Tag: Game Reviews

Melanin Friendly Games: The Space in Between

By pokeninja90 on January 18, 2021 • ( 1 Comment )

Hey Blerdy Tribe!! It’s Monday once again and I want to kick off the week with some melanin friendly games! If this is your first time here at Blerdy Otome, welcome!

Every Monday I spotlight video games that focus on stories surrounding more diverse casts of characters—for folks like me looking for a bit more representation in their games. Video games are for everyone, so shouldn’t their stories and characters be just as diverse as the people that play them? So I created this series to celebrate games that strive to tell much more diverse stories centering on Black and Brown individuals. But, I welcome all diversity and the series has expanded to include games featuring LGBTQIA rep and characters from other underrepresented groups.

So, if you’re interested in seeing previous melanin friendly games posts, click HERE. This week, I’m spotlighting the emotional visual novel, The Space in Between, from Sondering Studios.

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First Impressions: Pipe Dream Demo

By pokeninja90 on January 15, 2021 • ( 1 Comment )

Pipe Dream is an upcoming slice-of-life dating sim developed by indie studio, Notome Games. This is my first experience with this team, but when your studio claims to specialize in “unusual otome game experiences”, let’s just say I take notice! Unlike most otome games that end when the player bags their boy, Notome Games wanted to create a game that explores the complexities of maintaining a relationship with your chosen beau. Aside from Storm Lover Kai, this is the first time I’ve come across an “otome” game that attempts to give players a more realistic romance experience.

Pipe Dream follows Robin, a young woman living under the thumb of her overbearing mother. Tired of having her whole life decided for her, Robin plans to make a desperate escape and attend the college of her choosing. Finally free from her mother’s control, Robin is excited to begin her new life as a university student. Follow Robin on her journey, balance your classes with your new social life and possibly uncover a brand new romance along the way.

Notome Games just launched the Kickstarter campaign for the game so you all have until February 14, 2021 to support the project. But, if you’re still on the fence about the game, there is a demo available—of course I had to give it a try for myself! So, here are my thoughts on the demo for Pipe Dream…

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Melanin Friendly Games – High Elo Girls

By pokeninja90 on January 4, 2021 • ( 1 Comment )

Hey Blerdy Tribe!! Happy New Year! The dumpster fire that was 2020 is officially behind us and with it the promise of better things in the new year! This is the very first Monday of 2021 and what better way to kick things off than with some melanin friendly games! If this is your first time here at Blerdy Otome, welcome!

If you’re interested in seeing previous melanin friendly games posts, click HERE. This week, I’m spotlighting the queer positive Esports visual novel, High Elo Girls, from Split Fate Studios.

Play as Rafaela, a college dropout seeking direction by trying out for Momentum Gaming (MMG), an ambitious team of five high level players come together to compete in a once in a lifetime competition, The Targon Invitational, for entry into the closed League Championship Series (LCS).

– High Elo Girls | Game Synopsis

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Best Friends Forever Game Review – Love, Laughs, and Cute Doggos

By pokeninja90 on January 3, 2021 • ( 1 Comment )

Looking for a super cute game to kick off the new year? Look no further than Best Friends Forever, the dating sim where navigating the complexities of modern dating is made all the more fun with the help of your very own furever friend! Developed by New Zealand based indie studio Starcolt, Best Friends Forever one part dating sim, one part pet care game.

Start your brand new life in sunny Rainbow Bay, take in the sights and sounds of the city—raise a cute pup and get to know the colorful cast of singles and their furry companions. Make new friends and maybe even find love along the way. Adopt your own cute doggo and form a bond that will last a lifetime! Romance and cute doggos, what’s not to love?

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Cafe Enchante Otome Review – An Enchanting Coffee Fueled Romance

By pokeninja90 on December 30, 2020 • ( 5 Comments )

Hey Blerdy Tribe, so I finally managed to finish an otome game in the same year it was released—miracles do happen! This is a huge accomplishment for me since I have a bad habit of buying games on launch day and NOT playing them until months if not years later. To put things in perspective, Code Realize came out in 2014 and I’ve still not finished it. So finishing Café Enchanté just a month after its release is a personal best for me.

Aksys Games unleashed Piofiore Fated Memories and Café Enchanté on us, just a few months apart from each other and not gonna lie when I’m confronted with the choice between Hot Mafia boys and hot supernatural beings… I’m going to pick the hotties that bite each and every time… besides didn’t Poni-Pachet have the whole mafia boys thing covered boys back in 2013. So, I put a pin in Piofiore and dove headfirst into the world of angels, demons, and secret agents… oh my!

As it is with all otome releases, in Café Enchanté you take on the role of Kotone Awari an absolutely normal young Japanese woman who is at a bit if a crossroads in her life. She’s working a thankless and emotionally draining office job and to top things off her beloved grandfather, Souan recently passed. Still grieving her loss, Kotone learns that gramps left her his café in his will. Despite having no clue how to run a coffee shop, Kotone quits here crappy job and heads to Tokyo to fulfill her grandpappy’s wish of taking over the family business. She soon discovers that the shop is hiding more secrets than she could ever imagined. Café Enchanté caters to a very exclusive clientele—non-human beings from parallel worlds! And so begins her coffee fueled journey of magic, adventure, and romance~

Game Details

Fantasy | Supernatural | Romance
Available on Nintendo Switch
30+ hours of gameplay
Price: $49.99 (Standard Edition)
Release Date: November 5, 2020 (North American)
Developer: Design Factory, Otomate
Publisher: Aksys Games
Similar Games: Ayakashi Gohan | Mystic Destinies Serendipity of Aeons | Changeling