24.08.10 / Japanese, dating sim, nintendo ds, otome game, tokimeki memorial, video game / Author: admin / Comments: (1)
Tags: amanohashi, girl's side 3rd story, kouichi, oosako, shitara seiji, tokimeki memorial
Got my fourth ending last night. If I had to rate all the character routes I’ve gotten so far, it’d be Konno > Kouichi > Shitara > Arashi.
I wasn’t moved by Shitara’s route half as much as I thought he’d be. He’s not a bad person by any means, and he warms up to you very quickly, but apart from that there’s not much to him. Okay, so he’s a genius pianist. That’s nice. He’s from a rich family. That’s nice. He’s…got nothing else but piano. That’s nice. He likes tea. That’s nice. And? That’s…IT? Geez, how dull.
For every plus about him, there’s a minus somewhere. Some people have praised his “tsundere” attitude, but as far as I can see he’s more “dere” than “tsun” once you get past his first stage. After that he’s pretty much all over you, with a few prickly moments. I enjoyed some of the funny answers you get when you ask him questions (Like when you ask if he likes classical music and he answers “Do you like food?”), but I was so looking forward to softening him up slowly and surely over time. Kouichi was a much tougher prospect than him.
Second plus, he looks nice on the normal screen, but in my opinion he looks ordinary, weird or outright bad in most CGs. On a related note, his route is stingy with the CGs, and the few ones you get are very boring. Oh look, it’s Shitara standing by the piano…Okay? Oh look, it’s Shitara playing the piano…Okay? Oh look, it’s Shitara standing there with his hand outstretched…Okay?
Third plus, he’s from a wealthy family. He’s got the snooty, childish attitude to match, but that’s still a plus in my eyes because I’ve never dated a rich kid in any of these games before (Amano-pervert doesn’t count). He’s got a fancy house and a bedroom so big it’s got a grand piano in it and you can’t even see the bed. Thanks to that he’s able to take you to formal dance event (once) and invite you to join him in Paris at the end which you waffle on because you’re an idiot.
The flip side of that, though, is that dating him is pretty much like dating all the other guys. There’s no difference between dating Kouichi, who lives in an abandoned restaurant, and dating Seiji with all his money. Where are the fine restaurants? Where’s the hobnobbing with the rich and famous? The cool clothes instead of wearing the same shirt three dates in a row? How about he takes you shopping and buys you something? Where are the cool presents? Not even a Christmas present?! The wine? The trips? The roses? More wine? What’s the point dating a rich guy if he’s just like everybody else?! “Love”? What is this “love” you speak of, is it tasty? :-p
I kid, I kid…sorta. It doesn’t really matter whether he’s rich or not, Seiji’s a decent guy. But it’s true I had expectations that Shitara’s route would be “special” somehow so in that respect it fell way short. As a perfectly normal route to try, thought, it’s worth a playthrough.
And now, since I deliberately failed my first exam and got remedials, it’s time to try for Oosako-sensei’s ending! Who knows, it might surprise me.
11.07.10 / Japanese, dating sim, konami, nintendo ds, otome game, romance, tokimeki memorial, video game / Author: admin / Comments: (8)
Tags: junpei, karen, konno tamao, kouichi, miyo, ruka, tokimeki memorial
Konno-sempai is mine at last, tra la la la! I thought he would be harder than that, but I just went by my usual method and it worked out fine. I identified Academics as his most important stat and raised it like crazy, and then I raised all the other stats normally and got him in the end. I had something like Ac – 238, Sp – 160, Soc – 260 etc, etc by the end, but since I didn’t raise my Charm that high, I wasn’t elected Rose Queen. Doesn’t matter though, ‘cos I got to be in the school play twice, first with Konno as my prince and then with Miyo and Karen (who looks spiffy as a prince, TMGS4 really needs a girl-girl option).
My verdict on Konno? His route actually blew me away. The guy himself is on the dull side, but he’s a kind, decent, hardworking and respectful character without being a complete milquetoast like Sakuya in GS1. Even on the worst of dates he never gets nasty or snippy with you or tries to order you around. I mean, this is a guy who spends his Christmas Eve playing Santa for little kids in hospital! He’s like the model boyfriend, right?
Even better, his route appeals to the overachiever in me because even in games I hate getting bad results in exams. On Konno’s route you can study like crazy and get praised for it. Remember how Madoka in GS1 would get all cool towards you if you were too smart? I hated that. Konno’s end is good too: you both go to a first class university and keep dating, and with a stable guy like that, you might as well vote this “Ending most likely to end in a Wedding and Four Kids.” It’s an ending with a future, catch my drift?
More importantly, for some reason all his CGs are really easy to unlock. I mean, really easy, you just walk around town, bump into and bam, new CG. Or you go on a date, pick a certain store and bam, new CG. For most other guys you often need a FAQ: “Spring, Year 2, Affection must be XYZ, Go to store X and do YYY while holding ZZZ and singing AAA”, obscure stuff like that. I got all his school CGs except one, all his love CGs except one and all his (that other one) CGs, again except one. And I love getting CGs, so Konno’s path was the most satisfying for me so far.
On the minus side, he really is a bit of a bore. I mean, just a bit. They went a little overboard on the Mr. Perfect Guy thing (did I mention he’s totally hot without the glasses?), so even his attempts at angst and depth – the whole “nobody really sees me for who I really am” bit – come across as a bit shallow and empty. And since he’s your senior you don’t get to compete with him on grades and you don’t get to go on the school trip with him, which is a bit sad. But he’s still a breath of fresh air from gruff old Kouichi or weird Ruka or playboy Junpei so I’ll take him any day.
What’s next? I’m trying to find some detailed FAQs or walkthroughs because I want those secret characters! I ran into one at the bookstore, some old-looking guy, I’m sure there’s at least one or two others. And I hear you can date your teacher, which I do NOT want to do. I mean, that’s just wrong on so many levels! And he’s not even cute. Anyway, the search continues!
06.07.10 / dating sim, harvest moon, konami, nintendo ds, otome game, romance, tokimeki memorial, video game / Author: admin / Comments: (15)
Tags: dating sim, girl's side 3rd story, konno, nintendo ds, otome game, Rose Queen, sakurai kouichi, tokimeki memorial
Nyeheheheh! Dum-dum-dum, another one bites the dust! I must say about Kouichi, if he wasn’t supposed to be one of the ‘main’ guys, he might be one of my favorites. It’s just that I have higher expectations of the “face of the game”, so to speak, so the idea that the game developers thought a rude, ugly, brusque, lazy, violent underachiever is enough to set my heart on fire really gets my goat.
Having said all that, Kouichi isn’t that bad. I mean, he stops being mean to you pretty quickly, and he doesn’t hit you like Saeki used to. The last few months of his game are really sweet, especially the part where he thanks you for making his three years of high school so wonderful, d’awww!
He’s really easy to get, too. I used a second-year save left over from when I dated Fujiyama. Digression: there seems to be a bug in this game. You know the picture frame on your desk? It looks like once a guy’s picture goes in there, it never goes out again, so I had to deal with Fujiyama’s mug staring at me all day even after I’d friendzoned him, and even now that I’ve started a brand new game to go after Konno-senpai (ZOMG, he’s such a bore), he’s still on my desk even though I haven’t even met him yet! Weird.
Anyway, what was I saying? Oh yeah, Kouichi. His requirements are really low. He likes the planetarium, the vintage motorbikes exhibition, go-carts at the amusement park, the Tongari Boys event at the Event Hall, the bowling alley, the medal games at the arcade, etc etc. Nothing you wouldn’t expect. For stats, I went overboard and had all my stats high enough to get elected Rose Queen by the end of 3rd year (all you get is a spiffy red robe), but later I checked some sites and someone’s stats for getting him: 【学力】137【美術】135【運動】128【気配り】206【流行】163【魅力】137
I want to play something else to keep the game fresh a little longer while tiding me over until Harvest Moon: Twin Villages comes out, but I keep coming to this again and again and again. Heeeelp!
02.07.10 / Japanese, dating sim, impressions, konami, nintendo ds, otome game, romance, tokimeki memorial, video game / Author: admin / Comments: (6)
Tags: dating sim, fujiyama arashi, girl's side 3rd story, karen, miyo, nintendo ds, oosako chikara, otome game, ruka, sakurai kouichi, tokimeki memorial
Bwahahaha! All your Fujiyama Arashi are belong to me! Mwaha!
He was a piece of cake. Since there were no guides or wikis out when I started, I had to go with my gut, and my gut told me that the sporty guys are always the easiest to get. You just work your sports stat up as high as it will go, keep the rest of your stats up (everything was at least 130 by the end) and date him regularly until he’s all over you. Oh, and join the judo club when he asks you to. I also chose to work at the Habataki Pool where he also works, which was kind of fun.
Sad thing is, unlike Shiba from TMGS2, Arashi didn’t do it for me at all. I don’t like his stupid hair or his dorky face, his voice is blah, almost nothing happens with the sports club, you almost never get to see him blush, his sense of fashion is boring and repetitive, etc, etc, over and over again. I got him because he was easy, but I’m not satisfied!
Unfortunately I’m also not satisfied with most of the rest of the game. Most of it is because I replayed TMGS1 extensively last year, so a lot of the locations and events in the game are very familiar to me. I should have let at least two years pass between replays, because after the first year the whole thing was one giant snoozefest.
Much has been made of the two princes you get to woo in this game, but in my humble opinion…they’re both dicks. When I compare their assholish lines and behaviors to dear, sweet Kei Hazuki in the first game, ahh, what a difference. He was a little cold in the beginning, but he was a really cool, decent character. Saeki Teru was a serious dick too, but at least he wasn’t a borderline crook like Kouichi and Ruka in this game. These guys are slimeballs.
Having said that, I can kind of see myself going for Kou. He reminds me a lot of Shiba in terms of being mean-looking 
but probably sweet when you soften him up. Near the end of my game I somehow found him liking me (gotta pinpoint the stats he’s attracted to and go for him), plus I know his tastes are rock-and-roll and motorbikes, so it shouldn’t be too hard to date him. He showed up three whole times at my workplace to sneer at me and by the end I was thinking “Oooh, just wait till I get my hands on you!!” Ruka’s just a creep though, so forget about him. Sakuraaaaaiiii!
Other last impressions: I really like what they did with the girl friends in this game. I hated the two-faced, backstabbing bitches in the previous two installments. “Hey, we’re friends, right?” “Right, until I want to get my sticky hands on your man that is.” I really hated them. In my game I got to be friends with Miyo and Karen, who is totally a lesbian, and you get to hang out with them and have sleepovers and stuff, call them on the phone, make Valentine’s chocolate together, etc, etc. It’s a lot of fun and they seem to genuinely like you, which is really cool. I just wish there was a second pair of friends you could get, that would be even better. Btw, Room #6 is really cool, I want it.
Last thought: Your class teacher is GROSS. Even his name is gross, Oosako Chikara. Sounds like a fish or something. He looks all of 12 years old, his voice is weird and you don’t even get to date him so I don’t know what he’s in the story for. What were the Japanese thinking?! I can’t wrap my mind around this one.
Gotta go, I’m going to play something else for a while and then come back to get Kou later on. He WILL be mine!
18.05.10 / RPGs, dragon quest 9, nintendo ds, reviews, video game / Author: admin / Comments: (6)
Tags: atelier lina, dragon quest 9, famitsu, nintendo ds, review, rpg, square-enix, tokimeki memorial
I’ve been playing this for a while, but after the example of Atelier Lina where I judged it too quickly, I decided to hold off on my opinion till I’d gotten a bit further. Well now I’m way further into it, in the last dungeon to be precise, and my judgment: BORING. (spoilers to follow)
The good things: Being able to control how your main character looks, being able to control skills and weapon growths, being able to change classes eventually, simple gameplay and controls, nice graphics for the Nintendo DS, seeing your equipment changes reflected on the field, nice sound track.
Everything else: I’m not finishing this game because I don’t care about the last boss. That’s because I didn’t care about the whole story. So you’re an angel who lost his powers, so bloody what? That’s the sad thing about having a silent protagonist: the other characters have to pick up the slack to make you care about the story and the game, and in this case they all failed miserably. First off, your other party members are generics so they never talk either. Everyone else is an NPC with minor roles to play in your quest-of-the-day, but nothing major to contribute. Sandy the fairy is a moron, so she’s out. The angels in “heaven” are bland so they’re out. And…nobody else counts.
And it’s not just that the story is plain (angels in this day and age? seriously) but that it plays out in a very traditional way with no unexpected twists or turns. If you’ve played more than a few RPGs, you’ll know from the start that making the tree bear fruit will only lead to disaster. After that you have to run around helping people (slay this monster, deliver this item, slay this other monster) in order to regain your angel powers. Then you have another series of fetchquests: find the 7 fruits. And then the last bit of the game is a bit interesting ‘cos first you get to ride on a dragon for a while, and then you get captured by the bad guys and have to break out of jail. That part was fun. And then after you defeat the ‘bad’ guy, ZOMG the real boss was an evil angel. Yeah, I saw that coming a while back as soon as you showed me Elgios in the flashback dudes, thanks a lot dudes. So now you know.
Gameplay, as I said, is nice and simple, but when you have a boring story and weak characters, you need to ramp *something* up to make it worth playing, so this would have been their chance to pour some effort into the battles, or maybe the sidequests. But no, fight-defend-item-special, you just buff, attack, heal, buff, attack, etc. Bleh. And it’s not challenging either, because I avoided a lot of the field battles and still never had any trouble with the bosses except one or two. Well, I guess being able to see the enemies on the field was a nice touch though.
The less said about the sidequests the better, it’s just a series of fetch quests and unreasonable demands thrown at you: go fight enemy X wearing a pink hat and using only attack Y so I can give you this crappy item as your reward. Oh, and forget about getting any good classes unless you do our stupid quests. Zzz…
One thing I was hoping to get into, given my love of Atelier games, was the alchemy system. Unlike in DQ8, you don’t have to run around for hours to get the item, the alchemy is instantaneous. BUT! The problem was ingredients. To get good materials to grind with, you’ll have to do a bit of grinding, both by fighting and by scrounging around on the world map. And then it seems like you won’t get most of the good raw materials and recipes until after the game is over, because – get this – YOU CAN’T FLY UNTIL AFTER THE GAME! No way. No flying for you, man, you’d better get in that boat and go to the few places the game will allow you. And be grateful for it. So anyway, I was only able to create a few items through alchemy, some of which were useful, many of which were not, so forgive me if I wasn’t exactly enthused by that part of the game.
So you see, it’s not a bad game. I mean, it was enough for me to make it to the end, but it’s not a good game either. The howls and bad reviews from 2chan were definitely exaggerated, but it DEFINITELY doesn’t deserve that 40/40 Famitsu gave it either. 20/40 (5/10) at most for being technically sound but completely lacking in charm and excitement. Square-Enix has been laying on the bribes thick at Famitsu lately, don’t you think? Anyway, that’s enough DQ for me, now to eagerly await the release of Tokimemo Girls’ Side 3 next month! Whee!
06.01.10 / RPGs, dating sim, romance, tokimeki memorial / Author: admin / Comments: (0)
Tags: 2nd kiss, amanohashi, dating sim, kei, moriya, suzuka, tokimeki memorial
I’m really getting into TMGS1 again. When I restarted I found it dull because I’d spent so much time doing TMGS2, but once I got friendlier with Kei-kun, awww, he’s so sweet! More on him later. I also took a liking to Suzuka, and even Moriya doesn’t seem so “eww” any more. So instead of just one playthrough…I think I’ll do three more!
But Amanohashi is such a pervert! I’m a student in your school, you sick freak! I mean yeah, I’d been seeing him around campus and he gave me a lift once, but the first time he invited me on a date, you know where he wanted to go? To the pool! And not innocently either! As soon as we got there he was like, “I can’t wait to see what you look like in a swimsuit!” I barely even know you, you dirty old man! This is our first date! And then he had the temerity to diss my swimsuit too!
…all of which makes him sooo incredibly hot. Hahahahaha. I also got the DS extra where you meet him in town in casual clothes. OMG, Squeeee power to the max! So Suzuka and Moriya are going to have to wait. Amanohashi…buckle up!
09.12.09 / Japanese, RPGs, dating sim, nintendo ds, otome game, tokimeki memorial / Author: admin / Comments: (0)
Tags: 3rd story, dating sim, himuro, konami, madoka, nintendo ds, otome game, RPGs, sakuya, tokimeki memorial
This game was announced last month, but I haven’t posted about it because there’s nothing to post. I mean, it doesn’t matter WHAT they announce, I’m going to play it anyway. I might complain afterward, but I’m sure as hell not going to miss out on it, so just tell me the release date and let me start saving up.
A few minor details have come up about which guys are going to be in the game, but unlike in Harvest Moon, I prefer not to know who’s available ahead of time. Even the shot of the main guy at the top is a little much for me, especially since he doesn’t look my type. So don’t expect me to keep tabs on what’s going on in the world of TMGS3 until it’s good and ready to come out.
The paucity of info leads me to believe we won’t be seeing it for months and months anyway, so I’m going to focus on other things. Like using the time to conquer the few remaining guys in TMGS1. I only ever got Madoka, Himuro and the headmaster, so I’d like to get a few others (except Sakuya ‘cos he’s eww) while I wait. Busy busy busy.
25.08.09 / Japanese, dating sim, nintendo ds, otome game, tokimeki memorial / Author: admin / Comments: (0)
Tags: girls’ side, hariya, hikami itaru, saeki, tokimeki memorial, wakaouji
Harry! I got his ending this time! If you’re wondering whether I’ve been playing the game over and over again each time the answer’s no. I had a save after Christmas the first year so I just use that to continue and try and get other guys. Still enough time to meet and date most of the non-secret ones. Since I’d already gotten my social stat high to try and woo Hikami, Hariya was a cinch.
He’s a really sweet guy, but I’m not sure what to think. First, even though he does say he loves you at the end, everything about the relationship felt more like really good friendship to me. Or maybe he’s just the kind of guy I’d like to have as a friend and I’m extrapolating? I just didn’t get that madly-in-love guy. Also I felt a bit odd about him because he’s non touchy-feely. It’s one thing when he doesn’t like you, but even at full on Tokimeki mode he’s very likely to have a burst of blue hearts when you try to kiss him (or touch his hair, go figure). Do you think maybe…he doesn’t like women? Or even worse…he doesn’t like me!? Ow…
But he’s a sweet guy, I think his route was the most heartwarming just because he’s cool to be around. Wakaouji has all this drama and Saeki’s just a dick, it was good to be with someone normal for once. Next, I finally feel like completing the Hikami playthrough. After that I’ll play something else because I’m getting a bit sick of this. Might go back to TMGS1 (somebody stop me!!) or place my order for LovexLoop or something.
22.08.09 / dating sim, nintendo ds, otome game, tokimeki memorial / Author: admin / Comments: (2)
Tags: girls’ side, komori, saeki teru, tarou, tokimeki memorial
Subtitled: “He hits me, but I love him!”
This time I went for the “true” ending of sorts, i.e. solving the ‘mystery’ of who the little boy was and whether the prince ever found his mermaid princess. Yes, Saeki Teru. The default guy, and an all-around first-class asshole.
First off, he says mean things all the time to you, then tries to cover them up with “just kidding” type remarks. I hate that. And when he doesn’t like you yet he doesn’t even bother to cover up. Secondly, he hits you. They call it a “chop” but anything that makes the main character go “ouch!” counts as hitting in my book. So he’s verbally and physically abusive. Thirdly, he’s not that good-looking. I mean, yah, he’s alright, but he’s not God’s gift to women the way the game tries to make him come across. Fourthly, and related to the third one, since he’s not all that it’s annoying that you have to get excellent stats all around just to get him to confess. He’s not that smart, not that athletic, not that artistic so why do I have to be goddamn near-perfect to get him? Lastly, and most importantly, he’s just not that into you. I admit I wasn’t paying 100% attention during his ending, but I never heard him say the word “I love you.” Everybody else says it except him. He wants you, he needs you but he’s never going to love you, so why bother?
If I was rating the guys in this game, Saeki would get a solid 1/5, only rating above playboy Tarou and Komori. What a loser. >:-(
17.08.09 / dating sim, nintendo ds, otome game, tokimeki memorial, video game / Author: admin / Comments: (0)
Tags: 2nd kiss, girls’ side, hikami itaru, onoda chiyomi, otome game, saeki, tokimeki memorial, wakaouji
Subtitled: Eww, Wakaouji, or How ‘He’s just a friend’ cost me the love of a good man.
I’ve been playing TMGS2 nearly non-stop on my DS for the past couple of days. I got it way back when it first came out, but I didn’ t like the guys so I kept playing TMGS1 instead.
Finally this week I decided to give it a proper chance and dove straight in. I picked Hikami Itaru because he’s supposedly the cousin of my darling Himuro-sensei from the first game (who you can see at the Aquarium in this game at certain times, but somehow Hikami never goes to say hi).
So anyway, things were going well enough with Hikami. His voice is dorkish but he’s a nice guy once you get to know him. I had my elegant wardrobe, I worked on my Academics and Social, I only took him to his favorite spots like the museum, everything was swell.
Within a year he was all over me like a rash. Every poke would yield a spurt of red hearts. Almost every date ended with a ‘make-out session’ a.k.a. daisekkin mode. It’s always the bookish type that make the biggest perverts, you notice. So! Anyway! Within 1 year he was all time, tokimeki mode go! I decided to give some other people attention. I started going on Wakaouji’s school trips, dating him on the side and got him all the way up to tokimeki as well.
Now, I don’t like Wakaouji. His goofy schtick is just so fake, he looks lame, his voice is weak, and for a teacher he’s all too quick to fall in love with me. Pedo! The spot with the guy in black where he speaks English is the only good part, everything else was blah. What I really have against him is that he’s no match for Himuro-sensei in any department at all. To be honest I was just chatting him up for lack of anything better to do.
But then disaster struck! I got careless and started getting friendly with Onoda Chiyomi! That witch, that cow! The one’s that’s after Hikami too! That one! My carelessness led her to commence Rival Mode. To avoid that, I told her “Oh no, it’s not like that between me and Hikami!” Bam! Hikami’s affection dropped all the way from tokimeki to “friendly.” Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Drat! And this happened with barely 4 months to go, in November of the last year! I struggled and struggled to build up his affection again (making damn Onoda my rival anyway) – dates, the New Year’s shrine, Valentine’s chocolate, anything! – while studiously avoiding Wakaouji, but it was no use. >_< *sigh*
So in the end it was Wakaouji who met me in the lighthouse claiming I taught him what love was and everything. Guhh… I almost turned him down but half a loaf is better than no bread so whatever. Our future states we don’t see each other that much because I’m in university and he’s still teaching (and doubtless preying on other innocent young ladies like me), and that’s for the best.
Long post huh? It’s fueled by disgust. Next I’m giving Hikami a break and going for either Saeki or Hariya. Will report later.
