※This is a repost of an article originally published over ten years ago.
・A Stylish Catchphrase
First, let’s start with a stylish catchphrase that makes you want to pick up the game even without knowing anything about it.
1．『For every story, I loved you.』 ─Shoin, Aruiwa Ushinawareta Yume no Monogatari.
The first stylish eroge catchphrase that came to mind was Shoin. When you actually play it and reach the moment where the catchphrase and the title finally come together, you experience something that other story-driven games simply cannot offer. The system where you type in your own choices is also excellent. The ending, where the meaning comes from communicating in your own words through the keyboard, is especially powerful.
These days, copies go for over 100,000 yen wherever you look (at the time. Now it’s more than twice that), so it isn’t something you can easily play anymore... Incidentally, I once saw a copy at Sofmap in Akihabara selling for around 120,000 yen. So if you get the chance, please give it a try.
２．『She was broken junk. Just like me.』 ─carnevale della luce della luna
Among the many oddballs in Nitroplus’s catalog, it’s a title that doesn’t get talked about nearly as much as it deserves, but its catchphrase is exceptionally cool. I’ve always had a soft spot for automata—or, more broadly, robot-type heroines—so I have a particular fondness for it. I was really happy when Anna joined the cast of Nitroplus Blasterz.
３．『I’m Alice. Now, tell me a story.』 ─Forest
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Works based on fairy tales often have a stylish quality to them, both in their concepts and their content. That said, Forest is an especially eccentric game and definitely not for everyone. Its writer is Meteo Hoshizora, who has more recently become active writing scripts for mainstream anime as well.
The game was something of a collector’s item for a while, but it was eventually re-released through MegaStore, meaning that people who had been unable to afford the inflated prices could finally play it. Liar-soft also released Fairy Tale Requiem around this time (※at the time), another game inspired by fairy tales, and its distinctive, dreamlike atmosphere remains intact. Fans of Forest from the golden age of eroge should find plenty to enjoy.
４．『──That day, no one believed the world would really end.』 ─The end of the world and happy birthday
Personally, it’s a game I’m very fond of, but anything I say about it would end up being a spoiler, so I’ll keep quiet. The title and catchphrase both have that unmistakable sekai-kei sensibility. There’s something about that kind of style that just screams eroge, and I absolutely love it.
The side-story scenario written by Tomo Kataoka is especially good. It’s no wonder he helped support Neko Neko Soft for so many years—he knows exactly how to hit the player right in the tear ducts. Between Narcissu and Gin'iro, when it comes to writing stories that steadily march toward an ending with no salvation in sight, there’s simply no one better.
The paperback edition of Narcissu was also written by Kataoka himself, so I highly recommend it, especially for the differences from the game version.
５．『——And the world split in two, and we became a contradiction.』 ─Paradox of Gemini
Following on from Cotton Soft. Otaku are basically creatures who are hopelessly weak to words like “paradox,” “contradiction,” and “twins,” so this title and catchphrase really hit the spot for me. I also love the theme song by Denkishiki Karen Ongaku Shuudan.
６．『A single feather fell to the earth… It was you, the one I loved.』 ─Mamatoto ~a record of war～
I haven't been paying much attention to chronology, so we suddenly jumped quite a bit further back. This is one of my favorite games, and its fantasy-flavored catchphrase is wonderfully stylish, though it doesn't have much to do with the actual game.
I also love the gameplay itself as an SLG, but above all, the battle music is fantastic. It was rearranged and reused extensively in the later Nyono series, and when I heard it in Rance IX, which also took inspiration from Mamatoto, I was so moved I could barely see through my tears.
Because its fantasy world comes from a time when the genre hadn't yet been consumed and recycled to death like it has today, there's a timeless charm to its setting and characters. I especially like Nalzgis-chan, who seems to be based on Hornet from Kichikuou Rance, and whose original emotionless-slave characterization makes her all the more appealing to me.
７．『──Let’s go as far as we can, because we’ll never catch up to that rainbow.』 ─Gift
By now, MOONSTONE has become pretty much synonymous with Ito Life-sensei in my mind. Though I believe he's already left the company. It's a shame.
Gift was also adapted into an anime, so I imagine quite a few people have at least vaguely seen it. From an eroge fan's perspective, I remember being surprised to see MOONSTONE, which had previously leaned toward much harder-edged material, suddenly go all-in on a school romance. Since it was co-developed with CIRCUS, you can definitely feel a bit of that Da Capo flavor in it, too.
8．『I wished for a moment of peace—What I got was an eternity of atonement.』 ─A December Without Angels
If this middle-schooler-esque poetic catchphrase speaks to you, then you should have no problem giving it a try. It's what you'd call a “depression game,” so to speak. This was one of the titles that helped carry Leaf through the period when they hadn't quite hit their stride yet, before ToHeart2.
The story revolves around adolescent girls struggling with sexuality and their views on life and death. This was actually the first game I played where I encountered a heroine who self-harmed by cutting herself. The little sister is also incredibly cute, but unusually for an eroge, she genuinely hates her older brother and isn't a romanceable character.
These days, heroines with suicidal thoughts have become almost cliché, but back then, the impact of Sumadera-san's first appearance—standing beyond the fence on the edge of the school rooftop—was enormous.
９．『The twelfth theory that blasphemes even God—it was a serendipitous product we grasped.』 ─Steins;Gate
It’s not an adult game at all, but it’s just too damn cool not to include it…… There’s really nothing left to say about Steins;Gate at this point, but I still cringe whenever I remember how I once lied to a friend, saying, “Can I borrow your Xbox 360? I want to play Virtual-On,” only for him to eventually figure out what I was really up to. I was so embarrassed when I got caught.
10.『Find me—the real me.』 ─Kara no Shoujo
It lived up to its tagline, “Back to the roots! A return to the good old adventure game!” and was a thoroughly satisfying game to play.
11．『When we crossed the line between everyday life and the unknown―—』 ─Scarlett
Scarlett【復刻版 FFP仕様】 AFRB-012amzn.to
Jumping from an ordinary everyday life into a world of the extraordinary is the ultimate fantasy of every otaku guy. Scarlett is practically the embodiment of that fantasy: an ordinary protagonist gradually becomes accustomed to the shadowy world of blood and gunpowder.
On a completely unrelated note, I was delighted that the early part of the game is set in Okinawa—and not only does it feature Okinawa, it even has a U.S. military base. As a local myself, I was thrilled. As far as I know, this may well be the only eroge to feature a U.S. military base in Okinawa.
12.『That day, I was truly at the edge of the world.』 ─Haruka ni Aogi, Uruwashi no
This is the famous Harushino, where the story takes a completely different direction depending on which heroine you choose. I got so used to calling it Harushino, but there are plenty of people in the Kanishino camp, taking only the hiragana from the title. The two hardcore factions have been waging bloody battles day and night over which name is correct.
Going by the catchphrase alone, you might think it’s a sekai-kei story, but it really isn’t. It’s a proper school drama through and through. Personally, I absolutely love the Asshole Slave Route.
One of the writers was also Takehaya-sensei, who has since become a full-fledged light novel author.
13.『──So no one drowns.』 ─Gangsta Republica
Since the WHITESOFT website had been getting simpler with each release, probably because they were running out of money, this was from back when they still had some room to spare.
The lyrics to the opening song are incredibly cool. The title alone, Moratorium Cluster, is already perfect, but I especially love the line in the chorus, “With a blade I happened to find, let’s decide what is right.”
The writer is the great Masaki Motonaga, who I absolutely love.
Incidentally, my name is also in the fan disc for Nekonade Distortion, so see if you can find it.
14.『──Someday, I’ll shed the perfect tear.』 ─ Clear
Once again, from MOONSTONE.
The opening song, “Glass no Loneliness,” is seriously cool and highly regarded among eroge fans. The line in the chorus, “Pretending I’m used to this transparent loneliness,” is sure to hit that middle-school-edgelord nerve just right.
The scenario writer, Cure, is still working with MOONSTONE today, having also written the scenario for their more recent title Sakuranomori†Dreamers.
・Catchphrases That Draw on Madness
Eroge and madness have always had a close relationship. But I’ve already talked about that several times in previous articles, so please refer to those for more on the subject.
15.『”Words, Man, Madness, Girl, Goodbye.”』─Sayonara o Oshiete ~Comment te Dire Adieu~
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SayoKyou, aka “SayoKyō,” is enjoying a bit of a resurgence lately thanks to the digital release and the soundtrack coming out. I already went into detail about it in a previous article, so there’s not much left for me to say now, but I recently dug up some materials from the old Tech Gian, so I figured I’d share them here.
16.『Are you “here”?』 ─Jisatsu no Tame no 101 no Houhou
The order is reversed, but this is a catchphrase that brings to mind Fafner. Since it doesn’t have much to do with the actual content of the game, though, I find it a somewhat questionable fit as this game’s tagline.
Jisatsu 101, on the other hand, has an OP with the kind of bizarre, brainworm-inducing lyrics that hit an eroge fan right in the sweet spot, so you can get your dose of madness there instead. I particularly like the line, “Strangle my trembling throat and gently kill me.”
Incidentally, the novelization of Shizuku, written under the writer Yamada Orochi’s other pen name (though technically speaking, Yamada Orochi is the alternate name), is the original source of the writing style that really conveys his particular brand of madness. If that piques your interest, I highly recommend checking it out.
17.『The sky where all pairs end.』 ─Tsui no Sora
These three games are collectively known as the “Big Three Denpa Games.”
18.『──A love that descends into obsession and madness.』 ─Karutagura ~Tsuki-gurui no Yamai~
This is a work whose character designs and worldbuilding are heavily influenced by Natsuhiko Kyogoku. I only just found out that it was also released on the PS2.
Its story, which explores madness, combined with its beautiful character designs—particularly the heroines, whose designs make striking use of blood—struck a chord with a certain audience (mainly, as mentioned earlier, fans of Kyogoku’s works), and it has since come to be regarded as an overlooked gem.
I had always associated the writer, Kazuhiko Iida, with the serious stories of this game and his work with Littlewitch, so I was genuinely shocked when I learned that he was also the scenario writer for Taimanin Kurenai.
As a side note, I really like the OP cover by Yui Sakakibara and listen to it quite often. I highly recommend the album, too—the tracklist is packed with songs that are irresistible to eroge fans, including the theme song from Nitroplus’ Hello, world.
19.『──A love that will defile the world.』 ─Saya's Song
There’s not much left to say about Saya at this point, either. The moment I realized what “A Love That Corrupts the World” meant still gives me chills to this day. That said, she became an incredibly annoying character to fight against in Nitro+ Blasterz, so I’ve come to like Saya a little less than I used to.
20.『Come to me, won’t you? I’ll make you my lewd little doll of flesh…』 ─ATLACH=NACHA
One of the most memorable games for me, as it was the first eroge that really made me conscious of yuri and horror. I’ve placed it right after Saya no Uta here as another work of Lovecraftian horror.
Apparently, the first Japanese work to feature the Great Old One Atlach-Nacha was Takahashi Yousuke’s Mugen Shinshi. In Mugen Shinshi, she is depicted as a poisonous spider who seductively ensnares men. After this game came along, though, the image of Atlach-Nacha became firmly associated with “Ane-sama.” You can even see elements of Ane-sama’s design in works like Nyaruko: Crawling with Love.
I absolutely love the nee-sama illustration on the cover of Alice Vocal Collection, although some people have speculated that she might actually be Ko-Hatsune, with her hair simply darkened by shadow. Personally, I couldn’t care less.
21.『──We fear the darkness, yet we cannot help but seek it out.──』 ─ Yoru ga Kuru! -Square of the Moon-
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Another one from AliceSoft. Since this was from a time before the concept of “chuunibyou” had really entered the mainstream, the tagline wears its chuunibyou sensibilities proudly and is absolutely dripping with them.
Yoru ga Kuru! has influenced a lot of works even to this day. I imagine there are readers who have told their friends, “If you said everyone was meeting at school at midnight, it’d be Yoru ga Kuru!, not Persona 3!” Of course, when I tried that myself, I just got a “Huh? What’s that?” in response.
Another thing that sticks with me is how often Yoru ga Kuru! comes up when reading the works of Toru Honda, best known for Sekai no Denpa Otoko and other books. He once insisted that “I bought a PC just for Kyoka from Yoru ga Kuru!, and really, you could say the PC itself is basically Yoru ga Kuru! fan merchandise!” (I’m going entirely from memory here), which left quite an impression on me.
Kyoka is my favorite, too. AliceSoft really knows how to make a good blonde twin-tail heroine. I was also a huge fan of Collet from Pastel Chime. Elf ears are great, you know...
For some reason, I still had a copy tucked away in my closet. So when Evenicle came out, I posted a little gag on Twitter: “Ah, I accidentally bought Yoru ga Kuru! thinking it was Evenicle!” Needless to say, absolutely nobody gave me the time of day. That's a memory I cherish.
22.『……What does the human heart look like?』 ─please teach to me when you find the rainbow.
A game that lives on in the memories of a very small but dedicated group of fans.
The protagonist meets a mysterious girl named Sui in a park in the rain. “What shape does the human heart take?” What answer will the protagonist give her?
If you take the synopsis at face value, it sounds like a fairly standard boy-meets-girl story. What made this game infamous as a depression-inducing title, however, is that all of the heroines have had their minds broken and are left in an infantile, severely impaired state. Unlike the heroines in KEY games, who are deliberately written as somewhat naive and mentally immature to make them more endearing, these girls are presented as genuinely helpless and inescapably dependent on others.
Enjoy the realistic, utterly hopeless experience of caring for them. Once you keep that in mind, you can start to appreciate the deeper meaning behind the tagline.
23.『──“I hate the world,” the girl says with a smile.──』 ─Gore Screaming Show
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It’s a little embarrassing to talk about these kinds of fucked-up games, but I was absolutely obsessed with Black Cyc and Denkare for a while. Back in high school, a friend once proudly told me, “Hey, do you know this crazy game called Gore? I saw the OP on Nico Nico Douga…” I was so jealous that I genuinely cursed the world.
24.『Submission, Domination, Bluster, Purity, Cruelty.────』 ─Kanojo-tachi no Ryuugi
A work that seems to have thrown together every element otaku love: “vampires,” “twins,” and a “cross-dressing protagonist.” Catchphrases that simply string together a bunch of suggestive keywords like this can easily feel cliché, but I think this one pulls it off nicely. It also fits the actual content of the game.
A work that seems to throw together a bunch of things otaku tend to love: vampires, twins, and a cross-dressing protagonist. Catchphrases that string together a series of suggestive words like this can easily come across as cliché, but I think Kanogi pulls it off really well. It fits the actual content, too.
Back when cross-dressing protagonists were still something of a novelty, and the appeal of domineering blonde lolis was as timeless as ever, this was a game I absolutely loved. The lines from the final scenario in particular have stayed with me ever since. (Not that I’ve ever actually put any of them to use.)
25.『NOT A BIRD. The one who's hurt is…』 ─CARNIVAL
I love CARNIVAL, but I’ve already written quite a bit about the writer Yohsuke Karabe in a previous article, so I’ll refer you there instead. To put it very simply: if you like Fight Club, you’ll probably like this one, too.
If you want to get a taste of Yohsuke Karabe’s style, I recommend starting with PSYCHE.
PSYCHE (プシュケ) (スクウェア・エニックス・ノベルズ)amzn.to
26.『I’m you, and you’re me…』 ─Kisaku
Along with Shuusaku, this is a work that had a major influence on my sexual tastes. I’m not particularly fond of Isaku, though.
The tagline is pretty profound, too. Kinsaku is what you’d call a sadistic bastard, so he has no qualms about doing things women would hate. But that’s also the hidden side of you, the player—the side that wants to see those things happen...
The theme song, “Imomushi” by Ningen Isu, has lyrics that capture Kinsaku’s feelings—and, by extension, those of fans of sexual-assault games—with almost painful accuracy. The lines “I’m a caterpillar, ugly and nothing more / I’m a caterpillar, lowly and nothing more / I’m a caterpillar, lewd and nothing more” in particular capture the relationship between Kinsaku and the player almost painfully well.
A tear for the elf of days gone by...
27.『A girl is at her best when she’s crazy.』─Crazy Fruit
I think this every time, but for someone who’s supposedly “crazy,” this girl is way too crazy.
・Seasonal Catchphrases
After all those depressing games and denpa games have left us feeling gloomy, let’s take a look at some catchphrases that evoke the refreshing feeling of the four seasons. When you think of seasonal atmosphere, you think of eroge. Due to delays, of course, games set in summer sometimes end up being released in winter...
28.『A sweet, endless nightmare—a harem at the end of the world, like a spring day. 』 ─Harumade, Kururu.
A masterpiece that took Sumikkosoft, a developer that had flown under the radar, and suddenly catapulted them into the spotlight. The “nightmare and post-apocalyptic harem” that awaits beyond the packaging is utterly shocking, so I highly recommend seeing it for yourself before reading anything else about it.
In an eroge industry where first-week sales are everything, this was a rare title that started selling more and more through word of mouth.
29.『Those dazzling days… Those endless summer days…』 ─Silver ~Gin'iro~
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I absolutely love Tomo Kataoka. The fact that Gin'iro Chapter One was created after he was suddenly told to write it, despite not even being scheduled to handle the scenario, is nothing short of genius.
Kataoka's works are primarily about the repetition of everyday life. The catchphrase, “Those dazzling days... Those endless summer days...,” is repeated over and over with different words substituted in. There’s no need for grand foreshadowing or elaborate mysteries. You simply repeat the everyday moments that are there, moving toward the end. It’s a style that no ordinary writer could hope to imitate.
Given how conscious the game is of cinema, even the message window is designed to look like subtitles. Incidentally, you can switch both the voices and subtitles to English, which shows just how much effort went into it. But I wonder if anyone ever actually made use of that feature...
30.『—Once, that town had a season called “Rocket Summer.”』 ─Rocket Summer
The original artist is Ritu Kobayashi, best known for Saki.
Back then, you could still confirm that the heroines were properly wearing panties.
31.『Summer snow, winter cicadas…』 ─Saishuu Shiken Kujira
最終試験くじら~progressive memoriesamzn.to
Unusually for CIRCUS, the developer best known for Da Capo, this is a work that tackles some pretty complex themes. I have a real soft spot for this kind of wordplay-based catchphrase.
The OP, “Dianoia,” is quite well known, so I imagine many of you have heard it before. But the ED, “Montage,” sung by Aki Misato, is just as moving and absolutely heartbreaking.
After this game, CIRCUS began to more overtly establish what came to be known as its “Milking a franchise,” centering its output around Da Capo. Though, to be fair, things were already looking pretty suspicious even before this...
32.『The snow falls pure and white, burying nothing but the truth…』 ─SNOW
A title that will make people of a certain generation go, “Whoa!” It’s still amazing to me how eerily realistic and unsettling that steamed bun looks in this illustration.
The OP was performed by Yumi Matsuzawa, best known for Martian Successor Nadesico. The game was also supervised by Key, which is why so many aspects of it bear a striking resemblance to Kanon.
Speaking of Studio Mebius, though, if your image of them was all about “Akumu” and “Zetsubou,” and you associated them with hijacking a bus and assaulting female students, I wonder what those people thought when they saw SNOW...
Speaking of Akumu, it’s also known in some circles as one of the early examples of the “rape eyes” trope. Personally, I prefer Dark SNOW to SNOW.
33.『The album of their relationship will be as white as snow, and as poignant.』─WHITE ALBUM
A game famous for the lines “So this is that woman’s house!” and “It’s almost three...” Neither line is actually said in the game, though...
When it comes to winter in eroge, it’s the season of cheating. I’ve never played the remake, but I wonder if the protagonist’s love life is still at the mercy of mercilessly random elements even today?
Speaking of WHITE ALBUM, there’s also “Udaruchin,” but I wonder what they’ve been up to since writing the side story to the New Religion Omoide-kyo... It was already two years ago, but I was genuinely surprised when I spotted the name “Yoake Kanuki” in Afternoon. I hope we’ll continue to see more former Leaf employees’ names reemerge in the public eye.
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34.『Winter ends. Spring comes without you.』 ─WHITE ALBUM2 -closing chapter-
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I was really happy to see some classic Leaf theme songs covered on this vocal album by Setsuna Ogiso. “Anata wo Omoi Tai” is such a great song. Still, whoever came up with the idea of having Setsuna cover a song called “Akujo” (“The Bad Woman”) must have had one hell of a sadistic sense of humor.
As for the game itself, if you haven’t played it yet, I can only say that you’re missing out, so go buy it as soon as humanly possible. A perfect score, catchphrase and all.
・Catchphrases with Exceptional Flair
These are great catchphrases that stand out from the conventional approach, or cleverly hint at the content of the game itself.
35.『An eroge my dad might have played.』 ─Rance 1 Remake
I imagine this catchphrase hit pretty hard for the generation who actually played it more than 20 years ago in secret. It’s a great catchphrase that could only really work for a long-running series like Rance. Twenty-four years ago? I wasn’t even born yet.
The game itself does a great job of expanding on the story of the original while making it much more accessible and enjoyable as a game. I played the early Rance titles through the free archive, but most of them—aside from Kichikuou Rance—are pretty rough to go back to nowadays, so this was a welcome improvement.
That said, it’s painful as a fan to hear TADA jokingly say that whenever he relies on remakes or older titles, the company starts teetering on the brink of collapse. And, well, it’s not entirely a joke—the Tokyo branch has actually been shut down...
36.『Taking games back from smartphones.』 ─Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen
It’s not an eroge, but I’ll include it anyway. This is basically a stand-in for what a lot of console-focused game developers desperately wanted to say during the rise of social games.
The irony, though, is that Utawarerumono itself ended up collaborating with a mobile game afterward... Which makes the whole thing rather amusing.
37.『Ready to fall?』 ─Rakuen ~Ai Kawarazu na Boku. no Baai~
A highly meta and ambitious work about making an eroge—an eroge about making an eroge, to be precise. It offers a surprisingly realistic depiction of people slowly becoming corrupted by the brutal working conditions of the industry. Experience the weight behind the heroine’s question to the protagonist, who has found himself working in the blackest of black industries: “Are you OK for the fall?”
Even recently, we’ve had anime like Shoujo-tachi wa Kouya o Mezasu, which are about making eroge. But given the limitations of the anime medium, there’s only so far they can go in portraying the darker side of the industry. If you really want to experience how rotten the industry can get, this is the better choice. As a bonus, there’s also a fairly standard nakige-style scenario you can play through, and I actually liked that one quite a bit, too.
The ending is incredibly cool, and even if you’re not Sensui, you’ll have no choice but to rave about what a beautiful song it is. It’s a very much an acquired taste, but let’s be honest—only eroge fans are going to play something like this in the first place, so no worries.
38.『Is there anyone alive?—』 ─CROSS†CHANNEL
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This is such a well-known title that there’s really nothing left to say about it, but the phrase itself is still memorable enough to warrant a mention. I remember being struck by a joke in the demo along the lines of, “Is this the Mayoiga!? (I’m going from memory here),” and finding it novel at the time to see an eroge parodying another eroge.
At this point, it’s firmly in the “you’d be missing out if you haven’t played it, so stop hesitating and just play it” category.
・Catchphrases Completed by Their Titles
39.『Let’s do everything lovers do, together.』 ─Koibito Doushi de Suru Koto Zenbu
A game that garnered attention for its catchy title. It was an ambitious work for its time, narrowing the heroine lineup down to just one, which wasn’t exactly common even then. That said, I’ve never played it myself because I’m not really interested in vanilla romance...
Regardless of whether it’s sexually appealing or not, I think the catchphrase is excellent. Judging from the title, I assume it covers pretty much all the kinds of intimate things a couple might do together, but if you’re playing a more hardcore game, you can go even further.
40.『I can't take it anymore…!!』 ─Konna Ko ga Itara, Boku wa Mou...!!
The combination of this and such an incredibly straightforward catchphrase makes me laugh. Personally, though, I was much more hooked on Konboku Mahjong than this one. Its absolutely bonkers system—with rigged hands allowed, triple yakuman appearing without a second thought, and players throwing around scores of 100,000 or 200,000 points—is exactly what makes strip mahjong games so much fun.
If I had to name the strip mahjong game I got the most addicted to, though, it would be Happiness! Re:Lucks. I remember laughing when Jun-nyan kept trying to strip regardless of whether they won or lost.
41.『SHALL WE SAY GOODBYE TO THE WORLD WE'RE IN?』 ─Yume Miru Kusuri
The catchphrase is taken from the chorus of the theme song. Reading the title and catchphrase together, you start to realize—down an increasingly unsettling path—what “medicine” and “goodbye” are really supposed to mean.
The game has an impressive lineup, with Romio Tanaka handling the original concept and Kiyotaka Haimura providing the artwork. As you might expect, if you had to categorize it, it definitely falls into the “madness game” camp. The story revolves around the protagonist and heroine conspiring to torment the bully who has been tormenting them.
The game’s price skyrocketed for a while, but now that things are starting to settle down, I don’t think you’ll regret picking it up. The image here is my favorite CG.
42.『──Humanity ends next weekend.The last promise I'll make in this world.』 ─Shuumatsu no Sugoshikata ~The world is drawing to an W/end.~
A quintessential “sekai-kei” game, famous for the line, “Well then, everyone, have a nice end of the world.”
It’s easy to get distracted by the pastel-colored visuals and the premise of the world ending in an apocalypse, but this is actually a surprisingly niche game in that every single heroine wears glasses.
The game was made in a relatively short period, so it’s also fairly short. If it sounds interesting, you can probably give it a try without making too much of a commitment. Despite the denpa-game-ish atmosphere, it’s not the kind of story where everyone starts losing their minds trying to survive, so you can play it with a relatively peaceful state of mind.
Avocado Powers, on the other hand, was anything but peaceful after its release.
43.『Onii-chan! Let’s stay home together! ♪』 ─Hajimete no Orusuban
A work that has continued to make headlines in recent years, with a re-release as a Megastore bonus and even a release on Android.
The suggestiveness of both the catchphrase and the title, Orusuban, really shines here. The heroines’ profiles are amusing in their own right, with entries like “Height: Short” and “Weight: Light,” clearly designed to tug at the heartstrings of the big brothers who want to stay home alone with them.
Despite their innocent-looking faces, the girls were actually as “not virgins” at the beginning of the story, which understandably rubbed some of the big brothers of the time the wrong way and caused quite a stir. Still, they gradually came to be accepted, with a sequel, Hajimete no Oishasan, eventually being released.
You might think ZERO had settled on a consistent direction with those two games, but the fact that they went on to release a game like Itaike na Kanojo the following year is pretty incredible.
With “Hajimete no Orusuban” and “Hajimete no Oishasan” being included as bonuses with Megastore, will the phrase “You guys! Hurry up and graduate from staying home alone!!” come back to the internet after a mere ten-billion-year hiatus...?
— (@nyalra) 2015/12/26
44.『But love? Denied? Never!』─Iinchou wa Shounin Sezu! ~It Is a Next CHOice~
委員長は承認せず! ~ It Is a Next CHOice ~amzn.to
Once again, this is a clever work where the title and catchphrase together give you a pretty good idea of what kind of game you’re in for.
The actual content is fairly harmless and inoffensive, but when you’re tired, sometimes that’s exactly what you need. There’s also a side character named Saraba Atsuki, a pun on Basara Nekki, and I couldn’t help but smile and think, “This kind of inexplicable parody is exactly what makes eroge so much fun.”
45.『From the first snow to the blooming cherryblossoms... Congratulations.』 ─Hatsuyuki Sakura
A game that was voted the Best Eroge of 2012. The heroines all have distinct personalities (though personally, I’ve never been a fan of heroines who speak in masculine language), and I especially liked that the protagonist isn’t the usual bland, featureless type. He’s a delinquent who skips school, spends his days drowning himself in alcohol, and has an active sex drive to boot, which kept things from getting boring.
The way the mysteries scattered throughout the early stages are gradually unraveled one after another is truly impressive.
The central theme of the game is “graduation,” and the catchphrase, “From the first snow to the cherry blossoms, congratulations on your graduation,” is absolutely perfect, taking into account the protagonist’s name, Hatsuyuki, and the heroine’s name, Sakura. I never managed to graduate from university myself, though...
The writer, Yu Nisima, also incorporated some fresh ideas into the scenario of Majo Koi Nikki, showing an ambition to move beyond the usual “cute girls standing around and talking” visual-novel formula. His later work, Koi × Shin Ai Kanojo, took the twists a little too far and divided opinion, but I want to support his willingness to try new things in a bishoujo-game industry that has become increasingly formulaic.
46.『What kind of dream will you have? This is a tale of a sweet, blissful nightmare.』 ─Hapymaher -Fragmentation Dream-
A work based on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, though it’s arguably better known for being an “imouto game.” The catchphrase is stylish in its own right, and the contradiction of being “sweet and happy, yet a bad dream” reveals that Hapymaher is a coined term combining “Happy” and “Nightmare.”
The FD is exceptionally well made, to the point where you could almost say the original game and its FD together constitute a single complete work. Perhaps it’s a reflection of the artist’s tastes, but all the heroines are extremely busty, so fans of that sort of thing are more than well catered for. Ironically, though, the most popular heroine was Maia-chan (the little sister character shown in the image above), who is the only one with a more age-appropriate figure.
I was extremely satisfied with the way the story gradually blurs the distinction between dreams and reality, as well as the scenarios involving Maia.
・Catchphrases That Convey the Heroines’ Love
47.『I’ll give you what “she” can’t.』 ─Junjou Sex Friend
I left out an image because pretty much any screenshot from this game would be risky. I love that the catchphrase feels like an answer to Koibito Doushi de Suru Koto Zenbu
The contradiction of combining “pure-hearted” with “sex friend” is certainly a bold choice. This is a work by the doujin circle Yoru no Hitsuji, known for titles such as Soushisouai Lolita.
48.『May my lament reach my beloved.』 ─Shoujo to Sekai to Okashi no Ken ~Route of Nana~
A doujin game by the much-talked-about “Shiritsu Sakuranbo Shougakkou.” I always found the tagline “Shiritsu Sakuranbo Shougakkou presents a full-fledged story” wonderfully surreal.
I love the contrast between the cute art style, the ominous catchphrase, and the weighty story. And of course, when it comes to this circle, the cuteness of the characters is a given.
49.『Maria… Is this friendship? Or is it love?』 ─Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru ~Futari no Elder~
処女はお姉さまに恋してる 2人のエルダー 初回限定版amzn.to
This catchphrase is downright unfair to anyone who grew up with Maria-sama ga Miteru. “A tree-lined avenue where young ladies gather,” “the cross,” “the statue of Mary”... You can feel the influence of Oyuki Konno in every one of them.
It’s a cross-dressing-protagonist game, but the heroines recognize the protagonist as a woman, and watching them struggle with their feelings as a forbidden love is exactly what makes it a yuri game. You can experience something similar in Tsuki ni Yorisou Otome no Sahou, too.
The lyrics to the OP, “Underhanded Girl,” are also incredibly delicate and unabashedly yuri. The paired lines, “Silver hair swaying, whispering, ‘You’re an important friend to me,’” and “Red lips touching, chirping, ‘I hate liars more than anything,’” are enough to make me go, “Whoa...” (My vocabulary completely evaporates.)
50.『I fell in love with my sister, she fell in love too, and we fell in love together.』 ─Astraythem
It makes it abundantly clear that this is an older-sister game. I appreciate how straightforward the description of the supporting character is: “She’s not a heroine, so you can’t pursue her. Sorry.”
The story unfolds across three different eras, gradually exploring the protagonist’s relationship with his big sister, in a structure somewhat reminiscent of Kamen Rider Kiva. The phrase, “—This is a story of unwavering love that remains unchanged even across time,” really conveys the epic scale of the story.
You can stray toward the sub-heroines if you want, but really, you should play this one with your big sister as your one and only focus.
51.『So we won’t drift apart, so we won’t be swept away… Hold on tight.』 ─Mizuiro
みずいろ【復刻版 FFP仕様】 AFRB-009amzn.to
A catchphrase that quotes lyrics from Mizuiro, famous for characters like Yakama Shindo and the Satellite Cannon. Thanks to writer Tomo Kataoka’s particular dedication to childhood-friend heroines, this is a game where the childhood-friend heroine gets a lot of love, and it’s one of Nekoneko Soft’s representative titles.
This catchphrase was also carried over into Sumire, Nekoneko Soft’s 15th-anniversary title. The protagonist of Sumire is also named Ken-chan—the same full name as the protagonist of Mizuiro. They’re different people, though.
As you’d expect from an anniversary title by Nekoneko Soft, a company that was already famously generous with its extras, Sumire is packed with content. Not only can you play demos of several of their previous titles, but you can actually play an entire route from Mizuiro.
The bonus mode, where you can chat with heroines from their previous games, is just as extravagant. They even prepared a conversation with Hiromi Satō.
There are, of course, plenty of conversations that will make Nekoneko Soft fans grin knowingly. In a sense, it’s a bonus feature that tests just how much you really know about the company and its games.
This is already getting ridiculously long, so I’d like to write a separate article about Nekoneko Soft someday. According to Overflow’s radio show, they’ve apparently withdrawn from Sofurin by now, but I wonder if they’ll release anything new. I hope they’ll continue their activities in the future.
52.『Listen, Sill. I’m going to be king! I’ll have everything! I’ll become an absolute ruler, free to do whatever I want—this, that, and everything in between!』 ─Kichikuou Rance
It’s Rance through and through, and for fans who love the main series, you couldn’t ask for a more exciting catchphrase. At first glance, it just sounds like Rance being selfish, but Shizuka was actually the reason Rance became the King of Leazas in the first place, so even from this line, you can imagine Rance happily telling Sill about his dreams.
This undisputed masterpiece swept the rankings in eroge magazines at the time, and now you can play it for free through the AliceSoft Archives. Talk about generous.
I could write 23 articles and still not have enough room to talk about the Rance series, so I’ll leave that for another time. But there’s absolutely no reason not to give this one a try, especially since it’s free. The quality is that good. In fact, this game was so ridiculously impressive that AliceSoft was considered to be struggling until Daiakuji came out...
53.『Let the chime of love ring once more── 』 ─Pastel Chime Continue
ぱすてるチャイムContinue ぱすチャC++ 同梱版amzn.to
A beautiful catchphrase that perfectly complements the title. I seem to remember there being a heroine who was the reincarnation of a character from the previous game who had died ten years earlier, yet was somehow over 18. Temporal distortions like that are an everyday occurrence in the eroge world.
And you gotta love it when an arrangement of the OP starts playing near the end...
54.『Even so… will you let me protect you?』 ─Kikaijikake no Eve ~Dea Ex Machina~
The catchphrase is taken from the lyrics of the OP. You can really feel the heroine’s devotion in the way she, despite her unique position as a mechanical being, desperately wants to protect the protagonist.
This is another game that holds a special place in my heart. I hope robot heroines will remain an eternal fascination for otaku everywhere. The actual premise is something you’d never guess from the title or packaging—developing sex toys—but the sheer intensity of the story as it gradually builds toward its revolutionary climax is something to behold.
The game also puts a lot of effort into its SF elements, and you can really appreciate how well the writer’s extensive knowledge is put to use. I especially love the early part where the protagonist’s partner, who originally existed solely as an AI, obtains an adorable body and becomes a heroine.
55.『Little bro (nii-san), hurry up and come over♪』 ─D.C. II ~Da Capo II~
D.C.II ~ダ・カーポII ~ ご入学ご卒業セットamzn.to
Somehow, this catchphrase is just unfair. It looks simple at first glance, but I think it was carefully crafted with a deep understanding of exactly what would grab an otaku’s heart.
The Da Capo series was rerun on Kids Station so often that I’m sure plenty of kids accidentally became otaku after casually leaving it on in the background.
There are no ugly girls on Hatsunejima!
・My Personal Favorite Catchphrases
I had a hard time deciding how to categorize these, so I’m just lumping them together as a miscellaneous, genre-free collection.
56.『In a world without miracles, the girls find a gentle hope…』 ─Aster
A masterpiece built around the concept of “Even if no miracle were to happen,” depicting a complicated web of relationships that unfolds from a single traffic accident. It’s a nakige overflowing with the sadness of a world where convenient miracles simply don’t happen. And that’s exactly what makes it so good.
The OP, “Futatsume no Sora,” is a fantastic song that perfectly captures the feelings of the twin heroines. I loved pretty much everything about the game, aside from how incredibly unpleasant the protagonist’s male friend was.
57.『A story of a town not found on any map, sights not found in any guide, and events absent from any record──』 ─Bengarachou Hakubutsushi
A work that fully showcases the distinctive quirks that Liar-soft is known for. For starters, its old-school visual novel presentation, with the screen covered in text, is already enough to make it an acquired taste. On top of that, unlike your typical eroge, the writer’s particular style makes the prose unusually close to modern literature, so you really need to take your time and settle in if you want it to sink in. Once it clicks with you, though, it’s a wonderfully satisfying read.
Its nostalgic, distinctly Japanese setting is outstanding, and it’s the kind of atmosphere that could only be conveyed through this deliberately elaborate writing style. I’d recommend it to someone who’s already familiar with eroge and Liar-soft as a sort of, “Hey, they make stuff like this, too.”
58.『The girl smelled of rotting fruit.』 －Kusarihime ~jamais vu~
Liar-soft Selection 01 腐り姫~euthanasia~amzn.to
A memorable work in many ways, especially when paired with Saya no Uta.
I’ve talked about Kusarihime so many times on Twitter that I’m tired of going over it, so I’ll leave it at that. It’s currently on sale in various places and can be bought for an absurdly low price—far cheaper than I ever would have imagined possible at one point—so if you’re on the fence, I’d say it’s worth picking up.
59.『Shall we talk about the past? Of memories from the distant future…』 ─Suigetsu
Speaking of supernatural-themed works. This one is particularly remembered for Yuki, but I like Nanami as well. When I heard “Mayoiga” mentioned in this season’s anime, this was the first thing that came to mind.
Suigetsu is a game where atmosphere is basically everything, and that comes through vividly in the catchphrase as well. Even people who have never played it can’t help but picture the nostalgic atmosphere of the Japanese countryside.
There’s a heroine who is considered one of the “Big Three Most Unnecessary Glasses Heroines” in certain circles, and I have to admit that I’m not particularly fond of that timid, meek glasses-girl archetype either.
Come to think of it, Suigetsu II was released as well, but aside from when it was first announced, it barely seemed to generate any buzz at all.
60.『The shining moon, the burning sun. They can never coexist…』 ―Tsukikagerou
月陽炎 ~つきかげろう~ DVD editionamzn.to
A ridiculously cool catchphrase for a game with such a cute art style. When I hear “shrine maiden” in the context of eroge, titles like Tsukikagerou, Yuibashi, and Meguri, Hitohira. still immediately come to mind.
For better or worse, I think this is a work that really captures the atmosphere of the otaku scene in the early 2000s.
The OP is a classic that pretty much every eroge fan has heard at least once, but interestingly enough, Marie has actually released a cover of it relatively recently.
“If being born into this world is a sin, then are the feelings we have for one another also a sin?”
ALcot Vocal collection. Vol.3 Sistersamzn.to
61.『──Time is both the kindest and the cruelest thing...It heals the wounds in my heart, but steals away my love for you.』 ─Kimi ga Nozomu Eien
A catchphrase that perfectly encapsulates everything about this game. When a title is this famous, there’s really nothing left to say. I like the “Mitsuki slave ending.”
A grade-schooler who played Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: “I thought it would be awful if my girlfriend got hit by a car.”
— (@nyalra) 2015/3/17
62.『Do you want to know my secret? Will you still love me after you do?』 ─Suisenka
The original artist is Sapporo Momoko. I chose this one less because of the catchphrase itself and more because the extremely minimalist advertising banner that simply said “Senzure.” became so famous that I was surprised to discover the actual catchphrase was something much more elaborate and meaningful.
The fact that we still haven’t seen an advertising banner that became more talked-about than “Senzure.” is probably a sign that, from a marketing perspective, it was a resounding success.
63.『──God, I have one wish to ask of you. Just this once.』 ─Period Sweet Drops
ピリオド +ピリオド sweet drops 新入生歓迎セット (ピリオド同梱版パッケージ)amzn.to
Looking at it now, the art style feels like a midpoint in Ooyari’s artistic evolution. It’s also a rather unusual game in that its theme song is performed by a male vocalist from a mainstream band. The result is a refreshing song that, in a good way, doesn’t feel like an eroge song at all. Apparently, Ooyari himself liked the band and arranged the collaboration.
Naturally, given that it’s an Ooyari's game, every CG is beautifully drawn. That said, considering Littlewitch had a history of adding unique twists to its game systems, I actually found it refreshing that this one was simply a straightforward visual novel.
64.『Please don't split heaven in two…』 ─planetarian ~Chiisana Hoshi no Yume~
planetarian~ちいさなほしのゆめ~ HDエディションamzn.to
A rather mysterious work, considering it has only now been announced for an anime adaptation. Apparently, it was the project Yuuichi Suzumoto brought to Key when he first joined the company. After this work was announced, Suzumoto fell into a creative slump and eventually left the company. Even so, the Kotomi scenario he wrote for CLANNAD during that slump was highly acclaimed, so he clearly still had plenty of talent left in him.
“Please don’t divide Heaven into two” is a line from the game itself. It carries the idea that Heaven shouldn’t be divided between humans and robots, because a robot’s joy comes from serving humanity. I remember absolutely breaking down and crying my eyes out during the scene where this line is used.
65.『We’ll meet again beneath the digital sky.』 ─BALDR SKY Dive1
BALDR SKY Dive1“LostMemory" 初回版amzn.to
I had been following the BALDR series for years, so I practically jumped for joy when this game was announced. Otaku are hopelessly weak to the word “cyber.”
It’s one of the defining titles of 2009, so I’ll spare you a detailed explanation. But BALDR is the only eroge series that ever got me so hooked on the gameplay that I actually went out of my way to get a PS3 controller just to play it. Even today, I’d say it’s probably one of the greatest eroge ever made that actually demands action from the player.
66.『──This is no hero's tale.』 ─Full Metal Daemon Muramasa
Muramasa was also released in 2009, just like BALDR SKY. That year was absolutely on another level.
Early on, the game suddenly hits you with the line, “This is no hero's tale,” in huge letters, and I still remember the excitement I felt when I eventually understood what those words really meant.
The game is still going strong, too. It was re-released again this year as a Windows 10-compatible version, and apparently an official spin-off based on fan-created works is also scheduled to be distributed for free. That’s a pretty good indication of how enduring its popularity remains.
The writer, Ittetsu Narahara, was actually a practitioner of Japanese swordsmanship himself, which is just one more thing that makes him such an extraordinary person. A completely sane, ordinary person could never make something like this.
The demo is already genuinely incredible, so start there and give it a try.
67.『A single sword in hand, five men to fell… In the Devil City of Shanghai, a sword cries out for vengeance.』 ─Kikokugai - The Cyber Slayer
A forceful catchphrase that leaves no room for argument. Among Gen Urobuchi’s works, this one always felt somewhat overshadowed, but perhaps Ruili’s cuteness got a bit of a reevaluation thanks to Nitroplus Blasterz. I was surprised to learn that in the full-voice version, she’s voiced by Yukari Tamura.
The very concept of the genre—“cyberpunk wuxia”—is fascinating in itself. This is a game that’s Urobuchi through and through, so I’d definitely recommend it to anyone looking for that particular flavor.
—I am the warrior who stakes everything on this one blade.
68.『This is a story about 'for example,' you see. What we are telling you is, for example, just such a fairy tale.』─Ore-tachi ni Tsubasa wa Nai
俺たちに翼はない (限定版) (ドラマCD、YFBリストバンド 同梱) - PS3amzn.to
The artwork changes with every port, so you can really see how Nishimata’s art style evolved over the years. I love this game so much that, ironically, I don’t really have much to say about it... Honestly, Ou Jakson is a god.
Incidentally, my favorite character in Sore wa Maichiru Sakura no You ni is Komachi Yukimura, while my favorite in Ore-tachi ni Tsubasa wa Nai is Naru Otori. Both of them have a particular kind of humor and comedic rhythm that only Jakson could write, which makes it impossible to even look for other heroines with a similar vibe. That’s the downside.
・Catchphrases That Feel Like Eroge
Of course, when you think of eroge, you think of sex. It’s such a fundamental part of the genre that many people probably forget about it. Naturally, even the catchphrases for nukige that put eroticism front and center can be surprisingly clever.
Up until now, I’ve mostly gone with choices that were easy for eroge fans and the general audience alike to relate to—safe, crowd-pleasing picks. But honestly, I think this is where the real fun begins.
69.『Beyond the tunnel lay a village of cross-dressers!』 ─Josou Sanmyaku
I don’t even know where to begin with this one. Even Yasunari Kawabata could never have imagined that “once you pass through the tunnel, you arrive at a village inhabited entirely by cross-dressing boys.” Somehow, this title even managed to win an award for being a noteworthy release at the Moe Game Awards.
It also took the Silver Prize in the low-price category, so as a nukige, it offers an exceptionally good bang for your buck.
70.『“Let all life return to being otokonoko.”』 ─Josou Kaikyou
“As I keep insisting, men and otokonoko can have sex” ADV—a genre that is truly one of a kind. Since Josou Sanmyaku won the Noteworthy Award, I imagine they twisted the catchphrase every which way in search of an even greater impact. At this point, it somehow comes full circle and actually sounds kind of badass.
I absolutely love the games from Nounai Kanojo, too.
71.『Cross-dressing boys, futanari, forbidden love between men… The final frontier at the edge of the world. They call it the Garden of Slaughter.』 ─Tosatsu no Sono
Oh, this one is just perfect. A completely nonsensical catchphrase, a title that suggests a weighty story in stark contrast, and an incredibly cool package design. I almost feel like I wrote this entire article just for this game to exist.
The synopsis is stylish, too:
At a school in the far north, there lived a strange group hidden deep within its depths.
A group of outcasts, poisonous even among poison, misfits stained by a transgression beyond the bounds of understanding.
This is a hymn and a requiem dedicated to those girls—the heroines.
Hoping that, someday, their feelings will be remembered, we entrust this record to generations yet to come.
Their struggles, which once shone so brilliantly; their fleeting yet beautiful words spoken from the heart; the way they lived.
72.『I can't anymore… I can't go back… ❤』 ─Josou Shite Ojou-sama Gakkou ni Sennyuu Shiyou to Shitara, Machigaete Tonari no Teihen Danshikou ni Haitteshimatta Boku
If I were you, I’d turn back right now. Trust me, it’s for your own good.
73.『Onii-chan, will you make me your slave?』─Mirai ni Kiss o -Kiss the Future-
Catchphrase Bait-and-Switch Award. The artwork is by none other than Misakura Nankotsu, with Masaki Motonaga handling the scenario.
Honestly, the heroines’ slave elements—or even the main premise itself—are basically just an afterthought. They even went so far as to prepare separate lyrics for a short version of the ending theme, specifically so that the normal route would give the impression of an ordinary romance game. Listening to it after clearing the game, it’s hilarious how drastically the tone shifts between the first and second verses.
The first verse has lyrics like, “Your breathing, the warmth of your skin...” making it sound like a pure romance game. But from the second verse onward, the lyrics suddenly get way too intelligent: “If I could evolve beyond an automaton into a human being and make my way to you,” followed by, “There is no need to speak to people and a world that are already perishing.” The IQ suddenly shoots through the roof. Kiss the Future is a masterpiece.
The final chapter completely abandons the cheerful atmosphere of the earlier parts and suddenly becomes a serious story where the characters essentially serve as mouthpieces for Masaki Motonaga’s own ideas. Anyone who bought this expecting nothing more than an erotic training game will be filtered out by that tonal shift.
Put simply, it’s a meta story in which the heroines become aware that they are characters in an eroge. Add Motonaga’s own philosophical ideas to that, and you get something absolutely bonkers.
The more eroge you’ve played, the more there is here to make you think. It’s a work with such a strong authorial voice that I’m sure there’s something waiting for you on the other side of the credits. It’s that good—even I, who was talking about cross-dressing-boy games just a moment ago, suddenly find myself writing an essay about it.
74.『Until the day you die… you’re my plaything!!』 ─Kazama Mana
A spin-off of sorts centered around Mana Kazama, the main heroine of Yakin Byoutou Ni. The title is a pun combining “aigangu” (“pet” or “to be cherished”) with Kazama Mana’s name. The previous game had similarly clever wordplay with the title Ren no Koi, which focused exclusively on the heroine Ren Nanase.
I’d better stop there, though. Talking about Yakin Byoutou in any more detail would probably ruin the appetite of anyone reading this over a meal.
Seriously, though, how did this end up becoming a pachislot game? Yakin Byoutou and Satsuriku no Django are the two great mysteries of my life when it comes to “Why on earth did this become a pachislot?”
75.『The sweet and steamy “Sinful Life” begins!』 ─Nurse ni Omakase
Nasu Oma. The terrible pun “Nyūin Seikatsu” (“Inpatient Life”) is absolutely hilarious.
For anyone who’s played it, I imagine just seeing these four would be enough to trigger an instant Pavlovian response. To me, they look less like ordinary heroines and more like succubi born to drain every last drop of semen from the men around them.
The urethral catheter scene was so painful-looking that it honestly traumatized me.
76.『How about some warm “Mama Love”?』 ─Mama Love
Don't mistake this for just another mother-son incest game. The scenario was written by none other than Fumiaki Maruto. The OP is hardly what you’d call well-sung, yet somehow it’s incredibly addictive. Mama...
One of Mama love’s defining features is the way canned laughter and applause are inserted throughout the game. It’s basically the eroge equivalent of Full House. As someone who loved Full House enough to collect the entire DVD set, this was absolutely my kind of game.
With the recent surge in otaku who seek a strong maternal presence in their heroines, I have a feeling this one might be due for a revival. The Most Forbidden Love in the World, another masterpiece with Fumiaki Maruto on scenario duties, has a similar appeal.
77.『That day, Tokyo will be violated…』 ─Kansen 3 ~Shuto Houkai~
Speaking of “Tokyo,” there’s a curious parallel with another title numbered 3: Shin Megami Tensei III has the undeniably badass catchphrase, “Tokyo died, and I was born.” Among otaku, I think Kansen 3 occupies the eroge equivalent of that position.
Okay, that’s a joke. But “Tokyo will be violated…” is undeniably grand and cool in its own way. No wonder the capital collapses.
78.『Masturbation desu! Anal desu! If you don't do as I say, I'll kill you, desu!』 ─Byouin Sodom
That legendary Gakuen Sodom has returned with an incredibly direct catchphrase!
Gakuen Sodom was one of the major reasons I lost interest in vanilla romance-focused games, so naturally, I was counting down the days until this one came out.
The premise involves terrorists taking over a hospital and subjecting the patients and doctors to abuse after threatening them. And, just like Gakuen Sodom, the time-limit system is back: if you take too long agonizing over your choices, time runs out and the terrorists lose their temper. Thanks to this system, Sakura Wars almost feels like an eroge about sexual violence.
The downside is that the terrorists are made a little too comedic, constantly ending their lines with “-desu!” I wonder if, in this day and age, it’s simply too difficult to create an antagonist like Haida again—someone who, despite being the male lead in the sexual scenes, was still an incredibly charismatic character.
79.『Kill the men! Rape the women! That's what we orcs do!』 ─JK to Orc Heidan ~Aku Buta Oni ni Ryougyaku Sareta Seijo Gakuen
JKとオーク兵団 ~悪豚鬼に凌虐された聖女学園~amzn.to
This one also has an absolutely forceful quality to it. The story is about a peaceful girls’ academy being transformed into a garden of sexual depravity when an army of orcs suddenly emerges from the mist and subjects the students to all manner of abuse. It takes the recent trend of “Actually, orcs are good guys” and rejects it outright.
Incidentally, in the anime adaptation, these orcs communicate entirely through subtitles.
80.『Just look at us now.』 ─Mahou Shoujo Ai San
A true legend. In a sense, it’s probably the most widely circulated catchphrase of them all, so I saved it for last.
I was a huge fan of Taimanin, so naturally I was also a big fan of Mahou Shoujo Ai. That’s why I was genuinely shocked when this happened at the time of its release. If you’re unfamiliar with the story, look it up. It’s practically an incident that came to symbolize the eroge industry itself.
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