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A common element in Japanese dating simulator video games is that they all feature an extensive cast of potential romantic partners. Still, there are only so many characters the designers can cram into a single game, and some gamers find that the available roster of would-be boyfriends just doesn’t measure up to their preexisting celebrity or anime crush.

Seeking to solve this problem is mobile game developer GimmickPlus, with a new smartphone title that lets you drop pictures of your favorite actor or girls’ manga character straight into the game. But as we’ve seen before, when you give users a template to create romantic tension with you also give them the means to craft bizarre humor, and Fantasy Condominium-You Can Fall in Love with Your Ideal Boyfriend is no exception.

The game’s concept is actually quite clever. The player takes on the role of the female protagonist, who lives in the titular condominium.

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The game, which can be downloaded for Android devices here, includes a number of character archetypes and storylines created by GimmickPlus. What it doesn’t have, though, are visuals for the male characters. Instead, gamers load in pictures of what they want the characters to look like. Ostensibly, these would be pictures of TV stars, boy band members, or waify manga heroes with pastel-colored hair and a penchant for pounding on walls to express their feelings.

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After adding photos, you can input the character’s name, and pick from one of the provided profiles, such as childhood friend, upperclassman, underclassman, model, and doctor.

▼ Judging from some of the tenants’ jobs, it sounds like Fantasy Condominium is in the high-rent district.

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You’re not limited to a single personalized character, either. GimmickPlus lets you continue to add more and more guys to the building, with each getting his own digs.

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As you can tell from the premise and marketing, the game is aimed squarely at female gamers. The potential for humor, though, cuts across gender divisions.

In order to keep the interface as simple to use as possible, Fantasy Condominium doesn’t impose restrictions on what kind of photos you can drop into the game. So while the idea is that you’ll use snapshots of hot Homo sapiens, the game won’t try to stop you from breeding outside your species, such as the gorilla here who says ▼ “I’m Gorigorio. It’s nice to meet you.”

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Of course, primates may be mankind’s closest animal relative, but dogs are our best friends. Might they also be your ideal boyfriend, like this enthusiastic classmate?

▼ “Awesome! We’re in the same class this year!”

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Even if you’re going with a picture of a human celebrity, no one says he has to be a rom-com A-lister.

▼ “Stay with me forever,” he says, and you can tell things have gotten serious because you’re calling Severus by his first name. His other lines read “This isn’t your first time kissing someone, is it?” and “You know, there’s more than kissing that we could do.”

But while we know Harry Potter’s Professor Snape has legions of devoted fangirls, we can’t help but wonder about the long-term prospects of a relationship with someone whose likely response to every date plan you suggest is going to be somewhere between “exasperated disgust” and “withering disinterest.” Wouldn’t you be better off with a guy who’s a little less rigid in personality? Someone who’s a little softer and sweeter…

▼ …and preferably covered in maple syrup.

You know what? Kudos to GimmickPlus. We’ve all heard someone sarcastically remark to big eaters waxing poetic about their favorite foods, “If you love it so much, why don’t you marry it?” This might be the first time, though, that a developer has had the courage to honestly examine the unique qualities and challenges of a serious, adult relationship with a stack of pancakes. Such as when he tries to break up with you by saying, “I think you should cut back on sweets.”

Source: IT Media
Top, insert images: Google Play