Dabbling into the darker themes of bullying, revenge and the thoughts kept bottled up deep inside, international visual novel localiser and publisher JAST has confirmed their acquisition of Nitro Origin’s visual novel Mojika: Truth Rears It’s Ugly Head (みにくいモジカの子), with plans to release it in February 2025 both in English and Simplified Chinese. The release will be available both via the Jast Online Store as an ‘Adults Only’ edition, and Steam. It is not confirmed whether the Steam release will be censored, and if so, by how much.
Mojika: Truth Rears It’s Ugly Head follows Tanezaki Suteru, who is described as “exceptionally unattractive; comparing him to an ugly duckling would insult ducks everywhere”. Bullied and harassed, he has become an introvert. Yet, Tanezaki possesses a unique ability, “Wordsight”: by looking at someone’s face within 120 centimeters, he can see their thoughts as words around their head. This gift reveals abusive thoughts, dark secrets, and white lies, leading him to often avoid eye contact to escape the harsh thoughts of others.
His life takes a turn when his crush cruelly pranks him by feigning a confession of love, reinforcing his perception as an object of ridicule. This event drives Tanezaki to use his power against the five girls who tormented him. Each route in the story reveals the twisted personalities of these bullies, masked by their outward charm and deceit.
This visual novel features artwork by Hamashima Shigeo, with a narrative written by Shimokura Vio. Regardless of narrative, given the darker themes, probably one to skip if you are prone to mental health issues – as it looks very intense.
