Among other things, an H-Game can make you cry…
Really. Until now, I never seriously considered that possibility. Because, like, an H-Game is supposed to make its player excited (in more ways than one). That’s why it’s called an H-Game (H stands for Hentai, which is itself the Japanese word for Pervert, for you innocent commoners who happen to fall into this carnal den of desire 
for heaven’s sake!
Then comes After ~ Sweet Kiss. I know, I know, corny title - Japanese isn’t exactly famous for creative English copywriting. In fact, it’s famous for the awful lot of English misspellings in its anime instead (not the case anymore in the latest releases though, thank God)! I sat down and installed the thing expecting a few hours of ‘excitement’ and byte-hacking challenge. Its character design is by Tony, who IMO has smooth lines, good anatomy, and a heckuva coloring skillz - and such nicely drawn girls! ^___^ But there’s a lot of H-games with that already… Yawned thru the first episode, stopped to capture the initial state and each saves (byte-tweaking is soo much fun ^_^;)….
Then the second episode smacked me down through the floor.
Your avatar, Yuuichi, has a lovely little sister named Nagisa. Having grown up without their parents (who worked abroad) most of the time, the two developed a closeness that even Yuuichi’s girlfriends can’t match… Nagisa does the household chores, while Yuuichi helped (or tried to) with her shoppings and by becoming a dependable elder brother. Until a few years before, both even bathe together. Both learn and know intimate things about each other. And eventually, as the story goes, both realized… that both have fallen in love with each other.
This is where it hurts.
Both Yuuichi and Nagisa know that incest is forbidden. Both know that they can’t express their feelings for each other, let alone letting them loose. Yet, living in the same house and going to the same school, it is so hard to keep it under control… Why is it forbidden when it feels so wonderful? Why do they have to refrain from holding eachother when it feels so good being together?
Thus they live, day after day, night after night… trying to be the best for each other, but striving hard to restrain their feelings not to show. But they are only human, and it is an H-Game after all… and thus I got to see the most tragic H-scenes I’ve ever seen… (can’t describe em here, minors might read this ^_^;)
KimiNozo, Air, and Kanon (watched the anime, but haven’t got time to properly play the game) might make me consider bringing a good tear-absorbent kerchief along… but for now, I will remember ASK as the first H-Game to make me cry.
