Tag: Japanese Otome Game

Otoko Yuukaku – Tokiwa ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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Remember those teenage boy characters from the ‘80s and ’90s teen shows? You know. The ones that are mischievous and reckless but with a good heart? The ones that pull “harmless” pranks on the principal (or other authority figures), with no thought to the consequences. Yet somehow, they seem to avoid the worst possible consequence due to their charming personality.

I could go as far as to label this troupe the “bad boy with a heart of gold.” Only, the boys I’m talking about aren’t necessarily committing serious crimes. These boys have an itch to make mischief and are reckless enough they don’t think about the consequences. Yet, they don’t have a malicious bone in their body.  They just do stupid stuff because it seems like a good idea at the time.  

These boys make you scratch your head and say, “Really? That’s the solution you’re going to go with?” You question how they’ve made it this far in life, and why things just seem to work out for them. And while you find their immaturity unattractive, you can’t deny that these boys are never boring!

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut!

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Hakuouki: SSL – Susumu Yamazaki ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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When I first played Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms, Yamazaki wasn’t even on my radar. And that’s probably because while he is a character in the original historical game, he’s not a member of the Original Six (Hijikata, Saito, Okita, Harada, Heisuke, and Kazuma) that were given routes. And because of this, in general, he is less popular and less well-known than the Original Six.

Well, the writers remedied this in Kyoto Winds and Edo Blossoms and Chizuru was given a chance to fall in love with Yamazaki. And while I thoroughly enjoyed Yamazaki as a character, I was left feeling like: “is that it?” Because I really felt Yamazaki was the least fleshed out of the new six routes added to the remake. In short, I kind of felt the writers did him dirty with how little new content he got in Kyoto Winds compared to the other new characters (also, was it just me, or was his route in Edo Blossoms shorter than the rest as well…hmmm?).

It wasn’t until I found the SSL walkthroughs created by the people who made the patch, that I realized Yamazaki even had a “route” in SSL. Talk about a pleasant surprise! And while I had a hunch, that once again, he wouldn’t be as fleshed out as the Original Six, I still finished the route thinking: “is that it?”

I am stating this now: Yamazaki needs more content! He’s one of the good ones!

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut! There will also be a few spoilers for Hakuouki: Kyoto Winds and Hakuouki: Edo Blossoms and, well…essentially all other possible Hakuouki content in general.

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Otoko Yuukaku – Kagura ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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As an introvert, I do feel a love and a fondness for a good kuudere. Heroes like Akaza from Olympia Soiree, Dante from Piofiore, Axel from OZMAFIA!!, and Yoritomo from Birushana are some of my top favorite otome love interests.

But I am coming to begrudgingly recognize that there is a subset of kuuderes who take their stoicism to a higher level. And when this higher level of stoicism is combined with a lack of people skills, these heroes cross the line from being endearing kuuderes to just plain…boring.

Now let me say, Kagura isn’t a bad character. He just didn’t appeal to me.

And that’s okay.

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut!

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Hakuouki: SSL – Sanosuke Harada ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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At the time of this article, I have played approximately 152 otome routes. This means I have read stories of 125 different heroes. And out of these 125 men, Sanosuke Harada is my all-time favorite! Ever since I played his route, a couple of years ago now, he has been at the top of my favorites list, with no end of his reign in sight.

And now with my 153th route completed, I am simply reminded of why I love Harada so much! This route isn’t flawless by any means, and I really dislike the power dynamic (that is not present in the historical games) that the writers created between Harada and Chizuru in SSL.

BUT EVEN SO.  

Harada simply remains the best…to me anyway!   

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut! There will also be a few spoilers for Hakuouki: Kyoto Winds and Hakuouki: Edo Blossoms and, well…essentially all other possible Hakuouki content in general.

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Shinobi Koi Utsutsu – Garaiya ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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If ever an otome route demonstrates the importance of kindness and acceptance, it is Garaiya’s route in Shinobi Koi Utsutsu.

I would classify Shinobi Koi Utsutsu as a romantic comedy, adventure story. This game is lighthearted and will make you smile, laugh, and blush! But underlying the fun and sheer silliness of the set up and plot is a story of a lonely young man who desperately wants a place to belong. There is a gravity to this story and it’s the universal desire for genuine acceptance. At the center of this route is Garaiya and Kaede and the strength of their friendship and the power of unconditional acceptance.

The message of this route is outstanding, and I really loved it!

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut!

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Hakuouki: SSL – Souji Okita ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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I love the Hakuouki franchise!

And now that I have my Vita (thank you, wonderful husband!), I was excited to play Hakuouki: SSL!

This game is about enjoying the characters that you have come to love and letting them be happy! No war. No death. No furies. No tuberculosis. No real plot or character development.

And that is fine.

This game is for the fans of the Hakuouki franchise.  We can just sit back and relax while the characters we love enjoy their sweet school life!

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut! There will also be a few spoilers for Hakuouki: Kyoto Winds and Hakuouki: Edo Blossoms and, well…essentially all other possible Hakuouki content in general.

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Otoko Yuukaku – Takao ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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To be honest, sometimes I don’t want to sit through hours of plot. Sometimes I want an otome game that focuses solely on the romantic development between the hero and heroine. I want to focus on the emotional connection between two characters, and witness how this romantic relationship changes these characters. I want something character and (most importantly) romance driven.

And while I definitely swoon over chaste love stories with awkward hand-holding and nothing more than a chaste kiss at the end, sometimes I want more. Sometimes, I want an abundance of hugs, kisses, and (gasp!) the steamy times that can accompany all the aforementioned kissing. Because I love physical romance driven stories, too…of the Cero D or “M” rating variety (I’m not into explicit R-18 otome games).   

And is spite of how melodramatic and contrived Takao’s route in Otoko Yuukaku is, I shamelessly enjoyed it!

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut!

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Otoko Yuukaku – Misao Hidetomi ~ Heroine Character Analysis

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So, this started off normally enough. I was going to do a regular character and plot thoughts article, centering around Takao’s route in Otoko Yuukaku.

But as I wrote, I realized I had a lot to say about Misao’s character. I had written seven pages just about her, and if I continued at that current pace, this article would have been well over ten, maybe 15, pages long. So, I decided to break the article up!

This article will solely be about Otoko Yuukaku’s heroine: Misao! 

Yeah. I’m surprised, too.

As always, character analysis and spoilers after the cut! There will also be spoilers for Takao’s route.

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Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan – Shizuru Migiwa ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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One of my favorite historical romance novels is Devil in Winter, written by Lisa Kleypas. It tells the story of Sebastian the debauched Lord St. Vincent, and Evie the shy, stuttering, sheltered young heiress. Sebastian desperately needs to marry into money, and Evie needs to escape the control of her selfish relatives who want Evie to marry her cousin so the money stays in the family. So, Evie goes to Sebastian with the proposition of an eloped marriage of convenience. Sebastian has no other options, and he does find Evie physically attractive, so he agrees and they immediate set out for Gretna Green. 

Evie has standards for the man who will win her heart and Sebastian rises to the occasion and becomes a better man in the process. This growth isn’t easy for Sebastian who has to earn the trust of his wife that he will be a faithful husband and not continue his lifestyle of womanizing. And, over the course of the novel, Sebastian comes to love and respect Evie for everything she is: emotionally, mentally, and physically. And Sebastian becomes the faithful husband Evie deserves.

And for Evie’s part, she has to learn to trust her husband’s love as genuine and real. She watches him grow as a person, and she has to have the strength to take the leap and believe that he is becoming a better man. She cautiously gives him the opportunity to grow and encourages him on his journey. And by the end of the book, she knows their shared physical intimacy is a demonstration of his all-consuming love for her.

There is a give and take to this relationship. They both grow individually and that makes them stronger together as a couple.  

I say all this, because this is the set-up, I saw for Shizuru and Tsugumi. The sheltered, young miss who catches the attention of the educated, worldly, sexual, older man. And no matter how much I tried to separate the stories, I just couldn’t stop judging and comparing Shizuru and Tsugumi to Sebastian and Evie.

And I just couldn’t get into the relationship dynamic between Tsugumi and Shizuru. There wasn’t a give and take between our two leads and the trust Tsugumi held for Shizuru wasn’t earned. 

And, to me, something about their relationship simply felt…icky.  

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut!

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Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan – Hisui Hoshikawa ~ Plot & Character Analysis

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I watched the Nil Admirari no Tenbin anime before I really understood what otome games were. So, imagine my surprise when I learned there was a text-based game that expanded upon the world of this show. Now, I’ve come to realize that anime adaptations of otome games can be hit or miss. But I genuinely believe that Nil Admirari has one of the better anime adaptations, granted I have not seen them all. So, after really enjoying the anime, I was really excited to play the game!

And then I learned, the game was only available in Japanese.

Well, fast forward a few years, and I finally had the courage to try Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan.

This game is BEAUTIFUL! I love the story, art, music, and voice acting! I read the prologue and, yes, it was exactly like the show but that was to be expected. It was the prologue, after all. So, I dove into the common route, excited for the adventure that awaited me.

And…well…the anime kind of spoiled the route.  

As always, character and plot analysis and spoilers after the cut!

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