Clannad is undoubtedly one of the best pieces of fiction I've ever stumbled across, offering a variety of characters with good storytelling and depth, while teaching the readers important life lessons through touching moments. This review goes over my personal favorite routes, with brief summaries of why I took a liking to each one of them, hopefully it convinces you to try out the game for yourself, but be warned, because you WILL cry while playing this game.

Below is a list of my favorite routes & why they stand above the rest:

- Nagisa Furukawa
The Tomoya/Nagisa dynamic is one of the best dynamics in the series, especially during the end of the route when the long hill to school symbolized as life's hardships, and the CG of them walking together up the hill saying that they’ll keep walking forward together, supporting each other's backs during hard times, is just simply beautiful.

- Kotomi Ichinose
This route is extremely well done, watching Kotomi and Tomoya share halfsies, hang out with each other on dates, while slowly uncovering her forgotten past with Tomoya is without a doubt one of the best plots in all of Clannad. Her route peaks when she learns the truth behind her parents, especially the moment when we realize Kotomi's parents had prioritized her birthday present over their work perfectly demonstrates Clannad’s bittersweet and wholesome tone.

- Kyou Fujibayashi
One of the most realistic portrayals of real life relationships in the game. Kyou forcing herself to restrain her true feelings for Tomoya, afraid of rejection, and Tomoya being forced to confront his true feelings for Kyou while already dating Ryou, whilst trying not to hurt anyone in the process, feels painfully realistic. Don't even get me started on the rain scene, it was the definition of peak fiction.

- Tomoyo Sakagami
The perfect definition of “I love you, but I’m not good enough for you”. Tomoya and Tomoyo are two very similar characters who share similar backgrounds and finds reassurance in each other, yet are forced apart by society, and people's expectations. Their reconnection hits hard and perfectly shows how two people who truly belong to each other will never be separated no matter what.

- Sunohara Siblings (Sunohara's the best boy btw)
This route is the perfect definition of "bromance". It uses Sunohara, a comedic relief character who's always hanging out with Tomoya, to teach us to value our youth and spend time finding joy and hanging out with your friends. The "Laughing" CG is peak bromance. It perfectly demonstrates how small joys, when piled up, can become something much more meaningful, and why friends who can laugh with you during the hardest times are the ones you should cherish.

- Fuko Ibuki
The bittersweet route. Fuko's attempts to have her sister's weddings happen despite her slowly fading away, knowing her efforts may end up in vain, is incredibly bittersweet and captures Fuko's determination perfectly. The ending, where everyone forgets about ever meeting Fuko, yet still keeps vague memories of her existence, and is all waiting for the day she would return, followed by Fuko asking a Tomoya who has already forgotten her, “Can you be Fuko's friend?”, is incredibly sad and captures the growth of Fuko's developing courage and newfound ability to interact with others.

- After Story
Self-explanatory. Literally the definition of peak fiction and realistic aspects in life portrayed in fiction. Watching Tomoya grow from a slack-off high school delinquent, who hates his dad from the bottom of his heart, into a responsible man, who lives for the sake of his family, and tries his best to make everyone happy, is extremely well done. Him using Nagisa as his emotional backbone, and using love and family as motivation to keep moving forward is incredibly relatable. The reconciliation between Tomoya and his dad is undoubtedly one of the highest peaks in Clannad, showing Tomoya's emotional growth and ability to understand the struggles his dad went through for him, while teaching us the importance of connection and forgiveness. Don't even get me started on the wholesome Ushio scenes, just absolutely beautiful. Tomoya's sunflower field scene with Ushio, where he realizes how much trouble he has caused for not only the Furukawa family, but also Ushio herself. The final payoff with a CG of Tomoya and Nagisa, both alive and healthy, watching Ushio run through the sunflower field during the credits, is incredibly emotional, and forms a perfect conclusion for the story between Tomoya and Nagisa.

All in all, Clannad without a doubt, is one of the best works of fiction to ever exist. It has motivated its readers to become a better person that's more responsible, and kind. It even motivated some to start a family of their own. The emotional impact and life lessons Clannad has to offer is extremely valuable. Clannad will forever stay a top 5 series OAT for me.

(and yes I wrote this review three times, I just love Clannad way too much ;-;)