Fools Choice #3 (2024) - Hatoful Boyfriend

Congratulations! You've been accepted as the only human student at the prestigious St. PigeoNation's Institute, a school for talented birds! Roam the halls and find love in between classes as a sophomore student at the world's greatest pigeon high school.
How long is Hatoful Boyfriend?
When focusing on the main objectives, Hatoful Boyfriend is about 1½ Hours in length. If you're a gamer that strives to see all aspects of the game, you are likely to spend around 9½ Hours to obtain 100% completion.
Platforms: Mobile, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita
Genres: Simulation, Visual Novel
Developers: Hato Moa, MIST[PSI]PRESS
Publishers: MIST[PSI]PRESS, FamousWriter, Devolver Digital
NA: September 04, 2014
EU: September 04, 2014
JP: August 14, 2011

Played my first session. Can't say I'm enjoying it too much maybe due to not playing alot of dating Sims so maybe I'm missing alot of the humour but for now it just feels like an absurd premise which needs to be more over the top as although the fact I'm setting myself up to conquer the world in shadows and live in a cave is rather absurd. From the length I might as well complete a single run through and see if there is a skip functionality

Played my first session. Can't say I'm enjoying it too much maybe due to not playing alot of dating Sims so maybe I'm missing alot of the humour but for now it just feels like an absurd premise which needs to be more over the top as although the fact I'm setting myself up to conquer the world in shadows and live in a cave is rather absurd. From the length I might as well complete a single run through and see if there is a skip functionality

Oh, don't worry, it has very absurd routes :D
And there is a skip function, so it doesn't take long to get to different routes.
btw, are you playing blind? which route are you on?

I played this one on my Playstation Vita during the pandemic. I remember it being very lighthearted and a little funny. I think I got 3 of the endings: the biker gang that goes the speed limit bird, the super dark lore ending whatever bird, and some other bird I dont remember we were in a dark alley or something together and it ended not long later. I'd love to replay it sometime although I think my memories of how ridiculous it was might be exaggerated.

I love how weird this game is. I still remember how stunned I was when the game went from being a funny and weird dating sim with pigeons to Five Nights at Freddy's 3 (The BBL story). It's unfortunate that most players (that I know of) stop before they reach the "true" story (BBL), which is by far the best part of the game.

I've played the game from start to finish, and gotten all the endings. Then I played its sequel (Holiday Star), which I also completed. It's been years since then. I think my old review was written somewhere around 2015. Good times.

Oh, don't worry, it has very absurd routes :D
And there is a skip function, so it doesn't take long to get to different routes.
btw, are you playing blind? which route are you on?

Did the Okosan route first b=and done 3 routes now. I'll have one last session but I think the game ain't for me. Still i'll consider the game completed as I have at least reached the credits 3 times

It's been years since I've played it, but I am a dating sim game lover, especially when it has a more silly premise like dating birds! Honestly though, the BBL ending is soooo, well... I think it's sort of a front runner for games like Doki Doki Literature Club or even the buried Cult Ending in Dream Daddy. Truly, the backstory put into this game is Wild, but I still think it's a fun time!

I started it today.
I bought this game a couple years ago via DLsite, this Japanese store. Glad the GOTM pushed me to finally actually boot it up for once. Though it took me a while to actually get it running because it looks like the version that is sold on DLsite is like an original, early version that doesn't run well on modern Windows these days. lol
Well, I got it working eventually and clicked my way through some first bits and pieces. I'm glad I never actually looked into it too much when it was at the height of its popularity online, so I'm going in mostly blind. I know there is something like a "true plot" that's only revealed later or when you go down a certain path, which I'm expecting to maybe have a bit of a darker tone, but I don't actually know any details at all. Right now I'm really enjoying the absurd writing and the variety in pigeon types.

Anyway, I love pigeons and I actually just befriended a pigeon pair IRL that keep visiting my window pretty much daily right now. So, if I ever get stuck, I can ask them for dating tips.


- Matt

I started it today.
I bought this game a couple years ago via DLsite, this Japanese store. Glad the GOTM pushed me to finally actually boot it up for once. Though it took me a while to actually get it running because it looks like the version that is sold on DLsite is like an original, early version that doesn't run well on modern Windows these days. lol
Well, I got it working eventually and clicked my way through some first bits and pieces. I'm glad I never actually looked into it too much when it was at the height of its popularity online, so I'm going in mostly blind. I know there is something like a "true plot" that's only revealed later or when you go down a certain path, which I'm expecting to maybe have a bit of a darker tone, but I don't actually know any details at all. Right now I'm really enjoying the absurd writing and the variety in pigeon types.

Anyway, I love pigeons and I actually just befriended a pigeon pair IRL that keep visiting my window pretty much daily right now. So, if I ever get stuck, I can ask them for dating tips.


- Matt

Wait, they are not like... Scared or try to fly away from you? Did you feed them something?

Wait, they are not like... Scared or try to fly away from you? Did you feed them something?

I started putting out bird seed in February and these two eventually noticed that. So now they come to my window a lot to see if I put some out.
And yeah, they aren't too skiddish. If I'm careful and don't do any sudden moves, they let me get very close to watch them.

No feeding out of the hand yet though. They hate hands.

- Matt

Okay i've just finished the game. All endings surprisingly dark final ending But did find Okasans full ending quiet funny. Shocked I was in the end able to beat it after all my rather low opinion. I can't say the game is bad but I felt it should've of been more over the top in it's weridness. Might of been in the text which I didn't pay attention to. I geuss overall alot of the humor stems from mocking Date sim tropes and I don't play them so alot of the humor might of gone over the top of my head. I can't say I disliked the game just uninterested in the end

Hatoful Boyfriend
Completion April 06, 2024
Completionist 10h 38m 3s
Notes All endings and trophies
Review
+Makes use of it’s absurd premise well
+Surprisingly details world built for game
+Has some rather surprising endings
-Rather repetitive to get all endings
-Relies a select few images for the whole game
-Humour rarely landed for me
Overview:
hatoful boyfriend is a difficult game for me to review as I did not have a strong opinion of it overall and had a rather lack of interest in the game. Alot of the issues I had with the game could stem to the style of game it is then in the game itself. It did have a surprisingly deep backstory for what I expect of this type of game but still even with that none of the characters or humour really hit. I wasn’t annoyed by anyone or endeared by any of them and just disinterested. It is not helped by the repetition you need to take on if you want to do all endings for this game. To me hatoful boyfriend is a game that exists and that's all I can really say about it.

5/10

I got my first credit roll today. Got ending #04 and the bonus ending #12.
I really like the world. I'm not a huge VN person though. I'll probably give it another quick run or two sometime to see some more outcomes, but I'm not gonna be hunting for specific endings.

I love the vibes though and all the pretty birds. Big fan of the little mentions of real-life things that inspired the dev, like the shoutout to that real pigeon blog and the info to the real bird café that the one in-game location is based on. I even found one of the birds on the café's website that one of the characters was based on. lol
I wonder if that place is still open.

Curious to buy that sequel Holiday Star someday and maybe look into those manga doujins that apparently exist.
Also hoping that the delayed sequel Hatoful Boyfriend: Mirrors actually sees the light of day sometime.

- Matt

I started it today.
I bought this game a couple years ago via DLsite, this Japanese store. Glad the GOTM pushed me to finally actually boot it up for once. Though it took me a while to actually get it running because it looks like the version that is sold on DLsite is like an original, early version that doesn't run well on modern Windows these days. lol
Well, I got it working eventually and clicked my way through some first bits and pieces. I'm glad I never actually looked into it too much when it was at the height of its popularity online, so I'm going in mostly blind. I know there is something like a "true plot" that's only revealed later or when you go down a certain path, which I'm expecting to maybe have a bit of a darker tone, but I don't actually know any details at all. Right now I'm really enjoying the absurd writing and the variety in pigeon types.

Anyway, I love pigeons and I actually just befriended a pigeon pair IRL that keep visiting my window pretty much daily right now. So, if I ever get stuck, I can ask them for dating tips.


- Matt

Anyway, I love pigeons and I actually just befriended a pigeon pair IRL that keep visiting my window pretty much daily right now. So, if I ever get stuck, I can ask them for dating tips.

I love this.

Game of the Year right hear. I will have to purchase this masterpiece when I get home.