Sakura no Uta

 is a Japanese adult visual novel developed by Makura and released on October 23, 2015 for Windows. It is Makura's third game after "" and "Root After and Another".
Gameplay.
The gameplay requires almost no interaction from the player as nearly the entire duration of the game is spent on simply reading the text that will appear on the screen; this text represents either dialogue between the various characters, or the inner thoughts of the protagonist. There is a single choice that the player gets to make which determines which girl the protagonist chooses. There are six main plot lines that the player will have the chance to experience, one for each of the heroines in the story. In order to view the six plot lines to their entirety, the player will have to replay the game multiple times and choose a different choice at the single decision point in order to further the plot in an alternate direction. A true ending will be available after the completion of the stories of all the heroines.
Development.
Originally titled ": The tear flows because of tenderness.", it was announced as the debut title for Japanese developer Makura in 2004. A manga adaptation illustrated by Hakone Odawara was serialized in Kadokawa Shoten's manga magazine "Comp Ace" between March 26, 2005 and March 26, 2006; the chapters were later collected into a single "tankōbon" volume released on June 7, 2006.
According to brand representative SCA-DI, Makura was originally conceived as a separate entity from KeroQ where they could release titles "that SCA-DI couldn't write", and they planned their first work to depict ordinary schooldays. However, the original script for "Sakura no Uta" became depressing in tone, so it was scrapped and they released "H2O: Footprints in the Sand" first, which was being developed simultaneously. Afterward, development of "Sakura no Uta" restarted, this time with SCA-DI writing the script. The third chapter, "PicaPica", was written by Ei Asou.
A trial version called was released on September 6, 2008 as a pre-order bonus for "Supreme Candy ~Oudou ni wa Oudoutaru Riyuu ga Arun Desu!~", containing the first chapter of the title. It was later rereleased as a bonus for the June 2014 issue of Tech Gian and the Official Visual Archive. However, the final product and its respective trial version were highly different from this "prototype," with changes ranging from the characters to the setting, and the graphics being redrawn.
SCA-DI announced that he is working on a sequel titled , and a teaser website was made public on July 28, 2017.
Reception.
"Sakura no Uta" won the grand prize in the overall category of the Moe Game Awards 2015, the gold prize in the Users' Pick category, and the first place in the October monthly award. It also achieved first place in the overall, scenario, and music categories of the 2015 PC game rankings on Getchu.com. Additionally, characters Ai Natsume and Shizuku Natsume were voted second and nineteenth respectively, and the opening movie achieved second place.