Siliconera writes, "At Anime Expo, Aksys announced they are localizing one of Idea Factory’s Hakuoki titles. Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom is the PSP version of the very first game in the series. Why did Aksys pick Hakuoki? That’s what we covered in this interview."
There is a name people caught up in the otome game craze should know: Otomate. This is the branch of Idea Factory that devotes itself to making games for women. These tend to be visual novels with dating sim elements, though Library Cross is a mobile RPG and I Will Protect You was an Otomate Forte Metroidvania. Lots of Otomate games have been released in English for people to enjoy! Depending on the system you own, you could have at least one title to try.
In the years since Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom made its English debut in 2012, otome games have enjoyed a surge of popularity worldwide. The genre went from an unknown to one that received multiple releases on various platforms each year. Sony handhelds have long been a haven for such titles, with people who own a Vita enjoying the fruits of this bevy of releases.
Marcus estrada writes: "Perhaps you’re a long time fan of visual novels but are still new to the realm of otome games, or you’ve never even touched one prior to Seduce Me’s existence. Whatever the case may be you’re not alone out there. There are tons of otome games available on PC (and a few on consoles too) to help quench a sudden need for them. It’s hard to say there are many others which allow you to date incubi, but hey, that’s part of what makes Seduce Me special."
I haven't heard the term otome, until I read about that rumor and Aksys publishing a otome game. I usually don't like reading/watching manga/anime reverse harems, but maybe a game would work... (I know otome means something like maiden's game or something close, not reverse harem lol)
Notable lines from the interview:
Siliconera: Don’t all otome games have hot men?
FdW: These are especially hot men.
Siliconera: The PSP market though, from a retail perspective, is having a tough time. I keep hearing retailers don’t want to stock PSP games. Even Gamestop is scaling back on PSP titles and this game is a new genre. How does Aksys plan on tackling distribution issues since Hakuoki will not be available until next year?
AV: Just seeing the tail end of the PS2, Persona 4 was the last major game, I would say on the PS2. We have to come full cycle and we want to end the PSP on a good note. With a bang…
FdW: … of hot men.
Anyways good to see something like this come stateside :)