EDITORIAL

Okay, yes, so… it’s inevitable. I’m going to let Rekka be the little fangirl that she is and talk a bit about the recently released otome romance simulation game, Love and Deepspace. Oh boy, get ready!

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Yes, so it’s been a little over a week since the game was officially released, and… I can honestly say that I’m pretty well hooked. This is one of the best otome games that I’ve played, ever, so I want to go through a couple points that stand out the most in my beady little eyes ogling at these gorgeous bois. I’m going to be fan-girling here a little bit, so please beware.

Firstly, check out this video, since I’ll be using parts from it in the discussion below.

▶︎ The Character Models – Hands

Not exactly talking about the character designs themselves but more the 3D models that are used in the game are absolutely pristine, with fluid movements and detailed textures. What especially catches my attention is the realistic design and movements of the hands. It’s so realistic, I wouldn’t mind if we got more closeups of just their hands. The following two images is just an example of how great this CG is. Parts of this clip are also used in the load screen in the game.

▶︎ The Character Models – Eyes and Facial Features & Expressions

As the saying goes, the eyes are the window to the soul, and I really think they nailed these eyes perfectly. There is so much detail and beautiful colors that it’s difficult not to be pulled into them. The facial features are also so detailed and can display many realistic expressions, a slight smile, a raised brow, a scowling face. They’re all perfect.

▶︎ Character Settings & Designs

And yes, aside from the CG designs, if we’re just talking about the character settings, their personality and backstory and such, along with their general look, I also think a ton of care and thought went into crafting these characters. Of course, that’s important in any story, but I think specifically for an otome game like this, it’s even more important to get the player to kyun for a particular character, or maybe all of them at once!

Clearly from this post alone, you should know which of the three main characters is my hottie of choice, which is Seiya aka Xavier. From his character profile alone, he is a skilled Shinkuu Hunter who leads a mysterious life. Little is know about him until you unlock additional side stories about him or until you progress further into the main story (we get some really good bits of lore about him in Chapter 6). For me personally, I think I really like the mystery that they’re building up about not only him but the overall story, giving us just enough info here and there and out of order so that we have to really think to put the pieces together. It makes me want to progress further into the main story to see more!

And that leads me into one of the bad points of this game…

▶︎ There are a lot of fun mini games and other activities

I’ve seen things like this in other romance simulation games like in Toraware no Palm, but I feel like these mini games and the like are designed so much better that they can absolutely stand on their own. There’s the Kitty Cup game, the crane game, a cute photo booth thing where you can take photos of your avatar and your choice of one of the boys, or maybe just redecorate your room with various items that you’ve accumulated throughout the main and side stories. So, if you get tired of the constant grind, there’s always some of these things that you can do. But of course, they also have limits, some with weekly limits even, so you might plow through them too quickly and have to wait all week for the limit to be reset.

▶︎ It’s a gacha game from hell

▶︎ Locked chapters behind EXP wall

Right in line with the nature of any gacha game, this one is stingy beyond what I’m used to, where they even limit how far you can progress into the story by locking them behind EXP walls. For example, where I’m at in the main story right now, I just cleared Chapter 6 and would very much like to continue the story into Chapter 7, but I can’t because… it will only unlock once I reach Level 47, and to gain levels, you need to obtain EXP, which there is a limit to how much EXP you can get everyday by clearing daily missions… I can understand why they do things like this, it helps them with the pacing and preparing new content, but wow… I WANT MORE NOW!!

▶︎ You have so many things that need upgrading

Like any other gacha, you’re going to be doing a ton of grinding, and this one is no exception. You need to grind for mats to upgrade and rank up your character “Memories”, you have to grind for mats to get gacha pulls, and even if you want to grind some more, you’ll likely be running out of stamina pretty quickly, which will only be replenished with time or special items. If you’re a player who can take frequent breaks and prolong your playing sessions, then you should be okay, but… for those who just want to progress and see more of the story and characters, it’s really a difficult and grueling endeavor.

▶︎ It’s addicting

The story and characters are so compelling, it’s easy for one of the main leads to find their way into your heart and because of that, you may start to get a little addicted. Of course, this is going to differ from person to person, but I am a total sucker for this kind of story, so I often catch myself daydreaming about it or reaching for my phone to catch Seiya leisurely reading a book in a cozy living room bathed in golden sunlight. It’s so pretty. He is so pretty. Ahhh!

▶︎ Final Thoughts for Now

Before I get a little too carried away, I’d just like to say that I’m really enjoying this game even though the gacha aspects can be quite a let-down, but if you like this sort of thing, I’d definitely suggest checking it out! The last thing I’ll say is that the game does come with many language options, so you’re able to change the voice and text to whatever you prefer. As for me, I’m playing with Japanese voices and English text, and I must say, I’ve quickly become a fan of Yusuke Kobayashi’s voice. ❤️

And… don’t be surprised if I feel the need to talk more about this game in the future. I may not be able to contain myself…