(Ignore my (EDIT: relatively) low playtime here. I own a non-Steam version from a few years back, and have poured countless hours into that.)

Umineko, out of all the stories I've read, is probably my single favourite work of fiction. I don't think anything's moved me quite as much as Umineko has, before or since I first read it. It's changed the way I think and approach others, definitely for the better.

The basic premise isn't the most original thing in the world - it's very apparent that it was inspired by And Then There Were None, and it doesn't shy away from other references to its inspirations - but the attention to detail put into how it's done is superb.

The soundtrack is absolutely phenomenal - while I wouldn't go listening to some of the songs from it on my own, I wouldn't skip through any of them if they were to start playing. The game's use of the soundtrack is also masterful - Ryukishi07 is very skilled at building an atmosphere, through writing and use of music together.

The cast of characters is quite sizeable (starting at 18, and it only grows from there!), but all of the key characters are wonderfully fleshed out, and most of them are explored in-depth. Some of them aren't explored as much, which is unfortunate, but it's still clear that a lot of thought and love went into every single character. They all feel like real human beings, with their own strengths and flaws, their own shining, heroic qualities, and their own base, selfish, sometimes even cruel ones.

Umineko is definitely not for everyone - it's quite long and very dense, and it can get difficult to follow exactly what's important and what isn't later on. Having said that, I would very highly recommend it - it's a masterfully written work. While it's got its flaws (the writing is slightly clumsy at times, and the pacing can be quite messy), the amount of thought, love, and care that went into writing it shines through brightly. $30 might sound a bit steep (for those of us in Canada at least, hooray exchange rates!), but it's more than a fair price for the amount of content you get.

Definitely looking forward to the arrival of Chiru and Golden Fantasia.

EDIT Jan 27th: I kinda wish I'd remembered this earlier - the PS3 version patch. Opinions on the Steam sprites aside, the PS3 patch also includes redrawn backgrounds and voice-overs. Personally, I'd consider the voicework essential to the experience - Sayaka Ohara's performance as Beatrice is phenomenal, and there are some important details in the dialogue that simply don't translate to English at all. I would strongly recommend the PS3 patch for that alone.