay the game multiple times and choose different choices during the decision points in order to further the plot in an alternate direction.
' s mysterious power. The town of Narasakicho, where Gifts story takes place, has two distinguishing characteristics: a rainbow that seems permanently fixed in the sky no matter the weather, and an ability known as Gift possessed by all its inhabitants. Gift' s power can only be evoked by each person once in a lifetime, and is able to grant a single miracle. To be successful, a Gift must reflect the shared feelings of both the giver and the receiver. If the feelings are not mutual, the Gift is distorted and has the ability to wreak havoc on the surrounding area. When this happens, a black streak appears in the rainbow above town until Gift is used correctly. The story begins as Haruhiko's younger sister, Riko Fukimine, returns home after several years away. Beginning with her appearance, Haruhiko's life starts to change very quickly and feelings of the past begin to surface once more.
playable on a Microsoft Windows
PC
. The regular edition was released on June 10, 2005, also as a DVD, and then another version was released on December 16, 2005 as a CD-ROM
. A fandisc called called was released on January 27, 2006 as a CD-ROM. A version for the PlayStation 2
(PS2) with adult
content removed, called Gift: Prism, was developed by Sweets and released in Japan on October 19, 2006 in limited and regular editions. This PS2 version has added CGs to replace the adult scenes and also has added three additional heroines that the protagonist can pursue in addition to the original five. The PS2 game was re-released on August 9, 2007 at a lower price.
based on the series published by Lantis
. Each of the CDs covers one of the five heroines starting with Riko, and going through with Kirino, Chisa, Rinka, and Yukari, in that order. The first CD was released on September 22, 2005, and the final CD was released on February 22, 2006.
Lantis Net Radio
has hosted two Gift-related shows: Gift Rainbow Station (aired from October 11, 2005 to May 23, 2006), and Gift Rainbow Homeroom (aired from July 14 to December 29, 2006). The two radio shows feature different on-air personalities.
s based on the series published by Harvest. Each of the novels covers one of the five heroines starting with Riko, and going through with Kirino, Rinka, Chisa, and Yukari, in that order. The first novel was released on December 25, 2005, and the final novel was released on May 1, 2006. The novels were written by Japanese
author Mako Komao
, with accompanied illustrations provided by Mugi Komeda, Mitha, Koma Miyama, and Mamoru Naruse.
adaptation, illustrated by Yukiwo
and entitled Gift: Under the Rainbow, was serialized in Kadokawa
's seinen
Comptiq
magazine between January 10, 2006 and February 10, 2007. Two bound volumes
were released for the thirteen chapters produced.
adaptation, entitled aired in Japan between October 6 and December 22, 2006, containing twelve episodes. An extra episode was released as a DVD-exclusive original video animation
on June 22, 2007. The anime's opening theme is "Niji Iro Sentimental" by Miyuki Hashimoto
and the ending theme is "Kokoro Niji o Kakete" by Misato Fujiya.
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:...
Japanese 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...
developed by Moonstone
Moonstone (company)
Moonstone is a Japanese visual novel studio known for creating adult-oriented bishōjo games. The founding members of Moonstone had once been members of Circus, a similar visual novel studio...
which was released as a limited edition version on May 27, 2005 playable on 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 a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
; a regular edition followed on June 10, 2005. The original game was a collaboration project where the company Circus
Circus (company)
Circus is a Japanese visual novel studio known for creating adult-oriented bishōjo games. In addition to the normal Circus brand name, there are other brand divisions including Circus Northern, Circus Fetish, Circus Metal, and Sanctuary...
helped to produce it, though Moonstone did the majority of the work involved. Gift is Moonstone's fourth title, and was followed up with a fandisc called Gift Rainbow-colored Stories released on January 27, 2006 for the PC. 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 named Gift: Prism was released on October 19, 2006 by Sweets with adult
Hentai
is a Japanese word that, in the West, is used when referring to sexually explicit or pornographic comics and animation, particularly those of Japanese origin such as anime, manga, and computer games. The word hentai is a kanji compound of 変 and 態...
content removed. 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 Gift follows a plot line which offers pre-determined scenarios with courses of interaction, and focuses on the appeal of the five female main characters. The story revolves around Haruhiko Amami, a male high school student living in a town where a rainbow is always seen in the sky.
A set of five drama CDs, one for each heroine, was released by Lantis
Lantis (company)
is a Japanese company that specializes as a music publisher label for Japanese musicians, anime soundtracks and video game soundtracks. It was established on November 26, 1999, and in May 2006, it was bought by, and became a subsidiary of, Bandai Visual...
between September 2005 and February 2006. There have been five light novel
Light novel
A is a style of Japanese novel primarily targeting junior high and high school students . The term "light novel" is a wasei-eigo, or a Japanese term formed from words in the English language. Light novels are often called or for short...
s written, two Internet radio
Internet radio
Internet radio is an audio service transmitted via the Internet...
shows produced, along with 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...
series serialized in Kadokawa Shoten
Kadokawa Shoten
is a well-known Japanese publishing company based in Tokyo, Japan. Kadokawa has published both manga novels and magazines, such as Newtype magazine...
's seinen
Seinen
is a subset of manga that is generally targeted at a 20–30 year old male audience, but the audience can be older with some manga aimed at businessmen well into their 40s. In Japanese, the word Seinen means "young man" or "young men" and is not suggestive of sexual matters...
magazine Comptiq
Comptiq
is a Japanese computer game magazine, first published in 1983, by Kadokawa Shoten. The name "Comptiq" came from combining the words "computer" and "boutique". Originally a PC magazine, its focus shifted from computers to computer games. As of September 2003, it has been known as a "MediaMix Game...
between January 2006 and February 2007. 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 Oriental Light and Magic
Oriental Light and Magic
Not to be confused with Industrial Light & Magic, formerly Oriental Light and Magic, is a Japanese animation studio founded in June 1995. They have worked on several anime series, with Pokémon their most prominent work, doing all of the TV anime and films. The animation studio is composed of...
, aired in Japan between October 2006 and December 2006, containing twelve episodes.
Gameplay
The gameplay requires little interaction from the player as most of the duration of the game is spent on simply reading the text that will appear on the screen; this text represents either dialogueDialogue
Dialogue is a literary and theatrical form consisting of a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people....
between the various characters, or the inner thoughts of the protagonist. Every so often, the player will come to a "decision point" where he or she is given the chance to choose from options that are displayed on the screen, typically two to three at a time. During these times, gameplay pauses until a choice is made that furthers the plot in a specific direction, depending on which choice the player makes.
There are five main plot lines that the player will have the chance to experience, one for each of the heroines in the story. In order to view the five plot lines to their entirety, the player will have to replay the game multiple times and choose different choices during the decision points in order to further the plot in an alternate direction.
Story
Gift is a story that revolves around high school student Haruhiko Amami and his strong connection to GiftMain characters
- (PC), Yūki TaiYuki Taiis a male Japanese voice actor from Tokyo, Japan employed by Genki Project.-Anime roles:*Azusa, Otetsudai Shimasu! as Harumaki Shunpei*Battle B-Daman: Fire Spirits as Grey Michael Vincent*Bedaman as Grey Michael Vincent...
(PS2/anime) - Haruhiko, a second-year student at Shimano Gakuen, is the main protagonist of
- (PC), Ai ShimizuAi Shimizuis a Japanese voice actress who is employed by Haikyou. She also has a career as a singer an signed to Lantis. She has released 14 singles and four albums. She covered Yumi Matsutoya's "Toki o Kakeru Shōjo" as the B-side of her first single "Angel Fish" in 2003...
(PS2/anime) - Riko is Haruhiko's younger sister in name, although they are the same age and are in the same class together in school after she enrolls. In third grade, she joined Haruhiko's family due to family circumstances and Haruhiko immediately treated her as if she really were his little sister. When they were younger, she left for several years, only to appear again one day out of the blue years later. The reason she returned was to be with Haruhiko as he is her first love and has continued to be in love with him. She is currently a second-year at Shimano Gakuen and shares the same class as Haruhiko.
- (PC), Ui MiyazakiUi Miyazakiis a female Japanese voice actor and singer from Tokyo, Japan.-Anime cast in:*Ar tonelico as Aurica Nestmile*Chaos;Head as Nanami Nishijō*D.C.S.S...
(PS2/anime) - Kirino is Haruhiko's childhood friend and next door neighbor. They are such good friends that she often comes over to his house in the mornings before school to not only wake him up, but also to make him breakfast. She tends to be the unfortunate receiver of much of Haruhiko's teasing due to her timid nature, though she does not mind it much, as she is in love with Haruhiko. She is one year younger than Haruhiko and is a first-year student at Shimano Gakuen.
- (PC), Shiho KawaragiShiho Kawaragi, is a Japanese voice actor who works for Kenyu-Office.-Notable voice roles:Note: Main character role in bold letters.*Aisling in The Secret of Kells*Aki Aoi in Aki Sora*Barou Esharotto in Law of Ueki...
(PS2/anime) - Rinka is a very tough but beautiful girl who is able to defend herself without even breaking a sweat. She is a master at the Ousō style of swordsmanship and was even a teacher of the kendoKendo, meaning "Way of The Sword", is a modern Japanese martial art of sword-fighting based on traditional Japanese swordsmanship, or kenjutsu.Kendo is a physically and mentally challenging activity that combines strong martial arts values with sport-like physical elements.-Practitioners:Practitioners...
club in junior high school. She has a series of special training devices near the gym which are dangerous to nearly anyone except for her. She has a older sister who has passed away years ago. Unknown to most people, she has a liking for Shoujo Manga. She is a first-year student at Shimano Gakuen.
- (PC), Ryoko ShintaniRyoko Shintaniis a voice actress and singer from Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan. She is under the Lantis and Vi-vo Recording Label and famous as the voice of Milfeulle Sakuraba in the Galaxy Angel Series...
(PS2/anime) - Chisa is Kirino's best friend. Her father is the founder of Fujimiya Corporation so she is considered a businessman's daughter and raised as a princess. She is on good terms with Rinka. Unknown to everyone, though, she is in fact a witch that often flies around town on her broomstick. She has a small crow familiarFamiliar spiritIn European folklore and folk-belief of the Medieval and Early Modern periods, familiar spirits were supernatural entities believed to assist witches and cunning folk in their practice of magic...
named Jinta. She seems to be able to respond to Haruhiko's banter about things very well. She is a first-year student at Shimano Gakuen and is Kirino's classmate.
- (PC), Ami KoshimizuAmi Koshimizuis a Japanese voice actress affiliated with Production Baobab management. She was born in the city of Kokubunji in Tokyo Prefecture. She is an award winning voice actress.-Career:*She graduated from Aomori Yamada High School...
(PS2/anime) - Yukari, or "Yukarin" as she is known by her friends, is a third-year student at Shimano Gakuen, and she also works as a maid at the Fujimiya Residence. She acts older than her age and is skilled at treating injuries. She tends to speak with a quiet voice. Her reason that she works there is that she has lost a portion of her past memories, and seems to have an innate ability to talk to animals. Her always likes is to cheer for others in life by saying: "Please do your best."
- (PC), Kazutoshi HatanoKazutoshi Hatanois a male Japanese voice actor from Ōita, Japan.-Voice roles:*Ai Yori Aoshi as Takashi*Dōjin Work as Junichirō Hoshi*Gift ~eternal rainbow~ as Masaki 'Maki' Edo*Lamento: Beyond the Void as Konoe*Mouse as SAT Agent -External links:...
(PS2/anime) - Masaki, known as Maki to his friends, is one of Haruhiko's good friends who is obsessed with things having to do with science. He will often invent outrageous devices that eventually go out of control.
- (PC), Yukiko IwaiYukiko Iwaiis a Japanese voice actress who is best known for her voice role as Ayumi Yoshida in Detective Conan.- Roles :*Detective Conan - Ayumi Yoshida*Uninhabited Planet Survive! - Luna*GetBackers - Kakei Sakura*Narcissu: Side 2nd - Yuka Akishima...
(PS2/anime) - Nami is a girl who has been seen clinging to Rinka ever since Rinka saved her in the past. She is very enthusiastic when it comes to anything concerning Rinka, which often causes her to rave about how amazing Rinka is. She has shown herself to be jealous of others who may seem to be more than just friends with Rinka, which could be because she is in love with her.
Gift: Prism additional characters
- (PS2/anime)
- Sena is a second-year student in Shimano Gakuen and also is the head of the School's Student Council, who is recommended by the former head. She is the official Idol of Shimano Gakuen whose popularity is comparable to that of Riko's. Sena has a liking for penguins and is obsessed with getting as many of those toys as possible. She is able to collect Gift from every male student in Shimano Gakuen who confesses his feelings to her, but she doesn't go out with any of those guys even once. In addition, this Gift to her is easily obtainable, but it doesn't make her happy even if she has that ability.
- (PS2/anime)
- Nene is a third-year student in Shimano Gakuen and is a daughter of a wealthy man whose financial ability far exceeds that of the Fujimiya Household. Although she is popular with the first and second-year students in the school, many classmates dislike her for her extremely high-handed nature due to her upbringing. This results in her having no one to call a friend in school. Her father is a successful IT entrepreneur while her mother is a famous celebrity making Nene a real society princess. But she has a bad habit of carrying only credit cards of all sorts and no cash which makes buying in school canteens very difficult. She always replies to anyone who tries to confess their feelings to her: "Call my lawyers first!"
- (PS2/anime)
- Miyu is a second-year student in Shimano Gakuen who is a quiet girl and always carry a book with her. She has a collie dog and seems to always peeping at Haruhiko from the shadows after he has helped her before. Both her parents have passed away and Miyu herself has been living on royalties paid to her mother's literary works which are mainly romance novels and thus also affected her ambition to become a novelist. She belongs to the literary club at school and loves reading. She is also actively writing stories and posts the works onto her own website.
Release history
Gift was first introduced to the public in Japan as a limited edition version on May 27, 2005 as a DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
playable on a 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...
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...
. The regular edition was released on June 10, 2005, also as a DVD, and then another version was released on December 16, 2005 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....
. A fandisc called called was released on January 27, 2006 as a CD-ROM. A version 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...
(PS2) with adult
Hentai
is a Japanese word that, in the West, is used when referring to sexually explicit or pornographic comics and animation, particularly those of Japanese origin such as anime, manga, and computer games. The word hentai is a kanji compound of 変 and 態...
content removed, called Gift: Prism, was developed by Sweets and released in Japan on October 19, 2006 in limited and regular editions. This PS2 version has added CGs to replace the adult scenes and also has added three additional heroines that the protagonist can pursue in addition to the original five. The PS2 game was re-released on August 9, 2007 at a lower price.
Drama CDs
There are five drama CDsRadio drama in Japan
Radio drama in Japan has a history as long as that of radio broadcasting in that country, which began in 1925. Some consider the first Japanese radio drama to have been "" which was a radio broadcast of a stage play. Others consider the Japanese translation of Richard Hughes's "Danger" or to be...
based on the series published by Lantis
Lantis (company)
is a Japanese company that specializes as a music publisher label for Japanese musicians, anime soundtracks and video game soundtracks. It was established on November 26, 1999, and in May 2006, it was bought by, and became a subsidiary of, Bandai Visual...
. Each of the CDs covers one of the five heroines starting with Riko, and going through with Kirino, Chisa, Rinka, and Yukari, in that order. The first CD was released on September 22, 2005, and the final CD was released on February 22, 2006.
Internet radio shows
Lantis (company)
is a Japanese company that specializes as a music publisher label for Japanese musicians, anime soundtracks and video game soundtracks. It was established on November 26, 1999, and in May 2006, it was bought by, and became a subsidiary of, Bandai Visual...
has hosted two Gift-related shows: Gift Rainbow Station (aired from October 11, 2005 to May 23, 2006), and Gift Rainbow Homeroom (aired from July 14 to December 29, 2006). The two radio shows feature different on-air personalities.
Light novels
There have been five light novelLight novel
A is a style of Japanese novel primarily targeting junior high and high school students . The term "light novel" is a wasei-eigo, or a Japanese term formed from words in the English language. Light novels are often called or for short...
s based on the series published by Harvest. Each of the novels covers one of the five heroines starting with Riko, and going through with Kirino, Rinka, Chisa, and Yukari, in that order. The first novel was released on December 25, 2005, and the final novel was released on May 1, 2006. The novels were written 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...
author Mako Komao
Mako Komao
is a Japanese writer from Tokyo, Japan notable as the author of several light novel series based on previously made series. This includes a single novel adaptation of Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl, originally a manga written by Satoru Akahori and illustrated by Yukimaru Katsura...
, with accompanied illustrations provided by Mugi Komeda, Mitha, Koma Miyama, and Mamoru Naruse.
Manga
Gifts mangaManga
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, illustrated by Yukiwo
Yukiwo
is a Japanese manga author who has illustrated the manga adaptations to two visual novels developed by Moonstone: Gift, and Clear.-External links:*...
and entitled Gift: Under the Rainbow, was serialized in Kadokawa
Kadokawa Shoten
is a well-known Japanese publishing company based in Tokyo, Japan. Kadokawa has published both manga novels and magazines, such as Newtype magazine...
's seinen
Seinen
is a subset of manga that is generally targeted at a 20–30 year old male audience, but the audience can be older with some manga aimed at businessmen well into their 40s. In Japanese, the word Seinen means "young man" or "young men" and is not suggestive of sexual matters...
Comptiq
Comptiq
is a Japanese computer game magazine, first published in 1983, by Kadokawa Shoten. The name "Comptiq" came from combining the words "computer" and "boutique". Originally a PC magazine, its focus shifted from computers to computer games. As of September 2003, it has been known as a "MediaMix Game...
magazine between January 10, 2006 and February 10, 2007. Two bound volumes
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
were released for the thirteen chapters produced.
Anime
The animeAnime
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, entitled aired in Japan between October 6 and December 22, 2006, containing twelve episodes. An extra episode was released as a DVD-exclusive original video animation
Original video animation
, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...
on June 22, 2007. The anime's opening theme is "Niji Iro Sentimental" by Miyuki Hashimoto
Miyuki Hashimoto
is a Japanese female singer from Saitama Prefecture. She is signed to Lantis, a label which contribute songs to anime and video games.- Singles :* Koko ni Iru kara... # Koko ni Iru kara.....
and the ending theme is "Kokoro Niji o Kakete" by Misato Fujiya.
Episodes
| # | Title | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|