Well guys, it finally happened. The long, long wait is finally over.
As of now, the 8th of July 2016, you can purchase a fully localised English language release of Umineko When They Cry Episodes 1-4 on PC! It’s the dream we’ve held for so many years; the 1 in 2,578,917 miracle we never thought would happen. And yet here we are, standing in a fragment where you can actually buy Umineko right now and gift it to all those friends who promised they’d read it eventually.
To all you watching at home who weren’t part of the aforementioned ‘we’, you have reason to be excited. Umineko is the kind of story you’ll only find once every decade. The kind of cult classic that’s built around itself a legion of dedicated fans who continue to excitedly discuss the series to this day, the kind of fandom that saw the need for Rokkenjima to exist right now. Not only is it a love letter to the detective fiction genre, it’s full of deep, memorable characters you’ll learn to love, hate, and love again. It’s a beautiful banquet of philosophy and epistemology that will challenge your view of reality, and cause you to think in ways you’d never considered before. It’s a story that seeks to impart the beauty of humanity, but also the grotesque capacity of any one of us to commit horrible atrocities. And for anybody who loves to dig deep into a universe and forge their own theories of how things are, there’s more than just a murder mystery to keep you entertained. If any of this sounds exciting to you, then I’m sure you’ll thank yourself for taking the dive to purchase Umineko.
I’m especially excited about this release, because it means we’ll be seeing a whole new generation of readers inducted into Mr. Ryukishi’s wild ride. The only issue I can foresee is if people looking to discuss the series end up getting spoiled by some random website on the internet. To this end, I hope that Rokkenjima here can be instrumental in providing a space for people new to the series to explore their thoughts and ideas without worrying about their experience being ruined by the veterans.
To commemorate this release, and to contribute to this goal, Rokkenjima is hosting an event we’ve dubbed the Umineko Tea Party. For the next three weeks, we invite everyone to read through Umineko Episode 1 at their own pace, and once they are finished, join us on the forum to share their thoughts on what they just read, and collaborate with others new to the series to speculate and generate theories together. It’s a lot like a book club! At the end of the three weeks a select few of the community will come together to record a podcast incorporating all the discussion brought up. It should be an amazing experience, so I hope you’ll consider joining us.
Well, what else can I say? Umineko is out people, go buy it! Go buy a copy for your friend! The golden age is finally upon us.
