Winter Novel on Steam - User reviews, Price & Information
Quick menu
Snow, dullness, depression. Constant dissatisfaction with work and superiors and feeling like there is no escape. Is this what life will always be? Perhaps… but I can always hope for change to be just around the corner!…
Winter Novel is a indie, visual novel and casual game
developed and published by DeXP.
Released on August 10th 2016 is available on Windows and Linux
in 5 languages: English, Polish, Portuguese - Brazil, Russian and Ukrainian.
It has received 601 reviews of which 502 were positive and 99 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.9 out of 10. 😊
The game is currently priced at 4.99€ on Steam.
The Steam community has classified Winter Novel into these genres:
System requirements
These are the minimum specifications needed to play the game. For the best experience, we recommend that you verify them.
Windows
- Memory: 40 MB RAM
- Storage: 4 MB available space
Linux
- Memory: 40 MB RAM
- Storage: 4 MB available space
User reviews & Ratings
Explore reviews from Steam users sharing their experiences and what they love about the game.
Short and good story about job stress. It's russian game i guess. I liked the pixel design with keyboard letters and numbers.
Expand the review
Winter Novel is one of DeXP's visual novels, with a unique art style and a not so interesting story with a rushed ending. When I was picking my next VN to go, this one seemed to stand out a bit thanks to the art, but it ended up being nothing that marvelous or interesting. Still, the tone of the narrative and the main point of the story is sincere enough to call it "a good try"; and that is the sole reason I’m not giving it a downvote. We have two protagonists - a Sveta who works at a bank where she endures an endless cycle of workplace bullying; and a Vlad who works as a freelance programmer and never has the guarantee that he'll be paid at the end of the job. Welcome to the 21st century capitalist world order! Everyone is exhausted, depressed and alone. As an irony of fate, these two appropriately miserable young people are brought together when a need for a programmer arises at the bank. Vlad is hired, and Sveta is made to help her, as a part of her job. The boss, being the pragmatic bastard, which would suit to his stereotype, makes plans to overwork the duo and swamp them with impossible demands, so they would miss their deadline; removing the necessity for him to pay them according to the contract. Seems evil? Nah, just realistic. As I said before, this happens everywhere around the world; since money talks and the human labor is cheap. But as they are put to work together, they find kindred souls within each other, making their depressing routine a bit of a better place. Putting capitalist reality at the scope of a visual novel is a neat idea actually. Characters’ reality and the hardship they endure is believable. It all is tedious, tiring and unjust. I liked the setting and how it’s been presented a lot. But Vlad and Sveta's interaction, or their characters are not that interesting or grasping as a narrative. Sveta is a lonesome girl who reads - and since she finds people around her selfish and self-absorbed, she acts just as selfish in putting no effort to get to know anyone. Vlad, on the other hand, comes to be a bit more of an optimist, but his portrayal is a bit simple or predictable for my taste. He is a shut-in nerd, who falls in love with the girl and makes small sacrifices to make her smile; that's all. Sure, they are ordinary people, and you grow to care about them, but they are both hypocrites in their own accord too. What is disappointing is the end of the story though. If you plan to play this short VN - or read, since kinetic visual novels have no choice options or actual participation - please stop reading now, ‘cause I’ll be giving spoilers. The narrative starts with separate depressive lives of our protagonists, continues with their chance encounter and builds into their honorable battle with the deadline. In the meanwhile, they become friends. So far, so good. But as the deadline comes by; they are not ready as expected, the boss agrees to pay only the half and they agree. A week later, Sveta quits her job and thanks Vlad. Wait, what? What happened there? This might be a realistic slice of life in means of presenting capitalistic hardships, but the ending renders the story as not interesting enough to read, at least for me. It is the story of a pointless work drive that ends with a compromise. Sure, the actual point is people making impacts in each other’s’ lives, but the narrative wasn't deep or diverse enough to present that point properly. There is a build which makes you wonder, but then... it doesn't deliver. What is worth mentioning is the art choice, which consists of various data-symbol mosaics arranged into anime style artworks. The idea itself is unique, and even though it gives you quite the headache if you are sitting close to the screen, I think it to be a unique metaphor to portray the banality, the crushing dullness of the capitalist work order, in which our characters are stuck. Their world consists of these symbols. They are not used to seeing colors or shapes themselves; but fragmented little dots, with their forlorn perspectives. I would love if the artwork itself would change according to the mood of our protagonists - now that would be awesome - but sadly this artwork persists throughout the game. Sure, there really is no breaking out of the capitalist order itself, but their hopelessness in this symbolism clashes with the abrupt and uplifting end of the story anyhow. Combining all my observations of the game, I think this as an incomplete game. It has started with a really good idea, but then something happened, and it got cut short, coming short in various departments. Story progression is left unfinished and the climax is never reached. Maybe developers themselves haven't been able to meet a deadline also, and left it this way. I wouldn't know. But if you still wonder, it is a good idea, half way done. Please also check out Lady Storyteller's Curator page [url=http://steamcommunity.com/groups/ladystoryteller#curation]here - follow for regular updates on reviews for other games!
Expand the review
Starting at 2€, Winter Novel is actually a quite particular kind of visual novel - you can see from the graphics too :) The game has as its main characters Sveta, a young and depressed girl working as a bank employee and Vlad (ok, this is getting too Russian.. ahahah), who's a freelance programmer that has quite a harsh and solitary nature. Everything - which is quite short, the developers themselves said that less than 1 hour is even too much for the whole game - rotates around the story of the two of them which changes due to an important task offered to them that requires a joint work. So, it deals with themes like conflict with the society, work, depression, loneliness, relationships.. and the hard thing that is working together and living with another person.. (maybe it lacks a little bit of depth, mainly in the end, but it's ok). This novel also falls under the kinetic category, meaning that you aren't required to make choices but just to read everything like a novel - this means, of course, that the few achievements available will unlock naturally by progressing through the story. I found it nice, overall. The price is way too high, so you may want it on your wishlist, but deserves to be played and read to me.
Expand the review
A small Visual Novel with a special graphic, that has its own charme and look very detailed for this strange use of signs. The story is about a workaholic girl that get depressed and lose the light of hope for living further as a human instead of beeing a machine. The story is fine i give a (2-) because its sympathic/ authentic. Sadly you have no choices. I give 81 % for DeXP 2nd Steam game for Visual Novel Fans & 90 % for achievement hunter (easy 10 achievements in short time, could be more acheivements). Thx 4 reading & hopefully enjoy it like me.
Expand the review
This VN was different, and I must say that I enjoyed quite a lot. It’s a short kinetic (with no choices, you only read the story) VN with interesting graphics and awesome music. I never thought that these kinds of graphic would fit on a game like this, but they did. The story and characters are simple, but I could feel sympathy for them; it’s funny how you can meet a new person on a normal day, and that person might start to have an impact in your life. I just wished the ending was a bit longer… About the Portuguese translation, I only saw one mistake: near the end, Sveta says “disonesto”, when the actual word is spelled “desonesto”. Also, it was refreshing to read a VN in my native language! I wish all the luck to these developers, and I hope they can make more VNs like this one. This was a huge improvement over One Manga Day. 7/10.
Expand the review
Similar games
View all
Oblivious Garden ~Carmina Burana
This is a sumptuous palace built for the seven princesses. It is a "birdcage" glorified with the name "garden"… Irell Reis was once a famous general leading thousands of soldiers. However, the defeat three years ago cost him everything. Now, he is summoned by the Emperor of Celantu again...
Lingering Fragrance
We walk together, play together, and do everything together. This is our last trip, our last memory. It is a short visual novel contains three story lines, after main story the other two will be unlocked. Which one is your side of story?
旧手表 - Old Watch
This is an Visual Novel game. It's a story about time leap.
1bitHeart
Welcome to 1bitHeart―the latest title from Alicemare and LiEat developer △○□× (Miwashiba). In this unique and endearing adventure game, take on the role of Nanashi, a lonely, agoraphobic boy, as you solve a slew of mysteries around town while also making friends.
Memory's Dogma CODE:01
Japan, 2030 A.D. Memories can now be digitized and archived, allowing people to communicate with the deceased. With only one week left before his best friend’s memories are deleted, can Hiroki uncover the truth behind Sorano’s death?
Japanese School Life
Welcomed by the fluttering of cherry blossom, the main character, Brian, starts a new high school life in Japan. Brian soon starts to get along with two girls in the same class after they start to talk to him. With their help, Brian gradually learns Japanese culture and customs.
Fluffy Store
A string of mysterious wind chimes brought three lovely and uninvited kemonomimi girls to this small convenience store. At such a summer night full of surprises and excitement, what lies ahead on their road of adventure?
Dream Ending
This is a small tale from the end. The leftovers of mankind are destined to perish as the Arks break orbit. Suddenly, however, she's making me ask her out, an invitation to face the apocalypse together... a short but exquisite visual novel, "Dream Ending" is humanity's last love story.
Mhakna Gramura and Fairy Bell
Written in the style of a children’s book, Mhakna Gramura and Fairy Bell is a Cinematic Novel about two children named Mhakna and Sebiarno that escape the wretched Mullbear Orphanage with the help of a Fairy named Bell, who promises eternal happiness as long as they agree to never grow up.
Season of 12 Colors
--The way it was, Just like it is now, On a bright, bright summer day. "That's a promise, right?" The girl in a white dress said. Sunny sky. A paper plane slid across it, riding on blue winds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Winter Novel is currently priced at 4.99€ on Steam.
Winter Novel is currently not on sale. You can purchase it for 4.99€ on Steam.
Winter Novel received 502 positive votes out of a total of 601 achieving a rating of 7.86.
😊
Winter Novel was developed and published by DeXP.
Winter Novel is playable and fully supported on Windows.
Winter Novel is not playable on MacOS.
Winter Novel is playable and fully supported on Linux.
Winter Novel is a single-player game.
There are 2 DLCs available for Winter Novel. Explore additional content available for Winter Novel on Steam.
Winter Novel does not support mods via Steam Workshop.
Winter Novel does not support Steam Remote Play.
Winter Novel is enabled for Steam Family Sharing. This means you can share the game with authorized users from your Steam Library, allowing them to play it on their own accounts. For more details on how the feature works, you can read the original Steam Family Sharing announcement or visit the Steam Family Sharing user guide and FAQ page.
You can find solutions or submit a support ticket by visiting the Steam Support page for Winter Novel.
Data sources
The information presented on this page is sourced from reliable APIs to ensure accuracy and relevance. We utilize the Steam API to gather data on game details, including titles, descriptions, prices, and user reviews. This allows us to provide you with the most up-to-date information directly from the Steam platform.
Additionally, we incorporate data from the SteamSpy API, which offers insights into game sales and player statistics. This helps us present a comprehensive view of each game's popularity and performance within the gaming community.
Last Updates| Steam data | 24 October 2025 16:16 |
|---|---|
| SteamSpy data | 30 October 2025 15:45 |
| Steam price | 31 October 2025 20:45 |
| Steam reviews | 30 October 2025 14:04 |
If you'd like to dive deeper into the details about Winter Novel, we invite you to check out a few dedicated websites that offer extensive information and insights. These platforms provide valuable data, analysis, and user-generated reports to enhance your understanding of the game and its performance.
- SteamDB - A comprehensive database of everything on Steam about Winter Novel
- SteamCharts - Analysis of Winter Novel concurrent players on Steam
- ProtonDB - Crowdsourced reports on Linux and Steam Deck Winter Novel compatibility
Game modes
Features
Online players
0
Developer
DeXP
Publisher
DeXP
Release
10 Aug 2016
Platforms