My Playtime: 50+ hours
Genre: Otome
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My only other experience with an otome game was Hakuoki and despite the intricate story line and handsome guys, the game was rather dry, long and repetitve. But Sweet Fuse was quite the opposite. I love this game! First, I have to say that I love the amusment park scenario. It is a dream come true for a gamer. Can you imagine if such a place existed? *sigh* Seriously! A theme based on a zombie hospital? I would be scared out of my mind but dude, I would so do it.
If you are not familiar with otome games, your goal is to pretty much fall in love with one of the guys. You play from the heroine's perspective and generally, never spoke. The actions you take throughout the game will determine which guy you will end up with. In this instant, you are Saki (the first name can be changed) Inafune. (And I didn't quite understand the option of choosing a first name. They still call her "Saki" even if you changed her name. O_o) You will initially have 6 men to choose from. This game was actually made it easy to pick which path you want to take. However, what made this visual novel a little bit more interesting than the usual was that it allowed for more player's interaction. Instead of just picking which action to take, there will be points where you have to do a "Explosive Insight." If you don't get the correct answer, the game is over. Luckily, you will be allowed to retry from that scene once more.
Basic reading comprehension is a must since they kept the awesome Japanese voices. The voice acting was spot on and matched each character perfectly. Unfortunately, there was no English voice option. My one complaint would be Count Hogstein's voice. If I didn't have the subtitles, I wouldn't understand a word he was saying, it was so staticy. Even with a raised volume, it was never clear for me. Some of the translations were slightly off. I'm sure some liberties were taken but overall, very close. The dialogue was witty and hilarious. I actually laughed out loud at times. And the lovey-dovey scenes will make you giggle. Initially, the guys weren't exactly to my taste. The designs were a little too eccentric for me. But the artwork was interestingly done and unique. Of course, by the end of the game, the guys just grew on you and can't help but fall in love with each and every one of them. Loading time is non-existent. I did install mine's but I normally do that with all my games. Loving the background music.
Beware. This is a very addictive game. I finished the game recently and it took me over 50+ hours. I know when I have it bad when I actually sneaked my PSP into work and when I have a few minutes to myself, I found myself turning it on. XD That's how into it I am. Each character's story line usually took about 6-10 hours to complete. (I used the fast forward button during the repeated scenes.) Each scenario was different enough that you don't feel if you done that route already. Taking each path will to piece together the entire story. I'm normally a RPG/action gamer but I love this game. Since I love romances and reading, this game was definitely up my alley. However, if you need action, this is definitely not for you. All in all, get this game. No regrets here.
(WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS!)
Characters:
Subaru Shidou - Default. Freaking hot! He had my favorite storyline. It was umcomplicated. You get to try all 7 games. Everyone pulls through in the end and even though you don't discover the true identity of Count Hogstein, you were not left unsatisfied. *sigh* Even though, I'm not a big fan of his clothing and glasses. Really? A cross tie with a blue striped shirt. This annoyed me to no end.
Ayumu Shirabe - Second Favorite! Maybe I have a things for older guys, O_o but there was something about him that makes you go, "Mmm." Plus his little girl, Mai, is an absolute sweetheart. The way she got them into sleeping together (nothing dirty, people) was just too cute. My favorite scene. The age is a little huge but I thought it was rather sweet.
Meoshi - As much I am a gamer girl, I couldn't get pass his looks and lack of physical strength. Call me shallow but I could not get into him. I did his story right after Shidou's just to get out the of the way. However, I did find his story line the most interesting diversion from the original story.
Towa Wakasa - He was cute but I did think he was still not there yet. Maybe because he was still young and being an idol, he didn't have the strength the others brought. I admired his sacrifice for Saki, but I didn't "fall" for him.
Ryusei Mitarashi - Basic bad boy. Had a tough youth and finally trying to redeem himself. Nothing exciting for me.
Urabe & Makoto - These guys were just too "mental". Really how can she fall in love with either guy! They locked her up for her protection and never listen to what she has to say. Crazy. In the end, they both to jail and swears to wait for them to get out. I was like "WHAT?" These two scenarios made in effing sense to me. But they had the most background to the plot line. If you want to know the whole story, you have to do theirs.
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