Dating sims, or romance simulation games, are a video game subgenre of simulation games with romantic elements. While dating sims share a similar visual presentation as visual novels, they are distinct genres. Dating sims are largely dependent on statistics, while visual novels focus on telling a branching story. Nevertheless, the term "dating sim" has become a generic term for romance-driven games in the West.
A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustrations and a varying degree of interactivity. The format is more rarely referred to as novel game, a retranscription of the wasei-eigo term noberu gēmu (ノベルゲーム), which is more often used in Japanese.
An otomegame is a story-based video game that is targeted towards women. Generally one of the goals, besides the main story goal, is to develop a romantic relationship between the female main player character and one of the usually male, secondary lead characters.
Fatal Hearts is an English-language visual novel/adventure game in which players control a teenage female protagonist who is having strange dreams while people are being murdered. It was released in October 2007 for Microsoft Windows.
Summer Session is a dating simulation video game for the Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X and Linux platforms. The game was developed and published by Hanako Games and Italian studio Tycoon Games. It uses anime-style graphics and is written in English. It was released on July 2, 2008.
Yume Nikki is a 2004 adventure game created by the pseudonymous Japanese developer Kikiyama. The player controls a girl named Madotsuki and explores her dreams, collecting 24 effects that change her appearance and equipment. Random events also occur throughout the game in the form of cutscenes and unique gameplay sequences. The game was developed using RPG Maker 2003 without a traditional plot or battle system. Gameplay instead focuses on exploration of the dream world.
Dream Chronicles is a 2007 adventure, hidden object, and puzzle casual game developed by KatGames and published by PlayFirst. It is the first installment in the series.
Digital: A Love Story is a visual novel by video game designer Christine Love, released for free in February 2010. The game's story is linear, with the player's actions unable to significantly change the course of the plot. Set "five minutes into the future of 1988", Digital tells the story of the protagonist's online relationship with a girl and their attempts to solve a mystery surrounding the deaths of several artificial intelligences. The game is presented entirely through the interface of a 1980s computer with online bulletin board system posts and messages from other characters; the protagonist's own messages are implied but never shown. The game was received positively, with critics especially praising the game's writing and plot, and it was noted in lists of the best indie games of 2010.
Drawn is a casual game series developed by Big Fish Studios and distributed by Big Fish Games through their digital distribution portal. The games are adventure games, with Hidden Objects and Puzzles elements.
Date Warp is a science fiction visual novel video game developed by Spiky Caterpillar and Hanako Games, and published by Hanako Games for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS and Linux in 2010. The game uses anime-style graphics and is written in English and tells a story of a young Indian-American college female student who goes on a date and disappears.
Millennium is a Japanese-style role-playing video game series by Aldorlea Games. It is set in a fantasy medieval world where players take control of a young peasant girl named Marine. Several other characters join her later in the game and in the sequels. There are five games in the series. All the games in the series were made with RPG Maker XP and are designed so they can either be played as stand-alone or importing savefiles from one game to another.
Sakevisual is a developer and publisher of interactive story games such as visual novels and otome games, well known for their otome game RE: Alistair++. Their games are for Windows, macOS and Linux. Sakevisual is a partner of Hanako Games, Winter Wolves and Tycoon Games.
Planet Stronghold is a visual novel, sci-fi role-playing video game with a turn-based combat system, developed and published by Italian studio Winter Wolves on February 28, 2011 for the Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, and Microsoft Windows platforms.
The Flower Shop is a visual novel series by Winter Wolves. The first game The Flower Shop - Summer In Fairbrook was released on February 1, 2010, while the sequel The Flower Shop - Winter in Fairbrook was released on December 8, 2011. The games are for the Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X and Linux platforms. Both games were also released for Android and iOS.
Vera Blanc is an Italian mystery visual novel video game series for the Android, iOS, Linux, Mac OS, and Microsoft Windows platforms, with art in the comic style. The games were developed and published by Winter Wolves. The first game Vera Blanc: Full Moon was released on June 30, 2010 and the sequel Vera Blanc: Ghost In The Castle on September 1, 2010. There are currently no plans for another sequel of the series.
The Royal Trap is a visual novel developed and published by Hanako Games on February 23, 2013, for Windows, Mac OS and Linux. The story of the game follows a young companion who has to take care of her prince, Oscar. The game uses anime-style graphics and is written in English. On June 15, 2013, the DVD version of The Royal Trap was released, which also contains a HD version of the game, as well as exclusive concept sketches. It was re-released in April 2015 for Steam with new background art, a higher resolution, and some expanded content. The Steam release also added a subtitle, "The Confines of the Crown"; in 2017, the game on Steam was changed to be advertised as only The Confines of the Crown without "The Royal Trap."
Dana Knightstone is a series of casual hidden object puzzle adventure games with a mystery novel storyline. It was developed by Boomzap Entertainment and published by Big Fish Games. It is available on PC, Mac, iPhone and iPad platforms. The franchise draws it title from the main character, Dana Knightstone, a fiction novelist.
Steve Jackson's Sorcery! is a series of interactive fiction adventure video games developed by Inkle for iOS, Android, Windows, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch, first released on May 2, 2013. The games are based on Steve Jackson's Sorcery! gamebook novels: a four-part spin-off series of the larger Fighting Fantasy series.
Tales of Aravorn: Seasons of the Wolf is a role-playing visual novel by Italian studio Winter Wolves. The game was released on November 15, 2014, and is a spin-off of Loren The Amazon Princess, which is set in the same universe. The game works for the Android, iOS, Linux, Mac OS, Microsoft Windows, and Nintendo Switch platforms.
Black Closet is a mystery visual novel, strategy RPG and life simulation game developed and published by Hanako Games and released on September 16, 2015 for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux on the digital distribution service Steam.
