Seventh Lair

Seventh Lair
N/A
Metacritic
94
Steam
78.587
xDR
Our rating is calculated based on the reviews and popularity of the game.
Release date
31 March 2022
Developers
Publishers
Steam reviews score
Total
94 (245 votes)

Seventh Lair is a short visual novel featuring some cast members of The House in Fata Morgana. It exists in a parallel universe to the original game, so can be enjoyed even by those unfamiliar with it.

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Seventh Lair system requirements

Minimum:

  • OS: Windows 7 and up
  • Processor: 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
  • Memory: 2 GB RAM
  • Graphics: 1176 x 664
  • DirectX: Version 9.0c
  • Storage: 1600 MB available space
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POGCHAMP Crozet
POGCHAMP Crozet

The writing is just as entertaining as the original series. It's wonderful to see a different perspective of the characters. OST is great too, it grew on me, Tetem does a great job on the vocal tracks as always. Even if you haven't seen the original, just as the description says; it is worth reading.

melon
melon

From the creators of The House in Fata Morgana, one of the best pieces of fiction I have gotten to experience in my whole life, comes yet another masterpiece worthy of praise. Despite sporting only a fraction of the runtime as their aforementioned magnum opus, Seventh Lair manages to do a whole lot with its 6-7 hrs of gameplay, crafting a story that, while at first seems trifling and fitting of its April Fools' day release, eventually goes to show that the writers at NOVECT are very much capable, even when writing stories on the shorter side, of leaving your heart in complete shambles. This VN borrows a lot of the characters and assets from the Fata Morgana universe, but it should be noted that knowledge of what happened in the FM games will not impair your enjoyment or understanding of this game, as the characters are reintroduced as they appear, and their backstories and personalities are different (though there will be many similarities with their counterparts in FM that will make you go "omg, this Michel just like og Michel frfr"). All in all, I expected nothing less out of NOVECT. The story delivered many captivating plot twists and turns, keeping me engaged for its entirety, and has given me a couple more songs to add to my soundtrack collection.
TLDR: get the OST on your Spotify, avoid spoilers like the plague, and buy this game. Sell your seventh lair if you have to.

Rudra
Rudra

This game is not a joke

It starts off silly, but it is anything but. Quite possibly the best Visual Novel I've ever experienced. Enjoyed it even better than The House in Fata Morgana. It re-uses sprites from that game, but think of it like what Majora's Mask is to Ocarina of Time. It subverts expectations really well.

It explores raw emotions and despair, in the context of our interactions on the web. Extremely powerful stuff. Can't remember the last time I ugly-cried this much. The writing is so good, it can make an aromantic person understand, experience and appreciate the emotion "love". A lot of it was very relatable, too. I will never forget this experience as long as I live.

Please do yourself a favor and read this novel, your future self will thank you for it.

JONJONAUG
JONJONAUG

Short and sweet. Not as emotionally moving as Fata Morgana (because it's intended to be shorter and cover a lot of the same themes that took Fata Morgana 30 hours to effectively convey), but the ending was solid.

ValorformNinja
ValorformNinja

I really enjoyed this game. The music was fantastic and the story moving. It took me about almost 7 hours to complete and this was one of my first pure visual novels. I will definitely have to play the House in fata Morgana at some point. Just as a warning there are heavy sections that depending on your past or present may be difficult to stomach. I don't want to spoil anything but I was definitely feeling some pretty heavy emotions.

Spectre_Sore
Spectre_Sore

I played Dreams of the Revenants before this. I feel like noting that is important as Seventh Lair uses some of those characters, but also because if you're familiar with Fata Morgana you know what to expect coming into this experience. Don't read further. Just play Seventh Lair with as clear and spoiler free a mind as you can.

That said... if you're possessed to play this without being familiar with Fata Morgana

Seventh Lair is the kinda game that will break you down and reform you if you're receptive to it. It's a game about creating and living and the struggles we feel to do either. It is a true masterpiece. After finishing it I immediately reached out to my friend to talk because Seventh Lair had melted any barriers I felt like I needed to navigate to speak with them.

I have a preference for RPGs, and this is only my 4th visual novel if you count all of Fata Morgana, Requiem, and Reincarnation (I have the plat on psn). I have never been drawn to visual novels, but Seventh Lair makes the argument for the genre on its own merits. With or without Fata Morgana, this game stands on its own as a soul moving experience, and as I step away from it I think it will aid me in growing to be a better person.

Jesster
Jesster

I... I'm torn.

There's a lot to like about this game. One thing I really enjoyed is how it framed online relationships and their impact on people - especially with these things becoming more common. The music is fantastic. I did enjoy the first half of the story, and the twists along the way.

But... I wish it had been original characters. Given the team behind it, I'd have bought it even without the Fata Morgana characters popping up. And I think it would've been stronger without them being included.

The ending was a let down, for me. It just seemed so tonally different from Fata Morgana, and it soured the experience right at the end.

Do I recommend it? I really don't know. I'm saying yes because I did enjoy the majority of it.

JCOdyssey
JCOdyssey

I don’t think that anyone should go into this VN expecting it to be just like Fata Morgana, but it is a story for Fata Morgana fans.

From the outside, Seventh Lair looks like a fun Fata AU that reuses some of the same assets as the original VN to tell a smaller story—at least that was my impression of it going in. That’s not entirely wrong, though the content warning screen will tell you that it’s not “fun” in the sense that it’s lighthearted. But if you’re like me and like to see characters struggling, suffering, and getting to the end of a story damaged but hopeful, then it’s absolutely just as fun as NOVECT’s other work. And I really do recommend going into Seventh Lair as an existing fan of the company’s work.
Seventh Lair is not a literal Fata Morgana AU. The same characters are there, but they’re more like archetypes of the original Fata cast who have been molded into a different form. These new molds of the characters touch on some of the same character beats and emotions as their original counterparts, but get taken in different directions that align with the settings and themes of Seventh Lair. As a massive Fata fan, I think that this works because you go into the story with the expectation that the characters will fill similar roles as before—Nellie is a brocon, Mell acts good-natured but meek, Jacopo lashes out at everyone around him, and Michel is the world’s most intense NEET. That existing knowledge and love for the characters makes it all the more compelling when your expectations are subverted and the characters act in different ways than the role that has been laid out for them. Much like the original Fata morphed these characters across time and space to have them play different parts in a grander story, Seventh Lair gives the reader a new perspective on their lives that still feels fitting when you know who they are as people.

I won’t say that this subversion and use of the characters always works well—it can sometimes create some pretty intense tonal whiplash to go from a fun RPG parody to relatable portrayals of depression to suddenly intense situations or backstories.(Yukimasa, for example, is not a character who works in a VN this short—you really need time to get to know him to make him not come off as a comically evil dude for having a lifelong impulse to kill people). But when it works, it produces some stellar writing and dynamics between the characters, even when it hiccups with some of its themes at the same time. There’s one central character in Seventh Lair that’s especially interesting when compared to Fata Morgana because this VN had their first official appearance. If you’ve read A Requiem for Innocence, you’ll pick up on who that is pretty quickly (keep in mind that Seventh Lair was released in 2013 in Japan and Requiem in 2015). I don’t love how dour this character’s story can get at times, but they’re a very powerful presence in Seventh Lair —and I appreciate the sense of melancholic familiarity they bear to their Requiem incarnation even though the two characters are taken in different directions. That melancholic mood permeates most of the VN, as it does for me in Fata Morgana, and it’s what makes it a comfy experience for me despite my criticisms and the decidedly uncomfy subject matter of the story.

Even without the Fata Morgana comparison, I think that Seventh Lair is a strong story—one that very powerfully portrays a group of people dealing with deeply troubling situations and emotions. There is not a happy ending for everyone in here, but there is, by the end of the story, a sense of hope for the group that bonds with each other over the course of the VN. I would still recommend it to existing Fata fans over newcomers, and I hope that anyone who eventually picks it up finds it as compelling as I do.

high arcana。
high arcana。

this game absolutely crushed me but i'm glad i played. it was good to go back and see all the characters from the fata morgana series and cry for them ( as well as myself ). not for the fainthearted, despite all the comedy bits.

Giygas' Van
Giygas' Van

Originally an April Fools' release in 2015, Seventh Lair is anything but a joke as the player discovers an emotional tale with sensitive themes regarding both online and offline interactions and the effects they have on others. While the overall length is rather short, the writing is impeccable and hits hard. The soundtrack is also wonderful aside from the seemingly intentionally mediocre chiptune tracks. The non-chiptune tracks sound like they could have been heard in The House in Fata Morgana, which is excellent.

My only real complaint is that the quality of the English translation is rather lacking with a plethora of errors and such. While I still greatly enjoyed my time, some extra polish would have been greatly appreciated.

Seventh Lair is definitely worth playing.

Things to consider before starting the game:
While characters from The House in Fata Morgana are used only in name and/or appearance, I highly recommend playing through The House in Fata Morgana and all of its side content on Switch, PS4, or PS Vita before playing Seventh Lair.

Upon booting up the game, I recommend starting with the "Royaume Heven" option. Your browser will open up a page that acts as a sort of prologue to the game, definitely give this a look first before really starting the game.

cami
cami

It felt so impactful to me, I absolutely loved the themes of this one, about the stress of online relationships and the troubles of the characters, it was better and a lot deeper than expected, and it has such beautiful Songs as well

harndt
harndt

I definetelly did not expect what I got from this game. The story is really great, as all fatamoru games, and as such touches very dark and complicated themes form humanity. I really like how it portrays online relationships, idk a lot of media that do that besides Homestuck.
As long I enjoyed the game, some original characters were played really dirty. Look, I get it is an AU, but some changes in caracterization are just bad, i.e Maria/Imeon??.
Lastly the music score, the art and the message are beautiful, but why destroy what makes fatamoru so special?
Play it for yourself and PLEASE take the mature content warn in account.

Aseriaa
Aseriaa

Another great game by Novectacle. I didn't have very high expectations as I thought this was just a jokey spinoff. However, Hanada does not disappoint and even this game managed to make me cry. I highly recommend playing this for any Novect fan! It also gave me a new perspective on how game creators can feel, and about being careful with what you write online. I won't spoil more than that, but it was an unexpected and very appreciated takeaway.

P.S. After finishing the game, I went through the Royaume Heven website and boy was the forum so much fun to read through. I just wish there was a way to download and play the other games Dark†Knight made (namely Fairy House!)

magdalenez
magdalenez

I don't even know where to begin, it's a 4 hr ride of well-paced jokes & Keika Hanada's own brand of gripping story telling that touches on modern conveniences & its own issues. It's something that is naturally lacking in the main title House in Fata Morgana since that is set in medieval times. However, especially given its short length, it lacks the depth that we see in its previous titles, but it's still a very relatable piece especially if you play games or have any form of online connection/presence with others.

Many other reviews would recommend your perusal of House in Fata Morgana first, simply for the many nods & references to that title. I think it's possible to play this game *without* the predecessor since they are using the same sprites but they are wholly different characters & have different relationships in the story. However, Keika Hanada made use of your knowledge in House in Fata Morgana (if you have played that) & actively used it against you. So without playing that, there may be some missed opportunities & references. That said, I think the themes that are explored in the story are sufficient to at least give this a go. Interestingly, given that the main protagonist is an (indie) game developer, the story also focused quite a bit on the creator's part of the process, & almost felt like Novectacle's little joke on their relationship with their players.

The composers also knocked it out of the ballpark, from the cheerful 8-bit town themes, battle music to their signature haunting melodies about love, longing & loss are all there. If there's an OST, I would buy it.

All in all, I have had a very difficult time getting my non-VN friends to give House in Fata Morgana a try (it's my no. 1 favorite story game of all time after all), since that game is incredibly long & most people don't usually have the time nor patience to just be reading text on the screen. I hope that Seventh Lair is a short enough experience to give people a taste of what the series is about & curious enough to give the main title a go.

Summer235
Summer235

Loved this. I love the music as usual and characters and writing that makes me laugh out loud and the stories that make me feel something instead of feeling meh. If you haven't played this franchise yet, then do it. Do yourself a favor and read it all.

Fuzzpluisje
Fuzzpluisje

Your favorite The House in Fata Morgana characters meeting each other in some quirky game world. It start with being awkwardly funny to some interesting twists later. Becoming quite the tearjerker for an April fools game. 2D characters or not, at times you'd just want to give them a hug and cry with them.

I would almost assume that people playing this game already played The House in Fata Morgana (+ Prequel). But if not, I do recommend it! There are no direct spoilers, but the experience for both games is much better like that.

And I am usually not one for trigger warnings. But I honestly think one is in place now. (self harm and suicide)

ArchydaCookie
ArchydaCookie

"A true masterpiece doesn't ask permission to move people"

If you haven't read House in Fata Morgana and its sequels, please do yourself a favor and read those first. Seventh Lair is not connected to it plot-wise, but I believe this piece of work is best read when you've seen Fata Morgana.

I didn't expect much from this, I thought it would just be a fun spin-off of Fata Morgana. Simply put, it was a powerful read. It isn't like the other games which relied much more on its plot and storytelling, this is a meta-read.

I can't empathize with the heavy themes it tries to cover, but it felt so powerful to read. It deals with very serious topics, take the mature content description seriously.

I can say that I'm always moved by NOVECT, and I'm excited to read whatever they have in store. I'm just not sure how to rate this since a large portion of it works because of the previous games. I gave a 7.5/10 in vndb.

RinRynRizu
RinRynRizu

Okay. Wow. Oh my god. What even. What the hell was this.

This review will contain unmarked spoilers. I am going on a rant and I do not feel like putting the coding in for every single spoiler. Read at your own risk if you're considering getting this game--to which I say now, DON'T!

This game has a great story. Super good. And I WOULD give it a thumbs up...IF IT HAD USED DIFFERENT CHARACTERS! For the love of god, Novect, WHY would you ruin your own characters like this?! Why would you take away their happy endings, the ones they suffered centuries for?! Yes, I am fully aware this is an April Fool's Day release, and it takes place in an alternate universe, but playing this game made me ANGRY! Why, why did you take these phenomenal characters and render them to pieces?!

I could go a long time on everything that bothers me about this release, but it would be jumbled and I'm already struggling to form the words I'm writing now.
But let's start with the positives for this game: It has great music. It has two different types of music, 8bit style songs and then the classic House in Fata Morgana songs. I thought the 8bit songs were loud, but the typical HIFM songs were great. My one issue with the music, though, is that one of the songs featured a creepy baby giggling the WHOLE time. I had to mute it after a few minutes. It was making my skin crawl.
The other thing I liked was the character interactions in the earlier chapters of the game. Seeing Michel, Mel, and Nellie freak out in a graveyard about a big "GAME START" in the sky? Hilarious! Too bad it couldn't have lasted.

Now the negatives: the story. As stated in the game description and in my review, this game is an alternate universe. However, I've never seen an AU stretch this far. The character changes HURT me, as such an ardent fan of the original game.
To start with, Mell is not real. Nellie imagined him, and he appeared in the game as her "personal NPC."
Two, Maria was changed completely, and I think mixed with a character I sort of remember from the "Requiem for Innocence" prequel game but would have to replay to know for sure. Could the gamemakers have not just...put the actual Imeon there? Imeon and Michel had a pretty neat sorta-friendship in the RFI side story. Why not give Maria a separate role?
Three, Ukulele and Pauline really got shafted in this one. I've always considered their relationship to be the most toxic thing in this series, but it was really painful here. They were mostly unchanged from their originals, but they deserved better. (Also Pauline, you need to RUN from Ukulele!)
Four, you get a few chapters called "The Life of a Creator", where you learn about AU Michel the game developer. I at the same time liked and hated these. With every sentence progressing, I was swinging between "Michel is so awkward and unlucky, I want him to be happy" to "MIchel is an incel." Yes. Incel. This is not my Michel.
Fifth, Giselle. Why you do my girl dirty? When we get to the part about how Michel's life fell apart, I waited on tenterhooks for Giselle to drop the bomb--and she did. She said it: "They said I have cancer." I just knew she'd say that. And for the whole scene following, I could not stop thinking about that part in the movie "The Room" where that lady says "I definitely have breast cancer" and it's never brought up again (and I haven't even seen "The Room"). Seventh Lair just pulled that card on us. That's low.
Sixth, Michel goes to hell while Giselle goes to heaven. Why? Why would you break my heart like this? Michel did wrong, but that is not Michel! It is an imposter! It is Dark Knight!

Moving on from what was wrong with the characters, there's the story itself. I liked it well enough for the first few chapters, but when the "main" story ended and the gang woke back up in the cemetery with Mell the NPC, things just went downhill. This game played me for a long con. Everything, mainly the characters, unraveled from there. Why did it have to go in that direction? Why did it have to hit on the sensitive content? Why couldn't it just...not?
I feel like talking about what actually goes on in the climax/falling action of this game would somehow get me banned, so I'll say this: read the game's content warning. "Michel" takes things WAY too far. I understand his beautifully-written pain, but...IT'S NOT MY MICHEL.

But the story was still good. The writing packs a punch. If this game had not tried to AU-size The House in Fata Morgana, it would have been good.
This is an April Fools release game, so it's probably not meant to be taken this seriously. Hell, that "side story" button could just lead to a note that says "April Fools! Gotcha! Your favorite characters are safe!" but I haven't looked at that yet. I took the April Fools game personally.

DO NOT waste your time, energy, or thoughts on this game if you have an shred of love for the true House in Fata Morgana. It may very well RUIN your enjoyment of the original. I am only the FIFTH negative review, and it pains me to leave something negative for a THIFM game, but this isn't even THIFM. It's a sham. PLEASE DO NOT BUY IT.

Anyway, I've been sitting here writing this review for half an hour and my head hurts. I'll probably play Seventh Lair's side story tomorrow, just because, but after that I'm either deleting this game or hiding it from my library. I never want to play this again.

White Cross
White Cross

Characters and character sprites were reused from FataMoru, but are different characters entirely. The build up was kind of slow, but the narration was really well-done despite being a short game. Some parts were really funny though. The climax was like a punch in the gut. This probably isn't the best VN to recommend especially as it shares characters from the masterpiece that is FataMoru, but it's still beautifully done.

If you do intend to play, please do AFTER playing The House in Fata Morgana.

Muscular
Muscular

I loved this game so much
I am Still crying;(

ReikoRaph
ReikoRaph

Beginning was OK, but then... oh boy. Hanada Keika (writer of Fata Morgana) once again showed how much he can touch your emotions.
Yeah, some people can say that stories once again is repetitive and similar to original Fata Morgana and Reincarnation. But nevertheless, game managed to make me cry. And I love it.

harminia
harminia

An emotional dive into the feelings behind game creators. Equal parts moving and funny, it resonated strongly with me as well as made me laugh out loud multiple times. Make sure to look at the Royaume Heven website after finishing the game!

EDIT:
Some things I belatedly thought to mention:
-The content warnings are there for a reason so please take care of yourself reading this. It may look like a fun April Fool's game, but in true Fata Morgana fashion it gets very dark. This is why I suggest reading the website after the game, so you have something light to look at after such a harrowing journey!

-The translation has quite a lot of issues. While overall it's well done, it doesn't look like it's been QC'd at all, and some translations read close to Google Translate. It's pretty disappointing, but still readable in my opinion. I guess, just don't go into this expecting a translation as good as the original game.

The Sad Samus
The Sad Samus

Went into this expecting a neat, fun little story with some decent writing and comedy and was subsequently blown out of the water. Although it's not connected with The House in Fata Morgana in terms of plot, it definitely benefits from you having played that game (as well as spoils some sprites which could potentially spoil some bigger details in Fata Morgana), so I definitely recommend it to fans Fata Morgana. Took me about 3-4 hours to fully complete, but honestly I think the price is reasonable given how good it was. Also, if it's not too late, avoid reading any info on the game page. It won't totally ruin it but there's definitely a lot of things that are better experienced blind that the summary spoils.

dvinebst
dvinebst

Initially, I perceived this game to be a comedic quirky game due to its release date being close to April Fool's. Nevertheless, I found myself indulged into this short story (3-4 hours of reading time) about an indie game developer and the rest of the cast that inhibit the "Royaume Heaven" site! Definitely worth the price and read, even if not familiar with The House in Fata Morgana since it incorporates character art from the Visual Novel.

Now excuse me, as I blast the story's soundtrack from within the program.

alisande
alisande

I was pleasantly surprised by this game. I went into Seventh Lair expecting a fun little parody game similar to the 2015 April Fool’s project released by this studio, but I became more invested in the narrative than I could ever have imagined. In just a few hours, I think this game managed to capture the ‘magic’ that made The House In Fata Morgana so impactful. Seventh Lair tells an incredibly engaging story that is distinct from its predecessor, yet also builds upon and subverts the reader’s pre-existing knowledge of these characters to convey a powerful message.

If you have not played The House In Fata Morgana, I believe you can still understand and enjoy this game on a basic level. This game is set in an alternate universe that features many characters from Fata Morgana, but since this is not a continuation of the original game, you can technically jump right in without any more knowledge than that. However, to get the most out of it, I would strongly recommend playing Fata Morgana first. Some plot details and references would probably seem pretty sudden and confusing without the prior knowledge of these characters that you gain from The House In Fata Morgana. Playing this game before Fata Morgana would also inevitably spoil some aspects of the original game, so please do yourself a favor and play the original first.
This VN is definitely on the shorter side (4-5 hours) and reuses the sprites from Fata Morgana with only a few pieces of new character artwork, but I think it’s well-worth the price. On top of the story, there’s an all-new soundtrack with some truly gorgeous pieces.

One final thing I must emphasize: please heed the content warnings seriously. Despite its release on April 1st, Seventh Lair does address some very serious, graphic, and potentially triggering topics in a raw, realistic, and unfiltered way. I went more in-depth into this in my Fata Morgana review, but I have to say it again here: this isn’t a game for everyone, as despite the preview images, it is not entirely a lighthearted or ‘feel-good’ experience.
Despite this, Seventh Lair really resonated with me, so I would enthusiastically recommend it to fans of Fata Morgana, and hesitantly recommend it to those unfamiliar with the original. (But really, play Fata Morgana too. It’s well worth your time.)

Rubi
Rubi

If you liked The House in Fata Morgana, read this.

WastelandrZyria
WastelandrZyria

First off, this game can be enjoyed even if you have not played "The House in Fata Morgana" and "A Requiem for Innocence". However, I believe it best experienced if you have prior knowledge to those games.

As for my thoughts on the game itself: Like other reviewers, I had the impression this would solely be a parody experience centered around RPG games and indie developers (with the release date being April Fools). And it definitely it is that, but more importantly, it becomes so much more. In a few short hours, it manages to paint a beautiful narrative and touches on some serious topics which are easily relatable to those in the real world. It focuses on the human psyche and how our connections (or lack thereof) can affect us deeply, and drive our actions for the better, or for the worse.

For any fan of "The House in Fata Morgana" this is a must play. I would sincerely place it alongside that game in terms of emotional impact despite being much shorter. It feels very personal and concise. For such a short game, there are plenty of shocking twists that had me sitting back in my chair thinking "Wow...". And the music is what you have come to know and love from this series: beyond emotional and tugs at the heartstrings. I have it on repeat alongside the other games' OSTs.

If you want a short yet impactful little story, definitely give this a try. However, I will warn that the game is not a traditional VN. It does NOT feature choices and there are not 'different' routes - It leans moreso into the 'novel' aspect. You're just along for the ride. Tissues recommended.

ChrisGLink
ChrisGLink

It actually hurts to not recommend a piece of Fata content.

I love the series to absolute death, and while I wasn't initially too excited, the tweets by the creator, Keika Hanada managed to do it. They were saying how this story deals with sensitive topics even more so than the original Fata, and this piqued my interest.

The problem is, the second I first started this game in English, I knew immediately that I would have to read it in Japanese. This is the worst translation I've ever had the displeasure of reading. Characters sound unbelievably robotic, both narration and dialogue are incredibly stilted, there are grammar and spelling mistakes ALL over the place... It genuinely feels like this was not edited at all.

Here's a quick example since Steam doesn't allow images:

Michel: "You've been going a little too far with those jabs...! ...My girlfriend... I have someone special!"

Nellie: "Ayuh."

And I have countless more where that came from, all of which I can post if people need them.

I am both astounded and incredibly disappointed that a game from my favorite series of all time received such utter mistreatment. The original Fata Morgana has the best translation I've ever read, and Requiem isn't far behind. Reincarnation had a few more issues, but it was still quite good and definitely above average. But now, with Seventh Lair, we've dove aaaaaall the way down into the seventh circle of Hell.

As for the story itself, the contents range from "not my thing" to quite powerful, actually. I was impressed at how some of the reveals and beats were handled, and while it's still the weakest piece of "Fata" content, it still is worth a read. ...If you can read Japanese, that is. I cannot recommend reading this in English until some kind of fix is put forth, but knowing how this industry typically operates, that's not going to happen.

Fata Morgana deserves better, and so do you.

andrealfus
andrealfus

had me ugly crying at 4 in the morning, 10/10

TOPHATANT123
TOPHATANT123

Even though it reuses artwork and character archetypes from The House in Fata Morgana, Seventh Lair tells a unique and contained story with it's own themes and important messages. However, as it plays with your expectations, you will probably want to play Fata Morgana first to go in with the full context.

Incredibly dark and thought provoking, this shouldn't be overlooked as a parody or April fools joke.

Rey Anagata
Rey Anagata

I come to laugh, and I left with depression.
As a game developer myself, i felt a resonate with Michel and this inspires me to keep creating the games I'd love to make.

ebihime
ebihime

It should be illegal for any fictional character to be as adorable as Jacopo. He's simply too precious!!!!!!

siebtzen
siebtzen

I will agree with the review that mentioned several spelling mistakes in this translation, it's definitely not on par with the original Fatamorgana and didn't read as if it was edited.

The other thing that I feel is worth mentioning is that while the content warnings do mention suicide and blood, they don't mention something that really took me by surprise, in a bad way - I think violence against small children warrants its own content warning as it's a particularly heinous act, so I'm putting it here in case someone who might find it as upsetting as I did didn't want to be taken by surprise by it.)

On the whole, it's all fun and games until it turns really serious. I was fairly surprised by how similarly heavy subjects to the original VN were handled in a considerably shorter piece. I don't regret my purchase but I would have probably left reading this one instalment for a different, less stressful time. There's at least some hope in the ending.

I don't know how much enjoyment you'll get out of this if you're not a fan of the original already: on one hand you can definitely read this story on its own and not need background on the characters, on the other I think I was more invested in this because I recognised names and faces that were already familiar to me.

Niandra!
Niandra!

I normally don't care for parody/joke visual novels, especially ones made for April Fools, but The House in Fata Morgana is my favourite VN of all time so I thought I'd try this and...............holy shit? This was geninuely really good?

Seventh Lair takes place in a parallel universe, meaning it grabs the Fata Morgana characters, gives them new backstories and places them in a new world. Michel is now a game developer, Jacopo is a forum troll, Yukimasa is...well, you'll see. I don't want to spoil too much but this starts off with the characters getting Ikesai'd into one of Michel's games. Despite the beginning being quite joke heavy, this does have the usual sincere and heartbreaking Fata Morgana magic later on - it is not one dimensional, like things may initially seem, and is absolutely worth the asking price

The humour is kinda stupid, it's a lot of internet/gamedev lingo, like calling stuff cringe and betas, but I have terminally online brainrot so I really loved it and geninuely laughed out loud a lot, if only for absurdity. Yukimasa was especially funny where he's just kinda like "oh yeah I'm a serial killer in real life by the way" - I don't know if this is how the writers intended it but this fucking killed me

The game also has some great memorable quote such as this and this

The story is definitely coherent if you haven't read The House In Fata Morgana but I'm not sure I'd recommend it to someone who hasn't played it, because 90% of the appeal is like, "look at these characters I already love doing something quirky!! look at my precious piece of shit jacopo go!!"

To talk about some of the negatives, the translation is a little bit rough in places and a bit stiff. There's also quite a few typos, especially towards the end. Also, the Ikesai has its own 8 bit soundtrack, as it wants to sound like an old RPG. I know that it was probably intentionally bad but it is an absolute fucking nightmare to listen to and I had to mute it repeatedly. It's very funny/jarring to go from the usual FM music of beautiful european singing to EEeEeEeEEEeEEE. The game also uses sprites from FM but I'll let that slide because it's nice artwork. Overall, the presentation has that rough fan game feel to it, maybe intentionally, but its charming and the writing is so strong that its easy to overlook

Look, as a depressed trans game dev, I liked the story that touches upon depression/transness/game dev. thank you for the transmasc representation, it's so hard to come by in video games

Sacrificial Toast
Sacrificial Toast

A very enjoyable story featuring alternate versions of the characters from The House in Fata Morgana. It goes to deeper and darker places than you might expect from the premise, and touches on real issues in ways that definitely resonated with me. The characters have a lot of similar traits to their previous incarnations, but aren't the same people.

The vocal tracks are as lovely as ever. I was a big fan of the Fata Morgana soundtracks. The chiptunes that play for a good portion of the game were honestly a bit grating, and they were also a fair bit louder than the vocal music.

Translation was mostly good. There were definitely a number of typos, with one character's name being spelled differently at different times, and one of the later scenes had a lot of lines of dialogue with the wrong nameplate attached.

ncikz
ncikz

"haha come watch the House in Fata Morgana characters get stuck in a Dragon Quest world it'll be so funny!"

GREAT APRIL FOOL'S PRANK, BRO

clinicalobsession
clinicalobsession

this game is lying to you. yes it is funny, yes it is a good game, but it is DARK. its advertised as a funny april fools game but i still have not recovered from the emotional gut punches of the story.

mymoo
mymoo

That was so good oh man haha I wish emotions weren't real!!!

Actinsome
Actinsome

A decent parallel / extension to The House in Fata Morgana, which is one of my favorite visual novels. While this game doesn't quite the reach the heights of the former (or the latter, since this one technically came first) it does stick the landing on a few important points near the end.

I think my biggest gripe is that it's a little short - the second half throws so much at you that it's a little hard to process it all. And the comedic parts at the start are very hit or miss.

Overall I'd give it somewhere between a 7-8. Definitely recommended! Especially if you want something similar to Fata.

Mindes Endian
Mindes Endian

At the start I felt like it was going to repeat too many character beats from Fata, but it managed to hit me in ways I wasn't expecting. It's good.

Jimmi
Jimmi

Thank you Novect for keep making Visual novels! Big recommend from a huge fan.

Pro: Giselle+++, Art, Writing, Dialog, characthers.
Cons: Soundtrack not as good as previous games. (hard to top).

dobcool
dobcool

This happened to my buddy Eric

Cloud
Cloud

An ABSOLUTE BRILLIANT MASTERPIECE. And a HEAVENLY SOUNDTRACK to boot.

Rams
Rams

very good for a 7 euro purchase, sometimes it benefitted from the fatamoru connections other times not but overall definitely a worthwhile buy

Nin
Nin

Another masterpiece from NOVECT. Super recommended, but keep warnings in mind and take them seriously. Ask a friend who's already played it if you have serious triggers and need more extensive warnings.

A pity for the not so great translation compared to the phenomenal translation of The House in Fata Morgana, also a pity for the hundreds of grammatical and spelling mistakes all over the english localization (not the original author's fault) and lack of consistency with names and such. Is it Pauline or Pauleen? Royaume Heaven or Royaume Heven? Please pick one and stick with it.

awesomecody456
awesomecody456

Another great story from novectale

Meneluma
Meneluma

For someone familiar with the 2 main games before it, and the few "official" joke games put out by the developers, it originally felt like it was shooting for a mix of backstage episode with the doujinshi joke works of the past, which sure, April Fools release, what else do you expect.

But considering it leans in on telling a serious story about as much if not more than it tries to fool around, frontloading the jokes seems like it was a bad call, especially when it doesn't do that much fun with the format.
It might have benefitted from even more fooling around and delivering a serious story in the manner of an off hand whimsy like it is no big deal.

Another point against the frontloaded jokes being that the entire thing was too linear, sure the serious story could have been as is, but there were absolutely no choices to fool around in the joke RPG part, which is something that even Requiem for Innocence had in the bit where it was fooling around trying to appear to be a dating sim.
The whole RPG part had so much potential for cracking meta jokes and non canon stupid endings like J.B. min/maxing so hard the game breaks

From a technical standpoint it has a few typos and misc localization errors. But what annoyed me more is the fact they used the new text presentation format not only for the IRC logs part(which it fits nicely) but also the few flashback dialogues and the epilogue. Do I even need to point out that a wall of text that isn't color coded or have a handle to determine who is speaking at which paragraph or have brackets for thoughts is a bad idea?

Overall the story had more room to spread its wings compared to a Requiem for Innocence which was heavily chained down by being a prequel without much room to pull out crazy developments because it would break continuity.
But it was too linear, missed a chapter of fluff where the very late joining character could get used to the setting in a natural way as opposed to feeling too on board with the situation and "script reading" Maria who speaks like knowing too much and a bit too forward, even if you take into account her further plot development.
But then it also spent a good chunk of time with needless flowery language just to describe something as "incomprehensible and ineffable". I'd rather suspend my disbelief on the characters going along with it in 2 sentences, than having it to use text space that could have given the script reader a bit of extra time to feel less like one.

Either way, I still found it pretty good, but it is still in the shadow of how amazing The House in Fata Morgana was. But since it was not restrained to being a prequel or a sequel, it had more moments than A Requiem for Innocence.

Oh and how could you hate on it if it has the incredible fan favorite character that only appeared in one side story and one of those joke games, have a lot of screen time in Seventh Lair?

Purrr
Purrr

Its from the creator of The house in Fata Morgana.

nikolaos94
nikolaos94

tl;dr:
Recommended even at full price as it's still very cheap, but after you've finished The House in Fata Morgana.

I'l be honest: I bought this VN just because this was more FataMoru content, I didn't have any high expectations for this VN and I was fine with that. The first quarter of the game actually gave me reason to believe that this was just some kind of wacky side story that was just there for the purpose of showing more interactions between our beloved cast of character, kind of like the carrot cake incident side story. A very silly but still entertaining form of fanservice. Then the story revealed itself and boy did it hit like a ton of bricks.
First it was the difference between these characters and their original counterparts in Fatamoru, then the actual story progression. The content warnings are there for a reason, so be mindful of that.

It is highly recommended that you read this VN AFTER the original "The House in Fata Morgana", including the side story "Assento Dele", as most of the characters' appeal come from the prior knowledge that the reader has of them. Reading A Requiem for Innocence is not required. If Seventh Lair is your first exposure to the Fatamoru character you will not fully understand (nor probably appreciate) the characters and some bits of the story will not feel as impacftul, plus all the references to the original story will fly right past you.

+ more fatamoru
+ great story
+ great music
+ hits like a truck

- the first part feels a little too silly, might be hard to move past it if you really hate it.
- due to the short length of the vn and the implicitly required prior knowledge of the characters, some things feel rushed or shallow.
- reading the actual real world Royaume Heaven website is required to fully understand the story but it's a bit of a chore to do so.

Fran
Fran

This is not a game, This is art.

i resonated with the story, and with nellie's situation, since i have had the same issue and other as bad problems too in my childhood.

i recommend this to anyone who likes good stories.

SSJInferno
SSJInferno

A VN from the same group that did Fata Morgana, this one is more or less an different reality with the same Cast of characters that focuses more on game development and their mindsets...

When the strong points hit, they hit pretty good, but there are a few low points...
Low points in that the 8bit music isn't really that good as well as lengh of the story. (I know it's an April fools day project, but they could've made it longer if they so willed it)

SymphoniaRaine
SymphoniaRaine

I have really complicated feelings about this game. I definitely don't like it as much as The House in Fata Morgana or Requiem for Innocence, but I feel like it's still going to stick with me for a while. It did a good job of using my preconceptions about characters based on Fata Morgana and Requiem to surprise me with certain twists, being an alternate universe story that reuses character names and art. I ended up rather depressed while playing this game (and for a while after finishing it) and had to take breaks a few times, which isn't usually the case for me. I can usually handle dark content pretty well, but this was written in a much more realistic, modern, and relatable way than other games I've played with similar heavy themes, so it hit a lot harder than expected. Worth playing if you want to read a short VN with a strong emotional punch, but definitely take the content warnings seriously if you have any triggers related to depression, suicide, and/or terminal illness.

Hanasatsukii
Hanasatsukii

Went in laughing, came out sobbing...10/10

For a short game that was released for April Fools it was amazing, I couldn't put it down.

Lau
Lau

10/10 masterpiece (strongly recommend playing The House in Fata Morgana and The House in Fata Morgana: A Requiem For Innocence first)

COACH BUCKS
COACH BUCKS

very good, on the same level of quality you would expect from novectacle but personally i dont like it as much as fata morgana & requiem of innocence. it's worth a pick up after you play the other fata morgana visual novels. in terms of soundtrack, this game beats out the fata morgana though.

Emperor Zoran
Emperor Zoran

Novectacle does it again. Apparently they just have to set the bar for story telling in interactive media, even for a 5 hour long April Fool's spinoff! There is Novectacle in a league of their own and everyone else that simply can't reach their level.

Yana
Yana

It was okay for a spinoff. Don't expect too much.

Do not play this if you haven't played Fata Morgana at all. Please play that one first. But if you want more Fata Morgana content, this is skippable. It was fun seeing the original cast back in action, especially Michel and Jacopo! But the story was clunky at times, with many important plot points introduced way too late. The writing of this game made it feel more like a personal project, all the characters less like real individuals and more like caricatures the author used as their mouthpiece to get their thoughts across. Wasn't really feeling the twist at the end... Maybe the high quality of Fata Morgana and Requiem of Innocence just spoiled me, though.

It didn't help that the English localization was unpolished. It was riddled with typos, unnatural phrasing, and sentences that were plain difficult to understand. There are many times you can tell what the original Japanese sentences were and didn't bother to get creative with how to write it. The text also keeps switching between Pauline and Pauleen. Did the localization team not have a style guide? Were they working with a tight deadline? Whatever the case may be, seeing this game's lackluster localization quality after Fata Morgana didn't do it any favors. I'll play it again in Japanese and see if my opinion on the story changes.

Music is great as usual, but it feels like a bit of a waste to hear it on this game...

If anything, the author put a lot of heart into this story. If you're interested in reading more about the feelings of a content creator, or some mild takes on suicide, depression, mental illness, go ahead and play on.

I love Novect! This just wasn't their best work. Eagerly waiting for their next game.

BUT TIT WAS ME, DIO
BUT TIT WAS ME, DIO

If funny haha April Fool's game, why am I crying?

SPNKr
SPNKr

Is it perfect? No.

Is it a heartfelt look into the relationships you form on the internet? Absolutely.

It's messy art from a person desperately trying to put something out into the world.

Francis X. Clampazzo
Francis X. Clampazzo

"dear seventh lair

you made me cry"

Swimming Poule
Swimming Poule

First of all, it was great seeing the characters from the first story again. Seeing them interact with each other in the game world gave me a few laughs... before the story takes a complete turn and hit straight in the emotions.

Being a spin-off (if you can call it that? the characters might be the same but they aren't connected to house in fata morgana in any way), it isn't much of a long kinetic novel at all and will only take a few hours to complete if you are a fast reader.

The story delves into the struggles of being a creator as well as themes of online interactions. It gets dark and will hit home for some people so do take heed of the content warning.

Xan Kriegor
Xan Kriegor

A shorter, very different story with the cast we've gotten to know in House in Fata Morgana, although in a different reality /universe. The writing and music are exceptional as always, and the rhythm of the narration is (obviously) tighter than usual. The (gorgeous) sprites are reused from other chapters in the series, but there's a fair share of new backgrounds that make the experience feel distinct enough.

Overall very pleased with it, although I would only recommend it to people who have played the rest of the series and desire to spend more time with the main cast.

Slight spoiler warning: I was lucky enough to experience the sudden reveal for April's 1st and the resulting confusion, which adds a lot to the overal atmosphere of the game. As much as the 8bit music is coherent in its amateurish feel, it drove me to insanity regardless. A couple of new sprites wouldn't have hurt, but they're not a necessity by any means.

Semaphia
Semaphia

Just a quick note: While Seventh Lair is a standalone title that can technically be read without reading "The House in Fata Morgana" first, I think doing so would not only lessen your enjoyment of this game, but that one as well. If you've not read it, I really suggest doing so, since it truly is an absolute masterpiece worthy of your consideration.

The story of Seventh Lair varies from the absurd to the beautiful, with flashes of despair & nostalgia to the older days of the internet expertly sprinkled throughout. It's hilarious scenario paired with its darker, contrasting moments make for a short experience that's worthy of the Fata Morgana name, despite it's short length & limited scope. It had me laughing from the get go, and by the end of it, I had that typical lump in my throat that I associate with the parent read. It ties everything beautifully together with a blog post/forum snippet that's absolutely worth reading through alongside the game.

The music is amazing. I do prefer it usually when vocal tracks are in something other than English, as I find my ability to understand them often limits my enjoyment of them, however there was no such issue here - The vocal tracks are beautiful, & they're not alone... THE CHIPTUNE! The chiptune music played during the comedic parts of the story are phenomenal, & had me reminiscing over the good ol' days of Game Boys & 8/16-bit era consoles.

In conclusion, Seventh Lair is everything I could've asked for in a spin-off of one of my all time favourites. The story goes from effortless light-hearted comedy to heavy meaningful moments in an incredibly natural way, & the new additions to the Fata Morgana music library are just as varied. While you can read it as a standalone & no doubt enjoy it, fans of the main story will definitely appreciate the nuances & characters on show moreso than those who are yet to experience it.