Clear

Clear is a romance visual novel in which the player assumes the role of the protagonist, Kōichi Yukino. The majority of the game is spent reading dialogue and the inner thoughts of the protagonist, which appears as text on the screen. The text is accompanied by character sprites over background art, representing the character the player is talking to. Every so often, the player will come to a "decision point" where they will be presented with multiple options that appear on screen; the player's choice at these points will affect the plot progression and the ending they receive.

There are five main story routes and endings—one for each heroine—and one bad ending. After completing a given heroine's route, a playable afterstory for that heroine can be selected from the game's menu. Once all routes are cleared, an additional epilogue is unlocked, which can also be accessed from the menu. There are instances throughout the game where the player will encounter CG artwork taking the place of character sprites and background art; the Windows version of the game includes CGs depicting sexual intercourse. The PlayStation 2 version adds two new story routes for Hisame Arima and Yuzuru Kisaki.

The primary setting of the story is Harukajima (春賀島), a small rural island off the coast of mainland Japan, known for its vivid natural scenery, beaches, and old infrastructure. The island is connected to the mainland by a truss railway bridge, and some bus services also travel between the two. Harukajima's main form of local transportation is the tram operated by Harukajima Electric Railway (春賀島電鉄, Harukajima Dentetsu). It is often referred to as the "Spring Train" (春電, Haru-den) by island residents.

The only school on Harukajima is Kotogaoka Academy (琴が丘学園, Kotogaoka Gakuen), a large institution with grand Western-style architecture attended by the protagonist and heroines. Kotogaoka Academy is divided into three sections—for elementary, junior high, and high school students—and the tram line runs all the way up to the school gates. Other frequented locations on the island include Ebisu Shrine (蛭子神社, Ebisu Jinja)—the shrine near the peak of the mountain where Haruno and Hisame work—the cliff behind the shrine that overlooks the sea, and the only shopping district on the island, Nakasu Shopping District (中洲商店街, Nakasu Shōtengai).

Clear is the fifth title developed by Moonstone. Planning for the game began in spring of 2005, during the production of Moonstone's previous visual novel Gift, while scriptwriting started in February 2006. Since Gift was viewed as a more "moe-type story", it was decided that Clear would take on a more serious tone, though not to the point of becoming overly heavy. The title Clear was chosen to reflect the "transparent wall" that the protagonist feels between him and other people, symbolizing his feelings of alienation.

The production of Clear was overseen by Hotaru Koizumi, while planning was led by Kure who was also in charge of writing the scenario for the game. Kure stated that he was conscious of how bishōjo game protagonists tend to be bland and lacking in individuality, so he focused on creating a protagonist with a strong personality for Clear. The game's artwork was handled by four artists: Mitha, Mamoru Naruse, Mīko Inagaki, and Endori. Mitha and Inagaki had previously worked on Gift, while Naruse was brought on after his dōjinshi caught the attention of staff.

In July 2007, the limited-edition version of Clear ranked third in national PC game pre-orders in Japan. It went on to place third in PC game sales for August and appeared once more in the rankings in the following month, at 47th. On Getchu.com, a major redistributor of visual novel and domestic anime products, Clear was the third best-selling game in August 2007 and ranked 23rd overall for the year. Its fan disc, Clear Crystal Stories, later placed fifth in Getchu.com's sales rankings for May 2008. As of December 21, 2009, the PlayStation 2 version of Clear had sold 6,315 copies.

In Getchu.com's 2007 Bishōjo Game Ranking, users cast votes for the best games in the following categories: overall, scenario, theme song, music, visuals, system, and heroines. Clear ranked 20th overall, 11th in the theme song category, and 17th for music, but did not place in any of the remaining categories. In a collection of game song reviews titled "The Ultimate 50 Game Songs - Part 2", published in Yōsensha's AniSong Magazine, writer Ryūichi Sumikawa described Clear's opening theme, "Garasu no Loneliness", as a trance-like song and praised Riryka's "evergreen vocals".