TOUCHSTARVED is a gothic horror romance visual novel and debut game from Red Spring Studio: a small indie team made up of veteran game developers from Riot Games, Nix Hydra, Bungie, and more. The game will be crowdfunded via Kickstarter in Spring 2023 for release on PC and Mac.
Continue reading “Touchstarved: A new monstrous Visual Novel from Red Spring Studio”Author: Blerdy
Lover Pretend Twitch Stream Highlights
Hey Blerdy Tribe! Aksys Games just dropped their localization of the slice-of-life otome, Lover Pretend! To celebrate I hosted a release day livestream over on Twitch on December 1st where I played through the prologue live. I had a lot of fun, but I know some folks might not want to sit through the entire 3 hour stream, so I made a shorter video of the stream highlights!
This is my first VOD edit, sorry for a few weird cuts, I’m still getting the hang of things. But, I hope you enjoy! If you want to see the full stream the VOD is up on my Twitch channel: Lover Pretend Release Day Stream. Also if you haven’t already, please give my YouTube channel a follow, it’d really mean a lot!
Check out more of my Lover Pretend content!
- Lover Pretend Review – https://blerdyotome.com/2022/11/26/lover-pretend-review
- Route Walkthroughs – https://blerdyotome.com/tag/lover-pretend-walkthrough
- Lover Pretend Game Page – https://blerdyotome.com/games/lover-pretend
JAST BLUE to bring Varenyett’s BL Visual Novel, ‘Sorcerer’s Choice: Angel or Demon’ to the West
Boys Love fans rejoice! Fresh on the heels of their release of Nitro+chiral’s Slow Damage, BL publisher JAST BLUE announced that they’re bringing Varenyett’s fantasy boys love game Sorcerer’s Choice: Angel or Demon (Japanese title: Mahoutsukai to Tenshi to Akuma) to the West! This is JAST BLUE’s first non-Nitro+chiral localization and I know I’m not alone in being excited to see the publisher branching out!
There isn’t an official release date just yet, but I’ll be keeping an eye out for more details from JAST BLUE!
Game Details
- Developer: Varenyett
- Publisher: JAST Blue (EN)
- Platform: Windows (PC)
- Genre: BL | Fantasy | 18+
- Official Sites: Japanese | English
- Release Date: Nov 30, 2018 (JP) | TBA (EN)
Lover Pretend (Nintendo Switch) Otome Review
Do you like rom-coms? Chill vibes? Well, then you’ll want to check out Aksys Games’s latest Otomate otome localization, Lover Pretend. Get pulled into the entertainment industry with aspiring screenwriter, Chiyuki as she navigates her budding career, life and love! Sometimes a love born from a little white lie can blossom into something real!
Game Details
- Genre: Slice-of-life | Romance | Drama
- Rating: ESRB T
- Developer & Publisher: Otomate & Aksys Games
- Where to Get the Game: Aksys Games | Amazon | Nintendo eShop
- Similar Games: Serendipity Next Door | Backstage Pass | Scandal in the Spotlight
Lover Pretend Eiichirou Asagi Walkthrough
Official Website: Japanese | English
Where to Buy: Nintendo eShop
- Eiichirou’s route unlocks after clearing the Happy Ends of the other 4 players.
- There are three endings: Happy End, Normal End, and Bad End.
- The final CG for Eiichirou can be collected by reading through Eiichirou’s Feelings in Back Stage after clearing his Happy End.
- After unlocking every CG, a special reward CG unlocks.

Lover Pretend Riku Nishijima Walkthrough
Official Website: Japanese | English
Where to Buy: Nintendo eShop
- Kazuma, Yukito, Harumi, and Riku are playable at the start. Eiichirou unlocks after you finish the Happy Ends of the other 4 routes.
- Besides the one locked route, there is no recommended order, so play however you like.
- Each route has six endings: (1) Happy End, (1) Good End, and (4) Bad Ends.
- Individual route branch off starts in Episode 04
- The final CG for Riku can be collected by reading through Riku’s Feelings in Back Stage after clearing his Happy End.
- Perfect clearing the Pretend Time mini game earns more Affection than regular Choices.

Lover Pretend Harumi Makino Walkthrough
Official Website: Japanese | English
Where to Buy: Nintendo eShop
- Kazuma, Yukito, Harumi, and Riku are playable at the start. Eiichirou unlocks after you finish the Happy Ends of the other 4 routes.
- Besides the one locked route, there is no recommended order, so play however you like.
- Each route has six endings: (1) Happy End, (1) Good End, and (4) Bad Ends.
- Individual route branch off starts in Episode 04
- The final CG for Harumi can be collected by reading through Harumi’s Feelings in Back Stage after clearing his Happy End.
- Perfect clearing the Pretend Time mini game earns more Affection than regular Choices.

Lover Pretend Yukito Sena Walkthrough
Official Website: Japanese | English
Where to Buy: Nintendo eShop
- Kazuma, Yukito, Harumi, and Riku are playable at the start. Eiichirou unlocks after you finish the Happy Ends of the other 4 routes.
- Besides the one locked route, there is no recommended order, so play however you like.
- Each route has six endings: (1) Happy End, (1) Good End, and (4) Bad Ends.
- Individual route branch off starts in Episode 04
- The final CG for Yukito can be collected by reading through Yukito’s Feelings in Back Stage after clearing his Happy End.
- Perfect clearing the Pretend Time mini game earns more Affection than regular Choices.

Lover Pretend Kazuma Kamikubo Walkthrough
Official Website: Japanese | English
Where to Buy: Nintendo eShop
- Kazuma, Yukito, Harumi, and Riku are playable at the start. Eiichirou unlocks after you finish the Happy Ends of the other 4 routes.
- Besides the one locked route, there is no recommended order, so play however you like.
- Each route has six endings: (1) Happy End, (1) Good End, and (4) Bad Ends.
- Individual route branch off starts in Episode 04
- The final CG for Kazuma can be collected by reading through Kazuma’s Feelings in Back Stage after clearing his Happy End.
- Perfect clearing the Pretend Time mini game earns more Affection than regular Choices.

Slow Damage Fujieda Walkthrough
Official Website: English | Japanese
Where to Buy: Digital | Physical
Read the review: Slow Damage BL Game Review – Beauty in the Macabre
ROUTE TIPS & NOTES
- After you finish Rei, Taku, and Madarame‘s routes the option BJD (ball-jointed doll) will become available. This allows you to read Chapter 0, you will access Fujieda’s route through this path.
- Each route has a Euphoria end and a Madness end, along with a few early Game Over ends.
- Slow Damage doesn’t follow the usual visual novel gameplay. Gameplay is split between Exploration and Interrogation modes.
- In Exploration, you can visit various locations and interact with other characters to collect key phrases that will be used during Interrogations.
- In Interrogation, you can confront a character and get them to reveal their true desires by presenting the key phrases you collect during Exploration.
- In lieu of traditional visual novel choices, you will react to situations by choosing Positive or Negative. These choices will shift the story towards either Euphoria or Madness.
