One western developer's attempt at a dating sim for American gamers

[Sailor Enlil]

Check this out - UBIsoft and another company are trying a hand at a Dating Sim for the US market on the Nintendo DS. The game is called Sprung.

http://www.wired.com/news/games/0,21...w=wn_tophead_4

In this game, you play one of two protagonists - a girl who just broke up with her boyfriend, or a guy who's had a crush on that girl for some time. And the objective - win the heart of the other protagonist. Screenshots can be found at that website. It's obviously for the US market given the western style cartoon design of the characters.

From that report, if you ask me, this effort falls short, and can't hold a candle to the more well established dating sims like the almighty Tokimeki Memorial games. The big problem is, regardless of which character you play, there's only ONE good ending, because you can't win anyone else (a single wrong choice will automatically lead to a bad ending). Imagine Tokimeki Memorial designed such that you can only win Shiori (or Hikari in TM2, or Kei in TM Girls Side, for instance). In other words, only 1 story path to play on, and hence no replay value.

Looks like these developers haven't learned a thing from the Japanese game makers like Konami. Perhaps they need an earfull of shoutouts from avid gamers like you guys?

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[Kaiser Sigma]

Ugh... American graphics... I fail to picture an interactive novel without the anime feeling... that being said, this game feels like a game of trial and error since either you pick the right choice or you have to start over... someone will have to get it into Sega's member's heads that they need to translate the upcoming Sakura Taisen titles... otherwise western companies might keep trying to emulate the great companies by performing these kind of... "games"...

[Ryos]

Yeah, I read about this in a magazine and found it ironic in a way. Here people have been saying dating simulation games won't sell etc. and then someone releases a crappy one here. Now how is something like this acceptable but an awesome series like Sakura Taisen is not?

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[Kirby]

This is sickening.....2 things I hate in one game: western girls and cheap anime knockoffs

get the planes ready, Japan is going to attack again

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[Toshiro]

So, let me get this straight, North America is attempting a dating sim. Well, I will be thouroughly disgusted if this sell well and if it does then the minds of the North America is totally warp.

Reason being I have played and seen a few from Japan and I have to say they would top anything North America has to offer any day of the week. In any case, maybe this is what is needed to get requested to localize the Japanese ones over here, but only time will tell...

positive light: Maybe it will draw attention and bring Japanese games over as a result.

[Kaiser Sigma]

Negative aspect: if it sucks as much as I think it will, it will ruin the reputation of interactive novels... and the worse part is, this game hardly is an exponent of the other genre.

[Exodus]

i have a feeling it'll make so little a ripple in the game market, nobody will even notice it. thus, there will be no positive or negative aspects. there's no room for dating sims in the endless release of WWII shooters.

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[Ghale0n]

the whole genre sucks ass really, dating sims just feel pathetic to me. I doubt this will sell well.

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[Zer0Soul]

Why does the blond chick look like "Sarah michelle gellar"?

...lol sadly, the only dating game I have ever played has never been below the hentai crowd. Don't know if there's any other...

wait...

does Sakura Taisen count?

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[Kaiser Sigma]

Originally Posted by Exodus

There's no room for dating sims in the endless release of WWII shooters.

There was once upon a time, a market where RPGs had no place... several years later, RPGs are the supreme genre amongst most console gamers.

Originally Posted by Ghale0n

the whole genre sucks ass really, dating sims just feel pathetic to me. I doubt this will sell well.

And let me guess... the interactive novels (Dating Sims) you have played so far, are... Seasons of the Sakura? True Love? Three sisters story?
Listen son, it's ok to be ignorant however it's quite the error (if not horror) to speak so adamantly about something you don't even know. To judge first you have to be well versed on the issue... needlessly to say that both you and I know you do not fit on that category.

Originally Posted by Zer0Soul

does Sakura Taisen count?

Indeed, Sakura Taisen falls into the category of hybrid as it's a Dating Sim mixed Strategy elements... however, the primary genre of this hybrid is Dating Sim.

[I-Chan]

Originally Posted by Kaiser Sigma

And let me guess... the interactive novels (Dating Sims) you have played so far, are... Seasons of the Sakura? True Love? Three sisters story?

So you know them too...

This game seems stupid to me. The graphics are horribly drawn, and the plot, from what you can read on the screenshots, is plainly idiotic. I hope it stays unnoticed, as Exodus said, and doesn't serve es an example to judge real dating sims.

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[Zer0Soul]

You guys are forgetting one of the classic hentai ..dating sims..

X-change...

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[Kaiser Sigma]

Originally Posted by I-Chan

So you know them too...

As I've said before... to criticize you have to be very well informed about the matters... I would not criticize H-games (like the ones I've mentioned) otherwise

Originally Posted by Zer0Soul

X-change...

I didn't know it was a dating sim, a member of this board had this and its sequel and for all he told me it felt more like an erotic storytelling.

[Kane]

If it were a dating sim, it'd bring up all kinds of problems for the player: roleplaying as a guy who turns into a girl and seems to take great relish in being gangbanged.....

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[Kaiser Sigma]

And I thought Artificial Girl 2 already sounded dirty...

[I-Chan]

I'll never blame kirby anymore...

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[Boltzmann]

Originally Posted by Kane-Sama

If it were a dating sim, it'd bring up all kinds of problems for the player: roleplaying as a guy who turns into a girl and seems to take great relish in being gangbanged.....

/me starts singing Pink Floyd's "Arnold Layne"

Anyway, it's sickening that this kind of game really exists. I'd be better off if I didn't even know about it

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[Kaiser Sigma]

Originally Posted by Boltzmann

Anyway, it's sickening that this kind of game really exists. I'd be better off if I didn't even know about it

Hey... what happened to that (dimensional) open minded spirit who argued against me on the sexuality thread?

[Zer0Soul]

lol,look on the brights side. We could always have a american hentai game... wait...we do..

lesiure suit larry...

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