Otome game
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An otome game (Japanese: 乙女ゲーム, Hepburn: otome gēmu, lit. "maiden game") is a story-based video game that is targeted towards women. Generally one of the goals, besides the main story goal, is to develop a romantic relationship between the female main player character and one of the usually male, secondary lead characters.
History
The first otome game is generally acknowledged to be Angelique, released in 1994 by Koei in Japan for the Super Famicom, and created by Ruby Party, an all-woman development team division of Koei.[1] The game was originally designed for pre-teen and younger teenage girls, but became unexpectedly popular with older teenagers and women in their 20s.[1] In 2021, the series continues with Angelique Luminarise, in which the protagonist is a 25-year-old office worker.[2] Angelique is credited with "set[ting] up the specifics and conventions of women's games: a focus on romance, easy controls and utilizing other multimedia."[1] After Angelique came in 1997 the second otome game, Albaria no Otome which was created by Gimmick House and Magical Craft for PC-FX and later for PlayStation. The game has a very similar dynamic to its predecessor Angelique, with the protagonist Ashanty, a young woman who will have to choose between being the new sacred protector of a kingdom, or falling in love and living happily with one of her knights who will help her during the game.[3] In 2002, Konami released its very successful Tokimeki Memorial Girl's Side, which brought many new fans to the still-new genre.[1] In 2006, Famitsu's listings for the Top 20 selling love games included seven otome games.[citation needed] Early games borrowed heavily from the iconography and story conventions of "retro shoujo manga", "the archetypical girly heroines, the emphasis on pure, sexless, tranquil romance and on a peaceful, stable setting", but as the category expanded, other narrative and gameplay elements were introduced, including action, adventure, combat and plots in which "the heroine can 'save the world' and 'get the guy' at the same time".[1]
Some publications that regularly cover otome games include
Style
The genre has many style elements in common with
Otome games that are released on console and handheld platforms contain no pornographic content, as companies such as Sony and Nintendo do not allow it. There are games released on a PC platform which are rated 18+ for their sexual content. Some games were originally released for the PC with pornographic content, and were later toned down and re-released for the PS2.
Other common elements in otome games are the importance of voice acting,
Characteristics
Gameplay
Traditionally, the goal of these games is to have the desired partner fall in love and have a relationship with the player character, but the requirements for gaining a "good end" differ from game to game. While the plots of otome games differ greatly, there is usually a single female main character, and several good-looking males of varying "types".
Gameplay occasionally does not particularly focus on romance, even if there are several characters whose "routes" can be followed.
In the
One feature that has become common in otome games is "full voice" (フルボイス, furu boisu), which is to have voice acting throughout the entire game. The love interests are often voiced by well-known
Most otome games' heroines are not voiced, due to the budget concerns of voicing all their dialogue. However, there are some games featuring fully voiced heroines, such as Norn9 or Haruka: Beyond the Stream of Time.
Representation of women
In Otome games, the main female character is generally categorized as self-insert and non-self-insert.[4] Self-insert does not have personality and backstory, giving players space to insert themselves into the game. In contrast, the non-self-insert main character has a more vivid personality and detailed story, whose characteristics do not depend on the player for existence.
However, in either case, the main character in most Otome games has a fixed image. Usually, the game unfolds from the protagonist's first point of view.
In general, it is difficult to represent the female protagonist in simple terms, because the game character as an avatar of the player is ambiguous and complex, a state where subject and object coexist: they are both the player's "shoes" and admirable icon.[5]
Representation of men
The main men characters who can develop a romantic relationship with vary from game to game. In general, however, the appearances of main men characters who can develop romantic relationships are handsome and attractive.
There are some typical character archetypes in the Otome game: Oresama, Kuudere, Childhood Friend, Shota, Mature/Older Man, Dandere, Megane, Tsundere, Yandere, Genku Guy, the flirt, and the playboy.[6]
Other media adaptation
Manga
Otome games have strong links with
Anime
Some popular games have also been adapted to
Notable otome games
- 7'scarlet
- Alice in the Country of Hearts (series)
- Amnesia(series)
- Angelique (series)
- Arabians Lost: The Engagement on Desert
- Bad Apple Wars
- Brothers Conflict (series)
- Café 0 ~The Drowned Mermaid~
- Code: Realize
- Collar × Malice
- Dance with Devils (series)
- Diabolik Lovers (series)
- Duel Love
- Full House Kiss (series)
- Hakuōki(series)
- Harukanaru Toki no Naka de(series)
- Hatoful Boyfriend
- Heileen (English)
- Hiiro no Kakera (series)
- Jack Jeanne
- Kiniro no Corda(La Corda d'Oro) (series)
- La storia della Arcana Famiglia (series)
- Last Escort (series)
- Magic-kyun! Renaissance (series)
- McKenzie & Co
- Meine Liebe (series)
- Mr Love: Queen's Choice
- Mystic Messenger
- Norn9
- Otometeki Koi Kakumei Love Revo!!
- Palais de Reine
- Princess Debut
- Starry Sky (series)
- Tears of Themis
- Tokimeki Memorial Girl's Side (series)
- Ururun Quest: Koiyuuki
- Uta no Prince-sama (series)
- Vitamin (series)
- Yo-Jin-Bo
- Your Memories Off: Girl's Style
Notable otome game developers and publishers
- Aksys Games
- Broccoli
- D3 Publisher
- GREE
- Hanako Games
- HuneX
- Idea Factory (Otomate)
- Koei Tecmo (Ruby Party)
- Konami
- Mangagamer
- QuinRose
- sakevisual
- Sunsoft
- Voltage
- Winter Wolves
See also
- Otomechikku, a genre of manga
References
- ^ S2CID 145334205.
- ^ "アンジェリーク ルミナライズ(アンミナ)".
- ^ "Otomes". Otomes.com. September 10, 2019.
- ^ "A Beginners Guide to Otome Games: Part 3 – Common Character Archetypes". Blerdy Otome. 20 June 2019.
- .
- ^ "A Beginners Guide to Otome Games: Part 3 – Common Character Archetypes". Blerdy Otome. 20 June 2019.
External links
- B's Log: monthly Japanese-language magazine focusing on female-targeted games (mostly otome and BL)
- Dengeki Girl's Style: Japanese language magazine about female-targeted games released in even months (mostly otome and BL)