| Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni: Operation Sanctuary | |
| 月は東に日は西に 〜Operation Sanctuary〜 | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Comedy, Romance, Science Fiction |
| Video game | |
| Developer | August |
| Publisher | August (Windows) Alchemist (DC, PS2) |
| Genre | Eroge, Visual novel |
| Platform | Windows, Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 |
| Released |
|
| Light novel | |
| Written by | Runa Okada |
| Illustrated by | Bekkankō |
| Published by | Harvest |
| Demographic | Male |
| Original run | March 25, 2004 – May 25, 2004 |
| Volumes | 3 |
| Light novel | |
| Written by | Kiichi Kanō Runa Okada |
| Illustrated by | Bekkankō |
| Published by | Gakken |
| Magazine | Megami Magazine |
| Demographic | Male |
| Original run | June 2004 – December 2004 |
| Volumes | 1 |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Shōji Jinno |
| Music by | Akifumi Tada |
| Studio | Radix |
| Original network | AT-X |
| Original run | June 30, 2004 – September 22, 2004 |
| Episodes | 13 |
| Manga | |
| Written by | August |
| Illustrated by | Mika Takeda |
| Published by | MediaWorks |
| Magazine | Dengeki G's Magazine |
| Demographic | Seinen |
| Original run | July 2004 – December 2004 |
| Volumes | 1 |
| Original video animation | |
| Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni: Operation Sanctuary Another Story | |
| Directed by | Shōji Jinno |
| Music by | Akifumi Tada |
| Studio | Radix |
| Released | December 22, 2004 |
| Runtime | 12 minutes each |
| Episodes | 4 |
Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni: Operation Sanctuary (月は東に日は西に 〜Operation Sanctuary〜, The Moon in the East, The Sun in the West ~Operation Sanctuary~), known as Hanihani (はにはに) for short, is a Japanese adult visual novel developed by August. It was released on September 26, 2003 for Windows PCs.
Gameplay
editHanihani is a romance visual novel in which the player assumes the role of Naoki Kuzumi. Much of its gameplay is spent reading the text that appears on the screen, which represents the story's narrative and dialogue. The text is accompanied by character sprites, which represent who Naoki is talking to, over background art. When a character other than the protagonist is talking, their facial expression is displayed on the lower left side of the screen. Throughout the game, the player encounters CG artwork at certain points in the story, which take the place of the background art and character sprites.[1]
There are six main story routes in the original Windows release that the player will have the chance to experience, one for each heroine. Throughout the game, the player is given multiple options to choose from, and text progression pauses at these points until the player makes a decision.[1] These decision points can affect the player's favorability with a heroine and how the story progresses forward. There are hentai CGs depicting Naoki and a given heroine having sex in the Windows release. In the Dreamcast and PlayStation 2 ports of Hanihani, however, all adult content was removed.
Plot
editStory
editNaoki Kuzumi's parents died in an accident five years ago and his memory went along with it. Since he had nowhere else to go, he moved in with his cousin Matsuri Shibugaki and her parents. In the present day, Naoki lives out his normal high school life at Hasumidai Academy (蓮美台学園, Hasumidai Gakuen). Every morning before school, he is awakened by his childhood friend Honami Fujieda who scolds him and tells him he is not a child anymore. However, these ordinary high school days come to an abrupt end when, out of nowhere, a girl falls from the sky while Naoki is having a peaceful nap on the school's rooftop. The girl, Mikoto Amagasaki, came from a hundred years in the future and traveled back in time with the intention of finding her brother, who she mistakes Naoki for. Mikoto ends up transferring to Naoki's school and living in the school dormitory.
In Mikoto's time, a deadly infectious virus called "Marbas" has spread all over the world, causing the global population to drop by tens of thousands. People of the future took action by evacuating to the 21st century with space-time transfer devices to take refuge and study antibodies. This program was called "Operation Sanctuary", and all personnel must attend Hasumidai Academy as a student or teacher. As Naoki is romancing with a love interest of the player's choosing, he becomes more deeply involved in Operation Sanctuary. The first half of the story focuses on Naoki's high school life, and the second half focuses on the Operation Sanctuary storyline.
Main characters
editThe player assumes the role of Naoki Kuzumi (久住 直樹, Kuzumi Naoki), who lost his memories five years ago when his parents died in an accident. He is a second-year student at Hasumidai Academy. Despite seeming carefree and lazy because of his sleeping during class, forgetting homework and receiving poor grades, he has a kind personality that shows when someone is in need. Around the beginning of the story, Naoki meets Mikoto Amagasaki (天ヶ崎 美琴, Amagasaki Mikoto, voiced by Junko Kusayanagi), the main heroine of Hanihani who mysteriously fell from the sky—she is later revealed to be a time traveler from the future. After transferring to Hasumidai Academy, Mikoto becomes a member of the astronomy club, which Naoki is a part of. Mikoto has a cheerful and innocent disposition and she is easy to get along with. Honami Fujieda (藤枝 保奈美, Fujieda Honami, voiced by Sakiko Mimura) is Naoki's gentle and kind childhood friend who wakes him up for school every day. She tells Naoki that he is not a child anymore but continues to care for him regardless. Her good looks and excellent grades make her popular with boys at school.
Five years prior to the story, Naoki moved in with his younger cousin Matsuri Shibugaki (渋垣 茉理, Shibugaki Matsuri, voiced by Mahiru Kaneda) and her parents. Matsuri can come across as a tomboy, although she also has a girly side and secretly owns lots of shōjo manga. She works a part-time job at the school cafeteria. Matsuri's best friend and classmate is Chihiro Tachibana (橘 ちひろ, Tachibana Chihiro, voiced by Minami Hokuto), who is the sole member of the gardening club. She is very shy and modest and loves caring for plants and animals. Chihiro currently lives in Hasumidai Academy's student dormitory, along with Mikoto. Kyōko Nishina (仁科 恭子, Nishina Kyōko, voiced by Yuki Iwata) is Hasumidai's school nurse who is popular with male students for her youth, style, and looks. She has a friendly but elegant demeanor, and she serves snacks such as rice crackers in the infirmary as she wants her workplace to be an easygoing environment. Kyōko is researching Marbas, the virus that causes an outbreak one hundred years in the future, to find a vaccine. Naoki's homeroom teacher is Yui Nonohara (野乃原 結, Nonohara Yui, voiced by Ayaka Kimura), who is beloved by students for her short height. Due to her unusually small stature, she was mistaken for a student on her first day at Hasumidai Academy. She is friends with Kyōko and also advises the astronomy club. Yui has an important role in Operation Sanctuary: managing the space-time transfer devices.
Development and release
editThe title of the game was taken from a haiku by Yosa Buson: "Nanohana ya tsuki wa higashi ni hi wa nishi ni" (菜の花や月は東に日は西に, lit. Rapeseed blossoms, the moon in the east, the sun in the west). Hanihani was built using the NScripter engine and was August's first attempt at a visual novel with full voice acting, excluding the protagonist, Naoki. Rune directed production on the game, and the background music (BGM) was composed by Loopcube. The game's scenario was written by three members of staff: Taku Sakakibara, Hiroyuki Uchida, and Hideaki Anzai. Sakakibara was the main writer of Binary Pot and Princess Holiday, August's two previous visual novels. Bekkankō, who has illustrated characters for every August visual novel, is the game's artist and character designer.
August publicized the game as a "busy school life adventure" (東奔西走スクールライフアドベンチャー, tōhonseisō sukūru raifu adobenchā). On September 26, 2003, Hanihani was released as a CD for Windows PCs compatible to the Windows 98/ME/2000/XP operating systems.[2] The limited release included a mousepad and three beermats. Alchemist has released two consumer console ports of the game: the Dreamcast version came first on June 24, 2004, and a PlayStation 2 version was released later in the same year on October 7, 2004. The sex scenes were removed in the Dreamcast and PS2 versions, which were rated for audiences aged fifteen and over. The consumer ports add new gameplay mechanics, new storylines and endings, and introduce an additional heroine, Yuka Hirose. A supporting character from the PC version, Fumio Akiyama, is also promoted to a main heroine.
Related media
editPrint media
editA manga adaptation of Hanihani, which was illustrated by Mika Takeda, was serialized in ASCII Media Works' (previously MediaWorks) Dengeki G's Magazine between July and December 2004. The individual chapters were later compiled into a single bound volume and released under the Dengeki Comics imprint on January 27, 2005. Mikoto Amagasaki is the central focus of the manga's story; however, there is an additional story revolving around Fumio Akiyama. Entertain released a comic anthology titled Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni Anthology Comic on January 29, 2004, under their Magi-Cu Comics imprint.
Three adult light novels based on the game were published by Harvest and released under their Harvest Novels imprint between March 25 and May 25, 2004. The novels were written by Runa Okada, a contributing writer in the Dreamcast and PS2 version of the visual novel, and illustrated by Bekkankō, the visual novel's original artist. A collection of illustrated short stories based on the Hanihani anime were serialized between the June and December issues of Gakken's Megami Magazine in 2004. The stories, each focusing on a different heroine, were written by Kiichi Kanō and Runa Okada, and illustrations were drawn by Bekkankō. Kanō was a scenario writer for Fumio's story in the console versions of Hanihani. The stories were later released in the form of a 175-page light novel under Gakken's Megami Bunko imprint on December 25, 2004. The book includes one additional story that was never published in Megami Magazine.
A 64-page prelude book titled Tech Gian Prelude "Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni" was published by Enterbrain on September 21, 2003. The book included character introductions and setting materials, as well as a CD-ROM in the book's appendix which contained a trial version of Hanihani and desktop accessories such as wallpaper and a calendar. SoftBank Creative published a 207-page visual fan book that included character and story introductions, six newly written short stories, and an original drama CD. The first edition, which included a vinyl case and two A2 posters, was released on March 30, 2004. The regular edition was released on July 30, 2004. A 113-page guidebook for the Dreamcast and PS2 ports of the game, titled Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni: Operation Sanctuary Complete Guide, was published by MediaWorks on November 11, 2004. The guidebook includes Yuka Hirose's after story, setting materials, sixty-eight drawn visuals, and other miscellaneous content.
Anime
editAn anime adaptation was produced by animation studio Radix and directed by Shōji Jinno. The anime was based on Honami's scenario from the original game. Twelve episodes and one special episode were broadcast between June 30 and September 22, 2004 on AT-X, BS Asahi, Shin-etsu Broadcasting, Kunamoto Broadcasting, and the Japanese Association of Independent Television Stations. Geneon Entertainment released four DVDs between October 22 and December 22, 2004. A four-episode original video animation (OVA) series titled Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni: Operation Sanctuary Another Story was contained in volume four, which offers an alternate ending for the anime based on Mikoto's scenario from the game. Each episode of the anime is roughly 12 minutes long.
Radio shows and drama CDs
editMusic
editThe game's opening theme "divergent flow" and ending theme "Ashita no Omoide" (明日の想い出, Memories of Tomorrow) are both sang by Mayu. The six heroines of the original game have background music leitmotifs—Mikoto's theme is "Get Outgoing!"; Honami's theme is "Straight at Me"; Chihiro's theme is "Silky Wave" (シルキーウェーブ, Shirukī Ueebu); Mari's theme is "Hidamari Rocket" (陽だまりロケット, Hidamari Roketto, Sunshine Rocket); Kyōko's theme is "Mature Mind"; lastly, Yui's theme is "Puchipuchi Float" (プチプチフロート, Puchipuchi Furōto, Bubblewrap Float). The original soundtrack for the game was released on January 23, 2004, containing two CDs containing 38 tracks. The soundtrack includes the theme songs "divergent flow" and "Ashita no Omoide", background music used in the game, character leitmotifs, and remixes.
The opening theme for the anime is "amulet" by Mayumi Iizuka, who also provides vocals for the image song "Happy go! let's go!" which is used in the anime. A maxi single containing both of these songs and their karaoke versions was released by Frontier Works on August 25, 2004. Frontier Works released the anime's original soundtrack on October 22, 2004, titled Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni: Operation Sanctuary Original Soundtrack and Minidrama. The soundtrack contains one CD containing 26 tracks. The theme song "amulet" is included in addition to a drama track.