| Saya no Uta | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Nitroplus |
| Publisher(s) | |
| Director(s) | Gen Urobuchi |
| Producer(s) | Digitarou |
| Artist(s) | Higashiguchi Chuuou |
| Writer(s) | Gen Urobuchi |
| Composer(s) | Zizz Studio |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows,Android[1] |
| Release | Microsoft WindowsAndroid
|
| Genre(s) | Visual novel,eroge |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
Saya no Uta[2] is ahorrorerogevisual novel computer game.[3] It was developed byNitroplus and was first released only in Japan in December 2003, it follows the story of a young student who suffers bizarrecognitive disorder-like symptoms that progress into constant horrific visual scenery that occurred after enduring a car accident that killed his entire family, sans himself. The original plot was written byGen Urobuchi, who took inspiration from readingLovecraft novels during a lonely time in his life.[4][failed verification]
In 2009, an Englishfan translationpatch was released. Later, in 2013, American companyJAST USA officially published an English localization using a revised version of the fan translation and also re-released hardcopies onDVD-ROM in 2020 for outlets such asJ-List with a more modern VN engine. A Chinese version was also released by Kagura Games in co-publishing with JAST for the game serviceSteam, which also takes use of a more-modernized engine in its code, though this version is heavily censored due to China'scensorship regarding pornographic material. The game was released onGOG under the moniker of "Directors Cut", although no changes were made to the originally intended writing or visuals.[5]
A three-issuecomic book based onSaya no Uta, calledSong of Saya, has been produced byIDW Publishing.[6][7] The monthly issues were released from February though April 2010.[8] This westernized take was panned by critics for being unfaithful to the source material at best, and for avoiding and sanitizing the heavy and unsettling plot points touched on in the VN and not showing understanding of the original work at worst.[9][10]
A feature film adaptation was in development bySav! The World Productions, although no news has been shared since 2017.[11]
Fuminori Sakisaka is a young medical student whose life changes when he and his parents are involved in a car accident, with Fuminori as the only survivor. Due to a side effect of a head injury he sustains in the accident, and life-saving brain surgery, Fuminori develops a bizarre condition that permanently affects the way he perceives his environment. People around him appear as hideous lumps of flesh and organs; spoken words sound like grunts and screeches, normal meals taste and smell awful, and his sense of touch is impaired. Over time, Fuminori's grotesque perception of the world affects his mental health, and he falls into severe depression. One day, as he contemplates suicide during a hospital stay, he meets Saya, whom he sees as a lovely young girl dressed in white. In reality, Saya is a monstrous and carnivorous creature whose hideousness drives the average onlooker to madness. Fuminori, desperate to make contact with anything that resembles humanity, and Saya, amazed by Fuminori's reaction to her, become lovers and move in together. Eventually they become deeply dependent on one another.
Fuminori grows increasingly cold and distant from his friends, notably expressing his disgust for Yoh after she confesses her romantic feelings for him. Yoh's friend, Omi, enraged, enters Fuminori's home to confront him for his abrasiveness, and ends up getting murdered and eaten by Saya. Saya then prepares some of Omi's corpse for Fuminori without his knowledge, and he finds the look and taste of human flesh delicious. As Koji, Fuminori's long-time friend and Omi's boyfriend, begins to investigate Fuminori's increasingly strange behavior, Saya visits Fuminori's neighbor, Yosuke, and changes his perception into the same as Fuminori's as an experiment. Yosuke, driven insane, kills his family and rapes Saya before being caught and killed by Fuminori.
From here, Saya offers to mend Fuminori's brain. If Fuminori accepts, his misperception disappears, but Saya leaves him, as she wishes for him not to see her true form. Fuminori is arrested and confined in a mental hospital. Saya goes to look for her missing "father," Professor Ogai, while Fuminori swears to wait forever for her return.
If Fuminori declines Saya's offer, he will learn that he has killed his neighbor and has eaten human flesh. Fuminori decides to take care of the suspicious Koji, driving him to Ogai's mountain cabin and attempting to murder him by pushing him into a well. Saya assaults Yoh before mutating her into the same being as Saya as part of a plan to give Fuminori a "family." This act puts Yoh through hours of torturous pain, and she is reduced to a sex slave for Fuminori's and Saya's desires.
Fuminori's neurologist, Doctor Ryoko Tanbo, saves Koji from the well, aware of Saya and already investigating Ogai. The two discover a secret chamber in the well and find Ogai's corpse and his research of Saya and her species. Next, Koji goes to Fuminori's home and discovers Omi's and the Suzumi family's flesh in his refrigerator. From here, Koji can either call Ryoko or Fuminori. If Koji calls Fuminori, the two confront each other at an abandoned sanctuary. Koji attempts to kill Fuminori but instead finds Yoh, who begs for him to kill her and end her pain. Koji, driven insane by her monstrous appearance, shoots her and beats her to death with a steel pipe before engaging with Fuminori. He overpowers Fuminori, but Saya intervenes and kills him. Saya then collapses and reveals that she is pregnant. She releases herflower petals as her "last gift" to Fuminori, who looks on in joy as the"petals" spread around the world, transforming humanity into the same beings as Saya. Ryoko, hiding in Ogai's mountain cabin, finishes transcribing the research, learning all she can about Saya and her race before resigning herself to her fate of mutation.
If Koji calls Ryoko, the two confront Fuminori. Koji still kills Yoh during the fight, but before Saya can kill him, Ryoko arrives and gives Kojiliquid nitrogen, which he proceeds to throw on Saya, freezing her. Despite being mortally wounded by Fuminori, Ryoko still manages to shoot Saya with a shotgun and shatters her frozen body. Upon seeing Saya shatter, Fuminori commits suicide, after which the severely wounded Saya crawls over to die alongside him as Koji beats her to death. The bizarre incident leaves Koji, the sole survivor, with severepost-traumatic stress disorder. Suffering from hallucinations and nightmares, he also wonders if other aberrations like Saya exist in the world's dark corners. He buys a single bullet for his revolver, that he keeps behind the mirror in his bathroom medicine cabinet, which he plans to use for suicide in case the day comes that he cannot continue living with the trauma or visions any longer.
Made by ZIZZ STUDIO.
Richard Eisenbeis ofKotaku observed the game as being "known as one of the most messed-up games ever released",[12] but praises how the game makes the player sympathize with the villains—"But perhaps the most fascinating thing aboutThe Song of Saya is that somehow, in the middle of all the horrors it presents, it manages to make the abominable, beautiful."[13]
Gen Urobuchi noted that the popularity of his later workPuella Magi Madoka Magica rekindled interest inSaya no Uta in 2011, so much so thatSaya no Uta "made at least as much money as if it's a new game".[14]