Superstorm Melon Date
Andi does it again and teleports us into yet another parallel universe of his wild imagination. Superstorm Melon Date takes place in a world that feels like a glimpse of the far future where struggles of the 21st century reverberate. Take a gander at the dating scene during a violent global storm with a gene-spliced melon race. You’ll feel a little odd but strangely familiar too as you break the ice and get to know your melon-date. If you like authentic characters, crazy worlds and visual novels this game is a perfect match for you! An expertly written and paced game that is short and sweet and lets you off the hook with a craving for more.
– Real player with 2.1 hrs in game
Read More: Best Romance Visual Novel Games.
Superstorm Melon Date definitely delivers on the levels of bizarre suggested in it’s title. In this dystopian visual novel you date Mel, a non-binary half-human/half-watermelon hybrid. For the most part I found Mel obnoxious, but they have their moments of thoughtfulness and sincerity. One of the strongest aspects of the game is the setting. Opposed to the typical dystopian world where everyone is collared by an authoritarian regime, Superstorm Melon Date shows a world where the environment is seemingly the biggest oppressor. While this is occurring, there are growing tensions between humans and their melon counterparts. I want to see more of this world.
– Real player with 1.2 hrs in game
A Fold Apart
Interesting puzzle concept. I got stuck in a few but never enough to look up a solution. Some puzzles (especially early ones, but also some later ones) are very easy. Feels like the game is trying to make you feel frustration and release in sympathy with the characters instead of ramping up difficulty just because it’s a game.
Presentation is impressive. Transitions, multi-view shots, and walking over folds are done seamlessly.
Dialogue (text messages) between the characters is generally pretty good. Some a bit too cheesy/sappy but some felt genuine. The puzzle thought text is usually too melodramatic.
– Real player with 4.3 hrs in game
Read More: Best Romance Puzzle Games.
VEREDICT: 8/10.
A Fold Apart is a sweet puzzle game with its mechanics and visuals well tied to its themes. The game could use some quality of life improvements and a smoother learning curve, but it’s worth it.
MECHANICS: Positive. The folding paper puzzles manage to match the allegorical emotional landscapes of a long-distance relationship cleverly. Some of the mechanics didn’t click for me and I think it could use a few extra steps to ease you into new stage gimmicks. At least the game has a solid hint system.
– Real player with 4.1 hrs in game
Drinks With Abbey
All of the awkwardness of a first date without the price tag or the time wasted (that almost sounds like a reason to recommend this game…)
Unfortunately it’s not much of a game. It’s a 5 minute long choose-your-own-adventure graphic novel where you answer anywhere from 5 to 20 questions to get one of 9 different endings. I suppose if you’ve never had a date before this all might seem novel and interesting, but it’s just a cliché summary of stereotypical first-date night-at-a-bar tropes that ends long before it bothers to be unique or interesting.
– Real player with 1.2 hrs in game
Read More: Best Romance Visual Novel Games.
Game emphasizes being honest
I say that the waitress isn’t that hot since she looked kinda “meh” to me
Abbey accuses me of being a lying bitch who’s just trying to impress her/not make her jealous
That’s when I learned that when a lot of people say “I like someone who is honest”, what they really mean is “I prefer someone who gives answers that I like”
Observe how she’s alright with throwing the wool over your eyes (the waitress, gives false idea of pool skills, etc.), yet if you tried to mislead her in any way, she’s all “dude wtf!?”.
– Real player with 1.2 hrs in game
Kitsune Kitchen
Quite standard visual novel, it probably takes 1 hour to be 100% completed.
The novel itself is about a chef that has to create the perfect BLT (bacon, lettuce and tomato) sandwich and of course, it takes place in a kitchen.
The graphics overall are quite nice and there’s a lot of humour, although the game’s too short and yeah most of all one has to deal with the parodistic/humorous aspects of this all. There are no naked girls, couples to meet, romance or whatever else.. it’s way more down to earth.
– Real player with 13.3 hrs in game
My point of view on it - review
You know the phrase this was so bad it’s good?
That would apply here for me, although I didn’t consider it bad, just good.
It was so good that it was good!
For the little price fee this game has you can enjoy the humour of hitting on kitchenware with hilarious endings that includes decent music that you could get in dlc’s for free at the time of writing this review. Therefore I would recommend it, no matter how wrong it is, the humour and laughs are definitely worth it.
– Real player with 2.4 hrs in game
Over The Phone
it’s a short-lived game, but pretty enjoyable to play, the tone clue are quite helpful to not make the wrong move. made me quite emotional since i can somewhat relate to the story. waiting for more similar games from dev
– Real player with 4.0 hrs in game
This is a pretty short game but its pretty well made and I enjoyed what was there, it took me some time but I did finally get all three endings. My favorite ending I think was 2a, it made me smile, but 2b hurt my heart. Thanks to the devs for creating this, I really hope they do more like it, I’d like to see a game like this with a few more outcomes and a bit more length
– Real player with 3.9 hrs in game
Doki Doki First Love Club!
Story
Yourself and Miku Nakamura are the President and Vice President of the renowned Tokyo Academy’s Student Council are considered top elite students: You are respected by your peers for his brilliant mind, and Miku, the eldest daughter of the wealthy Nakamura family, excels in everything.
Everyone thinks that they would make the perfect couple and even though both have feelings for each other - they are too proud to admit it.
Believing that the one who confesses first; will be looked down upon and humiliated.
A game of love begins between the two. Both are equally determined to get out of it as the winner of the battlefield.
#### Features:
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Non-Linear Visual Novel - Discover multiple different endings depending on your choices in-game.
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Time Travel.
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Choose your own name, and become the President of the Student Council.
Doki Doki First Love Club is not associated with Doki Doki Literature Club
Cat President ~A More Purrfect Union~
It’s a really cute parody of American elections. But this game will be intersting even for those who are absolutely not into politics. I was so excited to play it being a great cat lover. We can hear those cats purring in the game which is so relaxing and enjoyable! Unfortunately I can’t say the same about barking sounds but even they helped to create a general nice atmosphere of the world ruled by cute animals because people became too corrupted. I find it so adorable that the photos of real cats are used. DJ Nibbles looks especially cute for me! Plus in every route there’re amazing cat pictures on the walls. It was a real pleasure for my eyes to play through this novel!
– Real player with 16.8 hrs in game
Tries to be Catoful Boyfriend, but doesn’t quite get there. A big part of why Hatoful Boyfriend works so well is that it starts with a one-note joke, but gradually reveals a complex story structure and lore, ending with a (probably well-spoiled by now) plot twist and genre shift. Cat President starts with a one-note joke and never strays far from it, so if you don’t find the idea of talking cat politicians inherently funny, it’ll get old really fast.
It’s a visual novel with no gameplay, and the choice structure is very simple (pick a cat, make some choices along a linear plot and have a sound effect tell you if you chose correctly, then reach one of three endings based on how many correct choices you made). Your choices basically don’t affect anything but the ending, so replaying involves skipping a lot of text, and the correct choice indicator should have been optional, because although it takes some of the frustration out of finding the good endings, it takes some of the fun out of it, too.
– Real player with 7.3 hrs in game
Kabukicho Story
It’s okay. A melancolic little story told using the RPG medium. There are a a couple game sequences. The whole thing is short, maybe a couple hours at most.
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– Real player with 6.3 hrs in game
Great game. The atmosphere is really soothing and the story is awesome.
I am just gonna point out a few things here. This game is somewhat held in the 12th century irl. Although this is a fantasy game, modern language is not really that suitable. But overall, great game. I recommend playing it.
– Real player with 1.8 hrs in game
Winter’s Trumpet
A lovely addition to the series, and best read after completing the first game (Asher), to better understand the characters and setting. Great art, music, and atmosphere, as per usual. Was also very nice to see the character you’d least expect allow himself to be somewhat vulnerable.
– Real player with 2.1 hrs in game
Winter’s Trumpet is a charming and short point-and-click/visual novel hybrid with a retro design and a slightly creepy atmosphere. It takes place in the same world as Asher and Tell a Demon, and players who love these games have absolutely nothing to lose by giving it a go: in fact, the events of Winter’s Trumpet take place before those depicted in Asher, and the former gives us an interesting look at the motivations of several key characters of the series. For people who haven’t played the dev’s other games, beginning with Winter’s Trumpet isn’t the best way to go, in my opinion, since it’s short and the story is a bit vague if you’re not already aware of what the main plotlines are.
– Real player with 1.9 hrs in game
Best Friend Forever
Note: I updated this review after completing the game.
The Good:
This goes without saying but the dogs in this game are just so lovely. Best Friend Forever does a great job of combining the dating sim/visual novel elements with caring and training your dog. Having them be on screen at all times for you to interact with while out and about in the city is one of the standout features in the game, and makes me very thankful to be playing on a touchscreen laptop as the patting mini-feature translates really well to touchscreen input. The art for the dogs and the date options are a lovely soft 2D style. And the cast of characters includes tonnes of diversity, so hopefully there will be a love interest for everyone.
– Real player with 8.4 hrs in game
Best Friend Forever is a cute, relaxing game that I really liked, but it has some issues that make me a bit hesitant to recommend it.
Let’s start with the positives. Best Friend Forever is a super cute, wholesome game that I can genuinely say I enjoyed playing. The art is delightful; each one of the dogs is absolutely lovable, and the human characters all have personality and appeal. The backgrounds are very well-done, though at one point I did find myself wishing there were more variants. Overall, though, it’s a treat for the eyes. I didn’t even mind the loading screens because they were just that cute. It’s very pretty, you get the point.
– Real player with 7.7 hrs in game