Let me tell you this:
Amnesia:Memories may be the first otome game I've ever played, but it certainly won't be the last. Because to my utter surprise and delight, I'm enjoying that game much more than I thought I would. Heck, I'm relishing every minute of it!
Interestingly, what fascinates and enthralls me so much in that game is not the romance side or the cast of bachelors. The romance is both utterly cliché and too twisted to feel rewarding, and the potential sweethearts are downright unlikeable, so these blooming relationships don't make my heart flutter in the slightest. What rivets me and glues me to my Vita screen is the challenge set by the game, which is none other than to try my hardest to figure out how to get all the available endings.
Unlike
Steins;Gate,
Amnesia:Memories sports a solid dose of logic when it comes to narrative developments. It is actually possible to determine which course of action must be followed in order to get a given ending, and bad endings can be smelled from afar. Likewise, it is pretty easy to figure out which dialogues are relevant to the plot and which ones are idle babbling that won't alter the course of events. The gauges that can be found in the "Parameters" options of the menu also help tremendously as they allow a close monitoring of the consequences of dialogue choices, as well as the fact that already chosen dialogues options are highlighted in subsequent reruns. Using all these clues as well as rational thinking, I cleared the Heart Route and managed to unearth the good end and the normal end as well as one of the two bad endings all by myself, and I'm quite proud of that feat. (
SPOILERS ahead!)
That being said, I have to admit that the game fooled me allright at first and managed to lure me in the wrong direction in a most masterful way. I was introduced to Shin, who also happened to be a first-class prick, and it was pretty obvious that I was going to dislike him at first sight and clash vigorously with him. I suspected him of being involved in my accident and thus gave him the cold shoulder while being friendly with Toma during the first half of my run. I then realized that maybe Shin was not guilty after all and started being nicer to him, but the damage was already done and I got the normal ending as a result. I love how utterly
logical this outcome is in the context of the story: I was being nice to Toma and colder to Shin, which obviously meant that I liked the former and didn't the latter that much; and thus, it made perfect sense that I would repress the memory of Toma attacking me because of my affection for him and wouldn't be motivated to remember said memory because my love for Shin was not strong enough to endure the pain of facing the fact that Toma attacked me. From there, I deduced that the way to get the good ending probably involved being as nice as possible to Shin and as distant as possible towards Toma; this would thus mean that I liked the former and felt disconnected from the latter enough to face the harsh truth and remember the accident, and I applied this reasoning in a fresh run of the Heart Route. This proved highly successful, as I uncovered the good ending at the end of that run. Victory! I also managed to nail down the "I'm not the culprit" bad end, which was, well, bad in an almost hilarious way. And talking about that end, I have the feeling that this Ukyo is fishy. What's with all this talk about me getting along with my friends no matter how we are involved together? Could Ukyo be a spirit able to navigate between worlds, just like Orion? Well, I guess I'll find out sooner or later. I still have one bad ending left on the Heart Route, and if my reasoning is correct, I should manage to unearth it if I give the cold shower to Shin all the way through, which I plan to try at some point. For now, on to the next one!
On a more general note, I wonder if unlikeable sweethearts and over-complicated relationships are a staple in otome games or if they are specific to
Amnesia:Memories. The path to love is sure full of landmines in that game, and it felt a bit galling to work so hard to earn the affection of a douchebag who doesn't even seem to care that much about my transparent, uncharismatic character. If not for the challenge of trying to figure out how to regain my precious memories—i.e. how to get the good end and beat the game—I think I wouldn't bother playing the game at all. But fortunately, the challenge is there, and I'm lapping it up. Brace yourself, Ikki, I'm preying on you next! Until my next report on the matter, thanks for reading, and be my guest anytime!
" I wonder if unlikeable sweethearts and over-complicated relationships are a staple in otome games"
ReplyDeleteOh, now there's the million dollar question. Over-complicated? Almost always, since this is how most of these games derive drama. There's always gotta be some stupid misunderstanding along the way. Unlikeable sweethearts? There's always at least one, because there are people who like that so game makers gotta cash in on that, but having the entire cast be unlikeable is mostly reserved to 18+ games.
That said, Amnesia does have a mostly unlikeable cast. And if you think Shin was an asshole, ooohhh boy, you're gonna be so mad with a later route. Personally I was only able to kinda like Shin and Kent, but hey, not all games of this kind have to be sweet. Sometimes it's more fun to have a love-hate relationship with the characters, at least for me, who likes getting bad ends. And for someone who has played a lot of these games, it's a breath of fresh air.
To be honest, the only time I was ever able to enjoy gameplay-induced romance in a video game was when playing Avalon Code. That game had a very straightforward and unfussy approach to all things romantic: you just had to talk to the potential sweethearts and shower them with gifts, and you were rewarded by coys blushes, warm words and sweet little scenes. It was both endearing and rewarding, and I have yet to find a game whose romancing mechanics make me feel as mushy and stupidly happy as Avalon Code's.
DeleteI've started Ikki's route, and... Two bad endings already, he he!! This guy's route is much harder to decode than Shin's but I will manage it anyway. I don't know if you were referring to this route when you said I was going to get mad later, but Ikki sure makes Shin look like an angel! Not that I really mind Ikki's horribleness, mind you: having to figure out how to work this guy in order to reclaim that memories is a lot of fun, and his detestable behaviour is so over-the-top that it actually becomes hilarious!
Orion's cheeful babbling helps a lot when it comes to defusing heavy atmosphere, too. I like this little guy more than all the bachelors put together! =D
Oh, I dislike Ikki's route a lot (and I mean a lot, even when you get the normal/good ends that try to make him look sympathetic), but I'm sure there's another guy that's gonna make you feel even worse. You'll know when you see it. Have fun when you get there! Although personally, I still like the guy in question more than Ikki, because at least there's only one of him, whereas with Ikki you get him and a bunch of crazy girls.
DeleteYou're not the only one who liked Orion way better. Fans thought so too, and they wanted him so badly he got a little ending in the first sequel and a full blown route in a later sequel. Despite the fact that he is (or at least looks like) a kid. But one just can't help but loving him. At the very least he honestly cares for the heroine and what she feels.
Gee, I would love to play an Orion route!
DeleteAnyway, I'm going for another dose of the Ikki Route! If luck and good reasoning are with me, I'll witness the good or neutral ending by the end of the day. Brace yourself, game!