I probably set myself up to fail for this game by expecting it to be a short, one-sitting 3-4 hour game (screw you HLTB you lying little-!) but here we are.

I didn't know what to expect going into this, but I really enjoyed Hatoful Boyfriend. It was a lil slow to start but was still pretty funny and had its charm.. The early chapters of this, however, were honestly just kinda dull. Chapter 3 was good, and Ch4 was really good, but given how the events unfold it felt as though the first 2 weren't even required as set up for them, so I'm really not sure why half the game was spent on what could've been a single chapter's worth of content, ah well.

Overall, this is saved/carried by its final chapter, the rest of the game has its moments but I didn't really settle in for a good time so much as I was just waiting for it to get good. When it did though, it was right back to what I'd been wanting all along. This game could've easily gotten a 4/5 were it not for the first half of it feeling like a slog for me, the last chapter is well worth playing and I'm really glad it stuck the landing. But unfortunately despite how strong it gets, the early game was honestly just boring, and it wouldn't feel right not to factor that into the score.

Side Note: The trailer on Steam is of the birds all single Jingle Birds.. idk if this is a side-story in the game but it does not happen in the main chapters, I was looking forward to it the whole time goddamnit 😭

Final verdict: If you can speedrun the early chapters paying just-enough attention to keep up, I would recommend this. Otherwise it may only be for you if you really liked the characters from the first game lol

Happy New Year everybody! 🎉

Reviewed on Dec 31, 2023


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