What do you think of western otome games?

[otofr3ak]

Issues that I have with western otome games are really only related to the view the west typically has about these topics. Besides that, I think about western otome games just about the same as japanese otome games. I mean, it's just more 2d men to get invested in, so why not?

 

[arukaou]

Loving the fact that the genre/type of VNs gets more love from all over the world! But I personally don't play them much due to time limits. Once I'm done with all Japanese otomes I'll definitely come back for the western titles!

 

[Enma5lorin]

I have a good attitude towards it, Western otome seem to have more variety (?)

 

[n_tyan]

Lately I've been really into western indie otome games, especially ones with yandere LIs. I like that they don't have the same limitations as most modern Japanese otome games.

 

[Mottosan]

The art in them dont have the same pizazz as the ones made by japanese artists, even when they use a similar art style - Not that they are bad or anything... Or maybe I'm way too used to animes and just being some lame weeaboo chump here.

 

[mahouaya]

I have to admit I don't really play Western otome games. I really love the art, the voice actors, and the overall direction of Japanese otome games. They also tend to be longer. But as a yandere lover, I have to admit that Western ones really deliver when it comes to yanderes!

 

[bokuranoOurs]

I have a good attitude towards it, Western otome seem to have more variety (?)

I agree, more variety in looks, skin tone, setting, sometimes there's a bit of customization as well.

 

[Doglo]

I personally don't mind Western otome games and am open to trying them, but I've noticed that many players tend to avoid them. Common reasons I see are the art style not being as appealing, the lack of voice acting, or the voice acting not being in Japanese. Some people also feel that the writing just isn't as strong.

Is it mostly about expectations shaped by Japanese otome games, or do you genuinely feel Western otome titles fall short in areas like art direction, writing, or production quality? Would better art, stronger writing, or a different presentation change your mind, or is the "Japanese otome feel" essential for you?

Would love to hear what you all think :3

This is a really interesting question...

In my opinion, a huge factor that makes Japanese otome games intrinsically unique (aside from the linguistic routes) is the sanctity of romance that they manage to express. Love isn't immediate in otomes (good ones) and requires progression - but the delicate concepts of yearning, want, pure love and the ommited intimate tones make it more realistic in that sense.

I'm not so sure if this is something easier to incorporate due to Japanese culture/thinking or if it's just good storytelling. I've played some Western VNs/Otomes, I think they lack that progression..

 

[Doglo]

So true, I just went through the Otome tag on itch yesterday and the amount of genderless blob mc were too high. There's even some flat out BL crap in the tag too. I wish they'd clean that stuff up.

And they never even updated it...same games since like 2020

 

[Harmonea]

I'm not opposed to western otome games on principle or anything, but otome is not a broadly popular western niche, which means most western otomes are indie games, which is generally going to mean lower quality due to fewer and less professional resources available for development.

Now, if a project has a lot of heart in it, "cheaper" art with distracting proportions, fiverr VAs with inconsistent mics, and reduced reading length do not necessarily have to have an impact on the impression it leaves on a player. But... there is just something comforting about that sprawling, beautiful, luxuriantly voiced, professionally developed 60+ hour read that I have personally never found replicated in a western VN.

 

[Iiiiii]

Never tried them, but I've got some of them in my backlog

 

[chiorins]

depends on the story and gameplay

 

[Marrychan]

From my point of view, since I consume almost every genre that includes visual novels, the writing style is what changes the most. Take Obscura as an example; I love its visuals, but I find its story extremely confusing. The protagonist types are also very different, something that's more popular in Japan might not be as appealing to Western audiences. The same goes for Korean/Chinese visual novels; they tend to focus more on visuals, but most of the writing is almost a 'platonic love' (at least that's how I feel while reading), it's all very subtle. Western visual novels usually have the terrible habit of throwing you into the setting without adequate plot preparation; I think Western visual novels are generally hit or miss.

 

[a4015]

Western otome games have such a wide variety of art styles that they feel unfamiliar to me. Even if I come across a character I like, I prefer stories where the characters just get along well rather than romantic ones. That's why I tend to experience Western works through anime rather than games.

 

[tsuii.]

Hmm, this isn't so much present now as it was a while ago when western games started releasing otome like games, I feel like the artstyle was too... Realistic? In a not appealing way. That always threw me off and I never even tried them. Now you can find artstyles that are realistic but much more appealing. I don't know how to describe it properly sorry

 

[Junonon]

honestly they kinda frustrate me bc a lot of western "otome games" are actually more like amare or just general dating sims

 

[Anasfu]

I am not from Western Europe, and English is not my native language. When I learned it in my university more deeply, 'western otome' writing features became bland to me, and their MCs are overconfident as well. The art is also a meh. I am usually capable of recognizing when the game is made by a European person or an American weeb, even when it's published in Japan

 

[aurora_sleepy]

A little background about me: I've been playing otome since around 2009 and have played a pretty big number of both western and Japanese games. RE:Alistair was my first ever otome and it still stands the test of time, thanks to its good art and fun characters. In the beginning I mostly played free Eng otome, then I slowly branched out to English patched JP otome and eventually dipped my toes into playing untranslated JP otome with the help of text hookers like AGTH/ITH. Now a days I don't play as much otome simply because of lack of time as a working adult, but the genre is still dear to me and every couple of months I spend a couple of weekends catching up.

When I judge a game I usually take many factors into account: the dev type (company/individual), release type (full game/jam submision), match between worldbuilding and writing style, character consistency etc. I don't expect a game by an one person dev made for a jam to be as complex as an otomate release, and I'm used to western games having no voice acting. As I started with western otome in the first place, I didn't have any prejudice towards the subgenre and actively encouraged my friends to get rid of their bias against English games.

But over time (especially after covid) I have started to feel that the ratio of good to bad in western otome have gotten worse. Personally I warrant this to cultural changes leading to an excessive focus in subverting expectations (while failing to preserve the original charm of the otome genre), representation (trying to include anyone and everyone to the point of the story not being about women) and political correctness (dialogue should be natural and not like a twitter PSA thread). That doesn't mean there aren't any good recent western otome, it's just that they are harder to find.

Speaking of the "Japanese feel" OP mentioned, the western otome I do like are quite different from the average localized otomate stuff and often not as strong in production quality, but for me those issues are not as important as good writing and making use of unique themes not available in JP otome is actually a plus. Many old western otome showed the writers' genuine passion for exploring the complexity of human emotions in romantic relationships. They often touched upon themes that were more unique and not "safe" in a mainstream way, and offered mcs who seemed like logically consistent human beings whose personality wasn't built on some sort of quirk or popular trope. Even when the story was a simple high school romance or something along those lines, I just felt like the writers were normal, chill people who touched grass, knew how humans interact with each other and weren't chronically online. That alone was what let me enjoy these games.

Examples of such otome: Frozen Essence, Cafe 0~The Drowned Mermaid, Doppelganger : Dawn of the Inverted Soul, Magical Diary: Horse Hall, X-Note, Area-X, Reverie: an odd sim date, Where Adabanas Grow, Saccharine: a misleading sim date, Locked heart, Cinders, Lads in Distress, Halloween Otome. Some (relatively) more recent ones I liked are Yrsa Major, Cinderella Phenomennon, ITYH: A Horror Otome, The Rose of Segunda, The Deep Unknown, Crimson Spires (feels more like a regular VN, mixed feelings overall but the voice acting is excellent), Please don't hate Christmas, Snow White Ashes (again, more like a VN but writing too amazing). The last otome I played and enjoyed was Single Vampires in Your Area, but it's like 20 minutes long so not sure if anyone will be interested in my rec lol.

 

[Anasfu]

A little background about me: I've been playing otome since around 2009 and have played a pretty big number of both western and Japanese games. RE:Alistair was my first ever otome and it still stands the test of time, thanks to its good art and fun characters. In the beginning I mostly played free Eng otome, then I slowly branched out to English patched JP otome and eventually dipped my toes into playing untranslated JP otome with the help of text hookers like AGTH/ITH. Now a days I don't play as much otome simply because of lack of time as a working adult, but the genre is still dear to me and every couple of months I spend a couple of weekends catching up.

When I judge a game I usually take many factors into account: the dev type (company/individual), release type (full game/jam submision), match between worldbuilding and writing style, character consistency etc. I don't expect a game by an one person dev made for a jam to be as complex as an otomate release, and I'm used to western games having no voice acting. As I started with western otome in the first place, I didn't have any prejudice towards the subgenre and actively encouraged my friends to get rid of their bias against English games.

But over time (especially after covid) I have started to feel that the ratio of good to bad in western otome have gotten worse. Personally I warrant this to cultural changes leading to an excessive focus in subverting expectations (while failing to preserve the original charm of the otome genre), representation (trying to include anyone and everyone to the point of the story not being about women) and political correctness (dialogue should be natural and not like a twitter PSA thread). That doesn't mean there aren't any good recent western otome, it's just that they are harder to find.

Speaking of the "Japanese feel" OP mentioned, the western otome I do like are quite different from the average localized otomate stuff and often not as strong in production quality, but for me those issues are not as important as good writing and making use of unique themes not available in JP otome is actually a plus. Many old western otome showed the writers' genuine passion for exploring the complexity of human emotions in romantic relationships. They often touched upon themes that were more unique and not "safe" in a mainstream way, and offered mcs who seemed like logically consistent human beings whose personality wasn't built on some sort of quirk or popular trope. Even when the story was a simple high school romance or something along those lines, I just felt like the writers were normal, chill people who touched grass, knew how humans interact with each other and weren't chronically online. That alone was what let me enjoy these games.

Examples of such otome: Frozen Essence, Cafe 0~The Drowned Mermaid, Doppelganger : Dawn of the Inverted Soul, Magical Diary: Horse Hall, X-Note, Area-X, Reverie: an odd sim date, Where Adabanas Grow, Saccharine: a misleading sim date, Locked heart, Cinders, Lads in Distress, Halloween Otome. Some (relatively) more recent ones I liked are Yrsa Major, Cinderella Phenomennon, ITYH: A Horror Otome, The Rose of Segunda, The Deep Unknown, Crimson Spires (feels more like a regular VN, mixed feelings overall but the voice acting is excellent), Please don't hate Christmas, What's Your Name?, Snow White Ashes (again, more like a VN but writing too amazing). The last otome I played and enjoyed was Single Vampires in Your Area, but it's like 20 minutes long so not sure if anyone will be interested in my rec lol.

Diversity has its substance, but I am not sure if the market does really allow it at the moment, e.g. the protag's sex/gender choice doesn't matter in terms of plot, sexual scenes or is sometimes exploited as a justification to exclude explicitness at all (now it's reasoned by censorship attacks, but nevertheless). Different nationalities, ethnicities, and races also look more like concepts to attract the audience nominally; the relationships and thoughts are the same because writers are familiar only with one culture or social group experience and project their own experience onto the exotic character when stating that they are trying to 'create something brand new.' The 'amare' tag created to differentiate between global otome games and those with 'female gaze for everybody' is popular only within the English-speaking world; I haven't seen it in my culture at all, and it is mostly about creator's virtue-signaling. To my mind, the linguistic barrier, when we talk about Japanese or other geographically distant games, is also convenient because you can do operations with language in your head, incorporating a few new words and not taking certain things seriously. You can also continue playing in translation and not interact with the community directly. You do not always see, as a native speaker can see, where the author is trying to push something about views, only when you are trying to educate yourself

 

[Scone]

I'm definitely mixed about them.


On the one hand, content-wise Western titles tend to have more of what I like the most (healthy relationship dynamics) without repeating a lot of the old tired cliches that we see in Asian otome games.


On the other hand.. everything else. I've admitted elsewhere that I'm quite picky in terms of art style - I won't even pick a game up if I don't like how it looks; and that is very often the case with western otome titles. I much prefer a very professional, high quality style with few exceptions.

I don't mind "parody" or "joke" titles for the dating sim genre, honestly. Every game genre has and will be joked about by others. Many people got uppity about Building Relationships when that was announced.. but honestly that was the most fun I've had with a demo in a long time (also an exception to my graphics rule lol). Can't imagine being so serious about games that should relax you, in my opinion.

Another big issue is the current climate for developing smaller/indie titles in the west. More often than not this involves Kickstarter, IndieGoGo or similar to get funding. Many projects don't get funding, have a scandal or devs that run off with the funds.. or a misrepresented development cycle on the off-chance they do everything else right. The time to fully develop a game can be misunderstood, or other factors cause the release to be in phases instead of one time; as a full game. Early access has become the new norm, which has started to tire me out. That's on top of a rough track record with projects I've backed personally.

 

[CheshireSmile]

i've only played a few and western otomes don't tend to have art styles i find visually appealing. it's not even that they deviate away from anime styles, i think a western cartoon style for an otome would be nice, but they either delve too realistic for me or too uncanny anime. a lot of western otomes also don't really have voice acting which i find is a huge negative. i dont find the storylines themselves that different from japanese ones, very similarly tropey and over the top. i would say the only difference in writing is that sometimes, although if i'm honest kinda rarely from what i've seen, there is some kind of weird therapy speak/inability to depict anything problematic from those areas, which is an issue with lots of writing in western spaces when made by people who are so politically invested in insular online spaces that everything starts to bear some kind of moral weight to it. i honestly don't think its as prevalent but you will see it sometimes a bit even in genres that are built on the foundations of being morally objectionable, like yandere and whatever. most of what i've played successfully does avoid this for the most part, however.

 

[h4kusa]

I haven't actually played any Western otome games yet, but I do appreciate the variety they seem to have in terms of themes and stories! That said, I still find myself gravitating toward Japanese otome games. I really prefer the specific art style and the professional voice acting you get with JP games.

 

[Cove]

I feel very mixed about it but at times I do enjoy playing some western otome games. The thing that would rub me off is at times the art styles, I get that every art style is subjective. I am not going to lie when I say I play otomes for the vanity of it, I like the beautiful art styles that portray the detailed beauty of these men. If I don't see that, I don't play. I'm here for one thing only lol.

There are a lot of good western otome games, at at times I do feel like some games make up for the lack of romances I've been wanting in Japanese otomes. They have their own little charm to it. But honestly for now? I'm still siding with the Japanese games for favorability.

 

[nyao]

I'm the type who would honestly play anything if it's entertaining, but recently my enjoyment is sullied by how many Western otome games—not even just amare games—have excessive interactions between LIs to the point where they seem to have more chemistry with each other than with the MC. Now, I love when there's fun banter among the LIs; however, this has become so prevalent that pairing up LIs has become more commonplace, with those who do so almost looking down upon people who play otomes as originally intended.

A note about Western amare games, though… I absolutely despise when it's implied—or even outright stated—that some of the LIs have past history with each other. I'm by no means vanilla, but I'd like at least some warning that the game won't solely be focusing on the relationships between the MC and LIs.

I used to be way more casual about playing Western otome games, but now—even if they're entirely free—I'd rather not take the risk without looking into them as much as I can to avoid any landmines.

 

[Cove]

I'm the type who would honestly play anything if it's entertaining, but recently my enjoyment is sullied by how many Western otome games—not even just amare games—have excessive interactions between LIs to the point where they seem to have more chemistry with each other than with the MC. Now, I love when there's fun banter among the LIs; however, this has become so prevalent that pairing up LIs has become more commonplace, with those who do so almost looking down upon people who play otomes as originally intended.

A note about Western amare games, though… I absolutely despise when it's implied—or even outright stated—that some of the LIs have past history with each other. I'm by no means vanilla, but I'd like at least some warning that the game won't solely be focusing on the relationships between the MC and LIs.

I used to be way more casual about playing Western otome games, but now—even if they're entirely free—I'd rather not take the risk without looking into them as much as I can to avoid any landmines.

Oh I agree with this so much! I think there was an indie game where the dev had her OC as a side character, and one of the LIs has more flirtatious interactions with that side character. I remember hearing someone complain about it a lot. I would be pissed off as well. I do feel a lot of indie devs lack some professionalism or what drags people into playing their games more. So like if you're going to have your self-insert be extremely flirty with an LI just have her as the MC then.