There is a broad category of game that I’ve never been interested in whatsoever. The genre “dating sim,” romance simulation, or (in the Japanese) ren’ai shimyurēshon gēmu is a facet of culture I’d rather not know exists. I say broad category because I would lump in the similarly-themed “visual novels” as well. I’m not alone in my muddling, although I suppose one can make a distinction that is rather clear. The Dating Simulation is an interactive game, albeit one that features romancing and pixelated body parts. The latter category cuts out pretty much everything but the soft-core and badly paced story*.
The job of a game production company is to keep varying the formula in a way to bring in ever more sales, ever more customers. I’ve believed myself immune from THIS class of publisher but I suppose that the lone man against the world inevitably will find himself ground underneath the wheel of destiny. So it happened that someone mixed historical gaming and romance simulation in just the right way and then put out a free demo. Curse you!
I’ll illustrate my confusion here by talking about two fairly different games in one breath. The first has virtually no connection to this “historical” theme and very little in the way of redeeming value. It is called Sakura Shrine Girls. Just reading the title makes me wish I didn’t just admit to buying it.
The circumstances of the purchase are that it was part of a Humble Bundle package at the $1 level. I paid my $1 and got five of the products from Winged Cloud. Several of them have even more humiliating titles than this (the first of these particular five to have been released) and either three or four of them have downloadable patches that de-pixelate the naughty bits. This all is going downhill fast.
The “game” (so far) is 98% dialog, most of that over still pictures. Some non-offensive music plays along. Once in a blue moon, a dialog fork is presented. Important to the “game?” I doubt it – but I guess it officially makes it interactive. Sometimes characters switch between stills to give a hint of animation but there really isn’t any. The dialog is slow and awkward. I like to pretend that it would be less awkward in Japanese… but I wouldn’t have any idea.
For all of that, I do want to see where the story is going – if anywhere. Yes, it is hopelessly slow but that seems to make me want it to move faster rather than go away. The sexy sexiness, much like the love interest tossed into a war movie, is weird and uncomfortable but can be occasionally compelling. If you’re trying too hard to not notice that the sexualization of naked, teen-aged furries is probably illegal where you are, take some comfort in what is entirely inappropriate for you might not be so bad for the actual main character of the story – a high-school aged boy (and his Grandfather – eww). What I wouldn’t have given for a pair of hyper-sexual, other-worldly female companions when I was 15.
Qu’ils mangent de la brioche
For a shot at redemption, let us talk about another game. Ambition: A Minuet in Power is, at first blush, similar to Shrine Girls. Dialog shows across the bottom of the screen guiding you through a story about, this time, dating in late 18th Century France. Don’t let that similarity fool you, though. This is a far, far better thing we do here.
First off, Ambition is much more of an actual game than the visual novel of Shrine Girls. Branching in the dialog, plus other choices, is far more frequent and it is clear from the get-go that the choices have meaning. Choosing to respond one way will often preclude another tack. Furthermore, there are resources to be husbanded. The main character (a young woman) comes to Paris with nothing but the fancy clothes on her back and a pocket full of gold. Time, choices, and a little coin can be exchanged to amass credibility and stay out of peril. I’d say that this form of game play is more typical of Dating Simulator mechanics, but I have no way of knowing that.
Beyond the mechanics, the game is better put together**. Yes, it’s the same flat backgrounds with cartoon characters appearing over them, but everything is more and more attractive. Replacing Shrine‘s twenty minutes of a sketch of a nondescript suburban street are fairly rapid transitions between scenes from olde Paris. The character overlays are more frequent and more dynamic while other screens, like the desk calendar for planning engagements, help with the interactivity. It doesn’t hurt that the background music consists of decent period compositions.
What makes this game stand-out, what is really tantalizing, is Ambition‘s historical theme. I’m not far enough in (and, playing only the demo, I don’t expect to get too far) but, if this were simply a dating game with period dress – yes, that’s interesting but not compelling. The story suggests far more than that. Our Lady’s paramour has come to Paris, in the spring of 1789, to be a part of the about-to-be-formed Estates General. Something is amiss, however – namely the Count himself, who has gone missing. Is this related to the volatile political climate? What will happen when the heads start to roll? We’ve seen how the power of desire can change the course of history and Ambition suggests how this could play out as a genre game.
I’m not sure I’ll want to pay full price for Ambition: A Minuet in Power but I wouldn’t surprise myself too terribly if I picked it up during a Steam sale.
*OK, take this with a grain of salt. Except for the game mentioned herein, I have no experience with the Eroge (erotic-game… get it… OK, that’s not even clever) genre. I’m badmouthing based on nothing but the queasy feeling their mere existence bestows upon me.
**Winged Cloud has something of a (ahem) cloud over its development. Better that you scratch around on the internet for details than get it from me but – short version – the publisher seems to be abusing its content creators to maximize profit at everyone else’s expense. Reading this after I made my purchase, I not only feel ashamed to be watching soft-core porn but I feel bad about giving even two bits to developer with such a shady business model.
et tu, Bluto? 