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Love is a funny old game. It can be as beautiful as seeing Hyrule for the first time in Breath of the Wild, or as devastating as the end of Persona 3 Reload. And yet, despite the risk of encountering the latter, it's a game many of us will keep playing, both in real life and in the many video games that incorporate it. Date Everything is, for my money, the strongest virtual example of why that is.
Now I'm no stranger to romance in video games. My fondest memories of The Witcher 3 involved spending time with Triss Merigold, and I've spent countless hours flirting my way around the camp in Baldur's Gate 3. However, Date Everything effectively captures something about love that many games overlook: the positive impact of all possible outcomes.
All you need is love
Date Everything review: "A masterclass in character design full of wonderful faces I love meeting, but juggling so many means sacrificing depth"
In Date Everything, your character is given a magical pair of glasses that brings life to the inanimate, resulting in a dating sim filled to bursting point with potential partners made from anthropomorphized household items. Depending on your choices, you can fall in love with an office chair, establish a firm friendship with a toilet, or end up hated by your own windows. The twist is, whichever outcome you get – good or bad – is of benefit as it raises your protagonist's stats
Date Everything has a feature called SPECS which operates similarly to Persona 5's social stats. Ranging from sass to empathy, these indicators unlock dialogue options when high enough, yielding different voice lines from relevant love interests. While in a game like Persona you tend to increase such attributes via side activities, like reading or working part-time jobs, Date Everything has you improving your traits through character interactions, often based on a relationship's outcomes.
The thing that most stands out here is that whether your dalliance ends in love, friendship or a bitter hatred, you'll receive a stat increase all the same. For example, one outcome resulted in two characters firmly despising me and yet I gained five empathy points. It got me wondering whether you can finish the game with everyone hating the protagonist and it still being considered a successful run, which is a tempting idea for my next playthrough.
Date Everything understands that relationships – good or bad – are vital to building character, so while it may seem a silly little dating sim at first, it's actually the healthiest depiction of love in any video game I've played, because it captures the true essence of personal growth we get from dating.
When love breaks down
At the ripe old age of 35 (I know, I don't look a day over 34), I've amassed my fair share of failed relationships, both romantic and platonic. Be it long-term partners who I broke up with or old friends I grew apart from, each connection taught me something about myself and I'm better off because of the time we spent together.
Love is all too often temporary, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Some passions burn too intensely to maintain, be it a blood-pumping romance or a heartfelt camaraderie, and these pleasures are to be enjoyed as much as possible regardless of what lies ahead. In fact, it's this very trait of love that makes it so exciting, and brings to mind a line from Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest: "The very essence of romance is uncertainty."
Date Everything embraces the uncertain nature of romance, and bromance, through the many relationships available with its rich cast of household hotties. The numerous dialogue options and side quests mean no love is guaranteed and, much like in reality, a relationship can fail based on factors you couldn't possibly account for. The important thing to remember is that it's ok! Both in real life, where you'll be a better person for it, and in the game, where your SPECS will still increase.
Date Everything is a game about love in both relationships and within ourselves, and I can't recommend it enough because of that. Add to that its vibrant visuals, cute sense of humor and near endless characters - featuring the voices of beloved actors like The Last of Us' Ashley Johnson and Baldur's Gate 3's Neil Newbon - and this delightful dating sim will have you laughing and learning all while remembering why we love in the first place.
Looking for more enriching experiences? Check out our list of the best visual novels now.
