Koihime Musō

Koihime Musō: Doki Otome Darake no Sangokushi Engi (恋姫†無双 ～ドキッ☆乙女だらけの三国志演義～) is a Japanese adult visual novel and strategy game based on the classic Chinese novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. It was developed by BaseSon, and was first released on January 26, 2007, for the PC as two DVD-ROMs, followed by a re-release on April 11, 2008, containing an extra CD-ROM. The gameplay in Koihime Musō follows a linear plot line, which offers pre-determined scenarios and courses of interaction, and focuses on the appeal of the female main characters. A PlayStation 2 version, titled Koihime Musō (恋姫†夢想) developed by Yeti and published by Regista was released on October 30, 2008. A new version of Koihime with many new characters Shin Koihime Musō: Otome Ryōran Sangokushi Engi (真・恋姫†無双 〜乙女繚乱☆三国志演義〜) was released on December 26, 2008. European game publisher MangaGamer recently announced that they have acquired licensing rights to the first game and have slated its release at Janurary 31st, 2011.

Koihime Musō: Doki Otome Darake no Sangokushi Engi has made several transitions to other media. A manga adaptation by Japanese illustrator Yayoi Hizuki was first serialized in the Japanese magazine Dengeki G's Festival! Comic on April 26, 2008. An anime adaptation produced by Dogakobo began broadcasting on July 8, 2008, and several seasons have continued.

Settings
The game is set in ancient China during and after the fall of the Han dynasty with some major difference, most notably; Most of the male characters in the novel have become female and The Three kingdoms that were formed after the Han Dynasty, have already been established earlier. Despite each kingdom ruled by an independent monarchy, the three kingdoms are still loyal to the Han empire. However, the empire is on the verge of collapse as civil unrest, banditry and infighting bring turmoil to the nation.

As the empire finally collapse and warlords wage war with each other, amidst the turmoil several major factions are formed, ready to rule and unite the fractured nation. These major factions (5 in Koihime Musō, 7 in the sequel) are the Shoku faction (Chinese: 蜀, Shǔ) led by Kazuto Hongō in Koihime Musō and in the sequel, Queen Ryūbi of the Kingdom of Shu, the Gi faction (Chinese: 魏, Wèi) led by Queen Sōsō of the Kingdom of Wei, the Go faction (Chinese: 吳, Wú) led by Princess Sonken of the Kingdom of Wu and in the sequel, her older sister Queen Sonsaku, the Tōtaku faction (Chinese: 董卓, Dong Zhuo) led by Governess Tōtaku, Governor of Dong province, the En/Yuan faction led by Lady Enshō, Lord of Yuan province, and in the sequel the Kōkintō/Yellow Turban Rebels led by the Zhang sisters, Chōkaku, Chōhō and Chōryō and the Nanban/Southern Barbarians led by Mōkaku. (The anime is set before the Han empire fell and before the power struggle between the warlords began.)

Development
Koihime Musō is the fifth game developed by BaseSon, known for creating their first title, One2: Eien no Yakusoku, sequel to Tactics' One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e. Direction and planning for Kohime Musō was done by K. Baggio, who has also provided scenario used in the game, along with fellow writers Izumi Kumashiro, Takuya Aoyama, Assault, and Shiina Arai. Art direction and character designs were split between five people, Kanan Yatsuha, Kantaka, Hinata Katagiri, Eiji Hikage, and Hokuto Saeki. Music in the game was provided by Takumaru, Ryō Mizutsuki, and Ichinoryū Uehara.

Release history
Koihime Musō was first available to public on January 26, 2007, as an adult game playable only on Microsoft Windows PCs as two DVD-ROMs. It was subsequently followed by a re-release on April 11, 2008. While the gameplay and scenario in the game is essentially the same, an extra fandisc not available in the original version titled Sheishei Musō (謝謝†無双) was included with the re-release as a CD-ROM. An all-ages consumer port for the PlayStation 2, retitled as Koihime Musō (恋姫†夢想), developed by Yeti and published by Regista will be released on October 30, 2008. An enhanced re-release of Koihime Musō, Shin Koihime Musō: Otome Ryōran Sangokushi Engi (真・恋姫†無双 〜乙女繚乱☆三国志演義〜) was released on December 26, 2008, with extended scenario. An English translation of Koihime Musō was recently announced by European publisher MangaGamer for release in 2010.

Manga
A manga adaptation based on the original visual novel drawn by Japanese illustrator Yayoi Hizuki, with its title renamed as Koihime Musō (恋姫†夢想) began serialization in the second issue of the manga magazine Dengeki G's Festival! Comic published by ASCII Media Works on April 26, 2008.

Anime
An anime adaptation produced by Dogakobo began broadcasting in Japan on July 8, 2008 on the Tokyo MX TV and the Chiba TV broadcasting networks, followed by other broadcasting networks later during the same month. The anime series, with its title shortened to simply Koihime Musō, featured a story very different to that found in the original visual novel. The original protagonist, Hongo Kazuto, is not present in the anime, nor does the grand battle between the three kingdoms take place. Instead, it feature Kan'u's adventure in China, meeting many other characters from the game along the way. The anime is among those noted for sometimes depicting the characters in an exaggerated super deformed manner. After the last episode aired, it was announced an OVA was in production and it will follow the games plot. The OVA was released on April 1, 2009, and actually featured all the characters in an alternate setting - that of a modern highschool. The second season of anime, a series based on the second game, entitled Shin Koihime Musō (真・恋姫†無双), continue where the last season left off, aired from October 5, 2009 to December 2009. The third season began airing April 2010, titled Shin Koihime Musō: Otome Tairan (真・恋姫†無双 ～乙女大乱～). The first season has been licensed in North America by Sentai Filmworks; distributor Section23 Films will release the first season on DVD on January 4, 2011.

Music
The visual novel has four main theme songs, one promotion theme, one opening theme, one insert song, and one ending theme. The promotion theme was "Sōten no Mukō e" (蒼天の向こうへ), and was performed by ☆396☆. The opening theme song was "Hφwling Sφul", which was performed by Rekka Katakiri. The insert theme was "Kuon: Utakata" (久遠 〜詩歌侘〜), while the ending theme was "Shizai Senri: Koihime Yobite Hyakka no Ō to Nasu" (志在千里 〜恋姫喚作百花王〜), both performed by Chata. All of the songs were composed and arranged by Takumaru, with the lyrics written by K. Bajjo.

The opening for Shin Koihime Musou is called "HE∀ting Sφul" also by Rekka Katakiri. The ending song is a Piano Arranged version of "Shizai Senri: Koihime Yobite Hyakka no Ō to Nasu" (志在千里 〜恋姫喚作百花王〜) by Chata.

The anime has two theme songs. The opening theme, titled "Flower of Bravery", was performed by fripSide, and was composed and written by Chiyomaru Shikura, and arranged by Satoshi Yaginuma. The ending theme, titled "Yappari Sekai wa Atashi☆Legend!!" (やっぱり世界はあたし☆れじぇんど!!) was performed by fripSide NAO project!, composed and arranged by Satoshi Yaginuma, and written by Nao, Shinichirō Yamashita, and Satoshi Yaginuma.

The anime adaptation of Shin Koihime Musou also has two theme songs. The opening is titled "Tōen no Chikai" (闘艶結義〜トウエンノチカイ〜), also performed by Rekka Katakiri. The ending is titled "Otome Ryouran☆Battle PARTY" (乙女繚乱☆ばとるPARTY) by Mai Goto, Nami Kurokawa and Hiroka Nishizawa. They also voice lead characters Ryūbi, Kan'u and Chōhi respectively.