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Part of a series on
Dating sims and
visual novels
Distribution
AnimePlay
Dōjin soft
Genres
Dating sims
Erotic games
Visual novels
Gender target
Bishōjo games
Otome games

A bishōjo game (美少女ゲーム bishōjo gēmu?),or girl game, gal game is a type of Japanese video game centered around interactions with attractive anime girls. AnimePlay is a trademark used to refer to the Visual novel games distributed by Hirameki International and a (discontinued magazine profiling these games also sometimes called, are Video games created by Japanese hobbyists or hobbyist groups (referred to as "circles" more for fun than for profit essentially the Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements An is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content usually in the form of Anime -style artwork A is an Interactive fiction game featuring mostly static graphics usually with Anime -style art An is a Video game that is targeted towards a female market where one of the main goals besides the plot goal is to develop a romantic relationship between the player character (anime in Japanese, Although nearly all bishōjo games involve romantic or sex appeal of some kind, they may or may not be pornographic. is a Japanese term used to refer to young and pretty girls usually below university age Pornography or porn is the explicit depiction of Sexual subject matter with the sole intention of sexually exciting the viewer

Bishōjo games are a uniquely Japanese phenomenon: they have virtually no equal in the American or European video game industries. They form a sizeable fraction of the Japanese market: the most popular have sold over a million copies, and they make up the majority of offline PC games in Japan. In video gaming, single-player refers to the variant of a particular game where input from only one player is expected throughout the course of the gaming session IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Nevertheless, because of real or perceived cultural differences, only a few titles of this sort have been translated or commercialized outside of East Asia. Thus bishōjo games remain by far the least known of the major video game genres in the west. See also [[Game classification]] Video games are categorized into Genres based on their Gameplay interaction

Notable subgenres of bishōjo games are ren'ai games (often called "dating sims") and H games (often called "hentai games"). Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements An is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content usually in the form of Anime -style artwork is a Japanese word that in the West is used when referring to sexually explicit or pornographic comics and animation particularly Japanese Anime,

Contents

Characteristics

Gameplay

Since bishōjo elements can be present in practically any type of game, gameplay in bishōjo games varies drastically within the genre. For the television channel see GamePlay HD. Gameplay includes all player experiences during the interaction with game systems especially formal For example, Gals Panic is a variant of the classic game Qix where the objective is to uncover 75% or more of a picture of a girl. This article is about the 1990s series of bishōjo Arcade games by Kaneko. Qix (pronounced /kɪks/ is an Arcade game, released by Taito America Corporation in 1981. Money Idol Exchanger is a puzzle game comparable to the Magical Drop series (which is also categorized as a bishōjo game). Money Idol Exchanger (also known as Money Puzzle Exchanger in the US is a puzzle game created in 1997 by Japanese video game developer Face for the Magical Drop is a series of puzzle games primarily for the Neo-Geo and Super Famicom, developed by Data East. In some cases, images of girls are used as prizes for skilled play, as is the case in strip Mahjong. A striptease or Exotic dance is a form of erotic entertainment usually a Dance, in which the performer known as a "stripper" gradually undresses Mahjong (also called mah-jongg by the American association Traditional Chinese 麻將 Pinyin: májiàng is a Game for four players that originated in

In other games, the bishōjo aspect can be integrated more tightly into the game: in most dating sims, the objective is to select the correct conversation lines while speaking with a female character to increase their "love meter". Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements This type of game resembles role-playing or adventure games. A role-playing game ( RPG; often roleplaying game) is a Game in which the participants assume the roles of Fictional characters. An adventure game is a type of Video game characterized by investigation exploration puzzle-solving, interaction with game characters and a focus on Narrative Many are very linear and are essentially interactive romance novels for men (sometimes called visual novels).

Nowadays, most bishōjo games remain 2D, in contrast to the rest of the gaming industry in which the majority are 3D. 2D computer graphics is the Computer -based generation of Digital images mdashmostly from two-dimensional models (such as 2D geometric models text and digital 3D computer graphics (in contrast to 2D computer graphics) are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer The main reason is that bishōjo games are centered mainly on characters instead of landscapes, and for this intention, 2D bitmaps continue to look better than 3D models (which tend to be blocky when seen up close). In Computer graphics, a bitmap or pixmap is a type of memory organization or Image file format used to store Digital images The The main advantage of 3D models in this context is smoother and more realistic animation, although this is usually discarded by the unpolished look of the 3D characters, in addition to the additional cost of production for this type of work. Tokimeki Memorial 3 (2001) was the first bishōjo game to have all its characters modeled in 3D, although the sales were smaller than hoped, perhaps discouraging other developers from the possibility of changing bishōjo games from 2D to 3D. is a Dating sim by Konami and the first game in the ''Tokimeki Memorial'' series. Many bishōjo games nowadays are essentially a slideshow of 2D pictures plus voice and text.

Pornographic content

Money Puzzle Exchanger is a bishōjo puzzle game starring a variety of enthusiastic young girls and scantily-clad women.
Money Puzzle Exchanger is a bishōjo puzzle game starring a variety of enthusiastic young girls and scantily-clad women. Money Idol Exchanger (also known as Money Puzzle Exchanger in the US is a puzzle game created in 1997 by Japanese video game developer Face for the Puzzle video games are a genre of Video games that emphasize Puzzle solving

Westerners often misunderstand the relationship between bishōjo games and pornography. Pornography or porn is the explicit depiction of Sexual subject matter with the sole intention of sexually exciting the viewer Frequently it is assumed that all bishōjo games include sexual imagery. In fact, while there are a number of bishōjo games entirely focused on hardcore pornography, many of the most popular titles, including all those available for home video consoles, do not contain pornographic material, and many others only contain a small amount in relation to the story as a whole. For example, the 18+ version of the popular game Kanon contains a total of 5 sex scenes and two other images of nudity within a branched story the size of a long novel. is a Japanese adult Visual novel developed by Key and released on June 4 1999 for the PC.

The pornographic content of bishōjo games is regulated by the EOCS (Ethics Organization of Computer Software), the organization in charge of classifying the content of video games in the Japanese industry. Pornography is prohibited in all console titles, and computer games are assigned a special classification alerting the public of its content. Also, as in all legal Japanese pornography, the explicit images are normally censored, showing mosaics or bars on the genital areas in order to satisfy Japanese decency laws. Japanese pornography has some unique features which separate it from Pornography in other cultures especially Western Pornography.

Pornographic bishōjo games are often catalogued as "hentai games" in the West. is a Japanese word that in the West is used when referring to sexually explicit or pornographic comics and animation particularly Japanese Anime, However, this term is usually not used in the Japanese language. In Japan, they are usually called ero-games, or frequently eroge. An is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content usually in the form of Anime -style artwork

Representation of women

Nayuki Minase from Kanon pictured in her school uniform.
Nayuki Minase from Kanon pictured in her school uniform. is a Japanese adult Visual novel developed by Key and released on June 4 1999 for the PC. Japan introduced school uniforms in the late 19th century Today School uniforms are almost universal in the public and private school systems

The representation of women in bishōjo games varies, but two generalizations can be made. First, most of the girls are portrayed as bishojo, meaning beautiful, attractive or cute (according to the definition of beauty as seen by the designers and fans of the video games). is a Japanese term used to refer to young and pretty girls usually below university age NOTICE TO WOULD-BE-ROMEOS*************** A "game designer" is a person who designs Video games or one who designs traditional games such as Board games Video Games Designer A video game designer Therefore, it is rare to find, for example, an obese or unattractive character in this type of game. Secondly, the majority of the characters are feminine (according to prevalent tendencies in Japan): in the cases where a girl shows a "boyish" appearance, she mostly can be found to be sensitive or feminine under a pseudomasculine façade.

Two particularly common settings exist: Japanese secondary schools and medieval-atmosphered, pseudo-European fantasy lands. High school is the name used in some parts of the world (in particular Scotland, North America and Australia) to describe an institution In secondary education settings, characters wear idolized Japanese school uniforms; whereas fantasy setting outfits range from witch robes to princess dresses, and Fantastic creatures like fairies and catgirls may be found as well. Japan introduced school uniforms in the late 19th century Today School uniforms are almost universal in the public and private school systems A fairy (also fay, fey, fae, faerie; collectively wee folk, good folk, people of peace, fair This article deals with the Catgirl in popular culture For information of historical interest on the mythical creature, see Bakeneko. When the game takes place in some other setting, it tends to explore other fashion possibilities, for example, the game Pia Carrot is located in a restaurant, in which the girls wear elaborate waitress uniforms. is a Japanese Visual novel series by Cocktail Soft (a part of F&C, later F&C FC02

The female character frequently act in an endearingly childlike fashion, which is described by the Japanese slang term moe (萌え), a characteristic that is often looked-for in bishōjo characters. is a Japanese Slang word originally referring to fetish for or Love for characters in Video games or Anime and Manga. The reasons for this characteristic are not always merely sexual: sometimes it is used to present a pretty and affectionate character who is beloved and supported by the player. In fact, "little sisters" are a recurring fixture of bishōjo games. A very popular game that emphasizes the characteristic of moe is Sister Princess, based on the premise of the player acquiring no less than 12 little sisters. is a popular Japanese Bishōjo series authored by Sakurako Kimino and illustrated by Naoto Tenhiro.

The majority of bishōjo games involve anime girls and not pictures of real-life girls. (anime in Japanese, Several reasons for this exist. First, the artistic style of anime allows a noticeable sense of femininity and a great sense of fantasy, something that is not obtained with images of real women. Second, since many characters in bishōjo games are minors (or at least have the behavior and physical proportions of minors), the use of the anime style allows the studios of bishōjo games with adult content to avoid the penalty of Japanese child pornography laws, which do not prohibit the simulated representation of characters under 18 years of age. Child pornography refers to material depicting Children being in a state of undress engaged in erotic poses or sexual activity Even so, it is common to find the packages of these games affirming that, theoretically, all the characters are over 18 years old. More circumstantial reasons also exist: for example, anime girls showed better on computer screens in the beginning of the video game industry, when colors were more limited.

Representation of men

The main male character in bishōjo games often represented as someone which the player can identified with, thus experience the story as he's own experience. Often the game is viewed in a first person view of the mine character. In video games first person refers to a graphical perspective rendered from the viewpoint of the player character Since bishojo games focus on the female characters and the player interaction with them, male characters often receive less time on-screen and the character that represents the player rarely appears; when this happens, his face is usually hidden outside the screen or otherwise. Sometimes, the only appearance of the man is in sex scenes being the penis that enters from the side of the screen, or with no visible parts.

Industry

The industry of bishōjo games is closely related to the industry of anime and Japanese manga. (anime in Japanese, ˈmɑŋgə is the Japanese word for Comics (sometimes called komikku コミック and print Cartoons In their modern form manga date from shortly They share many conventions in common: for example, it is common to find in many bishōjo games, as in anime, a brief opening video that shows the main characters, in addition to ecchi content that can be found in the games. Ecchi (or Etchi, from the Japanese エッチ etchi) is derived from a Japanese word meaning "lewd" "sexy" "lascivious" Many popular games have been adapted to anime and manga, and some games are derived from anime.

Some dōjinshi groups produce bishōjo games, many with the objective to later form a real company or to be contracted by one of the great companies in the industry. are self-published Japanese works usually manga or novels They are often the work of amateurs though some professional artists participate as a way to publish material outside the regular Due to the short programming time and relatively small amount of content required in a bishōjo game, barriers to enter this industry is somewhat low, and is the reason why every year dozens of new companies emerge. Nevertheless, like in many entertainment industries, those with greater dynamics are the winners, the reason why a few studios are at the top of the industry and collect a greater amount of money in sales while the rest obtain little more than nothing. In order to survive in the competitive market, companies need to be much better than their competitors, or satisfy an individual market. A substantial part of the revenue of the industry comes from merchandising. Fans are often dedicated to particular characters within their favorite games, and are willing to pay premium prices for goods like posters, figurines and accessories representing them. A poster is any piece of printed Paper designed to be attached to a wall or vertical surface For the indie band see Figurine (band A figurine (a diminutive form of the word Figure) is a Statuette that represents Several conventions also exist where articles oriented to bishōjo fans are sold, like the popular dōjinshi market Comiket in Tokyo, Japan. officially, is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan and located on the eastern side of the main island Honshū.

Due to the representation of female characters in the majority of bishōjo games, a great majority of the market is males. Nevertheless, from the year 2000 some developers began to expand their market creating games directed to girls and presented attractive young men in their cast (bishōnen). 2000 ( MM) was a Leap year that started on Saturday of the Common Era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. is a Japanese term literally meaning "beautiful boy or beautiful youth The most well-known and commercial of these titles is Konami's experiment Tokimeki Memorial: Girl's side (2002). () is a leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys Trading cards, Anime, Tokusatsu, Slot machines is a Dating sim by Konami and the first game in the ''Tokimeki Memorial'' series. There have even appeared a small amount of erotic games that present man-man homosexual relations (yaoi games), which take their bases from the parallel subculture of yaoi anime and manga. Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements Games targeted specifically at female players are not referred to as bishoujo games, but categorized under the broader genre of adventure or simulation by publishers, and commonly referred to as otome games or Boys' Love games by fans and reviewers. An is a Video game that is targeted towards a female market where one of the main goals besides the plot goal is to develop a romantic relationship between the player character Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements

Bishōjo games for personal computers are usually sold in special stores or sections reserved for clients more than 18 years old. Nevertheless, console bishōjo games, which are generally less explicit, are sold next to other video games. At the present time, dozens of bishōjo games are released every month, and practically all the video game stores in Japan maintain a sizable stock of these. The games are initially relatively expensive compared to the Western market of videogames, fluctuating between 8000 and 10000 yen (approximately $75–$95) each, although soon they can be bought more cheaply second-hand.

History

1980s

Bishōjo games began to appear in Japan in the beginning days of personal computers. It can be said that the first bishōjo game commercialized in Japan appeared in 1982 as Night Life by Koei (Kōei) (although it had little similarity to their games today). For the radio show The Nite Life Night Life was a 1982 game by Kōei for the PC-8801. This article is about the software company For the Japanese era name see Kōei (era. At the beginning of the genre almost all the games were pornographic. The first bishōjo games were not too popular, being limited to graphics of 16 colors or less.

A notable landmark was Jast's Tenshitachi no gogo (1985), a precursor to the modern dating simulation. Tenshitachi no gogo (天使たちの午後 Angels' afternoon) was a popular early Dating simulation released in 1985 by Jast. Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements Among early bishōjo adventure games it had a degree of polish that previous games lacked. An adventure game is a type of Video game characterized by investigation exploration puzzle-solving, interaction with game characters and a focus on Narrative It was also the first to have recognizably modern anime-style artwork: its characters had very large eyes and a tiny nose and mouth but were otherwise basically normally proportioned, characteristics which today are found in virtually all bishōjo games. (anime in Japanese, Prior to 1985, girls were generally drawn either as normally proportioned adults or super deformed children. Super deformed or SD is a specific style of Japanese Caricature where characters are drawn in an exaggerated way typically small and chubby with stubby limbs and

Some games involved elements of forcing and brutality. These came to national attention in Japan in 1986 with the release by dB-soft of 177, a game where the player takes the role of a rapist. 177 is a Bishōjo game for NEC PC-8801 released in Japan in 1986 by dB-soft. (The game's title originates from the number of the Japanese law criminalizing rape. Law of Japan was historically heavily influenced by Chinese law and developed independently during the Edo period through texts such as Kujikata Osadamegaki ) 177 was not actually the first game designed around this premise, but it was unusually explicit. The game caused debate in the Japanese parliament and was eventually recalled and re-released with the most controversial scenes removed. The is Japan's Bicameral Legislature. It is composed of a Lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an Upper house, called

A little-known fact is that some major mainstream Japanese game companies got their start by publishing shady bishōjo games. Koei is best known today for action/strategy games like Dynasty Warriors, and Enix for role-playing games like Dragon Quest. This article is about the software company For the Japanese era name see Kōei (era. is a series of tactical action Video games created by Koei. The award-winning series Games Original game The was a company that produced Japanese Video games and Manga. published as Dragon Warrior in North America until the 2005 release of Dragon Quest VIII Journey of the Cursed King, is a series of role-playing They both released half a dozen pornographic games in the 1980s.

Some of the main industry players in the 1980s were Koei, Enix, PSK, ASCII and Jast. This article is about the software company For the Japanese era name see Kōei (era. The was a company that produced Japanese Video games and Manga. was a Publishing company based in Tokyo, Japan, and was one of the key players in the creation of the MSX standard home computer in Japan The two main systems for playing bishōjo games throughout the eighties were the FM-7 and PC-8801 and variants (the latter being dominant), early computers that were never released outside of Japan. FM-7 ( Fujitsu Micro 7 is a Home computer released in 1982 in Japan. The NEC PC-8801 system was introduced by the NEC Corporation in 1981 and was an early Zilog Z80 -based computer In the late eighties, some games were also released for the MSX. MSX was the name of a standardized Home computer architecture in the 1980s

1990s

The industry gradually moved away from proprietary Japanese hardware to the burgeoning DOS platform, and then later in the decade to Windows. DOS, short for "Disk Operating System" is a shorthand term for several closely related Operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market Microsoft Windows is a series of Software Operating systems and Graphical user interfaces produced by Microsoft. Throughout the nineties, bishōjo games underwent an evolution from being one of the most technologically demanding types of games (because their detailed 2D graphics required a large amount of storage space by the standards of early computers) to one of the least (they rarely use 3D graphics). Thus, more than regular games, the main employees required by bishōjo game companies today are not programmers but artists and writers.

In the early nineties the atmosphere in Japan became more and more hostile towards bishōjo games. In 1989 serial killer Tsutomu Miyazaki was arrested and was revealed to be a consumer of lolicon manga, causing widespread opposition to pornographic manga, otaku and anything similar. A serial killer is a person who Murders usually three or more people with a "cooling off" period between each murder and whose motivation for killing is largely based also known as The Otaku Murderer, The Little Girl Murderer, and Dracula, was a Japanese Serial killer. also romanized as rorikon, is a Slang Portmanteau of the phrase "Lolita complex" ˈmɑŋgə is the Japanese word for Comics (sometimes called komikku コミック and print Cartoons In their modern form manga date from shortly is a Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests particularly Anime, Manga, and Video games. In November 1991 there was an incident where a middle-schooler shoplifted an adult bishōjo game Saori: the House of Beautiful Girls, resulting in increased police scrutiny for makers and retailers. is a Bishōjo game released in Japan on 1991-10-18 by Fairytale. Several prefectures began classifying games as obscene and pulling them off the shelves.

Faced with the threat of being forcibly censored out of existence by the government, in 1992 the bishōjo game industry formed the Computer Software Rinri Kikō (meaning "Ethics Organization for Computer Software", and often abbreviated EOCS or Sofu-rin), setting industry guidelines for acceptable content and packaging. This organization tamed down the most objectionable content in the "wild west" of the 1980s. Thus free from controversy and fueled by continuing improvement in technology, in the 1990s the bishōjo game industry underwent a decade-long boom.

A turning point was ELF's Dōkyūsei (1992). For various meanings of Elf, see Elf (disambiguation page ELF Corporation ( エルフ or élf) is a Hentai For other games and OVAs in the series see Dōkyūsei series. Dōkyūsei, whose gameplay focused on meeting girls and seducing them, established the standard conventions of the dating simulation genre. Another major release was Konami's port of Tokimeki Memorial to the PlayStation in 1995, which sold over a million copies. () is a leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys Trading cards, Anime, Tokusatsu, Slot machines See also Software portability In Computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created is a Dating sim by Konami and the first game in the ''Tokimeki Memorial'' series. The PlayStation (abbreviated PS, PSone, PS1, or informally as PSX) is a 32-bit fifth generation Video game console Tokimeki Memorial, the first dating sim, featured good graphics, full voice acting, and a role-playing game-like gameplay system. Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements A role-playing game ( RPG; often roleplaying game) is a Game in which the participants assume the roles of Fictional characters. To be accessible to a more mainstream audience, it contained no erotic elements, seeking instead to create a "romantic" atmosphere. Sega's popular bishōjo game series Sakura Wars also first saw publication in 1996 for the Sega Saturn; like Tokimeki Memorial, it contained no erotic elements. is a multinational Video game Software and Hardware development company and a former Home computer is a Japanese Media franchise owned by Red Entertainment and Sega; it was created by Ouji Hiroi with original character designs by Kōsuke Fujishima The is a 32-bit Video game console that was first released on November 22 1994 in Japan, May 11 1995 in North America However, it was unique in that it contained not only adventure-game elements but also a combat system borrowed from tactical combat games such as Tactics Ogre. is a Japanese Tactical role-playing game game created by Quest.

Since the late nineties, there has been a trend towards better storytelling in mainstream bishōjo games. Particularly notable in this respect are Leaf's To Heart (1997), and Key's Kanon (1999). Leaf is a Japanese Visual novel studio under the publisher Aquaplus, and has offices in Yodogawa-ku Osaka and Tokyo is a Japanese Visual novel by Leaf / Aquaplus released in 1997 for the PC. Key is a Japanese Visual novel studio under Visual Art's, known for making dramatic and plot -oriented visual novels is a Japanese adult Visual novel developed by Key and released on June 4 1999 for the PC. Even though their gameplay involved little more than scrolling through text, they became hits largely due to the quality of their writing and characterization. Both were first released on the PC with erotic scenes, which were subsequently removed in their console ports.

Today the industry has grown very large, with most publishers making releases for Windows, but some of the least pornographic and most successful also branching off into the console market (the main consoles used for bishōjo games in the nineties and today are the Sega Saturn and Sega Dreamcast). Microsoft Windows is a series of Software Operating systems and Graphical user interfaces produced by Microsoft. The is a 32-bit Video game console that was first released on November 22 1994 in Japan, May 11 1995 in North America The is Sega 's most recent Video game console and the successor to the Sega Saturn. Indeed, with regular Japanese game publishers focusing almost entirely on the console market, and with American PC games being unpopular in Japan, today the majority of retail single-player PC games in Japan are bishōjo games. However, unlike the rest of the Japanese game industry, this genre has never cracked any major foreign markets.

West

Reaction

The English localization of Princess Maker 2, which was never officially released.
The English localization of Princess Maker 2, which was never officially released. Princess Maker 2 is the second installment in the Princess Maker series of Life simulation games developed by the Japanese computer game and

In the West, especially in the United States, the popular discussion of bishōjo games is widely plagued by disagreement and disapproval of pornography. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The debate tends to be remarkably divided: on one hand, critics condemn the genre as totally pornographic, while on the other hand, enthusiasts deny this generalization. This question does not cause as much controversy in Japan.

The attempts to massively trade bishōjo games in the West have caused a certain degree of public controversy. An example of this is the attempt to release the PC game Princess Maker 2 in the United States. Princess Maker 2 is the second installment in the Princess Maker series of Life simulation games developed by the Japanese computer game and Though it was never officially released, a few newspapers critically accused the game of sexism. Adding to the uproar was a pre-release screen-capture containing nudity. It should be noted, however, that the game itself is not pornographic; there is some innocence nudity which was already been censored by American localizer SoftEgg, and the only way to see any real nudity is through a debug mode. Also, the choice which is deemed sexist such as turning the player's daughter into prostitution is greatly frowned upon by the game itself. Princess Maker attracted negative attention due to the fact it was widely promoted as a mainstream video game. Until AnimePlay's English releases of DVD-Rom visual novels, other bishōjo games had avoided this stigma by presenting themselves as entirely pornographic. AnimePlay is a trademark used to refer to the Visual novel games distributed by Hirameki International and a (discontinued magazine profiling these games

The dōjinshi webcomic Megatokyo, popular among Western followers of anime, especially in the United States, was inspired in a large extent by dating sims. Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are Comics Published on a Website, often exclusively providing easy access to an Megatokyo is an English-language Webcomic created by Fred Gallagher and Rodney Caston, debuting on August 14 2000 Gallagher's style (anime in Japanese, Megatokyo idealizes bishōjo games while simultaneously expresses another criticism commonly used in the West against them: that players resort to them as a form of escapism because they are socially inept (This type of criticism is also found in Japan, though in a quite different form: see otaku). is a Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests particularly Anime, Manga, and Video games.

Related terms

There are a number of terms roughly equivalent to "bishōjo game" in use, both in Japanese and English, and there is considerable disagreement and confusion about their proper use. There is no clear consensus on the precise meaning of many of the terms below. The naming difficulties reflect the fluid boundaries of the genre, as well as embarrassment caused by the pornographic nature of some of these games.

In general, "anime game" can be considered the most general term, and other names designate subgenres. Also known as anime-based games, this is a list of computer and video games that are based on Anime or Manga, or from which Anime or Manga have Here are the most common terms currently in use:

This term designates any game involving pretty anime girls. The Japanese word "bishōjo" literally means "pretty young girl". is a Japanese term used to refer to young and pretty girls usually below university age "Girl game" and "gal game" are also used to describe these games.
Girls' "bishōnen" game where teenage boys and young adult males engage in homosexual relationships. Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements Most such games are visual novels (see below). See also Yaoi game. Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements
Strictly speaking, this term designates the small subgenre of bishōjo games specifically focused on dating, the most famous being Tokimeki Memorial. Dating sims (or dating simulations) are a Video game subgenre of Simulation games usually Japanese with romantic elements is a Dating sim by Konami and the first game in the ''Tokimeki Memorial'' series. However, this term is frequently used by English speakers to describe any love simulation.
These terms are used in English to designate anime games with explicit erotic or pornographic elements. An is a Japanese video or computer game that features erotic content usually in the form of Anime -style artwork "H" is a letter used in Japanese to refer to sexual content, and "erogē" is an abbreviation of "erotic game". "Hentai", meaning "pervert" in Japanese, is not used to describe these games in Japanese, but it is common in English. In Japan, hentai games are almost always sold for the PC, because console manufacturers such as Sony and Nintendo generally refuse to license pornographic games for their systems. is a multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato Tokyo, Japan, and one of the world's largest Media conglomerates with is a Multinational corporation headquartered in Kyoto Japan founded on
This is a subgenre where the goal is to "raise" a female character, training and educating her to improve her (usually numerically quantified) attributes. This resembles role-playing games except that the goal is to improve another character rather than yourself, not unlike a digital pet. A role-playing game ( RPG; often roleplaying game) is a Game in which the participants assume the roles of Fictional characters. A digital pet (also known as a virtual pet or artificial pet) is a type of Artificial human companion. The classic example is Princess Maker, where the player's task is to raise a girl into a queen. Princess Maker is a series of Japanese life simulation Bishōjo games by the computer game and anime production company Gainax. Another is the N64 game Wonder Project J2 with an orphaned robot girl. The, often abbreviated as N64, is Nintendo 's third home Video game console for the international market is a Japan -exclusive Bishōjo and raising simulation game developed by Enix for the Nintendo 64 in 1996. Many hardcore eroge also start from this premise, in which case the character to be "raised" is usually some kind of sexual slave. (This sub-genre is called "chōkyō" (調教 "training" (animals) / "breaking" (animals). )
This term describes adventure games focusing on romantic interactions with anime girls. An adventure game is a type of Video game characterized by investigation exploration puzzle-solving, interaction with game characters and a focus on Narrative This term is generally used to describe games which have little or no pornography, or for which erotic content is not the main focus of the game. To describe hardcore pornographic games, eroge is preferred.
This is used to designate a type of game which is particularly story-focused, or containing novel-like narration in its writing. A is an Interactive fiction game featuring mostly static graphics usually with Anime -style art Often text appears on the entire screen (covering the background image) instead of sitting in a small textbox at the bottom of the screen. Examples of visual novels include To Heart (only available in Japanese) and Kana Imōto (translated to English as Kana: Little Sister). is a Japanese Visual novel originally developed and released by D is a Japanese Visual novel originally developed and released by D

Also, note that many Japanese games which are not strictly bishōjo games contain elements of the genre. Many mainstream Japanese role-playing games feature attractive anime girls (such as Final Fantasy VII's Tifa Lockhart), but they are usually not considered bishōjo games unless this is a central aspect of the game. is a Console role-playing game developed by Square (now Square Enix) and published by Sony Computer Entertainment as the seventh installment in the is a female Protagonist from Square 's (now Square Enix) role-playing game, Final Fantasy VII.

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 This article contains Japanese text. is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities
Without proper rendering support,
you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of kanji or kana. Mojibake is the happenstance of incorrect unreadable characters (garbage characters shown when Computer software fails to render a text correctly according to its associated are the Chinese characters that are used in the modern Japanese logographic writing system along with Hiragana (ひらがな 平仮名 Katakana Kana is a general term for the syllabic Japanese scripts Hiragana (ひらがな and Katakana (カタカナ as well as the old system

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