“Playing as Shiori Kanzaki, you will get to enjoy her visit to Azakawa Village, right up until you are plunged into a world of fear. Every aspect of the game, from the story to the visuals, has been updated in this complete remake of the original from nine years ago.”
Originally released in 2013 by game developer Makoto Sanada, Forest of Drizzling Rain is a horror exploration game following the college student Shiori Kanzaki who recently lost both her parents to a car crash on her birthday. With no other close family, she becomes intrigued after finding a photo of herself and her parents with an unfamiliar old man. On the back of the photo is a handwritten note revealing the man to be her grandfather and the location to be Azaka village. After traveling to the village, it’s your job to unravel the mystery of your lost memories and the legend of the child stealing Kotori Obake.
Forest of Drizzling Rain was released for free during the rise of other popular RPG Maker style horror titles, such as The Witches House, Ib, and Mad Father. While it never achieved the same level of recognition as these other titles in the United States, it blew up in Japan, spawning novels, a four volume manga adaption, merchandise, and a drama CD.
Those who experienced Shiori’s story found something truly special, with a mature and horrific story. I’m excited to return to this story once again in The Forest of Drizzling Rain remake.
The remake boasts completely recreated graphics alongside other exciting changes. Listed on The Forest of Drizzling Rain’s Steam page are the following updates to the game:
- More endings to pursue and a special scenario for players who conquer all of them
- An additional chapter during which you can walk around Azakawa Village, chat with villagers, or go fishing
- Meet new characters with new storylines
- Rewritten conversations and events with a completely remade map
- A “shocking new scenario which paints a deeper picture of the sad truth that has haunted Azakawa Village for the past several hundred years”
The Forest of Drizzling Rain is scheduled for release in the fall of 2022, which is coming up fast! With all the additional media releases since the game’s debut nine years ago, it’ll be interesting to see how Sanada alters and expands the remake. In the meantime, why not try the original? You can still find it for free translated into several languages.
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