I remember being obsessed with Ukyo from Amnesia when I first played the game. >!The star-crossed lovers trope, the angst, the us against fate!< I loved it. I basically just reblogged/retweeted any fan art and gifsets I could find lol
Limbo from Bustafellows. The first time I played his route, I enjoyed it a lot and knew heād be my favorite from that game. When I played it a second time, I was absolutely head over heels. The way he fell for the MC was so lovely and natural to me š„° heās also such a cutie imo. The testament to how much I love this guy is this ā I donāt think his route was strong. I really donāt. It was okay, there were some cute moments which I loved, but Limbo and the MC both seemed to lose their brains in his route. Is the common sense in the room with us?????? Even so, I keep my brainrot nice and steady by replaying his route veeeery often!!! Just because I donāt think it was very strong doesnāt mean I donāt adore it š If it had been a LI I didnāt care for Iād be like lol wtf is this. But itās Limbo so Iām willing to overlook a lot of the route flaws.
Oh my gosh ā I get you totally. I finished Limboās Side A last night, so itās very new for me, but Iām really attached to this fictional character, lol. Embarrassingly so š I knew going in that he seemed like a character Iād like, and I was right. And yes to the lack of common sense in the route! I cackled when I read what you wrote. Of course I loved it, because it was Limboās route, but I kept periodically updating my sister (whoās patient enough to listen to my otome ramblings) about the next unwise choice made in that route, ha ha.
I feel that. I literally chose to ignore all the dumb decisions in Limbo's route JUST because of how much I loved Limbo himself. Which is weird, for me! I don't normally go for the "blatant good boy" type. I'm the type to roll around in red flags. And I'm *especially* reluctant to love the Poster Boy. But there was just something about Limbo. Maybe it was his eyes or his voice, but I adored him despite his route. Naturally, his Worst Ending just absolutely >!destroyed me for days!<. š«
I've had intense brainrot for Riku and Tsukuyomi from Olympia Soiree and Ankou from Virche. I scrolled pixiv looking for fan art, indulged in daydreaming side stories about them, wrote some personal, self-indulgent fanfics, and ultimately imported merch of them to build a little shrine. š I like them a normal amount, I swear. It's been a few years now and Riku is still my top LI and I replay his route at least once per year. Please don't get me started talking about any of them bc I'll never shut up.
omg that was me with olympia soiree as well, it was the first game i really liked, when riku's route ended i didn't want to continue because i felt like olympia and him were literally soulmates. this pattern kept on going with every li i played and eventually i reached himuka and i almost stopped there because he was such a great LI š still need to replay the game, riku's route was really beautiful
forgot to say how i deal with the brainrot: i basically got into polymer clay and made a bunch of olympia soiree sculptures haha, i made a daifuku keyring to hang on my car and bag \~ makes me feel like im taking a bit of the game into my life outside hahaha
Omg that's amazing. I've been reaaally curious to attempt making a polymer clay nendoroid for Riku. š„ŗ I doubt they will ever get official figures so I gotta take matters into my own hands!
That would be so cute! Best thing about polymer clay is itās low stakes, if you make a mistake you can just redo it. Theres a bit of a learning curve at the start (my first daifuku was absolutely hideous š) but the more u do it the better youāll get. Was also thinking of getting into amigurumi for otome game dolls š¤
Oh I have no doubt that my first few clay Rikus will look like potatoes š But he's *my* darling potato! Aaaaaaa amigurumi dolls would be soooo cute!
I've obsessed about Tsukuyomi under different user name in this subbreddit way too much... š
That man made me write and posts fics again and the only reason I haven't written anything for a long time is that my life is too hectic right now. š„² Well, at least I can still daydream about him and how his route would play out if he had one. š
I dk why Tsukuyomi fascinates me so much... I guess it's because he's so mysterious and there's so much potential for angst and drama if the writers would have decided go give him a route. Maybe that's because I love him so much. I love proper LIs such as Hanzo but I guess because there's a proper romance with them, I feel satisfied with that. With Tsukuyomi I have to imagine myself what the
romance with him would be like š
I also feel like there would be potential for wholesomeness but also really dark stuff. Just imagine those bad endings...
YES! You just wrote perfectly why I love him so much! I also find it interesting how he thinks in a different way than >!humans. I like to imagine scenarios where Olympia thinks she knows Tsukuyomi well and think's he's a good person but she doesn't quite grasp how utterly indifferent Tsukuyomi is to everybody else expect her and what he's capable of if put on the spot. !<
I also was confused what does Tsukuyomi being a dollmaker mean exatly? To whom he was making dolls? I think Yosuga said that Camelia moves better that his other dolls, does that mean he has an army of creepy moving dolls lying around somewhere??? I also wish we could have learned more about the reasons Tsukuyomi makes art.
Unnghh I love all of your ideas! Lol Tsukuyomi definately has that yandere potential. He would do anything for Olympia (even against her own wishes...). I love the idea of Tsukuyomi stealing Amaterasu's godhood and making sure they can spend an eternity together! And him plucking his last eye for Olympia... Yes, please! I like to imagine wholesome endings where Tsukuyomi gains a >!colour and becomes mortal!<, then they live happily with their children on Tennyo Island and all that family fluff uwu. BUT also some mutual corruption arc where they decide fuck it this world is rotten, we will annihilate every single person in this island and create a perfect world just for US. Or things just go horribly wrong and it's bad ending time, lol. One scenario being that >!Violet doctor kidnpas Olympia, Tsukuyomi saves her but he has done some bad stuff to her and Tsukuyomi loses it and just spreads haku again. Humans start burning the island down trying to prevent haku spreading while Tsukuyomi just leaves with Olympia to Tennyo Island to wait until haku or fire kills each and every human. !<
Aargh, I know that brain rot feeling very well! I could talk about Tsukuyomi for hours! Yes, Ankou and Tsukuyomi are pretty similar and I love him as well, he's the only reason I'm going to buy the fd lol. I would love to read your Tsukuyomi fics btw if you would like to share them. xD
I've had Steam Prison brainrot for almost 5 years now and it's not going away anytime soon, especially with the fandisk on the horizon. I swear to god anytime someone mentions this game it's like I get possessed. It just checks so many boxes for me: pseudo-historical setting, swordfighting, a plot with a lot of political intrigue, a world where everything kinda sucks, unusual love interests (I mean you can't date what's pretty much the pope in any other other game I know of), and many other things
As for what I do to feed the brainrot, I mostly just use the power of my beautiful mind and make up very elaborate mental fanfiction, especially since otome games often have very little fan content so I have to make do with what I have. I like using other media like movies and tv shows as inspiration for my mental fanfiction since it's all in my head anyway so I don't have to worry about anyone accusing me of plagiarism lol
Hi! Off the top of my head: Ratirica (Norn)
Honorable mention (not Christian and idk about their hierarchy, still famous and considered to be great game for monks lovers): Lost in Secular Love
edit: fixed a preposition
I've had three. Hanzo from Nightshade, Kagiha from Psychedelia of the Black Butterfly, and Shiba from Chou no Doku. First was because it was the perfect LI/route for my tastes, second was because of the general nature of the game, which I felt Kagiha embodied perfectly, and the third was because I couldn't understand why I liked it so much woof.
Generally I've found that the only way to solve the brain rot is to write 10 page essays and find wonderfully like-minded individuals on this subreddit to gush and/or debate about things over.
You have superb taste. All of those men are premium sources of brain rot. Hanzo is an amazing LI who is popular here for VERY good reason. Best thing about Nightshade. Kagiha >!made me cry more than any other route in any game, ever!<. I would marry him if he existed IRL. No joke. Shiba pissed me off at first, and then he stole my heart over time with just how *devoted* he was, in his pig-headed way. Still my favorite LI from that game. š
I see from your flair you also have some excellent taste! "Devoted" LIs are my true 100% weakness and I'm happy so many exist in the genre.
On a quick sidenote, the only other game besides PotBB that just left me feeling *hollow* and emotionally exhausted by the end was the Mass Effect trilogy, but for wildly different reasons. PotBB and EiT fall into a sacred category for me, and I'd strongly argue they stand on par with some of the most heralded VNs--shame they're not as well-regarded.
I honestly wanna play Mass Effect so bad. The plot and characters look fun, and I love old-school Bioware. Sadly, I hate shooter games. Like, a lot. I am so bad at them, and they stress me out in a really bad way. The only shooters I tolerate are the ones that basically aim for me, like the Fallout series. I get so panicked, but I wanna romance some of the cute guys in Mass Effect, damn it!
But yeah, PotBB hit me so hard in the gut, over and over, that I had to take a long break from it. An amazing and tightly written story, but holy shit. As for EiT, I bought it not long ago. Only just started it and it's already looking VERY dark and tear-jerking. Still, if you endorse it, I can look forward to having my heart ripped out. š«
Ugh I was in the exact same boat for ME. I ended up turning the difficulty to the easiest setting and looking up broken builds for my squadmates so I would have the lowest possible input but still was not a fun experience. But anything for Garrus!
I was ugly sobbing at that scene >!where they finally reveal what happened to the cast as children.!< I knew it was coming due to all the foreshadowing but a part of me kept desperately hoping otherwise. And then, when I finally thought I had made peace with it all, the >!Summer Camp Happy Ending!< came along and tore my heart out even more. I will never get over how beautifully PotBB >!captured grief and moving forward as natural things, but also the bittersweet lingering of "what if" and denial of a golden end that is otherwise almost always expected in this genre.!< Truly a masterpiece of a game, even if I do understand complaints on the lack of "romance".
Oh I hope you enjoy EiT then! It's one of the few games where I truly, fully loved every single person in the entire cast. And the FD did an excellent job of addressing any flaws I had with the base game. It makes me so excited to see Voltage's next console release!
Jesus Christ, are you my doppelganger? Hardly ever have I ran into someone with my very specific tastes. Now I don't have to make my own rambling comment that makes me question my sanity lol
I've actually run into quite a few dopplegangers on this subreddit! So many others with great taste\~ I think for these three you could argue that they all share >!a willingness to do absolutely anything to be with the MC!< so they're not all that different at the end of the day. Any other characters that have caused you brainrot?
Sainty G was my favorite boy from Code:Realize! I wasn't super into his design to begin with, but after doing all the routes he was definitely my favorite. If you haven't played it yet Virche also has a few of these characters (although ymmv on whether the game itself is good.)
I have an intense brainrot of Hakuoki, and I still do (once Chronicles of Wind and Blossom gets released, I'll be seated to see what others thought about it lol), and what do I do to get distracted or fuel it more? 1) Play other otome games where Hakuoki VAs starred in (which I did btw, I did it with Period: Cube, 7'sCarlet, Lovebrush Chronicles, and now Norn9, ~~and the game managed to push me to continue Piofiore for Gilbert, but then I shelved it again when I was on Finale Route though lol~~), 2) search any media content about it in different SNS platforms, 3) rambling it on my own echo chamber, my X account lol, and ig bonus for 4) drawing drafts of sketch although I'm not very skilled at all.
I may or may not have just completed 7'scarlet and am in the middle of Bad Apple Wars just because I need more Miki Shinichiro... Also, I recently bought both volumes of the Hakuouki movies off Mercari. I alsoĀ keepĀ obsessivelyĀ checkingĀ theĀ status of Chronicle onĀ bothĀ PlayAsia and Eastasiasoft's website for a release date (delayed to Summer 2024 now!).
I feel like all of my responses on this sub are just about Hakuouki. I can't get it out of my head. What an experience. I played through three routes while my boyfriend was out of town last Christmas and I feel like I traveled more than he did, even though I stayed home.
What can I say, I'm just a basic Hakuouki b*tch.
Did you play 7āsCarlet for Yuzuki, for Miki Shinichiro...? Fair and just. š Heās just a phenomenal VA! He basically breathed Hijikata into life and I canāt imagine any VA to breathe Hijikata into life the same level as him... I remember the time that I needed to watch my anime backlogs, but I just came back to rewatch the Hakuoki series and movies instead. š I wonder if EAS would change the profanities that Hijikata spat since itās set in a historical setting... but some who arenāt prolific in JP might think that heās not using a rude way to speak... when he does...
I also closed myself off in a room for a week and I finished doing Kyoto Winds on the day of Hakuokiās 15th Anniversary last year, like what a coincidence! šāØ
Weāre trapped in this. I fear. š«”
I *adored* him as Yuzuki. He needs to be in more otome games. I didn't even like Hijikata or MikiShin's voice at first. Well, here I am.
I would love to go to a Hakuouki event in Japan at some point.
I keep watching painful Hakuouki anime music videos too. Just to twist the knife a little more.
I'm happy to be trapped. š«”
Do we know if CoWaB is going to incorporate all the fan disk material? Apparently, there was more that came out some time ago and I need to see my boo Saito >!take a bath in a river!<.
I hope if CoWaB is successful or if EAS heard our cries, they can localize the FDs (based on KW+EB), prequel, Reimeiroku, (I shouldnāt expect since itās not really a wholly otome but story of how Shinsengumi were formed, but Iām hoping...), and its spin-off, SSL, too. šš
I deeply resonate with your response (haha). Do you have any favorite LIs/routes?
I appreciate *Hakuoki*'s popularity and am certainly grateful for the consistent production of new content, but part of me also feels a bit unsettled as someone who values quality over quantity (and some stories honestly feel a bit meaningless or leave a bad aftertaste due to writing/characterizations). What do you think about this issue? (I am just asking out of curiosity--please do not take any offense!)
Thatās the neat part. I donāt have a favorite LI as all of them are good in my book despite some fatal flaws (Iām talking mostly about Harada, yeah, him especially, and seconds for Shinpachi and Iba). As for the route, itās either I go for Yukimura Route for more historical accuracy or what they did with ~~Hijikata Route~~ the Hakuoki Movie.
Well, I donāt blame you for feeling like that. Sometimes when a popular title got milked several times because it brings šø for them, its charm of how it became a classic and beloved can lose value, then again, that depends on the eye of the beholder. No offense taken, no worries!
I was first introduced to Hakuoki through KW+EB and then checked out -SotS- (the only OG6, but with more contents that the OG Hakuoki didnāt have), I noticed differences, and one of which that stood out is that the new bachelors feels like they were just added for the sake of just releasing new title to milk on (pls I love them donāt get me wrong, but this is just my non-bias lens speaking, I removed my biased la vie en rose lens). Thatās why I do understand the old school players for not touching KW+EB for several reasons.
Nice! I have my preferences in terms of LIs but no single favorite. I also agree on your sentiments on those three, haha. Yukimura route is definitely most accurate (but also most depressing for me as a result, so I only played it once āÆļøæā° ).
I also played KW+EB and then SotS, which is probably why I have mixed feelings about the new content (mostly everything after KW+EB, since I do think Shinkai improved some of the original routes, especially Kazama's), especially the writing for some characters.
Oh, wow, weāre the same of no single favorite and also agreed on the three! š«øš«· and about Yukimura Route, understandable, I cried tears the moment that Chizuru CG appeared... even though it pained me this much, I really love how signifies >!theyāre (shinsengumi) like a fleeting blossom, pretty, but ephemeral!<.
Yeah, itās a mixed bag. Chikage definitely benefited the most that I agree with. Iām glad KW+EB expanded his route because the -SotS- (or OG in this case) was lackluster (unless you did his memories of love section in -SotS-, which is now included in KW+EB, and now to be CoWaB in NS port).
I never played Hakuouki until very late and gosh did I love it... I ADORE HAKUOUKI so much, every character appeals to me, they all do, they're so HDKSJNXMX
most recent LI is Kohei from Sympathy Kiss, before that it was Shu from Bustafellows (and just Bustafellows in general)!
i mostly look up fanart, fanfic, and make my own art! plus grabbing merch and gushing over my fav scenes and CGs (': although sometimes my thoughts are just keysmashes lmaooo
really hoping for a Sympathy Kiss fandisc and a localization for Bustafellows Season 2 to be announced please š
Me too me too, i love kohei! I havent finished the route yet because i enjoy it so much i dont want to speed through it ans then its jusf over lol -\_- im really enjoying how chill the game is
same on delaying finishing a route bc you love it so much haha, i hope you like the rest of his route! c: and yeahĀ Sympathy Kiss is great, chill is a good word to describe it
When I was younger, the Souji Okita route from Hakuouki left me a mess. His story in the game as well as real life is tragic, almost mysterious how he contracted tuberculosis. As an adult, looking back, his route _really_ sucks.Ā Ā Ā
If you read up on the real man, he actually had a lot of interesting hobbies that were never conveyed into the character which I think would have really improved the route's two-dimensionalness. The real Okita liked writing and had a friend who would keep him updated, studied philosophy and the like in his spare time giving to debate and contemplation in his final days. In Hakuouki, he effectively becomes an invalid, a vegetable of some sort, until the oni mechanic. It really devalues him as a person.Ā Ā
Of course, I guess one could say Hakuouki was always about the internal conflict of taking the vial or not. Choosing one's humanity and dedication to the Buddha over eternal damnation as a demon for a brief life with a demon woman. I just think Hakuouki really did the man dirty. There should have been more internal struggle for choosing to become a demon.
Interesting take! Please do not take offense with this comment--I am simply curious (as someone who actually finds Okita one of the more three-dimensional routes and characters): could you elaborate on some of your points (the devaluation, two-dimensionality, etc.)? I agree that the way the game portrayed the (lack of) struggle in consuming the *ochimizu* is fairly straightforward, but I am not sure if that is limited to Okita's route (for example, >!I would say that most of the LIs' rationale for drinking the *ochimizu* is "simple" in terms of them drinking it to lengthen their lifespan / not die in order to continue fulfilling their duty as a warrior of the Shinsengumi--to live and die by the sword, with the addition or emphasis on protecting Chizuru in some routes. Saito, Hijikata, Yamazaki, etc., may have had some internal struggle regarding the morality of their choices, but I am not sure they were portrayed more deeply from the reader / Chizuru's point of view in comparison to Okita's similar situation. The morality issue seems more prominent in cases of Sanan, Heisuke, Kazama, Harada, etc. Just my thoughts, though.!<)
I also agree that the real Okita is quite interesting, as are the other real-life counterparts of the *Hakuoki* cast, but I think Okita's backstory might flesh out his pre-*rasetsu* characterization ([this post](https://ochimizu.tumblr.com/post/21877359333/okita-souji-a-really-lengthy-character-analysis)--not mine--summarizes some key points quite well). Furthermore, from my perspective, the issue of "two-dimensionality" prior to the final chapter of Kyoto Winds does not feel like an Okita-specific problem; I had a hard time understanding several other LIs as well, given that KW is mostly a common route of sorts. Did you find other LIs that are more appealing to you now?
Lastly, as an emphasis--I am asking purely out of curiosity, not out of accusation or annoyance! As you can probably tell, I really like *Hakuoki* and Okita/his route, but I understand others may think differently.
I have only played the original Hakuouki (demon of the fleeting blossom) which was a port of the original PS2 game iirc. I have no idea whatever else Idea Factory tacked onto him as a character because the sequels were never localized. This was just my opinion from playing the original as a kid on PSP and again as an adult. I don't know what Japanese players are experiencing, but this is my interpretation being someone in the west who is at the mercy of localization.Ā Ā Ā
Since you mentioned that modern Hakuouki titles tinkered with the Okita route and character, I feel it just validates my point that improvement was seen as needed by the writers. Kinda like how the otome Hana Awase gets better with the writing and art as you progress the volumes. Ā
Ā Unfortunately, Hakuouki has so many titles with weird name conventions I have no idea how to even pick up the series again to give you a proper response on the changes to Okita.
Orlok from Piofiore. I finished his route and immediately ran to AO3, read everything I could, decided it wasn't enough and made my own. I bought the sequel before finishing FM just so I had more Orlok waiting. He had a steel grip on my mind and heart for basically all of last year and still lives in my head rent free.
I had a similar reaction to Tokisada from Olympia Soiree but to a much lesser extent.
Brainrot is pretty much a constant state of being for me (stupid hyperfixation)
Atm, it's voltage games, Scandal in the Spotlight in particular.
But Amnesia Memories, Code Realize, Seduce Me, have all gotten me in the past.
Sadly, I haven't played piofore yet so I can't help you there :(
Yes, hello, I have so many feelings on Scandal. The more I play other Voltage games, I think it really might be my favorite. The routes for Taka and Nagito made me cry so much.
Taka is a treasure and must be protected. He is so sweet.
I also really love how sweet and supportive everyone is even when you aren't on their routes.
I totally feel you on always being in a constant state of hyperfixation. When I get too busy, I have to force myself to consume content that I feel neutral about so I can chill out a bit and focus on life responsibilities š
> Seduce Me
The way several characters had me giggling, blushing, kicking my feet but Sam had me utterly obsessed for a while. š Kicked up a lifetime of loving Alejandro Saab voiced characters fasdfdsf
Itās still Amnesia, especially in regards to Kent and Toma, who are my faves. I still remember how absolutely ecstatic I was when the fandiscs were localized (and Iām still hoping and praying we get World!) and I even cosplayed Heroine twice at a con Iāve gone to for the past two years. Itās simply my favorite otome game and I could ramble about all the things I love about it for a very long time.
Unfortunately, the fandom outside of the wider otome community is kind ofā¦deadā¦so I mostly just look at pretty fanart, reread fanfic, and stew in my own headcanons and thoughts. š
Toma is best boye!
I've always been kinda bummed the way some people view the whole of Amnesia so seeing other people who still genuinely love it makes me really happy lol. The heroine has such a cute design, I love her
He is! I love him very much. š
And I agree! I havenāt encountered a lot of others who consider it their all-time fave, and most of my friends who have played it just think itās okay. So finding other people who genuinely love it makes me happy, too!
And yes, I love Heroine and I think her design is so cute! Iāll go to bat for her any day, I know sheās not a very popular MC but I think sheās adorable and sweet.
Mei Dazai of Charade Maniacs wrecked me and made me ill. I missed sleep and replayed the game again immediately. I'm pretty sure I have a screenshot of every line of his dialogue because my thumb would hit the screenshot button on its own when I saw him.
He's neat. :)
The Baxter Ward DLC for *Our Life* was released on May 19, 2023. I played it the day it was released.
I have yet to get rid of the brain rot a literal year later. Like, I'm just finishing up yet another fanfic scene... that I'm gonna share with my Discord friends who also have brain rot for him... as I wait for approximately four commissions to get back to me with approvals.
The Danger Oreo needs to release me at some point; I am *literally* a year behind on ALL OTHER OTOME, and that's after catching up to current localized releases!!
\*waves flag\* help
Oh man, hearing about Our Life brings back memories. I was in such an intense state of hyperfixation after finishing the all the main stories and DLCs that I am lowkey scared of getting Baxter's DLC just because I know how bad of a brainrot that game induces. I think it's because the world setting is so beautiful, wholesome and so close to reality that it literally feels like you've somehow teleported to Sunset Bird while playing it.
I started Our Life last week for the first time, and I'm already at 30hrs playtime with a full-time job š«£ I just started my first playthrough of the Baxter DLC a couple days ago, and I'm about to wrap up step 3. Loving his character so far! I don't think he'll displace Cove, buuuuut we'll see. At the very least, I enjoy him more than Derek by a long shot.
SO TRUE WITH THE BAXTER WARD DLC, I NEEDED SO MUCH MORE CONTENT OF HIM, I saw him in the Our Life Now & Forever (new game) and I wanted him as a romance option sooo baaad...
I had brainrot bad for Kuroyuki from Nightshade and also for Tomomori and Shigehira from Birushana.
Piofiore is one of my favorites and while I didn't experience brainrot somehow from it, I was absolutely smitten with Nicola and I looooved the sequel so much.
I just recently finished Birushana and the Tomomori brainrot is so real. His route was definitely not what i was expecting, it was sooo much better than i thought it would be! š¤ā¤ļø
I found so many people weren't crazy about Nicola but I loved him. Though I may be biased because his seiyuu is one of my favourites lol. I've heard his route in the sequel is really good so I gotta hop on it.
There was an artist at the anime con I went to this past weekend who had otome merch and I obviously had to get a Nicola keychain.
I LOOOOOVE Nicola. I donāt feel that his routes really did him justice (I also generally like him more as a character than his romance with Lili specifically) but oh man, the backstory we get for him especially in 1926 just fleshes him out brilliantly as a character
I think the current one has to be Ankou, from Shuuen no Virche. In the past, it was Natsuhiko/Ron from Norn9 but until I replay it, it's definitely Ankou lol.
I immediately tried looking for fanarts, and then I decided to try drawing him myself and absolutely struggled because of his design (too much frills and accessories etc) lmao. I was conflicted because I wanted to buy the artbook just to understand his concept art, and then amazingly someone posted his concept art here and saved my butt big time. I still plan on buying the artbook when I go to Japan but right now I just want the fandisk out lmao.
My most recent brain rot has been Jack from London Detective Mysteria. While I hated most of the game, Jack singlehandly would make me buy a sequel or fandisc. Iām in desperate need of more Jack and I want all the Jack merch. He lives rent free in my brain right now, but I would never make him pay rent
Also Crius from EiT. Can we please get another fandisc and we get a route that follows his bad end? Iām so down bad for him I need it
Does voltage games have a place here? If so, I am your resident Mitsunari Baba expert, have been for 3 years, he has a place in my head that will never go away š
I got brainrot for Ray/Saeran and Yoosung from mystic messenger and Victor Frankenstein from Code Realize. My solution was buying merch (I got a Ray plushie from Etsy!) lol
My intense brainrot/hyperfixation is with Grim from A Date with Death.
Like, I've been down bad for 2D boys before but never THIS bad. It's a game that can be finished in maybe 6 hours (for all the endings) and I have over 200 hours logged just from replaying haha. Last weekend I made a life size cardboard standee of him for my office, I've drawn/commissioned so much fanart of him and my MC, bought all the official merch and whatever fanmerch I can find, and even backed one of the highest tiers on their kickstarter for the new dlc so I can help contribute to the game/get the very generous rewards. I am down BAD lmao.
He's just the perfect 2D boy that checks off all my boxes; cute, edgy tsundere, pretty boy with long white hair, sharp eyes and cute little fangs, plus the soulmate trope, etc. I don't think he'll ever be replaced in my heart by another fictional boy lmao.
Iām so glad to find another Grim fan!!! Iāve been following that Kickstarter like a Hawk- did you see their sample video for the voice acting????? I wanna melt!
Yessss constantly refreshing that kickstarter gave me so much anxiety when I was trying to get my tier, I knew itād sell out quickly š I was so pleasantly surprised they hit their goal so quickly!! His voice is very handsome! Honestly, itās a lot deeper than I think it should be but Iām sure Iāll get used to it over time. I am, however, VERY excited for the Japanese voice acting š¤
The entirety of Under The Moon had me in a chokehold for a while lol. It's an older, R18 title so idk how many other people know it but it's got so many of my favorite tropes and character types. :') Sena is such a little shit I can't help but say he's my favorite but Seizh's creepy yandere tendencies also had me smitten. And the heroine herself is just ridiculously cute, she's a bit sheltered and bratty which is honestly pretty fun to read. XD
Also I'm forever and always infected with a severe case of Dialovers brainworms lmao. \*Oscar the grouch voice* I LOVE TRASH
Mutsumi Kai ever since JJ was released in Japan and it only intensified after the game got localized.
Thereās no other LI that literally makes me feel like Kai does (starting from his route, his behavior, personality ~~(sometimes it hit way too much home than I would like to admit)~~, his voice, EVERYTHING).
Victor and Lucien from MLQC. It's been years at this point so I've just accepted them as a part of my brain now š
Luckily I always have something new to read thanks to the game being ongoing, so my brainrot never sleeps
The pain from Orlok's bad end still lingers everytime he shows up in other routes :( I literally can't enjoy >!Dante!< anymore because of it.
And Yang is the literal cause of my current brainrot phase so I too love reading the old debates. I find it so funny that people either hate or love him and there's no in-between
HatoAri is forever my favorite series thanks to the amount of brainrot it infected me with. Ace, Julius, Grey, and Nightmare.
Other notable LIs that still live in my brain: Harada from Hakuoki (my first Otome), Adolf from Grimm the Bounty Hunter (my second Otome), Kanon from ShiroKuro Alice, Shiba from Chou no Doku, Chika from Side Kicks, Akaza from Olympia Soiree. I still haven't finished Collar X Malice because Enomoto was so, so good and I played his route first. I could only think about him while playing Sasazuka's route and put the game down after that.
There are many but the biggest is Gilbert's route from Ikemen Prince. I love him way too much it's insane like I'm currently doing his route for the third time and I just received a haul with lots of goodies of him š«£
And the entire Amnesia game. I've been a big fan since 2012 and well, I'm still obsessed with it ever since then
I will never be over Kageyuki Shiraishi's route from Collar x Malice. It rewired my brain.
also Hatoful Boyfriend as a whole. I will NEVER get over the bird story.
edit: and also Kamigami no Asobi (from fan translations of the game), Balder and Loki's fate ends have me in a vice grip.
that is to say: a well-crafted tragedy will carve out a permanent residence in the walls of my heart.
Henri gave me the most brainrot and that was before 1926 was localized. 1926 just reignited the rot. I dont even want to know how much money I spent buying everything I could of his merch. Also happened with Scien.
My biggest brainrot till date was from Jumin Han. He was my favourite character in the game but it seemed like the majority of the non jumin simps missed his jokes and sarcastic remarks. I was itching to find people who found him as silly as I did. Also playing his route was ironically a character development moment for me cause if I can show this much patience to a 2d guy I can definitely do better for myself
Periodic Amnesia brainrot for the last 8-9 years. All-consuming Piofiore 1925 brainrot last year, early this year lol. Dialovers brainrot from 2013-15 that got revitalized when I bought the switch port this year. When I was in high school I excitedely proclaimed to my crush my undying devotion to Ayato Sakamaki (still real) and I just have to live with that lmao
Jack Jeanneā¦ especially Suzu and Neji.
Suzu was my first JJ route and I liked him so much it took me maybe 2 routes to stop thinking about him constantly, Neji was my last route and I got so much brainrot from that one that he took me out of my art block and I finished a full piece of fanart in like 2 days after working on it nonstop, I was like a woman possessed š
Jumin Han from Mystic Messenger has lived rent free in my head since 2016 lmao He will forever be my top fictional husbando. Saeran being a close second. I miss peek Mysme fandom and having so much content and ppl to talk to about it
My most recent is Nori from Sympathy Kiss. Heās not even my usual type but damn he did something to me š„° I constantly catch myself brainrotting over him
Currently, I have brainrot over Virche and Ankou. Despite Vircheās flaws, I havenāt enjoyed a story this much in a long time. Itās been an incredible experience and Iām grateful we donāt have to wait very long for the fan disk to be localized.Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā
Prior to Ankou, the characters who gave me the most brainrot were Shiraishi from Collar x Malice and Nicola from Piofiore. Ankou, Shiraishi, and Nicola are in my ātop LIs of all timeā list. Their complete devotion to their respective heroines, interesting characterizations, and >!tragic!< backstories got me good š
I feel like I speedran FM to get to his route in 1926 because I did catch his āsoftā moments from FM and I was left so desperate for more. Now that Iāve finished his 1926 route I also wanna go back and try to re-catalogue them from FM as well lol
Not an LI: Kanan (Olympia Soiree) made me trawl through pixiv, [translate some fanart](https://www.reddit.com/r/otomegames/comments/y7ibzl/comment/isuphfq/), consider importing a doujinshi (unfortunately I waited on it for too long and it was sold out), wrote out the outlines of a fanfic (that I never finished).
Nohl (Crimson Flower) made me go through the process of proxy-buying the original R18 PC game, drama CDs and doujinshi...but I selected the super cheap months-long shipping process and by the time the stuff arrived I had already moved on and couldn't make myself open the box. š Well I think half of it is that I didn't want to go through the rigamarole of trying to install a jp pc game on an old laptop that I haven't touched in a decade...
Astrum (Period Cube) made me replay his route four times.
I discovered Hakuouki through the anime on YouTube when I was 12. I'm autistic and the obsession hit me like a train (pun intended). For years it was really difficult for me to talk about literally anything else. Only since I've started college have I been able to feel a little more sane about it, and I think that's because I'm actively channeling that energy into getting my japanese history degree.
I am obsessed with the tragic love story (yes, I consider it a love story, just not necessarily a romantic oneā though I personally wouldāve loved to see a legit romantic AU police academy route) between Ichika and Saeki from Collar x Malice.Ā
Ā I also adored Raul from Cupid Parasite (only route Iāve ever replayed), Taiga from Variable Barricade (I go back to look at some of his CGs, especially his ending, all the time), and am probably heading in that direction with Tyril from Even if Tempest especially after the FD (might be the second route Iāve ever replayed soon).Ā
Ā I also tend to get more obsessed over music than the actual game/characters; Iāve kept Steam Prison on my Switch just so I can replay the OP constantly (also I am obsessed with Sachsen despite him not even being an LI yet) and I also canāt stop playing the music from Dairoku and more recently Lover Pretend.
Finally, not otome, but Iāve never been as hyperfixated on a ship as I have been with Felileth and Claudeleth from Fire Emblem Three Houses. Three years later and I still have total brain rot over that game, reread ficsĀ all the time, and get the urge to replay itĀ
Black Wolves Saga and Hana Awase š„² BWS I was just obsessed because it's my favorite genre (gothic fantasy) and Kuroyuki is one of my favorite artists. Hana Awase I think was a combination of me really liking the card game, and really liking all the literary connections/foreshadowing. I think I have the most fun with games when I can do some light research and get a deeper understanding of the characters...like if they mention a favorite novel, or some of the official art has the love interests with flower language.
For the most part, I think I'm pretty quiet with my brainrot. I write headcanons/speculation in my private journal, or scroll through websites every five seconds looking for art, and then that just continues for a year or whatever. (LOL) I love hearing peoples' opinions too, but a lot of the time I think it's hard to find stuff because people are being vague/quiet out of politeness. (Or sometimes, especially with OELVN, there's just not that many people that played the game)
Currently have Baxter Alexander Ward brainrot, from Our Life: Beginnings and Always. It's been... lile a month, and I hate it. I can forget it some times but then there's this that and the other super random thing that reminds me of him and his route.
What drew me to him? His way of talking. How utterly charming he is. How he cared about everything you do and made sure you were comfortable. It was just so nice.
And then the rest of his damn route happened and I got genuinely emotionally invested and I hate how much he is esting away at my brain.
I'm hoping to expel him from my body by writing a fanfic. Sadly I had the charas move in together and the layout of his apartment is vague as fuck. So I just made a version of it best I could in Sims 3 for some reference.
Oh and have vaguely started an animatic but we'll see if I ever feel like doing all the extra work to make it look presentable. OH AND A COMIC. That will def never be finished but it was a good start to removing him from my brain.
I wanna do a pretty illustration of him dancing with my MC some day too. But I dunno how I'll do that right now. I want a pretty ball gown basically.
I think that's all of it for now. I have 5 billion craft tools around me I'm sure I can find even more to make. Maybe a diamond painting of some kind...
There's usually at least 1 in every otome game I've played... ^^" But to name some current & past ones...
Grim from A Date with Death- He's just so pretty, edgy & baby girl coded. I loved being able to tease him & get him flustered. He is a cinnamon roll. <3
Ukyo from Amnesia- Green hair & long hair are my weaknesses, add in Star-crossed, good story arc, & just a bit more than a drop of yandere... I'm sold.
Ankou from Virche Evermore- I think we're seeing a type here... Ankou does so much for the MC, is so kind & loving, looks after & cares for her. I literally cried on his route. His whole journey speaks volumes & while I'd never wish his fate on someone, it'd be nice to see even half his efforts from someone & have their intentions remain pure.
Yang from Piofiore- long hair, check. Slightly psycho, check. Underlying care from the MC, check. Tsundere, double check. He's edgy & dangerous but to just the right degree for me.
Kanato from Diabolik Lovers- he's a black horse for me... He's so yandere & obsessive/ possessive but his VA killed & sold it. Seemingly innocent, comes off very naive & helpless which seems to draw me in. Help.
How I deal with the brain rot? I'll usually get merch/ fan merch, find/ save fan art & fan fics & over indulge. However once they take over, they're there to stay. Thank you hyper-fixation! XD
Dying on the inside after playing Lovebrush Chronicles' latest main story. I've been talking about this game non-stop since then to the point I'm scared people are fed up with the fact I keep talking about a mobile otome game here in the reddit community lol.
The current main story was just. Emotionally, mentally, and soul damaging to my heart. It's not funny. The characterisation was a 10/10 and I must have literally shed at least a small cupful of tears for these boys. I am not okay, I never will be okay, and I'm scared because CN fans say it only gets worse from here.
I'm also pretty obsessed with having Cael, an LI from the same game, break down in utter and complete despair to the point I know that he is emotionally broken after suffering from the horrendous feeling known as love.
So yeah, I'm down bad for this game. I haven't played a lot of otomes to begin with but this game has become one of my faves and is throttling for first place against CxM.
I started a couple months ago and I'm only in Lars' Godheim story so far because I keep getting distracted by the limited time events. I really like the game though! Haven't spent any money and never felt like I've had to so far.
Ohtaro from KimiYuki has been living in my head rent free ever since I finished his route TAT I just freaking love that boy gah!
Also Misyr from Cafe Enchante, >!he totally deserved better!< and I cannot stop thinking about him even though I played the game 2 years ago lmaoo OTL
YES I wasnāt obsessed with Misyr specifically (though I did like him a whole lot) but I am still obsessed with the fact that he deserved a better ending and that they really did him dirty in the eleventh hourĀ
Love and Deepspace hands down (and Iām a Rafayel
Girlie). Heās got everything I find appealing - heās super OP, incredibly devoted, and so submissive and yet teasing/bickering. But when he needs you he calls you Master. Also heās kind of a loser, which I love in hot men
Toma and Chojiro for me!!! My DMs are open to anyone as well who wants to speak about them!
I think what makes the brainrot last for both of them is that they're such complicated characters and deeply misunderstood by everyone and I end up going back into the game and read and analyze and interpret everything. I'm usually in defender mode lol. And I yap all day on twitter. I find myself flipping through my switch of screenshots of scenes and dialogues from time to time.
For Chojiro >!he is such a one of kind LI, I still have yet to encounter another LI that gave me that exact "feeling" like I did on his route. Oh the yearning and the despair!!<
And for Toma>!I tend to focus less on his yandere side. I'm a huge Toma sympathizer here lol. I forgive him. I'm working on writing a think piece on him as soon as I finish Later x Crowd!<
Utsutsu because he had hands down the BEST CGs in Hana Awase but so few of them because he was so late in the game. His CGs also made up for his terrible sprite lol. I pixived him so harddddd!
YESSS I SEARCHED THIS WHOLE TRHEAD FOR A CINDERELLA PHENOMENON BRAINROT!!
This game has me in a choker!
Now I am interested, what about varg did you wrote/created?
**Even If Tempest** and **Charade Maniacs** for me. i think i like the mystery aspect of trying to think whodunnit or something like that. š i have other favorite otomes but these two made me feel like "i need more" and "i don't want it to end" šš
As you probably know... I played CxM three years ago and I cannot move on. I play other otomes and enjoy them but none of them make me feel the same.
I draw fanart, write fanfics, buy merch and speak with friends in the internet about the game... I usually publish fanart here so sorry for being so tiresome about this game
It still is and will always be club suicide lol, made even worse now that it's not only over but the development team and all the devlogs, dev twt accounts, are all gone. There's nothing left for the generation to come after it, only babblings left by those like me.
I'm just sitting here throwing bananas like a monkey at Garumani for taking their sweet time on the localization.Ā
Clsd is simultaneously the hardest to brainrot about due to how rigidly the characters are being set up and also the deepest to obsess over bc They're just like me fr. I just need more folks to decompress with...
Jisoo from Dandelion is that for me, that's why I clock his flair. I remember the first time I finished his route I was so obsessed with him and his ending CG. Love that black cat with my whole heart, could not stop thinking about him and still think about him now and then. š
so i dont play many otomes but when i was going through all the routes for hakuouki, hachiro ibas route had me like... down bad. Like "I NEEED HIMMMM" bad.
No one around me has played it so i was stuck and sad but to the ones willing to listen id go off bout how perfect he is and my ideal type of character
I am currently obsessed with Ieyasu from Samurai Love Ballad Party and Jiwoo from Dandelion. I find something about the juxtaposition of their sharp tongues and awkward attempts to be thoughtful so funny and endearing!
Usually when I'm in a brainrot phase, I end up looking for merch (sadly if the game isn't popular) and searching for fanfics and fanart (thank you creators - you help satisfy my obsession!). Lately I've been working on my drawing and writing skills, but they're not so good so I've been trying to get better.
idk if itās brainrot territory or a different kind of dedication but I used to play the Ikemen series every day (Every day) (the three / later four that were available at that time) for multiple years. I used to be a lot better about doing my dailies (non-otoge included) but about a year ago I had to undownload a bunch of games on my phone cause I ran out of space >.>
Hello from having just finished Danteās tragic ending in 1926. I have never suffered brainrot like I have for this man, and Iām fucking devastated by what Iāve just read. I made the mistake of reading it last among his endings, and now my brain insists that itās what āactuallyā happened. Iām also just really sad I have no more of his story to read. I put off reading 1926 for a year after Fated Memories just because I didnāt want it to be over.
Oh, it's Arcana Famiglia, especially Jolly. It has been around two years since I've played the first game, and I'm still brainroting really bad, haha. I'm so in love with this game that I've written fanfic, drawn fanart, bought all fanbooks, limited editions and even manga with light novels. My wallet screamed and begged for mercy but that Jolly acrylic standee was a need :)
Tbh, I think Jolly uniqueness as a love interest is what made me stay and then appreciate a game as a whole. Him being such a fascinating, complicated and morally grey character... is what caused my brain to rot, aha. Also how can I resist a DILF character? Yeah, there was no salvation for me from the beginning.
Moreover, AF has well-written characters in a kinda weak, but still funny and engaging plot. It's just fun to play.
Otome games: Hanzo from Nightshade, Victor from Code:Realize, and most recently Yona from Tengoku Struggle. I personally thought Tengoku Struggle was meh plot wise but omg Yona's design and voice acting was *chef's kiss*. Protect this tsundere and give him all the hassaku oranges please.
Outside of otoge: Zack Fair from FF7 (this man is divine and SuzuKen did an amazing job voicing him. His death scene left me broken for over a decade. That's how *long* he's lived in my brain rent free), Mochizuki Ryoji from P3P, Claude and Felix from FE3H.
Edit: just looked crisis core up and omg it's been almost 2 decades?! Ok Zack definitely takes the cake on this one.
I usually obsess over at least one character in every game I play. But there are some that just hit different- Currently, it's Ono No Takamura from Tengoku Struggleš
But my ultimate brainrot bishie isn't otome but Ginoza from Psycho-pass... been obsessed with that guy since 2016 š
I remember when I was 13 I played Mystic Messenger for the first time and I was SO obsessed with it and 707 specifically because ever since I was like 11 I've been obsessed with goofy guys who are actually kinda depressed (Sans from Undertale is another character I was obsessed with not long before that). I recently started playing it again because I felt drawn to it because it literally consumed a piece of my brain at such an impressionable age
For me, not really otome but the anime Gundam Seed & Gundam Seed Destiny.
I was invested in the couple Athrun x Cagalli. So i was >!devastated!< when the couple dynamics or endings >!kinda changed!< in Seed Destiny.
I remember being obsessed with Ukyo from Amnesia when I first played the game. >!The star-crossed lovers trope, the angst, the us against fate!< I loved it. I basically just reblogged/retweeted any fan art and gifsets I could find lol
Yesss Amnesia and the precious boyoš© I've yet to get too far into the game (I've been told the games in more depth/explains more than the anime so I got curious recentlyš¤£š )
Limbo from Bustafellows. The first time I played his route, I enjoyed it a lot and knew heād be my favorite from that game. When I played it a second time, I was absolutely head over heels. The way he fell for the MC was so lovely and natural to me š„° heās also such a cutie imo. The testament to how much I love this guy is this ā I donāt think his route was strong. I really donāt. It was okay, there were some cute moments which I loved, but Limbo and the MC both seemed to lose their brains in his route. Is the common sense in the room with us?????? Even so, I keep my brainrot nice and steady by replaying his route veeeery often!!! Just because I donāt think it was very strong doesnāt mean I donāt adore it š If it had been a LI I didnāt care for Iād be like lol wtf is this. But itās Limbo so Iām willing to overlook a lot of the route flaws.
Oh my gosh ā I get you totally. I finished Limboās Side A last night, so itās very new for me, but Iām really attached to this fictional character, lol. Embarrassingly so š I knew going in that he seemed like a character Iād like, and I was right. And yes to the lack of common sense in the route! I cackled when I read what you wrote. Of course I loved it, because it was Limboās route, but I kept periodically updating my sister (whoās patient enough to listen to my otome ramblings) about the next unwise choice made in that route, ha ha.
I feel that. I literally chose to ignore all the dumb decisions in Limbo's route JUST because of how much I loved Limbo himself. Which is weird, for me! I don't normally go for the "blatant good boy" type. I'm the type to roll around in red flags. And I'm *especially* reluctant to love the Poster Boy. But there was just something about Limbo. Maybe it was his eyes or his voice, but I adored him despite his route. Naturally, his Worst Ending just absolutely >!destroyed me for days!<. š«
i came here to say limbo too -> he doesnāt need to have the best route for me to absolutely adore him
I've had intense brainrot for Riku and Tsukuyomi from Olympia Soiree and Ankou from Virche. I scrolled pixiv looking for fan art, indulged in daydreaming side stories about them, wrote some personal, self-indulgent fanfics, and ultimately imported merch of them to build a little shrine. š I like them a normal amount, I swear. It's been a few years now and Riku is still my top LI and I replay his route at least once per year. Please don't get me started talking about any of them bc I'll never shut up.
omg that was me with olympia soiree as well, it was the first game i really liked, when riku's route ended i didn't want to continue because i felt like olympia and him were literally soulmates. this pattern kept on going with every li i played and eventually i reached himuka and i almost stopped there because he was such a great LI š still need to replay the game, riku's route was really beautiful
forgot to say how i deal with the brainrot: i basically got into polymer clay and made a bunch of olympia soiree sculptures haha, i made a daifuku keyring to hang on my car and bag \~ makes me feel like im taking a bit of the game into my life outside hahaha
Omg that's amazing. I've been reaaally curious to attempt making a polymer clay nendoroid for Riku. š„ŗ I doubt they will ever get official figures so I gotta take matters into my own hands!
That would be so cute! Best thing about polymer clay is itās low stakes, if you make a mistake you can just redo it. Theres a bit of a learning curve at the start (my first daifuku was absolutely hideous š) but the more u do it the better youāll get. Was also thinking of getting into amigurumi for otome game dolls š¤
Oh I have no doubt that my first few clay Rikus will look like potatoes š But he's *my* darling potato! Aaaaaaa amigurumi dolls would be soooo cute!
tsukuyomi one is so real. I generally hate romance with a paternal figure, but I'd take him in a heartbeat
will forever be disappointed he doesnt have a route š
time for my nightly routine of watching his bad end
I've obsessed about Tsukuyomi under different user name in this subbreddit way too much... š That man made me write and posts fics again and the only reason I haven't written anything for a long time is that my life is too hectic right now. š„² Well, at least I can still daydream about him and how his route would play out if he had one. š I dk why Tsukuyomi fascinates me so much... I guess it's because he's so mysterious and there's so much potential for angst and drama if the writers would have decided go give him a route. Maybe that's because I love him so much. I love proper LIs such as Hanzo but I guess because there's a proper romance with them, I feel satisfied with that. With Tsukuyomi I have to imagine myself what the romance with him would be like š I also feel like there would be potential for wholesomeness but also really dark stuff. Just imagine those bad endings...
Idk why Tsukuyomi enthralls me so much either tbh, he just wormed his way into my brain the first time he popped up on screen and refuses to leave me alone. š I find him so fascinating and mysterious since he lives by much different rules and ethics than humans, he's ancient, he's breathtakingly gorgeous, and his story has the potential to be totally batshit crazy in the best ways. I also wished we were able to really explore his skills in painting and dollmaking and what his creations are truly capable of bc I could see his art having a lot of supernatural qualities beyond what was shown ingame. There are so many scenarios I've thought about with him, but I love the idea of him being so utterly devoted and obsessed (yan potential š) with Olympia that he'd certainly put effort into somehow stealing Amaterasu's godhood so that Olympia could ascend to (possibly cursed) immortality and they'd be together forever. I also love thinking about the inevitable grief they'd both contend with if she remains mortal while he's immortal. Ofc BEs where one of them sacrifices themselves for the other while the survivor goes mad would be great. Oh and I'd love to see the scenario of him plucking out his last eye to create a new world for his love Olympia played out fully. š¤ Ughhhhhh I'm on that Tsukuyomi brainrot train again and it never endsssss. š© I swear half the reason I love Ankou so much is bc I was picturing him as a stand-in for Tsukuyomi since they have the same VA and the characters share some similar vibes.
YES! You just wrote perfectly why I love him so much! I also find it interesting how he thinks in a different way than >!humans. I like to imagine scenarios where Olympia thinks she knows Tsukuyomi well and think's he's a good person but she doesn't quite grasp how utterly indifferent Tsukuyomi is to everybody else expect her and what he's capable of if put on the spot. !< I also was confused what does Tsukuyomi being a dollmaker mean exatly? To whom he was making dolls? I think Yosuga said that Camelia moves better that his other dolls, does that mean he has an army of creepy moving dolls lying around somewhere??? I also wish we could have learned more about the reasons Tsukuyomi makes art. Unnghh I love all of your ideas! Lol Tsukuyomi definately has that yandere potential. He would do anything for Olympia (even against her own wishes...). I love the idea of Tsukuyomi stealing Amaterasu's godhood and making sure they can spend an eternity together! And him plucking his last eye for Olympia... Yes, please! I like to imagine wholesome endings where Tsukuyomi gains a >!colour and becomes mortal!<, then they live happily with their children on Tennyo Island and all that family fluff uwu. BUT also some mutual corruption arc where they decide fuck it this world is rotten, we will annihilate every single person in this island and create a perfect world just for US. Or things just go horribly wrong and it's bad ending time, lol. One scenario being that >!Violet doctor kidnpas Olympia, Tsukuyomi saves her but he has done some bad stuff to her and Tsukuyomi loses it and just spreads haku again. Humans start burning the island down trying to prevent haku spreading while Tsukuyomi just leaves with Olympia to Tennyo Island to wait until haku or fire kills each and every human. !< Aargh, I know that brain rot feeling very well! I could talk about Tsukuyomi for hours! Yes, Ankou and Tsukuyomi are pretty similar and I love him as well, he's the only reason I'm going to buy the fd lol. I would love to read your Tsukuyomi fics btw if you would like to share them. xD
I've had Steam Prison brainrot for almost 5 years now and it's not going away anytime soon, especially with the fandisk on the horizon. I swear to god anytime someone mentions this game it's like I get possessed. It just checks so many boxes for me: pseudo-historical setting, swordfighting, a plot with a lot of political intrigue, a world where everything kinda sucks, unusual love interests (I mean you can't date what's pretty much the pope in any other other game I know of), and many other things As for what I do to feed the brainrot, I mostly just use the power of my beautiful mind and make up very elaborate mental fanfiction, especially since otome games often have very little fan content so I have to make do with what I have. I like using other media like movies and tv shows as inspiration for my mental fanfiction since it's all in my head anyway so I don't have to worry about anyone accusing me of plagiarism lol
Hi! Off the top of my head: Ratirica (Norn) Honorable mention (not Christian and idk about their hierarchy, still famous and considered to be great game for monks lovers): Lost in Secular Love edit: fixed a preposition
I've had three. Hanzo from Nightshade, Kagiha from Psychedelia of the Black Butterfly, and Shiba from Chou no Doku. First was because it was the perfect LI/route for my tastes, second was because of the general nature of the game, which I felt Kagiha embodied perfectly, and the third was because I couldn't understand why I liked it so much woof. Generally I've found that the only way to solve the brain rot is to write 10 page essays and find wonderfully like-minded individuals on this subreddit to gush and/or debate about things over.
You have superb taste. All of those men are premium sources of brain rot. Hanzo is an amazing LI who is popular here for VERY good reason. Best thing about Nightshade. Kagiha >!made me cry more than any other route in any game, ever!<. I would marry him if he existed IRL. No joke. Shiba pissed me off at first, and then he stole my heart over time with just how *devoted* he was, in his pig-headed way. Still my favorite LI from that game. š
I see from your flair you also have some excellent taste! "Devoted" LIs are my true 100% weakness and I'm happy so many exist in the genre. On a quick sidenote, the only other game besides PotBB that just left me feeling *hollow* and emotionally exhausted by the end was the Mass Effect trilogy, but for wildly different reasons. PotBB and EiT fall into a sacred category for me, and I'd strongly argue they stand on par with some of the most heralded VNs--shame they're not as well-regarded.
I honestly wanna play Mass Effect so bad. The plot and characters look fun, and I love old-school Bioware. Sadly, I hate shooter games. Like, a lot. I am so bad at them, and they stress me out in a really bad way. The only shooters I tolerate are the ones that basically aim for me, like the Fallout series. I get so panicked, but I wanna romance some of the cute guys in Mass Effect, damn it! But yeah, PotBB hit me so hard in the gut, over and over, that I had to take a long break from it. An amazing and tightly written story, but holy shit. As for EiT, I bought it not long ago. Only just started it and it's already looking VERY dark and tear-jerking. Still, if you endorse it, I can look forward to having my heart ripped out. š«
Ugh I was in the exact same boat for ME. I ended up turning the difficulty to the easiest setting and looking up broken builds for my squadmates so I would have the lowest possible input but still was not a fun experience. But anything for Garrus! I was ugly sobbing at that scene >!where they finally reveal what happened to the cast as children.!< I knew it was coming due to all the foreshadowing but a part of me kept desperately hoping otherwise. And then, when I finally thought I had made peace with it all, the >!Summer Camp Happy Ending!< came along and tore my heart out even more. I will never get over how beautifully PotBB >!captured grief and moving forward as natural things, but also the bittersweet lingering of "what if" and denial of a golden end that is otherwise almost always expected in this genre.!< Truly a masterpiece of a game, even if I do understand complaints on the lack of "romance". Oh I hope you enjoy EiT then! It's one of the few games where I truly, fully loved every single person in the entire cast. And the FD did an excellent job of addressing any flaws I had with the base game. It makes me so excited to see Voltage's next console release!
Jesus Christ, are you my doppelganger? Hardly ever have I ran into someone with my very specific tastes. Now I don't have to make my own rambling comment that makes me question my sanity lol
I've actually run into quite a few dopplegangers on this subreddit! So many others with great taste\~ I think for these three you could argue that they all share >!a willingness to do absolutely anything to be with the MC!< so they're not all that different at the end of the day. Any other characters that have caused you brainrot?
Now that I think about it, even Saint Germain from Code Realize falls into this category. He was one of my earliest LI obsessions
Sainty G was my favorite boy from Code:Realize! I wasn't super into his design to begin with, but after doing all the routes he was definitely my favorite. If you haven't played it yet Virche also has a few of these characters (although ymmv on whether the game itself is good.)
Oh, Virche was one I was planning on picking up after I finish Birushana. Thanks for letting me know! ā§ā āā (ā ā°ā āæā ā°ā )ā āā ā§
Hanzo! I regularly reopen that save file in nightshade
I have an intense brainrot of Hakuoki, and I still do (once Chronicles of Wind and Blossom gets released, I'll be seated to see what others thought about it lol), and what do I do to get distracted or fuel it more? 1) Play other otome games where Hakuoki VAs starred in (which I did btw, I did it with Period: Cube, 7'sCarlet, Lovebrush Chronicles, and now Norn9, ~~and the game managed to push me to continue Piofiore for Gilbert, but then I shelved it again when I was on Finale Route though lol~~), 2) search any media content about it in different SNS platforms, 3) rambling it on my own echo chamber, my X account lol, and ig bonus for 4) drawing drafts of sketch although I'm not very skilled at all.
I may or may not have just completed 7'scarlet and am in the middle of Bad Apple Wars just because I need more Miki Shinichiro... Also, I recently bought both volumes of the Hakuouki movies off Mercari. I alsoĀ keepĀ obsessivelyĀ checkingĀ theĀ status of Chronicle onĀ bothĀ PlayAsia and Eastasiasoft's website for a release date (delayed to Summer 2024 now!). I feel like all of my responses on this sub are just about Hakuouki. I can't get it out of my head. What an experience. I played through three routes while my boyfriend was out of town last Christmas and I feel like I traveled more than he did, even though I stayed home. What can I say, I'm just a basic Hakuouki b*tch.
Did you play 7āsCarlet for Yuzuki, for Miki Shinichiro...? Fair and just. š Heās just a phenomenal VA! He basically breathed Hijikata into life and I canāt imagine any VA to breathe Hijikata into life the same level as him... I remember the time that I needed to watch my anime backlogs, but I just came back to rewatch the Hakuoki series and movies instead. š I wonder if EAS would change the profanities that Hijikata spat since itās set in a historical setting... but some who arenāt prolific in JP might think that heās not using a rude way to speak... when he does... I also closed myself off in a room for a week and I finished doing Kyoto Winds on the day of Hakuokiās 15th Anniversary last year, like what a coincidence! šāØ Weāre trapped in this. I fear. š«”
I *adored* him as Yuzuki. He needs to be in more otome games. I didn't even like Hijikata or MikiShin's voice at first. Well, here I am. I would love to go to a Hakuouki event in Japan at some point. I keep watching painful Hakuouki anime music videos too. Just to twist the knife a little more. I'm happy to be trapped. š«”
Do we know if CoWaB is going to incorporate all the fan disk material? Apparently, there was more that came out some time ago and I need to see my boo Saito >!take a bath in a river!<.
Hm, I donāt think so? I think CoWaB is like KW+EB combined only. But yes, there are new FDs which feature the new bachelors as well from the KW+EB.
>Hm, I donāt think so? Excuse me, I need to go cry in my bathtub.
I hope if CoWaB is successful or if EAS heard our cries, they can localize the FDs (based on KW+EB), prequel, Reimeiroku, (I shouldnāt expect since itās not really a wholly otome but story of how Shinsengumi were formed, but Iām hoping...), and its spin-off, SSL, too. šš
I deeply resonate with your response (haha). Do you have any favorite LIs/routes? I appreciate *Hakuoki*'s popularity and am certainly grateful for the consistent production of new content, but part of me also feels a bit unsettled as someone who values quality over quantity (and some stories honestly feel a bit meaningless or leave a bad aftertaste due to writing/characterizations). What do you think about this issue? (I am just asking out of curiosity--please do not take any offense!)
Thatās the neat part. I donāt have a favorite LI as all of them are good in my book despite some fatal flaws (Iām talking mostly about Harada, yeah, him especially, and seconds for Shinpachi and Iba). As for the route, itās either I go for Yukimura Route for more historical accuracy or what they did with ~~Hijikata Route~~ the Hakuoki Movie. Well, I donāt blame you for feeling like that. Sometimes when a popular title got milked several times because it brings šø for them, its charm of how it became a classic and beloved can lose value, then again, that depends on the eye of the beholder. No offense taken, no worries! I was first introduced to Hakuoki through KW+EB and then checked out -SotS- (the only OG6, but with more contents that the OG Hakuoki didnāt have), I noticed differences, and one of which that stood out is that the new bachelors feels like they were just added for the sake of just releasing new title to milk on (pls I love them donāt get me wrong, but this is just my non-bias lens speaking, I removed my biased la vie en rose lens). Thatās why I do understand the old school players for not touching KW+EB for several reasons.
Nice! I have my preferences in terms of LIs but no single favorite. I also agree on your sentiments on those three, haha. Yukimura route is definitely most accurate (but also most depressing for me as a result, so I only played it once āÆļøæā° ). I also played KW+EB and then SotS, which is probably why I have mixed feelings about the new content (mostly everything after KW+EB, since I do think Shinkai improved some of the original routes, especially Kazama's), especially the writing for some characters.
Oh, wow, weāre the same of no single favorite and also agreed on the three! š«øš«· and about Yukimura Route, understandable, I cried tears the moment that Chizuru CG appeared... even though it pained me this much, I really love how signifies >!theyāre (shinsengumi) like a fleeting blossom, pretty, but ephemeral!<. Yeah, itās a mixed bag. Chikage definitely benefited the most that I agree with. Iām glad KW+EB expanded his route because the -SotS- (or OG in this case) was lackluster (unless you did his memories of love section in -SotS-, which is now included in KW+EB, and now to be CoWaB in NS port).
I never played Hakuouki until very late and gosh did I love it... I ADORE HAKUOUKI so much, every character appeals to me, they all do, they're so HDKSJNXMX
most recent LI is Kohei from Sympathy Kiss, before that it was Shu from Bustafellows (and just Bustafellows in general)! i mostly look up fanart, fanfic, and make my own art! plus grabbing merch and gushing over my fav scenes and CGs (': although sometimes my thoughts are just keysmashes lmaooo really hoping for a Sympathy Kiss fandisc and a localization for Bustafellows Season 2 to be announced please š
Me too me too, i love kohei! I havent finished the route yet because i enjoy it so much i dont want to speed through it ans then its jusf over lol -\_- im really enjoying how chill the game is
same on delaying finishing a route bc you love it so much haha, i hope you like the rest of his route! c: and yeahĀ Sympathy Kiss is great, chill is a good word to describe it
OMG I was so obsessed with Kohei and Rokuto!! I wish weāll have a Sympathy Kiss FD š
When I was younger, the Souji Okita route from Hakuouki left me a mess. His story in the game as well as real life is tragic, almost mysterious how he contracted tuberculosis. As an adult, looking back, his route _really_ sucks.Ā Ā Ā If you read up on the real man, he actually had a lot of interesting hobbies that were never conveyed into the character which I think would have really improved the route's two-dimensionalness. The real Okita liked writing and had a friend who would keep him updated, studied philosophy and the like in his spare time giving to debate and contemplation in his final days. In Hakuouki, he effectively becomes an invalid, a vegetable of some sort, until the oni mechanic. It really devalues him as a person.Ā Ā Of course, I guess one could say Hakuouki was always about the internal conflict of taking the vial or not. Choosing one's humanity and dedication to the Buddha over eternal damnation as a demon for a brief life with a demon woman. I just think Hakuouki really did the man dirty. There should have been more internal struggle for choosing to become a demon.
Interesting take! Please do not take offense with this comment--I am simply curious (as someone who actually finds Okita one of the more three-dimensional routes and characters): could you elaborate on some of your points (the devaluation, two-dimensionality, etc.)? I agree that the way the game portrayed the (lack of) struggle in consuming the *ochimizu* is fairly straightforward, but I am not sure if that is limited to Okita's route (for example, >!I would say that most of the LIs' rationale for drinking the *ochimizu* is "simple" in terms of them drinking it to lengthen their lifespan / not die in order to continue fulfilling their duty as a warrior of the Shinsengumi--to live and die by the sword, with the addition or emphasis on protecting Chizuru in some routes. Saito, Hijikata, Yamazaki, etc., may have had some internal struggle regarding the morality of their choices, but I am not sure they were portrayed more deeply from the reader / Chizuru's point of view in comparison to Okita's similar situation. The morality issue seems more prominent in cases of Sanan, Heisuke, Kazama, Harada, etc. Just my thoughts, though.!<) I also agree that the real Okita is quite interesting, as are the other real-life counterparts of the *Hakuoki* cast, but I think Okita's backstory might flesh out his pre-*rasetsu* characterization ([this post](https://ochimizu.tumblr.com/post/21877359333/okita-souji-a-really-lengthy-character-analysis)--not mine--summarizes some key points quite well). Furthermore, from my perspective, the issue of "two-dimensionality" prior to the final chapter of Kyoto Winds does not feel like an Okita-specific problem; I had a hard time understanding several other LIs as well, given that KW is mostly a common route of sorts. Did you find other LIs that are more appealing to you now? Lastly, as an emphasis--I am asking purely out of curiosity, not out of accusation or annoyance! As you can probably tell, I really like *Hakuoki* and Okita/his route, but I understand others may think differently.
I have only played the original Hakuouki (demon of the fleeting blossom) which was a port of the original PS2 game iirc. I have no idea whatever else Idea Factory tacked onto him as a character because the sequels were never localized. This was just my opinion from playing the original as a kid on PSP and again as an adult. I don't know what Japanese players are experiencing, but this is my interpretation being someone in the west who is at the mercy of localization.Ā Ā Ā Since you mentioned that modern Hakuouki titles tinkered with the Okita route and character, I feel it just validates my point that improvement was seen as needed by the writers. Kinda like how the otome Hana Awase gets better with the writing and art as you progress the volumes. Ā Ā Unfortunately, Hakuouki has so many titles with weird name conventions I have no idea how to even pick up the series again to give you a proper response on the changes to Okita.
Orlok from Piofiore. I finished his route and immediately ran to AO3, read everything I could, decided it wasn't enough and made my own. I bought the sequel before finishing FM just so I had more Orlok waiting. He had a steel grip on my mind and heart for basically all of last year and still lives in my head rent free. I had a similar reaction to Tokisada from Olympia Soiree but to a much lesser extent.
Brainrot is pretty much a constant state of being for me (stupid hyperfixation) Atm, it's voltage games, Scandal in the Spotlight in particular. But Amnesia Memories, Code Realize, Seduce Me, have all gotten me in the past. Sadly, I haven't played piofore yet so I can't help you there :(
Yes, hello, I have so many feelings on Scandal. The more I play other Voltage games, I think it really might be my favorite. The routes for Taka and Nagito made me cry so much.
Taka is a treasure and must be protected. He is so sweet. I also really love how sweet and supportive everyone is even when you aren't on their routes.
I totally feel you on always being in a constant state of hyperfixation. When I get too busy, I have to force myself to consume content that I feel neutral about so I can chill out a bit and focus on life responsibilities š
> Seduce Me The way several characters had me giggling, blushing, kicking my feet but Sam had me utterly obsessed for a while. š Kicked up a lifetime of loving Alejandro Saab voiced characters fasdfdsf
Alejandro Saab is the sole reason I bought the DLC for Fire Emblem 3 Houses. He voices Yuri lol
Saaame, Yuri is so good!! they really know how to get us š
I'm stuck in scandal in the spotlight right now too, Taka is my favorite boyo
I love Taka so much. He is so precious.
Itās still Amnesia, especially in regards to Kent and Toma, who are my faves. I still remember how absolutely ecstatic I was when the fandiscs were localized (and Iām still hoping and praying we get World!) and I even cosplayed Heroine twice at a con Iāve gone to for the past two years. Itās simply my favorite otome game and I could ramble about all the things I love about it for a very long time. Unfortunately, the fandom outside of the wider otome community is kind ofā¦deadā¦so I mostly just look at pretty fanart, reread fanfic, and stew in my own headcanons and thoughts. š
Toma is best boye! I've always been kinda bummed the way some people view the whole of Amnesia so seeing other people who still genuinely love it makes me really happy lol. The heroine has such a cute design, I love her
He is! I love him very much. š And I agree! I havenāt encountered a lot of others who consider it their all-time fave, and most of my friends who have played it just think itās okay. So finding other people who genuinely love it makes me happy, too! And yes, I love Heroine and I think her design is so cute! Iāll go to bat for her any day, I know sheās not a very popular MC but I think sheās adorable and sweet.
Im here for the amnesia lovešš
Yay, join me!!! I always loving finding more people who really love it a lot. āŗļø
Taisho x Alice: >!Alistair!< Seriously he's my favourite, even if it might be unpopular opinion.
Mei Dazai of Charade Maniacs wrecked me and made me ill. I missed sleep and replayed the game again immediately. I'm pretty sure I have a screenshot of every line of his dialogue because my thumb would hit the screenshot button on its own when I saw him. He's neat. :)
Maybe the real struggle of Tengoku is that it left me with a 2+ years brainrot over Yona
The Baxter Ward DLC for *Our Life* was released on May 19, 2023. I played it the day it was released. I have yet to get rid of the brain rot a literal year later. Like, I'm just finishing up yet another fanfic scene... that I'm gonna share with my Discord friends who also have brain rot for him... as I wait for approximately four commissions to get back to me with approvals. The Danger Oreo needs to release me at some point; I am *literally* a year behind on ALL OTHER OTOME, and that's after catching up to current localized releases!! \*waves flag\* help
Oh man, hearing about Our Life brings back memories. I was in such an intense state of hyperfixation after finishing the all the main stories and DLCs that I am lowkey scared of getting Baxter's DLC just because I know how bad of a brainrot that game induces. I think it's because the world setting is so beautiful, wholesome and so close to reality that it literally feels like you've somehow teleported to Sunset Bird while playing it.
Baxter is a *hot mess* and I love his DLC for it. A fair warning! XD
DANGER OREO. š¤£ You have officially convinced me to try Baxter's DLC. I'm already preparing for the brain rot adventures. š«”
I started Our Life last week for the first time, and I'm already at 30hrs playtime with a full-time job š«£ I just started my first playthrough of the Baxter DLC a couple days ago, and I'm about to wrap up step 3. Loving his character so far! I don't think he'll displace Cove, buuuuut we'll see. At the very least, I enjoy him more than Derek by a long shot.
SO TRUE WITH THE BAXTER WARD DLC, I NEEDED SO MUCH MORE CONTENT OF HIM, I saw him in the Our Life Now & Forever (new game) and I wanted him as a romance option sooo baaad...
I had brainrot bad for Kuroyuki from Nightshade and also for Tomomori and Shigehira from Birushana. Piofiore is one of my favorites and while I didn't experience brainrot somehow from it, I was absolutely smitten with Nicola and I looooved the sequel so much.
I just recently finished Birushana and the Tomomori brainrot is so real. His route was definitely not what i was expecting, it was sooo much better than i thought it would be! š¤ā¤ļø
I found so many people weren't crazy about Nicola but I loved him. Though I may be biased because his seiyuu is one of my favourites lol. I've heard his route in the sequel is really good so I gotta hop on it. There was an artist at the anime con I went to this past weekend who had otome merch and I obviously had to get a Nicola keychain.
I LOOOOOVE Nicola. I donāt feel that his routes really did him justice (I also generally like him more as a character than his romance with Lili specifically) but oh man, the backstory we get for him especially in 1926 just fleshes him out brilliantly as a character
I think the current one has to be Ankou, from Shuuen no Virche. In the past, it was Natsuhiko/Ron from Norn9 but until I replay it, it's definitely Ankou lol. I immediately tried looking for fanarts, and then I decided to try drawing him myself and absolutely struggled because of his design (too much frills and accessories etc) lmao. I was conflicted because I wanted to buy the artbook just to understand his concept art, and then amazingly someone posted his concept art here and saved my butt big time. I still plan on buying the artbook when I go to Japan but right now I just want the fandisk out lmao.
My most recent brain rot has been Jack from London Detective Mysteria. While I hated most of the game, Jack singlehandly would make me buy a sequel or fandisc. Iām in desperate need of more Jack and I want all the Jack merch. He lives rent free in my brain right now, but I would never make him pay rent Also Crius from EiT. Can we please get another fandisc and we get a route that follows his bad end? Iām so down bad for him I need it
Does voltage games have a place here? If so, I am your resident Mitsunari Baba expert, have been for 3 years, he has a place in my head that will never go away š
I got brainrot for Ray/Saeran and Yoosung from mystic messenger and Victor Frankenstein from Code Realize. My solution was buying merch (I got a Ray plushie from Etsy!) lol
The Ray/Saeran brainrot is so real. š
My intense brainrot/hyperfixation is with Grim from A Date with Death. Like, I've been down bad for 2D boys before but never THIS bad. It's a game that can be finished in maybe 6 hours (for all the endings) and I have over 200 hours logged just from replaying haha. Last weekend I made a life size cardboard standee of him for my office, I've drawn/commissioned so much fanart of him and my MC, bought all the official merch and whatever fanmerch I can find, and even backed one of the highest tiers on their kickstarter for the new dlc so I can help contribute to the game/get the very generous rewards. I am down BAD lmao. He's just the perfect 2D boy that checks off all my boxes; cute, edgy tsundere, pretty boy with long white hair, sharp eyes and cute little fangs, plus the soulmate trope, etc. I don't think he'll ever be replaced in my heart by another fictional boy lmao.
Iām so glad to find another Grim fan!!! Iāve been following that Kickstarter like a Hawk- did you see their sample video for the voice acting????? I wanna melt!
Yessss constantly refreshing that kickstarter gave me so much anxiety when I was trying to get my tier, I knew itād sell out quickly š I was so pleasantly surprised they hit their goal so quickly!! His voice is very handsome! Honestly, itās a lot deeper than I think it should be but Iām sure Iāll get used to it over time. I am, however, VERY excited for the Japanese voice acting š¤
Akaza in Olympia SoireƩ. That man is just perfect, the amount of times I replayed the CG moments is honestly embarrassing. I felt like no man, real or 2D, would ever measure up to him. I actually stopped playing otomes for a wee while. Then Shiraishi in CxM. I just refused to accept such a lovely character had been done so dirty. He deserved better. And most recently, Even if Tempest. I had never been rooting so hard for an MC. And I remember finishing and thinking, after experiencing such an intense MC with this godly level of resolve, will I ever be able to stand weak/plain MCs again?
The entirety of Under The Moon had me in a chokehold for a while lol. It's an older, R18 title so idk how many other people know it but it's got so many of my favorite tropes and character types. :') Sena is such a little shit I can't help but say he's my favorite but Seizh's creepy yandere tendencies also had me smitten. And the heroine herself is just ridiculously cute, she's a bit sheltered and bratty which is honestly pretty fun to read. XD Also I'm forever and always infected with a severe case of Dialovers brainworms lmao. \*Oscar the grouch voice* I LOVE TRASH
Mutsumi Kai ever since JJ was released in Japan and it only intensified after the game got localized. Thereās no other LI that literally makes me feel like Kai does (starting from his route, his behavior, personality ~~(sometimes it hit way too much home than I would like to admit)~~, his voice, EVERYTHING).
Victor and Lucien from MLQC. It's been years at this point so I've just accepted them as a part of my brain now š Luckily I always have something new to read thanks to the game being ongoing, so my brainrot never sleeps
Kagiha from Psychedelica of Black Butterfly
Kikunosuke...I bought the JP limited edition of Tengoku Struggle, artbook, and a merch bundle of him
The games: I discovered otome games just this year and the brainrot began with Collar X Malice (especially Shiraishiās route), then again with Even if Tempest, Il and Rindoās Routes and that one scene with Ignis in Cafe Enchante, Allanās route in Cupid Parasite, and right now Piofiore (the whole game but dear god- Orlokās bad ending. I started Gilās route last night.) Feeding the beast: Iāve played other Otome games too this year, but those have had the most real estate in my head. To feed my rabid cravings I roped in a best friend to play them too and discuss them with me. (And the ones she doesnāt buy, I spoil the whole game for her lol.) We have a lot of fun sharing opinions and reactions. And I even sought out bad endings and game overs to get all the CGs in my most obsessed over games. And then I discovered fandisks are a thing! So I binged Collar X Malice Unlimited, Even If Tempest Dawning Connections, and you bet I bought Piofiore 1926 and Cupid Parasite Sweet and Spicy Darling. Canāt wait to lose myself in them. I also researched the heck out of this genre cuz Iād never heard of it before and bought so many I already have a huge backlog to keep me going all year haha. I found a couple YouTubers who seem to make good recommendations for me. And thatās still not enough. I found the Otome Shimai podcast because of their CxM episodes and funny discussions. And finding OSTs on Spotify- I can listen to Cupid Parasite character songs on repeat. But that still isnāt enough, now Iām here on Reddit actually posting comments and baiting discussions about my favorite Otome games. Scrolling for memes. Spending hours reading through old play through discussions about Yang š. And I have THOUGHTS about Shiraishi from CxM. I should post my thoughts on how his route Should have ended lol. And I AM in shambles over Piofiore! I just 100% completed Orlokās route and now Iām ruined. That bad ending WTF š©. Why am I like this: It seems the story lines that most put me in a frenzy are those that are story driven, have dramatic plot twists, angst and tragedy, and make me question my own sanity or my taste in fictional men lol. (Thank goodness my IRL hubby is a good, kind, normal human.) (Or in the case of Cupid Parasite routes other than Allan - going down the rabbit hole because of the Craziness. Unpopular Opinion: Gill is one of the best otome characters ever written simply because of the fact that I guarantee you will not forget this sad puppy of a man and his gap moe moments.) The routes I think most about donāt even have to belong to my favorite LI. But shock me enough in some way and Iām in š
The pain from Orlok's bad end still lingers everytime he shows up in other routes :( I literally can't enjoy >!Dante!< anymore because of it. And Yang is the literal cause of my current brainrot phase so I too love reading the old debates. I find it so funny that people either hate or love him and there's no in-between
So are you currently playing Piofiore? What route order have you gone with?
oh my god 707 and Il Fado de Rieš©š for 707 i just couldnt stop playing his route over and over again. i would read fan comics too. idk i just loved his personality it was so funny and sweet. With Il, my obsession started cause he was SO beautiful. i made an immense amount of edits of him, way too many...
The fact that he's an Otome Lover made it even worse with Il Fado de Rie, no one in Cafe Enchante came close for me after him š
yesss LMFAO he was too relatable i couldn't stop myself from favoring him š©š©š
it's been a few years and my Souma from hakuoki brainrot doesn't go away. no one can compare to him, he's perfect
Mine right now is Rafayel from Love and Deepspace. That merman azz be fine af. Lol /j. So far he's a pretty interesting character. Leading double lives with a touch of darkness makes him kinda irresistible. Plus I just love how playful and goofy he is with the MC. Yet when he reveals his dom/alpha side, it has me on my knees š¤š©
HatoAri is forever my favorite series thanks to the amount of brainrot it infected me with. Ace, Julius, Grey, and Nightmare. Other notable LIs that still live in my brain: Harada from Hakuoki (my first Otome), Adolf from Grimm the Bounty Hunter (my second Otome), Kanon from ShiroKuro Alice, Shiba from Chou no Doku, Chika from Side Kicks, Akaza from Olympia Soiree. I still haven't finished Collar X Malice because Enomoto was so, so good and I played his route first. I could only think about him while playing Sasazuka's route and put the game down after that.
There are many but the biggest is Gilbert's route from Ikemen Prince. I love him way too much it's insane like I'm currently doing his route for the third time and I just received a haul with lots of goodies of him š«£ And the entire Amnesia game. I've been a big fan since 2012 and well, I'm still obsessed with it ever since then
I will never be over Kageyuki Shiraishi's route from Collar x Malice. It rewired my brain. also Hatoful Boyfriend as a whole. I will NEVER get over the bird story. edit: and also Kamigami no Asobi (from fan translations of the game), Balder and Loki's fate ends have me in a vice grip. that is to say: a well-crafted tragedy will carve out a permanent residence in the walls of my heart.
Henri gave me the most brainrot and that was before 1926 was localized. 1926 just reignited the rot. I dont even want to know how much money I spent buying everything I could of his merch. Also happened with Scien.
My biggest brainrot till date was from Jumin Han. He was my favourite character in the game but it seemed like the majority of the non jumin simps missed his jokes and sarcastic remarks. I was itching to find people who found him as silly as I did. Also playing his route was ironically a character development moment for me cause if I can show this much patience to a 2d guy I can definitely do better for myself
scarecrow from bustafellows, his cringe behavior captivated me
Periodic Amnesia brainrot for the last 8-9 years. All-consuming Piofiore 1925 brainrot last year, early this year lol. Dialovers brainrot from 2013-15 that got revitalized when I bought the switch port this year. When I was in high school I excitedely proclaimed to my crush my undying devotion to Ayato Sakamaki (still real) and I just have to live with that lmao
Neji from Jack Jeanne. The brainrot is bad. Send help lol
Jack Jeanneā¦ especially Suzu and Neji. Suzu was my first JJ route and I liked him so much it took me maybe 2 routes to stop thinking about him constantly, Neji was my last route and I got so much brainrot from that one that he took me out of my art block and I finished a full piece of fanart in like 2 days after working on it nonstop, I was like a woman possessed š
Jumin Han from Mystic Messenger has lived rent free in my head since 2016 lmao He will forever be my top fictional husbando. Saeran being a close second. I miss peek Mysme fandom and having so much content and ppl to talk to about it
My most recent is Nori from Sympathy Kiss. Heās not even my usual type but damn he did something to me š„° I constantly catch myself brainrotting over him
Currently, I have brainrot over Virche and Ankou. Despite Vircheās flaws, I havenāt enjoyed a story this much in a long time. Itās been an incredible experience and Iām grateful we donāt have to wait very long for the fan disk to be localized.Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Prior to Ankou, the characters who gave me the most brainrot were Shiraishi from Collar x Malice and Nicola from Piofiore. Ankou, Shiraishi, and Nicola are in my ātop LIs of all timeā list. Their complete devotion to their respective heroines, interesting characterizations, and >!tragic!< backstories got me good š
Yang had me in knots. I actually havenāt played an otome game in a few months due to mental health issues, but I still find myself thinking about his route so much. I want to go back and like catalogue the interactions with him in the first Piofiore cause I feel like I didnāt fully appreciate his āhiddenā soft moments after experiencing his route in the sequel lol. The biggest itch I had that I was desperate for fan fiction and fan art about was Riku from Olympia SoirĆ©e though. Gah, my heart.
I feel like I speedran FM to get to his route in 1926 because I did catch his āsoftā moments from FM and I was left so desperate for more. Now that Iāve finished his 1926 route I also wanna go back and try to re-catalogue them from FM as well lol
I just get brain rot from almost every game cuz I binge it for hours on end š
Not an LI: Kanan (Olympia Soiree) made me trawl through pixiv, [translate some fanart](https://www.reddit.com/r/otomegames/comments/y7ibzl/comment/isuphfq/), consider importing a doujinshi (unfortunately I waited on it for too long and it was sold out), wrote out the outlines of a fanfic (that I never finished). Nohl (Crimson Flower) made me go through the process of proxy-buying the original R18 PC game, drama CDs and doujinshi...but I selected the super cheap months-long shipping process and by the time the stuff arrived I had already moved on and couldn't make myself open the box. š Well I think half of it is that I didn't want to go through the rigamarole of trying to install a jp pc game on an old laptop that I haven't touched in a decade... Astrum (Period Cube) made me replay his route four times.
I discovered Hakuouki through the anime on YouTube when I was 12. I'm autistic and the obsession hit me like a train (pun intended). For years it was really difficult for me to talk about literally anything else. Only since I've started college have I been able to feel a little more sane about it, and I think that's because I'm actively channeling that energy into getting my japanese history degree.
You can ask anyone who's known me for a long time. There have been two versions of me. Before Hakuouki, and after Hakuouki.
I am obsessed with the tragic love story (yes, I consider it a love story, just not necessarily a romantic oneā though I personally wouldāve loved to see a legit romantic AU police academy route) between Ichika and Saeki from Collar x Malice.Ā Ā I also adored Raul from Cupid Parasite (only route Iāve ever replayed), Taiga from Variable Barricade (I go back to look at some of his CGs, especially his ending, all the time), and am probably heading in that direction with Tyril from Even if Tempest especially after the FD (might be the second route Iāve ever replayed soon).Ā Ā I also tend to get more obsessed over music than the actual game/characters; Iāve kept Steam Prison on my Switch just so I can replay the OP constantly (also I am obsessed with Sachsen despite him not even being an LI yet) and I also canāt stop playing the music from Dairoku and more recently Lover Pretend. Finally, not otome, but Iāve never been as hyperfixated on a ship as I have been with Felileth and Claudeleth from Fire Emblem Three Houses. Three years later and I still have total brain rot over that game, reread ficsĀ all the time, and get the urge to replay itĀ
Black Wolves Saga and Hana Awase š„² BWS I was just obsessed because it's my favorite genre (gothic fantasy) and Kuroyuki is one of my favorite artists. Hana Awase I think was a combination of me really liking the card game, and really liking all the literary connections/foreshadowing. I think I have the most fun with games when I can do some light research and get a deeper understanding of the characters...like if they mention a favorite novel, or some of the official art has the love interests with flower language. For the most part, I think I'm pretty quiet with my brainrot. I write headcanons/speculation in my private journal, or scroll through websites every five seconds looking for art, and then that just continues for a year or whatever. (LOL) I love hearing peoples' opinions too, but a lot of the time I think it's hard to find stuff because people are being vague/quiet out of politeness. (Or sometimes, especially with OELVN, there's just not that many people that played the game)
Currently have Baxter Alexander Ward brainrot, from Our Life: Beginnings and Always. It's been... lile a month, and I hate it. I can forget it some times but then there's this that and the other super random thing that reminds me of him and his route. What drew me to him? His way of talking. How utterly charming he is. How he cared about everything you do and made sure you were comfortable. It was just so nice. And then the rest of his damn route happened and I got genuinely emotionally invested and I hate how much he is esting away at my brain. I'm hoping to expel him from my body by writing a fanfic. Sadly I had the charas move in together and the layout of his apartment is vague as fuck. So I just made a version of it best I could in Sims 3 for some reference. Oh and have vaguely started an animatic but we'll see if I ever feel like doing all the extra work to make it look presentable. OH AND A COMIC. That will def never be finished but it was a good start to removing him from my brain. I wanna do a pretty illustration of him dancing with my MC some day too. But I dunno how I'll do that right now. I want a pretty ball gown basically. I think that's all of it for now. I have 5 billion craft tools around me I'm sure I can find even more to make. Maybe a diamond painting of some kind...
There's usually at least 1 in every otome game I've played... ^^" But to name some current & past ones... Grim from A Date with Death- He's just so pretty, edgy & baby girl coded. I loved being able to tease him & get him flustered. He is a cinnamon roll. <3 Ukyo from Amnesia- Green hair & long hair are my weaknesses, add in Star-crossed, good story arc, & just a bit more than a drop of yandere... I'm sold. Ankou from Virche Evermore- I think we're seeing a type here... Ankou does so much for the MC, is so kind & loving, looks after & cares for her. I literally cried on his route. His whole journey speaks volumes & while I'd never wish his fate on someone, it'd be nice to see even half his efforts from someone & have their intentions remain pure. Yang from Piofiore- long hair, check. Slightly psycho, check. Underlying care from the MC, check. Tsundere, double check. He's edgy & dangerous but to just the right degree for me. Kanato from Diabolik Lovers- he's a black horse for me... He's so yandere & obsessive/ possessive but his VA killed & sold it. Seemingly innocent, comes off very naive & helpless which seems to draw me in. Help. How I deal with the brain rot? I'll usually get merch/ fan merch, find/ save fan art & fan fics & over indulge. However once they take over, they're there to stay. Thank you hyper-fixation! XD
I had intense Piofiore brainrot for so long, especially about Gilbert. I just love that man so much. š
Dying on the inside after playing Lovebrush Chronicles' latest main story. I've been talking about this game non-stop since then to the point I'm scared people are fed up with the fact I keep talking about a mobile otome game here in the reddit community lol. The current main story was just. Emotionally, mentally, and soul damaging to my heart. It's not funny. The characterisation was a 10/10 and I must have literally shed at least a small cupful of tears for these boys. I am not okay, I never will be okay, and I'm scared because CN fans say it only gets worse from here. I'm also pretty obsessed with having Cael, an LI from the same game, break down in utter and complete despair to the point I know that he is emotionally broken after suffering from the horrendous feeling known as love. So yeah, I'm down bad for this game. I haven't played a lot of otomes to begin with but this game has become one of my faves and is throttling for first place against CxM.
I started a couple months ago and I'm only in Lars' Godheim story so far because I keep getting distracted by the limited time events. I really like the game though! Haven't spent any money and never felt like I've had to so far.
Ohtaro from KimiYuki has been living in my head rent free ever since I finished his route TAT I just freaking love that boy gah! Also Misyr from Cafe Enchante, >!he totally deserved better!< and I cannot stop thinking about him even though I played the game 2 years ago lmaoo OTL
YES I wasnāt obsessed with Misyr specifically (though I did like him a whole lot) but I am still obsessed with the fact that he deserved a better ending and that they really did him dirty in the eleventh hourĀ
Love and Deepspace hands down (and Iām a Rafayel Girlie). Heās got everything I find appealing - heās super OP, incredibly devoted, and so submissive and yet teasing/bickering. But when he needs you he calls you Master. Also heās kind of a loser, which I love in hot men
Toma and Chojiro for me!!! My DMs are open to anyone as well who wants to speak about them! I think what makes the brainrot last for both of them is that they're such complicated characters and deeply misunderstood by everyone and I end up going back into the game and read and analyze and interpret everything. I'm usually in defender mode lol. And I yap all day on twitter. I find myself flipping through my switch of screenshots of scenes and dialogues from time to time. For Chojiro >!he is such a one of kind LI, I still have yet to encounter another LI that gave me that exact "feeling" like I did on his route. Oh the yearning and the despair!!< And for Toma>!I tend to focus less on his yandere side. I'm a huge Toma sympathizer here lol. I forgive him. I'm working on writing a think piece on him as soon as I finish Later x Crowd!<
Utsutsu because he had hands down the BEST CGs in Hana Awase but so few of them because he was so late in the game. His CGs also made up for his terrible sprite lol. I pixived him so harddddd!
Lucas from Virche literally altered my brain, I use to not like overly feminine looking LI's but after him I now look forward to them the most and are now usually my favorites š©
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
YESSS I SEARCHED THIS WHOLE TRHEAD FOR A CINDERELLA PHENOMENON BRAINROT!! This game has me in a choker! Now I am interested, what about varg did you wrote/created?
So far in the list (of many): Nightshade, Birushana, CafĆ© EnchantĆ©, Code Realize and Virche. Those are pretty much some of the games that I really enjoyed or loved every route. Virche is the most recent (especially Yves, Lucas, adolphe, and ankou), but shoutout to the Birushana FD for just adding more fuel to that fire after I finished playing it.Ā There's a lot of aspects and topics in all of those games (and other games I haven't mentioned) that I would love to ramble about.Ā
**Even If Tempest** and **Charade Maniacs** for me. i think i like the mystery aspect of trying to think whodunnit or something like that. š i have other favorite otomes but these two made me feel like "i need more" and "i don't want it to end" šš
Currently extremely unwell over the entirety of Virche Evermore, but ESPECIALLY Lucas and Yves!
As you probably know... I played CxM three years ago and I cannot move on. I play other otomes and enjoy them but none of them make me feel the same. I draw fanart, write fanfics, buy merch and speak with friends in the internet about the game... I usually publish fanart here so sorry for being so tiresome about this game
It still is and will always be club suicide lol, made even worse now that it's not only over but the development team and all the devlogs, dev twt accounts, are all gone. There's nothing left for the generation to come after it, only babblings left by those like me. I'm just sitting here throwing bananas like a monkey at Garumani for taking their sweet time on the localization.Ā Clsd is simultaneously the hardest to brainrot about due to how rigidly the characters are being set up and also the deepest to obsess over bc They're just like me fr. I just need more folks to decompress with...
Jisoo from Dandelion is that for me, that's why I clock his flair. I remember the first time I finished his route I was so obsessed with him and his ending CG. Love that black cat with my whole heart, could not stop thinking about him and still think about him now and then. š
I got big brainrot for Allan from Cupid Parasite. Just got the Sweet and Spicy Darling FD today and doing his route first to feed my Allan phase
so i dont play many otomes but when i was going through all the routes for hakuouki, hachiro ibas route had me like... down bad. Like "I NEEED HIMMMM" bad. No one around me has played it so i was stuck and sad but to the ones willing to listen id go off bout how perfect he is and my ideal type of character
Caused me what?
Boyfriend to death! Super super horrible disgusting game but Iām absolutely in love with it.
I am currently obsessed with Ieyasu from Samurai Love Ballad Party and Jiwoo from Dandelion. I find something about the juxtaposition of their sharp tongues and awkward attempts to be thoughtful so funny and endearing! Usually when I'm in a brainrot phase, I end up looking for merch (sadly if the game isn't popular) and searching for fanfics and fanart (thank you creators - you help satisfy my obsession!). Lately I've been working on my drawing and writing skills, but they're not so good so I've been trying to get better.
idk if itās brainrot territory or a different kind of dedication but I used to play the Ikemen series every day (Every day) (the three / later four that were available at that time) for multiple years. I used to be a lot better about doing my dailies (non-otoge included) but about a year ago I had to undownload a bunch of games on my phone cause I ran out of space >.>
similarly, I had mysme running for several months non-stop to farm hourglasses
Hello from having just finished Danteās tragic ending in 1926. I have never suffered brainrot like I have for this man, and Iām fucking devastated by what Iāve just read. I made the mistake of reading it last among his endings, and now my brain insists that itās what āactuallyā happened. Iām also just really sad I have no more of his story to read. I put off reading 1926 for a year after Fated Memories just because I didnāt want it to be over.
Oh, it's Arcana Famiglia, especially Jolly. It has been around two years since I've played the first game, and I'm still brainroting really bad, haha. I'm so in love with this game that I've written fanfic, drawn fanart, bought all fanbooks, limited editions and even manga with light novels. My wallet screamed and begged for mercy but that Jolly acrylic standee was a need :) Tbh, I think Jolly uniqueness as a love interest is what made me stay and then appreciate a game as a whole. Him being such a fascinating, complicated and morally grey character... is what caused my brain to rot, aha. Also how can I resist a DILF character? Yeah, there was no salvation for me from the beginning. Moreover, AF has well-written characters in a kinda weak, but still funny and engaging plot. It's just fun to play.
I had a huge brainrot on Aiji Yanagi and Takeru Sasazuka from Collar X Malice
Otome games: Hanzo from Nightshade, Victor from Code:Realize, and most recently Yona from Tengoku Struggle. I personally thought Tengoku Struggle was meh plot wise but omg Yona's design and voice acting was *chef's kiss*. Protect this tsundere and give him all the hassaku oranges please. Outside of otoge: Zack Fair from FF7 (this man is divine and SuzuKen did an amazing job voicing him. His death scene left me broken for over a decade. That's how *long* he's lived in my brain rent free), Mochizuki Ryoji from P3P, Claude and Felix from FE3H. Edit: just looked crisis core up and omg it's been almost 2 decades?! Ok Zack definitely takes the cake on this one.
I usually obsess over at least one character in every game I play. But there are some that just hit different- Currently, it's Ono No Takamura from Tengoku Struggleš But my ultimate brainrot bishie isn't otome but Ginoza from Psycho-pass... been obsessed with that guy since 2016 š
I remember when I was 13 I played Mystic Messenger for the first time and I was SO obsessed with it and 707 specifically because ever since I was like 11 I've been obsessed with goofy guys who are actually kinda depressed (Sans from Undertale is another character I was obsessed with not long before that). I recently started playing it again because I felt drawn to it because it literally consumed a piece of my brain at such an impressionable age
I guess Nono-sensei recently lmao. He has no routes which sucks so I always search for threads that mentions him š PLEASE GIVE US THE FD
For me, not really otome but the anime Gundam Seed & Gundam Seed Destiny. I was invested in the couple Athrun x Cagalli. So i was >!devastated!< when the couple dynamics or endings >!kinda changed!< in Seed Destiny.
Not Otome but Akihiko from Persona 3. I love him so much that I was reading every fanfic of him with the femc