Another note is that some of the writers for 9.R.I.P and Honey Vibes worked on this game.
Disclaimer: This is purely my own opinion and it could be different from yours
this is not meant to be some kind of all-truth, just an opinion that came from playing this.
If you don't like what you're reading then close the tab, move on and just idk play it yourself.
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Pro's
- Great cast of characters & group dynamic.
Gorgeous art and music worthy buying the OST for.
- Neither too short or too long.
- Proper use of flashbacks.
Grey Area
- Light in tone but has heavy undertones.
- Mature, sensitive contents.
- Doing all routes could seem repetitive but is still relatively unique to that character.
- Omegaverse elements are beginner friendly, this could be disappointing if you expect more.
Con's
- If you dislike the childhood friend or brother trope this otome could be your new hell.
(Wait is this really a con?!)
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VIDEO
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Heroine.
Well Sayo is an Omega, when this was announced I saw disappointment that
she wasn't an Alpha... not sure why but not everyone needs to be a Sophia from CC.
That aside I loved Sayo's design! She's so adorable, she seems nice too. I'd be her friend.
Sayo's relationship with her non-blood related brother and friends
was fun to watch as well. I'd say she was balanced.
While optimistic Sayo can be a bit clumsy which more
often than not lead to hilarious situations. She's very human.
In certain routes she can be surprising in how she deals with a situation.
I thought she would be meek but she put thought to things.
There's some shit she just won't take... and she tended to compensate which ranged
from being reasonable to absolutely savage and slapping someone's koala ass.
If you like it when the heroine actually pursues LI's she's pretty good!
at times I found her extremely selfish. Which is kinda nice in a way
since she knows what she wants, this is very clear in Ritsu's route.
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Art is gorgeous as always but when hasn't an otomate VN been?
other than them having helpers sometimes when an artist isn't available
lately the art in their games has been pretty good and this game is no exception.
Sprites,Backgrounds and CG's all looked great.
Music was really good , I actually sat there for a minute just listening
to the title screen music. Its Cafe Enchante level. It generally fit the mood well.
This game also had more pleasant sound effects and I didn't have to mute them
because they were jarring or annoying. Kinda sad to compare to CC.
Seiyuu cast aren't goldies; I only recognize maybe three of them.
They all did their best and they sounded great especially my fav seiyuu!💖
System wise its nothing special, just normal VN stuff.
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This game has a relatively short common route or atleast I thought so. You select someone right away and then go through a common route.
This also locks you onto whichever LI you choose since it changes who Sayo was closest to
during her highschool years before it goes into their individual route.
This is good since player choice matters.
The only LI's with a restriction were Ritsu and Akira but unlock after one playthrough.
Other than that common route is a pretty standard introduction that eases you into it.
I kinda tuned out of it by route 5 but the first time through was fun in its own right.
Routes themselves were all unique with problems relevant to the LI so there was no overlap.
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It didn't take me more than 4-5 hours to clear the common route.
Routes are around 6-7 hours and my first play took about 10-11 hours.
I ended up clocking out at around 45-50 hours. It will of course depend
on your reading speed but so take this as an average, i'm not slow nor fast.
There were few choices but nothing overstood its welcome. I do enjoy listening to the BGM
which probably slightly inflated my play time but it shouldn't be longer than 50 hours.
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Overall KimiMadoi was a breezy otome game, fitting for its summer theme.
This is generally a SoL, there's not much plot and its mostly focused
on romance and character drama. So its more of a chara-ge.
The omegaverse theme was very entry level so even those unfamiliar can understand it.
This could be disappointing if you expected more but let's be real here they
simply made an otome with the omegaverse elements. Nothing wrong with that.
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My worry was the potential of the heroine going into heat or someone she was talking to.
Sayo has no control over this, its like a natural phenomenon that just... happens.
They made it clear its better it happens with someone when the feelings are mutual
and Sayo didn't interact much with strangers so my worries were unfound!
I was a little afraid of bad ends, thankfully there weren't many and just two endings per route.
The story generally explored its themes in a safe way. 😄
Mate or die sounded way more intense than Olympia Soiree's go find a husband
but for the most part the atmosphere with LI's was generally nice and cozy.😌
Having two years left to live is not fun but having a circle of friends
that care about you makes it a whole lot better. 😌
I enjoyed the modern setting, I didn't think the plot was too intense
its mostly character and romance driven with drama.
The narrative shouldn't be underestimated as it has some heavy undertones.
I often took breaks and I recommend the same if its too much.
Like I could say I'm gonna bust through Nagi's route tonight! but then stuff happened.💀
Haha... no I couldn't finish it then cuz it was heavy and I finished the route the next day.
Sayo also only has two years left to live and her only chance to survive is to mate
she has her own doubts and the heat thing is actually a negative thing.
They developed a medicine to treat its symptoms but it has limited effectiveness.
Despite the stakes what surprised me was that it was very light and airy in
most SoL scenes which took a load from the high-stakes premise or drama.
I don't think it was that deep but... some aspects here or there touched me.
Things weren't always fun i'd say it was a balanced otome, the chara intereactions were gold.😂
Sayo befriended most LI's during her highschool days. Yea all of them are her friends
so romancing them should be easier right? haha no! they all got their circumstances.
They do spend time detailing the past so it didn't feel weird that they were friendly.
I liked everything was fleshed out, had they not done this it would be even shorter.
I actually like this since it gives further depth to their relationships.
I also love how we get the see the POV of the LI. I liked seeing what they thing and feel.
Some LI's were simply more difficult due to their backgrounds or not for me.
I also loved the scenes Sayo had with her brother even if it were just
normal
Though I did think there was an obvious bias for the brother...
making it all the more painful he is a beta among a bunch of alpha's.
Generally all LI's are likable in some way but I can see it being disappointing
they were already friends but tbh if you're in Sayo's position there's no place for toxic LI's.
I suppose they could've added one... but i'm glad they didn't. Ritsu would kill them.💖
They all had their reasons for being which was the interesting part.
The character interactions were a highlight for me and I liked getting
to know everyone despite some repetitive aspects.
9/10
it just felt like its kinda there to back up the romance much like Honey Vibes.
Thematically its good too and so was 9rip. So it does make sense why I enjoyed it.
My play order was: Kyoya > Kanata > Hinagi > Ritsu > Akira.
The initial three routes have no restrictions and can be interchanged as you like!
Ritsu and Akira can be played after one route is completed.
My own playorder kinda worked out since by the time I finished Hinagi
I was absolutely sold on Ritsu as a brother and wanted to do his route.
Recommended order:
Kanata > Kyouya > Hinagi > Ritsu > Akira.
Kanata; this route is rather normal, I think this is the best starter point.
Kyouya; It can be interchanged with Kanata, best before Hinagi.
Hinagi; Fairly balanced route but its better for midgame due to very heavy contents.
Ritsu; Best for when you're the most invested into his character.
Akira; Aki... its fun to do him last almost as if you forgot, fairly cozy route.
I personally had no hard feelings after Aki's route, I did feel like they wanted to do more?
Character rambles after the jump, usual spoiler warning as well as some
of my fav CG's. So if you don't want any then don't read further.
Its mostly senile grandma rambles/commentary, not sure who's gonna
be interested in a wall o text of me talking about the routes.
I've pretty much said all there's to say so you're not missing much.
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