2021 video game
Raptor Boyfriend is a dating sim, visual novel developed and published by Canadian studio, Rocket Adrift. The game's premise revolves around a teen girl who moves to a small secret community of cryptids, set in a fictional Ontario town called "Ladle". Like Hatoful Boyfriend and Dream Daddy, the game is an example of the sub-genre referred to as the "absurd dating sim".[1]
Prior to its release, Raptor Boyfriend was listed as one of "21 indie video games to look forward to in 2021" on Polygon.[2]
Setting and gameplay
Raptor Boyfriend is a dating simulator and visual novel, where players are tasked with befriending cryptid teens, set in a fictional Canadian town in 1997. The player character chooses between dating both male and female cryptid love interests: a velociraptor, a Bigfoot, or a fae.[3] The game has been described described as a '90s teen drama, taking inspiration from 90s teen television and featuring an expressive art style, with bold lines and saturated colors.[3] Raptor Boyfriend utilizes choice-based mechanics. Instead of dialogue options, the player must choose from a selection of directions to give the main character, Stella.[4]
Characters
Raptor Boyfriend has one playable character, Stella Starosta, an introverted 17-year-old girl who moves back to her hometown for her senior year of high school.[5] Players have three non-playable characters to romance throughout the game. This includes Robert, the titular velociraptor, a fae girl named Day, and Taylor, a Bigfoot. The characters of Robert and Taylor were named after Twilight actors, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner.[4]
Development
While the game’s core concept takes from the Twilight series, Titus McNally of Rocket Adrift cited Doki Doki Literature Club and VA-11 Hall-A as inspirations in terms of visual novel game making.[4]
Other story inspirations include My So-Called Life, the Life is Strange series, Night in the Woods, and Daria. The developers stated they hoped the game would be "reminiscent of a cartoon, in the way that the camera changes to who's talking and stuff like that. We wanted it to stand out a little bit from other visual novels in the design.”[4]
Reception
The game received positive reviews upon release. Reece Rogers of Wired said the game's "tongue-in-cheek concept contrasts with a heartfelt narrative that tackles the complexities of growing up."[6]
References
External links
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