“—the time for the promise has come. My promise with you. And……the promise from a thousand years ago will be fulfilled right here.”

In a small rural town, stands a quiet shrine where Sakuya hears a voice. The wind blows, and when she opens her eyes once more, her existence is now known as a "god." The girl has become the god worshiped in that shrine. Gentle, warm and sad—the goddess' love stories are now unfolded.

Kami naru Kimi to

神なる君と  (website)
Company: Otomate
Age Rating: Cero B / 12+
Date of Release: 20th October 2011
Voice Cast: Hoshi Souichirou, Narita Ken, Hatano Wataru, Iguchi Yuuichi, Sakurai Takahiro etc.

First of all, for a game, the plot is interesting. It seems pretty simple at first, but when you engage yourself deeper into the game, you will realize that it is so much more than an average high school student who turns into a god. The love stories are warped nicely in every route, and, in addition to that, the side characters' stories add up the enjoyment. In each of the main love interest's route, a sub-character's (or more) story is revealed and told in a fun and moving storytelling. The sub-characters' stories don't stand by themselves, and are all discussed again in the last unlocked route. All of the stories are definitely well-written and thoughtful, and, before you know it, you are already paying attention to unvoiced texts that cover the whole screen.

“What is god? God grants wishes, and creates miracles. In other words, god keeps away pain and suffering. God resides in all things, is a subject of prayers, and subject of fear. But— — even god can’t be forgiven for going against fate. That’s why this world is overflowing with sadness. Many wishes could not be granted, and were lost in the flow of time. If there is no meaning in praying, and if god is powerless— — if people know that the stronger the hope is for a wish, the sadness that eventually follows will be deeper too— — why do people pray to god? Why does god exist? Why do I……”

Though the game doesn't emphasis strongly on themes, there are several which you can pick out from the game - including the most obvious one which questions why do gods exist. While the common route may appear long, in the end the light-hearted atmosphere served as a great and well-needed contrast to the heavier individual routes. It was amazing how the game reveals that the most carefree characters, may also have the heaviest burdens and painful stories. Unfortunately, although the story is pretty simple, it still isn't headache-free. Be careful of Mikoto's route, you may need to read through the lines a few times to register what is going on.

All the characters have fun, lively and engaging personalities, and have amusing interactions with each other. This definitely applies to the heroine too, as Sakuya has plenty of spunk. The characters aren't one-dimensional, and you will be able to discover new sides to them as you progress in the game. The characters you can go after include: Narumi (CV: Hoshi Souichirou) and Yakumo (CV: Hatano Wataru) who are Sakuya's childhood friends, Yuzuru (CV: Narita Ken) the student council president, Rei (CV: Iguchi Yuuichi) the ghost haunting the old school grounds, and Mikoto (CV: Sakurai Takahiro) who was the original god worshiped at the shrine. If it helps, both of us played in the route order of: Yakumo → Yuzuru → Rei → Narumi → Mikoto (his will only be unlocked last).

The voice acting is great, but unfortunately, there are significant parts of the game that are left unvoiced (i.e. monologues with the text covering the whole screen). It doesn't really kill the enjoyment or affect the story per say, it is just a little unfortunate because it'd be lovely to have it voiced by the narrator of the story (i.e. when they are explaining a certain character's past) to add more empathy to both the story and the character(s). The only exception is when Mikoto (the original god) explains his back story when his route is unlocked last, and you can really experience the difference.

Visual-wise, the art is lovely. It is vibrant and colorful. The background illustrations are also beautiful and clear. Unfortunately, there is a lack of variety in the CGs and at times, an obvious lack of Sakuya's presence in them. Still, it doesn't take away the fact that the art is pretty.

The music is simple but beautiful, and enhances the mood of the game. When you've progressed somewhat into the game, surely one or two background tracks will be left looping in your head. When the sad scenes and BGM hit, be ready to steal somebody else's tissue box because you will drown in tears in no time.

With the completion of each route, not only do you unlock the music, videos, CG gallery and wishes (CG scenes and wishes can be replayed), you also unlock a word dictionary and background illustrations which are both voiced - by main and sub-characters too. The title menu will also have the unlocked character cut-outs around the sacred shrine tree, which comes to be an important location in the game. All of this was particularly endearing as you've already developed attachment to the characters by this point.

9.0 Kami naru Kimi to is a truly moving journey. The game can have you laughing aloud at the start, and then crying your eyes out towards the end as you develop an attachment to the characters. While you may discover new sides to the characters in certain routes, all of their personalities are consistent. However, as we have mentioned before, there are annoying parts of the game where you can only stare at your PSP, watching as lines of texts go by with no voice or concrete visuals to represent what is happening in those scenes. The CGs are also pretty boring although they are indeed beautiful. Compared to other otome games, there may be a lesser degree of romance but all of the stories are beautifully written. Due to this, the both of us are on the edge of our seats for any news of a fandisk. Or rather, to be frank, we are rocking our chairs, begging Otomate to create a fandisk for this game.