Hooked on You will be quick to remind you that you’re pretty suspicious for trying to hook up with a murderer, so if you don’t mind a game you’ve purchased constantly shaming you for buying it, then be my guest.
Billionaire Lovers is a game about trust, and is an experience that challenges your very own preconceptions, giving you plenty of harsh reality checks along the way.
There’s no denying how many hours it’s possible to sink into College Craze, even in its current state of development. With its newly added gallery feature, you can see how much material you have yet to find — including 109 CGs (not including multiple variations in some cases) — plus the sheer number of choices throughout provide a variety of outcomes from even the most seemingly throwaway of selections. College Craze already surprises me by being free in its current state.
Birushana may not have quite knocked it out of the park for me personally, but it’s definitely one that will be enjoyed by plenty of otome enthusiasts. Take your time with it, and don’t come to it expecting anything super new or revolutionary in terms of story. Just know that the heroine, characters and a couple of the routes in particular make Birushana well worth checking out — and then you can join me in celebrating Tomomori in all his glory as best boy, however much he might make your parents question your morality!
The Price of Flesh’s sexual content is optional, and whether or not you have it turned on does not affect your completion status of the game, since all achievements are unlockable regardless of setting. And with gender-neutral writing and selectable pronouns, it’s a game that can be enjoyed by anyone and everyone who enjoys horror — with the additional option of adding erotic scenes. That said, the developer themselves warns players to expect mostly dicks if you’re going in search of that erotic material; there are two main male characters and just one female, after all. Not like I’m complaining.
So, do I recommend even if TEMPEST? Absolutely; just consider its weaknesses with its false choices in its gameplay mechanics, its slightly underbaked romances and its relatively short playtime — but know that its highs in its quality, writing, heroine and story more than make up for these shortcomings, making this a must-play otome.
In this standalone sequel, the character arcs are better written, the art style is even more pleasing on the eye, and the whole underdog premise makes it even more entertaining; it’s nice to see the energy and drive of the player character here in contrast to the rather troubled main character from the original game.
Ultimately, the more blindly you go into Ib, the more you’ll enjoy it, and I’ve kept this piece as spoiler-free as possible as a result. If you’re yet to play it, you should do so sooner rather than later — and now’s a prime time to do so. It’s a touching and reflective experience, and remains a treasured experience for everyone who originally experienced it first time around.
In many ways, Variable Barricade can be seen as a bit hit and miss. It does a few things refreshingly different for the genre, such as making Hibari truly her own character and with her own development, but manages to slip up when it comes to completely embracing its premise; it has some bizarre diversions that could possibly make or break the game for some players.
It’s all too real, and seeing a video game as ruthlessly unforgiving as this depict it in such a surprisingly nuanced and delicate way is ground-breaking. In a doomed world, no amount of escapism will save us — and that’s a fascinating concept to explore, even if it’s pain inducing and frequently starts up the waterworks.
With all this in mind, Dairoku: Agents of Sakuratani ended up being a particularly slow playthrough for me due to its many shortcomings. But it has plenty of aspects to compliment.
Cupid Parasite is super entertaining, and it is a breath of fresh air for the genre in the west. I’m hoping and praying for even more games of this calibre to be localised in the future, because now it’s all over, I wish I could play Cupid Parasite blind once more.
Ultimately, Olympia Soiree is the whole, entire package – you’ll want to play it for the layered story, (mostly) lovable characters and steamy, high amount of romancing. It’s exceeded my expectations and surprised me in some ways too (thanks for existing, Tokisada!) — and horrified me more often than not.
EPHEMERAL is ultimately not an otome game players will be coming back to after completing it, unlike many other more popular titles — but what it does provide is a selection of short bursts of fantastical romance scenarios that we can experience after we have consumed every other possible title within the genre. It’s short, sweet and gives us what we are looking for — blushing bishounen monsterboys.
While I’ve been mostly critical here, the game is an absolute treat to play through when taken on its own terms — but ultimately, it lays down the groundwork for something even greater. Fingers crossed this IP makes a return at some point in the future!
Because despite the game’s many flaws, Kodaka proves that he continues to make brave and bold decisions in his creations, and has still delivered a title true to his vision. While featuring an extremely constrained plot, its surprising focus on love and its excellent take on the FMV genre was a thrill to experience. I simply want even more — and for Kodaka to have the opportunity to iron out the few nitpicks I’ve mentioned above.
Maybe on another playthrough my perception of the title will improve. As of now, it simply did not reach the heights I had unfortunately associated it with through blind excitement. And that is completely and ultimately on me.
One of the strongest parts of Buried Stars is in its layered characters, who have enough depth to feel human, with their many flaws and strengths combined. Additionally, their responses to both the dire situation around them and the truths of their own traumas are penetratingly realistic and raw, with the majority of impact coming from the impressive voice actors. The same can be said for the game’s clever use of social media, both useful as a gameplay mechanic, and its relevance to the narrative.
The villain deserved a lot more screen time. By the end of the game, there was an overwhelming amount of intriguing narrative threads the game did not manage to go into enough detail on. The amount of material presented here makes me crave even more hours of the game — it was a thoroughly engaging and exciting time, but I simply want more Ewen.
While the writing and characters could have been better in some parts, its premise and uniqueness is worth a look into at the very least. Filled with penetrating atmosphere, and with a very well thought out mystery brimming with ideas, Return to Shironagasu Island is a welcome arrival for Hyogo Onimushi in the world of visual novels.