The characters were ok and this is one of the few games where we see women friendship interactions for the better, but we never get a reason why the Heroine has this power, and there is a very rushed twist of like "suprise your dead brother isnt dead" or something that was so bad I blocked it from my memory
Bustafellows is an excellent game, for longtime otome game players and people who had to google what an otome game is before reading the rest of this review.
You get an intense thriller, a heart melting romance, and an easy breezy slice of life all in one game!
The love interests are extremely endearing, even in routes besides their own, and their deep bonds with each other permeate the entire game. It's ruminations on grief, justice, and the nature of a true self are deeply compelling. It gets surprisingly dark and violent, for anyone who likes their romances with a little more stakes.
There is some issues. Such as the noticeable typos through out every route, text going outside of the textbox a few times, the game not wanting to decide how to spell a couple names (Zora/Zola for example) and the lack of subtitles for the videos is kind of an egregious oversight. There's also some pacing issues, as the common route is extremely long and a lot of the big endgame twists and turns are run through as fast as possible. But even with all of that, it's not enough to make me hate this game.
I think everyone who is even mildly interested should give it a try. And, the more money they get for the first one, the more likely they'll be to localize the sequel!
You get an intense thriller, a heart melting romance, and an easy breezy slice of life all in one game!
The love interests are extremely endearing, even in routes besides their own, and their deep bonds with each other permeate the entire game. It's ruminations on grief, justice, and the nature of a true self are deeply compelling. It gets surprisingly dark and violent, for anyone who likes their romances with a little more stakes.
There is some issues. Such as the noticeable typos through out every route, text going outside of the textbox a few times, the game not wanting to decide how to spell a couple names (Zora/Zola for example) and the lack of subtitles for the videos is kind of an egregious oversight. There's also some pacing issues, as the common route is extremely long and a lot of the big endgame twists and turns are run through as fast as possible. But even with all of that, it's not enough to make me hate this game.
I think everyone who is even mildly interested should give it a try. And, the more money they get for the first one, the more likely they'll be to localize the sequel!
I have a few complaints with its story feeling like it's lacking something important-- it's not too bad but it's underwhelming at some important parts. Other than that, I enjoyed it. I love the mc and the LIs, their relationships, humor and general vibe. And kitty. My beloved.
WOWZA this one really surprised me!!! I LOVED it. I have a quite a few small gripes with it (mostly about the story structure/writing, localization/language barrier issues, and the lackluster extra content), but those aren’t enough to take away from the fact that this game seriously has the BEST characters. First, the voice acting is incredible. This game gave me some serious laughs and awwwwws, AND it gets extra points cause it’s the first Otome game to ever make me cry!!! And I mean CRY, not just tear up. It was towards the end of Mozu’s route which for me was extremely personal, and I think that’s one of the great things about this game is that I think most people can find something they relate to in at least one of the routes. This game tackles SO many issues: past regrets, revenge, being unsure of one’s identity, the importance of family, body image, shame, drug addiction and recovery, death of loved ones, trauma, deception, you name it. With that said, I would definitely offer a trigger warning if you are highly sensitive to any of these topics, particularly violence. I also have to give a lot of credit to the devs and writers for the protagonist, Teuta. She is seriously one of the best protagonists I’ve encountered so far. First of all, she’s VOICED!! Which is amazing, I didn’t know how much a voiced protagonist REALLY ups the immersion and I really hope that becomes the norm in the future. But more importantly, this woman is no pushover. To me she’s the epitome of a “modern” 21st century woman. She knows what she wants for the most part, she views herself as equal to men, and she’s confident, silly, and perfectly imperfect. I loved her.
Lastly, it wouldn’t be a great Otome game without great romance. I do think that BUSTAFELLOWS intentionally leans more into story than romance, but the romance it did have was really nice and felt VERY natural. This game was also a first for me in that I actually liked ALL of the routes. Normally there’s at least one I don’t like or am at least indifferent to; not the case here, they really were all great. My #1 ended up being Shu which shocked me cause he’s definitely not your typical sweetheart. However, I think he really made me fall for him because he is probably one of the most straightforward LIs I’ve ever seen in Japanese media, and if you know anything about [romantic] Japanese media, you know these types of guys are one in a million, or more like a billion lmao. It was so refreshing and just straight up satisfying. Like, “I love you, you love me, let’s kiss and date, also yes I’d like to have sex with you eventually” chef’s kiss
ALSO REAL QUICK: The music in this game absolutely SLAPS
Lastly, it wouldn’t be a great Otome game without great romance. I do think that BUSTAFELLOWS intentionally leans more into story than romance, but the romance it did have was really nice and felt VERY natural. This game was also a first for me in that I actually liked ALL of the routes. Normally there’s at least one I don’t like or am at least indifferent to; not the case here, they really were all great. My #1 ended up being Shu which shocked me cause he’s definitely not your typical sweetheart. However, I think he really made me fall for him because he is probably one of the most straightforward LIs I’ve ever seen in Japanese media, and if you know anything about [romantic] Japanese media, you know these types of guys are one in a million, or more like a billion lmao. It was so refreshing and just straight up satisfying. Like, “I love you, you love me, let’s kiss and date, also yes I’d like to have sex with you eventually” chef’s kiss
ALSO REAL QUICK: The music in this game absolutely SLAPS
This review contains spoilers
I loved the LIs, I loved the side characters, but I didn't love Teuta. I didn't like some of the things that she said about immigrants/how the game handled that part of the story. I would've loved the game a lot more if I didn't have to spend the whole time with her/they handled the important topics they were trying to cover better :c
mozu's waif-ish gaze and autistic behavior has bewitched me body and soul (this game is not steamy at all but it's fun)
No major criticisms of this game come to mind, so I can't say exactly why I didn't emotionally connect with anyone in this game. It was just something I played once in a while when bored until I finished it, taking me almost 6 months total. I don't regret it, at least.
On the notable plus side: an explicitly 20+ year old set of love interests and protagonist (who is also voiced)!
On the notable ??? side: if there are lines that seem to not be translated, go into the backlog and check for them there. This does mean that if you're hard of hearing or don't listen to the voice acting, you'll miss some of the lines completely.
On the notable negative side: there are numerous typos in the English localization (mainly punctuation), and Luka deserved a route. Cowards
On the notable plus side: an explicitly 20+ year old set of love interests and protagonist (who is also voiced)!
On the notable ??? side: if there are lines that seem to not be translated, go into the backlog and check for them there. This does mean that if you're hard of hearing or don't listen to the voice acting, you'll miss some of the lines completely.
On the notable negative side: there are numerous typos in the English localization (mainly punctuation), and Luka deserved a route. Cowards
eU AMO ESSE JOGO. EU ME SENTI DENTRO DELE. a heroine é uma gatinha e eu adoro ouvir ela falar, coisa que é rara nesse gênero. a música é SIMPLESMENTE INCRÍVEL, talvez a melhor que eu já tenha visto em vn. mozu e scarecrow são uns fofinhos, meus favoritos, e eu adorei o quanto o mozu é extremamente autista e isso não é uma falha de personagem, só o jeitinho dele. a história é cheia de ação e reviravoltas divertidas, os coadjuvantes são carismáticos e tudo mais. o sistema de conquistas dentro do jogo faz com que fique fácil se guiar pelo que já fez e ainda tem que fazer. OS BAD ENDINGS!!! a arte é média, mas eu tirei essa meia estrela porque o romance tem um pacing muito estranho de não ter Nenhum na rota comum e depois vai descendo a ladeira em pouco tempo. nada é perfeito, afu.
The art is so so damn nice, it’s one of the prettiest Otome’s I’ve seen, but I find that when Otome’s try to tackle more “serious” matters, the writing just gets so frustrating. A lot of the conflict and resolutions just seem kinda silly. Also the way the MC reacts to important things and completely forgets about it a few minutes later is painful. It’s a shame cause I really wanted to like this.
everything i do is for you teuta
reminded me that unfortunately, i may still be interested in men,
Shout out to my boy Scarecrow!! 😘
Love to use our time travel powers to avert disaster, only to be roped in with a bunch of criminal-adjacent boys and their problem-solving gang!
Even though some of the scenes aren't properly subtitled, we had a pretty great time with this one! Shame the "true" route on the end takes a wild narrative turn that feels unearned and unjustified.
Even though some of the scenes aren't properly subtitled, we had a pretty great time with this one! Shame the "true" route on the end takes a wild narrative turn that feels unearned and unjustified.
I had a pretty good time with it - the art was great, I loved having a voiced heroine, and the characters were all pretty interesting in their own ways. My main criticism is that the game is on the short side - the story in general feels a little underdeveloped because of that.
Also, the writing for the overarching plot is pretty weak. I didn't really care about the various mysteries they set up over the course of the common route and the reveals didn't really land at all. This game is carried by the characters and the relationships they have with one another rather than the world/narrative.
Also, the writing for the overarching plot is pretty weak. I didn't really care about the various mysteries they set up over the course of the common route and the reveals didn't really land at all. This game is carried by the characters and the relationships they have with one another rather than the world/narrative.
shu's route made this one of my favorite otome games ive ever played
game is divided into getting each characters ending, which all were good, however the true ending just felt "meh". How to get the different characters ending did not feel natural (got same character ending twice despite different actions), and not so fun to have a guide for a novel game.
haxce un año no m suicidé porque la ruta de crow me salvó la vida. cine. q localicen la secuela ya
A game I enjoyed but couldn't help but feel that the routes were too... short? Abrupt? Difficult to explain. The cast is incredibly silly and charming and Teuta is a standout heroine who bounces off everyone in such a fun way, though I felt her dynamics with Shu and Crow were the best. I just can't help but feel the routes needed a little bit more time in the oven to really make the most of the incredibly fun cast. The final scenes are an incredibly unexpected gutpunch, too; I just sat there staring at my screen for a while after those last cgs hit. Expect some flaws, but if you approach it on its level Bustafellows has a lot to enjoy.
a game more into its overall plot than its romance, but the plot isnt very good :/
weirdly paced at times and feels underdeveloped. the setup is interesting enough and the cast has a fun dynamic when all together, but i cant help but feel disappointed by this one in the end, shrug.
weirdly paced at times and feels underdeveloped. the setup is interesting enough and the cast has a fun dynamic when all together, but i cant help but feel disappointed by this one in the end, shrug.
This review contains spoilers
so i finished all the routes of the game since season 2 is coming out this year i want to state my opinions i really like it i think its a great game the romance is also good as well it makes you cry so fucking much i nearly cried
now who do i personally like tetua with? thats limbo for sure here's why i see scarcrow and her as siblings i love there friendship its so cute, i love her and mozu but its more i feel bad for him same thing as helvectia, i see shu as a protective dad, but with limbo its way different the way they act towards each other is so different i just love it plus in the finale route in full circle when he was checking if she was okay it made me cry man
now lets talk about routes this is the order i did
limbo: i really loved limbo's it dif shows his views on justice as a detective and what happened at the time and his romance with teuta was cute like i really loved it limbo is the type of guy that bottles up his emotions so he needs someone like teuta to lean on
mozu: i really loved his route it was super sad like i said i felt sad for him i do like him and teuta together but the problem is that i felt they got together too fast like he just lost his sister i feel he needs to heal before getting into a relationship if i was in charge of it i would wait until season 2 at least until he's ready but overall it was great but i didn't like his side B
scarcrow: i liked his route but i didn't get the split personality thing
shu: his was so good like i said i see him as a dad but i can see them being cute but man i became a simp over yang why dose he not have a route? we need one!!! i know season 2 won't give us one but i'm praying we do
helvectia: i felt bad for his route it was so sad poor dude it was so good
now lets talk about adam man i felt he was done dirty he didn't deserve that man he deserves a route man like poor man why you do this to him game?
can't wait for season 2 now i feel like its going to get better compared to season 1
now who do i personally like tetua with? thats limbo for sure here's why i see scarcrow and her as siblings i love there friendship its so cute, i love her and mozu but its more i feel bad for him same thing as helvectia, i see shu as a protective dad, but with limbo its way different the way they act towards each other is so different i just love it plus in the finale route in full circle when he was checking if she was okay it made me cry man
now lets talk about routes this is the order i did
limbo: i really loved limbo's it dif shows his views on justice as a detective and what happened at the time and his romance with teuta was cute like i really loved it limbo is the type of guy that bottles up his emotions so he needs someone like teuta to lean on
mozu: i really loved his route it was super sad like i said i felt sad for him i do like him and teuta together but the problem is that i felt they got together too fast like he just lost his sister i feel he needs to heal before getting into a relationship if i was in charge of it i would wait until season 2 at least until he's ready but overall it was great but i didn't like his side B
scarcrow: i liked his route but i didn't get the split personality thing
shu: his was so good like i said i see him as a dad but i can see them being cute but man i became a simp over yang why dose he not have a route? we need one!!! i know season 2 won't give us one but i'm praying we do
helvectia: i felt bad for his route it was so sad poor dude it was so good
now lets talk about adam man i felt he was done dirty he didn't deserve that man he deserves a route man like poor man why you do this to him game?
can't wait for season 2 now i feel like its going to get better compared to season 1
love this game but the last two chapters were way too quickly paced
One of the most beautiful Otome games I've ever seen, with many cool effects and even the character's mouths move, wooooow!
So visuals are definitely the strong point of this game and while i enjoyed the main character more than in most Otomes, i must say that the story didn't really do much for me. It's not bad by any means but i did wish that there was a bit more romance involved and i found myself guessing the ending fairly easily. There were a few twists here and there that i didn't exactly expect but they didn't really surprise me either.
Nonetheless, i had fun and I'd definitely recommend playing it.
So visuals are definitely the strong point of this game and while i enjoyed the main character more than in most Otomes, i must say that the story didn't really do much for me. It's not bad by any means but i did wish that there was a bit more romance involved and i found myself guessing the ending fairly easily. There were a few twists here and there that i didn't exactly expect but they didn't really surprise me either.
Nonetheless, i had fun and I'd definitely recommend playing it.
i've only finished scarecrow's route SO FAR but i can say
+this game is A+++
+scarecrow is such a babygirl.
+autism
-teuta has her own white woman moments as much as she is enjoyable
- its not steamy its a LIE but it doesnt need to be steamy to be good <3
+this game is A+++
+scarecrow is such a babygirl.
+autism
-teuta has her own white woman moments as much as she is enjoyable
- its not steamy its a LIE but it doesnt need to be steamy to be good <3
I may not play these type of games but the mc, Teuta, made it enjoyable to go through every route. Gotta say I love all the guys but I'll never admit it to Crow. (:
The inner urge to grab Crow and squish him into a box before stuffing him into another multitudes of other tinier boxes before tossing him into the sun--out in the orbit--and back to catch him before being able to gently place him into my pocket is unfathomable. Play the game. please.
The inner urge to grab Crow and squish him into a box before stuffing him into another multitudes of other tinier boxes before tossing him into the sun--out in the orbit--and back to catch him before being able to gently place him into my pocket is unfathomable. Play the game. please.
Teuta is one of the best otome heroines ever, so much better than bland self-insertable blank slates of other games.
This game is so worth a play, one of the best!
This game is so worth a play, one of the best!
Some of the boys in this are pretty primo but it super falls apart in the true ending. Made all the worse because the IDEA of the true end is really interesting but the execution just can't carry it.
This review contains spoilers
The found-family dynamics is the shining spot of this game. The MC was fine, not the best, but not the worst by far. The LIs were a great group. It went way hard in some of the bad ends, specifically Limbo's. Mozu's route also had a dark bit. I liked the memorabilia parts and the UI. More romance fluff would've been nice, but it did have a lot of plot and an interesting sci-fi twist with Teuta's powers. A solid game worthy of replaying. Loved Scarecrow, Limbo, and Shu <3.
I have Limbo brainworms forever and always
honestly, I wasn't expecting much because these mainline otomes are usually disappointing but Bustafellows is the perfect mix of adult topics with lightheartedness, a heroine w her own personality, and not beating around the bush with the romance.
honestly, I wasn't expecting much because these mainline otomes are usually disappointing but Bustafellows is the perfect mix of adult topics with lightheartedness, a heroine w her own personality, and not beating around the bush with the romance.