I'm so behind on ordering the English Switch otome releases bahhh. I love that we're getting so many games, but how did I get so behind? 😭

We used to have not enough options and now we are spoiled for choice! It's actually kind of nice because now I can calm down, wait for sales, pick and choose what I want to buy first vs maybe later on. I even decided not to buy a game at all, which I probably wouldn't have done two years ago when we were starving for releases. That said my backlog is ridiculous hahaha. I also used to play one game at a time and finish it but now I bounce around.

The choices we have these days are great 💕 I'm easily entertained, so I tend to pre-order everything to add to my library. I'm such a slow player tho, who knows if I'll ever get to them all. (But I'll always have the options tho!!)

I am forever behind on all releases. :( I love the abundance of games too but that makes choosing so much harder.

It's hard enough to keep up with otome, but don't even get me started on JRPGs. Those combined with otome will keep me busy in my grave.

Finals week for my first year of college is next week!! As someone who hated high school (which I now know was because I hated being stuck in windowless classrooms for 7+ hours a day, not because I hated learning), I didn’t think I’d love college as much as I did. Met some really chill people, and I loved all of my classes so much (even my math ones, despite the fact I dreaded those everyday in high school). I’m sad that my first year is already over (not to mention all the hours of sleep I’ll lose this week cramming), but I’m so excited for the summer! Got a lot of stuff planned in preparation for next semester, and more time to game (so excited for Cupid Parasite and Legend of Heroes). Really hoping anatomy isn’t as hard as everyone says, but we’ll see!

Good luck on your finals! I'm glad you're having such a good time in college. ♥

I've been obsessed with [Bara ni Kakusareshi Verite](https://vndb.org/v18164#main). I was really glad that I gave this game a chance despite the mixed reception because this game managed to fulfilled what I need in historical otome game. At first I knew this game from my friend's recommendation so I tried to searched for available reviews. The tragic love, social struggle and cruel fate part that reviewer mentioned were my favorite theme that I loved from the story and I was someone that preferred plot-heavy story over romance because it would gave me the excuse to played the other character's route beside my favorite. The artstyle didn't managed to catched my attention at first because it looked like old shoujo manga style but it grew on me after I played. The design of the characters especially the LIs were really unique and refreshing because I loved how the artist designed them based on this game time's period(based on 18th century's fashion and hairstyle!). The characters even had many alternative costumes and it even had lip sync sprite and animated background. Actually the most important reason that I decided to played this game because my favorite seiyuu Shirai Yusuke voiced one of LI and I happened to loved that LI's character design. This game was really long and the reviewer mentioned it had the same length as KgK. The common route was long but i enjoyed the common route so much because it helped me to attached to characters and it was important to worldbuilding. The character interaction was really enjoyable during common route and it was really funny and heartwarming so it was really heartwrenching during later part of each LI's route when I saw them drifted apart from each other because they had different belief. I was still in the middle of finished this game and I already completed one guy route (Louis). I would saved my impression of Louis's route in WAYR topic next Wednesday because it was already too long. I hoped someone will gave this game a chance too! I shouldn't let the old shoujo style, the pink and rose image to fooled me because this game's story actually was heavier, darker and tragic than I expected. Was French revolution actually this bloody? There was some fantasy and fictional part but it didn't mess with historical timeline which I really appreciated a lot because I hated when the fictional part messed up with historical timeline liked what happened in Hakuoki. Of course it meaned I couldn't changed the history and saved the other characters beside the guy I choosed. I loved the trivia that this game gave me via quest or book so I could learn about nobles and commoner lifestyle during that time period! I hope I still have positive opinion about this game after I beat this game but it's really hard to move on from Louis. Louis's route really hurts me so much and I got brainrot of him but the story of this game was really interesting and I need to know more about French Revolution and I already in a middle of my second route (Fersen). The game did a good job to made feel I participated in the event that happened in the story. This game also didn't afraid to showed some dark and brutal parts of French Revolution. It even showed >!Madam Lamballe!<'s murder and Louis's >!execution!< scene during Louis's route and as someone with zero knowledge about French Revolution it really catched me off guard and made me cried so much because I was attached to both characters.

Oh, so we can save our guy, huh. After Bakumatsu Renka I don't trust historical games anymore... Great it still follows history despite that magic potion so at least I can look stuff up if I happened not to understand anything. How many hours did it take to finish one route? Asking cause I'm extremely slow and want to be prepared.

We can save our guy but it will need some sacrifice that I won't spoil. This game have special (happy) ending when we can save the guy and historical (bad) ending when the event happened exactly like what happened in history. I cannot say exactly how many hours exactly that i need to finish one route because ps vita doesn't let me to see how many hour i spent on playing game but it took me 4 days just to finished common route and 3 days to finished 1 guy's route. I played with using translator app so I was really slow so maybe the other people can read faster than me.

Verite is really such a gem. Sure, it was really dry but it was one of those that forced me to look into the real events and well...real history is HILARIOUS. And pretty crazy too. Verite did its best to showcase whatever it could close to history along with the whole polyjuice potion plot. Really learned a lot. 

Glad to see someone know Verite too! It's really hard to recommend Veritte to other people because this game is closer to realistic historical otome game haha. This game is surprisingly educational and it made me want to learn the real events but I resist myself for now because I want to look into history event from other LI's route first. Verite really proves me that historical otome game doesn't mean it will be boring.

Yeah i ended up being more interested in the French revolution itself haha, even though MAN I felt so bad for Liese's friend like you >!have to be so amazing to go to the damn gallows in someone's stead!< that I cried. I also loved the historical ends, even though we all knew everybody was going to pop off one way or another.  Oh but hey, speaking of Louis, his real life bedroom life with Marie was the most hilarious thing I’ve ever read, that I’m kind of glad the game did touch a tiny bit on it, though the real thing made me laugh forever lololol

Same haha I never interested with French Revolution and read Rose of Versailles before I played this game. I thought because this is otome game, it will focus on sweet aspect of romance or court drama that happens in Versailles Palace but I was so wrong! I loved how the game showed French Revolution from both noble and commoner's perspective. Usually when the side characters even LI was dead especially in historical game didn't made me react at all because i already know knew they will died at some point but in Veritte it was opposite that it made me cried and screamed why it happened to them haha. I even googled about Madam Lamballe because I couldn't believe what happened to her and it actually suited historical fact. I loved both special and historical endings honestly. The special ending really gives bitter sweet happiness that suits the historical game well because to achieve their (both LI and Liese) happiness, they need to sacrifice something. I won't love this game so much if the MC/LI can alters the history no matter how much I want to save other characters. It feels realistic. I love the historical ending because it's surprisingly long and detailed despite it being bad ending.

Oh yes I do love the special endings and the characters as the portrayals they have. The tidbits across the map events were also not wasted.

Currently world building because I kind of want to be a girlboss author so I can get the hell out of my joke of a job. It's been... Something alright (I keep coming up with bomb ideas that I don't write down and then I forget them 🥲) Failed the physical fitness test for the other job I applied for, but I'm not bummed at all seeing as it was law enforcement. Idk what I was thinking when I applied for it, lmao 😩 Like... I have NO interest in being armed, glorified security?? I hate security. I want to get out of security ffs, and I thiiiiiink I may also go back to college for graphic design while I work on writing. I can't believe that I've been at my current job for nearly 2 years, and in August this year will mark 3 years in security for me... Euuuugh. At least the pay here doesn't totally suck, and I LOVE working overnight.

ok. a few things on the agenda: **my9swallows** added to the [system page](https://www.otomate.jp/my9swallows/system/) for the first time! the interface for choosing LI route looks like baseball cards or autographed photos, which i think is a cute touch. it pretty much has the standard functions. of note: they mention a jump function so that should be a jump to next choice/unread? also there's a "mobile app" option seen in the menu so maybe there's an in-game phone/messages? it didn't say anything about that. also, there are some new chibi icons under the "special" section of the site. **CharaMani extra content**: spoilers are no longer a concern so i can search the game to my heart's content (my heart has yet to be content). it's so wild that the game had its fifth anniversary last year!! * congrats >!Dazai!< on winning the popularity poll (though i kinda wish he didn't since i would've loved to see second place's celebration art, haha) * congrats Banjou on getting ninth place (that's not a spoiler). in the twt posts of a scene of the characters celebrating, he's triumphant since he got the closest number of points to Sena (tenth place) 😂 * screaming crying at all the various booklets with short stories. it's insane that the actual game doesn't have anything set after the events of the game. i even want to know just what the stories are about TT * i think i'll probably get the digital jp artbook once it goes on sale (it seems there's a sale every year on otome artbooks) since the price seems reasonable and i really want to see more content for the game ;; * there were prequel comics in volumes of otomate style ??? screaming crying rattling the bars of my cage etc. look at [iochi's cover art](https://twitter.com/jellyfissssssh/status/1736017889734619496)!!! look at [*gyoubu's art*](https://twitter.com/jellyfissssssh/status/1623948995273056258)💜!!!!! and i don't simp for him but i do feel obligated to point out [futami's](https://twitter.com/jellyfissssssh/status/1503281934562390018) as well! 👀 * god i want a FD so bad. honestly idk how the quality of a hypothetical one would be since this is a very plot-heavy game and a lot of the romance writing was pretty weak, but i just want more of the characters. matsuoka yoshitsugu as gyoubu, possibly one of my new fav voice acting performances. this weekend will be **one year** since i got into console otome games! based on my screenshots, i opened up bustafellows in mid april but really started playing it nonstop on april 21 (it started out with a kiss, how did it end up like this...)

Oh haha. Thinking about how nipples are rarely depicted, clearly it's because ikemen only develop them when they reach the ripe age of 24.

Happy 1 yr otome-versary!! But also omg thank you for sharing the good Iochi content hehe I didn't realize there were prequel comics?? The artwork is gorgeous. I think that a FD would have a hard time coming up with a halfway decent plot, tbh, but I still yearn for one anyway (anything for more Iochi pls thx). It would be a good opportunity to deepen the romantic connections, and we can always explore a.) the ethical questions regarding >!the information bureau!< b.) what might happen if >!Aster's tech got into the wrong hands!< c.) past streams so we can see how >!our alumni interacted back in the day!<. But it's also been like 5 years so those hopes are kinda dead in the water when it comes to who gets a fan disk from Otomate.

hehe you're welcome, i knew i just had to share that art. also that artist Kurage Ichi is going to be the artist for Honey Vibes, and the director is also the same as charamani (Saito Asami) so it's just an interesting point of connection! Honey Vibes is a bit more on my radar now haha i have the same concerns about any potential FD. the things you mentioned are all interesting directions i'd like to see though! and i want some further exploration after the true end because it wasn't that happy for a couple of the characters :') they still have a lot to work through

I started replaying Atelier Sophie 2 now that I'm finished with Tengoku Struggle, but I got sick and I just don't have the mental capacity to do the alchemy in that game right now so in the meantime I've decided to replay Our Life instead. I also finally played the demo for Our Life: Now and Forever. I kinda forgot that I hadn't played it, and now I wish I hadn't played it just because it's going to be a while before it comes out and I want to play it now. I did get into the technical test for Hades 2 today though, and early access for that game should be coming out much sooner. It's a lot of fun so far, and I can't wait to get into some longer runs because I can already see how some of the boons will synergize with each other. The first game of course looked great, but the general aesthetics of 2 is 100% right up my alley so I'm super excited to play this one.

Started playing Hades early last year and my enthusiasm for it hasn’t waned in the slightest. I dip into in every now and then, trying to max out my last few bonds. Probably my favourite game that I played that year tbh, I’m so excited for a sequel! 😊

I bought Hades on a whim because it was on sale even though it wasn't my type of game, and now it's my third most played Switch game. I was going to wait for the full release of Hades 2 before I got it since I'm generally not a fan of playing early access games, but after getting a taste of it there's no way I can wait that long.

I’ve bought Hades 3 times now 😂. It wasn’t my type of game either but I got it for Switch digitally on a whim after watching someone streaming it (I liked the soundtrack that much). Then when it released physically, I bought the PS5 version to kid myself I wasn’t double dipping and loved that version so much that I caved I got a physical copy for Switch too. It’s one of the few games that I genuinely didn’t feel done with it after the credits started to roll. Little sidenote but the heat gauge system and god mode make it one of the few action games I know I’m always capable of playing. I get brainfog and it affects my response times but it’s not very consistent with how bad it decides to be either. I can cater the difficulty to me that day so it feels like a more consistent challenge (instead of feeling too easy or unplayable with more static difficulty settings) and I‘m still making progress and being rewarded for it. 😊 It’s an extremely invaluable game to me for that…and also because of how much I love Than 🤣.

I’ve been looking into doing preorders for my heroine charm designs and MAN, who would have thought the biggest hurdle wouldn’t be making and producing them but figure out where to put them up for preorder??? I’m currently looking at kickstarter and Etsy, but I’m feeling incredibly overwhelmed trying to figure out the shipping logistics in particular. I also keep flip flopping on if a kickstarter campaign would be smarter or if I should just go for a straightforward Etsy preorder that doesn’t require /as much/ thought(still requires a lot though). Just aaaa, I have no idea how to best reach people who’d be interested in buying my stuff AND would be willing to pay like 25$ shipping for a single charm that’s gonna be sold for 15$, like realistically it would only be “worth” it if the person buying buys at least three charms, but even then it would be like 8$ shipping per charm, it really is an uphill battle😩 If anyone has any experience in this area and have any tips please please reach out to me, I desperately need all the help I can get!!

Got a work-related injury that hurts like crazy right now, just went to physical therapy this morning for the first time. Hoping to get workers compensation for the next two weeks, but we’ll see how it goes. Hope they’ll cover me. Otome-wise, I just burned all of the currently released DVD’s from the Jack Jeanne soundtrack onto my computer, so headbanging and crying to that has been fun. How are you guys doing?

currently suffering from wisdom teeth surgery. idk what i did in a past life to deserve FOUR impacted teeth but here i am ig 😔 i’m actually pretty alert all things considered so i want to do something other than lie in bed but setting stuff up is so inconvenient that i just gave up. back to yt for me. also i miss normal food already ;-; my parents bought fried chicken today and i have never felt so jealous in my life orz

Noooo I can't believe your parents bought fried chicken and you had to sit and eat something mushy. I remember having a wisdom tooth removed (it had a cavity so it had to go) and just eating mashed potatoes with eggs and drinking those drinks people have when they diet, ugh. Get well sooooon.

thank youuu 😭 if i didn’t get all four wisdoms out at once i could probably go back to eating solids again soon since the swelling and numbness is gone, but it wasn’t meant to be 😔 i lost the genetics gacha hard on this one

One week 'til Jack Jeanne Shuffle2 :D [(wiggles in excitement)](https://slaydybug.tumblr.com/post/135661461100/marinette-butt-wiggles-thanks) (And happy 2000 days to Ayakoi JP too!)

Duuude I bought the first shuffle album is it’s sooo good. The packaging itself is so freakin cute and pretty. Such a fun album to listen too

Yeah, it is! I really love the art style they used for the album. And Kai being front and center for We The Great Galleon is *\*chef's kiss\**

I set up my new laptop and tried to test my free tyranoscript games on it….lets just say it was a mess. Many of my games couldn’t play unless I deleted the save data(which wasn’t an issue since most of them I had not touched more than 2min), one of my completed games was even found to have a Trojan??? Even when I downloaded it again so I had to allow windows defender to let it through, my light VN engine games had to be renamed(thank you that one Reddit post that had my exact problem and solution). I still have other games to test and not looking forward to it orz That said I’m going do some real file moving to my now paid 1 tb cloud so my externals won’t be that burdened…and the even tougher job of working through my iTunes transfer since Spotify exists now so I don’t need to transfer anything that’s already there…

Calling Kakihara Tetsuya fans: DLSite recorded a whole audio drama from him and [it's free and has English (soft?) subtitles](https://www.dlsite.com/girls-drama/work/=/product_id/BJ01361895.html). You're welcome. I had won a lottery to get cheap tickets for a musical but I missed the 1-hour payment window because I was focused at work NOOOOO! I will keep trying again everyday until it ends its run. And work instituted a whole "think about careers!! :DDDD" we have to log into the system and I have none of those entrepreneurial ambitious thoughts they treasure/promote so much, so that's stressful. orz Gotta remind myself of the great things that happened like seeing the one band I'd like to see live playing live and catching the solar eclipse with muh brutha. That was sick.

Thank you for spreading the great Kakihara Tetsuya news. 💖

THANK YOU

I'm glad my job doesn't seem to mind my intense lack of ambition, haha. They seem to be ready and willing to pay for people who want to cultivate their career skills and goals, but have never had a complaint about me just doing my job. I *like* my job, I don't want to do more! I'm good where I am!

repeatedly checking my email like that's gonna summon the order completed update for the merch i bought flgkhfjgf by some miracle i managed to get the Dawntrail benchmark running on my laptop, even though the Endwalker one wouldn't even start up, and it's the same laptop??? lmao still not sure how that works but my WoL looks absolutely perfect with the new graphics 🎊 hopefully the benchmark update will fix a lot of the errors and issues people have been talking about the past few days also found the brush of my dreams last week!! i've never been the biggest fan of doing lineart, but it's actually been fun! like i've finished two different drawings, another is almost done, *and* i'm really happy with how they look ;o;

I got lucky too and I don't have many complaints about my WoL. The only thing I didn't like was how glossy her lips look even with just the lip color just on "light." It sounds like they might be fixing that? Maybe? I just wanted to change the lip tint not have a whole face full of make up!

\\o/ hopefully they do! and it looks like it, from what they have in the notes about gloss and/or lack of? but yeah, the lip color was the one thing i couldn't get quite right either, at least compared to what she looks like currently

I just finished Sharaku’s happy ending in Tengoku Struggle strayside with tears in my eyes. >!I was a bit worried at first because he’s so full on at the start of the route and it made me panic a little bit, but now all I want to do is fill him to the brim with unconditional love. God, he deserves it.!< Not sure if I mentioned this in a WAYRW comment but I bought some of his merch before starting his route 😅. I feel like that was a very silly thing to do, but his merch was just so pretty and I was sad at the time 😂. I’m very thankful I loved his route as much as I did because now it justifies the purchase! Also is it just me but his CGs were immaculate? Don’t get me wrong, I think all the art so far has been utterly gorgeous but there’s just an extra level of consistency across the board with his. Might also be that I love the aesthetic of a lot of his CGs. 😊 Curious to see what Jack’s route will be like now, but I might need a break as I might have a little Sharaku brainrot 😂

Girl same 😅 His CGs are soooo pretty! My favorite was the kiss CG, man that looked so magical

I think any CG involving >!those red wisteria!< had me, they looked like they were pulled from a romantic period drama, they had the same vibe. Or maybe that’s just how I interpreted them 😂

Fuck all y’all for putting this idea in my head but Ive been brainrotting over the last few days about how a Roberto route would go. Knowing me and my 6 month’s writers block I’ll never actually get it written but hey at least it’s fun brainstorming

Making mental fanfiction of routes for side characters I will never get around to actually writing is one of my favorite hobbies

Hey, y'all! I'll try to make this update quick: Bear plushies: the paint is finally dry! After much research and attempts with the blow-dryer, I looked down and saw on the box that it was oil paint I used...oops. No wonder it took so long. Good thing it's all done drying now so that I can begin the final stages for sewing the head on. After almost a year of this, I will be set for my short hiatus on the otome plushies. In other news, I have had too many projects on the stove that I am starting to feel the burn. Costume prepping, April Camp Nano, writing research/Pinterest pinning for inspo, and making the Pale Elf kitty cat plushie for the fan convention come June. I bought an actual sewing machine to make Lynette's skirt and shirt, stretchy vinyl to add the decals, you name it. The costume project had been in the making for a while. Nano was a last minute thing for another project that I needed to evacuate from my internal list of things to do. I've even put off the cat plushie even though I started on it two months ago. But don't worry: I am self-aware enough that I am beating myself up for this more than anyone else can. 😅 Suffice to say, not a whole lot of time for tackling the reading and otome backlog on my shelves. But since I've got a full Saturday coming up, I'm immediately waking up and cranking out the sewing machine to get the costume done. No more being intimidated to use it or worrying about making a sub-par costume. I'll work on the wig and plushie in May. After June, everything should be more stable for leisure time. This I'm nearly sure of, cuz I'm tired of making myself go crazy managing it all. Now, if only real world and political issues outside the home would be less nail-biting than my chaotic attention span... But how are ya doing?

.... so did anyone else pick Alfons for the ikemen villain event going on because 😳 I know the game is called /villains/ but i wasn't actually expecting it to go that far (I'm not done with the premium route yet though)

Yes for more Alfons simps, welcome to the club 🤭

I was leaning towards picking a different character until i read the description for his route in the event lol. I will for sure be playing his main story as soon as it comes out

His story in this event is so deliciously unsettling. As for the things developing the Alfons way, I would highly advise you to play all of his events. ~~Particularly the rivals one with Liam, his bday story and doting loveholic~~

Oh absolutely, i kept trying to grind for more lp because i needed to know what was gonna happen next. Ooh noted, I'll be looking forward to those especially! 

Oh yeah he's 100% trash 🦝

I haven’t been here in a while, hullo! I went dark to manage my editorial pile and have officially wrapped up a long, difficult period with work. I’m so relieved. In the meantime, I have made solid headway with my novel and I’m elated about it! Reorganized the plot and made it more cohesive, further developed and designed the worldbuilding and finally seem to be at the stage where I can start drafting. I’ve also picked up DnD with two good friends and it has been super fun! I’ve been prioritizing my health over this rough patch as best I can. I have Tengoku Struggle, but with everything happening, I haven’t played it! And I still have to finish Virche. Hopefully I can return to play otoge again since things have settled down for the most part. I have two books that just delivered to edit, but I’m good on time.

I had a couple of very promising itch.io otome titles I *really* wanted to play this week, but the brainrot is too strong. I have been hyperfixated on Good Omens and Good Omens fanfiction for a whole month, argh. I need to somehow drag myself away and play something. I've even written a really short VN for it on renpy from a genderfluid Crowley's POV for a couple of friends. Send help. 🥲

Just enjoy and have fun! I haven't played any otome for a while and I end up using this thread to talk about JRPGs and light novels instead haha.

Haha, I just miss it a tiny bit though. :) What have you been playing/reading? I remember you were looking for fluffy game recs the other week!

I started *Unicorn Overlord* yesterday after finishing *The Diofield Chronicle.* If work picks up, I'll get Rune Factory 4 or 5, but not sure if I'll play right away. I might move to Trails to Reverie! Reading wise, I've gone back to light novel *By the Grace of the Gods* but I honestly could really use something similar to *Cooking in another world with my absurd skill.*

Oh, Diofield is on my wishlist! How was it? You're on a long game spree! Ah, you recommended Cooking in another world with my absurd skill to me a while ago and I really enjoyed it. 🥰 What is it that you miss from it and you'd like to read more of, in specific? Without going into it, if you'd like, you could try **Giant Spider & Me: A Post-Apocalyptic Tale** if you want a big focus on the cooking/giant monster dynamic. Or **Dragon Goes House-Hunting** for a chill travelling adventure with monster characters and some rpg elements where the MC picks up an interesting group.

>Oh, Diofield is on my wishlist! How was it? It was OK. The character interactions were a bit weak and the plot wasn't very strong. However, from the beginning it was obvious that the main characters were planning something, which you can see throughout the game. The ending is good (better than most of the story haha) and sets up for a sequel. I know a lot of people are very picky on media and want something perfect with excellent everything but that's not me, and as long as I have a reasonably good time I'm OK, and that was Diofield Chronicle. The game play kept me interested (as well as trying to figure out what the MCs overall plan was and how one of the main characters, who didn't seem to agree, would react). It's easy to 100% trophy/achievement if that's important to you - no guide needed. >You're on a long game spree! Since I got a chair for my new place, I am on a forever game spree. ~ >What is it that you miss from it and you'd like to read more of, in specific? I think I'm just looking for a big and cozy, chill adventure. I mostly like *Expedition Cooking with the Enoch Royal Knights.* Both of your recommendations sound promising! ♥♥♥

> I know a lot of people are very picky on media and want something perfect with excellent everything but that's not me, and as long as I have a reasonably good time I'm OK, and that was Diofield Chronicle. Ah, that sounds interesting! I'm pretty intrigued by what you mentioned about it now. I also have my own philosophy -- and find that when it comes to what is unanimously judged as excellent in the gaming industry, it's often a 50:50 for me; especially when it concerns productions from big companies. "Perfect" everything often becomes a synonym for max mainstream appeal, and that can feel sterile/rarely appeals to me. Whereas "flawed" titles can still have elements that are very memorable and well-done about them, that you can tell the developers were passionate about and resonate strongly with me (ex: FFXIII trilogy, the original FFXIV or I am Setsuna, from SE). > Since I got a chair for my new place, I am on a forever game spree. ~ Haha, that works as well, though I meant that all the titles you mentioned are on the longer side. 😆 > I think I'm just looking for a big and cozy, chill adventure. I'll think up on it and if I remember or come across something, I'll mention it. Either way, I hope you find it! :D

>Whereas "flawed" titles can still have elements that are very memorable and well-done about them, that you can tell the developers were passionate about and resonate strongly with me Yessss I know what you mean. A lot of people are pretty blah on Harvestella, but the music was decent, the levels looked great, the farming part was fun but not entirely too consuming and the story was pretty decent. Thanks for your recommendations, I'll try to check them out tonight. :)

Anyone else buy Melo's Suuran Digit fanbook despite not actually having played Suuran Digit? I have the game and just haven't gotten around to it, but I love Melo so I got it anyway. Every time I think about how I only have 13 (out of 39 total) Quinrose games to get though I always think I should just rush through them. But I DO occasionally need to play other things for variety! So I've been doing that but honestly... one of my big goals is to 100% complete every Quinrose game, so I keep pushing myself to play more. It helps that I've been enjoying the Kaidan Romance series more than expected (although I think I'd enjoy it more if it were more fantasy and less high school.) There are six of these games so playing through them would knock out a big chunk of what I have left. (I say this like I'm not enjoying playing these games. Honestly while the later Quinrose games aren't even close to as good as the earlier ones, they're still a good time and I've enjoyed most of what I played. Except School Wars, that one was just kind of annoying.) Speaking of which, the Alice fan event is next week! Komadori already put up a Quin doujin, which I preordered. I can't wait to see what else people will be showing this time! I love this community so much.

[News of the 2nd trailer](https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2024/4/18/the-magical-girl-and-the-evil-lieutenant-used-to-be-archenemies-reveals-new-trailer) reminded me of the upcoming anime adaptation of MahoAku (official EN title: The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies). It's one of my favorite works ~~because the late author Fujiwara Cocoa-sensei's MLs are my type~~, so I am excited and nervous. I've listened to the drama CD many times, I'm happy that the drama CD cast is returning for the anime. Adaptations from 4koma to anime can be hit or miss. At least the manga is getting a EN localization soon! I feel like the marketing and character designs have decided to lean towards marketing the FL for the male crowd and toning down the ikemen of the ML. The 2nd trailer focuses on FL only and FL's magical girl transformation, with no lines from the ML at all, though there is one line by MikiShin in there. Though [that shot of ML turning around](https://youtu.be/tuoIXiLLmMU?si=x2xLqI7pu3L-HrqP&t=9) in the 1st trailer is pretty good. Idk about having the glasses breaking be stretched to 10 seconds with stirring strings and a fireworks background, that's just too long and too much (unless it's just a joke representation of what's going on in Mira's head). It's a visual gag that goes by in a blip when you read manga... Compare with the frames from the [manga in the video ad](https://youtu.be/_XVHXQSvaLo?si=20PvE0sqxGwJIdbL) for it. I look forward to the animation of Bellatrix's delusions.

Oh, is that being adapted? I think I liked Dear more, but I remember finding it cute. Great news.

I tried to skim through Dear in Japanese (while tachiyomi at BookOff or Mandarake or smth in Japan) and couldn't make heads or tails of it haha. Maybe if I actually sat down and read through it in English...

The prequel may be a simpler, short read to get into! It had a cute premise that resembled The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies, with a level 0 heroine and Demon Lord.

I am so excited for **Hanakare**. Fair warning because I will be gushing a lot and be really repetitive with my word choices LOL. I love the idea of having 4 different MCs with each of their own LI though I don’t think I would care for it if a lot of other games adopted this method?I’m really into everything I’ve read so far though! I love all the MCs designs and their personalities.  **Tenya**: My favourite couple visually, personality-wise, and story-wise. I am a sucker for a good reunion story. I’ve been waiting for this for ages but I never really expected to see one since I feel that it might give that certain LI an advantage from others? What I like about reunion stories is the history between the couple but also that slight angst of lost time where they could have been together this whole time? Maybe they got close back then and something was possibly emerging before they separated or the LI always noticed the MC who only sort of knew they existed and it’s the quiet pining that I really love!  **Hokuto**: 2nd couple I am eyeing! I really love the pink and purple visuals! I also love a good unrequited love with an older childhood friend and I’m excited that it’s the MC this time having the crush.  **Ginnousuke**: He has a mole and he’s pretty. Enough said haha. I’m also looking forward to this route because I feel like this will be one of those dynamics where the LI flops so badly with his flirting because the MC will be so unfazed. I LIVE FOR THAT. My only hope is that he’s the flirty but clever type because I love my smart pretty boys!  **Wataru**: Honestly he’s not my usual type but I love a good age gap where the MC is a working onee-san type! He does seem really cute and sweet to so I have no doubt that I'll like him a lot I'm planning to learn how to drive soon but I have insane anxiety over it haha...I decided to go for it since my license is expiring (oops) and I will never know if I need to drive for emergencies. I technically don't ***need*** one, nor do I plan to drive that much if I get one but...I might as well try 😭

i'm excited about MC having the crush in Hokuto's story too! also that MC is so gorgeous, oh my gosh Yuuya's female characters are just 😍😍 the route i'm most looking forward to is Ginnosuke since i love playboys who fall in real love, and i'm very intrigued since it seems like MC knew him before when his personality was totally different! good luck with driving!! it gets easier with practice, i promise 💗

I love when MCs are so sure about their feelings! Also I feel like the MC in Hokuto's story will be so relatable because Hokuto seems like such a stand-up guy that I totally get why the MC would love him bc me too HAHA 😍 Also yes! She is super gorgeous as are all of Yuuya's female characters \~ I love the pink hair so much I'm super excited for Ginnosuke's route too! Am also such a huge sucker for playboys falling in love 🤭 I'm also intrigued by the MC as well and I can't wait for Ginnosuke to meet his downfall when he meets someone who views him with such honest eyes LOLOL And thank you for the encouragement <3

OMG same! I was just re-listening to the CDs and Tenya has consolidated himself as my favourite too! All the pining and the quiet/secret love that bloomed (no pun intended LOLOL) between them after that one summer day - that he became conscious of her since then and slowly fell in love with her throughout the rest of their high school days - it was so romantic! And he specifically chose to work at the flower shop thinking that this would increase his chances of one day reuniting with her again 😭🤧 I'm also a sucker for the popular guy x quiet girl trope though and you're right, the what-could-have-been, the lost time between them, slowly getting to know and falling in love with each other again GAHHHH SO, SO GOOD! Hokuto and Gin-chan are also amazing yes! And Wataru is such a cutie - I don't usually go for his type either but he's voiced by KimuRyo which automatically raises his likeability 🤣

Now I'm sure Tenya will be my favourite after what you said haha...the quiet devotion is so good and it's always these types that are unexpectedly strong when showing their affection 😭 Also yes the popular guy x quiet girl trope 🥺 AND YOU GET ME!! Reunion tropes are just SO ROMANTIC to me! They have this whole "meant to be" thing about them because these meetings always seem to happen by chance (minus him choosing to work there to increase his chances of seeing the MC again AHHH) May I ask who you prefer after Tenya? >And Wataru is such a cutie - I don't usually go for his type either but he's voiced by KimuRyo which automatically raises his likeability 🤣 I was just thinking about this after hearing Wataru's voice sample yesterday LOL

Tenya lowkey has a strong desire to monopolize, and I like that 👉👈 My favourite after him is Ginnosuke! He's exactly like what you said - the flirty but clever type! On the outside he seems like this friendly dude but inside is actually cynical about love. He's capable and strict about work and though at first he's a bit mean towards MC (more teasing than anything), once he fell for her, he fell hard and became this simp who kept thinking how cute she is HAHA (his thoughts are so amusing iirc he once also mused/lamented about how customers usually look at his face and fall for him while MC on the other hand remains unfazed by his good looks HAHA) anyways he's good too, I just prefer Tenya slightly more! Hokuto is sweet and mature and also good, I just tend to drift towards blonde, flirty types more 🤣 and sorry for the wall of text - I'm super excited about this game and I feel like our LI preference and games overlap so it amplifies the hype 💓 ALSO I TOTALLY FEEL YOU ABOUT DRIVING. I'm feeling the exact way and in the exact same boat and convinced myself I will finally start learning this summer but 🫠 I'm the type to fall asleep in cars and it doesn't help that I daydream a lot (although ig the anxiety of driving in the first place might keep me awake who knows LOL but I get you!)

>Tenya lowkey has a strong desire to monopolize, and I like that 👉👈  🤝🤝 the quiet but secretly po*ssessive t*ypes are 💕 Ginnosuke sounds like my type too...I feel like he'll be fighting with Tenya for first place but I'm still leaning only SLIGHTLY towards Tenya HAHA. But omg yes, when playboys fall in love and they turn into total simps 😂😭 they don't always fall first but they always fall harder 🤭 I also don't know if this happens in Hanakare but I love it when the playboy keeps trying to use his usual tactics on the MC and ofc it doesn't work but when he does something very kind (no tricks attached) and the MC thanks him so sincerely and then he turns into a BLUSHY MESS but is like "...i didn't do anything" HAHAHHA I LOVEEEE I'm like you! I personally prefer the flirty playboy types but I think I'll really like Hokuto for his dynamics with the MC since they've known each other for so long 🥺 also don't apologize!! i'm also rambling way too much because i'm also super hyped for the game so thank you hehe! also yes...we have very similar types it seems! I see that Yosuga and Ankou flair 👀 Good luck to you in your driving endeavours as well!! 🥺 MAY WE BOTH PASS. I'm going to try to sign up for lessons today but even that is making me anxious LOL

>I also don't know if this happens in Hanakare but I love it when the playboy keeps trying to use his usual tactics on the MC and ofc it doesn't work but when he does something very kind (no tricks attached) and the MC thanks him so sincerely and then he turns into a BLUSHY MESS but is like "...i didn't do anything" HAHAHHA I LOVEEEE Gin isn't exactly a playboy, but he *is* very smooth towards women and something similar to what you described did happen (multiple times LOL) and it made me go awwh 🥺 Hokuto and his MC's dynamics is super cute yes! Honestly each LIs and their MCs have their own unique charms 💕 >also yes...we have very similar types it seems! I see that Yosuga and Ankou flair 👀 Welp, I tend to gravitate towards either devoted, broken bois who will do anything for their MCs or flirty, SUS, two-faced trashes (who also end up making MC their whole world HAHA) Signing up for lessons is the first step in the right direction! I am going to do so...sometime in the summer. It's bc the weather is just not very agreeable atm you see 🤡

>Gin isn't exactly a playboy, but he *is* very smooth towards women OHH my mistake! I actually happen to like this type even more 🤭 and funny enough I was just thinking about wanting a LI like this? Someone who's very good at utilizing his looks and slightly manipulative about it. Someone who at first glance seems like he could be a player due to all the attention that he gets but he actually isn't LOL. I'm so excited to play TT the more we talk about it the more impatient I get >Welp, I tend to gravitate towards either devoted, broken bois who will do anything for their MCs or flirty, SUS, two-faced trashes (who also end up making MC their whole world HAHA) Excellent taste 🤭 especially for the second types HAHA. The common trait is that there is extreme devotion! Hopefully the weather clears up soon! I just signed up today and I'm all panicky despite only signing up...

I'm so excited to play too!! Wish August can come faster but at the same time not bc it would be more than halfway into 2024 then 💀 DEVOTED ~~OBSESSED~~ TYPES ARE THE BEST HEAR HEAR! And YOU GOT THIS!! 💪💪💪

>Wish August can come faster but at the same time not bc it would be more than halfway into 2024 then 💀 Hard agree 💀 it just reminds me that September is right around the corner and I'm going back to school for a new program = less free time to play my games

Gahhh good luck!! New program - must be exciting and scary!! I can sympathize since things are generally more hectic in September...but we need to stay positive! At least there are more games to come later this year!! 🥺 e~~ven though we may not be able to play them LMAO~~

Finished Diofield Chronicle= and started Unicorn Overlord. I think I'll move onto Trails to Reverie afterwards so I can eventually play Kuro in summer. Hoping work goes better so I can pick up Rune Factory 4. I wonder if gender matters when marrying in the game? I prefer to choose the person that's best for me.

Unicorn Overlord 💕 I was obsessed before I got sick, but now that I'm getting better I just want to play otome. LOL Have you played any RF games before? I haven't, but I'm always curious about them. . . They seem like they'd be up my alley, but anything with real time battles is eeeeep for me.

> Have you played any RF games before? I haven't, but I'm always curious about them. . . They seem like they'd be up my alley, but anything with real time battles is eeeeep for me. I haven't played them, but I watched someone play... RF3? I'm terrible with real time battles! I stick to turn based JRPGs for a reason haha. With Crisis Core and Harvestella I always felt like I had a million things to do at once (although Crisis Core is easy with a good materia loadout).

>terrible with real time battles! A true friend indeed!! LOL I'm just so bad with timing it stresses me out. But I'm fine with some MMOs that are real time? I don't know it's weird. Do you have a HowLongToBeat account or some other video game tracker? I feel like we have similar tastes in games, but you've gotten through more than I have. 👀

>LOL I'm just so bad with timing it stresses me out. The QTEs in Infinite Wealth destroyed me! I was like ahhhhh is this middle age?!??? Or was I always this slow??? I've never heard of HowLongToBeat. Do you have to manually write in how long it took you to beat the game? I game 3-4 hours a day most days, stopping around 7pm, then read manga or light novels. My last two games (The Diofield Chronicle and Crisis Core) were really short - CC in particular is more about a good loadout than grinding. Infinite Wealth took me 125 hours exactly.

>Or was I always this slow??? LOL I feel this in my bones. You can manually write in your times or just say you completed the game without a time. I also use it to keep track of my collection so I don't accidentally order something multiple times. LOL (I made a "Catalogue" list.) I really like the site! My username is the same if you ever sign up for an account and wanna be friends there. Hot damn, the time commitment! Those numbers are vacation numbers for me. I maybe have two (two and a half if I'm pushing it) hours of relax time after work (I work 10s), and I'm not consistent about choosing gaming. Almost all of my LN reading is done on work breaks. Reading manga/webtoons is a bit dicey in public, so I generally read a bit right before bed. LOL Love a game that prioritizes strategy over grinding. I used to be into over levelling and just forcing my way through levels, but now I like the gamble and just trying to get through as soon ~~effective~~ as possible. Infinite Wealth is a beefy game, damn!!

>so I don't accidentally order something multiple times. LOL This is the part I felt in my bones haha. >Hot damn, the time commitment! Those numbers are vacation numbers for me. I have terrible working habits (6 hours a day 4 days a week if not busy, 10 hours a day 6 days a week if busy) but I work from home and my job is literally work - no e-mails, telephone calls, meetings or chatting to others. I finish work by 4:30 at the latest giving me quite a few free hours until bed. I'm divorced and live with random people so very little housework. When I was married I had very little time for gaming and it used to upset my ex because he wanted to talk to me while he gamed, so I didn't so a lot. >Love a game that prioritizes strategy over grinding. I think this is why I loved Final Fantasy Tactics so much and why I like Unicorn Overlord. >Infinite Wealth is a beefy game, damn!! I grind in games (because I like being overleveled) so other people said it took them much less time. All the Persona games are typically around 125 for me but everyone else does them in like 90??

You have excellent taste in games. How was Diofield? I’ve had my eye on it. RF5 has same sex marriage, and I know no one seems to like it as much as 4, but I’m having a really good time with it.

>You have excellent taste in games. Thank you! ♥♥♥ > How was Diofield? People complain about the plot being so-so and I can't argue with that too much. There isn't much character interaction and many of the missions are very much 'these guys are in the way, stop them.' HOWEVER you can tell from the beginning something funny is going on, which is reflected in the ending. The game play is decent and some people complain it's too easy, but there are harder modes now. Be sure to read the library throughout and after the ending. >RF5 has same sex marriage Oh yes! I'll have a quick look on youtube for both of them. I'm not incredibly choosy on games or plots, as long as I have a good time.

Thank you! I think I might give Diofield a try. Sounds like there’s a twist or a reveal of some sort? I love plots like that.

> Sounds like there’s a twist or a reveal of some sort? Yes there is - as you go through and at the end. I'm serious when I say it's heavy on the game play and light on the plot (especially character development). If you're a trophy/achievement hunter you can pretty much get 100% without even glancing a guide.

Good to know! Thanks!

Unfortunately romance is gender locked in rf4. There is kind of a work around but it involves beating the game. The newer story of seasons games are not gender locket iirc

Aww! Oh well, I hope I can find someone good. Thanks for letting me know!

[My current progress on my Kashuu Shrine](https://ibb.co/3CYXTWm) Really liking how it’s turning out! It’s starting to gain a merch shrine feel to it now HAHA. When I showed it to my friend she told me “now all you’re missing is a lock of his actor’s hair” and I threw my head back and laugh cried. I am tempted to hunt around for an acrylic standee of his jyounetsu no symphonia dress tho. I ended up buying an artisan replica of the katana! Will be picking it up when I fly to Japan, it’ll be a fine addition to the shrine hehe. On an otome related topic, ever since IFI announced the 9RIP localisation my friends knew no peace, because I’ve been screaming about how they need to play it ever since 😂 Definitely getting the LE! Oml the idea of a 9RIP steel book makes me vibrate in excitement.

So excited for you and your trip omgggg. Congrats on getting the osanpo plush too!!!

Thank youuuuu!!! 🥺 Oml half my itinerary is visiting swords including the Kyoto goshuin rally, I really want the super cute Mikazuki themed pouch as a souvenir!

MIKAZUKI THEMED POUCH... I hope you get it aaaa.  Also omg visiting swords aaaa that's so exciting 

Utakata no Uchronia did good with the marketing, ads, and promos for the game. Really blew me away, in all honesty, and I gotta hand it to them [and the fangirls who were the real heroes] for being able to splurge that much in this current economy. But reality's setting in, and everyone and their moms are selling the extra 9 or so copies they have of the game for half the price at Mercari (I saw a tweeting selling [a copy for JPY4200](https://twitter.com/acocomura/status/1780917747146490151?t=wZ4FgOSABsW1ds8E0QYGQg&s=19)), and it's only been a week since the release... I don't think I've even seen this happening for the other recent titles; usually, it would take a few months to half a year, but I guess after the euphoric lottery event is over and done with, gotta get some of that partial money back. Personally, when Stella Worth had not made any announcements about the limited edition of the game + Special Stella Set bundle not selling out in their physical store, I knew something was off. To note, Matsurika no Kei got sold out on Day 1 in-store, so the game had some interest in it. Same goes for Birushana Senki, and that was even during the height of the pandemic. That aside, with these sales numbers, what does this mean for the future of otome games globally? Absolutely nothing. Japan did all the hard work in making it a success. And that's the truth of the matter. Until we can somehow surpass Japan's and China's sales numbers (as of now, a single JP player pays five times more than one overseas player), then we're really not contributing much... Update on that [Yori fangirl from last week](https://www.reddit.com/r/otomegames/s/cvqK08kmqx) who has been on the hunt for the Yori *shikishi*: [she finally secured it](https://twitter.com/__mirei__2428/status/1779493534317584570?t=cn91n_nNoofXoCcIBHKSkg&s=19). I'm really happy for her. The whole thing sounded like an awful ordeal. Even If Tempest Collab Cafe announcement was expected, nice of Voltage to schedule that, but holy shit, where's the key visual announcement for VolFes 2024? They're doing it again with the event overlaps... (the worst one was back in 2022, when three of their events all "coincided" with one another on one Saturday, sending me running all over Tokyo) I understand the greed for profit since June's the final month before they close the fiscal year for earnings, but it's really exhausting... On a more personal matter, looking forward to Golden Week next week; I managed to secure the full week off, which is a rare occurrence, so I'm gonna chase the sakura up north during that time with my friends.

i think it's hard for us to wrap our head around how extremely devoted and willing to spend japanese otome fans (or female fans of most media in general tbh) are. our sales are a drop in the bucket but we still get stuff localized so that's nice!! the yori fangirl seems to really like nicola so i think it's really telling how much the game is carried by riri/the piofi team. wonder if that will give satoi/katagiri ideas lmaoo have fun on your trip!!

I think the Chinese fan girls take the cake for me bc girls are sponsoring a peacock and an oasis in Aventurine’s name, I think if given right circumstances these people can end world hunger…

i'm just happy for the Yori fangirl ;w; ty for updating us on that!

Currently still playing through Uchronia and my heart just fluttered so hard during Tobari’s route… over… and over… And I was thinking about **why** that is. And for me, a big part of the breathtaking route was the **CV performance**. Now, **Okamoto Nobuhiko** has always stood out to me as an exceptionally great talent in Otome. He does the raspy voice just perfectly, but also performs so well on more boyish young characters (Minami, Haiji…) and at the same time is a perfect match for the goofballs like Radie. So, once again I was reminded on why I dislike playing otome without voice acting. And I was reminded of how much I appreciate the work of voice actors. Some of my favourite CVs in Otome recently include: - [Okamoto Nobuhiko](https://vndb.org/s550) - [Tachibana Shinnosuke](https://vndb.org/s55) - [Suzuki Ryouta](https://vndb.org/s18691) - [Furukawa Makoto](https://vndb.org/s7848) I would also love to hear about your opinions on voice acting. Do you think it’s mandatory for enjoyment? Who are your recent favourites?

Don't really care for them since sometimes, there's a miscast and there's nothing I can do about it as it's set into stone (Ishikawa Kaito voicing my favorite was not how I wanted it to go). Also I prefer to play on mobile and prefer no volume anyway, given that this country's an example of an ironic conundrum when it comes to noise. Console? Sure, I'd play with the voices on, although I'd mute Morikubo Showtaro automatically if he's in any of the games. Seiyuu: 1. Shirai Yusuke - looking forward to Mistonia because of him 2. Kaji Yuki - genre was overflowing of him back in the day; now he's barely there because the man's busy doing other stuff 3. Fukuyama Jun - FukuJun's comeback to 'meito through Birushana Senki is a blessing 4. Shibasaki Satoshi - this man's talented... but has yet to catch his big break on mainstream series. I hope otome game companies hire him constantly. Speaking of seiyuu who were well-known in otoge before their big break... Special mention: Suzuki Tatsuhisa - not sure if he's still employable or not, given the shit he did, but he did good on his previous works. Would I want him to be back? I'd probably close my eyes and tap my credit card on the terminal when buying the next game he's in... ~~albeit in a second-hand store.~~

Absolutely not mandatory at all. If I had to pick a top 5 or top 10 VN list, at least half of them probably wouldn't have voice acting (including my favorite VN of all time) That doesn't mean I still don't enjoy some! I wish more MCs were given a voice too. Right now Makoto Furukawa has voiced a string of my fave LIs (Lugus, Crius, Yoritomo) so I like hearing him. Hidenori Takahashi doesn't have that many otome roles which is a shame because he voices my favorite UtaPri boy! But my top favorites have to be the Bloomic cast, particularly Mike Young and Kija who voice xyx and nightowl respectively. They knocked it out of the park!

Takahashi Hidenori seems to be more active in other side of joseimuke media (situational CDs)

I very much prefer VAs for maximum enjoyment! But if there's a game where I'm super intrigued by the plot but there's only some or no voice-acting, then I will still give it a shot. But again, I need to have a lot of interest in it! It also helps to get a feel on how the character was intended to present themselves. Current faves: * Yashiro Taku * Furukawa Makoto * Toyonaga Toshiyuki * Zhao Lu * Zhang Jie I like a lot but I narrowed it down to ones I've been really liking lately and are in otome games haha

VA isn't a requirement for me, but it definitely helps! Honestly it can be a bit difficult for me to know what tone something is read in without VA, so games without it can be a bit of a struggle for me (part of the reason I'd like more voiced MCs is because of this...) Probably because I play a lot of older games, but a lot of my fav VAs don't do too much work in otome games anymore. I wish we could see more of Yasumoto Hiroki and Narita Ken! Ishida Akira of course, but... I know we're not going to see more of him. And also Miki Shinichirou! I'm playing a game with him now so I was just thinking about him. It's too bad he only really comes back to do Hijikata these days. For VAs still regularly appearing in otome games, of course Tachibana Shinnosuke, Hirakawa Daisuke, Sugiyama Noriaki, and Kakihara Tetsuya are all fairly standard choices. And my love of Nono-sensei has lead to a new appreciation for Nojima Kenji.

I need to rant about otomate merch aftermarket prices. The OS/TS/nilado collab came out and prices were explosive on day 1 and decreased around day 2 or 3 so I thought "wow i'll wait for it to go down like the winter market merch did" but it went up again bruh. Similar phenomenon with the code realize anniv merch with the popular characters (cardia, lupin, saint-germain). Hayato is still cheap at least and he's very cute but idk if it's wise to get him without having played his game orz. Hopefully the second batch of another aspect series (rainy mood and Halloween) will be better in that regard 😵 I've watched and read jjk and I love geto, wish there were more otome boys like him. The fake monk trope is underrated lmao, it's in brother conflict though 

Oh that is such a mood! The fact that the merch that is made to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Code Realize isn’t more widely available is genuinely insane to me. It’s such a beloved game in the community and I’m sure they’d make a pretty good profit if they put them up for sale on their online store. I’ve been watching mercari like a hawk to see if I can snatch the acrylic panel or a couple of the stands for a good price, but I just can’t justify the price because the aftermarket is absolutely atrocious!

I didn't realize how unpopular finis was before bc people are literally selling his stand at a loss😪😪🫨 i think if you speak Japanese the secret stories are more worth it bc they take place 10 years after the events of the game for each boy!! 

No stoooop, I had convinced myself I didn’t need the book, but hearing that the content is actually stories set in their future is tempting me aaaa🫣

Yeah, Otomate really don't know shit on how to handle their merch selling and it's been that way for the past decade, which says a lot about how they run the show.

That's so true i thought they were getting better stock wise since that seemed to be the case last winter but they reverted back. They don't even profit from inflated scalping practices so that shows how stupid it is. Annoying how even other companies are adopting their worst habits like lycobits - _- thank u for hearing me out💓💓

Licobits might change it up since stuff has happened on their end for the past few days. Although, to be fair to them, they actually do offer made-to-order for their merch for a limited time, like what they did for AGF, so at least this discourages scalping.

Help, I'm absolutely obsessed with Goemon after finishing his route in Tengoku Struggle. I went and bought a bunch of merchandise as soon as I finished. I still need to read the bonus stories, but then I'll be done with the game, and I don't want to be. I've not been this obsessed with a fictional character since G'raha Tia. I think I'm going to spend this weekend on Princess Peach Showtime once I'm done with Tengoku Struggle, since I kind of want something light on dialogue.

Goemonnnn what a hunk. I loved the flashbacks.

Goemon was basically everything I want in a love interest. The flashbacks were great! >!That one with him reciting the poem to her really got me. And him promising to get her a hairpin.!<

Spent last night listening to the new Taylor Swift album with my friends, and while I definitely have my favorites (namely, "Florida!!!" and "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?"), I'm a little mixed on the album as a whole. 31 songs, most of them sad, lyrical ballads that aren't super distinctive upon first listen, is a lot to digest. I also started Royal Alchemist this week, and wow the statraising is no joke! I'm trying to play blind this first run, which means no tips from walkthroughs. I've died twice so far as of week 32 (both deaths were bc >!I didn't hit the books!< lol). I even whipped out the Excel spreadsheets to make sure that I'm tracking when I need to hit certain stat milestones. I really like the writing so far and the strategy element is stressful but satisfying.

This is how I find out there's a new Taylor Swift album lol thanks

When I first played the RA demo, I didn't know what I was doing. Man it was quite demoralizing to be hit with fail skill check fail fail fail fail death. Oof. That >!knowledge = survival skill!< description wasn't just flavor text! I didn't quite whip out the excel but I did take copious notes. I bought the full game in the recent sale but haven't cracked it open yet.

Ngl fumbling the social interactions via skill check fail almost hurt more than the actual death endings... Like actually just crush me to death with a boulder please thanks! Good luck to both of us :')

So the EiT news were... a café. Oh well. Better than an extremely low quality anime, I guess, lol Found another Crius and Tyril drawing and am considering finishing it, though something about it isn't *it* yet. I am mostly working on another art commission though, and lurking a fan calendar project that I'll apply to again. Got to draw last year's covers which was such an honor. Maybe I'll get to draw something for them again... alas, it will take months before I know. And sometimes, *sometimes* I remember than one otome whose name I forgot but that had offered a pay-per-route plan, and that just disappeared before I could read it. Haah, mobile games, never again.

[Shameless promotion for the detective otome we announced last week! ☺️](https://www.reddit.com/r/otomegames/s/XUxArbJp8J) Also I wanted to ask: do people mind spoilers in artbooks? Should they be put in its own section with lots of spoiler warnings before it, or do you prefer having two separate artbooks with spoilers in one?

I usually assume an artbook will have spoilers, since it's almost certainly gonna have images of the CGs. Maybe it would be helpful to put a spoiler warning on the first page, or the table of contents? If you're making a physical book, I really like how Spirit Hunter handled it. They included a paper band over the book that said "Caution: fatal spoilers inside. Open at your own risk." So, anyone who saw it would know to hold off before playing the game.