Higurashi When They Cry

Higurashi When They Cry
Higurashi When They Cry Hō cover, featuring (from left to right): Rena, Hanyu, Satoshi, Satoko, Shion, Mion, Keiichi and Rika
ひぐらしのなく頃に (Higurashi no Naku Koro ni)
Genre	Murder mystery[1][2] Psychological horror[3] Supernatural horror[1]
Created by	Ryukishi07 07th Expansion
Video game
Developer	07th Expansion
Publisher	JP: 07th Expansion (Windows) JP: Alchemist (PS2, DS) JP: Kaga Create (PS3, Vita) JP: Entergram (Switch, PS4) WW: Seams (iOS, Android) WW: MangaGamer
Genre	Visual novel
Platform	Microsoft Windows PlayStation 2 Nintendo DS iOS Android PlayStation 3 PlayStation Vita macOS Linux Nintendo Switch PlayStation 4
Released	JP: 2002 – 2022 WW: 2009 – 2023 Onikakushi JP: August 10, 2002 WW: December 15, 2009 Watanagashi JP: December 29, 2002 WW: December 15, 2009 Tatarigoroshi JP: August 15, 2003 WW: December 15, 2009 Himatsubushi JP: August 13, 2004 WW: December 15, 2009 Meakashi JP: December 30, 2004 WW: February 28, 2010 Tsumihoroboshi JP: August 14, 2005 WW: April 15, 2010 Minagoroshi JP: December 30, 2005 WW: May 31, 2010 Matsuribayashi JP: August 13, 2006 WW: July 15, 2010 Rei JP: December 31, 2006 WW: June 3, 2022 Hō JP: August 17, 2014 WW: November 9, 2023 Hō + JP: January 28, 2022 WW: November 9, 2023
Manga
Written by	Ryukishi07
Illustrated by	Karin Suzuragi Yutori Hōjō Jirō Suzuki Yoshiki Tonogai Hinase Momoyama En Kitō Mimori Yuna Kagesaki
Published by	Square Enix Kadokawa Shoten
English publisher	NA: Yen Press
Magazine	Monthly Shōnen Gangan GFantasy Monthly Gangan Joker Gangan Wing Gangan Powered
English magazine	NA: Yen Plus
Demographic	Shōnen
Original run	March 24, 2005 – November 22, 2011
Volumes	38 (List of volumes)
Light novel
Written by	Ryukishi07
Illustrated by	Karin Suzuragi Yutori Hōjō Jirō Suzuki Yoshiki Tonogai Mimori Rato
Published by	Square Enix
Original run	2006 – 2007
Volumes	4 (List of volumes)
Anime television series
When They Cry
Directed by	Chiaki Kon
Produced by	Hiroyuki Ōmori Mika Nomura Yasutaka Hyūga
Written by	Toshifumi Kawase
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Studio Deen
Licensed by	AUS: Siren Visual NA: Sentai Filmworks UK: MVM Films
Original network	Chiba TV, Kansai TV, Tokai TV
Original run	April 4, 2006 – September 26, 2006
Episodes	26 (List of episodes)
Anime television series
When They Cry: Kai
Directed by	Chiaki Kon
Produced by	Hiroyuki Ōmori Mika Nomura Takema Okamura
Written by	Toshifumi Kawase
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Studio Deen
Licensed by	AUS: Siren Visual NA: Sentai Filmworks UK: MVM Films
Original network	Chiba TV, Kansai TV, Tokai TV
Original run	July 6, 2007 – December 17, 2007
Episodes	24 (List of episodes)
Original video animation
When They Cry: Nekogoroshi Chapter
Directed by	Chiaki Kon
Produced by	Hiroyuki Ōmori Mika Nomura Takema Okamura
Written by	Toshifumi Kawase
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Studio Deen
Released	July 27, 2007
Runtime	23 minutes
Episodes	1 (List of episodes)
Novel series
Written by	Ryukishi07
Illustrated by	Tomohi
Published by	Kodansha
Imprint	Kodansha Box
Original run	August 2007 – March 2009
Volumes	17 (List of volumes)
Live-action film
Directed by	Ataru Oikawa
Produced by	Takeshi Oikawa
Written by	Ataru Oikawa
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Geneon Universal Entertainment Oyashiro-Sama Partners
Released	May 10, 2008 (2008-05-10)
Runtime	105 minutes
Original video animation
When They Cry: Rei
Directed by	Toshifumi Kawase
Produced by	Hiroyuki Ōmori Mika Nomura Takema Okamura
Written by	Toshifumi Kawase
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Studio Deen
Licensed by	AUS: Universal/Sony NA: Sentai Filmworks UK: MVM Films
Released	February 25, 2009 – August 21, 2009
Episodes	5 (List of episodes)
Live-action film
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni: Chikai
Directed by	Ataru Oikawa
Produced by	Takeshi Oikawa
Written by	Ataru Oikawa
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Geneon Universal Entertainment Oyashiro-Sama Partners
Released	April 18, 2009 (2009-04-18)
Runtime	106 minutes
Original video animation
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni: Kira
Directed by	Hideki Tachibana
Produced by	Yoshihito Danno Satoshi Nagaoka Satoshi Fukao Takema Okamura
Written by	Toshifumi Kawase
Music by	Kenji Kawai Tomoki Kikuya
Studio	Studio Deen
Released	July 21, 2011 – January 25, 2012
Episodes	4 (List of episodes)
Original video animation
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni: Outbreak
Directed by	Toshifumi Kawase
Produced by	Masayuki Iida Satoshi Fukao Shigeto Suzuki Takema Okamura
Written by	Toshifumi Kawase
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Studio Deen
Released	August 15, 2013
Runtime	52 minutes
Episodes	1 (List of episodes)
Television drama
Directed by	Tōru Ōtsuka Tarō Miyaoka
Produced by	Atsushi Nagauchi Motoko Kimura Tatsuya Itō
Written by	Tōru Hasegawa Yō Hosaka
Studio	BS SKY PerfecTV!
Original network	BS SKY PerfecTV!
Original run	May 20, 2016 – December 16, 2016
Episodes	10
Anime television series
Higurashi: When They Cry – Gou
Directed by	Keiichiro Kawaguchi
Produced by	Takayuki Nagatani Jōtarō Ishigami Yūkō Hirata Makoto Nakamura Hirotaka Kaneko Satoru Shimosato Tomoyuki Ōwada Takema Okamura
Written by	Naoki Hayashi
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Passione
Licensed by	Crunchyroll SA/SEA: Medialink
Original network	Tokyo MX, BS11, SUN
Original run	October 1, 2020 – March 19, 2021
Episodes	24 (List of episodes)
Anime television series
Higurashi: When They Cry – Sotsu
Directed by	Keiichiro Kawaguchi
Produced by	Takayuki Nagatani Jōtarō Ishigami Yūkō Hirata Makoto Nakamura Hirotaka Kaneko Satoru Shimosato Tomoyuki Ōwada Takema Okamura
Written by	Naoki Hayashi
Music by	Kenji Kawai
Studio	Passione
Licensed by	Crunchyroll SA/SEA: Medialink
Original network	Tokyo MX, BS11, SUN, AT-X
Original run	July 1, 2021 – September 30, 2021
Episodes	15 (List of episodes)
Manga
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Oni
Written by	Ryukishi07
Illustrated by	Asahi
Published by	Futabasha
Magazine	Monthly Action
Demographic	Seinen
Original run	February 25, 2022 – present
Other
Higurashi Daybreak (fighting game)
Anime and manga portal

Higurashi When They Cry (Japanese: ひぐらしのなく頃に, Hepburn: Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, lit. 'When the Cicadas Cry') is a Japanese murder mystery dōjin soft visual novel series produced by 07th Expansion that comprises the first two entries of the When They Cry franchise. The series focuses on a group of young friends living in the fictional village of Hinamizawa and the strange events that occur there in 1983.

The games are built on the NScripter game engine and the Microsoft Windows operating system. The first game in the series, Onikakushi-hen, was released in August 2002, and the eighth and final game in the original PC series, Matsuribayashi-hen, was released in August 2006. While the first four games carried the overall title Higurashi no Naku Koro ni and are considered the first entry in the When They Cry franchise, the next four games were produced under the title Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai and are considered the second entry.

A bonus fan disc called Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei was released in December 2006. In addition to the original series, new stories were created in manga form and in video games for the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo DS, in order to expand the story. The original eight PC releases were released in English by MangaGamer between 2009 and 2010. Two sets of drama CDs were produced, one by Wayuta and the other by Frontier Works. Novelizations of the game series were released by Kodansha between August 2007 and March 2009. A manga series adapted from the games began with eight different manga artists working separately on one to three of the multiple story arcs and were published by Square Enix and Kadokawa Shoten. The manga was licensed for release in English in North America by Yen Press under the title Higurashi: When They Cry and the first volume was released in November 2008.

Two anime television series (also known simply as When They Cry prior to 2020) were produced by Studio Deen and directed by Chiaki Kon in 2006 and 2007; a third anime adaptation was released as an original video animation (OVA) series in 2009. The first anime series was licensed by Geneon Entertainment in English in 2007, but the license expired in 2011. Sentai Filmworks has since licensed both anime seasons and the 2009 OVAs. A live-action film adaptation of the series, directed and written by Ataru Oikawa, premiered in Japanese theaters in May 2008, with a sequel released in April 2009. A six-episode live-action television series adaptation premiered in Japan in May 2016, and a four-episode sequel premiered in November 2016. A new anime television series by Passione aired from October 2020 to March 2021, and a sequel aired from July to September 2021.