[Review] Higurashi: When They Cry

Ryukishi07's masterpiece. A true masterpiece. It was also a huge success as an anime. If the anime adaptation of "Umineko: When They Cry" hadn't been so poorly done, it would likely have been much more well-known. Ryukishi07 also worked as a story writer for Silent Hill F. If you're unfamiliar with Ryukishi's style, you might find it polarizing. For the record, I thoroughly enjoyed playing it. A characteristic of "Higurashi: When They Cry" is that all major chapter titles end with "-shi" (meaning 'time' or 'death' in Japanese). Also, in the manga adaptation, each chapter has a different illustrator. Furthermore, the question arcs are depicted with black covers, while the answer arcs have white covers. The answer arcs deliver an incredible sense of satisfaction and dopamine rush. "It connects... like this...?" The first time I saw it, it was pure shock. By the way, the original work is a Steam game, so you can enjoy it as a game. The story is simply about investigating bizarre incidents occurring in Hinamizawa and finding the culprit. "Who is the culprit?" is the starting point and the biggest spoiler. It's a loop-based story where you only reach a happy ending once you discover the culprit.