Written by Rastafoo69, edited by Otaku Apologist
Nekopara 2, a visual novel developed by NEKO WORKS. Released February 20, 2016. Download on DLSite for $22.00. Free demo available. For PC Windows, Playstation 4, and Nintendo Switch. Full Japanese voice acting. Censored genitals. Available in English, Chinese, and Japanese.
Your family’s six catgirls are working as maids for your bakery! But two of these girls are always fighting! Do your best to keep them together, or it’ll tear your sex pet harem apart!
Want to know more about Nekopara? Read our overview of this adult game series.
STORY
While Nekopara 1 focused on the youngest two siblings (Chocola and Vanilla), this game focuses on an unlikely pairing. Azuki and Coconut! Azuki is the shortest catgirl, but she’s also the oldest. A big sister who insults people to hide her true feelings. Coconut is the tallest catgirl, but she’s also one of the youngest. Sensitive and insecure, Coconut is a goofball who feels pressured to act like an adult. And when Azuki insults her, Coconut always takes it to heart.
This is my absolute favorite entry in the series. While the first game was burdened by explaining the lore, this game gets right into the fun! And since the setting is already established, the focus can go to returning characters like Shigure and Milk.
Speaking of, this is the last game where Shigure expressed romantic desires for the protagonist. She gets a massive nosebleed and talks about her dreams to become your lover. She also implies she watches internet porn. After this game, her perverted side is ignored.
The writer perfectly balances comedy with emotion. One moment you’re laughing because people order products on “Amazoom”, and the next moment you’re crying your eyes out listening to Coconut’s feelings. To feel like a burden, like you’re not good enough, is something that everybody can relate to.
At the end of the game, Coconut and Azuki become your lovers. I guess you’re fucking two catgirls per game! It’s explicitly stated that you’ll be courting and pumping the tight pussies of Maple and Cinnamon in Nekopara 3.
GAMEPLAY
Nekopara 2 is a kinetic novel with all the standard features. Press CTRL to fast forward. Scroll to access the text log. Right click to hide the text boxes. You can save your progress into multiple slots or use the quicksave feature for smooth bookmarking.
This game uses the interactive “touch system” introduced in Nekopara 0. At the top right corner of the screen, players can activate touch mode to give out headpats and other actions whenever you feel like.
GRAPHICS
The visuals in this game are beautiful, and consistent with the previous installment. Multiple assets are reused. For example, chibi art from the previous game is simply redrawn with maid outfits. And the artwork of Chocola and Vanilla sleeping in bed with Kashou is taken from the previous game. While it’s a cost-cutting trick by the developer, the vast majority of CG images are new and unique to this game.
The emote system is used much more than in the previous title. Characters shake their heads when they disagree, and ear movement clearly conveys their state of mind. For example, a girl’s ears may flop down when sad.
Another improvement this game has over the original is the addition of animated talking heads. These are located at the bottom-left corner of the screen. This allows you to see character expressions and reactions without standing art. In other words, you’ll have a full view of what’s in front of you. This is a fantastic addition, and a common sense improvement on the original.
As with the previous title, the entire game is full animated and absolutely gorgeous to view. Plenty of variation images are used alongside the base CG to convey changes in emotion.
My only complaint is a glaring flaw at a crucial moment in the story. Coconut was crying two seconds earlier, but suddenly her standing art shows her smiling! And all her tears are gone too! It seems the developer didn’t want to redraw the standing art to show tear-stained eyes. He cut corners for the first time, and it was very noticeable.
VOICE ACTING AND SOUND EFFECTS (SFX)
All voice actresses remain consistent throughout the Nekopara series. Any change in tone or delivery is explained via the storyline. For example, Coconut seemed a bit more mature in Nekopara 1, but we learn in this game she was forcing herself to act that way. At her heart, she’s a bouncy girl just like Chocola.
Coconut is voiced by Tezuka Ryouko while Azuki is voiced by Naruse Mia. But they embody their characters so well, I never once thought of the person behind the catgirls.
Coconut has the speaking mannerisms of a teenager. Not childish, but not confident either. Sometimes endearing and sometimes adult. Especially during the Takoyaki stand event, Coconut’s actress really demonstrated her range and talent.
Azuki however, is much older than Coconut. Her voice has an even pitch to match her tomboyish personality. She rarely if ever squeals in pleasure, except in the bedroom. That’s what makes her voice acting so impressive! Even in the bedroom, Azuki doesn’t default to high-pitched screams. She still sounds like a real young lady in the throws of passion.
Sound effects are largely domestic but can create a huge impact in certain situations. Sometimes it’s a simple bell-ringing when a customer enters the building, but other times the sound effects are seriously scary. The music cuts, nobody says a word, and all you can hear is that sound. With such vivid effects and great setup, every situation they are used in feels perfect.
MUSIC
There are 17 tracks in total. Most are carried over from the previous game, with an emphasis on previously underused tracks. “Nyannyan Flavor” sounded like a music box lullaby. “Nyanko to Bansan” was an elegant piano track for a fancy restaurant where you take Azuki on a date.
All of the tracks were of high quality, but not all of them fit the situation. Sometimes sad piano music was overused for moments that weren’t really sad. And the techno music for the title screen felt odd. Personally, I felt the ending song didn’t fit the game at all. None of these tracks are bad, they simply felt formulaic and predictable.
HENTAI
As with all Nekopara titles, only the NSFW version contains sex scenes. There are three in total. One scene is focused on Chocola and Vanilla, another on Coconut, and another on Azuki.
Don’t let the scene count mislead you! Each scene easily lasts 20 minutes with numerous sex positions and changes in sex partners. For example, you fuck Azuki and Vanilla at the same time, but later on you get saucy alone-time with Azuki. Counted by artworks and sex positions, the scene count is far more than three!
Coconut objectively has more artworks devoted to her. Sleeping in your shirt, hugging you for cuddles, holding hands, titjobs, and so much more! While the scene count is the same, Coconut was clearly showcased more often as the primary waifu. This is remedied in Nekopara 4, where Azuki gets more attention.
Azuki pees once you cum inside her. Hopefully that won’t ruin things for you!
CONCLUDING WORDS
Nekopara 2 is my personal favorite in the series. The story made me cry like a baby, the animated sex made me hard as a rock, and the voice acting made me relaxed like a sloth. I’ve already replayed the title multiple times, because there’s just so much to enjoy.
Download Nekopara 2. If you loved want to see where it all began, check out our review of Nekopara 1.
Overall
- Graphics
- Gameplay
- Story
- Music
- SFX
- Hentai
