I bet on a Switch game for a long flight and was embarrassed for 9 hours

But what followed in the gameplay, I simply was not prepared for. And that’s despite having played several otome games already.

The perfect partner from the start

During the run, I became aware of Tenya in the flower shop. He worked there as a seller and had good knowledge about all the plants that were for sale.

As it turned out later, his interest in flowers is due to a single event from their shared school time. At that time, the protagonist was still the class representative and met Tenya while watering the plants. She is said to have sparked a new motivation for learning in Tenya, and since then, his love for plants has developed.

This one meeting is also said to be the reason why the protagonist has never been able to get Tenya out of her mind, even after all the years they had not seen each other. The conversation with the protagonist must have been so good that Tenya fell deeply in love with her since then and has not allowed any new love since.

And I regrettably noticed this in every single conversation:

From the very beginning, it was clear that Tenya had romantic feelings for me. The pace he set in the relationship was extremely high.
Every corner was dripping with flattery and praise. The conversations were just disgustingly cheesy, that I felt uncomfortable even just holding hands with this guy.
To ensure that the protagonists could still feel comfortable at that pace, she had devised a time model. According to that, they were just friends for three days a week, lovers for three days, and the last day the protagonist could decide. So, me.

You can imagine the flirts at a level of: “Oh, you have a spot on your face and I will wipe it away for you” or “Since that meeting, you have not left my mind; I would die if we only stayed friends.”

He read every wish off my lips and was staged as a shining hero who would do anything for his girlfriend. And that, even though they had only had one conversation in their lives.

It was quite easy to unlock the absolute best ending with Tenya, which even includes a special episode with both of them. Because I just had to respond to Tenya’s flirts and tell him that on the last day I wanted not just a friendship, but a real relationship.

However, I felt so slimy that I hoped my seat neighbor on the flight did not speak English and wouldn’t witness this fiasco of excessive love. In real life, I would not have gone along with the exaggerated flirts of a stranger, but for the perfect ending in the Switch game, I just had to endure it.

The absolute worst, however, he could never have known, as I played with headphones, because Tenya’s dialogues were completely voiced in Japanese. And. Yes. All of it.

During a wild make-out session, I only heard smacking sounds and moans. The worst part was that the kissing went on over several dialogue lines. I sank into my chair with a bright red face and was simultaneously angry that it didn’t even get juicy enough for the awkwardness to be justified.

The perfect partner from the start

During the run, I became aware of Tenya in the flower shop. He worked there as a seller and had good knowledge about all the plants that were for sale.

And I regrettably noticed this in every single conversation:

From the very beginning, it was clear that Tenya had romantic feelings for me. The pace he set in the relationship was extremely high.
Every corner was dripping with flattery and praise. The conversations were just disgustingly cheesy, that I felt uncomfortable even just holding hands with this guy.
To ensure that the protagonists could still feel comfortable at that pace, she had devised a time model. According to that, they were just friends for three days a week, lovers for three days, and the last day the protagonist could decide. So, me.

He read every wish off my lips and was staged as a shining hero who would do anything for his girlfriend. And that, even though they had only had one conversation in their lives.

The absolute worst, however, he could never have known, as I played with headphones, because Tenya’s dialogues were completely voiced in Japanese. And. Yes. All of it.

Have you ever played a game where you hoped your seat neighbor wouldn’t look at your screen? Feel free to tell me in the comments.

As MeinMMO editor Jasmin does not have many games left for the Nintendo Switch, she only had one game to choose from that should bridge the long flight to her vacation. In the end, she regretted choosing only this one game.

Actually, my partner and I are always well prepared before we embark on a long flight. We have our tablet with us, on which we download various movies, and each of us has our own console with us.

For my partner, it’s the Steam Deck, which we occasionally take turns with, and for me, it’s just the Switch 1. But since the cycle of the first Switch is slowly coming to an end, I don’t have many games left that I want to play on the console.

One of the last games is Him, the Smile & bloom. It is an otome game. I find visual novels good for long flights because you can sometimes fall asleep during the calm gameplay and thus bridge some hours of the flight.

But in the end, I was just ashamed throughout the entire outbound and return flight for choosing this game. The gameplay is extremely cringe even on otome level.

Relationship or just friendship?

For those who do not understand the term otome: It is a genre aimed at young women. In the game, the goal is usually to build a romantic relationship between a female protagonist and one of several male characters.

However, the outcome is uncertain in some games. It may end up as just a friendship, or it may also get spicy.

What is special about Him, the Smile & bloom is that each male character is assigned a protagonist. So, you do not choose one of several male suitors, but the story of a specific couple.

Additionally, there are three different endings. It may quickly lead to a pure friendship, resulting in missing several chapters, but in the long run, it can also lead to true love.

Furthermore, I researched online which otome games are worth playing. Him, the Smile & bloom was frequently mentioned as a great recommendation.

That’s why I chose this game as my travel companion. For the first route, I chose during my flight the romantic relationship of Tenya. He looked the cheekiest with his red hair, not too childish nor too arrogant.

He read every wish off my lips and was staged as a shining hero who would do anything for his girlfriend. And that, even though they had only had one conversation in their lives.

The absolute worst, however, he could never have known, as I played with headphones, because Tenya’s dialogues were completely voiced in Japanese. And. Yes. All of it.

Have you ever played a game where you hoped your seat neighbor wouldn’t look at your screen? Feel free to tell me in the comments.

He read every wish off my lips and was staged as a shining hero who would do anything for his girlfriend. And that, even though they had only had one conversation in their lives.

The absolute worst, however, he could never have known, as I played with headphones, because Tenya’s dialogues were completely voiced in Japanese. And. Yes. All of it.

Have you ever played a game where you hoped your seat neighbor wouldn’t look at your screen? Feel free to tell me in the comments.

But what followed in the gameplay, I simply was not prepared for. And that’s despite having played several otome games already.

HimTheSmileAndBloom_02 — So, which of the boys would have stolen your heart?

The perfect partner from the start

During the run, I became aware of Tenya in the flower shop. He worked there as a seller and had good knowledge about all the plants that were for sale.

And I regrettably noticed this in every single conversation:

From the very beginning, it was clear that Tenya had romantic feelings for me. The pace he set in the relationship was extremely high.
Every corner was dripping with flattery and praise. The conversations were just disgustingly cheesy, that I felt uncomfortable even just holding hands with this guy.
To ensure that the protagonists could still feel comfortable at that pace, she had devised a time model. According to that, they were just friends for three days a week, lovers for three days, and the last day the protagonist could decide. So, me.

He read every wish off my lips and was staged as a shining hero who would do anything for his girlfriend. And that, even though they had only had one conversation in their lives.

The absolute worst, however, he could never have known, as I played with headphones, because Tenya’s dialogues were completely voiced in Japanese. And. Yes. All of it.

Have you ever played a game where you hoped your seat neighbor wouldn’t look at your screen? Feel free to tell me in the comments.

He read every wish off my lips and was staged as a shining hero who would do anything for his girlfriend. And that, even though they had only had one conversation in their lives.

The absolute worst, however, he could never have known, as I played with headphones, because Tenya’s dialogues were completely voiced in Japanese. And. Yes. All of it.

Have you ever played a game where you hoped your seat neighbor wouldn’t look at your screen? Feel free to tell me in the comments.

But what followed in the gameplay, I simply was not prepared for. And that’s despite having played several otome games already.

The perfect partner from the start

During the run, I became aware of Tenya in the flower shop. He worked there as a seller and had good knowledge about all the plants that were for sale.

And I regrettably noticed this in every single conversation:

From the very beginning, it was clear that Tenya had romantic feelings for me. The pace he set in the relationship was extremely high.
Every corner was dripping with flattery and praise. The conversations were just disgustingly cheesy, that I felt uncomfortable even just holding hands with this guy.
To ensure that the protagonists could still feel comfortable at that pace, she had devised a time model. According to that, they were just friends for three days a week, lovers for three days, and the last day the protagonist could decide. So, me.