A member of a prestigious family and heir to a fortune, Hibari learns that her eccentric grandfather is determined to find her a husband. He arranges to house her in a luxurious villa along with four handsome, hand-picked bachelors and her private butler. As her suitors try to win her hand by any means necessary, Hibari endures endless everyday trials and temptations. Has her grandpa chosen poorly, or could there be more to these fellows than first meets the eye? Through all of this, Hibari has two important goals: frighten off each of these marriage candidates, and absolutely refuse to fall in love.
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i hated this game at first, ended up giving it another shot, and then grew to enjoy it. the LIs are much more than meets the eye, that much is for sure. some strange choices with the true end had me scratching my head, but overall, i liked it. Taiga was by far my fav LI and i loved how Hibari changed throughout that route. i love Ichiya too but his relationship with Hibari was soo.... eyebrow raising.
This review contains spoilers
HOO BOY. I am not exaggerating when I say I could write a novel of a review for this one. Similar to Piofiore, I kind of have a love/hate relationship with VB.
I have A LOT of complaints about this one, about so many different things (drop a comment if you’re curious lmao) but I can’t even elaborate here because you’d legit be reading this review for hours if I did.
So here’s what I will say: If you are an avid Otome fan, you should definitely play this one. The frustrations I felt were infuriating but I don’t regret playing this one at all, plus there’s probably plenty of people out there who wouldn’t have nearly as dramatic of a reaction to it as I did lol.
The only other thing I’ll say is that EVERY love interest in this game is an absolute gem. You won’t think so at first but I was continually surprised how each of them made me love them more and more as the routes progressed. And to be frank, they ALL deserve WAY better than the protagonist, Hibari. I won’t go into detail on her character but I think this will suffice: if you like your tsunderes as TSUNDERE as possible, you’ll love her.
Ichiya ended up being my #1, I actually think he’s one of the most complex, realistic, and relatable guys I’ve encountered in any Otome game thus far. His sensitivity and delicacy simultaneously melted and broke my heart. I loved him. The sweetest cinnamon roll for sure ❤️
Last compliment I will give is that the art is gorgeous. I found the style of the CGs really unique and looked forward to every single one, and I was also pleased to see sooooo many chibis!!! Too adorable ❤️
I have A LOT of complaints about this one, about so many different things (drop a comment if you’re curious lmao) but I can’t even elaborate here because you’d legit be reading this review for hours if I did.
So here’s what I will say: If you are an avid Otome fan, you should definitely play this one. The frustrations I felt were infuriating but I don’t regret playing this one at all, plus there’s probably plenty of people out there who wouldn’t have nearly as dramatic of a reaction to it as I did lol.
The only other thing I’ll say is that EVERY love interest in this game is an absolute gem. You won’t think so at first but I was continually surprised how each of them made me love them more and more as the routes progressed. And to be frank, they ALL deserve WAY better than the protagonist, Hibari. I won’t go into detail on her character but I think this will suffice: if you like your tsunderes as TSUNDERE as possible, you’ll love her.
Ichiya ended up being my #1, I actually think he’s one of the most complex, realistic, and relatable guys I’ve encountered in any Otome game thus far. His sensitivity and delicacy simultaneously melted and broke my heart. I loved him. The sweetest cinnamon roll for sure ❤️
Last compliment I will give is that the art is gorgeous. I found the style of the CGs really unique and looked forward to every single one, and I was also pleased to see sooooo many chibis!!! Too adorable ❤️
♡ TAIGA MY BELOVED ಥ‿ಥ ♡
Okay sorry, I needed to preface this review with some casual fangirling. 2D Husbando Club!~
Pros:
✓ The common route, the common route, oh did I mention the common route? THE COMMON ROUTE FOR ALL YOU PEOPLE IN THE BACK- (ﾉ･o･)ﾉ. Okay but seriously, the common route in this Otome Game might be the best I've ever experienced. You get so sucked into the storyline, the plot, the way the characters interact with eachother, who the characters are... everything about the common route is chefs kiss. I literally spent half of my total hours of this game just enjoying the Common Route to its fullest extent. I'm telling you, you'll be laughing, crying, screaming into your pillow, and getting all the warm fuzzies you could ever imagine.
✓ The characters are so enticingly well defined and fleshed out! YES, they are all dramatically different from one another. So much so, that you know you're getting extremely unique routes for all of them. And, what makes it extra amazing is that because each of them are so different you really end up just appreciating them all for who they are.
✓ The chibi CG’s just have me melting into a puddle of goop. OMG! This is one of the only otome games I’ve played where they use CG’s with chibi versions of the characters and it. Is. The. CUTEST. THING. EVER! These got so many laughs and “aww” moments out of me, you will definitely enjoy those!
Cons:
✕ Ngl, I don’t understand the minigame in Variable Barricade (where you have spawn on a chess board with your LI). I tried looking up a tutorial or to get some hint as to what you’re supposed to do in it, but I don’t know. I just pressed the “A” button once during the minigame and it kinda ends it so… no clue! I wish they had some more instruction around what it is and what you’re supposed to do there.
✕ Tbh, I wish the endings were slightly less rushed and thrown together. Don’t get me wrong, they’re better than a lot of Otome endings, but it did feel just thrown together last minute on some of them.
Tbh, I have really only barely scratched the surface of this game, so I'm sure I'll come back with some more opinions the more I play, but from what I have already completed, I'm literally in love. (๑♡⌓♡๑)
Highly recommend you get this game and add it to your collection, especially if you're a fan of the Otome Genre. :")
Okay sorry, I needed to preface this review with some casual fangirling. 2D Husbando Club!~
Pros:
✓ The common route, the common route, oh did I mention the common route? THE COMMON ROUTE FOR ALL YOU PEOPLE IN THE BACK- (ﾉ･o･)ﾉ. Okay but seriously, the common route in this Otome Game might be the best I've ever experienced. You get so sucked into the storyline, the plot, the way the characters interact with eachother, who the characters are... everything about the common route is chefs kiss. I literally spent half of my total hours of this game just enjoying the Common Route to its fullest extent. I'm telling you, you'll be laughing, crying, screaming into your pillow, and getting all the warm fuzzies you could ever imagine.
✓ The characters are so enticingly well defined and fleshed out! YES, they are all dramatically different from one another. So much so, that you know you're getting extremely unique routes for all of them. And, what makes it extra amazing is that because each of them are so different you really end up just appreciating them all for who they are.
✓ The chibi CG’s just have me melting into a puddle of goop. OMG! This is one of the only otome games I’ve played where they use CG’s with chibi versions of the characters and it. Is. The. CUTEST. THING. EVER! These got so many laughs and “aww” moments out of me, you will definitely enjoy those!
Cons:
✕ Ngl, I don’t understand the minigame in Variable Barricade (where you have spawn on a chess board with your LI). I tried looking up a tutorial or to get some hint as to what you’re supposed to do in it, but I don’t know. I just pressed the “A” button once during the minigame and it kinda ends it so… no clue! I wish they had some more instruction around what it is and what you’re supposed to do there.
✕ Tbh, I wish the endings were slightly less rushed and thrown together. Don’t get me wrong, they’re better than a lot of Otome endings, but it did feel just thrown together last minute on some of them.
Tbh, I have really only barely scratched the surface of this game, so I'm sure I'll come back with some more opinions the more I play, but from what I have already completed, I'm literally in love. (๑♡⌓♡๑)
Highly recommend you get this game and add it to your collection, especially if you're a fan of the Otome Genre. :")
this game is hilarious. usuba is one of my favorite illustrators. the concept is great. the age gap is awful. ichiya my malewife though
vô brisado das ideia querendo casar sua neta de 17 anos com caras de 28 anos
I've been wanting to play this since it released in Japan in 2018, and the wait was worth it. Variable Barricade is a hilarious otome with a levity that was refreshing to play through. With a sharp and sensible heroine (who is fully voice acted, too!), four wacky but endearing suitors, loveable side characters, and fantastic art/CGs, Variable Barricade keeps your attention for the 40 or so hours it takes to play through. There are a couple of uncomfortable scenes/tropes that dampened my overall enjoyment of the game, but the pros far outweigh the cons here. I would recommend it to otome fans and those interested in the plot/art alike.