Clock Tower 20th Anniversary Anthology Fan Survey Translation


Note: The following survey was published in the Clock Tower 20th Anniversary Anthology, edited by Koto no Hahen. It is as of this writing available for sale at BOOTH.pm, though you will probably need to use some manner of deputy shipping service. (Also, warning: a couple of the artists/authors (and of the poll respondents below!) like their subtext about Edward having a crush on Jennifer.)
This poll contains spoilers for pretty much all the
Clock Tower games, but particularly 1 and 2.


Q1. The scariest game (out of the entire series):

  1. Clock Tower 2
  2. Clock Tower
  3. Clock Tower 3
  4. Clock Tower: Ghost Head [Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within]

Q2a. Your favorite character (female):

  1. Jennifer Simpson
  2. Yuu Midoushima [Alyssa Hale]
  3. Alyssa Hamilton

Q2b. Your favorite character (male):

  1. Dan Barrows (Edward)
  2. Shou [Bates]
  3. Stan Gotts

Q3. The character you think is the strongest:

  1. Alyssa Hamilton
  2. Ms. Mary
  3. Scissorman

Q4. The scene that made the biggest impression on you:

  • The scene where Jennifer finds Lotte underground. The "Don't...leave me alone..." line is a rare moment of weakness for Jennifer, and it really struck me. I looked at it like she had kept up this far, and here, she finally breaks down and lets a tear fall. I think it also could have been because Lotte was Jennifer's closest friend.
  • I felt an involuntary pang in my heart at the S ending in 1. But there was no S ending in 2...
  • That scene at the end of the SFC game where Jennifer whispers "Don't...leave me alone..." to a dying Lotte! I played the game over and over thinking, there just has to be a way to save Lotte!
  • The Ham Ending in the SFC Clock Tower. That sound...!! I think the production in the first Clock Tower is just divine, in every aspect.
  • Yuu's fight scene times (with the fire extinguisher, the mop, etc.).
  • The first time I went into battle in 3, I guess... They're such a shock, you forget you're in a horror game.
  • When you save the bird in the first game. That was touching.
  • CT2's death routes, like when you hide from Scissorman but get killed anyway, left a pretty strong impression on me. But getting them all would take forever LOL!
  • When the past generations of Rooders showed up (I kinda laughed at all the drama LOL).
  • I remember being excited when the scene was added in The First Fear after Dan burned up where the silhouette of a boy stood up from the ashes.
  • The scene where Scissorman was watching TV at Rick's house (I sure remember him watching TV and rocking back & forth so happy in that rocking chair... That sure left an impression, of a sort.
  • "The scene where May's skull is split open by Sledgehammer": When May falls down the stairs covered in blood and Sledgehammer appears, I thought, "Whaaaa - I have to run away from him?!... Oh, maaaan... I'm so scared!". It was the shock of the scene that made me like Sledgehammer.
  • The final scene of 2.
  • I can't forget "N-ha Ee Sh*!"
  • The scene in 1 where Dan came chasing after you
  • The ending of Clock Tower 2; the scene after Scissorman is defeated and the castle is destroyed. Seeing the whole castle from above when it seemed so enormous in-game - it just looked so snug & cozy LOL!
  • "When I learned that Scissorman was actually just a kid": I was pretty shocked. At the same time, I also felt guilty that I was committing such violence against a child...
  • There are so many scenes that are shocking and that leave an impression on you in a number of senses...but I guess the ending in Clock Tower 2 where only Edward survives. The part in the end where it zooms into his face and he gives such a bold smile sent a chill down my spine.

Q5. Your favorite line:

  • "No...don't come out!" (Clock Tower: Ghost Head/Yuu) Hearing this line really made me want to protect her. It shows Yuu's true self.
  • "Me too... I will find a way out of here!" It's just a throwaway line, but I like it because it gives you a glimpse of Jennifer's strong will to survive. When she says "I will find a way out of here!," you just know that she'll escape. She's Jennifer Simpson! I also like that she's saved thanks to those crows. [Note: This is Jennifer's line after you liberate the crows: "Watashi mo...nigete miseru wa!" I don't feel that the existing translations quite capture the nuance.]
  • Chinatsu's [Stephanie's] "Ha ha ha ha ha ha!"
  • "Get ready! I'm comin' to get ya!!"
  • Shou: "Hurry up, old lady! Get the hell out of here!" I chose this one because it made me fall in love with Shou!
  • "Alyssa!!!" (because all the enemy characters in Clock Tower 3 all scream it)
  • "Let's play again, Jennifer!" I like it because you really feel Scissorman's tenacity.
  • Yuu's "Wow, it's so full" when she opens the Takanos' [Tates'] refrigerator. It's so calming. If it's so full, it'd be nice if you could use something in there to hit Chinatsu. Whack her with a ham or something.
  • "Everyone...must...die!" ...Saidou's [Maxwell's] line. [Note: This line might also be translated as: "Death...to all...humanity!"]
  • "Don't be afraid, Yuu...."
  • I wanna say "N-ha Ee Sh*!".
  • "Time to play, Helen!" Realizing that he thinks of this as nothing more than a game is chilling and cute.
  • Shou's "I'm not going to die!" It's like he's saying it to comfort Yuu or something... It's a line that can give you some wild ideas, but that's why it's my favorite.
  • "N-ha Ee Sh*!", it has a great sound to it, you just wanna say it out loud without knowing it
  • If we can take lines from the novels: "I love you. I could just eat you up!" [This is Edward to Jennifer in Jennifer's novel, IIRC.]
  • "Oneechan!" ["Big sister!"] (Edward) I don't know if it's an actual line, but hearing him call me that would make me weak in the knees.

Q6. What you like about Jennifer:

  • The part of her hair...
  • How she's pretty. The perfect heroine.
  • How she thinks on her feet.
  • I think it's interesting how she finds ways to drive away Scissorman that the player never expected. I particularly like how she yanks the plank away in the first game to make Scissorman fall down. I laughed a little the first time I saw it (LOL).
  • How even as her friends are dying, she doesn't fold but instead tries to find an escape route
  • She looks like this delicate, fainting beauty, but there's more to her than that. I really like her.
  • In 1, she's so young, and yet she has the guts to stand up and fight Scissorman. That's really brave; I like her. By CT2, she's become more mature and composed, but she still has some girlish aspects to her, and there's the shocking development of her reunion with Scissorman, the source of her trauma - I like that.
  • She's a real survivor!...
  • "How she can sit to regain energy"
  • I like Jennifer's "fragility" in 1.
  • How she loses stamina if you run a little
  • I like her strength; you'd never think of her as a "helpless pretty face."
  • She's mature for her age, both in appearance and character.
  • How she has a spirit of steel: she won't kowtow to anyone.
  • She manages to be the heroine without a single weapon to her name (Yuu (Shou) has guns; Alyssa has her bow).
  • She looks frail, but she's preeeeetty tough in parts: she manages to escape, she stays positive (?) when she's trapped during the cave-in with Nolan in the end, she declares "I'm going to survive!" in her novel... I like that.
  • She's a classical beauty.
  • How she's targeted by a lot of dangerous characters because of her beauty.
  • Because she has an ephemeral quality to her.
  • She indeed looks like she's this fragile girl with her long, black hair, beautiful looks, and troubled face, but she has an unexpected cool-headedness and courage to her that I like.
  • How she looks like a fragile girl, but she's really tough

Q7. What you like about Scissorman:

  • That he's twins...
  • He makes for such a creepy visual in 1 and 2.
  • His playful streak.
  • There are so many different entrance scenes for Scissorman in 1, such a variety; watching them is really interesting. I particularly like the scene where he drops down from above and plays the piano with his feet. I also like the one in 2 where he's watching TV.
  • Even now, I get the eerie feeling, ever so faintly, that he could pop out at any time and cut me up
  • How he never gets discouraged, no matter how many times you fight him off or escape
  • Scissorman in 2, where he's bent over and dragging one leg. I never thought he'd be a pretty boy. The second time through, when you know who he really is, so much makes sense, and you can't really hate his childish tricks and behavior...
  • How he just keeps making his way slowly after you just grew on me.
  • "His coolness"
  • I like the Scissorman in 2 the best.
  • He has these giant scissors that no human could lift.
  • An undying monster...cool.
  • I can't help it: giant scissors + unkillable = a hot combination.
  • I think Scissorman's such a good character that he's up there even with the horror movie great Jason.
  • How he's relatively clumsy
  • I think it's cute how he's normally this fearsome serial killer, but at Rick's house, he shows this completely different side to him, and I like it.
  • How he's this pretty blond shota. How he loves Jennifer. [Note if you're passing through: Yeah, this is kind of a thing in the Clock Tower fandom.]
  • How he'll overlook that you're clearly exposed when you're using an evade point and just pass you by LOL
  • How he's innocent and occasionally playful
  • You've gotta marry her! (Jennifer, I mean)
  • Gap moe.
  • How he's obsessed with Jennifer.




Translation by R. Capowski, RACapowski@sceneryrecalled.com, 8/10/2018. Clock Tower is the property of Human Entertainment/Capcom; the doujinshi from which this poll was taken was published by Koto no Hahen.