*Publisher:
Voltage Inc.
*System:
iOs Game for iPad
*Free
Prologue and First chapter per character
The game follows a female protagonist,
our main character (MC for short or in my case Tamara), as she returns to the
shopping district in west Tokyo after a ten year absence. She is now sixteen
years old and excited for the move back to her childhood neighbor. To liven up
her new home she explores the district’s shops, getting flowers for her room
and getting “thank you” cakes from the local bakery. The MC thusly is reunited
with her childhood friends, Haruki Tanemura, Ryuzo Hatta, Ichigo Sato, Takeshi
Yuno, Rihito Hatsune, and her landlord Johji Chakura. The five boys have
drastically changed over the ten years in appearance and some in attitude. As
the Five o clock bell tolls for the shops to open each boy asks for the MC to
join them.
Haruki
Tanemura is the son of the district’s florist, and works at the shop after
school and his karate club activities. The MC remembers him as the peacekeeper
of the group and not much has changed since. In present day he is a hard
worker, handsome and dangerously popular with the girls of the district. So
much so that the girls in the MC’s class are not friendly on her first day of
school. Yet Haruki seems oblivious to the other girls’ attention and focuses on
the MC.
Ryuzo
Hatta is the son the districts produce store. He has adopted a “thuggish” look,
more akin to the Japanese’s Bosozuku (Japanese motorcycle gangs like AKIRA),
which unnerves the MC along with his loud demeanor. Yet when the MC works with
him at his store and is later invited to dinner with his family, she sees the
kind fatherly side of him from when they were children. A year older than most
of his friends (2 years older than Rihito) Ryuzo feels responsible for them and
their actions and is usually the moral compass of the group. However he does
come off as a little dense
Ichigo
Sato is the son of the district’s cake shop owner which is devilishly ironic
because he does not like sweet things. The MC remembers him as the pushy, mean
little boy who always teased her mercilessly. Nothing has changed in Ichigo’s
regard of the MC, he still teases her about her weight and her tomboyish
nature. Yet at times when the MC gets caught in the rain, Ichigo has no problem
walking her home under an umbrella. 
Takeshi
Yuno is the grandson of the district’s bath house owner. Happy Waters is a
place of pride and unlike his friend Ichigo Takeshi works diligently to keep
the bath house in good condition. However Takeshi comes off a bit rude to the
MC, as he spends a lot of time reading the latest Shonen Hop (Shonen Jump! Of course),
and is quiet and blunt. This isn’t different from what the MC remembers, as he
used to be quiet and often in his own little world. She also remembers him to
be a fast runner and wonders if he is on the school’s team.
Rihito
Hatsune is the son of the Piano Teacher and wildly popular with the women in
the district. His angelic face is deceiving as it masks a devilish flirt. Of
all the characters Rihito seems to be the one each of his older peers are
worried about and rightly so. He kisses the MC on their first reunion and
swears to have her previous memories change the more they encounter each other.
Why? Because the MC remembers him as a girl. Rihito or Richy as she
affectionately called him was like her little sister because of how fair and
delicate he was. Now Rihito “You can still call me Richy” has a thing for older
girls.
Johji
Chakura is the MC’s landlord and owner of the Black Ship Café below her
apartment. 10 years older than the MC she is drawn to his maturity and easy
going mannerisms. However when Johji makes a tuna sandwich for the MC she feels
strangely nostalgic.
The
Appeal This
was my very first introduction into Otome games and rightly so, high school
romance with promises of a shojo manga story, it almost had me at “Hello”. The
boys and man (Johji) on surface have sparkling personalities.
The
Drawback The
main cast is in high school and there will be some limitation to how deep the
story can delve into the romance, especially with a rating of 12+.
But
I am hopeful, the other bad trait is that I am a hopeless completion-ist, in
meaning that whenever I get a task I have to finish it all the way through, so
here is a promise to all my readers. I will finish the games ever single one I
bought and I hope you stick around for the cheers and tears.
Next
Week: Ryuzo Hatta Review (Part 1)
