Nov 17, 2023
A brilliant adaptation that blew me away. I loved NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD but when I heard of this manga I honestly had low expectations. I thought it'd be a lame attempt to cash in on the success of the game, but as the authors have demonstrated there is great talent behind this. As of me writing this there's only 6 chapters, but they are absolutely worth reading whether or not you've played the game. This is a spoiler-free review.
Jump to the last paragraph of this review if you haven't played NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD for some important context regarding this manga.
The biggest and best change from
...
game to manga is P-chan. Seriously, if they had written him any differently it would've been a mistake. Instead of a faceless character who may as well not exist (hehe) P-chan is a fully fleshed out character with a great design, backstory and motivation. He bounces off Ame perfectly; he's constantly struggling to get the mentally unstable Ame under control while he manages her streamer career. P-chan allows us to see Ame in a new light that the game cannot portray.
The manga strikes a perfect balance between adapting what we see in-game and its own original ideas. This manga isn't just fanservice for people who played the game; it really is a well thought out plot using the game as its foundation. The themes from the game are all here: Ame-chan & OMGKawaiiAngel, mental illness, the Jine stickers, the horrible chat messages and toxic internet culture and more. The author clearly did their research on the game. To make the story work, the manga has to implement a lot of original ideas and all of them fit perfectly. Throughout the manga there are scenes and dialogues ripped straight out of the game but they are done in a way that fits and feels very natural. I love how this manga is going in its own direction while staying faithful to the source material. Trying to stick to close to the game would have caused a lot of issues.
I don't have much to say about the art other than it's great. The art style is fitting and the artist does a great job at conveying Ame's craziness. Also I love P-chan's design.
You do not need to have played the game to read this manga. But I really would recommend doing so. Not only is it a great game but by playing it you will greatly increase your capacity to enjoy this manga. You should also listen to INTERNET OVERDOSE and INTERNET YAMERO by KOTOKO & Aiobahn
(Context) If you somehow didn't know, this manga is based on the game NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD. Some important info about the game: It's a unique visual novel that doesn't follow a strict storyline or specific sequence of events; instead you play as the faceless P-chan that dictates everything Ame-chan does on her path to become a successful streamer. She's a severely mentally unstable girl with a need for approval from the internet. The choices you make cause things to happen and eventually lead to an ending. The game has many different endings and none of them are canon.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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