Release Date: August 25, 2015 (North America)
Developers:  Idea Factory, Otomate
Publishers:  Idea Factory
Platforms:  Nintendo Switch, PS Vita, Steam, Mobile (iTunes, Android)
ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

STORY PREMISE

(From Idea Factory International’s Official Website for Amnesia Memories)

A story that takes place in a fictional world…

It was the 1st of August.
That morning, when she awoke, the heroine found herself without any memories from
before August 1st…… Everything, from the sort of life she lived, to the relationships she had,
was a blank……

A young boy named Orion appeared in front of her, referring to himself as a “spirit.”
Under Orion’s guidance, the heroine began the struggle to regain her memories.
She searched her house for clues about her everyday life, and received a message on her phone…

What was displayed on the screen was an unknown name to her.

Now, she is asked to meet with him, a boyfriend whose name and face she doesn’t know.
In a position where who to trust is uncertain, the heroine must move in a way that her memory
loss remains undetected by her partner. Because of this, the story becomes tangled in complex ways.

With no memories of “him,” our heroine will write a new love story starting today……

ART AND MUSIC

I love the artwork! I thought the style was perfect for the game. All of the CGs were stunning too, and we have the Japanese illustrator, Hanamura Mai to thank for that. The character designs were very fun, easy on the eyes, and I appreciate how the characters’ outfits bear a resemblance to the Visual Kei fashion in Japan.

As for the OST, everything from the opening theme, Reverberation to the soothing BGMs were very fitting for the gameplay. I believe my favorite track, was the ED theme, “Shinai naru story“. It’s one of those defining themes that gives you so much feels after playing a game.

Voice Acting

Tetsuya Kakihara “Shin” – Victor Frankenstein (Code Realize), Suboshi/Ameboshi (Fushigi Yuugi Suzaku Ibun),

Kishou Taniyama “Ikki” – Ren (Kiniro no Corda), Taru Majima (TMGS2), Natsuki (Utapri)

Akira Ishida “Kent” – Shuya Tokita (CLOCK ZERO), Kotaru (Starry Sky), Byakuya Togami (Danganropa)

Hino Satoshi “Toma” – Kiriya Etu (Kiniro no Corda), Noiz (Drammatical Murder)

Kouki Miyata “Ukyo” – Peter White (Heart no Kuni no Alice), Chichiri (Fushigi Yuugi Suzaku Ibun)

Routes AND Worlds

One thing to note about Amnesia Memories is that there is no common route. You immediately start your gameplay by choosing a certain world (and route) to dive into straight away. Each world offers a completely different story on its own and almost all of the characters are portrayed differently in every route.

With that said, one character can be a vicious criminal in the world of hearts but become your best friend in the world or spades.

For this game, I recommend playing the routes in the order below:

1. Shin ♡ (Word of Hearts)
2. Ikki ♤ (World of Spades)
3. Kent ♧ (World of Clovers)
4. Toma ♢ (World of Diamonds)
5. Ukyo 🃏 (Joker World)

You must leave Toma as your fourth route! Seriously, you must! (laughs) Ukyo’s route will unlock after finishing the good endings of the four previous worlds.

MAIN CHARACTERS

It was hard for me to pick a favorite character since I actually enjoyed all of the boys in Amnesia Memories as well as all of their stories. ヽ(>∀<☆)ノ

Shin  (Heart) – Your childhood friend turned lover.

You can’t go wrong with starting your gameplay with a tsundere route! Because of Shin’s no-chill sudden kisses in this game, I admit, this got me falling for him, hard – day one. (* ^ ω ^)

Although he can be harsh sometimes with his words, I truly believe Shin’s personality in the game showed how much he genuinely cared for the heroine. I guess you can say his sweet gestures make up for his foul mouth? (laughs) Shin is also a very strong-willed character, and he’ll actually do anything, to the best of his capabilities to protect the heroine from harm. To me, his route felt like it leaned more into solving a mystery case, which placed the “romantic side” of it on the back burner. This doesn’t mean that his romantic relationship with the heroine wasn’t handled well. It just felt very less than compared to the others in the game.

Kent  (Clover) – Your most adorable math whiz boyfriend.

Kent’s route was the most lighthearted story in Amnesia Memories. I had my doubts at first that I wouldn’t enjoy his character that much but heck! his route turned out to be one of my favs!

Kent is blunt and very logical. He pretty much has a logical explanation for everything. He’s also an unintentional stubborn character (apparently, he’s not aware he’s being rude). It was actually very refreshing to play his story since everything he does for the heroine is done with good intentions but always comes as out as rude or awkward. (￣ω￣)

One impressive characteristic about Kent is that he’s intelligent & brilliantly knowing, and a bright future is already ahead of him before he’s met the heroine. I think his character development was the best out of everyone since his story was basically him changing his ways as the heroine’s lover, learning how to let go of his inhibitions as he falls in love – and as boring & vanilla as this sounds – I can assure you, you’ll end up adoring this man and his route, like I did, in the end! Ha!

Ikki  (Spade) – Not your average playboy suitor.

I’m not a huge fan of the playboy character trope so perhaps my feelings towards both Ikki’s character and plot events might’ve been a little clouded on that aspect. In his route, he is not only romantic to you but also towards other women in his fan club (oof). Yes, he has a fan club and you will have to deal with this fact for the entirety of his route. ┐( ´ д ` )┌ 

Despite this, I still enjoyed this route for what it was going for. In addition, Ikki’s sexy drunken late-night calls were a show stopper, and this pretty much had me falling for him in the end! LOL Also, it’s super hard to ignore how gorgeous and alluring Kiiyan’s voice acting here! (My god).

Toma  (Diamond) – Your overprotective brother.

I know “overprotective” is an understatement but I’ll leave it at that as I don’t want to give out any major spoilers in his route.

I find Toma’s character the most interesting in the game. He has more character depth than I expected and because of this, I found his route so much fun, in an odd kind of way. (˘∀˘) Though, I understand how his route can also be uncomfortable to others. To put it simply, his romance is not for everyone.

Ukyo  (Joker) – Truth Route. No Contest.

Ukyo was perhaps my favorite route in the game. I admit, after finishing his story the first time, it took me nearly two weeks to get over this character. I never expected his ‘good ending’ to be so intense and heartbreaking. It robbed me of words.

If his strange and questionable behavior (in other worlds) piqued your curiosity, playing this route will explain all of his startling actions, not to mention, all the cryptic lines he throws at you throughout the entire game. I thought his route being locked was very warranted, and his appearances in other worlds played such an important role that foreshadowed the depth and complexity of his character and story.

TRAILER

OVERALL THOUGHTS?

My total gameplay time completing this title was probably around 40-45 hours.

I thought, Amnesia: Memories was a great game. Make no mistake, definitely one of those otome titles that are truly unforgettable. If you’re new to the genre, this one is a good game to start. Plot-wise, it’s not too overwhelming compared to Otomate’s other big titles like Code Realize, Hakuoki, Norn9, etc. 

The main cast was very likable, including the side characters. Special mention to Waka-sama, a character I really wanted to date but can’t! (laughs) I think my favorite route was Ukyo’s because I’m totally a sucker for tragic characters. My second fav. was your math boy, Kent. You just can’t deny how oddly charming his awkwardness is, can you? And given how good his best ending turned out, I thought the man, deserves some pure McLovin! (pun intended)

I’ve also realized how much I’ve become attached to Orion’s character and I always get this itty bitty separation anxiety whenever it’s time to part with him. ORION, you are the game’s MVP!!!

Do I recommend this game? YES
To all those who enjoy a fluffy otome title topped with, of course, very good storytelling. You can’t go wrong with Amnesia Memories!

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