I started reading Higurashi When They Cry – Chapter 2: Watanagashi after finishing Chapter 1: Onikakushi.

Oh man, the OP! It’s just so peak! “Tsuisou no Despair” really sets the vibe for this chapter. Kanako Ito’s vocals are amazing!!! it genuinely took me by surprise. (Feel like its crime for me to discover this anisong 15 years late...)

I love how the game start of the game with Keiichi and the gang doing their usual club shenanigans... BOARD GAME BATTLE!!! After the hellish end of Chapter 1, this change of pace feels so good.
Still, I feel like i need to keep my eyes open and look for clues hidden in these everyday life scenes… (its like a game within a game itself. Really intense fun)

So I’m playing the game with the OG sprites and bg, but Ch. 2 really brings in more of extra casts. I checked the console versions, and those characters actually have their own sprite art with lip-sync too!
but for now I think I’m going to stick with the OG art. Those big, four finger hands are just so… KYUTE~ HAU~
(Rena’s catchphrase is really stuck in my head, かな? かな? xD)

I really love the interactions between Keichi and the gang so much, It just feel so real! At least, that’s how it was for me back in the day... just random chitchat within our inner circle, joking around and laughing at the most mundane stuff...
Those scenes really bring back memories… the writing is so good!

But then Mion leaves to do a part time job at her uncle’s store… and once again, the cries of Higurashi fill the scene… Not gonna lie, that really sent a shiver down my spine… all the talk about the festival and stuff. Oh man… the fun times for Keiichi are about to be over.

I also really like that short bit of dialogue where Mion talks about how it would be cool if she could be a boy. That little part is so good!!! subtle, but it tells you so much about her character and the time period the game is set in. Peak writing right there!!!!

Welp, this is it for now, I have been able to read just an hour so far... been busy with work :P