As someone who has played a lot of visual novel, Blooming Panic was on my radar for a long time; on a whim last night, I finally downloaded it and I'm so glad I did.
Originally, I had been a bit apprehensive. I put off playing it because the set-up, the premise kind of gave me...some anxiety? It's hard to describe it in a way that doesn't make me sound dramatic but as much as I love visual novels, I'll sometimes get myself in such a state over choices in a game; combine that with the server style BP takes anddd....Yeah, let's just say I often chickened out before I could commit to actually playing it through...
Some people might think I'm silly, others might understand where I'm coming from but regardless; I needn't have been so afraid.
All the routes, across the board, were... ughhhhh so sweet and endearing. One of the updates originally said that nightowl's route was pretty rushed before the completed version, but you wouldn't guess that reading it now.
The art? Gorgeous. The guys? Also gorgeous. I loved every second of it and my only regret is that I didn't give it a try sooner. I'll probably keep coming back and replay again.
The characters felt unique, but down-to-earth; complex and yet, relatable. I particularly empathised with Nightowl and Xyx in a lot of ways.
I'd like to continue gushing over what a fantastic visual novel BP is, or how much I regret not downloading it sooner but I stayed up all night, pouring 11 hours of my time into it and frankly; I'm knackered.
so...yeah. If you like visual novels and exquisite art, you'll enjoy it.
10/10 Would come back to group therapy for more replays in future.