With a few exceptions, most of Tomoya’s circle of friends suffer with some kind of loss or disadvantage compared with the expected norm.  Many have lost parents, siblings, loved ones, or suffer from some kind of physical malady.  Part of the richness of the story is seeing how these problems not only hold them back in some ways, but it also matures them and draws them closer to each other for support.  

There are many character routes to choose from, and almost all of them must be completed in order to unlock the After Story, which leads to the true ending after gathering a couple of endings there as well.  The After Story is around half of the game, and takes the story in a much different, deeper, and more mature direction than the mostly silly school scenarios.

The writing in CLANNAD is legendary in that even the creator said that he reached heights that he is not sure he will be able to reach again.  And the translation, as done by Sekai Project, is simply masterful.  Rather than trying to translate out some of the Japanese terminology, they added a 'Dangopedia', which translates and explains each cultural reference to keep the readers in the loop.  They also show up as red words, to make them even easier to refer to.  And the voice acting, despite being in Japanese, is simply amazing.  Each character is clearly discernible, and some of them make me laugh or smile just thinking about those voices.  (My favorites are probably Fuko, Akio, and Kyou, though I could just as easily name any of the rest as also great.)

What surprised me is how each route, even the ones that are not canon (i.e. do not lead to the true ending) are extremely well developed, and could easily be expanded to whole new stories by themselves.  Incidentally, one of the routes was expanded on as its own VN, and it has just been released on Steam.  In some ways, I kind of prefer some of the other girls, though I still appreciate the main heroine, Nagisa.

Despite all of this praise, it’s fair to say that there are still some faults.  The true ending feels forced, and not nearly as interesting or fleshed out as some of the bad endings.  Most of the characters follow some kind of anime trope, though that doesn’t actually bother me.  But if you dislike that, you may want to reconsider, or just watch the anime (which I have not seen yet at the time of this writing).  After all, this VN took me over seventy(!) hours to complete, so it is a pretty significant investment to see everything.  And another thing – it’s practically impossible to see everything without a walkthrough.  There is a very good one on Steam that should cover most needs.  The game does not support controllers.

There is also the issue of appropriateness.  Visually, this novel has no graphics that are inappropriate in any way.  That is a relief, as I haven’t played one like that so far.  The only problems visually are some of the pranks that have Sunohara flying across the hallway.  They are funny though.

Thematically, there are some moral points to be aware of with the story.  There is spirituality, as though there is some spirit watching over the city that takes care of people.  There is some mention of God as someone to be prayed to, and Christ is used as a curse word a small number of times.  Language wise, most common curse words are used to varying degrees.  They aren’t too common, but all present. Even the word ‘f*ck’ is used once.  ‘B*tch’, ‘b*st*rd’, and ‘sh*t’ are used a few times, and ‘hell’, ‘*ss’, and ‘d*mn’ in its various forms are used more often.  

A fair amount of written sexual content is present, with much of it for laughs. Sometimes Okazaki or Sunohara will say something stupid or try to get someone else in trouble, and hilarity ensues.  One joke revolves around trying to clear up a misunderstanding about one’s sexual orientation (no one in the story is actually homosexual, though misunderstandings in that way are used to comedic effect).  In another, the girlfriend’s father is trying to get the main character to bring home dirty magazines, even though he doesn’t want them, since she is a rather modest girl.  Porn and masturbation are mentioned a few times, and appears to be considered normal by most guys where discussed, though the main character seems to rarely indulge in that, as he seems to display self control.  The words ‘jerking off’ is used in that context.  There is also the occasional reference to breasts of various sizes.

* spoilers *

Most of the relationships with the girls are thankfully pure, with notable exceptions.  One of the couples live together before marriage, though it appears that they do save sex for after they get married.  Another relationship is quite the opposite – they have sex quite early and often.  It clearly changes how the main character looks at her, as he has (humorous) sexual fantasies about her as well, and he occasionally makes his desires known to her.  The rest of the potential girlfriends do not cross that line in the time those relationships are given in the story.  

* end spoilers *

CLANNAD is a highly celebrated visual novel, that spawned two sequels as well as various other media, like manga and anime.  It is this way for a very good reason – it's very well written, has a compelling story to tell, and it brings on the feels train – keep those tissues handy.  This grown man had cried at least twice.  It has a great soundtrack, and nice art.  There is its fair share of appropriateness issues, and should be kept away from children despite its all ages appearance.  If you enjoy slice of life anime, and similar relationship stories, there is a lot to like in CLANNAD.  It's a story that has great moral lessons woven throughout, and really made me think about life and value my family a lot more.  And thank God for my many great blessings, and may I have more compassion on those who don't.