Been wanting to play more simulation games.

[BrokenBoy]

Title. I wanna check out games like the Princess Maker series and Tokimeki Memorial. The first Tokimemo (Abbreviated name) for the SFC is a game that is currently getting translated by a fan group it seems. I got interested because of a 6 hour analysis of the game by some game journalist. In the video game he talks about why it's such an important game for the Japanese game industry.

Is anyone here a fan of simulation games?

 

[Misery]

These look more like visual novels though, not simulation games?

That's the name I know for that genre anyway.

When I think of "simulation" I think of things like Simcity, Cities Skylines, Euro Truck Simulator, and things of that nature.

 

[unperson]

Bit too talky for me, and what's the 'game' aspect?

 

[BrokenBoy]

These look more like visual novels though, not simulation games?

That's the name I know for that genre anyway.

When I think of "simulation" I think of things like Simcity, Cities Skylines, Euro Truck Simulator, and things of that nature.

Dating Sim ≠ Visual Novel. Not always at least.

Dating/Love simulations are separate genres, one is a simulation game where you must build stats in order to date your love interest(s). Visual novels are games composed of nothing but reading dialogue and narration and choosing choices. Obviously game genres tend to overlap (visual novels like this are called "hybrids"), there's plenty of date sims that are also visual novels but being one doesn't make it the other.

Tokimeki Memorial is both a visual novel and dating simulation.

The Princess Maker series are raising simulations. These games are about raising a child or teenager via stat building similar to dating sims. Again, there can be overlap, but the only the 4th and 5th Princess Makers are visual novel hybrids.

 

[AGXStarseed]

For me, when I think of Simulation games I'm reminded of seeing MasakoX from TeamFourStar (the voice of Goku and Gohan in Dragon Ball Z Abridged) playing some simulator games while staying in his 'Goku' persona:

Goat Simulator

Surgeon Simulator: Anniversary Edition

American Truck Simulator

Ultimate Epic Battle Simulator

 

[Misery]

For me, when I think of Simulation games I'm reminded of seeing MasakoX from TeamFourStar (the voice of Goku and Gohan in Dragon Ball Z Abridged) playing some simulator games while staying in his 'Goku' persona:

Omigod freaking Goat Simulator! I love that one. Have spent soooooo much time with it. It's great for unwinding and such.

 

[Wolfsage]

For me, when I think of Simulation games I'm reminded of seeing MasakoX from TeamFourStar (the voice of Goku and Gohan in Dragon Ball Z Abridged) playing some simulator games while staying in his 'Goku' persona:

Goat Simulator

Surgeon Simulator: Anniversary Edition

American Truck Simulator

Ultimate Epic Battle Simulator

One of them did a Vegeta voice over for bread simulator. Too funny.

 

[BrokenBoy]

OK so I have bought both Princess Maker Refine and Princess Maker 2 Refine off of Steam and I started playing the first one. It's a great game.

The "story" (There basically is none aside from the opening cutscene and the endings. While there is texts in the game, it's just gameplay related flavor text.) is about a generic JRPG hero who decides to settle down after defeating an evil demon army to adopt an orphan child who's parent's died in the war against the human kingdom and the demon army.

The gameplay is about choosing a selection of activities each month to raise your daughter's stats in order that determine what kind of person your daughter will be when she grows up at the end of the game when she turns 18. You start the game when your child is 10 years old. There is many different endings depending on how you raise your daughter and what stats and skills you develop throughout the game. My daughter specializes in the elegance, intelligence, and morale stats.

I find the game fun because it's an engaging simulation of what's it like to raise a child in a fantasy JRPG world. The game has a fair amount of challenge and you will experience plenty of ups and downs. The many specializations also add tons of replayability. Music is also great.

But don't take my word for it, check out the game yourself and tell me what you think!

Princess Maker Refine on Steam

EDIT: I just beat the game!

 

[AGXStarseed]

One of them did a Vegeta voice over for bread simulator. Too funny.

Ah yeah, I enjoy listening to Lani's "Vegeta" voice in the 'Renegade for Life' / 'Two Saiyans Play' videos - the downside been I can't show them here due to the swearing.

 

[BrokenBoy]

Omigod freaking Goat Simulator! I love that one. Have spent soooooo much time with it. It's great for unwinding and such.

I've never played it. What makes it fun for you?

 

[Misery]

I've never played it. What makes it fun for you?

Pretty much everything.

If you've ever played one of those games where there's a lot to do, but also a lot of bugs (the first Red Dead Redemption for instance), but the bugs just make things hilarious and even more fun instead of ruining anything? That's Goat Simulator. And those games, that sort of "the bugs just make it even more fun" experience, that's what it's very inspired by.

A couple of the things listed on the store page are:

MILLIONS OF BUGS! We're only eliminating the crash-bugs, everything else is hilarious and we're keeping it

In-game physics that bug out all the time

It sounds absolutely absurd on paper, but... I'll just say, there's good reason why the game got so many expansions as it did.

Doesnt take itself seriously AT ALL. And there's a lot of totally ridiculous things you can unlock, all sorts of goofy powers and such that are just even funnier.

VERY much a sandbox title. You run all over and do whatever the heck you want. Cause chaos, throw people/objects around, get launched into/past the sky because you headbutted a car... so many things. You can even do stunts if you like, apparently goats do stunts (whole game is very strange). Lots of secrets and easter eggs too. Also despite how the store page makes it sound, it controls very well overall.

It's absolutely one of those games that's VERY hard to explain because on paper it sounds absolutely godawful. But I've got a ton of hours in it for good reason.

 

[BrokenBoy]

My god Princess Maker 2 is exceedingly more difficult than the first one.

It's so easy to make a suboptimal choice and shoot yourself in the foot for many in-game months. And there's so much more depth and mechanics in comparison to the first one which was rather chill in comparison.

 

[BrokenBoy]

Tokimeki Memorial finally has a fan translation released!