Dating Sims Get Real
- Thread starter Leigh Alexander
- Start date
Arrgh, I like the fact that The Escapist is willing to give column inches to fringe gaming developments but all I see here is that some crank has made a dating sim, bordering on 'vore', to act as her personal soapbox. I'm struggling to see the worth in this; it's mutton dressed as delusional lamb.
Dating sims unrealistic? What are you talking about? In my town, large groups of improbably attractive, near identical girls with wacky hair colors sit around waiting for an overweight anime fan with low self esteem to fight over. It's a local thing, I guess...
What in the hell have I just read.
Oh, lesbian BDSM enthusiasts, and a game they made about lesbian BDSM.
Good, respectful, interesting, and intelligent commentary.
Oh, lesbian BDSM enthusiasts, and a game they made about lesbian BDSM.
Good, respectful, interesting, and intelligent commentary.
I love sim-date elements in my games, like being able to form friendships and romances in Dragon Age, because they tend to provide a connection to the world of the game beyond vague morality systems and allow players that really like good characterisation to delve further into the stories of their companions. I like it as a feature in a larger game, or even as a driving force in a game, but I don't think I could play a game that's purely sim-date.
I agree and disagree with this article. I agree that the conventional Japanese sim-date game is unrealistic, but I don't think this is a bad thing. I think they're the way they are because of the genre they're in, and I'd be surprised if many of them tried to convince the player otherwise. They're vague and generic because they're trying to be as widely appealing as possible. It'd be like arguing against a racing game because it has racing. (I know, simulation game, but hey, so is Sims, 'simulations' stopped realistic a long time ago.) Also to be fair, it's a lot easier to create a text based game than one with artwork/video/visuals attached to it.
I haven't played this person's sim-date game but it doesn't sound as grand as the article tries to make it out to be. It sounds like an interactive diary of a specific person, not a date simulator. I imagine it's easy just to paraphrase your own specific experience and run that through inform 7. That doesn't mean you've created a deep and meaningful experience for others, because (from that sounds of it) it's not really their experience, just a retelling of yours.
Sounds like elaborate fanfiction rather than an exploration of a relationship, but once again, I haven't played the game.
I agree and disagree with this article. I agree that the conventional Japanese sim-date game is unrealistic, but I don't think this is a bad thing. I think they're the way they are because of the genre they're in, and I'd be surprised if many of them tried to convince the player otherwise. They're vague and generic because they're trying to be as widely appealing as possible. It'd be like arguing against a racing game because it has racing. (I know, simulation game, but hey, so is Sims, 'simulations' stopped realistic a long time ago.) Also to be fair, it's a lot easier to create a text based game than one with artwork/video/visuals attached to it.
I haven't played this person's sim-date game but it doesn't sound as grand as the article tries to make it out to be. It sounds like an interactive diary of a specific person, not a date simulator. I imagine it's easy just to paraphrase your own specific experience and run that through inform 7. That doesn't mean you've created a deep and meaningful experience for others, because (from that sounds of it) it's not really their experience, just a retelling of yours.
Sounds like elaborate fanfiction rather than an exploration of a relationship, but once again, I haven't played the game.
Interesting article, nice text-based game. Suprisingly liked it. Didn't thought Kinky-Sci-Fi-Lesbian-Powerplay would be intersting.
I have to disagree with the youtube clip. If a male pins a woman to the ground and starts trying to stab her with a kitchen knife is that rape? Yeah, didn't think so. I think we need to get over our obsession with that word.
I liked it.
Not in a 'oh hey this is a turn on!' way, but in a 'Heh, nice way of inverting a lot of dating sim roles to show a point of how bad they can get' way.
It's meta.
Not in a 'oh hey this is a turn on!' way, but in a 'Heh, nice way of inverting a lot of dating sim roles to show a point of how bad they can get' way.
It's meta.
I get a particular enjoyment out of Dating Sims. Even the relationship building in Harvest Moon has always tickled my fancy... and I think it's because I didn't really date before getting married. My wife and I went on 2 dates. We spent all our time together, but we never really went out on dates.
That being said. I'd love to see some japanese dating sims translated, erotic or not, (Though, I'd love me some erotics). I'd probably even give this "Anne" person's D-Sim(tm) a try as well, if she branched out into other genres. Mark me down as "not my thing" concerning the one mentioned in the article, though.
On a side note, I never played Other M, so I watched the scene... and my wife asked me a simple question... this is how the conversation played out
Why doesn't she shoot it's head off?
To which I replied:
... Shut up! That's why! This was apparently a very bad game.
To which she screamed (At the screen, not me):
Fuck the god damn tail! Shoot its freaking head off!
I proceeded to laugh
That being said. I'd love to see some japanese dating sims translated, erotic or not, (Though, I'd love me some erotics). I'd probably even give this "Anne" person's D-Sim(tm) a try as well, if she branched out into other genres. Mark me down as "not my thing" concerning the one mentioned in the article, though.
On a side note, I never played Other M, so I watched the scene... and my wife asked me a simple question... this is how the conversation played out
Why doesn't she shoot it's head off?
To which I replied:
... Shut up! That's why! This was apparently a very bad game.
To which she screamed (At the screen, not me):
Fuck the god damn tail! Shoot its freaking head off!
I proceeded to laugh
An interesting perspective. And I'm not wholly surprised that the game in question has something to do with Anna. It totally fits with her other games, though nothing I've played has been quite that explicit.
As for dating games all tending towards harems, that seems true enough. Though this also seems to extend to wider aspects of Japanese culture, since there's also a lot of harem animes around too.
And as far as the games go it doesn't change if you find one that takes on the female role. The overall game design seems to remain very similar.
Still, taking on interpersonal relationships of any kind in computer game form seems to be a really difficult problem. (Not that it helps if the designers don't understand relationships that well.)
I don't just mean romantic or sexual relationships here. ANY relationship, be it friends, work colleagues or what have you tends to be incredibly shallow and limited in games. It's not an area they do well.
Is that a limitation in the technology? Or a lack of understanding among game designers? Or... Perhaps a little of both.
As for dating games all tending towards harems, that seems true enough. Though this also seems to extend to wider aspects of Japanese culture, since there's also a lot of harem animes around too.
And as far as the games go it doesn't change if you find one that takes on the female role. The overall game design seems to remain very similar.
Still, taking on interpersonal relationships of any kind in computer game form seems to be a really difficult problem. (Not that it helps if the designers don't understand relationships that well.)
I don't just mean romantic or sexual relationships here. ANY relationship, be it friends, work colleagues or what have you tends to be incredibly shallow and limited in games. It's not an area they do well.
Is that a limitation in the technology? Or a lack of understanding among game designers? Or... Perhaps a little of both.
Wait just a second here.
Yes, a lot of dating games are awful at portraying realistic relationships, but that's because generally they're made as straight out porn.
Also, I find it quite strange that she even found people to argue with about Other M. Everyone hated that.
I'm sorry, but this is the internet, land of the most damn broad sexuality of all time.
Yes, a lot of dating games are awful at portraying realistic relationships, but that's because generally they're made as straight out porn.
Also, I find it quite strange that she even found people to argue with about Other M. Everyone hated that.
I've never had a girlfriend or been on a date. I honestly don't really care or have any patience and/or understanding of relationships. I can't wrap my head around why anyone in their right mind would be into BDSM as more than just a roleplaying thing in the bedroom, bleeding into their actual lives. I just don't get any of it.
The amount of craps I do not give about this game are so numerous they could fill a swimming pool. It's so not for me, that I probably shouldn't have bothered commenting.
The amount of craps I do not give about this game are so numerous they could fill a swimming pool. It's so not for me, that I probably shouldn't have bothered commenting.
Kudo's for your avatar :3IndianaJonny said:
Redirecting to the topic
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Redirection succesfull
I'm not sure what to think of this and maybe it's for the best if I just -don't- think about it at all.
I mean, sure predatory instincts can play parts in such activities as depicted in the article and some people are indeed attracted by such things. Well let them. It ain't my thing so I'll just back away slowly and make no sudden moves to prevent my arms from beeing bitten off.
Well this was certainly an interesting read. I was expecting a happier ending than that, one that did not involve amputations of any sort. But it was interesting, and certainly well written. I actually liked Anni's personality, the madness was rather enticing in some ways. But I wouldn't want to be in that sort of position. Still, for what it's worth, it certainly is an original take on a dating sim, even if there wasn't much of a date in it.
Haha, oh my goodness, that was really something. I'm not sure I as the player really had enough information to intuit the solution to that situation, and I don't mind at all. (Or perhaps there's more than the one ending, but I'll leave that to other people. The one I got was, umm, sufficient.)
But if that's what happens when Dating Sims Get Real, I gotta say, I'm glad I'm off the market.
I'm always confused by the term "dating sim" applied to Visual Novels, or text-based CYOA games like this one here.
To me, dating sim always implied that the game actually has simulation elements, like in The Sims, with all those stats, and scoring systems, or constantly branching dialogue trees like in Bioware's stuff.
But these things that people actually CALL the "dating sim" genre, are some of the LEAST interactive pieces of interactive fiction, so much, that I wouldn't even call them video games.
It gets especially ridiculous with VNs like ef, Fate/Stay Night, or Clannad, that read like long-ass novels, with one interactive option per hour where choosing the wrong one means game over, and choosing the right one means that you are allowed to read the rest of the story. What an elaborate "simulation".
For the record, I love the Visual Novel medium, and even this CYOA thing here is... interesting, assuming that you are into it's themes, I just don't like how this name gives the entirely wrong impresion about them.
To me, dating sim always implied that the game actually has simulation elements, like in The Sims, with all those stats, and scoring systems, or constantly branching dialogue trees like in Bioware's stuff.
But these things that people actually CALL the "dating sim" genre, are some of the LEAST interactive pieces of interactive fiction, so much, that I wouldn't even call them video games.
It gets especially ridiculous with VNs like ef, Fate/Stay Night, or Clannad, that read like long-ass novels, with one interactive option per hour where choosing the wrong one means game over, and choosing the right one means that you are allowed to read the rest of the story. What an elaborate "simulation".
For the record, I love the Visual Novel medium, and even this CYOA thing here is... interesting, assuming that you are into it's themes, I just don't like how this name gives the entirely wrong impresion about them.