The Witch's House MV
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| The Witch's House MV | |
|---|---|
 The Witch's House: The Diary of Ellen, Vol. 2 cover | |
| Developer(s) | Fummy |
| Publisher(s) |
|
| Engine | RPG Maker VX RPG Maker MV (Remake) |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Adventure horror |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
The Witch's House MV is a puzzle horror game created by the Japanese developer Fummy (ふみー) using the RPG Maker MV engine. It was published by DANGEN Entertainment and released for Windows and macOS on October 31, 2018, with a port to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One following in October 2022.[2] It is a remake of The Witch's House,[a] a freeware game created using RPG Maker VX that was first released on October 3, 2012 for Windows.[3]
A prequel novel titled The Witch's House: The Diary of Ellen serves as the in-game diary of the game antagonist Ellen.[4] Starting in 2017, the novel was adapted into a nine-part manga series of the same name illustrated by Yuna Kagesaki, and then condensed into two tankōbon volumes.[5]
Gameplay
[edit]The game is a survival horror game in which the main goal is to solve all puzzles correctly and escape the witch's house. It contains a creepy atmosphere, complex riddles and jump scares. This game is played from bird's-eye view using ornate 16-bit graphics, and controlled via keyboard.[3][6]
A black, talking cat can be met at various places in the house, serving as a save point, as well as something of a companion. Throughout the vast majority of the game, the cat is the only source of conversation, usually talking in a casual, nonchalant manner.[3][6]
The player character, however, doesn't have any response until the ending of the game. Fummy stated they were influenced by the previous RPG Maker game Ib.[7]
Plot
[edit]Viola, a 13-year-old girl awakes in the middle of a forest. The only way out of the woods is blocked by a wall of thorns. Viola looks for another way out of the forest. On her way, she finds an old mansion. As night is turning in, Viola decides to enter the house.
When she entered the mansion, Viola shockingly finds out that the entrance has vanished. Now, Viola tries to find a possibility to leave the old mansion. She also, gets to know that there are dangers hiding in every corner of the mansion. On her way to find a way out of the house Viola meets a black cat with the ability to speak. She tells Viola the backstory of the mansion and the girl which is living in it. Viola is trapped in the house of the witch Ellen, who was affected by an unknown illness and neglected by her parents. The black cat itself turned out to be a demon who gave Ellen her magic powers.
The game has several endings which can be achieved depending on the gameplay, the decisions and the actions the player has made during the game. In two of those endings it is revealed that Ellen took over Violas body trying to trap her inside the mansion to regain her body.
Media
[edit]Fummy, who developed and published the original game in 2012 as freeware, wrote a light novel which tells the backstory of Ellen before meeting the demon and becoming a witch. The book was released on October 31, 2013 via Japanese publisher Enterbrain under the name 魔女の家 エレンの日記 (Majo no Ie: Ellen no Nikki) with illustrations done by Oguchi.[8] A Chinese-languaged localization was published via Chingwing Publishing.[9]
In May 2017, mangaka Yuna Kagesaki started a manga based on the novel.[10] It was first released in the Dragon Age magazin of publisher Kadokawa Shoten and was collected in two tankōbon volumes.[11] American publisher Yen Press licensed the manga for an English release.[12]
Legacy
[edit]Clockwork Prince's 2016 Lavender lists The Witch's House in its dev room as inspiring the game's dual endings.[13]
Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Japanese horror RPG The Witch's House MV launches October 31". Gematsu. 16 October 2018. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
- ^ "The Witch's House MV Hitting Consoles in October". rpgamer.com. 29 September 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
- ^ a b c Fummy. "Majo no Ie Gēmu Gaiyō" 魔女の家 ゲーム概要 [Witch's House Game Overview]. The Witch's House (in Japanese). Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ Fummy (31 December 2019). The Witch's House: The Diary of Ellen. Translated by vgperson (2nd ed.). Fummy.
- ^ "The Witch's House". www.amazon.com. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
- ^ a b Dora (17 November 2012). "The Witch's House". JayIsGames. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ "The Witch's House MV - Fummy Interview Answers! - Steam News". store.steampowered.com. 7 May 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
- ^ "『魔女の家 エレンの日記』＆『幼女戦記』の小説が本日(10月31日)2冊同時発売". Famitsu (in Japanese). 31 October 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ "魔女之家 艾蓮日記". Chingwing Publishing (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 6 September 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ Rafael Antonio Pineda (10 May 2017). "Chibi Vampire's Kagesaki Launches Manga Based on The Witch's House Prequel Novel". Anime News Network. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ Rafael Antonio Pineda (8 February 2018). "Yuna Kagesaki's The Witch's House Manga Ends". Anime News Network. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ Karen Ressler (8 July 2018). "Yen Press Licenses Happy Sugar Life, Kakegurui Twins Manga, Penguin Highway, Walk on Girl, Mirai Novels (Updated)". Anime News Network. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ "Lavender by Clockwork Prince". itch.io. Retrieved 18 September 2022.