Love Spell: Written In The Stars - a magical romantic-comedy otome
*Note: I received this game as a gift from my sister.
tl;dr: This isn’t the worst game I’ve ever played. I would have given it a neutral rating if I could. But if you’re purely asking whether I would recommend it to someone or not, then this game has too many problems for me to honestly say I would.
Cons:
-
Writing: During the prologue, you barely spend any time with the love interests, so it’s hard to decide who you want to go for first if you didn’t read the profiles beforehand. Additionally, sometimes the writing was inconsistent or just didn’t make any sense to me. (Ex.
! Why is MC still auditioning for roles in student productions if it’s been “several years”? Why does MC lament “forgetting” the spell was ending in Florian’s route when Philia just told her ten minutes ago? She even told Philia she’d worry about the spell later, so we know she was paying attention! Why are Sergio and Marcello’s groups referred to as
! the mafia late in the route when earlier they tell MC
! they’re more like mercenaries/hitmen?) The writing in this game is also VERY trope-y and predictable. For some people, that’s alright, but it was just something I personally didn’t like. Sometimes the writing had some bad implications (like being single is the worst thing that could happen) and Enix’s route as a whole made me feel terrible because
! he doesn’t break up with Isla until WAY late. (Plus, MC doesn’t know the breakup even happened until after things got serious! And since Isla comes by later, it was apparently a one-sided breakup…). One of the characters is obviously meant to be the “true” route, which I personally dislike.
– Real player with 30.7 hrs in game
Read More: Best Cute Romance Games.
Love Spell is a beautiful, heartwarming, and funny game that I recommend 100%!
Each LI was enjoyable to romance, and even the ones I felt I wouldn’t like so much ended up making me love them! The two I was unsure about actually made it to my top two! And well, I’ll go ahead and name them, It was Marcello and Florian. I’m not one that typically enjoys the flirtier types because, most of the time, it ends up being that character’s whole personality. Since they ended up being my top two, I’m pretty sure It’s obvious that that that wasn’t the case for them, but I’m saying it just in case! I’ll go further into why I liked them later on when I start individually discussing the routes (I’ll also have my criticisms there too because I do have some.) Another thing I liked was how each route felt so different. Sometimes, it felt like I was playing a whole different game after starting a new route. (In a good way!)
– Real player with 28.6 hrs in game
NEKOPARA - Catboys Paradise
To start this off I would like to say I consider myself somewhat of an expert on not only anime but also anime boys, make them cat boys, and consider me god. I’ve recently gone through a really shit time and needed something to fill the infinitely expanding void and this game did exactly that. The second I saw this game pre-release the heavenly light shined above me and a new reason to live my life was given to me in the form of virtual cat boys. This game is simply a prologue and only came out a day ago but it is life-changing. Waking up on this game’s release date can only be topped by waking on Christmas knowing you have a million dollars waiting for you under the tree. I was instantly drawn into this game weeks before release due to me being so overly attracted to the cat-boy sprites that were shown off. as someone whos struggled with erectile disfunction his entire life this game made my William stand firm and strong for the first time in 30 years. I cannot express the amount of sexual attraction I feel towards this game
– Real player with 549.2 hrs in game
Read More: Best Cute Female Protagonist Games.
I adore this and want more!
I seriously loved every single character so much that I can’t pick a favorite. They’re each charming in their own way, and their designs are fabulous. I really liked how even though they’re all pining for their mistress, the catboys are mostly still friendly with one another. There’s a bit of friendly rivalry and one character who’s a bit more possessive than the others, but I got the sense that they’re still all friends who care about each other, and it’s mentioned/implied throughout that you may end up adopting all of them even if the route format suggests one will be your main squeeze. It was refreshing and leaves a glimmer of hope for there being a future harem route or ending.
– Real player with 14.0 hrs in game
Witches x Warlocks
Witches & Warlocks is a lovely little Halloween game by the developers of Royal Alchemist – basically a simplified, cute variation on that dating sim, quite different in tone, but sharing its high-quality art and solid writing. It follows the story of Fay Nightshade, a witch whose hobby of matchmaking couples all around their fantastical town made them grossly neglect their magic studies. To not get expelled from school, they have to quickly learn spells and prepare herself for a major practical exam, while managing their potion stockpile (necessary spell reagents) and money (used to buy extra potions). Each of the four romanceable characters, who are willing to help the protagonist in catching up, has five spells they can teach them – learning most of those from a love interest unlocks appropriate romance ending.
– Real player with 9.6 hrs in game
Read More: Best Cute Dating Sim Games.
It’s honestly one of the cutest wholesome visual novels I’ve played in a while.
I really like the art work and the gender option on how you create your character. The fact that you can be male presenting with a female or gender neutral voice and have she/her pronouns was awesome. Also has they/them pronouns.
The voice acting is pretty good. Having 2 male, one female and one non-binary character as a potential interest was very much appreciated for me. You rarely ever see that. So far I’ve only cleared 2 routes, but i love the stories and dialogue between the main character and the love interests. It doesn’t take much to do a run through, my first play through was about an hour, but that one route made me interested in the others and i’m going to complete everyone.
– Real player with 6.3 hrs in game
Corona Borealis
Corona Borealis is a sweet, lighthearted VN. The length is on the shorter side, but I had a good time playing it. I liked all of the characters and their routes and really enjoyed seeing how each character’s relationship with June developed. The questions part of the game was also very entertaining. I had fun getting to know about each character’s likes and dislikes, relationships, future plans, etc. Some of the questions led to really funny answers. A simple stat-raising system…great art…good voice acting…pleasant music…
– Real player with 13.5 hrs in game
I have a few issues with Corona Borealis – the technical side is kind of clunky, with text rollback working whenever it wants and the sound sliders not really doing what they’re supposed to do (you can’t fully mute the partial voice acting). The relationship flags connected to dating sim mechanics are a bit cryptic and choices sometimes counter-intuitive, so it’s way too easy to end up alone or stuck with suboptimal endings if you don’t follow a walkthrough.
The one major problem, however, is the game’s length – all the routes feel really short and rushed, with little buildup for romance (and/or deep friendship). This is particularly painful in Noah’s route, as he shows up halfway into the game and doesn’t offer the small-talk sections that let you learn more about other main characters. Considering his theme is also deep psychological issues… The positive ending and healing he goes through are hardly earned here.
– Real player with 11.9 hrs in game
Rose of Winter
This is a perfect little hot chocolate mug of a game. It’s a sweet, short, comforting set of love stories that now lives permanently on my hard drive to replay whenever I need a pick me up.
Rosemary is a goshdarn delight, good at her job but frequently awkward and always adorable.
The boys are fun and varied, and the road to romancing each of them is VERY well written and designed. In most other otome games, the choices tend to be either obvious or frustratingly arbitrary. In Rose of Winter, the choices hit that sweet spot in between: logical but not blatant. I got it wrong sometimes, but when trying again and really thinking over the guy’s values and worldview, in hindsight it would make perfect sense.
– Real player with 12.8 hrs in game
This is an adorable romance visual novel. It’s fluffy and light, but still enjoyable.
The art style is damn cute and the protagonist is thick. Like, not thin. THICK. Thick thighs. Thick torso. A nice, round face. For all the inclusion I yearn for, body size variety is particularly scarce in video games. Not just for the protagonists, but for romantic interests as well. Bonus points: there are dark-skinned characters.
The romantic interests are an elf (who’s quite small), a dragon (who has a humanoid form), a beastkin (mostly human-looking), and a human. Unfortunately, they’re all men. Each romantic interest has a good ending and bad ending. It’s quite easy to figure out both. The romance development does happen rather quickly, but I must forgive it, as I know indie devs don’t always have the luxury of making their stories as long as they’d like with limited funds/resources. However, the protagonist and romantic interest characters are developed enough to enjoy the story and experience romantic feelings. Romantic scenes are cute, and while there is insinuation of sexual happenings, there aren’t any adult CGs or even much description. I’m glad to say that, for the most part, there aren’t any problematic behaviors from the characters, and for the times there are, the behavior is corrected by the end of that character’s route.
– Real player with 10.8 hrs in game
OZMAFIA!!
I haven’t long gotten into Otome games (this is about my eight), but, oh boy, do I love this!
The Good
It has Japanese voice acting (covering about 70% of the game) that is superbly done and really takes many scenes to a whole other level; from heart warming, to funny, to heart breaking, to slightly steamy, to dark and disturbing, above and beyond what the writing alone would have done for me. Regardless of weather you understand the language itself, the tone and delivery makes all the difference in my book. I loved the writing and the translations are superb and flowed wonderfully, not rough or choppy or clumsy at all.
– Real player with 77.2 hrs in game
This game is just so…weird. The best way I think to describe it would be as a dark fantasy, with romantic and comedy elements.
This game is not for everyone. The routes all start off rather tame, but then quickly shift to WTF. Several endings have dubcon and noncon (implied and described), and can be rather graphic in their descriptions of violence and sex.
If you are interested in knowing more about the specific characters and routes, then continue reading below as I go into more detail without giving too many spoilers. If you want a surprise, well, just start playing and good luck! (I really recommend a guide though, there are just too many endings)
– Real player with 55.1 hrs in game
Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds
I’ve been a VN enthusiast for awhile now and this game and its sequel caught my eye in a recent sale. I was thinking, “Hmm, I want some romance, this looks good.” I did indeed get some flashes of romance, though relatively subtle and subdued, in the lengthy and complex story. But I was soon completely caught in the world and the time and the turmoil it was set in. Immediately arrested by the setting and conflicts, though they were in another country centuries ago on the other side of the world, I started researching them on the side as I made my way through the story. I found the real historical bones of it very easy to pick out from the flights of fancy that make it a historical fantasy. To be honest, I’d rather have less apparent romance in a story where the setting, conflicts, all the characters and their relationships with each other are so fleshed out as this one, because it makes the romance more poignant and believable when you do get a glimmer or foreshadowing of it. I hear the second part of the game, Edo Blossoms, has the actual romance parts of the stories, and it feels like it will be so much more rewarding after the work to weave the friendship in Kyoto Winds.
– Real player with 146.2 hrs in game
Note: Keep in mind that Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds is only the first half of the game/plot. Kyoto Winds ends where the individual character routes in other Hakuoki versions would usually begin.
Played Character Route Order: Chikage ◈ Sanosuke ◈ Hijikata ◈ Iba ◈ Souji ◈ Ryouma ◈ Yamazaki ◈ Saito ◈ Shinpachi ◈ Heisuke ◈ Sanan ◈ Souma
You can see this review as the first part of a summarized review of Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds and Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms, because basically everything I wrote here can be easily applied on both games. You can read about my personal thoughts, and final conclusion in my review for Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms, if you are interested.
– Real player with 142.9 hrs in game
Cat’s Princess - visual novel / Otome
(Note: I will re-edit this part, as I perhaps I used the wrong words to describe what I meant. After some much needed deep thoughts, here they are: I have read the game in both Russian and English. Both languages are well written, especially Russian. The English is simple and easy to understand and doesn’t require you to look up big words. It’s also all charming and adorable and very enjoyable.)
This game has cats. That’s all you need to know. XD Kidding, alright well…
It’s really cute and adorable! I played through all the routes just so I could see CATS! There are cats everywhere!!! Especially in credits!!! That’s one way of doing it heh heh. Oh right the guys… The guys are charming, everyone is well drawn. You don’t really learn much about them… But I am guessing if there was a continuation… Then we would?
– Real player with 3.8 hrs in game
Fujiwara Bittersweet
tl;dr: I’m recommending this because its free and half the routes (Ikki/Yuta/Kenji) are fairly good. But some of the bad ones are really bad.
I’ll start off with what I like about the game: the art is lovely, there’s a good variety of love interests, the music is nice, there are romantic and platonic endings for each love interest, and there are a lot of secondary characters that add life to the game.
The things I disliked: The romantic and platonic routes diverge well before their actual ending scenes, but the exact point they diverge isn’t clearly marked. I think the skip function is supposed to not skip unseen text, but it doesn’t work properly–if you’ve gotten one ending for a LI, it’ll skip at lightspeed through all the new text in the other ending straight to the end. One of the secondary characters is a self-professed yaoi fan and fetishizes mlm relationships to the point of “shipping” real people she knows.
– Real player with 74.4 hrs in game
Personally I liked the game, and I know this is supposed to be a bad review but I want to explain the good and bad things about this game in general.
the bad things about this game is the lack of options and choices, and the fact you can’t even name yourself (MC). It feels as if we are not Mc and are just some fairy god mother helping Aya (MC) make decisions, or at least the very f e w options we even get as a player. Aya also has her own personality which I think is interesting tho still kinda plays into the idea of being a fairy god mother helped out Aya. Which is an interesting concept yet this is a dating sim/otome game.
– Real player with 42.0 hrs in game
Blood Code
Blood Code is part dating game and part mystery in a setting that gives nods to Harry Potter and Twilight. The plot is involved and has numerous unpredictable turns of events. Over time I found this to be an extremely good game with an intriguing story. I completed Christ’s (good) route and thought it was wonderful. Incidentally, in the spoken dialogue, he introduces himself and pronounces his name like Chris, while adding a slight “t” sound at the end. You can always call him Chris for short. ;)
– Real player with 26.3 hrs in game
I got this Game gifted from a former friend and I am very thankful for it ♥
Blood Code is a Vampire Otome Game which personally I enjoyed very much and would go so far as to say, that its one of my favourite Games here on Steam. It has gorgeous Art, lovely GC’s, great music and a story to fall in Love with. This Game also is fully voice acted, but only in chinese, which you can turn off if you don’t like it.
Let me tell you that at first, it was rather odd listening to chinese but over time I got used to it and it was just another charming thing each character had.
– Real player with 26.1 hrs in game