Hanako Games

Your game was like reliving the worst part of high school.

#1 by rdex - Jun 24 2012

( *Spoilers & Whining ahead* )

Your game was like reliving the worst part of high school. That said it was mainly b/c it was a reflection of me and the limitations of my personality. (Background summary: 39 yro, over-weight white North American Male who went into the sciences, have previously played Science Girls (never finished it) and picked up Magical Diary on Steam).

So on my first play through I first bumped in Prof Grabiner and he said something like "study hard". I took it as a directive, and I actually enjoy reading & research. So i was looking for ways to now lose the first few demerits and study hard. People will love me if I study hard right? So I dug in… I didn't know what to make of the roomies. In the fight over cleaning up, I choose the path the seemed like it was most fair. I study white & black magic since I wasn't sure if I should really diversify or focus to get stronger in one area. I figured that focusing was the way to go since that's the way I usually go…

And there's the conundrum do I play this as this 16 yro girl or do I play as myself. So proceeding as some kind of bi-polar princess trying to be fair, I went to the mall and got some thick black framed glasses (like I wear now anyway). They help my smarts and at the beginning I said I would study hard… that's how to win right?

So then I continued to play… I HATED the hazing ritual… my first though was that what ever school official approved this was going to get fired and sued after some kid died. In FL a college student was killed in a hazing event on a band trip. Give some random people carte-blanche over some others and the worst in any person will come out. It is in the nature of people to not be nice. So I really hated that, I would have run away from that van given any chance. I can not tell you how much I REALLY REALLY hated that part.

I gave the blue guy a chance but dumped him after something the first problem. He started out nice, but I suspected he was a creep and so dumped him. He came back one other time and I dumped him then too…

In the meantime I'm studying my white & black magic and getting points, I thought I was doing well. In the first dungeon I didn't use magic b/c I didn't have a spell that would apply. I got through it though, I figured it wasn't too bad b/c I still needed to learn more. The second, third and fourth dungeons I failed miserably on. No spell would apply or work like I wanted. By then I couldn't work off my demerits by studying in the library & getting help from the class president. And I was studying…

I took time on Saturdays to study… I did go to the mall once or twice, but nothing there interested me. So I just used Saturdays to study and on the semester went. No one was around, apparently no one else got told by Prof. Grabiner to study. The entire second semester was going to class and not really talking to people. I had to study to succeed, the last few dungeons i wiped the floor with b/c the white magic spells made it easy.

So with no friends and being really smart I went to the prom alone… If you had given me a choice I would have not gone at all. There was nothing there for me to do, except watch other people.

So just like high school, I studied hard and had few friends. All it really made me realize was that at my core I'm still that same person 20 years later. Studying and working hard, but not knowing how to make friends. Eventually, after college, I did come out of my shell more, but realizing that even though I'm different I'm still the same is quite depressing and puts into question all personal growth I've ever had.

At the end though, Thank you for a good game. The games that grab onto me emotionally are just the best, even if I don't like the emotions that come up.



As a post script, How is the diary magical? It just sits there and I write things in it, but it doesn't seem to have any magic properties in an of itself.

#2 by Charlotte585 - Jun 25 2012

I think it was called Magical Diary because you were following the life of a teenage witch who goes to a magical school, and doesn't have anything to do with the actual diary. That's just so you can look back, remember things and such.

*spoilers*
And I'm sorry this game brought up bad memories. I think you're the first person I've read that took Prof. Grabiner seriously xD but that's not bad. Just means your a hard worker to the core, and that's good, right? The entire game I focused on blue, white and black... And I failed two exams. And almost had my soul eaten by Damien at the end after I said no. So I ended up lonely, okay at school, with a few good friends. hahaha it's funny how that isn't for from my reality either xD not complaining, though. Loved the game and have almost finished every ending <3

#3 by FantasyFan - Jun 25 2012

It's important to raise ALL the stats if you want a successful year. Studying only increases one stat - Smart. If you want to pass exams, it's a good idea to take a lot of classes in all the magic colors, plus go to gym (which gives you more Health points) and study sometimes (which gives you more mana points).

Again, studying by itself will only get you more Smart points - it won't get you merits or make people like you more.

And if you want a date for the prom, you need to follow certain steps depending which character you're interested in.

I have a walkthrough that you can download here.

http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/3100062/magical-diary-walkthrough-pdf-august-25-2011-4-57-pm-390k

It doesn't yet have instructions for the Big Steve path (since that was added after the walkthrough was done - I plan on editing my walkthrough), but it includes detailed instructions on how to raise stats, pass exams, win trophies, and succeed with the original five datable characters.

And btw, you don't HAVE to participate in Initiation. Just keep refusing to take Damien's hand and you'll walk out on it. Your Weird stat will go up, but nothing bad will happen.

#4 by BSaito - Jun 27 2012

FantasyFan:

It's important to raise ALL the stats if you want a successful year. Studying only increases one stat - Smart. If you want to pass exams, it's a good idea to take a lot of classes in all the magic colors, plus go to gym (which gives you more Health points) and study sometimes (which gives you more mana points).

You don't really need fitness in any of the dungeons if you use the right spells. I believe you can have a pretty much optimal playthrough without ever attending gym class, and pretty much neglecting red and green magic in favor of the other colors. I'd say rdex had a sensible approach regarding his stats, except if decide to specialize it's best to pick blue as one of your specialties. If I had to rank the colors in terms of their usefulness in the dungeons it would be blue, black, white, red, green.

#5 by chouette - Jun 28 2012

It's a shame that this game brought up bad memories for you, but remember that it's very different to real school in one important way - no, not the magic, it's that you can do it all again differently.

The way I tend to play these games it's less about playing a role, more about conducting a series of very silly science experiments, exploring all the possible "what ifs". You've done the studious lone wolf scenario, now what happens if your Sue is a sporty slacker? Studies different types of magic? Has a thing for wings and sticks with Damien, or else goes along one the other friendship or romance paths? Experimenting like this is kind of essential to see all the game material but it's also a lot of fun to see how things change/look different depending on your choices.