Genso Manège

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When it comes to visual novels, there are few publishers I trust more than PQube. While they definitely have their misses (looking at you, Celestia: Chain of Fate) they’ve put out some great titles like Bustafellows and Arcade Spirits. Naturally, I had high hopes for their latest title, the France-set Genso Manège, and I’m happy to report these hopes were not misplaced. In fact, I would even venture to say they were exceeded in many ways.

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Genso Manège is a visual novel about a girl named Emma (unless you change it in the beginning) that lost part of her memories after a tragic accident on the Seine River that killed her father. After losing her mother shortly after, she moves in with Arnaud and his mother, who keep her safe and remind her to keep quiet about her ability to use magic. Emma holds onto a small music box she received from her father that features a manège (or carousel).

One day, a carnival comes to town that features a carousel that looks exactly like Emma’s music box, and when she touches it, a bright light explodes from it. She’s approached by Hugo, the carnival’s director, who asks if she’s a witch. After some hesitation, Emma admits that she is, and Hugo asks for her help in releasing him and the other carnival employees from a curse that keeps them chained to the carousel. Emma agrees, and begins training to reawaken her magical abilities as she grows closer with her new coworkers and tries to remember her past.

Like most visual novels, Genso Manège has point ‘n click gameplay. You’ll read through the story and at certain points be asked to make decisions that affect which ending you’ll receive. The story has six love interests, each with their own ending, and one “grand finale” ending that includes all of the characters. As for the best routes, it’s really dependent on what you enjoy. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I actually liked all of the love interests, and each of them had well-rounded stories.

The game is deceptively dark, with each route dealing with themes like grief, death, and oppression, but it never felt like the moments of brevity or romance cheapened them.

I particularly liked Serge’s route – I’m a sucker for those stoic characters – which focused on the story’s use of robotic employees called automatons and the mistreatment of witches, which provides an interesting look into the magic aspects of the story. Hugo’s route was also fun and magic focused, and Crier was a great tsundere character, a trope that can be hit or miss in many visual novels. I actually feel that all the routes are worthy of a playthrough, which adds some welcome replay value to the game.

Genso Manège has a charming artstyle that serves the story well given its focus on the darkness that can be found in beautiful things. I was also impressed by the CG animation sequences throughout the game. I’m used to seeing a bit of a quality dip when these moments appear in visual novels, but the animations were fluid and consistent with the style of the rest of the game. The opening theme songs were pretty generic, but they’re bops I’d add to my playlist.

All in all, Genso Manège is a solid visual novel. The story strikes a good balance between its light and dark topics and centers a cast of incredibly likable characters that makes playing each route worth it. It also has a refreshing lead that feels like more than just a player proxy. I was consistently impressed by the game’s style, and while the music is pretty unremarkable, the tunes are catchy and a good match for the visuals. If you’re looking for a whimsical jaunt through a carnival of secrets, look no further than Genso Manège.