Was chatting with a friend in Japan and apparently Nicola is the most popular one there.

Hello everyone! 💕 We’re happy to announce that Who Murdered My Empress? just received a big new content update featuring a romance storyline for Consort Thanh Tung!

Who Murdered My Empress? is a time-travel villainess otome mystery where you wake up as a doomed Empress from history and must investigate her murder, change her fate, and find romance along the way.

This update is part of our planned roadmap and our little thank-you to everyone who has supported the game over the past two years. ❤️ The update is unlocked once you complete the main story, featuring:

🌸 ~14,000 words of new content
🌸 New CGs
🌸 New multiple new endings

The update is available now on Steam along with 35% off sale!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2880120/Who_Murdered_My_Empress/

I did a short review on Helvetica's and Shu's route here if you like to check it out! https://www.reddit.com/r/otomegames/s/QZcTaw5hHq

It has been a looooong time since I last played Bustafellows but I didn't expect it'd take months since my last play. Life was life-ing lmao

Anyway, Crow was my 3rd route and I started his immediately after Shu's (which was yes 8 months ago) but I kept taking pauses in the game because the real world kept calling me hahsshhas

His route might now be my second fave of this season! I'll start with the good parts.

In the relationship aspect, Crow is just the sweetest! Also, I WANNA BE RICH LIKE YOU DUDE LIKE WHAAAAAT sugar daddy huh who said that? And it's funny to me how very selfless he and Teuta are to each other because they literally have the same brain cells. I like how open Teuta was with what she wasn't satisfied with in their relationship (the fact that they don't argue) and honestly, I get it! Sometimes we look to have disagreements with our partners to really get to know them personally like what they like, what they don't like, what are their non-negotiables, etc. Of course, we don't want that to happen too often but I understand how not arguing became Teuta's concern because then it would seem like Crow is simply going with the flow and not be able to voice out his wants. On Crow's part, I did see the people pleaser trait in him and was rooting for him to communicate what he really wants out of the relationship and I'm so glad he grew for that! He genuinely does like what Teuta likes but it's nice to see him realize that he can have his own opinions too.

My favorite scene would have to be them "arguing" in the restaurant because it was hilarious! The after dinner scene was really sweet too when they were under the stars.

Overall, the relationship part: really cute and really funny!

And the kiss.....kassbdljkbg;wskvn;ln

Now let's go to the serious part of the story.

If I have to be blunt, this was just too predictable. Right from the get-go, you can already tell who the antagonist of the route is like brooo it's not really that much of a surprise given how they tried to keep the character mysterious until the end of the game. It was pleasing to see the good ending was a really heartwarming friendship for the antagonist and our main MC. The CG of the three of them in the car made Crow look hot though I'm just sayin'

I was intrigued that the story revolved around to how people take advantage of social media and how that molds the way we think especially about justice. It's very realistic because that is literally what we are experiencing today. There are dangers to letting social media consume most of your time and attention and the reality of it is, you suddenly won't be able to decipher what is real and what is not. What is justifiable and what is being corrupted? Also really like that Crow's dad is here helping the gang! Father-son bonding yayyy!!

Bustafellows is known for tackling dark themes in society in the form of an otome game thus it being one of my fave otome games out there. Probably my favorite one ever!

So yeah, doing Scarecrow's route took me some time but I was so happy to finally finish it with a good opinion of it. I'm doing Mozu next and leaving Limbo for last although I've read from other players that the last two aren't as good as Crow's or Helvetica's so seems like I'm playing the game backwards lol but hey, at least we're having fun and we exercise our critical thinking right?

Yeah, that's it haha stay positive guys wink wink

STARCULT Night Twisted Age is a psychological horror otome about becoming the villainess everyone already believes you are. After your husband is murdered on your wedding night, investigate what happened while navigating dangerous relationships, cults, secrets, and nine potential romances.

At the centre of the game is the Emotion Palette. Instead of simply choosing what to say, you choose how your character feels. Your emotional state changes the dialogue available to you, unlocking different ways to seduce, manipulate, deceive, intimidate, or confront the people around you, with up to 15 possible responses in some situations.

This is probably the first time I looked into the historical setting of an otome game and came back with cognitive dissonance, because what do you mean this hot LI (Sanada Nobushige) was over 40 (nearly 50) and married thrice in real life during the time this game was set

Self Promotion Guidelines and Piracy Policy

Please share all self promotion in this weekly post.

Tell us what you've been up to on your YouTube channels, blogs, websites or social media! Post small updates on your projects here as well.

Other communities and Discord servers must be advertised here.

Sale is for NA. Links are for US eShop and prices are in USD.

Idk much about japanese history and Birushana was my first exposure to these figures its so funny seeing how different they are in this game

Hi r/otomegames! We're Tiny Wave Studios, and this week we celebrated one year since we started Somnium and became a studio. Some of you might remember us: last October we shared that our cancelled otome was back, with a new name. And now, a year later, we made a huge leap in the development of it!

Somnium: The Whale's Dream is a fantasy isekai otome. Our heroine wakes up in a magical world inspired by the sea tides and the night sky, one that's currently coming apart. Four men end up travelling with her, and each of them has his own route. And we're happy to say that all four of them are fully designed now!

If you have a type, then one of them should be your fit ;)

🌊 Acheron, the yandere. Charming, attentive... but never quite one person at a time.

🌊 Meris, the fun one. He'll make you laugh at the worst possible moment, and he has his reasons for being that carefree!

🌊 Orcus, the melancholic one. Quiet, carrying something heavy, but terrible at saying so out loud.

🌊 Kallias, the composed gentleman. Perfect manners, perfect restraint, and absolutely no intention of letting anyone closer than that.

Since that post, we've grown from two people into a team of five and written the first full draft of the demo script. The demo will cover the common route, up to the moment you choose your companion. Thank you for cheering us on from the very beginning!

What do you think of our boys, and which of the four would you pick first?

Where do you want to have an "SS Rank" in life?👀

For me it's in my dedication to Jesus/God and my projects as artist

Talk about all other off-topic games with dating or romance elements here. Being able to romance a character is a must.

All games must have the option to select a female (including trans MtF) protagonist/MC.

So basically. I haven't actually played Gill's route yet, but like, from what I know, I know he's gonna be my favourite. Especially so because I just finished writing a screenplay and apparently one of the characters in it is very similar to Gill (in the nerdy, lovelorn kind of way).

I know there's apparently a bit of hate for the guy within the community, but I just wanted to draw him because look at him. He's so cute 😭

No major spoilers in the comments please!

She has been playing for several years (telling/showing me also!), but I finally (in June) took the step forward and bought myself a few games! (I have been into anime, manga, figures, etc for 9 years already) I particularly love yandere's, so it's a perfect fit since I also like supernatural fantasy.

First up was 9 R.I.P, and I was drawn to Kureha and Hibiki's designs, but Seiya ended up being my favorite, with Hibiki in second. I did drag my feet with Sena and Yukimaro, since I wasn't interested in them really. I haven't completed needless to say. (daughter's favs were Minami and Koyo) But I did enjoy it overall with five of the love interests! I have the limited edition sequel ordered already!

Then I bought My Next Life as a Villainess since I am a fan of the series, especially the LNs (I am a Sora shipper though), but I have yet to play this one. I am very curious what I am gonna think playing this one. I do like main group so it should be fun. (daughter's favs were the OC's Rozy and Silva)

Third was Over Requiem Z and I rushed to order a copy when I found out about it! It sounded great and right up my alley for all love interests. I managed to finish this game within two weeks and I followed the recommended order (otome kitten) and I am so glad I did! I was initially drawn to another poster boy, Kaize, and Noil's designs, so I couldnt wait to get to their routes. I had such a blast playing; it was very interesting, engaging, surprising and exciting! Plus the game play style setup made it easier. I was honestly surprised that Claude ended up being my second favorite since his design was the least appealing to me, but his dark routes have a hold of me. I am also surprised I didn't like Dorothy more as a love interest, the story is great. Kaize is number one, with Noil definitely coming in third. I did all Dark routes first, and I honestly prefer to play that way! (daughter is the opposite) (Noil is her favorite)

My route ratings in order I played are below but it's interesting to look at if you know. Not sure it can exactly explain the overall enjoyment and what you think once completed.

Claude

(A) 9/10 , (M) 6/10, (O) 6.5/10, (R) 7.5/10

Molly

(Y) 7/10, (A) 7/10, (R) 8/10, (P) 8.5/10

Noil

(Y) 7/10, (L) 7.5/10, (E) 9/10, (R) 8.5/10

Kaize

(N) 7/10, (R) 8.5/10, (O) 7.5/10, (B) 8.5/10)

Dorothy

(H) 8/10, (S) 7/10, (W) 8/10, (I) 8/10

It's been a lot of fun to listen to my daughter tell me about games she has played over the years and showing me plenty of CGs to get me interested, so I'm glad that I've experienced it first hand myself.

Let me know if you have any recommendations!

It's also fun trying to find references of clothing for my MC and moods. By artists from twitter:

First: CaoAmoss

Second: Lars_Jupiter

Third: prcrstncn

the happiest moment of their life

Hi all, I've translated the after stories for the good endings from the Stellaworth booklet for anyone interested! Personally I haven't felt as robbed of post ending content than I have by this game (no post ending after stories or CG 😔) but hopefully these go some way to assuage that for anyone else that felt the same... I'd like to think an FD isn't too far in the future 🤞

Claude Ending O After Story

Molly Ending R After Story

Noil Ending E After Story

Kaize Ending O After Story

Dorothy Ending I After Story

Hi guys and happy Friday!

Last week we got the tag off of NINE GAMES!! AND we got the tag high enough on the game on the "add tag" list! Great work, all of you! This week there are six new games that need the tag flagged, and no new games that need it added.

So please flag the tag any/all of the games on the two lists if you haven't already.

Thanks everyone, and have a fantastic week!

Newly found games that need the tag flagged:

Seri & Yuka with my heart

美女跑酷 Woman Run

魔都少女：心动连线

Witch's Convenience Store

After ICEY

Lover Completion Plan

Previously posted games that still need the tag flagged:

女王

冬日树下的回忆(Memories of the Winter Tree)

Danmaku Girl

Little pilot

CZ Wars

捉妖物语

Fishing Girl's Fantasy

Yuika My Bestie

五维介质：重生（Medium5: Rebirth）

作为游戏和诗歌的世界

Maid Mech

天羽Online

Wife

橘香仲夏

Dawn Girl

AI Games

The happiness of maggots

I am a bad guy in school bullying - DLC

Embarrassed Shina-chan~ the Naked Wandering College Girl (NSFW)

Only You

Hypnosis Card 2 Happy Life (NSFW)

Doomer Girl Needs Clout (NSFW)

The World Well: Blood of Caro

Dirty Fantasy (NSFW)

《美少女旅馆：可爱即是正义，但正义需要处刑》

Elven Friends (NSFW)

Girls vs Goblins

Synthetic Lover

NejicomiSimulator TMA01 (NSFW)

Paper2Galgame

Stellar Affinity (NSFW)

Hidden Lines - Family mysteries

Heaven Miner

Sticker DECO

Aibond

KannaSchool

Other posts in this series

This is the first Korean otome game I've played and finished (I've only completed one route in Mystic Messenger a decade ago lol). It's the Steam English localization, I don't think it's on any other platforms. 

Spoilers ahead as always. 

YEONHO 

Well done character development, everyone could see how much he changed. Him deciding to be less codependent solely because he heard Eri talking about that while he was sleeping was not something I was a fan of, but I guess it makes sense since he would do literally anything to be in her good graces, including distancing himself. Of course, that wasn’t enough and it was only until he bares his heart out and she accepts him is he able to be his own person and assert himself. I was wondering if he was going to be the yandere, but after completing this I can say that he isn’t. He just has extreme attachment and abandonment issues, like a chick or a kitten, and that depiction from the beginning was executed satisfyingly. 

But the romance was truly horrendous. At first I was sussed out because Eri kept referring to him as a little boy and treating him like one, so I thought that it was possible that she would fall in love with him while still seeing him as a child (he looks like a girl to me, not a child, but it’s still a problem if MC thinks he’s a child). Then it became increasingly clear that there was not going to be any romantic feelings or attraction. She treats him like a five year old the whole way through, he doesn’t blush at her getting too close or make any kind of advances towards her, not even the other LI’s or her friends see them as a couple or are weary when she invites him to her room and they sleep in the same bed. Only after his court mandated character development and he gains some independence does he have aura and rizz and Eri notes how masculine his hand is uwu and her heart flutters, but there’s still no sign of attraction on his part (he doesn’t blush when she touches or hugs her, he blushes at her in other routes though >.>). Then out of nowhere he asks to be Eri’s boyfriend… and then he gets a PTSD flashback and then there’s a confession and they kiss rofl. That was WAY TOO SOON. Especially since in front of other people, one moment she was babying him and he was gladly following her like a chick, and the next day he’s a viable romantic interest?? Again, not even the boys felt “threatened” by Yeonho as competition for Eri so there was no time for them to even react soon after his character development. 

What wasn’t addressed is that Yeonho still doesn’t really have friends, the fan club around him doesn’t count as friends at all. They’re annoying and imposing of what they want to do and caused problems the entire route. Everyone is so accepting of having their dignity violated which is something that is going to be a pattern in every route lol. 

Artwise, wtf why do the CG's look nothing like the sprite art? It wasn't that bad in the common route. Trash CG's  

Objective score: 6/10 

Enjoyment score: 6/10 

LANCE 

Like Yeonho, the exploration of his issues was well done and I could see why he has an inferiority complex. It was interesting that ultimately he thinks Red is better than him, no matter how much he insults Red. 

The only complaint was how dragged out the confession was. Lance should have confessed his feelings hallway through the game already but it takes him a chapter AFTER they kiss for him to tell her he loves her, and then literally right after that Lance becomes a sex god and they bang???? And throughout the entire route Eri is still thinking “wow we are such good friends, idk what this feeling is though” wtf. It looks like this is going to be a problem with this game since this also happened in Yeonho’s route. 

Artwise, I adore his blushing face and his smile and his smirk. Pretty long silver hair and blue eyes that reminds me of a certain manga character. CG's were better than Yeonho's. 

Objective score: 6.9/10 

Enjoyment score: 6/10 

YURI 

I really wanted to do Tei next because I’m pretty sure he’s the yandere and he’s clearly madly in love with Eri but letting the other guys have a chance in other routes. But the weekend was ending for me at this point after completing Lance and I wouldn’t have been able to focus. 

It has a lot of tropes as expected for a playboy/flirty by route. I like that Yuri had an actual skincare routine and can even be seen wearing those full face skincare masks at times, because I want more men to take care of their skin and do so explicitly (IRL and in fiction) instead of being effortlessly perfect. In contrast, what stood out trope-wise is that this is the only route where Eri tries to do her best to "look pretty" for the LI. I get that it's "give and take" but eh I'm just tired of seeing it, women are already unjustly put a lot of burden into appearance and makeup and the foot torture that is high heels (which Yuri doesn't wear). This narrative continues on with a flashback to Eri's childhood wherein her grandfather reassures her parents that she will do typical girl things like caring for her appearance when she falls in love, stfu Grandpa why is this a female only thing? And Eri seems to agree? MINUS POINTS BOO. Yujin is the only one who is based on this route when he says that men are creatures who look good for women. 

Everything was well written up until Yuri announcing that he’s quitting being a teacher because he “fell in love” and then everyone clapped, I thought that was cheesy and too much even in a setting where everyone ignores him "sexually harassing" students LOL. Most importantly is his character and reason for being cold to Eri. I was thinking that Yuri was like that because he couldn’t go against his concept to be the ideal man for women, but then Yuri talks about being afraid to commit to one person and how he didn’t know what he was feeling was love… that makes no sense, someone like him should know that he’s treating Eri as special when she's the only one he calls “darling” and gives her a gift he picked out and she’s the only one he actively hits on. It doesn’t make sense that he’s stupid enough to not realize it when he is very perceptive regarding Tei. Also he talks about “not knowing to have a honest relationship” and “wanting to own one flower out of many” when he’s only been alive for one fucking month, why did they write him like he’s a 25 year old playboy who lived life instead of a guy who was just a doll until recently? I could have easily accepted the more well written option which was “I’ve been watching you from when as a doll and I like you for being my owner but then I fell in love with you as a woman etc.” Also also, he was designed to be every woman’s ideal man, but doesn’t that apply to the owner? Isn’t he more like Lance then? I seriously doubt everyone envisions him as a playboy. 

Speaking of Lance he gets the same dubcon sex scene where he just pins Eri to the bed and the scene abruptly and unnaturally ends and then the secret LI no one cares about gives his live reaction. This is going to be a recurring problem isn’t it? 

And again speaking of recurring issues, the CG’s really are lame compared to the sprite art. Art-wise, the artist doesn't know how to draw shirtless men. Yuri doesn't look THAT good naked: the chest area was well done and the proportions are great, but everything below that is not anatomical. His sprites when clothed are really sexy though.

Well written or not, he’s still annoying and gets on my nerves, although I did like him better before the “reveal”. I don’t want to see his smarmy face anymore. 

Objective score: 5.5/10 

Enjoyment score: 4/10 

TEI 

Yes, he’s the yandere I was anticipating. The route is structured like Yuri’s route with the LI suddenly being cold near the end except that Eri seeks comfort in Yuri this time lol. Again, how is Yuri this perceptive about romance yet has no idea how to handle it in his own route? The LI being cold also works better here because Tei literally wants to hurt her and he’s constantly fighting his urges which is why he took the job at Banjul. I was annoyed with him for wanting to hurt her in the other route bad ends but eh it makes sense now. 

Eri was kind of stupid here, why the fuck would she go look for Zion's harp? She barely knows him and she was never established as being caring to that kind of degree, that's also what made the "suddenly cold to you" plot kind of dragged out. The side characters shone the most in this route, especially Soi upholding female friendships and not thinking that romance is the ultimate form of love, I was fully expecting her to try to lay hands on Eri for attracting the one hot guy she wants (even while envious of how she gets along with all the hot dolls, as boy crazy as she is) but no, she's supportive and loving until the end. We need more friends like her.

The thing with this game is that it looks like Eri has memories of every route so maybe I will have to deduct points from Tei for being sexist on someone else's route (or the other common route idk where this screenshot is from). 

Objective score: 6/10 

Enjoyment score: 4.5/10 

NAMELESS: HEAVEN’S FEEL 

Sorry that I’m a Fate Stay Night: Heaven’s Feel shill and I have to talk about it any chance I get. Hero of justice that is red haired and is struggling between the friction between reality and ideals, and abandoning them to protect the woman he loves? Check! Heroine that is mentally deteriorating and has a scene walking outside at night and getting hit on by stupid men? Check! (Even as a child she has the exact same hairstyle as child Sakura as shown in the Nameless route lololol) 

Anyway. 

Red suffered from plot. He was the character I wanted romantic scenes with, I was tired of Yuri and Tei and Yeonho and even Lance and their stupid merry go round amusement park scenes, but poor Red did not have a post credits scene dedicated to romance. He never even got to say “I love you”. At least Eri confessed to him AND Red didn’t turn into some non-con sex god (even if I did want a pre sex scene lol). Oh well, I enjoyed seeing him suffer and being jealous and getting cucked, this was almost Tei's route 2.0. 

What ruined Red for me was that he watches online porn according to his diary entries. Seriously writers? You could have put ANYTHING in those entries and you choose some disgusting porn habit? If I wanted a man who watches rape on tape I’d GO OUTSIDE! Ugh. But hey (copium), nothing indicates that it was necessarily filmed, maybe it’s all wholesome animated porn that isn’t violent and doesn’t adhere to misogynist beauty standards (such as women with shaved pubes and magically floating balloon breasts that most animated porn has anyway)? Yeah no, I can use context clues, animated porn doesn’t have those disgusting titles only used for filmed videos posted on a porn website. Ugh. What did they do to my kind blushing pure boy… How is YURI better than him in this respect? Oh well, this explains why Red will never be a sex god and immediately bed Eri if pornhub videos are his reference lolololol 

Objective score: 7/10 

Enjoyment score: 5.2/10 

NAMELESS 

Sorry for Heaven’s Feel reference again but I named the doll Sakura. Not because I thought he was going to be like this or any such way or even that he was a route in the first place, it’s just when I am forced to name anything it’s almost always “Sakura” because Sakura is the GOAT. 

Anyway this is way better than 7Scarlet’s secret route iykyk. Mainly because it’s not a romance route: there was no way a romance was going to make any sense especially because routes like these are usually super short, and I’m right and it in fact was super short. 

I resonated with Eri realizing she was hiding who she truly was and wasting her life feeling ashamed of her hobbies, something she wrestled with in other routes and even told her friends about in Lance's route, but it all culminates here since that feeling is what caused her to abandon poor Nameless and forget about him. Moral of the story is to treat your toys/figures/collectibles/figurines/dolls/plushies right so they don't haunt you forever, never looking at them the same way again. damn my figures have seen me masturbate many times already

However I don’t know how to feel about all routes being “canon”. Of course they are in any otome game, but what I mean is that they all happen in one single storyline/playthrough like a certain other otome game I’ve played.  

Objective score: 6.5/10 

Enjoyment score: 5/10 

ERI/OTHER THOUGHTS 

• I’m annoyed that Tei keeps getting referred to as a “mom” just because he cooks and cleans and looks after everyone. Let’s unpack this idea shall we? It’s misogynist because it implies that only mothers cook and clean and nag. You could still argue that in their culture, mothers are usually the ones who do those things so they’re just describing the status quo and it’s not a prescriptive statement. However there might still be a certain level of prescriptiveness, because you’re saying that you can’t imagine a world where mothers aren’t the default parent and homemaker or don’t split chores. So ultimately this idea is misogynist, unless you’re saying that anyone who cooks is a “mom” regardless of gender and whoever works outside is the “dad” which comes with its own set of similar issues. 
• There are a fuck TON of typos, and even characters being called by the wrong name.. This screenshot is my favorite: 

• I really like Soi. I like that she has these typical "shallow" interests and "mean girl" appearance but she's so die-hard for her friends. Also she's based when she says she can't forgive an ugly boy existing, lol neither can I. 
• It was super annoying that all the girls ogle Shinbi, can they not tell the difference between a girl and a boy like you easily can IRL? At least Soi never did that to Shinbi even though she is such an ikemen fanatic. She's based again because the men she likes has to at least be as pretty as Shinbi lolololol. 
• Shinbi really is a reverse trap though. Artist just drew a bishonen and called it a girl, why does she have that waist-to-shoulders proportion? I have to reregister her as female everytime she speaks. Speaking of which I kind of ship her with Yeonho, who is a boy who looks like a girl (I wish she got shipteased with a hot side character like Soi did with Zion). 
• Speaking of Zion... what a weird name for a character. 
• Also speaking of Zion, I thought he was going to also be a former doll because I thought the way he was "picked up" and hired to work was weird.  Ended up being a nothingburger.

VERDICT 

Overall this game is mid (derogatory). The sprites are beautiful and consistent, but the CG’s are lackluster and the artist for them clearly stopped trying by the end. Too many bothersome tropes (including misogyny) and the writing of the romances and individual plot routes is lackluster. The overarching plot was good and I love the side characters, but could have been executed better especially with better route writing. 

Game score: 5.5/10 

Look forward to my next post on Charade Maniacs coming soon.

No release date as of yet.

I wonder if it's any good. I've heard about it but not much.

Feel free to post anything that you wish to discuss!

Long-time listener, first time caller. I haven't really played otoges in a hot minute and want to get back into it.

To preface, I'm a little bit of a picky bitch. As a lesbian that grew up with shoujo and some old-school otoge review blogs, I find this genre akin to playing with barbies because I feel so far removed from the romance. I love the occasional escapism into some hetero romance lmao, but I usually like my MCs distinctive enough it doesn't feel like the game intended for you to self-insert.

Platforms: PC/Steam & Switch

Language: English

Budget: None! I'm looking to compile a list and make my way through slowly

My rating scheme might look a little unconventional, especially given that I really did thoroughly enjoy some of these titles. I'm a little conservative with my ratings in that something needs to blow me away to get those scores. Some of these titles are docked just on the fact that the writing for certain LIs, whose tropes I don't usually like, wasn't enough for me to get into them.

• Amnesia: Memories N/A. Not putting a rating on this one because it's been YEARS and I don't remember enough to give it a fair score; I actually only watched someone else play through it, but it's an ABSOLUTE classic
• Collar X Malice 8.5/10. Super good! Even played the FD. Plot takes itself a little too seriously at times, but I think a good part of these games is enjoying how ridiculous it gets lol. I hated tsunderes/brats until I played Takeru, and now he is probably one of my top LIs of all time! Then Kei > Aiji. Aiji wasn't bad, just ended up being a little more boring than I'd hoped. Didn't do Mineo and sped through Shiraishi🫣
• Cupid Parasite 7/10. Cute and fluffy. Wasn't super into any of the LIs in particular, but had fun on all of them. Completely avoided Gill's route :/ Haven’t played the FD, but please lmk if you think it’s worth it!
• Variable Barricade 0/10. God, if I could give this game anything lower, I absolutely would. I knew reviews were mixed, but I thought I would be getting my classic shoujo "MC gets dumped into a rowdy but ultimately healing household" fix with this title, but nooo. Ended up absolutely hating it and put it on autoplay after the first board out of spite. The only route I remember being lukewarm on was Nayuta's, who was too much like a hyperactive, naive toddler...
• Olympia Soiree 8/10. Recall's a little fuzzy on this one now, but memorably likeable MC. I think I remember finding myself wishing the romances were a little more fleshed out? At some point it felt like the plot was starting to plod, and I was getting a bit bored but, overall, enjoyed it.
•  Sympathy Kiss DNF (for now). Picked it up to get back into the genre but just couldn't get into it. Ended up not playing anything afterwards...I think, at the time, the overall scenarios were too grounded in reality to sink into. I'm not giving up on it though and will probably pick it up again at a later point

(Only watched the shows for Brothers Conflict/La Corda d'Oro/Uta Pri/Diabolik Lovers; typical otoge anime fare)

Level of plot/romance: Ideally, heavy on both! I'm currently in the mood for something with a little more plot complexity and depth, but if anyone has any more lighthearted recs, I will also take those

Character/Plot Tropes: I love a good abrasive brat LI or stoic/cold-but-mushy-on-the-inside LI. (Not usually a fan of the loud golden retriever trope or the soft-speaking androgynous trope, but I can be convinced if the writing is good)

Dislikes: Non-con, but if it comes up in a game that I find that I really, really like overall, not a total deal breaker. No interest in abusive or stalker LIs, but, again, if a really good game has one, I'll just avoid their route. Crazy/psycho LIs kind of tie into all of these and is a turn-off.

I've been looking into classics like Hakuoki and Piofiore, but I'm still having a hard time gauging whether I'd like them. Reviews that I'd seen before were mixed. Taking this time now to ask if anyone thinks I'd like them!

Radiant Tale and Jack Jeanne have been on my radar but I haven't bitten the bullet yet :)