First Love Story basically drops you straight into the middle of your own beautifully drawn slice of life drama. You aren’t just watching from the sidelines while yelling at the screen. You are pulling the strings, deciding who ends up with who, and navigating all that messy, butterfly inducing teenage angst yourself.

JUMP INTO YOUR OWN ANIME ROMANCE

The art style in this game is absolutely gorgeous. It feels exactly like playing through a high end seasonal anime series. The moment you start meeting the cast of ridiculously attractive characters, you are thrown right into the thick of their tangled relationships. Your job is simple: pick your favorite and start building that connection. Because this is a heavy narrative experience, you actually have to pay attention to the dialogue. Mindlessly skimming through conversations will absolutely get your heart broken.

EVERY SINGLE DIALOGUE CHOICE MATTERS

We have all played visual novels where your choices don’t actually change the outcome. That is definitely not the case here. Every single conversation hands you options that directly impact how a character feels about you. The game uses a surprisingly strict impression system to track your decisions. Say the right thing? You get a massive boost to their affection stat. Mess up? Prepare for the cold shoulder. You have to aggressively court your favorite character and watch those affection notifications closely if you want to unlock their specific happy ending.

EXPLORE EVERY POSSIBLE ROMANTIC ROUTE

Here is where the game completely wins me over. It never boxes you into one specific type of romance. Depending entirely on who you decide to pursue, the plot can organically branch off into a classic Otome, a dramatic Yaoi, or a sweet Yuri storyline. It is entirely up to you and the dialogue options you pick. Because it is physically impossible to see every storyline in a single run, the replay value is insane. You will definitely find yourself starting a brand new save file just to see what would have happened if you chased a totally different character.