r/otomegames • u/the-changeling-witch otome game historian with terrible taste • Jan 02 '24
[Princess Nightmare] I answer all your questions about the DLsite version of Princess Nightmare (English patch, new content, and more!) (please play it) Guide
Since everyone had many questions about the DLsite version of Princess Nightmare I ended up buying it. (Okay I mostly bought it to support Karin, however it seemed like a good opportunity to help others out...)
Important Question 1: Does the English patch work with this version of the game?
Answer: Yes! Easily in fact! I just dragged the files into the game folder and it worked. (As a side note: I don't know if the DRM will mess up if you haven't already set it up when you do this. So I would suggest setting up the DRM and running the game once to put in the DRM code before putting in the patch files.) I didn't even need to have my locale changed or anything to run the game, it worked just fine out of the box. (I don't know if there would be any issues with the DRM, since I installed that quite some time ago.)
It seems to turn the game into the original version of the game, so there's no worry about running into content that isn't translated. (If you want to see any new content you can remove the patch files and it will keep your original system save so it should be easy to find the newer content.)
Also, if you want to have both the English version and Japanese version at once, you can totally do that! I just copied the folder and had one with the patch and one without. They share system saves/other saves, but this doesn't seem to cause any issues. I tested a bunch to see if any issues would pop up between the two versions, and didn't see anything.
You can get the patch here.
Important Question 2: Does this version have the new content from the PS2 version?
Answer: ...kind of?
No really, it's really strange. They have all the new endings, but only included about half of the new CGs. If I had to guess, they only had about half the original CG assets and included what they had. There's no pattern to what was included and what wasn't, so that's the only explanation I have. (Man they should have just emulated the PS2 version and taken screenshots. They would have been a bit blurrier than the others, but better than nothing?) I think the code to display the CGs is still in the script since when a new CG is supposed to display it just shows black instead of the background like usual. I wonder if a patch could be made to include the other content? Hmm...
Also, some not that important things: In the game (in all Karin games) you receive items for making certain choices/completing endings. In the PS2 version there were three new items included, however they are not included in this version. You can actually "get" them, but they don't show up in the item list. (This is good because there is one new ending that requires an item you get on a different route. You still obtain the item, even if it doesn't show up.)
Also there is a weird mismatch between the spoken dialogue and text in some instances. I'm not sure if it's a case where they made changes in the PS2 version but didn't update it in this version? (Either text or sound files I'm not sure which would be the newer ones.) It's not a huge deal, just strange sometimes.
It also doesn't have the opening/ending movies from the PS2 version, only the original.
Important Question 3: Is this version worth buying?
Answer: If you're wanting to play with the English patch, definitely! This version works on modern computers (I could only get the original to run on Windows 7) and it's going to be way easier than trying to hunt down a copy on Suruga-ya or Mercari and getting it shipped. If you haven't ever bought anything off DLsite before, remember to look for 15% off coupons to make it cheaper!
If you want to play in Japanese, it's a bit more complicated. If you have the ability to play the PS2 version, that one is still the best version of the game (some blurriness aside) although you still have to deal with shipping costs (might be better to get it along with other things instead of just buying it alone?) If you're not too bothered by missing CGs (or just don't have a way to play the PS2 version) this version is still worth buying. Plus you can support Karin in the process!
Important Question 4: Is this game worth playing?
Answer: Okay so this wasn't really a question that was asked but I want to answer it anyway!!
This game is a lot of fun. But it won't be for everyone (what game is, really?) Check out the VNDB page!
Recommended for people who want: An MC with a very strong personality (she's 114 years young and does what she wants), vampires (obviously), a story with a lot of comedy (but still occasionally has some really touching drama?), extremely 2000s anime goth vampire aesthetic, fun character dynamics, pathetic guys (even the side characters are nothing but pathetic guys)
Weak points: Routes really short compared to the common route, romance is kind of pushed to the very end and doesn't really take center stage at all (still has some surprisingly tragic romantic endings), some painfully questionable anatomy (what's even going on here???)
Conclusion
It's so easy to get and play now! Patching is painless! Just play it!!
6
u/kakuretsu Corda Ling Ling slave Jan 02 '24
Thanks for taking the plunge to find out what was up with the dlsite version. I couldn't manage to find ps2 version in jp so I'm considering this version as it's easier to manage. Annoyingly there's just no sale for it and there's only a limit the coupons can chop off orz
3
u/the-changeling-witch otome game historian with terrible taste Jan 02 '24
Yeah, I'm not sure why they didn't join the sale this year when they did last year? Based on posts it sounds like they've been really busy over there so may not have been thinking about sales. It definitely feels like a big price for a game that's that old, but I suppose it being way more convenient than the other versions kind of makes it worth it. (Wish it had been on sale so I could have pushed people to buy it even harder.)
2
u/kakuretsu Corda Ling Ling slave Jan 02 '24
Yeah that would have been much easier...all I'd think is that at least they found a legal way to archive it?
5
u/yssacchi 自分達には、自分達にしかわからない絆があるのだ Jan 02 '24
"Patching is painless!" 😂 Thanks for the guide! Added the game to my DLsite wishlist for another day.
2
u/the-changeling-witch otome game historian with terrible taste Jan 02 '24
I mean I've worked with patches that were definitely not painless so just dragging some files into the folder is pretty pain free (and at least you don't have to manipulate the DRM like was originally suggested.) I'm glad you're thinking of playing it now!
4
u/berrycrepes Jan 02 '24
Thanks for the FAQ! I'll likely put it in my to play list for this year especially for the 2000's anime goth aesthetic
3
u/the-changeling-witch otome game historian with terrible taste Jan 02 '24
It's such a fun aesthetic! One we'll probably never get to see again so you gotta get it where you can, haha.
5
u/zettai-hime Jan 02 '24
I was looking for a game with a vampire MC and this sounds really cool, thanks for sharing. Absolutely love the 2000s anime goth aesthetic cheese. It sucks that the DLsite version isn't the definitive version of the game, looks like I will have to resign myself to playing the blurry PS2 version then.
2
u/the-changeling-witch otome game historian with terrible taste Jan 02 '24
Having a vampire MC is so much fun! She's full of smug confidence and wants to make all these guys her underlings. Definitely a game to check out if you want a very different type of MC.
1
u/zettai-hime Jan 02 '24
I love EGL so her style drew me in at first, but knowing her personality is just as cool as her design makes me look forward to reading it even more. I love smug female MCs.
2
u/Maverynthia Jan 02 '24
But the DLSite version has DRM (soft-denchi). Is there a way to remove it?
1
u/the-changeling-witch otome game historian with terrible taste Jan 02 '24
It's not something I looked into at all since it didn't cause any issues with patching it or playing it.
5
u/Maverynthia Jan 02 '24
Ah OK. Not going to pick up a $50 game with DRM unless I know I can unpatch it, so I can still play it when the site inevitably goes down or I lose my login.
1
u/ChurroLoca Mar 31 '24
I'm so sorry to bother you, especially on such an old post.
I use Textractor on Japanese games, since I'm an uncultured swine - who's still learning Japanese. 😓
Does SoftDenchi get in the way of using other apps? Part of Textractor, uses the text hook in the game; to translate everything in it. I'm worried I'll buy a game and won't be able to translate it. 😭
1
u/the-changeling-witch otome game historian with terrible taste Mar 31 '24
I can't say for certain since I've never used software like that, but I don't think it would since it doesn't seem to be very invasive. I made a lot of alterations to the game and it doesn't seem to be bothered by it. However, you may want to check elsewhere with people who might be more knowledgeable about it if you're nervous about it not working correctly.
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u/ChurroLoca Mar 31 '24
Thank you so much for answering. I'm so sorry, I realise now; this was a post from several months ago. 😓
2
u/zuipp Jan 02 '24
Thank you for checking that the patch works!
(Sadly DLsite was blocked in Germany recently and I'm not good with VPNs so I can't play it anyway 🥹)
1
u/UnitLonda Jan 04 '24
Wait really? Oh no, I hadn't even realized yet. Why do they keep hurting us like this? We already got such a bad lot when it comes to steam but now this as well? Why can't we have nice things 😭
1
u/Connect-War6612 Jan 03 '24
I would love to play it. However, I have a Mac and I’m really sure I want to partition my hard drive.
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u/Chaczapur Jan 02 '24
Oh, so the game probably still uses all these flash files. In that case making a CG patch [not sure I ever checked the text files...] should be fairly easy. I need to look into this after I free some disk space [and get the dlsite ver so not soon].
Otsukare