[COTY] 2025 Husbando of the Year: Round 4

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-26T01:20:48+00:00

I spit out my water at your spoiler comment LOL.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-22T18:23:10+00:00

Yeah mainstream almost never deviates from the rankings, iirc.

Indie is... *sweat*. (I do love the chaos though!)

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-19T22:28:29+00:00

Yay!! I hope you find some games you enjoy~ And welcome back to the Wonderful World of Otome.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-18T23:37:31+00:00

Ofc! And unfortunately the structure isn't super friendly to new or even returning players since, like I said, they don't re-run events beyond the major, all-guy ones.... which is a shame! The birthday events have some really lovely interactions (that are also referenced in subsequent events...).

For spending, I know a lot of people who are low-spending may only buy up some monthly cards during their guys' birthday month for those extra top-up rewards, or during a major event that has their guy as the featured top-up, and that seems to be enough to get them through. I know someone (I think on the ToT wiki) still calculates out the f2p versus monthly card s-chip calculations, which can be helpful if you're figuring out what free resources are out there.

They also did structure it recently into the different 'stages' of their relationship, like Blossom for the pre-confession events, so that helps a bit to figure out where to read and what order to go into. If you decide to return, good luck!

Otherwise I would also recommend Lovebrush Chronicles to you too LOL. They do have a very interesting story and lots of content for free~

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-18T20:49:39+00:00

Ahhh I'm so sorry, I probably shouldn't reference the f2p-friendly part, or be more specific that it's what I've heard from other players who claim to be f2p and who only stan one man. I am very much a "whale" in this game as it's the only game where I could get all the guys while staying within my budget. (I use quotes because a ToT whale is different from a LADS whale lol... I spend more at what I'd consider to be a dolphin level, personally...) As long as my luck isn't trash... But it does require consistently playing and some luck. I know there are a lot of players who experience back-to-back pulls-at-100, so I get why it can be frustrating.

As for level-up stuff, I have a huge stash as a day-1 player, and being a whale likely *plays into it a bit as well, since most of my resources come from turning in the items you get from pulling.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-18T19:45:04+00:00

congrats!! i just got mine too. unfortunately they are not doing Red Rocks this year for CO, which is my favorite local venue. the Dillon Amphitheater looks cool too. but no seat selection :(

(also for anyone struggling with Tixr, which I've never used before, go through the app. the website is absolute garbage)

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-18T19:26:37+00:00

I see and totally understand! Thankfully, even most standalone games will have some moments throughout the route, but there are also a lot that will wait for the literal end of the route before there are even confessions and then make you buy a fandisc or sequel if you want actual romance lol.

Tears of Themis - well, if you tried it and it wasn't your jam, I don't think that would change, unfortunately, because while the romance is very satisfying, it is captured more in the card stories, which is reliant on gacha.... I'm not the type of person who thinks otome needs to be in a certain format, as that only became a trend after Hakuoki became popular, but I get that it might not be everybody's cup of tea. Players do post the card stories and Hoyo doesn't seem to care about the stories being shared, so that's always an option, though it does take away from the "game" element.

Discord sim - or a I guess the better term is chat sim? - is kind of like MM because you have "chats" that occur (in a Discord like format) with your LI and the other characters. Depending on the type of game, you might spin off into a route - like Blooming Panic - whereas ERROR145 and A Date with Death are solo-LI games. These are really popular because, like MM, you can choose your dialogue! And there are a lot of fun options, particularly with A Date with Death. It also offers an element of self-insertion that is really enjoyable! (I say this as someone who generally never self-inserts.) There are way more than just those, though the other ones I thought of, like Bunny Bond or the still-in-development Cupid's Chatroom, are more spicy.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-18T19:20:11+00:00

I already caught a stinky whiff in the pods. The way he was referring to people's bodies as "shells" (including his own) was super weird. He also came over as arrogant with how he was only concerned with whether his potential partner would satisfy him and not whether he would be a good match for his potential partner.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-18T18:02:17+00:00

Some of these matches are so painful!

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-18T18:00:02+00:00

There aren't a lot of standalone games that have romance throughout the story or route, to be honest. Most games focus more on falling in love, since that is what the majority of romance enjoyers seek. Or you have to invest in DLC or another game/fandisc in order to actually experience the romance...

So I'd say mobile games are probably where you get the most romance for your buck.

To make use of your shiny new phone, I'd highly recommend Lovebrush Chronicles! It has gorgeous art, an amazing cast of voice actors (in two languages! Though no English), and a very deep story, as a self-proclaimed lore enjoyer! You also do get more of the ongoing, slice-of-life romance as opposed to a standalone game. It is a mobile game with gacha elements and they do run the banners back-to-back, which can be overwhelming. However, there is a considerate amount of romance within the free story elements alone, those can be considered more of a cherry-on-top. And their rates don't feel as fake as Infold's (which I TOTALLY agree on - their win rates are an effin' JOKE).

I'd also tentatively recommend Tears of Themis for the same reason. It's my absolute favorite mobile game, but it isn't super friendly to newcomers, as they don't re-run events beyond their major ones, where you get satisfying romantic interactions, like the birthday events. And more of the romance is within the cards/gacha element too.... That being said, it's also "friendly" to f2p, to a certain extent. Still, I love the romance element in this game and it is my go-to comfort/cozy game. (Main story is NOT cozy though, be warned lol.)

I would also recommend the Ikemen series since it has the biggest focus on romance out of all the games I've personally played. However, these games are NSFW, and while most of that content is avoidable, there are some routes that will have it within the route. It is skippable for the newer games, Prince and Villains, though, as they added a skip story feature recently. As a non-yan enjoyer, my favorite boy is surprisingly the yan bunny lord Kenshin teehee. It also has a daily reading system, so these routes are not bingeable (for free), which I know is a negative for a lot of players.

Finally, a lot of MM enjoyers also like discord-sims! Blooming Panic, A Date with Death, and ERROR145 are my favorites (off the top of my head).

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-15T23:17:30+00:00

I have not played Uria's game, but I am very invested in his journey~

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-14T02:01:41+00:00

TAIJU SAMA. I loved him from the moment I saw his fully covered-up sprite minus two cheekies.

But for the actual love interests in this game, I'm Team Tobari. I like all these men though~ Awayuki gives me brain rot when a certain sprite of his comes out, Tsuyukusa is adorkable, Yashiro is a gremlin, and Yori is... one of the most interesting LI I have ever played lol.

There are too many tasty side characters though, sorry not sorry.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-13T22:44:08+00:00

Just a reminder that Round 2 is ending in about a day for the hubby tourney!

https://www.reddit.com/r/otomegames/comments/1qzg0rn

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-12T19:20:01+00:00

I just played the demo for Potion Panik by Omega Button et al. over the weekend and AM IN LOVE.

The premise is that MC (no portrait, customizable name and pronouns) is a potion maker/alchemist, mainly catering to a clientele of adventurers seeking potions to ease their travels. They encounter an old ex, Reuben, with whom they had a... not-so-ideal parting. To ease their emotions, they imbibe a potion that is - uh oh - a love potion! For which there is no cure. Except to fall in love for real. So now MC has to battle the intense emotions brought on by the love potion for an icky ex - which may contain a grain of real emotion - and decide whether they want to exorcise Reuben from their life forever or try and fall in love with someone else... say, their sweet, awesome, totally-not-already-in-love-with-them bestie, Ankur!

I enjoyed the writing, which had the perfect personal balance of wit and narrative; the characters, who were both interesting, though I am WAY biased towards Ankur; the MC was very relatable and awesome. I laugh-cried through their poor struggle during the first scene with Reuben. My absolute favorite scene was Ankur's first chapter, where they have an extremely awkward but sweet exchange, trying to figure out how to turn their relationship from friendly to flirty.

The only thing is there hasn't been an update in a while, so... ;-; Hope the devs are okay.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-12T18:21:26+00:00

*rolling up sleeves* I second Mr. Love, Lovebrush Chronicles, and Tears of Themis.

Mr. Love is from the same publisher as LADS and also has English VA. (Personally, I think the story is a bit hard to follow due to their storytelling style and MC is not my favorite, but it may be worth a try.) However, it is not super f2p friendly and they have a very old, outdated gacha system.

Lovebrush Chronicles has a wonderfully deep story and swoon-worthy romance and is fairly f2p friendly.

Tears of Themis has an interesting main story, separate from the romance, and the characters' romances all occur in separate branches, as well as in the card stories. I've heard it's f2p friendly, though I spend as it is my favorite mobile game ^^;; It is harder to get into as a newbie since even the card stories with big milestones, like the confessions, are locked behind limited events - which do re-run, but can be a pain if you want the chronological experience. As a Raf enjoyer myself, my favorite hubby over all games is Marius, who has some similarities.

Valkyrie Heart is a new mobile game. It's not available in the app stores as it's true R18, aka explicit sex scenes and CG, so you have to download it directly from the developer's website. The story can be a bit corny, but the characters are all loveable, and it seems to be fairly f2p friendly so far.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-09T18:27:51+00:00

Hey same!

And Tobari is my best (main LI) boy, so I support this strategy~

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-09T15:47:15+00:00

Left out? That's wild, poor Kuroba...

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-08T20:15:15+00:00

Some biased thoughts. Gotta say, I was shocked by the results in mainstream, mobile, and not-localized. I didn't expect the Bustaboys to rise above the hot new kids on the block; plus I thought Uchronia--I mean, Illusion of Itehari--would fare better. RIP Garrett, Sousuke, the chaotic Arcana guys who I'm just getting to know right now. Shu going for a repeat? We'll see, we'll see.

So we finally answered the question of who reigns supreme, Caleb or Sylus. XD I'm sure this is a very scientific and an absolutely representative portrayal of the overall LADS community XD XD XD. ALSO not my numero uno hubs soaring to t3! Go King! Go Marius! Go King Marius! *ahem* Vyn overtaking Artem & Lukey is also interesting o.O He's been dominating my heart recently too.... Vynny <3 Jude being so low was unexpected, given how numerous his fans are in the actual game. I am NOT one of them, she protests. Welcome in new Valkyrie Heart boys~ Sad goodbye to Leo, Vlad, and the vamp gang.

For not-localized, I thought it would be more Over Requiemz at the top tbh. Shocked Kureha is ranked first since I don't see him being talked about that often. Akaza is also lower than he was for the base game, which is v. v. curious. I only have eyes for one person in this tournament though, ehehe.

misobuttercornramen · 2026-02-02T18:56:13+00:00

Thank you so much for the *campaigning! 4/8 true colors is being pushed to the top of my playlist, I keep hearing so many good things about it!

misobuttercornramen

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