Based on a visual novel, Higurashi: When They Cry (or Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni) is a unique beast to tackle. Not only do you need know what series are part of the main timeline or simply a side story, each part of the main series is made up of several internal arcs. For many fans who just dive right in, they will find the arc switches jarring, at very least. So if you are considering watching it or are just trying to make sense of your first watch, we can help you sort it all out.
Higurashi: When They Cry Watch Order
The Simplified Higurashi Watch Order
If you just want the bare bones order and will figure out the rest as most fans had to, the Higurashi basic watch order goes as:
Main Timeline Only
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kai
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Rei (OVA)
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Gou
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Sotsu
If you also want to include all the optional items outside of just the main timeline, then you would want:
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kai
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Special: Nekogoroshi-hen
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Rei (OVA)
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Gou
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Sotsu
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kira
- Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kaku: Outbreak
Higurashi: When They Cry Chronological Watch Order
This is where watching Higurashi gets real complicated, but it can be really rewarding if you are going back for a rewatch, particularly if you didn’t fully comprehend it the first time. It is 100% NOT recommended if you are viewing the series for the first time.
Before we get into this, you need to understand that the different arcs and time resets are separated into Questions Arcs and Answers Arcs that clear up the first arc. So to get a more comprehensive experience, you technically need to jump between the two series sometimes, though not for every arc.
Some of the Answers Arcs involve time resets which makes them hard to feel like true continuations, but they do provide answers and there is some merit to watching them after the initial Questions Arc so the events are fresh in your mind.
Gou and Sotsu have made things a little muddier, so now technically you can jump between four series just for one full arc. While I arranged them chronologically, I’d still recommend leaving Gou and Sotsu for after the original series and Kai.
- Higurashi Season One (Episodes 1 – 4) – Onikakushi (Demoning Away Arc)
- Higurashi Season One (Episodes 22- 26) – Tsumihoroboshi (Atonement Arc) – Onikakushi Answer Arc
- Higurashi Kai Episode 1 – Reunion – Direct epilogue to Tsumihoroboshi.
- Higurashi Kai (Episode 2 – 5) – Yakusamashi (Disaster Awakening Arc) – Follows the events of Reunion.
- Higurashi Gou (Episodes 1- 4) – Onidamashi (Demon Deceiving Arc) – Different fragment, but similar events to Onikakushi.
- Higurashi Sotsu (Episodes 1 – 3) – Oniakashi (Demon Revealing Arc) – Answers arc to Onidamashi.
- Higurashi Season One (Episodes 5 – 8) – Watanagashi (Cotton Drifting Arc) – Mion’s Question Arc
- Higurashi Season One (Episodes 16 -21) Meakashi (Eye Opening Arc) – Watanagashi Answer Arc
- Higurashi Gou (Episodes 5 – 8) – Watadamashi (Cotton Deceiving Arc) – Different fragment, but similar events to Watanagashi.
- Higurashi Sotsu (Episodes 4 – 6) – Wataakashi (Cotton Revealing Arc) – Answers arc to Watadamashi.
- Higurashi Season One (Episodes 9 – 13) – Tatarigoroshi (Curse Killing Arc) – Satoko’s Question Arc
- OVA – Nekogoroshi (Cat Killing Arc) – Technically a bridge between the first and second seasons, but not really necessary. Chronologically, it takes place before Minagoroshi.
- Higurashi Kai (Episodes 6 -13) – Minagoroshi (Massacre Arc) – Tatarigoroshi Answer Arc
- Higurashi Gou (Episodes 9 – 13) – Tataridamashi (Curse Deceiving Arc) – Different fragment, but similar events tot Tatarigoroshi.
- Higurashi Sotsu (Episodes 7 – 11) – Tatariakashi (Curse Revealing Arc) – Answers Arc to Tataridamashi
- Higurashi Season One (Episode 14 – 15) – Himatsubushi (Time Killing Arc) – Rika’s Question Arc
- Higurashi Kai (Episodes 14 – 24) – Matsuribayashi (Festival Accompanying Arc) – Himatsubushi Answer Arc
- Higurashi Rei (Episodes 2 – 4) – Saikoroshi (Dice Killing Arc) – Epilogue
- Higurashi Gou (Episodes 14 – 17) – Nekodamashi (Cat Deceiving Arc) – Ultimately a set up for Kagurashi arc.
- Higurashi Gou (Episodes 18 – 24) – Satokowashi (Village Destroying Arc)
- Higurashi Sotsu – (Episodes 12 – 15) – Kagurashi (God Entertaining Arc) – Satokowashi answers arc
Items That Don’t Fit Anywhere In The Chronology
- The Entirety of Kira – If you liked the comical bits of Higurashi, this is all comical bits.
- Outbreak – More of an alternative scenario involving the characters.
- Episode 1 and Episode 5 of Rei – Dice Killing is the only plot-related reason to watch Rei. The first and last episodes are more comical.
- Episodes 1 through 17 of Gou – Gou was originally thought to be a remake, but it is more of an extension. The first 17 episodes essentially summarize the series with a few added tidbits of Rika’s sentience while looping and hints to another thing going on. Village Destroying is the only new arc.
The watch order was made to both help the series make some more sense and have a minimal amount of switching between the series. That being said, if you think re-arranging some of the questions and answers arcs in the timeline for clarity would be better, leave a comment with your thoughts.
Can Some of Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Gou Episodes Replace the Original?
Ultimately, Gou tells events that are incredibly similar to the original series, but still different. Essentially what it is doing is setting up a situation where, like Kai held the answers arcs to the original series, Sotsu provides the answers arcs that Gou establishes.
Long story short, the episodes in Gou are different and cannot be used as a replacement for the original series just because they look nicer.
Where Does Umineko: When They Cry Fit In?
Similarly titled Umineko is in the same universe as Higurashi, but unrelated. It is the same sort of story that involves a lot of gore, mystery, and supernatural intrigue, but completely unrelated story-wise. There are some in-universe tie-ins, however. You can watch it first, after Higurashi, never at all, or whenever you want.
there is also Ciconia that are apart of the when they cry series. Higurashi is the first two out of the series, Umineko is the third and fourth.
btw umineko isn’t “unrelated” to higurashi but I can see what you mean in terms of the actual story line, higurashi being a side story apart of the golden witch’s game in umineko. Parts from higurashi connect to umineko and parts from umineko connect to higurashi. And yes the new Ciconia story is also connected.
If you are wondering there are character overlaps between the two/three
SPOILERS:
bernkastel = rika
lambdadelta = miyo
okonogi = okonogi
and more
After watching Gou and Sotsu, shouldn’t it rather be Lambdadelta = Satoko?
I started watching the 2020 version thinking it was a remake as everyone was saying and thought it would be a perfect time to get into higurashi. Ill finish watching it and then watch all the previous releases and just hope it will still sort of make sense.
It’s most recent arc has been hella interesting. I am curious to see where it all ends up.
gou episodes 1-17 happens after 18-24 chronologically. it’s inaccurate to flatten them as an abridgment of the earlier seasons, when those time loops already occurred.
so i watched gou, kinda confused what should i do next?
Well, you could go to Kai to clarify why Rika is a looper, but you’d likely still be confused. It would be best to start at the Original Higurashi then watch Kai, then know that that last arc of Kai is the continuation of all that.
So,if I watch it like this it the story will make sense right?
I mean, I can’t make any promises, but yes?
It’s pretty inaccurate to say that 1–17 of Gou includes no new information when literally all of the arcs diverge from their original storylines. Especially when that’s the point—it’s not a summary of the original events, Gou is a sequel: Rika is stuck BACK in the time loop after escaping it in the original series, and she’s aware of it and actively trying to change things that happened the first time and figure out why she was trapped again. In the last arc, which you say is the only new one, she escapes yet again only to be trapped in the loops a THIRD time by Satoko, now looping with her.
The first 17 episodes of Gou are wildly different from the original arcs. Did you even really watch it?
I don’t see any mention of SOTSU … where does that fit in?
At this point I think we can discard the idea that episodes 1-17 of GOU have no place in the chronology, especially since episodes 18-24 do. SOTSU is making it abundantly clear that episodes 1-17 aren’t just a remake of previous content, but something very different is going on, and it occurs after episodes 18-24 of GOU.
Btw Amerowolf , can u comfirm what jdoggivjc just said , and after u watch sotsu. is the order u make are 100% timeline ?
if u watch sotsu till end
do we need watch gou 1-17?
is yes when we need to watch 1-17 GOU ?
Thank you for the list! However, after I haved watched everything, I think Kira and Outbreak should be watched straight after the original two series, i.e. after Higurashi: Kai.
That way, you have more of the same ambience and atmosphere together, because Gou and Sotsu really have a totally different graphic and vibe.
Hi I Want To See Them But Evrywere I Go I Can Only Find GOU Were Do I Find The Others
You might have to buy the DVDs for the original. I watched it online years and years ago, but it’s really hard to find now. Try eBay! That’s where I bought my DVDs.