Hmm, I wasn’t going to do this, but for the sake of closure… Besides, I’ve talked about the gameplay and the various routes I did, but I haven’t said much about my thoughts on Hanayaka nari Waga Ichizoku quality-wise, so here goes. In point form. Which always ends up longer than if I’d just written a proper review ^^;
Pluses
– Short routes, snappy dialogue, frequent scene changes and a small cast means you can 100% the game easily without trying.
– It’s fun (and funny) to watch the happier interactions between the brothers, especially on Susumu’s route and on Tadashi’s route. I’m a level 98 Sibling Teaser in RL so I can totally relate.
– I like the non-anime-ish character designs. Realistic eye sizes, realistic hair and skin colors, realistic clothing choices for the era. They don’t go so far as to look like real human beings or anything, but the non-cartoony designs are a nice change from the usual.
– I also liked the fashions and cultural attitudes of the Taisho era – family means everything, you marry when you’re 18, women have no real say in who they marry, foreign foods like cake are an exciting novelty, everyone who wants to seem cultured is reading English or German books, celebrating your birthday on your birthdate is weird, men and women dancing together is like AAAH THE WORLD IS ENDING!! etc. There’s a glossary of Taisho keywords that explains many of these customs and concepts if you’re really interested (I wasn’t that interested).
– If you play your cards right, you won’t have to play the first 3 months of the game ever again. Play nice with everyone from April to June and keep a save in early July for best effect.
– You can unlock a romantic epilogue by finishing all the CGs on a guy’s route. It makes it worth replaying at least portions of a guy’s route for total completion (though I didn’t bother and just read the epilogue summaries online).
– If you don’t work hard at your day job, you don’t get to take part in certain game events. That seems really fair to me.
– None of the brothers are completely icky. I could have 100%ed the game if I’d really wanted to.
– I like that there’s a lot going on that doesn’t concern the main character directly. After playing Harutoki 3 where so much revolved around the Dragon Priestess, it’s good to have a game where little would change if the main character didn’t even exist.
Minuses
– The romances worked out too easily at the end. All of the characters, especially the older ones, really should encountered far more resistance in getting married to a lowly maid. It’s always like “We’ll work it out somehow” and they do, but will high society really accept a servant as the Mrs. of a Miyanomori?
– Having to enter weekly actions makes it impossible to fully fast-forward portions of the text you’ve seen already. It should have been monthly entries, at least.
– I wish the stats had affected more than the bi-monthly reviews. It would make more sense for, say, Isami to like a girl who is loyal or for Hiroshi to like a girl who is skilled with her hands instead of all the brothers liking the exact same kind of girl.
– The quests and other things you can do on the side are really pointless. It would have been better if you could get certain bonus CGs for finishing certain quests or unlock side scenarios for completing certain items, etc.
– Speaking of quests, you can only get the library key on Hiroshi’s route, so if you don’t do him you’ll find yourself unable to finish plenty of quests in the latter half of the game. At least give me a heads up on that!
– When you learn the assassin’s backstory you’ll understand why Genichiro keeps letting him go, but not why the other characters do. This is an era of guns, but instead they keep engaging him with swords (and losing) and letting him get away time after time. It’s really stupid.
Biggest minus
Haru the maid. I like her a lot, but she’s a TERRIBLE maid. Her behavior is completely unacceptable in any age. Instead of doing her work like a sensible human being, she’s always standing around listening in on conversations that don’t involve her. And not just listening but butting and interrupting and frequently asking questions about things that don’t concern her (only to later share the details with anyone who asks). Early on the brothers are always snapping at her, “Shut up, maid!” “Butt out, maid!” “Mind your own business!” but before they can get the words out I’ve already said them in my mind. Butt out, Haru!
To burn the master’s pants or not to burn the master’s pants?
She’s just a bad, bad maid. Even after being sternly warned not to wander the grounds at night she keeps doing it. And on some routes she even slaps or otherwise abuses one of her masters. It would be bearable if she would accept correction, but instead she frequently begins to cry or goes into a sulk whenever someone tries to remind her of her proper place. She’s like everyone’s least favorite coworker+employee all rolled into one.
Think about it, would you go back to a restaurant with a waitress who kept interrupting your conversations with personal questions then got tearful and angry when you complained? Or just think of a work environment – do you poke your nose into your boss’s private affairs, question him over his phone calls and yell at him when he doesn’t behave the way you think he should? Even in the ultra-permissive 2010s, there are things we expect from service staff and people we just don’t know that well, and Haru crosses all of those boundaries without compunction. She should have been fired several times over already.
To poop in the master’s bathtub or not to poop in the master’s bathtub?
That doesn’t mean she’s not a likeable character, though. Surprisingly enough. The fact that other characters are aware of how inappropriate her behavior is and constantly call her out on it helps the player to feel they’re on the right track. If she wasn’t so annoying, the brothers would come off as major jerks for treating her so poorly in the beginning, but instead they come off as intensely relateable. How does she keep her job?
She does have other redeeming features as well, e.g. she’s friendly, hardworking, willing to learn from her mistakes (after crying and sulking, of course), brave to the point of stupidity and she generally means well so, as I said, I don’t dislike her at all. Plus she does get better the longer the game goes on. And it IS interesting to watch and see what crazy stunt she’s going to pull next. I almost feel sorry for the other workers, especially Tae, who is branded ‘boring’ and ultimately demoted on one route for doing her job correctly instead of messing up constantly like Haru does. Life just ain’t fair.
Final comments
I’m pretty sure any otome fan will find at least one character to like, but a good part of whether you enjoy this game or not will hinge on how well you can deal with irritating protagonists like Haru. The real world setting makes it hard to overlook things you would otherwise let slide, so you have to be willing to check out your common sense juuust a little bit to accept some of the outcomes. But that applies to almost all the otome games, so nothing new. It was fun and I enjoyed it and I’m looking forward to my next otome game from the same team. 以上。
Lol, I did find it funny when they try to combine modern POV with historical fiction as it often ends up being really awkward in the end. Oh well. At least everyone is a OK love interest :>
Yeah, but if you don’t do that then every end will be a bad end because there’s no way the heirs would be allowed to marry a maid. You have to close your eyes a little to some of the more fanciful stuff.
“To poop in the master’s bathtub or not to poop in the master’s bathtub?” haha. Awesome. Those chibi maid scenes look so cute. Great post!
Thanks. Yes, those scenes are so cute it’s easy to overlook Haru stealing from all the rooms and giving family property to strangers on the street because they asked nicely. She is a bad, bad maid.