Daijoubu

And so it has come. The game which many have anticipated with baited breath for lo these many months: RenAi Blogger! The anime blogosphere’s chief purveyor of fangirl rage has unleashed her dere dere side with a vengeance! Yes, Hinano, she who is “very direct but with good intentions,” has created her most complex work yet!! So, unlike me, she’s been up to more than just Pangya these days! So how is this already legendary game? Suffice it to say that everyone even remotely familiar with Ex-Fansubber Hitorigoto, the anime blogging world, or otaku/weeaboo spots in New York City (in other words if you are me) should check out this game! To cleverly integrate a travel guide to Japanese culture spots in the city with the conventions of the RenAi genre is a feat few could accomplish as well as this. Having visited most of the locations mentioned (often led by Hinano herself–I have to name drop!), it was fun to see them as a backdrop. Also important is Hinano’s immersion in these kinds of games. The best way to learn how to write is by reading, or in this case playing lots of these games! She seems to have thoroughly inhaled the spirit of them (even though i’ve never played one, LOOOL, but I can imagine and I know the anime versions HaHa).

Having heaped on the praise, it is now time to bring up a fault. AND IT’S SERIOUS!!! Yes, I agree with others the game is too short, but this is a more serious complaint! While I have been to the places she mentioned in the city, the main conceit of her plot lines is total fantasy! While eating at Cafe Zaiya, wandering though Bryant Park, or browsing through Kinokuniya , I have never had cute girls there so easy to meet and eventually, through a few simple choices convert into girlfriends. WHAT YOU SAY??? That’s just the RenAi genre? OK, but still… well, maybe I haven’t tried hard enough. next time I walk through Bryant Park I’ll be on the lookout!! Oh, and as for the question in the title above, check out my poll!