The Dating♥Sim Review

Oh hey! This is Geeksquisite author Steph with The Dating♥Sim Review! Aren't you excited? I've got a good old fashioned dating simulation here for you perverts. The Casual Romance Club was created by your friend as a way to meet girls and maybe find true love. You meet every day after school at the Starry Sky restaurant with up to 12 different girls. Each of their personality is based on their zodiac sign. You have one month to make one of these lovely ladies your girlfriend.

You use the club's notebook as a way to keep track of the girls so you can know how to get the one you want. It includes their profile, likes, dislikes, horoscopes, a photo album, etc. You start out with a little small talk called a private chat. After your chat with a girl you'll be asked if you want to go out with them, schedule a date or 'appointment', or call it a day. You have the chance to talk to 3 girls a day and you can only go on a date on the weekends. Going out is basically just hanging out or walking home together.



I played through this game once and I ran out of time, so I did not get a girl or any hentai scenes. Since you only have a month you really need to get your butt into gear and go after a girl right away. Nanase/Amy is the easiest girl to go after. Some of the harder to get girls you may need a walkthrough for. I was personally more interested in Nanase/Amy's younger sister Mutsumi/Sidney.

Houkago Renai Club is the original Japanese title for the game when it was released in 1997. It was released again in 2003 under the title Casual Romance Club and is one of the few Japanese games to be produced bilingually to avoid being licensed and translated overseas. There is also a 2 episode OVA that was released in 1999 called Houkago Renai Club: Koi no Etude.




Story: 1/10
Can you really rate something that isn't there? This game has no story. Nothing is explained about your character or any of the girls. The only goal is to get one of the girls to have sex with you and become your girlfriend.

Graphics: 5/10
The art is hit or miss. It's just an average anime style: big eyed cute girls with unusual hair color who all look 12, but are really 18. Sometimes the art is very beautiful and other times it looks unfinished.

Sound: 3/10
This music can best be described as just background music. It reminds me of The Sims. This game includes the option to switch between English and Japanese names and voices. The game is not fully voiced, but the 'Engrish' is hysterical. (Think Cooking Mama!)

Gameplay: 6/10
You can expect this to be like any other dating sim rather than a visual novel. You have plenty of choices of girls and what to do with them. The game is also set up weird. There is one main window and then 2-3 separate windows. You have a content box where you talk to the girls and 2 other windows that do absolutely nothing. They include a city guide and a map which is strange because you can't go anywhere else besides the restaurant. You can move these boxes wherever you want or close them.



Overall: 4/10
This is just a dating sim and nothing more. If you really love dating sims give it a try. If you have any suggestions for games leave a comment!