DateBoy

huh? yeah...

such a good game <3

Played this in front of my bf & he told me it was accurate 10/10, lots of laughs!

DateBoy is one of those games where the whole idea is so stupid that I could not help but enjoy it. I am sitting on a date while secretly playing a little retro handheld game under the table. At the same time I have to pay attention to the conversation and pick dialogue options, which makes the whole thing feel like I am trying to get away with something incredibly obvious. It is a very simple setup, but the game commits to the joke really well. The funniest part for me is trying to balance the two things at once. I have my little handheld game going while the date is happening right in front of me, so I am constantly switching my attention between playing and responding. The game does not take the dating side too seriously either, and there is a funny waiter who adds some extra comedy to the situation. I liked the dialogue because it feels intentionally awkward without trying too hard to be some huge romantic story. The retro game itself is simple, but I think it works as part of the joke. I am not playing it because it is some amazing standalone handheld experience. I am playing it because the whole point is that I should probably be paying attention to the person sitting across from me. That makes even the little moments of gameplay more entertaining than they would be on their own. I also like the mix of 2D handheld gameplay with the 3D date setting because it gives the game a nice visual contrast. There are dialogue choices and ten achievements to find, so there is a little reason to replay it after finishing once. I also like that the game does not drag the idea out for hours. The intended experience is around fifteen to thirty minutes, and I think that is about right. By keeping it short, the joke stays fresh and the game gets out before the basic concept starts feeling repetitive. The main weakness is obviously the amount of gameplay. Once I have seen the date and played through the little handheld sections, there is not much more here. The choices give me a reason to try again, but I would not expect a deep dating simulation or a proper retro game hidden inside it. I also found the controls a little awkward because I am using the keyboard and mouse while trying to manage the two different parts of the experience. It works, but it is not always as comfortable as I would have liked. What I enjoyed most is that DateBoy feels like a small game made around one clear joke instead of something trying to pretend it is much bigger than it is. The developers originally made it for a game jam in 2023 and later brought it to Steam with extra features, bug fixes and visual improvements. I think that background makes sense because the game has that quick and focused feeling that works really well for a short project. Overall, I had a good time with DateBoy. The concept is silly, the dialogue is funny and the idea of secretly playing a retro handheld during a date is enough to carry the whole thing. There is not much depth and I would have liked the controls to feel a little smoother, but I do not think the game needs to be much bigger than it is. For a free twenty minute comedy game, I think it does exactly what it needs to do and leaves me with a smile rather than overstaying its welcome. Rating: 7.8/10

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很酷的遊戲

DateBoy accurately simulates the hardest part of modern romance: pretending to listen while trying to beat one more level. Finally, a dating simulator for people who think maintaining eye contact is an unacceptable FPS loss. 10/10. They deserves each other.