UsoNatsu ~The Summer Romance Bloomed From A Lie~ (Japanese: 嘘から始まる恋の夏, Hepburn: Uso kara Hajimaru Koi no Natsu) is a yurivisual novel developed by LYCORIS, that was released worldwide on November 3, 2023.
Plot
The story follows the developing relationship between Kaoru Tachibana and Shiori Minagi. The two connect with each other after Shiori finds Kaoru in tears, having been rejected by their teacher, Mirei Shimotsuki, whom Kaoru had a particularly close relationship with. Having listened to Kaoru's story about Mirei, Shiori asks Kaoru if she will help Shiori forget about her older brother, as she never feels like she can live up to the comparisons between them, by overwriting her memories of her brother with memories of Kaoru instead. Kaoru agrees in hopes that it will let her forget about her how painful memories with Mirei.
The producer Yasutaka Iida describes this as an indie visual novel that takes a serious approach to yuri as a form of romance.[1]
UsoNatsu ~The Summer Romance Bloomed From A Lie~ was announced on February 28, 2022.[2]
Crowdfunding was launched on Camp Fire on April 28, 2022, with a goal of ¥2,000,000. The project raised ¥5,618,950 with the support of 365 people, successfully ending its campaign on May 31, 2022.[3] It was initially planned to release in February 2023, however the game was delayed by LYCORIS due to the increased length of the scenarios and the extra animations needed,[4] with a further delay announced in October 2023 due to Valve's review process.[5]UsoNatsu was released worldwide to Steam on November 3, 2023.[6]
Adaptations
On April 29, 2022, LYCORIS released a prequel voice drama, titled "Falling, In Love", to their official YouTube channel.[7] Another voice drama adaptation was released commercially on January 19, 2024,[8] and later published in English by Sekai Project on June 20 of the same year.[9]
In July 2024 it was announced that a manga mini-series adaptation, titled Uso kara Hajimaru Koi no Natsu -squall-, would be serialized in Ichijinsha's Comic Yuri Hime starting the following month on August 17.[10]
Reception
Robert Allen of Tech-Gaming gave the game an overall rating of 82%, praising the writing while noting that "for some, UsoNatsu’s fourteen remaining chapters might move at a glacial pace. But LYCORIS is uninterested in capturing a relationship in conventional broad brushstrokes or with titillating fan-service. Instead, the developers understand that a sense of realism can be nurtured by highlighting the nuances of a relationship."[11] Thomas Knight of NookGaming had similar praise, commenting that the game was well worth reading thanks to its "well-paced and thoughtful story, great character dynamics, and high production values."[12]
