Eroyume

Hello! I’m Red, creator of Eroyume.

I’ve been reading visual novels for more than 10 years. I like them so much that I want to share this hobby with others. My site’s objective is to offer high quality opening videos to fans and newcomers. The majority of the games featured in these videos are playable on the PC, but I do occasionally upload a few for game consoles such as the PS2, PS3, PSP, and Xbox 360. Ultimately, I want to reach out to as many people as possible and hopefully play a role, however small, in increasing demand for the genre in the west. I dream of a day when video game retailers are stocking nearly every visual novel in English and making them available for purchase at an affordable price.

Q: What exactly are visual novels and eroge?

A: Refer to Wikipedia’s article and Micchi’s blog post.

Q: Explain the history behind Eroyume. How did it start?

A: It’s a long story, but I’ll try to keep it brief. I came up with the idea in 2008. I was a member of a little-known video streaming website called Stage6. Some of you may remember it. They were a direct competitor to YouTube and offered perfect 1:1 streaming using the DivX codec. I ran a channel there and uploaded some of my favorite visual novel OP. It was a really casual experience and not something I took too seriously. Unfortunately, DivX ran into financial problems later and had to shut down the service.

By a stroke of sheer luck, I happened to be the last user to add a video to their directory before they disabled uploading. It was for Muv-Luv Alternative. That video went viral in a matter of days, because it was right smack at the front of the page for everyone to see. Comments from users poured in asking what it was from, but I never disclosed that it was a VN. They knew it looked awesome and sounded awesome, and they liked anime, but what in the world was this shit? It was at that moment that it struck me. I had to get this out to more people.

So I moved on to YouTube, where the userbase was exponentially larger. My channel built up hundreds of videos and thousands of followers. However, it fell victim to censorship and was closed due to a terms of use violation. Ketsuage, a Japanese user who later went on to create ErogeTrailers.com, a site which now has integration with EroGameScape, took over the reigns to fill the void I had left. He messaged me saying that I inspired him to start his own project. I sent out messages in mass telling all of my subscribers that I would continue with a website of my own, a place where I would have more freedom. When it first opened, it was under the name RedInf3rno. It was later renamed to Eroyume, and that’s where we are today.

Q: Why opening videos? Why not the full games?

A: Because I’m an encoding geek and purist. Although I’m constantly giving the developers hell about how they handle their videos, the openings are actually some of the sharpest-looking on the internet, and I’m attracted to that sort of thing. As for why I don’t provide full, pirated copies of games… it’s not that I’m against the free sharing of information. I just don’t feel it’d benefit the English-speaking community very much without a translation, and that’s really the main demographic this site targets. If they just want a taste of the game, there are always playable trials provided by the developers.

Q: No news or reviews?

A: Eh, there’s already plenty of blogs covering both. You can find links to them in the sidebar. I’m also a really terrible writer. I want to play to my strengths and continue providing a service that’s unique and one-of-a-kind. I can say with confidence that I’m currently the only user offering quality encodes for visual novel OP. But if you’re aware of any others, please let me know. I like to scope out the competition, as it motivates me to improve.

Q: Do you know Japanese?

A: I know enough to play visual novels, and my proficiency in the language improves every day.

Q: I don’t understand a single word of this moonspeak. Will I be able to play visual novels, too?

A: Of course! Fan translators are always working on patches to make these games playable in English. You can find a full listing here. You should also keep a lookout for the VNTL logo in any post at this blog.

Q: Don’t most of these PC titles contain pornographic content (hentai)?

A: Indeed, they do. Anything that’s posted under the “Eroge” category is for ages 18 and older. Anything under “Visual Novel” is for all ages. However, you shouldn’t let this discourage you. Many eroge contain excellent story, art, and music. Sex scenes are not always the focal point, and sometimes an English patch will give you the option to skip them entirely.

Q: What happened to the translation patches? Didn’t you host them before?

A: In 2009, I made a repository containing every English patch that was available on the net. They were getting thousands of hits. When the DMCA takedown notices started rolling in, I knew it was time to put an end to that idea. I’ll let Aaeru and the translators deal with it.

Q: Why was Eroyume dead for two years and then suddenly revived?

A: I had a lot of obligations and responsibilities that were popping up in real life, and I could no longer devote enough time to adequately maintain this blog. Things have settled down a lot since then, and I’m more comfortable with my situation now, so that’s why I’ve returned. I intend to keep it that way.

Q: What’s all of this hoopla about world domination and taking over the world?

A: It’s an inside joke. I like to interact with the readers in that way. Any new feature or idea that I come up with is always another step towards achieving world domination in a Pinky and The Brain sort of style, except without Pinky.

Q: How can I contact you?

A: You can reach me by e-mail (eroyume@gmail.com), Twitter, Facebook, or you can leave a comment below. I check all of these regularly.