Just to piggyback, would other hybrids be allowed? I'm feeling a bit ambitious and feel like my strongest idea would benefit from some short PSX-style sequences, with conversation and story still moving along visual novel-style. Would a survival horror/visual novel hybrid also be allowed, as long as it still fit the other criteria?
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Yes, VN hybrids are allowed as long as it can still be called a visual novel. The gameplay should enhance the visual novel parts rather than the visual novel parts being tacked on to a game. An example of this would be like Ace Attorney, where it has point-and-click segments that enhance the story rather than being the focus- Ace Attorney's story can stand alone without the gameplay.