Otome and Gal Games: The Fallout. Kinda. But there’s still hope!

 

 

It’s been roughly two years and nine months since I last played an otome game; and you’d be forgiven for thinking that I ditched the genre entirely. Truth be told, I genuinely didn’t feel like indulging in the genre for all that time; but a couple of weeks ago, the otome itch came back with a vengeance, begging to be scratched immediately. Ni une ni deux, I purchased a bunch of Switch otomes and started playing with gusto… only to be slapped in the face with two unexpected issues. 

 

 

The first issue is the content of the involved games. I played Lover Pretend, Charade Maniacs, Radiant Tale, Winter’s Wish and Birushana; and I ditched them all before clearing a single route — sometimes before clearing the first chapter. I ditched them all for the exact same reason: these games lack a solid story, a compelling game world and endearing and relatable characters. They are really just good ol’ romances, taking place between paper-thin characters in a papier mâché décor. Do I really have the nerve to blame otome games for featuring romance, you may ask? Nope; I’m just saying that I don’t fancy such a pure, unadulterated focus on romance. 

 

 

I realise now that all the otomes and gal games I dig — Bad Apple Wars, Our World is Ended, Norn9, World End Syndrome, Nightshade — are really just solid Visual Novels with some romance on top. More precisely, the romance in these games is not handled — and handed — like emotional porn; instead, it is used to advance the story and underline narrative elements, and it’s always presented in a way that respects the characters — and thus the player. The romance serves the story and the characters, not the other way around. 

 

 

I kept ploughing through my pile of Switch otomes, hoping to encounter a gem of the variety described above; and joy and glory, I finally found it in Olympia Soirée! No kidding: this game totally has the potential to become a Cult Classic of mine. And yet, I ditched it at the beginning of the 3^rd route; and I ditched it for no other reason than my second current issue with otome games, i.e. the way I play them. Or more precisely, the very dire admission that I don’t play them my way, and I haven’t played them my way for a very long time. 

 

 

Rewind all the way to my first otome game: Amnesia:Memories on the Vita, way back in November 2015. I had a blast with that game; and one of the major reasons I enjoyed myself so much is the way I played A:M. I played it by ear, so to speak: I just picked the paths that seemed interesting, and the answers that suited my real-life personality best. Heck, I played that game like a ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ book: laughing, gasping and marvelling at the twists and turns the game threw at me, and being just a good sport that didn’t take things too seriously. That light-hearted and playful approach disappeared pretty quickly though, to be replaced by a typical gamer’s mindset. 

 

 

Basically, I wanted to win these games, which in my mind translated as getting the good endings — preferably while avoiding the bad ones, and without a walkthrough to top it off. This narrow focus on winning nearly made me swear off Bad Apple Wars, just because the good endings didn’t feel rewarding enough. This focus also made me play the entirety of the mindfuck that is Piofiore, just because I wanted to be that smartass who escaped the game unscathed. That darn stupid focus made me play some otomes entirely and suffer through shitty routes full of crappy fellows, instead of just zeroing in on the routes that truly resonated with me. And heck, that royally sucks. However, I’m not gonna dwell on it any longer: instead, I’ll change my way of playing otomes and gal games and bring the fun back. Right now, I need a break from the genre in general; but watch out for my grand return! 🤩