Points Of Interest: 残酷版AIR / Cruel Version AIR

For any potential leads, points of interest, or general information that could be useful, you can contact me through pms on Reddit. Before submitting any information, I would suggest reading around to make sure your lead hasn't already been debunked.

Basic Summary

Two popular visual novels; Kanon and AIR were released in both 2000 and 1999 respectively. When these games came out, a group of doujin circles and visual novel fans were unhappy with the company KEY (who produced both of them). So, they took both AIR and Kanon, then patched them. They added gore, grotesque violence, etc. and completely rewrote most parts of the game. These were known within Japanese forums/blogs as "残酷版" or "cruel version". However that story is believed to be an urban legend and creepypasta rather than a 1 to 1 scale of events. The "cruel version" of AIR since that story has been long sought after lost media (that many don't believe to exist). Kanon's cruel version, being known as "夕顔" or "Yugao", has actually been found and you can access it here

Blogs / Forum Posts / And Other Mentions

Most of these are in Japanese, and can be viewed using a translator (with varying levels of accuracy). A lot of these are very old, and might lead to dead ends, but are still worth looking into and taking into account.

  • Weriay's HatenaBlog - (2018-01-11) A personal blog post detailing the author acquiring physical copies of Yugao and Summer Solstice (also commonly referred to as "Summer Death"). The author alludes that Summer Solstice is potentially a cruel version, but it's implied by other sources that it isn't the true cruel version and just a darker rewrite.
  • Goo Blog - (2009-12-29) A personal blog post detailing the origins, story, and potential leads relating to the cruel version of AIR. There is a lot of anecdotal, but potentially useful information in here.
  • Dek Yahoo Question Thread - (2009-07-24) A thread of answers to someone inquiring about AIR's cruel version, the original poster mentioning several other leads that have been previously visited. The only answer is one of skepticism, implying that the images circulating of the game's CG are edited.
  • WavesOfMoe Reddit Thread - (2023-02-04) A thread of people discussing the possibility of the cruel version even existing. A lot of links are shared in the comment section, that can be potentially useful.
  • Mixi Community - (2006-03-04) A community on Mixi dedicated to the cruel version of AIR. It has been recently updated in 2021, indicating that some may still be active inside. There is a link to a geocities website that is no longer accessible due to geocities being shut down. However, in the internet archive, there are several captures within the wayback machine. None of them work though, and simply return either corrupted text or Yahoo's 404 screens.
  • The Tsuburo Article - (2023-01-26) A fairly recent article that delves into a lot of the mystery surrounding the origins of the cruel version, along with photos of a thread it was discussed in back in 2007-2008. It also features photos of a net archive from a 2003 website that held photos of the cruel version, potentially more than those that have commonly been passed around. However, a lot of the article is used to go deeper into debunking the photos.
  • Blocker's Ameba Blog - (2018-01-08) A personal blog discussing the existence of the cruel version. Interestingly, the translation of the page mentions that characters have "mental disorders" and some commit suicide in the game. It also explores theories of who actually created the version.
  • Atwiki - (2008-12-21) I have no clue how to navigate this site, due to how old and strangely formatted it is, but I believe it's some kind of wiki? When clicking on the large title, you can find another wiki but it appears to have been banned from Atwiki.
Edit Report
Pub: 02 Jul 2023 03:49 UTC
Edit: 02 Jul 2023 04:52 UTC
Views: 680