Touch your girlfriend on the screen! I don’t know how the Nintendo DS maintains its kiddy image in the face of an increasing line-up of naughty and edgy games. What caught by eye today is Love Plus by Konami (yes, that Konami). Konami is no stranger to romance games, being the creators of the Tokimeki Memorial series, but they’ve managed to keep things clean so far.
Let’s see, according to Famitsu, Love Plus is a “Communication Game” that takes place in real-time a la Animal Crossing. Your job as a player is basically to get a girl to fall in love with you. Once she does, you can touch her in various worksafe places to increase her affection for you. If you’ve played the Tokimeki Memorial Girl’s Side games for DS, there’s a similar feature in there. Unlike most romance games, Love Plus doesn’t stop once you confess to the girl but continues to show your deepening relationship. Depending on the choices and actions you make, the events you get to see differ.
Apart from the touchscreen features, the game is also voice-responsive, which is only useful if you speak Japanese. It’s not all one-sided molestation of nubile young girls, though. They can also make approaches towards you, termed “love motions.” Sounds kinda gross. Anyway, if you play your cards right, you’ll even be rewarded with a kiss scene!
Guess I know what the next game I’m getting is! Love Plus from Konami comes out on 3rd September 2009.