Hatoful Boyfriend Reviews
Yes, Hatoful Boyfriend is a dating game with a bird gimmick, and that alone will be enough to keep many players at arm's length. But to pigeonhole your time at the St. Pigeonation's Institute as a mere gimmick would be a grave misjudgment of a game that is far more delightful and unexpected than even its bizarre premise would suggest.
If you want a good laugh, love ridiculous characters, and aren't turned off by text-heavy games, flap those wings. Join the avian club.
There's no getting around it; Hatoful Boyfriend is weird. Even if we were to ignore the fact that you're pursuing romantic encounters with various kinds of birds, the story and endings still make Hatoful Boyfriend an unforgettable experience.
But those disappointing moments are ultimately rare. Hatoful Boyfriend earns almost everything else it does. Like those fantastical and ridiculous movies and novels, it demonstrates an ability to rise above its base, absurd concepts and weaves several stories that last. It's much more than it seems, and begs for you to play it and discover its depth.
It's a strange series of lives, each one containing many of the same events and conversations, but each offering some sort of fulfilment, separate from the rest. They build up, and put together like jigsaw pieces, they flesh out the denizens of this nation of birds. I came for the promise of pigeon romance, but I stayed for the surreal world these fowl reside in.
Hatoful Boyfriend isn't just quirky and bizarre, it's also the smartest visual novel you've never played.
A great dark story for a take on the classic dating sim, but could do with less repetition.
So yeah, enjoy the comedic art aspects of this game and don't expect it to be what it portrays itself as – a real dating sim about birds. The overall short experience is a bit disappointing, but I'm uncertain just how much pigeon dating one person can take.
It's a poorly-written experience who places too much of a priority on delivering the absurdity as often as possible…
If you're looking for a dating sim on Vita or PS4, you're not exactly spoiled for choice, making Hatoful Boyfriend a no-brainer. But even if you're not really into the genre, this could be worth taking a look at - just make sure you stick around for Bad Boys Love.
Hatoful Boyfriend is the food fight of video games. While you can derive a great deal of entertainment from its complete insanity, this doesn't negate the fact that the end result is a total mess.
It probably goes without saying, but Hatoful Boyfriend is most definitely, 100% not for everyone. If you're looking any kind of serious gaming experience, want a mechanics-heavy title full of action and adventure, or just Aren't That Into Pigeons, Hatoful Boyfriend really won't be your cup of tea. However, if you want to experience what might just be one of the most ridiculous, hilarious, and extremely well-written visual novels this year, Hatoful Boyfriend brings the funny in spades. You might not know what on earth you're experiencing, but chances are you'll be thoroughly entertained.
Hatoful Boyfriend is a delightfully crazy game (just so long as you stay away from the epilogue).
Don't let its strange premise fool you, Hatoful Boyfriend delivers a masterful satire on the dating sim genre and a thoroughly enjoyable experience all the way through. Underneath its absurd setting, Hatoful boasts a well thought out world, enjoyable characters and clever writing that give the game its quirky feel. Plus, birds in maid outfits.
Overfall, Hatoful Boyfriend is a joke game that's elevated above its peers thanks mostly to its writing. It will certainly elicit some laughs, especially when played with other people, and while play sessions are usually short it has enough unique endings to both warrant many visits to the academy and justify its relatively low price. Those who decide to get all endings should prepare to use the fast-forward button quite a bit, since many events repeat in every plathrough.
Hatoful Boyfriend is a colourful title that utilizes a blend of photography and anime caricatures to tell its story. Animations are few and far between, with its style being more reminiscent of an elaborately crafted picture book than a conventional videogame title. This may disappoint some who will prefer a more thrilling experience, but it does well to set the game apart.
Hatoful Boyfriend is at times barely a full video game, but at the same time, this is an experience that would be impossible to integrate into any other medium.
You're not getting a refined game in Hatoful Boyfriend. Surely you already knew that, right? If you were looking for a refined game, please ignore my score below. Otherwise, I'll just let this scene from Friends starring my good friend Chandler do the talking, because, amazingly enough, it actually mirrors the experience I had playing Hatoful Boyfriend:
Even spread out over about 9 hours, there were times when the plot was a little too outlandish, and I say that fully understanding the absurdity of criticizing a pigeon dating sim for implausibility. It draws a clean line: if you prefer plots that are weird to begin with and just get weirder, you will be extremely happy with Hatoful Boyfriend; if you don't feel excited by every single Japanese pop culture trope re-enacted by pigeons, Hatoful Boyfriend might not be for you.
Hatoful Boyfriend is exactly what it professes to be, and little more than that. The reality of a pigeon dating sim is infinitely less entertaining than the idea, but it nevertheless has its moments.