iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

⚠️ Otome LIs checkpoint #otomesky show me your... 🌷 Last LI: Camu Einhart (Despera Drops) 🌷 LI who surpassed your expectations: Mikhail Ivanov (Christmas Otome) 🌷 Best LI this year: Harold Kim (Low Effort Romance) 🌷Most anticipated LI: Sergio Selvaggio (Love Spell: Written in the Stars)

Anime style drawing of a white man with shoulder length blond hair in a ponytail, reddish eyes and black rimmed glasses. He is wearing a white shirt, black bow tie, and gray and yellow sweater vest. He carries a gray backpack

Boy with longish blond hair and blue eyes standing in a restaurant dining room and scowling at the viewer

A man laying on a couch and loosening his tie. He has short light brown hair and light brown eyes and lots of freckles

Man with short blond hair and red eyes dressed all in black, glancing at something to the side

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Reply with "💜" and I'll give you a letter to list your 4 favorite characters I got C! Keeping with the otome theme as much as I can 🤭 it was surprisingly tough!

Casper, A Date With Death. He has pale skin, red eyes, and long white hair and wears a black outfit

Cameron, Trouble Comes Twice. He has pale skin and short red hair, wears sunglasses and a plain black tshirt

Clive Finley, Heart Fragment. He has pale skin, gold eyes, blond hair with hair clips, and wears a red hoodie with the hood pulled up, and a black and white striped shirt

Cinderella, Taisho x Alice. He has pale skin, grayish blue hair and blue eyes. He has a brown scarf tied around his head and a mole under his left eye

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

17. Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman Oh Thomas de Givras, you poor, sad, broken man 😌

Between Two Fires: An Epic Tale of Medieval Horror by Christopher Buehlman. A drawing of knight's armor with a skull in the helmet on a solid red background with the title in white text over it

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

How it feels to have forgotten Birushana FD released this week because you thought the base game was mid as hell

Squidward lifting his sunglasses briefly to look at something before going back to tanning

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

15. 100 Meters Excellent movie, although I might be biased because I love track 😊 rotoscoping always looks a little odd to me but some of the artistic choices in this movie are inspired and I loved the look overall. Togashi is my little meow meow

Movie poster for 100 Meters. The characters of Togashi, in a red track uniform, and Komiya, in a blue track uniform, run from the right side of the poster toward the left

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

QTP with a character that permanently changed your brain chemistry 😵‍💫 Lugus....the only poster boy and true route I will accept but damn did he make it worth it

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

14. MindMindMind (PC) You can date your anxiety (or not). I personally liked telling him to fuck off. chattercap.itch.io/mindmindmind

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 17/05/2026

13. Never Whistle at Night Enjoyable anthology collection. I was expecting more horror of the supernatural kind, but tbh the stories of mundane horribleness stuck with me more. For comparison's sake I read Ghostroots at the beginning of the year which has a similar vibe and I liked that one more

A book cover with flat 2D drawings of various plants and animals in bright colors with the title Never whistle at Night in white text at the center

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

⚠️ Otome checkpoint #otomesky Show me your... 🌷 all time favorite mc: Xani Green, Shunlin, Nanami Shiranui 🌿 prettiest mc: Olympia, Aureve, Cora West 🌷 overhated mc: HIBARI (I can't think of any other hated MCs that I don't also have a problem with 😅) 🌿 well written mc: Nora Lewis, FuChai, Selene

Olympia Soiree; Belle Automata; Speakeasy

Changeling; My Vow to My Liege; Snow White Ashes

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

⚠️ Otome checkpoint #otomesky show me your... 🌷 Last Game: Onigashima 🌼 Next Game: Despera Drops 🌹 Best Game you've played this year: Low Effort Romance 🌸 Most anticipated Game: Infinite Blue

Blue tinted illustration of a white-haired woman holding an oni mask to her face

Clip art of two coffee mugs and laptop with hearts and a banner reading Low Effort Romance

Key art for Despera Drops featuring the main cast

Key art for Infinite Blue featuring the main cast

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

10. Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun I wonder how many people let the title of this one turn them away 😂 I thought it was very good, turning from episodic to more over-arching plot with ease. I'd call it the edgy little brother of Natsume's Book of Friends

Key art poster for Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun anime. The protagonist Nene is in the center wearing a worried expression while being hugged by the other major characters Hanako and Kou.

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Ok I've done it. OP is about Lovesick, which I'm sure most people don't consider the OP but whatever. No repeats is pretty easy for me but ask me on another day and all my answers will probably be different 😂

About me: Otome
Fave Otome: Backstage Pass
Best Story: Psychedelica of the Black Butterfly
Fave Art Style: Snow White Ashes
Biggest Personal Impact: Re:Alistair
Best Overall Cast: Even if Tempest
Overhated: Lover Pretend
Underrated: Love Spell
Overrated: Piofiore
Turn My Brain Off: Period Cube
Best Route: Psychedelica of the Ashen Hawk
Fave Heroine: Heart Fragment
Fave LI: Blooming Panic
Best Soundtrack: JackJeanne
Best OP: 7Scarlet
Best ED: Cupid Parasite
Everyone Should Play: Low Effort Romance

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

9. Otome Daoshi (NSW) I keep hearing about how this game wasn't well-received initially and I def remember the lukewarm reception the loc announcement got, and haters gonna hate ig. The MC is an absolute gem and the game is hugely funny and enjoyable. Fight me.

Key art for Otome Daoshi Fighting For Love featuring the main cast

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

6. Hakuoki Sweet School Life I don't usually care for fandisks, but this one went in a fresh direction with an AU scenario + varied gameplay which made it stand apart. Plus it was just so fluffy and cute! I'm glad we finally got a loc after all these years

English language cover for Hakuoki Sweet School Life picturing the main cast

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

It's super late for the new year but I've got a new intro! This one is for otome, BL, and any kind of romance VN in between, I love them all!

Joseimuke intro template created by flarett. My personal intro reads "Hello, I'm Renee ans I've been playing various types of VNs for about 15 years now! Talk to me about indies!"

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

5. Men of Yoshiwara: Ohgiya Good grief how did they manage to make a VN about the red light district, with tons of suggestive scenes, about as interesting as watching paint dry? I played Kikuya too and I actually can't decide if either one was any better

Key art for the Men of Yoshiwara Ohgiya featuring the cast of LIs

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Did the 9 games thing. Games I played as child that probably shaped me and games I played later in life that changed my brain chemistry

Nine games list
- the House in Fata Morgana
- Sonic 3
- Professor Layton and the Curious Village
- Backstage Pass
- The World Ends With You
- Kingdom Hearts 2
- Norn9 Var Commons
- Blooming Panic
-Super Paper Mario

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

Finally got my SSL box! Excited to have something to play on my commute tomorrow and this will be the first console otome I've played since *checks calendar* ......Bad Apple Wars in Dec '24/Jan '25? 😬

Hakuoki SSL Nintendo Switch game box next to a stack of other otome game LE boxes: Code Realize Wintertide Miracles, Birushana, Norn9 Last Era, Sympathy Kiss, and 9RIP

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

As for the five year review- look at my little VN machine go!

Text reads: First five years with Nintendo Switch, with a grid of game box art beneath it

First five years with Nintendo Switch list of hours played for each game

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Lololol yes I did not touch my Switch for the entirety of 2025

White text on a red background that reads "Looks like you didn't have any data shared for 2025. However..."

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 25/12/2025

Otome game challenge complete! Huge thanks to @joanybaloney.bsky.social for doing these every year and making the retrospective a blast! (Link to template and list of categories below) #otome #2025otomechallenge

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 23/12/2025

I'm super late to the party but I finished my otome wrapped last night (was just waiting to finish up one more game to see if it would change anything 😅)

Otome wrapped year review, with boxes for games played, favorite LIs, side characters, MCs and overall game

Otome wrapped year review
- best plot twist: Lake of Voices Lu route
- most emotional: Divorce Chatroom bitter route
- best art style: Trail of Stars
- best soundtrack: Trail of Stars
- most underrated: Lost in Secular Love
- most replayable route: Christmas Otome Mikhail and Garret

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 10/12/2025

Show me a fictional character that altered your brain chemistry (Yes both of them 🤭)

Jacopo and Morgana from the House in Fata Morgana

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 22/10/2025

Been seeing some people post their otome backlogs and all I can say is lol. lmao. (This isn't even all of them)

List of games in my backlog
1. Ambition a Minuet in Power
2. Bunny Bond
3. Chou no Doku
4. Gilded Shadows
5. Homicipher
6. Lunar Maiden, Riverside Angel, and the Godlike Moment
7. Salty Hounds
8. Ten Trials of Babel
9. The Men of Yoshiwara Kikuya
10. The Men of Yoshiwara Ohgiya
11. Yukar From the Abyss
12. Perfumare
13. Moon Observatory Iris
14. Arcadia Fallen
15. Arcane Dice Wars
16. MindMindMind
17. I-Dolls
18. Momotarou
19. Autumn Spirit
20. Rewritten
21. The Boo-chelor
22. Ookami Okami
23. Infinite Blue
24. Moonlight Dialogue
25. My Love For You is Evermore

$List of games in my backlog pt 2 1. Battlefield Waltz 2. Hakuoki Sweet School Life 3. Sifting Thyme 4. Heart Fragment Books 3 and 4 5. Snow White Ashes 6. Unquiet Grey 7. Errant Kingdom 8. Day After Day 9. My Husband is a Stranger 10. Talents 11. Alaris 12. Despera Drops 13. A Marble's Muse 14. Arcade Spirits 15. Belle Automata 16. Cupid's Chatroom 17. The Silent Kingdom 18. Dual Chroma 19. Stand By Me 20. Made Marion 21. Princess Paradise 22. Fxxx Me Royally! 23. Demonheart 24. Bewitching Sinners 25. Diffraction$

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Btw I also like to bake and I made these cranberry orange loaves the other day for a bake sale. They were a pretty big hit 💜

Five small loaves of bread still in their pans

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 12/09/2025

I'm not generally huge on merch but I had to at least get something for my poor neglected man Adolphe 😂 thanks to @rjmercy.bsky.social for braving the crowds to get these 💜

My very poor photo of Otomate Summer Market merch: three can badges with Riku, Akaza, and Himuka from Olympia Soiree and acrylic stand of Adolphe from Shuuen no Virche

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 03/09/2025

I see this trend has already made it over from the other site since last night! Here's mine (all names in alt):

Absolute #1: xyx (Blooming Panic)
The husband: Lugus (Psychedelica of the Ashen Hawk
The pookie: Tenya (Hanakare)
Innocent/precious: Matthew (Backstage Pass)
The genius one: Zayne (LaDS)
The naughty one: Taiga (Variable Barricade)
Greenest green flag: Derek (Our Life)
Reddest red flag: Demento (Period Cube)
The prettiest: Grim (A Date With Death)
The yearner: Adrian (Trouble Comes Twice)
Unexpected: Mason (Hustle Cat
The quiet one: Zenn (Even if Tempest)
First otome love: Shiro (Re:Alistair)
Most recent otome love: Sergio (Love Spell Written in the Stars)
Hear me out: Nyargh (Meeting in the Flesh)
Give them a route please: Merle (Changeling)

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 28/08/2025

Feels like I've been treating myself every day since my bday 😂 I was surprised to find some otome out in the wild today

Nintendo Switch game cases for Neva and Despera Drops

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 26/08/2025

49. Neighborhood Story by Yazawa Ai Not as engrossing as her other work but Yazawa's character writing is always on point. Also had no idea Paradise Kiss is a spinoff of this? So cute seeing a snippet of Miwako's childhood

English cover for Neighborhood Story volume 1. The background is solid pink and pictures the protagonist Mikako posing in a green plaid dress with a matching umbrella from her own fashion line, Happy Berry

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 24/08/2025

I was 3 years old when this came out and I watched my brother play it for hours. The drowning music stresses me out to this day

Screen shot from Sonic the Hedgehog 2 showing the stage Chemical Plant Zone

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 12/08/2025

47. Emma by Jane Austen Re-read. Still one of my absolute favorites. I think Mr. Knightley was the catalyst for my love of emotionally constipated LIs 😂

Penguin Classics cover of the novel Emma. There is a painting of a pale woman with dark hair and eyes wearing a black period gown and red shawl

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

46. Lost in Secular Love (YETU Game) The bald monk otome game. The hair toggle is for cowards 😤

Header for Lost in Secular Love featuring MC QiYe. She has long purple hair with a golden flower ornament, pink eyes, and a pink hanfu

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

45. Persona 5 Royal A weight off my shoulders to finally finish (and plat) this. Overhyped online but the combat improvements from former games made for a smoother experience. And I'm sorry but the ransom note font on the menus is terrible and hard to read. Kasumi should have been a FeMC option

Header for Persona 5 Royal featuring the main cast

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

44. Thomas Was Alone (Mike Bithell) Tickled my puzzle game brain amidst me trying to plow through my limited gameplay visual novel backlog 😂 prescient story and it made me care about a group of rectangles

Header for the puzzle platformer game Thomas Was Alone featuring the MC Thomas, a short red rectangle on a black slope with a grey background

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

43. Sweat and Soap by Yamada Kintetsu Sweet, mature romance manga with a little bit of kink. Seems to have divisive reviews but I enjoyed it while ignoring the internet's opinions 😂

Cover for the English language volume one of Sweat and Soap manga

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

42. Persuasion by Jane Austen Re-read. I like the premise of a second chance rather than first love and it's a favorite of mine

Cover of Penguin Classics edition of Persuasion featuring a painting of three women in a sitting room wearing white period clothing

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

41. My Beloved [Cursed] Microwave (Altila) Otome Jam '25 entry. The LI is a microwave. It's short, and the development of the romance didn't draw me in very well. There are still a few good moments

Header for the otome visual novel My Beloved Microwave featuring the Microwave in question making various facial expressions on the window of its door

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

40. The Drifting Classroom by Umezzu Kazuo Horror manga from the godfather of the genre. Reading it in the present day makes it feel kinda silly and over the top but I can't imagine what it would have been like to read this in the 70s.

Cover for the English language omnibus volume one of the Drifting Classroom manga

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

39. Lake of Voices (GB Patch) Dark fantasy visual novel with just a hint of romance. "Choices matter" is a tag that gets used a lot for these types of games but this one really does make it feel like the choices directly impact what happens

Header for GB Patch's Lake of Voices visual novel featuring MC Kikka. She has tan skin and dark hair and wears black-colored medieval style clothes and armor

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

38. Cutie and the Beast by Azumi Yuhi Short and sweet. Bonus points for an unconventional LI

Cover for the English language edition volume one of Cutie and the Beast manga

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

37. Those Not-So-Sweet Boys by Nogiri Yoko Serviceable shojo romance. Endgame ship telegraphed from page 1. Was hoping for more delinquency but alas

Cover for the English language volume 1 edition of Those Not-So-Sweet Boys manga

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

36. Love at Fourteen by Mizutani Fuka Meandering slice of life romance that is exactly what it says on the tin. Nothing earth-shattering but an enjoyable series nonetheless

Cover for the English language volume 1 of Love at Fourteen manga

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aplainmourning | 🎮 Final Fantasy XV @aplainmourning.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

35. Princess Jellyfish by Higashimura Akiko It's been 84 years..... A shojosei staple for good reason. Idk if this is controversial but I didn't mind the ending, I thought it was perfectly in character for Tsukimi. Love all the Amars and their varied interests 😊

Cover of the English language omnibus volume 1 of the Princess Jellyfish manga

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