when they cry series (higurashi, umineko, ciconia)

[orb]

(i guess some could argue this could be put in the video games category too, but visual novels don't have much gameplay aspect so i guess i'll put it here)
have you heard of the visual novels part of the when they cry series? (written by ryukishi07) they are three entries, higurashi (the most popular one), umineko, and ciconia, each with their very own and unique concept, characters, and story, though all of their stories are interconnected. personally my favorite entry is ciconia if i had to choose, but i do really love umineko and higurashi too, all for different reasons. i read higurashi in 2021 and it was an awesome experience, i really liked the story, characters, the sprites, the ost, and it became one of my favorite visual novels ever. umineko i was very obsessed with for about 4 months, and i would read it almost every single day until i got spoiled.............. (please do NOT look up much about the game before finishing, except for the trigger warnings guide. i am serious) which made me take a break but then i started reading again until i finished it and it is very good. i just didn't feel or understand as much about it as i did with higurashi or ciconia, so maybe i will reread it someday.. going on to ciconia, it is sooooo amazing especially as someone that loves world cultures/geography. there are characters from all around the world, including but not limited to sweden, poland, iraq, algeria, romania, france, usa, japan, russia, finland, senegal, south africa, and more... (gunhild stanisław naima ishak stephania naomi jayden miyao/momotake koshka lilja abdou and rethabile are characters for each country i mentioned) ciconia treats real-world problems respectfully in my opinion (though may not be perfect of course) and it is very nice to see especially with such a diverse cast. the writing is really good too and there are a lot of funny moments in addition to the serious moments.. unfortunately ciconia is unfinished with no definite date that the other 'phases' will be released.
here is my tier list (i omitted very spoilery characters)

[akesi]

oh, I love umineko! I've been meaning to try out higurashi, waiting for a time when I have another 60 hours to kill, haha.

Without spoilers, solving the mysteries presented by the game was one of the most satisfying experiences I've ever had. After the 6th chapter I decided to sit down and piece together exactly what happened (theoretically it was solvable after the 4th, and one of my friends managed to do it, but I have no idea how lol). Genuinely you know a game is great when you spend over 10 hours just brainstorming with a friend trying to figure out what's going on haha. It's such a tricky sell to get people to play, "read a visual novel for 80 hours and have your life changed forever"

Genuinely the game is just full of some of the most awful people ever and yet it still makes you care about them and see the good in them. It's just remarkable