Making*Lovers

“For my whole life, I never had a girlfriend.
People could laugh at me all they want, but I refused to give up on my ideals when it came to love.

I had always pictured a first encounter where I knew right away she was my destined one.

After several chance run-ins, we would exchange numbers. Then we would hang out together on the weekends.
Only once we’ve grown close enough would it be time for a real date.

I wouldn’t have accepted any love that didn’t develop like a storybook romance.

Picking up girls at a club or going on blind dates was out of the question for me.

And so was arranged dates. How could it be romantic when someone else set you up?

I had stood unwavering in my beliefs for my entire life.

Until, that is, when the words of a certain girl turned my view on love inside-out.”
Making*Lovers, Synopsis from NekoNyan

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Technicalities

Making*Lovers is a visual novel developed by Smee and translated into English by NekoNyan. This VN is fairly rich in content which can take you about 30 hours to complete it. There are five heroines which have their own individual branches. All characters are voiced except for the protagonist.

The game features a customizable protagonist name so you can name the protagonist with your name which appears in dialogue. Because of that, however, the characters do not mention the protagonist’s name throughout the game. Although, that doesn’t impact the experience because “you” are called in other names such as onii-chan and senpai. During the main plot, you also get a chance to plan two dates with them. You can choose the date spot and the dinner spot. Although, the date is always successful so there’s no risk of landing in a bad end if you messed up.

The Steam version doesn’t have the adult content, but the game can be patched by downloading the 18+ content for free at NekoNyan website. The patch also doesn’t have mosaic censorship of genitals. Installing the patch unlocks the sex scenes which are quite important because they are relevant to the plot but you can still enjoy the game without it.

Plot

Making*Lovers is a romantic comedy visual novel and is also a dating simulator. You are a college graduate who once worked in a company but because of so many red flags you decided to leave it and now currently lives alone in an apartment doing only part-time gigs. You are also single and your friend Kakeru has been trying to hook you up with girls for a potential girlfriend.

Five Heroines

The prologue of the game is only about an hour long which presents you a series of choices that leads to one of five heroines and there are also no bad endings. Each routes take about 4-7 hours depending if you have the patch or not. Every route is fun in their own way and are distinct from each other.

Let’s start with the little sister route for you siscons out there. Ako Takanashi is the protagonist’s little stepsister. She’s very energetic which makes her so attractive and cute. This route presents you the past to give you a brief summary of the protagonist’s identity. You’ll love it when she calls you “Onii-chan” in a sweet voice.

The next route is the big sister and I guess who MILF lovers would also find interesting. Saki Naruse is a weathercaster for early morning shows and is what I find to be the most attractive heroine. She is very mature and composed but she definitely losses it on the bed. She has been single all the time and has been turning down men who asked her out but found you interesting and agreed to date you.

Karen Kitaooji is a poor lady who got it worse in life. She was the protagonist’s classmate in college and you two are always in disagreement. She’s a non-violent tsundere and is so cute when she asks you for favors. Circumstances lead her to getting kicked out of her apartment and is pretty much homeless and broke for the past days. You decided to take her in and now lives with you.

Mashiro Tsukino is shy and introverted but doesn’t have a crippling social anxiety. She’s a waitress at a restaurant you attended a mixer Kakeru hosted. She has a twisted view of romance thanks to the weird ideas taught to her by her colleague. In romance, she dominates you, forces you into dating her, and imposes rules on you. You just might like this route if you are somehow a masochist.

Lastly, we have Reina Kanome. She’s like Ako who is very outgoing. She calls you “senpai” a lot even though there’s actually no senpai-kouhai relationship between you. Reina is a model for a magazine. She can be quite rude in a fun way most of the time, be it in private or in public. Like Mashiro, she also dragged you into dating her.

Quality

The art of Making*Lovers is beautifully drawn although the game is only native 720p. Smee did a great job in the quality of the art and kept it consistent throughout. The voices are also done well but hentai scenes feel forced. One thing I’d like to point out is that there are too many sound effects like explosions and bullets when trying to emphasize certain lines which I found annoying.

Conclusion

Making*Lovers is a hilarious high-quality dating simulator. Romance enthusiasts may find this visual novel less interesting because the emphasis of comedy is greater. Each route is unique which makes Making*Lovers replayable. Planning dates is also fun because each date spot features different dialogues. This is a visual novel we think beginners would find enjoyable due to the simple flow of story.

We give Making*Lovers the Green Mochi Stamp!

With five unique heroines, a simple romantic plot, and hilarious dialogues, this visual novel is an enjoyable and fun dating simulator. We highly recommend this visual novel to beginners!