My last round-up article was Dessert De Otomate, so it’s time to keep this blog up to date! We’ve had endless otome game news since, honestly I can barely keep up. In this article, I will recap select otome news and translate / supplement you with more details from various sources where relevant. Enjoy!
If you are only interested in reading updates on a specific game, feel free to jump through using the links below.
Hana Awase Switch port AND English translation?!
Dramatic create recently announced that their four-series PC game, Hana Awase, will be ported to Nintendo Switch. Not only that, the game is (semi) confirmed to have English and Chinese localisations. And even more good news – the team behind the English localisation is looking solid. From what I’ve seen on Twitter, we’ve got the translator and editor who had worked on Steam Prison and as well as the translator for Hashihime – both games have been said to be localised to a high standard (and I can attest to Steam Prison). For the Switch version, the game will be called Hana Awase New Moon.
Hana Awase draws inspiration from classic Japanese poetry. The worldview employs Hanafuda and Waka motifs, and the characters are based on historical poets and poems. According to some Japanese blogs I’ve read, the game is high in sugar and erotic content. Heck yes, bring on the steam!!! The writer for this game is Gekka, and the illustrator is Yura. The style is atypical of mainstream otome games art – it’s almost shounen-manga esque. The use of lines to create shading and movement really brings the characters to life. See some promo CGs below.
The casts are absolutely stacked – we’ve got Fukuyama Jun (Tomomori in Birushana), Hino Satoshi (Toma in Amnesia), Sugiyama Noriaki (Tyril in even if TEMPEST), Tachibana Shinnosuke (Henri in Piofiore), and Terashima Takuma (Otoya in UtaPri) voicing the LIs. Heck, even the casts for the supporting characters are amazing – we’ve got Tsuda Kenjiro (Chikage in Hakuouki), Eguchi Takuya (Gretel in TaiAli), Toyonaga Toshiyuki (Orlok in Piofiore), and Mizushima Takahiro (Sakuya aka my precious cinnamon roll in Yoshiwara Higanbana).
The game will be released in 2023 with dates yet to be confirmed. The four games include Mizuchi-Hen, Himeutsugi-Hen, Karakurenai/Utsutsu-Hen and Iroha-Hen. For now, it looks like the four games will be released separately. Here is the official website for the Switch version.
We’ll hear more info about Hana Awase in B’sLOG 2023年6月号 (out next month). If you are interested in Hana Awase merch, you can preorder ebtenDX version of the magazine which comes with an acrylic panel and 2 can badges featuring Mikoto and Iroha!
Here’s a brief description about the game, taken from vndb.
The premise. 
Card games, magic and horny teens (?).
A maiden’s prayer shall make the flower bloom.
There is a card game called “Kasen”, which is played with cards known as “Hanafuda”. Only a handful of people, known as “Kaei”, can call on and draw the power of the “flower”. With most Kaei are men, the five students who possess the most power within the academy are referred to as the “Gokou” and are revered.
This is a story about a maiden who has dedicated herself to five male students aiming to become one of the Gokou, set in Kasen National Academy, which is a school that produces many individuals with rare talents.
I don’t know anything about this game, so I dug around and saw the opening MV. Guys, the music is kinda sick tho??? And the visuals…omg?? Check it out below! If you want to listen to the character songs, someone has made a playlist on Youtube as well.
Wand of Fortune R2 release date announced
Wand of Fortune R2 ~Jiku ni Shizumu Mokushiroku~ will be released on July 20th. This time, Lulu and the boys are transported back in time!
Please note that Wand of Fortune R2 FD will be a separate release, with dates yet to be announced.
The Wand of Fortune series follows Lulu, a girl with no magic skills trying to survive in a magic school. The first game from this series, Wand of Fortune R, will be released on May 18. It contains the OG game (Wand of Fortune) and its FD (Wand of Fortune ~Mirai e no Prologue~).
Here’s a brief description about Wand of Fortune R2, taken from vndb.
The premise. Time travel, magic and romance. Lulu might have gotten a partner who can help her control her magic, but it doesn’t mean that her magic stopped malfunctioning. This time the magicians are blown off to a world 350 years before their time. With new spells, new crises, and new boys, Wand of Fortune 2 continues the fantasy.
Shuuen no Virche reveals key visual & theatre play
Otomate has announced that Shuuviru will get a theatre play. The title is Shuuen no Virche -RequieM:memory-. It will be held on July 2, 2023 in Omiya Sonic City Great Hall.
Next, we have the key visual for Shuuviru’s FD, Shuuen no Virche -EpiC:lycoris-. Yomi-sensei’s art is gorgeous!
“This is a story of eternal salvation.”
They also released the official website for the game. We will get more details about the FD next month.
If you haven’t seen the PV for this FD, watch it below. Also see some translations I did underneath.
I despaired many times.
Lost many times.
Met my demise many times.
Many times.
Even so.
With a life that is finite.
Love that is eternal.
To my beloved girl, the God of Death.
This is a story of eternal salvation.
9 R.I.P. updates (there has been a lot!)
For those new to my blog or otome games in general, 9 R.I.P. is one of Otomate’s new titles coming out on June 29 this year. The premise is a horror otome game – check out my spotlight article for all the details.
✤ 9.R.I.P. opening MV released
The opening MV for 9 R.I.P. was released earlier this month! Watch it below:
The soundtrack is called “Horizon” by pluto. FYI, the song is available on Spotify!
The CGs look absolutely stunning – Seiya in particular really caught my eye (I am always biased towards Tachinosuke characters, grrr).
Hibiki with the laser eyes also had me shook! 
✤ Horror level and characters’ scary traits
9 R.I.P.’s director shared some tea about the game in Sweet Princess vol. 39. First of all, there will be no tragic love ends for any characters.
When asked about how much horror tolerance we need to play it, the answer was that there are bad ends with horror content, but horror game or movie lovers should be able to go through it without a hitch. Those uncomfortable with horror stuff may find it just “a little scary”.
It’s unclear if the general content of the game is scary, but I suppose it’ll vary as per their fear / sugar content rating that they’ve released previously. Either way, we’ll only find out for sure when we play the game in June.
Finally, the director shared the characters’ spooky and sweet “traits”. Here are some rough translations:
Kureha
✤ Spooky trait: The scariest ghost story in this work, though this is not applicable to the person himself…
✤ Sweet trait: A kind and reliable man. Openly shows his affection.
Hibiki
✤ Spooky trait: Has some darkness in his heart, so when you catch a glimpse of that then he is rather scary.
✤ Sweet trait: Very clumsy, thoughtful and innocent.
Kouyou
✤ Spooky trait: He does not have a single scary trait.
✤ Sweet trait: Unwavering kindness that slowly unfolds. Truly a nice person.
Sena
✤ Spooky trait: His view of love is a little bit scary.
✤ Sweet trait: The fact that he can say crude lines without hesitation is what makes him charming.
Minami
✤ Spooky trait: Sometimes he shows his scary side as a demon.
✤ Sweet trait: Surprisingly dedicated. The type that “runs in a straight line”.
Seiya
✤ Spooky trait: There is no frightening side to him at all.
✤ Sweet trait: Maiden-brained – he can be perverted and clingy.
Yukimaro
✤ Spooky trait: Honest, cheerful, very lively, nothing scary about him.
✤ Sweet trait: Does not hide his feelings, and fully expresses them with words and gestures.
Koharu
✤ Spooky trait: His words are rough…and that’s about it.
✤ Sweet trait: Tsundere representative of this work. Takes a bit of time before he says “I love you”.
✤ 9.R.I.P. limited edition illustration and side characters revealed
B’sLOG 2023年5月号 revealed the game’s limited edition illustration. They have not released the visual to the public just yet, so I am not able to share any pictures with you at this moment.
They also revealed side characters that will be featured in this game. The one that caught my eye is the character who has already appeared in the game’s key visual (he’s on the bottom right), yet not much is known about him. Well, here’s a bit of info!
Touka
✤ CV: Amasaki Kouhei
✤ Lore: Ayakashi
✤ Character: Some kind of tengu!
Other side characters include:
- Hida Sayaka – Misa’s best friend
- Isshiki Ayame – Misa’s mother
- Isshiki Tsubasa – Misa’s older sister
- Kannushi (Shinto Priest) – looks after the shrine in their town
- Yui – a ghost from one of the Seven Wonders of the School ghost stories, “The Girl in the Infirmary”.
- Misumi Reika – a ghost we’ll meet in one of the four worlds
They also featured promo CGs from Hibiki, Sena, Seiya and Koharu’s routes (now up on their official website) and provided a snippet of the scenario behind the CGs.
Perhaps once they release more info about the side characters, I’ll do another post to translate the official info about them and give you a brief rundown of the scenario behind the promo CGs. Stay tuned!
Pre-order 9 R.I.P.:
*For special editions, browse individual shops (int’l buyers will need to use proxy like CDJapan, Zen Market or FromJapan). Check 9 R.I.P.’s official website for details on the bonuses for different shops. This time I’ve decided to buy Animate’s!
Hakuouki SSL port release date
Hakuouki SSL ~sweet school life~ will be released on June 15! This was announced last month, but since I haven’t covered this update in my blog I just wanted to squeeze it in.
I’ve had a recent change in heart and decided to pick up SSL 
I am only familiar with the series through the anime and movies, so not quite as intimate as those who have played the game. But I really want Hakuouki fluff!!! Maybe I’ll play the entire series for real after this FD, who knows…
Here’s a brief description about the FD from vndb.
The premise. Shinsengumi – but in school?! Spring, a season of blessing for new encounters. Yukimura Chizuru knocks on the gates of a private academy, which has since been an all boys school. However, as of this year, Hakuou Academy opens its gates to co-education and Chizuru is the only female student enrolled. Thus, begins her first year.
This story is a spin-off work of Hakuouki ~Shinsengumi Kitan~.
Tengoku Struggle gets a visual fanbook!
Tengoku Struggle -strayside- is getting an official fanbook! It will be released on May 9, but you can pre-order it now.
I don’t think I mentioned this in my Dessert de Otomate post, but a drama CD was also announced during the event. It was released on February 22, and is still available for purchase.
I checked some of the game’s PVs and am kinda sad that the Japanese level is just way beyond me at this moment, so I’ll be playing it in English next year. But I have been on a fanbook craze lately, so I’m planning to pick up the fanbook early for the tokuten and read it after playing the game!
Cybird revealed Ikemen Villains official PV!
Earlier this month, Cybird finally released an official PV for their newest mobile otome game, Ikemen Villains! The game will be released shortly on March 28 in Japan.
If you want to learn more about this game, here’s the official website. I also wrote a spotlight article on this game.
If you can read Japanese, consider pre-ordering the game to get some exclusive bonus items when it is released!
Miscellaneous updates
We have more info about new characters in Bustafellows Season 2. Check out my spotlight article if you want to read more about it!
I’ve been closely following Utakata no Uchronia, but there has been no noteworthy news. Over the past two B’sLOG releases, they provided scenario overviews for Tobari and Awayuki, respectively. I’m guessing we’ll hear more about the game after they finish going through all the main characters over the next few releases.
If you love merch, “with flower” goods featuring characters from various Otomate titles are still available for pre-order on Ebten.
Otomate will be holding an event called Harukaze Marché in Shinjuku Marui Annex. The event will run from April 14 until April 23, 2023. This event got a lot of attention from otome gamers because they will be selling merch which include heroines from various titles. According to the official website, the goods are only available for purchase in person during the event – at least for now.
And that’s all for this otome round-up! I just want to use this opportunity to thank everyone who has visited my blog and read stuff that I write. It means a lot to me. 
See you next time with more exciting otome game updates!
