Cupid Parasite -Sweet & Spicy Darling- is arguably one of the most anticipated fandiscs in the otome community. Here, I want to share my candid thoughts on this game, which, don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy a lot, but also have mixed feelings about… so let’s talk about it.
Disclaimer: The route overview section contains minor, out-of-context spoilers from this game, and major spoilers from the original game – reader discretion is advised. To skip to the spoiler-free summary, click here.
Contents
Basic information
Dev/pub: Idea Factory (Otomate) x Idea Factory International
Director: Tatematsu Fumiyoshi [other work – Jakou no Lyla, Winter’s Wish: Spirits of Edo]
Scenario writer: Yoshimura Ririka [other work – DesperaDrops, Jakou no Lyla, My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Shiro to Kuro no Alice, Ken ga Kimi, Glass Heart Princess]
Illustrator: Yuuya [other work – 9 R.I.P., Café Enchanté, Jakou no Lyla, Bara ni Kakusareshi Verite, Hanayaka Nari, Pub Encounter]
Console: Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite
Genre: Comedy, Slice-of-life, Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Rating: CERO D (17+) / ESRB M (Mature)
Japanese: キューピット • パラサイト-Sweet & Spicy Darling-
Visit the official English website here.
Synopsis and setting
From IFI:
“
This is the continued love story of the goddess of love, Cupid, experiencing love firsthand. It’s the tale of when she becomes a goddess “only” for him.
Marriage wasn’t the end goal, but the start of a new chapter. Whether they began dating or got married, the only thing awaiting them is a series of unexpected challenges!
A mysterious new creature has appeared in Los York! Could it be a divine message or evidence of an unknown civilization?
A love story so sweet, it’ll make your heart melt! The whirlwind of feelings taking the world by storm is far from over!
An endearing, joyful, and chaotic tale that’s richer and more exhilarating than ever! This romance featuring a former goddess is so sweet and spicy, it’ll make your teeth ache and set your soul ablaze!
And in Merenice Levin’s route, her days as Cupid are far from over! A romantic and comedic story in the world of matchmaking is set to unfold!
Trigger warning (click to reveal)
NTR / adultery, bestiality, voyeurism, confinement, kidnapping, non-con / sexual assault, violence and mass murder.
Main characters
Lynette Mirror (Cupid)
✤ Voice actor: Not voiced.
✤ Cupid Corporation’s top brial advisor, but is actually Cupid, the goddess of love!
✤ In the After Drama, she’s become human, demon or remained a goddess—depending on the route.
Gill Lovecraft (aka Lovelorn Parasite)
✤ Voice actor: Kimura Ryohei.
✤ Same voice actor as Nicola (Piofiore), Yamato (UtaPri), Kou (Diabolik Lovers), Shiraishi (Collar x Malice), Camil (KLAP!!), Takahira (Yunohana Spring!), Rei (Zettai Kaikyuu Gakuen), and many others!
✤ Profile: 24 years / July 16 / 178 cm / O
Ryuki F. Keisaiin (aka Glamour Parasite)
✤ Voice actor: Enoki Junya.
✤ Same voice actor as Zafora (Radiant Tale), Hänsel (OZMAFIA!!), Chisato (Collar x Malice ~Unlimited~), and Mihaya (Paradigm Paradox).
✤ Profile: 20 years / December 31 / 174 cm / AB
Shelby Snail (aka Prestige Parasite)
✤ Voice actor: KENN.
✤ Same voice actor as Limbo (Bustafellows), Nori (SympathyKiss), Fuuto (Brothers Conflict), Kei (Ken ga Kimi), Kintarou (Yunohana Spring!), Orpheus (Reine des Fleurs), and many others!
✤ Profile: 32 years / September 7 / 185 cm / A
Raul Aconite (aka Obsessed Parasite)
✤ Voice actor: Yashiro Taku.
✤ Same voice actor as Adolphe (Shuuen no Virche), Amir (Money Parasite), Goemon (Tengoku Struggle) and Tweedle Dee (Shiro to Kuro no Alice).
✤ Profile: 21 years / January 10 / 183 cm / B
Allan Melville (aka Thieving Parasite)
✤ Voice actor: Furukawa Makoto.
✤ Same voice actor as Yoritomo (Birushana), Dazai (Charade Maniacs), Adage (Steam Prison), Crius (even if TEMPEST), Kazuma (Lover Pretend), and Jack (Tengoku Struggle).
✤ Profile: 28 years / February 8 / 181 cm / ???
Peter Flage (aka Sensitive Parasite)
✤ Voice actor: Okamoto Nobuhiko.
✤ Same voice actor as Radie (Radiant Tale), Yang (Piofiore), Taiga (Variable Barricade), Takumi (Charade Maniacs), Kanade (KLAP!!), Hikaru (Brothers Conflict), and many more!
✤ Profile: — years / April 1 or October 2 / 181 cm
Merenice Levin (aka Destiny Parasite)
✤ Voice actor: Uemura Yuuto.
✤ Same voice actor as Tokisada (Olympia Soiree), Tsukito (Kamigami no Asobi), Felix (Angelique Luminarise), and Ramie (Desperadrops).
✤ Profile: 24 years / February 14 / 180 cm / O
NEW side characters
Robin Bullet
✤ Voice actor: Ura Kazuki
He works at the popular shop Mow Donuts located on 7th Avenue. He is close with Merenice, who is a regular at the shop. His trademark is a refreshing smile and well-developed muscles.
Ray Under
✤ Voice actor: Chiaki Kobayashi
He is a fashion model from the same agency as Raul. A natural-born genius model who doesn’t require skincare or dietary restrictions to maintain his beauty. He values compatibility with his bone structure.
Sylvie Scott
✤ Voice actor: Amasaki Kouhei
He is Cupid, the God of Love, who was born anew when Lynette became human. His trademark line is “kyupi~!” ✨
Eli Omar
✤ Voice actor: Kasama Jun
He is the young Vice President of Omar Holdings. He is responsible for the newly built artificial island in Los York, called Paradise of Love – D’Amour Paradis.
Route impressions
I have provided route synopsis in my spotlight post (translated from B’s-LOG) – so I’ll go straight into my route impressions!
Gill
✤ High libido
✤ Lowkey manly af??
Playing Gill’s route in this FD hasn’t really changed my opinion of him. I can’t hate him (for reasons I elaborated in my review of the original game), but he’s still too soft and clingy for my taste. What I liked about the FD is that they maximised the scenarios that highlight more of Gill’s manly side. He’s a provider through and through, and he’s, weirdly enough, charismatic and a natural leader… in the most Gill way.
The plot and turns of events in the route were wacky as hell. But when I observe it from the lens of the pop culture franchise which was coded in his route, things were not that strange after all. The original game may just hold a slight edge with the flying car and Allan disappearing into thin air (seriously, where did he go????). Not surprisingly, he’s horny 24/7—it’s lowkey insane 😂 so expect lots, and lots of fun, both inside and outside the bedroom. The workshop scene was the most memorable to me (I’m unhinged and I like to get dirty, I guess 😏).
Unfortunately, I found his spicy ending quite disappointing. I wish they went harder on the trope, but instead, it felt lukewarm and was accompanied by a strange CG, making it all seem a little forced. His sweet end was cute, and his sweet and spicy end was so-so. Overall, it was a decent route!
Route trigger warning (click to spoil)
Confinement, obsessive behaviours, kidnapping, violence, murder and implied sexual activities.
Gill’s route rating: 7/10
Ryuki
✤ Black hair ftw!!!
✤ Learning to love
Ryuki’s route was quite drama-filled. I wasn’t a fan of them using the whole grandma thing again in the lore; his character development in the base game just felt a bit wasted. They also employed the misunderstanding trope, which I usually dislike, but fortunately, it wasn’t unnecessarily prolonged or turned into a whole sh*tshow.
What I enjoyed was the way his shortcomings in love and relationship were portrayed. It was cute seeing him struggle and stumble, and how he becomes childish or insecure about little things. The pimple shenanigan will be forever iconic, because girl, SAME.
The B’s-LOG interviews with the director and scenario writer suggest his route will have the biggest difference in spiciness. But to me, it still lacked a lot of spice, especially compared with other routes. However, his Spicy end was so, so kinky – I loved it!
Finally, I just want to give a shout-out to black-haired Ryuki. If anything happens to black-haired Ryuki, I will eliminate everyone else and then myself. HE IS SO FINE!!!!!!
Route trigger warning (click to spoil)
Voyeurism and implied sexual activities.
Ryuki’s route rating: 7/10
Shelby
✤ TOO. REAL.
✤ Saucy afffffff
Shelby’s route ranks highly for me due to its realistic portrayal of marriage—the honeymoon highs, the fights, and the make-up sex were all nicely depicted. If you’ve been married or at least in long term relationship, you will probably relate to some of the things that took place. His route had the most hilarious bed scene, and it now lives in my head rent free along with the iconic window scene from the base game. I will never look at bananas the same way again… god damn it, Lynette. Also turtles. Damn turtles.
Shelby’s route was also incredibly spicy! While Gill might have a slight edge in quantity, Shelby’s route won me over with top-notch, quality sensual scenes and CGs, in and out of the bedroom. He’s also way more possessive over Lynette in the fandisc, which I personally adore. The Sweet & Spicy end CG just screams ‘rich couple’—I couldn’t stop staring at it. Hearing KENN speaks (one line of) English was an unexpected delight. 😆
It’s worth noting that Shelby’s route includes a Bad Spicy end, which unfortunately has my trigger trope. I’ll pretend that ending doesn’t exist for my own peace. 🙃 Otherwise, it’s a fun, sexy, and dramatic route filled with marriage and corporate roller coasters. So good!
Route trigger warning (click to spoil)
NTR / adultery, emotional manipulation, gaslighting, stalking, dubious con, and implied sexual activities.
Shelby’s route rating: 8.5/10
Raul
✤ Romantic and daring
✤ Wackiest route
Raul’s route was extremely romantic and filled with absurd plot twists. The spice in his route was so bold and daring, and the sweet moments were so sugary it made me hazy. I think I love him more now after reading his After Drama! His relationship with Lynette also felt so mature, healthy and chill—I love it.
Unfortunately, the second half of his route really went downhill for me. Like, it just went into the most “what the f*ck is happening” direction. 😭 While wackiness is one of CupiPara’s traits, it felt way too over the top this time. The whole reason behind that bizarre plot didn’t make much sense either, and they also reused similar “plot point” told in Gill’s route. The whole saga was amusing, for sure, but I couldn’t fully get into the rest of his route because of it. The cartoon they parodied had me dying in laughter though.
Although Raul’s Sweet & Spicy end offered the ideal conclusion, I personally prefer his Sweet end since I’m a sucker for that “it’s just us two in this world” vibes. His Spicy end was a treat, though I found his new side gig kinda hilarious. 😂
Route trigger warning (click to spoil)
Kidnapping, violence, murder and implied sexual activities.
Raul’s route rating: 6/10
Allan
✤ Emotional x bittersweet
✤ Love that transcends time
Allan’s route was an emotional rollercoaster. The writer mentioned that this route was crafted to evoke emotions and b*tch, not a single lie was told. If you’re expecting fluff, you’ll be disappointed—but trust me, the pain is so worth it. He was already my favourite character in the original game, and this fandisc just made me love him even more.
Allan’s and Lynette’s journey through time and generations was bittersweet. The depiction of loyalty, unending love, and devotion is what truly tugs at my heartstrings. His Sweet end made me teary—it was incredible. I enjoyed unraveling the intricacies of the demon world, and Lynette’s demon sprite was ultra delightful to see!
Despite being an emotional route, Allan’s had a good number of saucy moments. Unfortunately, there weren’t any accompanying spicy CGs, which is a bit of a letdown. Nevertheless, the compelling story more than made up for it! His Sweet & Spicy end CG will live in my head FOR ETERNITY. Some people may take issue with the ‘backtracking,’ but personally, I don’t mind because it meant I could see that event become canon. It’s a win for me.
Route trigger warning (click to spoil)
Violence, oppression, discrimination, mass murder and implied sexual activities.
Allan’s route rating: 9.5/10
Peter
✤ Sexy cinnamon roll~
✤ My biggest disappointment
Listen, his personality won’t be for everyone, but personally, I love Peter! He is cute, adorable, and panicky, but he becomes a beast when he’s turned on. The sensual scenes in his route had me kicking my feet. The CGs are so generous with showcasing how insanely shredded he is; I’m convinced he must be hitting the gym at least twice a day in Celestia.
Disappointingly, his route fell flat for me. I was eagerly looking forward to it because I LOVED his route in the original game. It started off well, and I enjoyed the slight premonition of what’s to come, plus his lessons with Raul were hilarious af. However, as the route goes on many parts felt boring, and some conversations felt dragged out. I was also disappointed that they yet again used Zeus here. Overall, the route made me feel like he was trying to grow from something he’d already worked hard to overcome in the original game (?), but retold with a different lore.
On top of all that, I also had a big issue with his Spicy end. It just so happens to be one of the two ONLY tropes I find yucky in fiction. I swear I love red flag tropes (shameless oniichan lover here, lol), but that, nuh-uh, not even my sinful ass can enjoy that. 😅
Route trigger warning (click to spoil)
Bestiality, non-con / sexual assault, violence, murder and implied sexual activities.
Peter’s route rating: 6/10
Merenice
✤ Quintessential adult romance
✤ Good in bed (canon)
Merenice is an enigmatic and mysterious fortune teller. He is soft-spoken, skilled with his hands, and can be a little stubborn. He’s not a super layered character, but I appreciate the simplicity! Not everyone needs some kind of traumatic past to be a compelling character (imo). He loves donuts and does his fortune-telling by looking through a donut hole. Merenice became interested in Lynette because he cannot read her future, unlike with other people.
I love Merenice, and I absolutely enjoyed his route! It was very romantic with well-placed sensual moments. For me, the turns of events fit his character quite well, with just the right amount of bizarre. The progression of his relationship with Lynette also felt authentic and natural. I always crave for realistic stories that start off platonic and gradually evolve, and his route hit all the right spots! The road trip was my absolute favourite; I practically replayed the whole scene every time I finish an After Drama route. 😫 I wish his route was a tad bit longer, with at least one or two more romance-focussed scenes.
Not directly about Merenice, but I love Claris even more because of this route. My favourite moment is when Lynette and Claris were gossiping about Merenice’s fingers. 😭 I can’t stop thinking about it—I love these girls to bits.
Route trigger warning (click to spoil)
Stalking (?), violence and implied sexual activities.
Merenice’s route rating: 9/10
Route order
None of the routes are locked, so you can start getting into any character you want right away.
I played Merenice’s route first, and looking back, it felt like a sensible thing to do because his route is actually quite “spoiler” free. The director and scenario writer also said his route was a bridge to the fandisc, so it’s not surprising. But I think his route fits really well if played before Allan! That said, if you’re ultra excited about him, just save him for last. Also, they recommended Peter be played last (at least for the After Dramas), which again makes sense given the way his route concludes.
Alas, below is my optional route order recommendation. If you care about “spoilers,” definitely leave Allan and Peter towards the end, in that order.
Gill ➸ Ryuki ➸ Shelby ➸ Raul ➸ Merenice* ➸ Allan ➸ Peter
*Honestly suitable to be played whenever.
Click here to go to the game’s walkthrough masterlist.
✤ Ending types
The After Dramas have three main ending types: Sweet, Spicy, and Sweet & Spicy. Allan’s route also has a “Sweet… Bitter” aka bittersweet end, which does have a CG. Only two routes have Bad ends, including Allan (Bad Darling) and Shelby (Bad Spicy) — none of which have CGs. Merenice’s route has three endings, Best, Good and Bad ends.
If you achieve 100% reading completion for all characters, a Full Completion Special Story will appear in the Gallery. Unread text is marked in the Event View list, but quick save / quick load and reading alternate choices during your playthrough is probably more efficient. When everything is read, the character is marked as “Complete” in the Event View.
Some of the side characters are also heavily featured in certain endings. Owen has his own dedicated ending, which branches off of Merenice’s route and includes a CG. I wish he got a proper route because it was so criminally short, but I had a blast nonetheless. He’s even more awesome than I thought!
Here are my final rankings and favourites.
Vira’s route ranking:
- Allan
- Merenice
- Shelby
- Raul
- Ryuki
- Gill
- Peter
Vira’s favourite endings:
- SWEET: Allan 🥲
- SPICY: Shelby & Ryuki
- SWEET & SPICY: Allan
Vira’s favourite character(s):
- Merenice & Allan
Game features & experience
Notable features
I will only talk about features that are unique to the fandisc!
✤ Love catch and Sweet & Spicy love meter
The game features a love catch system, just like the original. For the After Dramas, the love catch indicates whether you’ve increased the Sweet or Spicy meter for the love interest. To get the ‘Sweet and Spicy’ endings, you must balance the Sweet and Spicy scores. If you want to trigger the Sweet end or the Spicy end, you can tip the balance to the desired side. It’s identical to the ‘Love and Work’ balance system in Sympathy Kiss.
In Merenice’s route, the love catch system is exactly the same as the original game.
You can toggle the love catch on or off in the settings.
✤ Bonus stories
The game offers three bonus stories for each of Parasite 6, unlocking after clearing all the After Drama routes. If you collect CGs, be sure to read them as one of the three will contain a CG! Merenice does not have a bonus story, which was a bit disappointing for me since I love him heaps. 😔
✤ Vibration function
Your Switch will vibrate in conjunction with specific scenarios and events. This function only activates if you play in handheld mode. As someone who almost exclusively plays on TV, this feature is practically pointless for me. 😅
✤ Voice memory and map
You can collect lines from any characters and store them in a voice memory. Additionally, there’s a map featuring Los York and D’Amour Paradis, where characters describe each spot (once you’ve cleared their routes).
Art and graphics
My overall opinion on the art and graphics remain mostly unchanged. Yuuya’s art is breathtaking, and the CG quality is stunning! I do wish few of the spicy CGs were a bit more daring to match the extremely sensual text. The love catch graphics in the After Dramas were a bit over the top for my taste, though it’s something that can be toggled off, so it’s not a huge issue.
While the ultra colourful, simple background art is still not my favourite (Crunchy Canyon being the most low-effort), I’ve come to enjoy some of the interior ones. I also find the donut-themed stuff incorporated throughout the game super cute and appealing. 🍩
Music
The music, in short, was a complete banger. The Biscats once again treated us with ultra-catchy OP and ED songs (“Fondant Chocolate na Koigokoro” and “Sweet & Spicy Darling,” respectively). I’ve been listening to them nonstop, and they’ll probably end up in my Spotify Wrap Up next year (as did the OP and ED songs from the first game). I especially adore the ED song—Misaki, the vocalist from The Biscats, said it’s a song with “a melody so warm and gentle that it makes you feel enveloped from head to toe,” and she couldn’t describe it any better.
I also loved the BGM! “Lovely Dating” is my favourite track. The character BGMs were also fabulous. Someone made a playlist of the original songs they were adapted from; you can find it here.
Length
It took me 45 hours to clear the game. I played it in Japanese and read it all on auto with mostly default settings (just sped up the auto-speed to near full). I’m confident I could clear it much faster in English since I usually semi-skim read, something I can’t do with Japanese text! But given how short fandiscs can be, I thought it was a really good length—not too long and not too short either.
Merenice’s route is slightly longer than the After Dramas, though still relatively short, especially when compared to the length of the routes in the original game.
Summary
✤ It’s good, but…
I have mixed feelings about it. Let’s start with what I enjoyed—this fandisc features plenty of delectable romance and mature scenes, along with entertaining comedy and drama. I laughed a lot, had my heart torn apart, choked from the breathtaking sensuality, and gushed over the adorable lovers’ moments. It’s even more infused with pop culture references, some of which are just so… out of pocket. 😂 Merenice is a fantastic addition and has become one of my all-time favourite LIs! I also enjoyed all the new side characters and their quirks.
However, I didn’t appreciate some parts, like the reuse of trope / plot point and few characters facing more or less the same issues as the original game, wasting all the character development. In some parts, I feel like they went overboard with the wackiness, but if you don’t take it too seriously, then you’ll be fine.
In short, it’s good—but try to lower your expectations (says the one who’s been hyping it up with multiple blog posts coverage, LOL).
✤ All kinds of spicy!
If you come for the romance and saucy content, you won’t be disappointed. The spice levels vary from route to route, but no matter who your favourite is, you’ll get your treat. Allan’s lack of spicy CG is a little criminal, but his route was AMAZING so I’ll let it go.
For some of the endings (particularly Spicy ends), just beware that this game presents various kinds of sexual kinks or fetishes, and you may need to keep an open mind to be able to enjoy them all. It just so happens that in Shelby’s and Peter’s routes, they used two of the ONLY tropes I absolutely can’t stand in fiction, lucky me. 😂 I know people who can breeze through or even enjoy these tropes, and I don’t judge—more power to you! But if you’re sensitive to triggering content, PLEASE BE WARNED.
✤ Do I recommend this game?
Yes, yes I do! While it’s not a fandisc without shortcomings, it’s a solid game if you want more of the Parasites. For me, some routes carry this game more than others. But there are developments in character traits, life events, and even change in appearances that are simply a must-see; I can’t recommend it enough just for those. I also think IFI did a great job on the localisation (though I must admit I didn’t re-read all parts in full; but the ones I did read, the localisation was pretty good). I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the game. 🥰
+
- Intense mature romance
- Numerous breathtaking and spicy scenes
- Humorous touch with even more pop culture references
- Beautiful CGs and lovable side characters
- OWEN ENDING
–
- Some tropes or plot points are reused
- Some characters face familiar struggles
- Can be “excessively” wacky
- Owen still didn’t get a route 🙁
I love that Owen not having a proper route is a con, BECAUSE IT IS😭 Loved him in the main game, It’s criminal how small it seems to be😔 (I still have Shelby, Raul, and Mernice’s routes to do + Peter’s Sweet & Spicy end)
BESTIE IM GLAD YOU UNDERSTAND it is indeed criminal that he didn’t get a full route!!!
I hope you enjoy playing through those routes~ =)