Narcissu 10th Anniversary Anthology Kickstarter launches

Having already succesfully released both Narcissu visual novels in English on Steam absolutely free, Sekai Project are now teaming up with its original creators for a new Kickstarter project which aims to both remake those original games and add some new stories to this tale of terminal illness, life and death.

The project is looking to raise US $75,000 (over a third of which has been raised at the time of writing), and if successful four titles will be released between late November 2015 and February 2016.

Here's the press release from Sekai Project themselves:

Narcissu 10th Anniversary Anthology Project Launches on Kickstarter

Sekai Project and Stage-nana team up to develop and produce the definitive Narcissu anthology

Los Angeles – October 26, 2015 – A team of talent is reuniting to revisit the 7th floor and recreate one of the most memorable series of visual novels. Sekai Project, along with Stage-nana, the original creators of Narcissu, have launched a Kickstarter campaign for a full remake of the Narcissu anthology. With fan support and a successful Kickstarter campaign, Sekai Project and Stage-nana are planning to release the fully-recreated series of games, plus an entirely new scenario on PC within an unprecedented 6-month time frame.

The original installment of Narcissu was released in Japan in 2005 for Windows-based PCs. The mixture of real-life, relatable scenarios, overarching existentialism, and the longing to find purpose in life turned the title into a fan favorite. It is a series that explores themes about terminal illness, and the relationship between the living and the dying. The series eventually became well known for its high production quality and touching story, and has been downloaded over a million times worldwide. Since its release there have been numerous spin offs, including a manga, a light novel, even mobile apps, and the series has also been translated by fans into several different languages.

“2015 marks the 10th anniversary of Narcissu, so it is the perfect time to revisit the 7th floor and recreate the experience from the ground floor up,” says Raymond Qian, CEO of Sekai Project. “The visual novel community has kept their fingers firmly placed on the pulse of Narcissu, keeping it alive and well over the last decade, and it is high time that their loyalty goes noticed and rewarded. Working directly with Stage-nana we will recreate the original titles and add an all-new scenario turning it into the definitive anthology.”

With fan support, the Narcissu 10th Anniversary Anthology Project will be a fantastic series of visual novels with new art, re-recorded voices, and an entirely new scenario!

Sekai Project and Stage-nana are in the process of developing and producing 4 titles as part of the Narcissu 10th Anniversary Anthology Project:

Sumire - An entirely new chapter in the Narcissu series

Zero - The origin story of the 7th Floor

A Little Iris - A separate side story set in medieval Europe

Himeko's Epilogue - A short epilogue for Narcissu 2

A wide range of fantastic Narcissu merchandise and one-of-a-kind, exclusive items are available to backers of the project, including T-shirts, tapestries, soundtracks, visual fan books, collector’s boxes, hand-drawn color shikishis, and even dinner with the creator, Tomo Kataoka at Anime Expo 2016!

You can find out more, or back the project yourself, at the relevant Kickstarter campaign page.