Kirakira (visual novel)

Kira☆Kira (キラ☆キラ) is a Japanese adult visual novel developed by Overdrive and first released playable on a Microsoft Windows PC on November 27, 2007. An official English translation by MangaGamer was released in June 2009 only available via downloading on MangaGamer's website. A spin-off game called Kirakira Curtain Call was released by Overdrive for the PC in August 2008. A PlayStation 2 version published by PrincessSoft was released on February 26, 2009. A version of the game with all H-scenes removed was ported to the iPhone and iPod touch by M-Trix Inc. and was released on the App Store on November 20, 2009.

Plot
The protagonists of Kirakira, Shikanosuke, Kirari, Sarina and Chie are the members of the second literary club (第二文芸部) at the Christian school Ohbi Gakuen. The club was set to be closed in next March so they try to set up a band they call the Second Literary Club Band (第二文芸部バンド) to save the club. Their performance at the subsequent school festival succeeds with flying colors. That performance was put on the Internet where one of the live houses in Nagoya offered the band to put on a performance in Nagoya. They honestly want to disband after the performance at the school festival because they had to study for entrance exams or look for jobs, but they were convinced to go on a live tour by Yagihara, the vocalist of Star Generation. Shikanosuke's band d2b begins its live tour across Japan in an old van.

d2b band

 * Shikanosuke Maejima (前島 鹿之助)
 * Shikanosuke is the protagonist of Kirakira. He used to be in the tennis club with his best friend, Murakami. In the beginning of the story, he gets dumped by his girlfriend and quits the tennis club due to health problems. In the d2b (second literature club) band, he joins as Shikako Maejima, a red-headed girl with hearing problems. This way they can try to become an all girl's band. He plays bass guitar in the band. Throughout the Sarina and Chie Route, he revealed that his biological father passed away when he was 5 and his current father is not his real father. However, he respects him a lot for raising him until this day.


 * Kirari Shiino (椎野 きらり)
 * Kirari is the girl who Shikanosuke meets at a sake bar where he works as a part time worker. Since her house is very poor, she works many jobs to help her family. She is a cheerful character who initially wants to play drums in the band, but is persuaded by Chie to become the vocalist. She is the band's vocalist and second guitarist. She has special talent with extraordinary memory and according to her, she is studying in high school under scholarship. She has a voice which describes as genius, a huge vocabulary which give her trouble to carry the normal conversation with her peers She admits she would go out with Shikanosuke before the tour. In her route, because of poverty and loan shark, she has to drop out of school and work at a night club.
 * In Normal Ending, her father starts a fire on her house because he cannot take the burden of debt anymore, which lead to Kirari's death at the end of chapter 3. This leads to a traumatic breakdown in Shikanosuke, result in his failing of entrance exam and joining his friend's band later, the Happy Cycle Mania. In the end of chapter 4, he overcame his sadness and compose the song from Kirari's humming voice in the cassette tape, left in her bag the day her house was burnt.
 * In True End (after viewing 3 heroines' normal ends), instead of going home after meeting with Kirari at her house, Shikanosuke forcefully made her to tell him the truth whereabout she will be working. However, he was unable to solve her family problems and depressingly broke up with her, this broke up scene was seen by her father. Her father tried to commit suicide but failed, was brought to the hospital where he called Shikanosuke in to talk. Her father cut his wrislt in the hospital but Shikanosuke decides not to call the doctor and let him die. After his death, her family debt was lifted but Shikanosuke still felt guilty because of his decision. In the end, Kirari states that she want to be in relationship with him and forgive him after he confessing about her father's death. In the Epilogue, she becomes a famous singer while still dating Shikanosuke who is in college and they are doing fine.


 * Sarina Kashiwara (樫原 紗理奈)
 * Sarina was born into a bourgeoisie family, is well mannered and very lady-like but she sometimes shows her stubbornness. She always rides a Rolls-Royce Phantom to school from her house. She does not have many friends at school, but she and Kirari are best friends. She is the band's lead guitarist.
 * In her route, her grandfather decides not to let her go to school anymore after the tour. She admits her love with Shikanosuke when they were at the beach and later he responds to her through cellphone because she was in her house in the countryside. Shikanosuke goes to her house in order to persuade her grandfather with the help of her uncle, brother of her father and they discover the secret about her father in the past, who also love rock music (her guitar was her father's). Although Sarina did not go back to Tokyo with him in the end, he was able to convince her grandfather about their relationship, with the proof that he wants him to come back in Fall.


 * Chie Isurugi (石動 千絵)
 * Chie is Shikanosuke's childhood friend who is one year older than him. For personal reasons, she was held back one grade so she is in same grade with Shikanosuke, Kirari, and Sarina. The leader of d2b, she seems to be a strict and honest person but also admonishes herself and is also carefree and cowardly. She is the drummer of the band, and before she received a drumset from Kenta, she practiced with a bucket, silver tub and magazines.
 * In her route, She admits her love for Shikanosuke since they were young, even when he had girlfriend, she still did not give up. It is revealed that her father's lover was pregnant. Her mother cannot take it and takes it to court, which affect her and her sisters' education. However, in the End, she forgive her father and her father's lover with the help of Shikanosuke and is looking forward to seeing her half-brother.

Supporting characters

 * Kenta Tonoya (殿谷 健太)
 * Kenta is Shikanosuke's classmate. He is the guitarist of the well-known band Star Generation in Kirakira, and also coaches d2b. He tends to be frank and cold, but he is passionate when he is talking about music. Chie gave him the nickname "Tonoyan". Shikanosuke called him "poker face."


 * Murakami (村上)
 * Murakami is Shikanosuke's friend and his former partner when he played doubles in the tennis club. He is big and macho but easily gets sentimental. His family owns the alcohol business Murakami Liquor, and he is always seen wearing Murakami Liquor T-shirts. He likes to join in on Go games, and is also in the Go club. While he could not join d2b, he teaches the d2b members about what punk rock is. In Curtain Call, he forms Happy Cycle Mania and is the guitarist.


 * Yagihara (八木原)
 * Yagihara is the leader and main vocalist of Star Generation. He discovered d2b's ability and supports them.


 * Miyuki & Mai (美雪&舞)
 * Miyuki and Mai are members of the second literary club who purposely don't specify who is who so nobody can tell them apart. When Shinosuke asks who is who, they call him a pervert. They make d2b's band uniforms.


 * Sister Yoshizawa (吉沢)
 * Sister Yoshizawa is a teacher at Ohbi Gakuen. While she seems strict, she is an understanding woman.


 * Yuko Maejima (前島 祐子)
 * Yuko is the younger sister of Shikanosuke. She follows her brother's footsteps and becomes the bassist of d2b in Curtain Call.


 * Masatsugu Kashiwara (樫原 正次)
 * Masatsugu is Sarina's grandfather and also CEO/COO of Kashiwara holdings. He is very stern and he thinks it is not good that Sarina joins the d2b band.


 * Saiki (斎木)
 * Saiki is a maid in the Kashiwara household. She is compliant to Masatsugu.


 * Akira Yashiro (屋代 彰)
 * Akira is the vocalist of the Visual kei band Panic in Nagoya. He blames Shikanosuke for his cross-dressing. Akira later becomes a guitarist for Happy Cycle Mania.


 * Mika (美佳)
 * Mika is Akira's girlfriend who is also living with him.


 * Tomo Kougure (古暮 智)
 * Tomo is the proxy booking manager at Livehouse in Osaka. Although she already had a boyfriend, she still tried to seduce Shikanosuke when they were alone in the theatre.


 * Satoh (佐藤)
 * Satoh is some sort of yakuza that Kirari meets in Osaka, but he kindly gives a Gibson Les Paul Jr. to her. Kirari gives him the nickname "Satocchi".

Development
Kirakira is the second visual novel production by Overdrive after Edelweiss. The game's producer was Hiroshi "Bamboo" Takeuchi. The scenario was written by Renya Setoguchi, and this was the final work with him as a writer. The character design and art direction was headed by Shinji Katakura who returned after his work on Edelweiss. The music was produced by the Japanese band Milktub which has Hiroshi Takeuchi as the main vocalist.

Internet radio show
An Internet radio show entitled Radio d2b was produced by Onsen and was first released as a pre-broadcast in December 2007. The main broadcasting period of the show was between January and June 2008. The program was hosted by Hiroshi Takeuchi, UR@N and Kyoichi Miyazaki. A second season began in November 2008 hosted by Takeuchi, Tomoko Nakamura (voice of Kirari Shino), Megumi Kojima (voice of Sarina Kashiwara), and Kei Mizusawa (voice of Chie Isurugi).