Secrets of Me

I wish there was a neutral button, This game is great for if you're into the older otome games and interested in more mature adult themes But if you're just starting out and wanting to play a simple otome game this isn't for you. I liked the art style as it was nostalgia for me, the translation was done well and the characters plot twists were okay, somewhat predictable but tame. The MC is a bit clueless and daft which made the "stalking" aspect a lot more easier to play through. The MC being a homewrecker did ruin the game a tad bit as it was in every option and you couldn't go through a route without it. The game also sometimes bugs and resets their likeability to 1-40% when you could've had like 70%. I usually saved 2 slots so I could replay but I imagine it's due to the game being old. Overall the game was still unique and interesting to me but for people more sensitive and impressionable I would suggest finding another game.

I've seen some divided opinions on this game and I think it comes down to two things. 1. How seriously you're taking the game and its story/themes 2. Your sense of humor This is not a deep story of two human beings organically growing to understand and respect one another as partners. It's a romantic comedy that cheerfully parodies and parades common tropes of the genre. No one in this story reacts realistically to the stalking - not the victims or the perpetrators. It's all played for comic effect; no harm, no foul. If you don't appreciate that in a story, then no worries, it just isn't your thing. Other than that, it's just a matter of whether or not the jokes actually click with you. The MC is oblivious and scheming at the same time, with juuust enough self-awareness not to embarrass herself (most of the time) and get into trouble. She is "innocent" in some unusual ways, to the point where she seems to think of "beautiful people" as an upper caste of society, as well as being ignorant of many dating norms in some pretty hilarious ways. Personally, THIS. KILLED. ME. OH MY GOD. I DIED IN THE FIRST FEW MINUTES GUYS. I CAN'T EVEN. This is one of the greatest games on Steam. Oh my god. It kills me. The MC starts out in the prologue with lines like "...this insignificant pain [from the surgery] means nothing before my invincible beauty!" "Yay! In other words, I'm smoking hot!" "Haah... I wish I could change my personality to be as beautiful as I am on the outside..." AND THIS IS JUST IN THE PROLOGUE. The combination of complete ignorance of the real world (she really seems to believe being beautiful will make everything awesome, but also sort of just shrugs and moves on when it doesn't) and the self-awareness is like nothing I've ever seen. A private detective goes "you should stalk your bf to fix your love problems" and she just! Takes this advice at face value! And DOES IT! AND HER BF IS ACTUALLY CHEATING ON HER! It only gets more wacky and coincidental and absurd from there. Some people won't like it, period - some people will. There's definitely romance/attraction between the characters in every route, and the MC is just delightful throughout. I had an absolute blast with it, 100% recommend - provided the writing is your kinda thing.