Dating Sim Games?

[Sundowner]

I'm probably the only one that would want to play one of these, but does anyone know if any good dating sim games exist in the western world? I know they are popular in Japan but, unfortunately I can't read anything.

Even a finished fan translation rom hack would be ok. I looked on romhacking.net , but there's not much on there...

I look forward to any responses but no criticizing the genre. thanks

[Tupin]

Two words: Katawa Shoujo.

[VACRMH]

Love Plus for the DS has been translated, I hear that's good.

But it seems like a lot of Dating Sims in English are going to be H-Games, if that's an issue for you.

[Aussie2B]

It's a shame that they're rarely localized, and it's an even bigger shame that they get such disrespect in the Western world (which is probably the cause of the lack of localizations). It makes no sense because gamers usually praise the dating sim elements in games like Harvest Moon and Persona, but when dating sim gameplay is used as a standalone game rather than a part of a greater whole (that is, tacked on to an RPG or whatever), suddenly it's the butt of jokes. I don't get it. A good game is a good game, and I love me a fun dating sim.

As for ones in English, I've been playing a lot of the fan translation of Welcome to Pia Carrot on PC-FX lately. It does have some adult scenes, if that bothers you, but it's a really good game with charming characters and interesting plotlines. And even though it does have some adult content, it's overall a pretty tasteful game. Nothing extreme or outlandish in it, and if you want to win a girl over, you have to be a really nice guy and focus on her. If by any slim chance you have or plan to get the system, you can burn a patched ISO and play it right on the console without any system modifications or anything, which is what I'm doing, or you can always just emulate of course.

[Sundowner]

Thanks for the recommendations. I'm glad I'm not alone on this one.

I decided to try Katawa Shoujo. I played a little bit of that today and so far so good.

Next, I'll try out Pia Carrot via emulation. A PC-FX is a little out of my price range at the moment

I could afford a DS flash cart and try Love Plus.

Very interesting suggestions. Thanks again