Banshee's Last Cry
A snowy mountain murder mystery that shaped the visual novel genre.
Banshee's Last Cry is a 1994 visual novel video game developed by Chunsoft as the second entry in their Sound Novel series, following Otogirisō (1992). Set in a snowy mountain area in Nagano, the game tasks the player with unraveling a murder mystery while cut off from the outside world. It is notable for its use of digitized photographs of real locations and silhouetted characters, and for being written by mystery author Takemaru Abiko.
- developer
- Chunsoft
- release_year
- 1994
- series
- Sound Novel
- writer
- Takemaru Abiko
- composers
- Kota Kato, Koji Nakajima
- platform
- Super Famicom (original)
- genre
- Sound novel / visual novel
Lore & Background
Following the release of Otogirisō, Chunsoft contacted several mystery authors, including Takemaru Abiko, who had debuted with Hachi no satsujin in 1989. Abiko, a self-described game enthusiast, ended up writing the entire script over two years. The game's title was inspired by the Japanese television show Kaiki Dai Sakusen and the mythical kamaitachi creature. The director was Kazuya Asano, who also wrote some side-branches when he felt there were not enough choices.
The music and sound effects were created by Kota Kato and Koji Nakajima, with Mimata Chiyoko coordinating music development. Kato used 'snow' and 'fear' as motifs, avoiding melodic thriller music in favor of a style influenced by The Terminator. The game's digitized photos and late-added character silhouettes extended production time. Banshee's Last Cry sold well and spawned a franchise, including Kamaitachi no Yoru 2 (2002) and a remake.
Reader's Guide
Banshee's Last Cry is a landmark in the visual novel genre, pioneering the 'sound novel' format that Chunsoft defined. Its branching narrative, multiple endings (21 in the original release), and clue-gathering mechanics influenced later titles such as Leaf's Shizuku (1996) and ELF Corporation's Yu-no (1996). Developers Jiro Ishii and Kotaro Uchikoshi have cited it as an influence. In 2017, Famitsu readers voted it the sixth-favorite adventure game. The game received its only English adaptation for iOS in 2014, localizing character names and locations. Its legacy includes a franchise of sequels, ports, and spin-offs, cementing its role as a foundational work in interactive storytelling.
Did You Know?
- The game features 21 different endings in its original release.
- A 'pink bookmark' appears on save data after clearing all endings, unlocking a comedic parody scenario.
- One scenario is accessed by hitting the Super Famicom's reset button, inspired by Fredric Brown's short story 'Don't Look Behind You'.
- The music was composed at a very early stage of development, before images were finalized.
More in Visual novels 1-24
Spotted an error? Know more?
This is a living reference — every entry is fact-audited, and reader corrections feed straight into our audit queue. Suggest an edit · See this site's audit record