Good news for all fans of the Da Capo visual novel series by Circus. The English translation of the latest entry, Da Capo 3, is now available in 2 versions. The X-Rated version is available over at Mangagamer’s own download store here while you can find an all-ages version over at Steam here. Both versions have a launch discount running.
Da Capo 3 is a lengthy visual novel which features likable characters and an extensive story. You might also know the name from the anime that ran in 2013.
Story
The story for Da Capo 3 is divided into 2 parts.
First is the part of the story that takes place on the beautiful Hatsune Island, a place that has a different face each season. There, it follows Kiyotaka, a second-year student at the Kazami Academy, and the sole male member of the official newspaper club. Other members include the club president (and school idol) Ricca, his childhood friend Himeno, his half-blood cousin Yoshino, his underclassman Aoi, and Sara, a girl that skipped a grade and is now his classmate.
Together they spent their days in the clubroom. It’s not like there are a lot of interesting things happening on the island anyway, unlike the past.
Until one day in winter, when all of the island’s Cherry blossom trees all begin to bloom at once. At the same time, all of the club members receive a mysterious message on their phones telling them that they should be at “that promised place” when the Cherry blossoms are in full bloom. A part of the message is cut off, but it gets even stranger when they notice that the date of the message is in the distant past.
Ricca calls upon all club members, and together they begin to investigate this story.
London story
Then Da Capo 3 will go over into the main story. In this story Kiyotaka is the son of a prominent magic family in Japan when he travels to London together with his younger sister Himeno. There, they attend the Royal London Magic Academy, also known as Weather Vane.
What awaits them in London is a place shrouded in mists and a huge underground academic city. Within the underground, there are three floating islands in the shape of the crescent moon. It’s there, in the best environment to study magic, that many young magicians gather for their studies.
Despite being in new environment the 2 siblings are quickly able to make new friends and begin their life at the Academy.
Fun and happy days…
Days just like a musical Da Capo…
As if it were a dream…
Heroines
Ricca Morizono
As “The idol of the school” Ricca is a well-known face at Kazami Academy. She’s also the president of the newspaper club. There Kiyotaka comes to learn about her straight forwarded personality when she tells him that they surely must’ve been lovers in their previous lives, and thus are destined to be together.
Himeno Katsuragi
Kiyotaka’s neighbor and childhood friend. The two of them have been hanging out for so long that they almost seem like siblings. Himeno lost her honesty however when they grew up, so nowadays she usually says the exact opposite of what she actually means.
Charles Yoshino
She’s your upperclassman and half-blood cousin. Charles currently resides in the same place as Kiyotaka and likes to dote him. She’s not afraid of a little skinship either, though Kiyotaka never knows how to react. You never want to taste her cooking however…
Sara Rukawa
Despite being a year younger, Sara skipped a grade and ended up in the same class as Kiyotaka. She has a serious personality so sometimes she can be a little stubborn, which is also reason for some people to avoid her.
Aoi Hinomoto
Aoi is your underclassman. She’s always smiling and energetic in general, though she also has to pace herself due to her frail body. Not that it seems to stop her from taking on more than 1 part-time job at a time however. Aoi is a real hard worker. She also sees Kiyotaka as her older brother, despite them not being related.
All of these characters also have their counterparts in the London chapter.
Editions
For those wondering about the “R” in the official product title of this release; it’s there because the original Japanese Da Capo 3 has been released in several different versions over the years. The first edition was released in 2012 and was released as an all-ages edition, something that was different from the previous entries in the series. A few months later, a 1.3 release was published which added a new story variation as well as a new route for Aoi. Then, roughly a year after the original release, the “R” version was made available. Which added the 1.3 release content as well as Windows 8 compatibility. At the same, the X-rated version was published alongside.
