Starry Sky
Starry☆Sky is a series of Japanese otome game visual novels created and developed by the software company Honeybee. It was separated into four games, the first released in 2008, with three love interests in each, making a total of twelve possible love interests. It was well received in Japan, having Drama CDs, countless manga adaptations and a 26 episode anime adaptation. In addition, sequels of the four original games were created for both Windows and PlayStation Portable in 2008-2010 and 2011-2013 respectively.
Gameplay
The player takes control of Tsukiko Yahisa, the heroine of the Starry☆Sky games, although her name can be changed by the player. The games are primarily told in visual novel format, where the player's decisions inadvertently affects the relationships she has with potential love interests in the game.Plot
Tsukiko Yahisa is the first female student to enroll at Seigetsu Academy, a former all-boys school specializing in astronomy. She is closely watched over by her childhood friends, Kanata Nanami and Suzuya Tohzuki, who often protect her from the male student body. Throughout the games, she befriends other young men whose personalities are based on the Western zodiac constellations.In the first game, Starry☆Sky~in Spring~, not long after Tsukiko transfers to Seigetsu Academy, a half-French boy named Yoh Tomoe follows suit to pursue her. This action stirs up emotions from Kanata and Suzuya, both of whom had long loved Tsukiko.
In the second game, Starry☆Sky~in Summer~, Tsukiko has joined the academy's archery club. As she practices for the summer competition, she simultaneously solves the problems between her teammates.
In the third game, Starry☆Sky~in Autumn~, Tsukiko becomes involved with three teachers at her school.
The last game, Starry☆Sky~in Winter~, details Tsukiko's involvement with the student council, which includes Tsubasa Amaha, Kazuki Shiranui, and Hayato Aozora.
Characters
;Tsukiko YahisaSpring
;Yoh Tomoe;Kanata Nanami
;Suzuya Tohzuki
Summer
;Azusa Kinose;Homare Kanakubo
;Ryunosuke Miyaji
Autumn
;Naoshi Haruki;Iku Mizushima
;Kotarou Hoshizuki
Winter
;Kazuki Shiranui;Tsubasa Amaha
;Hayato Aozora
Special character
;Shiki KagurazakaRepresents Ophiuchus, the 13th constellation. Special "13th Character" that was introduced in the 13th secret date CD. Not much information is given. His Greek name translates to “serpent-bearer” and he is often seen holding an albino snake in many official illustrations. In the fourth game Starry Sky in Winter it's mentioned that he has greater, stranger power than Kazuki Shiranui.
Minor characters
;Idiot Trio;Oushirou Shirogane
;Takatsugu Izumi
;Haru Oshinari
;Makoto Haruna
Family
;Raoul Mathias Jean Aimée;Tomoe Imari
;Mayumi Nanami
;Sayuri Touzukii
Development
All character designs, covers, and background art were digitally painted by Kazuaki. However, in October 2010, Japanese netizens accused her of using copyrighted stock images as references without permission. As a result, both Honeybee and Kazuaki issued formal apologies on their websites and the release of the first spinoff game, Starry☆Sky~After Spring~, was pushed back.In 2011, JAST USA announced it was considering licensing the Starry Sky series for an English release. However, the plans were later dropped due to the high cost of fees that would have had to be paid to the voice actors.
Media
Game
Starry☆Sky was separated into four games, each one taking place in a different season with three possible love interests, for the PC. The first game, Starry☆Sky~in Spring~, was released on March 27, 2009. The opening theme song was titled Starry Sky and was performed by Hikaru Midorikawa, the voice of Yoh Tomoe. Following its release, the second installment, Starry☆Sky~in Summer~ was released on June 26, 2009. The opening theme song was titled Shoot High and was performed by Hiroshi Kamiya, the voice of Ryunosuke Miyaji. The third game, Starry☆Sky~in Autumn~, was released on September 25, 2009, and its theme song was Lies, Truth, and Our Destiny performed by Daisuke Kishio, the voice of Naoshi Haruki. The last game, Starry☆Sky~in Winter~, was released on December 25, 2009, and the opening theme song was Grayed Out performed by Yuichi Nakamura, the voice of Kazuki Shiranui. Starting in 2010, all four games were ported onto the PlayStation Portable.The original games were followed by a spin-off, which takes place between the epilogue and the original time of the game. Starry☆Sky~After Spring~ was the first of the spin-off games to release onto the PC, but its release was postponed from November 26, 2010 to December 10, 2010 due to accusations of character art designer Kazuaki plagiarizing.
CDs
The limited edition of all the games were bundled with a CD with the full version of the opening theme and a separate drama CD featuring the male characters in the game. A full-length drama CD for the spring characters was released on August 28, 2009. In addition, a soundtrack for the game's music was released on September 25, 2009.Throughout 2009, twelve date CDs were released monthly, starting with Yoh Tomoe on January 30, 2009, to Azusa Kinose on December 25, 2009. The date CDs feature the voice actors for each of the twelve possible love interests in the game and simulate a date and a romance between the listener and the character. Each CD came with a special coupon. If the coupons from all twelve CDs were submitted to Honeybee at the end of the year, one would receive a secret date CD featuring a 13th character, Shiki Kagurazaka, who represents the Ophiuchus, the 13th constellation.
Manga
Short manga stories about the characters of each game have been collected into anthologies by DNA Media Comics. Starry☆Sky~in Spring~ Comic Anthology was released on October 24, 2009, and features all the characters from the spring game. Similarly, Starry☆Sky~in Summer~ Comic Anthology was released on December 25, 2009.Anime
An anime adaptation was distributed through Animate.tv's website and Sun TV. It was written by Makoto Nakamura and directed by Kiyoko Sayama.There are 26 episodes lasting 11 minutes each. First airing of the episodes was on Animate.tv in beginning of February 2008. In February 2011, Sun TV started also simulcasting this series, airing two parts episodes of this series as a whole episode. They are done in an episodic format, with each episode focusing on one character or subset of characters from the storyline.
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