Today I had nothing to do, so I thought of giving a game reccomandation. So of course I had to pick Yoshiwara Higanbana.
Since this is a game reccomendation I will talk about the main love interests and give my overall thoughts on these characters and i will also try to avoid spoilers as much as possible.(Also keep in mind some things might not be very accurate since I played this game using VNR)
Yoshiwara Higanbana is a debut R18 otome visual novel from MariaCrown.
This story follows the main protagonist Rin (or her alias 'Chihaya')who is working as the top ranking oiran (courtesan) in Oukaya set in Yoshiwara during the Edo period.
Protagonist - Rin/Chihaya
Rin was brought to Oukaya (brothel) when she was a child, so she could work as a courtesan and pay of the debt her parents have. Rin's dream is to one day collect enough money to clear her family's debt and also wishes to see her parents again. As she grew older she later became the top ranking oiran in Yoshiwara.
My thoughts
Chihaya is a very realistic protagonist and is not afraid to make the first move on the main love interest since I course she is an courtesan. I really love her interactions with everyone who surrounds her. Rin is also very noble and caring towards her close friends and with people in need of help.
Love interests
Iseya Souichirou
Any 18+ Otome games for girls? Any simulation/role playing dating games FOR GIRLS? R-18 Otome games english? Girls and boys? Baby girl names. Do it please.? More questions. Do girls really play this game? Especially at young ages of 15-18?
CV:Sawa Manaka/Nakazawa Masatomo(DRAMAtical Murder; Clear)
Iseya is Rin's childhood friend and first love, in the past he made a promise to Rin, that one day he will visit her in Yoshiwara and buy her out of the brothel once he collects enough money.
My thoughts
Iseya was my least favorite in the game, but that doesnt mean be is a bad character .I really liked his straightforwardness towatds the heroine. Iseya is very caring towards Rin and always tells her what is in his mind.
If you play his route first you will only get the normal and bad ending, in order to get his good ending you need to play Shigure's normal ending first.
Sakuya
CV: Kijima Uta/Mizushima Takahiro(White Album 2; Kitahara Haruki)
Sakuya is the hairdresser in Oukaya.He doesn't speak much and is very distant towards people.
My thoughts
Sakuya is just a cute cinamonroll :grin: :grin: . He's the kuudere of the game. At first he barely speaks to Rin , but once he gets to know her he really starts to open up about his emotions and.
In this route you get to see how Rin truly cares about Sakuya and also really tries to help him when something is troubling him.
Kaguraya Akito
CV: Higeuchi Waruda/Takeuchi Ryouta(The Ancient Magus' Bride; Elias)
Akito is a regular costumer at Oukaya. Rin really dislikes Akito, since he treated a close friend of hers very coldly, the same thing goes for him he also acts very coldly toward Rin.
My thoughts
At first I thought I was going to dislike Akito since he came off as cold and rude. But I can easily say that his route has the best romance. Akito and Rin obviously don't like each other, but when they start spending time together they also grow as characters. If I were to choose who is more suited to be Rin's partner it would definitely be Akito. Plus his tsundere moments are just adorable :smile: :smile: .
Ootsuki Shinobu
CV: Suga Kiya/Majima Junji (Toradora!; Ryuuji)
Shinobu is a samurai who usually flirts with other women and tends to drink a lot when going to Oukaya.
My thoughts
Same thing as Akito I also thought I was going to dislike Shinobu since I tend to dislike womanizers in otome games, but his route really proved me wrong, it explains as to why he is usually 'drunk' in Oukaya and he is also very deredere and shy when he is around Rin. :blush: :blush:
Oukaya Shigure
CV: Houdenteigatsu/Morikawa Toshiyuki (Diabolik Lovers More Blood; Carla)
Shigure is the owner of Oukaya, he's kind but also strict, he looks after Rin's health and behaviour. Shigure is the only person who calls Rin by her name and not her alias 'Chihaya'. Rin has always looked up to Shigure but doesnt really know if it's as an older brother or as a man.
My thoughts
Shigure was the first character that caught my interest (mainly because of his VA). It's really difficult to explain his character without spoilers, but all I can say is that his route was a rollercoaster and also very well done (some may not agree with me though). His route also goes hand in hand with Iseya's (In other words both of them are very story driven and you start to see the connections in both routes). And he is also my favorite character from the whole game.
If you play his character first you will only get to play his normal route. In order to play his true route you need to complete Iseya's good ending.
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Overall I really do recommend this game, it's very different to other R18 otoge games since it's set in Yoshiwara and the heroine works as a courtesan and in one of the routes she finds a pretty dark secret about Oukaya.
If you intend to play this route this is the playing order I would reccomend:
Shinobu》 Sakuya》 Akito》 Iseya's normal ending》 Shigure's normal ending》Iseya's good ending》 Shigure's true end
Hope you guys enjoyed this blog :relaxed: :relaxed: . And I hope you all have a wonderful day or night.
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I truly love the normal innocent genres of the otome industry, but sometimes, I also like to move towards a much more unique category. Some being R18 otome games. It's not always about the 'ecchi' scenes or anything, but also the way they use mature stories, cases and scenarios and somehow toy with your mind like mad. Otome games like Chou No Doku Hana and Akazukin To Mayoi Mori brought up the deepest topics in terms of psychology, things that light-hearted otome games don't usually bring up.
That's why I was wondering if any of you share my opinion or often play those r18 games, because I somehow feel lonely in there ^^