Thoughts on shota/youger li?

[ElysianAzure]

Most of the time, I'm not a fan of younger li or shota li. Either they don't appeal at all or just go into precious bun I want to protect rather than romance. There are very few exceptions.
For example,
I didn't enjoy Tokisada from Olympia Soiree and Uga from Tengoku Struggle, Orlok from Piofiore and Mathis from Virche is in the wanna protect rather than romance category. Shin from Amnesia is an exception.

 

[avaloncode]

I'm not really into younger LI because they generally act like kids and that makes me uncomfortable as an adult woman Same with shota in general. Just grosses me out

 

[Leviathan_01]

If both the love interest and the MC are of legal age, I don't see a problem, like in the case of Wataru and Serina from HanaKare. Now, if it's something like Wataru from Brothers Conflict or Ken from Persona 3, I feel uncomfortable and can't play that route.

 

[xinyll09]

doesn't appeal to me.

 

[ninnikuryona]

i dont care if i get my ass whooped into the sun I LOVE SHOTA!!!!!! I MISS WHEN WE HAD ACTUAL SHOTA LIS!!!!!!!! I WANT MORE SHOTA NO MATTER OTOUTO OR NOT RELATED AT ALL........!!!!!!!!!!!!
this is why i was so sad when i saw the un:logical sub characters, because like... you have so many adorable shota.... and you make them untouchable?......... i feel like im being horrifically baited.....;;;; but what can i say? never trust broccoli lol

 

[Gyte]

Same here tbh, most of them feel more like "protect at all costs" than actual romance

 

[usagi-k]

i actually really like younger lis ^^ a lot of times ive found that they have a much better chemistry and relationship with the mc compare to older lis !! i also think those storylines usually have a lot more effort put into them in terms of romance since the younger lis need to "work harder" ig to get the mc's attention compared to the rest of cast. also i just personally REALLY adore the cute look for those lis ... to me everything is dependent on how cute the characters can be and almost always those lis are brimming with moe :D

im not really sure what counts as a shota but if we're just talking about younger looks i really adored scarlet and soh from ozmafia as well as the secret route from 9RIP !! i think gai from ghp counts in this category but he does get aged up in the fd and his route in the main game is just setting up for that but i did really like that too since it felt like seeing a kid experiencing his first love and it was super cute to me ??? i think most of my experience is positive since it's not really myself that im seeing in those shoes but the mc

I FORGOT TO ADD but kiya from temirana is a recent favorite from mine and he is definitely a much younger li (although probably the closest in age to the mc aside from josephy lmao) but his story arc and the feelings him and cecily share are REALLY enjoyable and honestly a great example of how good a route with a younger li can be :D

 

[Fornstrand]

I'm normally not a fan of younger LIs but I guess Rin from Togainu no Chi counts as one? Okay, I guess he looks much more like a teenager than a shota, but screw me if his route isn't the sole redeeming factor about the whole game. While younger characters are not my favorite, having an LI like this isn't a dealbreaker for me by itself. If the story is good, I'll put up with nearly anything.

 

[woodypei]

Shota's are prepubescent boys, so I don't think a lot of LIs fit that definition. I'm personally not too interested in Shota routes unless it's friendship or platonic like in Brothers Conflict Wataru or Crimson's flower.
I rly enjoyer younger LIs tho! Orlok is my favorite. Tokisada is pretty good too bc he calls MC oneesan I
I love Shin too, but he's kinda mature so I kinda forget he is younger sometimes.
The appeal of young LIs is being call oneechan or Senpai, which is my favorite, but since they are also usually close to age with MC, it's not weird.

 

[woodypei]

i dont care if i get my ass whooped into the sun I LOVE SHOTA!!!!!! I MISS WHEN WE HAD ACTUAL SHOTA LIS!!!!!!!! I WANT MORE SHOTA NO MATTER OTOUTO OR NOT RELATED AT ALL........!!!!!!!!!!!!
this is why i was so sad when i saw the un:logical sub characters, because like... you have so many adorable shota.... and you make them untouchable?......... i feel like im being horrifically baited.....;;;; but what can i say? never trust broccoli lol

You get a pretty good ending with Kohaku from Unlogical. I wouldn't say it's romantic, but def borderline with a lot of fan service.
End 37.

 

[ninnikuryona]

You get a pretty good ending with Kohaku from Unlogical. I wouldn't say it's romantic, but def borderline with a lot of fan service.
End 37.

OMG IS THAT SO????????????? i havent gotten my hands on unlogical yet because of my enormous backlog but when i first saw him i was so sad hes not romanceable....... even if the ending itself is not romantic im still totally happy!!!!!!! thank you for letting me know!!!!!!! hes so goddamn cute;-;<3

 

[Kyonen]

That depends on how you define shota but if it's basically children then it makes me highly uncomfortable. I think I came across only one shota LIs (I almost exclusively play BL though) and that was in Absolute Obedience (Anel Metzelder). I was a bit naive back then and didn't realize that it was a shota LI bc I think the official eng version listed him as 18 ( i think? or maybe they left the age out) and I didn't get it. I remember that his route made me personally extremely uncomfortable so I tried to get thought it as quickly as possible.
When it comes to younger LIs (not actual children) I don't mind them but bc I'm generally not the biggest fan of age gaps I'm not super gung-ho about them either.

 

[shinichiel]

It's always about context. Shota is very specif in ages and appearances, and commercial otome games usually feature shounen, clearly order than shota. Younger LIs probably would remind players' of either their current ages if they're also young, or players' youth, or, it's a personal taste in romantic relationships. Age difference in real-life may encounter more social concerns, but really, people will grow older into adults, and people don't always get to choose to meet in the "socially acceptable" ages. As long as both sides respect each other and don't cross the lines without responsiblites, I don't really see a problem. Just like there are people who prefer sexy or older partners, there are always the opposite. Besides, it's just a switch of genders. Older LIs in otome means younger protagonist, so are you suggesting older LIs shouldn't be interested in "under-age/younger/childish" protagnoist?

 

[nyao]

i dont care if i get my ass whooped into the sun I LOVE SHOTA!!!!!! I MISS WHEN WE HAD ACTUAL SHOTA LIS!!!!!!!! I WANT MORE SHOTA NO MATTER OTOUTO OR NOT RELATED AT ALL........!!!!!!!!!!!!
this is why i was so sad when i saw the un:logical sub characters, because like... you have so many adorable shota.... and you make them untouchable?......... i feel like im being horrifically baited.....;;;; but what can i say? never trust broccoli lol

I love this so much because I 100% agree.

Nowadays you have people calling LIs who are older teenagers shota… Like you as a player might be way older than them, but when the MC is set to be the same age or only a year older… I do love younger LIs in general, but this doesn't hit the same for me.

I'm always staring at those side characters with my shotacon eyes.

 

[ninnikuryona]

I love this so much because I 100% agree.

Nowadays you have people calling LIs who are older teenagers shota… Like you as a player might be way older than them, but when the MC is set to be the same age or only a year older… I do love younger LIs in general, but this doesn't hit the same for me.

I'm always staring at those side characters with my shotacon eyes.

yea.. i guess true shota are only popular with fujoshi nowadays, because according to some stats on dlsite the first place hashtag for bl floor was "shota" ww. and even if you search for shota content on otome floor, you either get low effort ai stuff or some old projects.. but i thought women still love their cute boys in short shorts and slender legs...... ueeee........
there is a certain shotacon doujinshi artist on the men side though which has some good shota, but as mentioned, her stuff is mostly for men, so you gotta be good with this stuff in order to enjoy;w;

 

[nyao]

yea.. i guess true shota are only popular with fujoshi nowadays, because according to some stats on dlsite the first place hashtag for bl floor was "shota" ww. and even if you search for shota content on otome floor, you either get low effort ai stuff or some old projects.. but i thought women still love their cute boys in short shorts and slender legs...... ueeee........
there is a certain shotacon doujinshi artist on the men side though which has some good shota, but as mentioned, her stuff is mostly for men, so you gotta be good with this stuff in order to enjoy;w;

Hah… I have a saved search on DLsite for shota in otome works but I don't have the desire to browse the website after all that happened with grmn… I'm not even a woman, but I merely want to enjoy otome works as they were meant to be www.

I can't lie; I already do tend to view some HL/NL works just to look at the pretty boys in them…

 

[ninnikuryona]

Hah… I have a saved search on DLsite for shota in otome works but I don't have the desire to browse the website after all that happened with grmn… I'm not even a woman, but I merely want to enjoy otome works as they were meant to be www.

I can't lie; I already do tend to view some HL/NL works just to look at the pretty boys in them…

SAME AHAHAHA this whole grmn bullshit almost completely killed off my desire to look up or even consume otome-related works (especially cddrama because holy shit).. and so far its only getting worse! just lovely

at least there is still some good shota content....... even if its not aimed at girls..........;-; i noticed that "adult's hobby" (circle name) works, although mostly for men, still feature some nice-looking shota (i was shocked when i learned one of their games has a tentacle scene with the shota but not the girl!). and there are some of their games on this forum even, so if you havent heard/tried yet, you should!!

 

[nyao]

SAME AHAHAHA this whole grmn bullshit almost completely killed off my desire to look up or even consume otome-related works (especially cddrama because holy shit).. and so far its only getting worse! just lovely

at least there is still some good shota content....... even if its not aimed at girls..........;-; i noticed that "adult's hobby" (circle name) works, although mostly for men, still feature some nice-looking shota (i was shocked when i learned one of their games has a tentacle scene with the shota but not the girl!). and there are some of their games on this forum even, so if you havent heard/tried yet, you should!!

I know, right!! It sucks when even commercial otome circles/works are pandering to other audiences… I swear there's always some news that has me taken aback. I can't even listen to some works I already own—even those I got from here because of the negative feeling I get due to all that's ongoing.

I'll consider looking into that circle you mentioned to seek shota, but honestly I'm not a fan of tentacles because I'm a yume at my core, so I'd rather it be me than some third party.

 

[ninnikuryona]

I know, right!! It sucks when even commercial otome circles/works are pandering to other audiences… I swear there's always some news that has me taken aback. I can't even listen to some works I already own—even those I got from here because of the negative feeling I get due to all that's ongoing.

I'll consider looking into that circle you mentioned to seek shota, but honestly I'm not a fan of tentacles because I'm a yume at my core, so I'd rather it be me than some third party.

yeah its like theyre trying to alienate their core audience as much as possible.. and since theyre affiliated with dlsite as a whole, its unlikely anything is gonna change:( i mean they already established a new circle, but theyre still using the same scummy tactics, specifically inflating sales and buying bot reviews (funny how for the new circle works they just reused older bots they used for their first ever bl work). theyre totally shameless..

and dont worry!! they have many other works with lovely shota. i even found a review under one of their works that said that garumani users may enjoy them as well, since the shota characters are so charming lol:D the current state of 女性向け/乙女向け is bleak right now, but at least there are still some works worth digging for..!!

 

[kotohabaki]

When I was younger I was into them because they're about in my age group.

Nowadays... They're like a son to me. There are those that are sometimes appealing to me visually and personality-wise but overall I'm not vibing with it as much anymore.

 

[Murakuro]

I don't mind them but nowadays they are more like sons to me when they do pop up in the games.

 

[fr4pp3cinn]

I actually really like both shota and younger LIs! I stand on the side of the shotacons. You'll only really see shota in BL though, but there are some in older PC otome here and there. I like them because they're really cute!! I'm into effeminate shota, and also really enjoy the dynamics they have with the MCs, like younger brother types and admiration!

The only somewhat shota LIs I can recall are Satoru from Bad Apple Wars, Libera from Period Cube, Erik from Beast Master and Prince and Ryuubi from Juuzaengi. Games will often age them up in the ending, which is very disappointing! I started the route for the cute boy and they age him up

 

[YummyYum]

Those characters usually don't appeal to me as I actually prefer the older brother archetype rather than the younger brother, but it doesn't bother me that they're in games or anything. I'll probably still play their route just for completion, and hey maybe I'll end up liking it. Unless they're like, super young and the MC is much older.

 

[NightingaleDream]

Those characters usually don't appeal to me as I actually prefer the older brother archetype rather than the younger brother, but it doesn't bother me that they're in games or anything. I'll probably still play their route just for completion, and hey maybe I'll end up liking it. Unless they're like, super young and the MC is much older.

I actually feel the same! Younger LIs aren't really my cup of tea so I always leave them for last but yeah, I also still play their route because I like completing all the routes in wichever BL/Otome game I own. It's pretty satisfying to watch a completed gallery lol. I also still give an opportunity to the route, who knows? Maybe I too will end up liking it and the character will actually surprise me.

 

[uzzzzu12]

I don't like them they're too childish