Title: Apathy - Midnight Collection ~Vol. 1~
Original title: アパシーミッドナイト・コレクション～Vol.1～
Year: Japan 2007-12-29, English Patch 2016-12-21
Length: Medium (10 - 30 hours)
Developer: Nana Korobi Ya Korogari
Publishers: Nana Korobi Ya Korogari & Shannon
Language: English
Translation: Translator's site
Description:
Apathy - Midnight Collection ~Vol. 1~ is an alternate retelling of the horror VN "Gakkou de Atta Kowai Hanashi". Additional scenarios and art were eventually added to the original in 2007 to make Apathy - Gakkou de Atta Kowai Hanashi ~Visual Novel Version~, followed by a final version S that added further scenarios the following year.
Apathy - Midnight Collection ~Vol. 1~ is comprised of three stories:
"Emi’s Murder Club Observation Diary"(Fully Translated):
The main story of Midnight Collection 1, which chronicles the adventures of a psychopathic schoolgirl and her attempts not to be assassinated by the school’s Murder Club.
"The Following Dog"(Fully Translated):
A far more down-to-earth horror story. It revolves around the legend of a dog who will eat you if you look back on your journey.
"Scratches on the Pillars"(Not Translated)
Rounds the collection off with a very evocative, artistic story. It's extremely short and is completely linear.
Important:
1. You need to change system locale to Japanese.
2. No need to install.
3. You can run "Scratches on the Pillars" from folder "hasira". Not working from the main menu.
FAQ:
### APATHY: MIDNIGHT COLLECTION VOLUME 1 ###
### ENGLISH TRANSLATION PATCH FAQ ###
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This FAQ contains the following information:
.Caveats
."Scars in the Pillars" Questions
.Gameplay Questions
.Completionist Tips
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CAVEATS
# The spelling is in British English. This means that certain cultural aspects will similarly be British, (e.g. Mum, ground floor/first floor). In some cases, there may be a slight dissonance.
# Single quotation marks don't look great in the game font.
# Some subheaders in the Extras section are legible, but partially obscured.
# Miho's place of study is referred to as a university, and other times as college. It's definitely meant to be where you go after you finish school.
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SCARS IN THE PILLARS QUESTIONS
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# "Scars in the Pillars" won't run.
Picking it from the main game launches a different VN made with different software. It won't run without admin privileges, so it's much easier to run it directly from the hasira folder in your install directory.
# "Scars in the Pillars" isn't translated!
You'll need to download and run a program called Visual Novel Reader and have it running in the background while you play. I'm sorry for the extra hassle here, but it was practically the only decent way I could provide you with a translation for it.
# Okay, but how do I use VNR to play it?
See the Instructions file for more details. Failing that, check the VNR official site.
# How important is Scars in the Pillars to the main game?
It's very short and whether you play it or not won't factor into the completion % rate, so don't worry about it. It is, however, a very beautiful, haunting experience in my opinion.
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GAMEPLAY QUESTIONS
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# Should I play Normal Mode or Easy Mode?
Play Easy Mode - really, I can't stress this enough. It's more like an enhanced mode. All Normal Mode does is forces you to restart from the beginning every time you safe and bars you from saving at multiple choices. Not my idea of fun.
# Why won't a certain choice appear?
You may have to unlock more endings in either Murder Club or Okuri Inu. Try again after getting 10, 30, 50 endings, etc. You might also have to have played a certain part of Okuri Inu to unlock a path in Murder Club, and vice versa.
# Why won't some choices grey out? Is it a bug?
It's not a bug. Maybe you haven't, in fact, exhausted all possible iterations of a certain choice.
# I've tried everything in the Lights Out arc, but I keep dying!
Check, check and check again. And - it goes without saying - remember what items you've found.
# What's the point of the Hosoda First arc?
This is a very special arc and the most difficult to complete. There's a cruel twist that makes it very, very difficult for players to unlock.
Here is my one very obscure hint for until the passworded content comes out: don't just assume you've fulfilled all the criteria. Because in all likelihood, you haven't.
# How do I get XX ending?
For most other things, you'll need patience and a little trial and error. Sometimes it'll be logical, other times it can drive you up the wall (in the nicest possible way).
# How do I get to 100% completion?
If you're a completionist and you don't want to spend absolutely forever, you'll probably need a little nudge in the right direction. Only read on to the bottom of the file if you've completed all the endings already.
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COMPLETIONIST TIPS
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Make sure you've done the following:
"Companions":
Put both Sanae and Sakagami in the same seat
"Seven Wonders":
Start the meeting after varying stages of waiting
"Resolve":
Admit after varying stages of feigning innocence
"Hosoda First":
Listen to all four of Arai's Secret Musings
"Lights Out":
# Check something in each room until there's no new text
# Check the veranda with over 1 hour remaining, under 1 hour and under 30 minutes
# Notice the bodies of each person in each room after defeating them, with the exception of Fukuzawa and Iwashita
# Attempt to fight Fukuzawa in the following ways:
- With nothing (try going up 3 times until you're turned away)
- With a weapon, but no pan
- With a pan, but no weapon
- With a pan and a golf ball
- With a pan and metal chopsticks
- With a pan and a golf-ball-in-a-stocking (the only actual way to win)
"Jealousy" (Okuri Inu):
Confront Madoka getting only one thing wrong, and again with two or more things wrong
"Encounter" (Okuri Inu):
Worry about Shiro when Madoka asks you to go shopping to get a bonus scene at the true ending for this arc.
Screenshots:
