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Release Date: 2016
Publisher: MangaGamer & Kalmia8
Platforms Available: Windows (Japanese & English) & Steam (English)
Game Link: Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome [R18][Digital Copy]
Official Site: MangaGamer

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This was a very exciting localisation from MangaGamer as R18+ otome games rarely ever see any traction for english releases. I can’t think of any others off the top of my head that are available in english, outside of Les Fleursword. However, the translation quality for this was terrible so I do not recommend trying it out.

Despite a lot of the controversies surrounding body image and the male treatment of the MC in this game, I still really enjoyed playing it. I’ll elaborate more on why I feel this way in the ‘storyline’ section of my review. I received a review copy from MangaGamer to try out and write my thoughts on the game.

For the title image I used for this review I wasn’t able to find any pictures that didn’t have tags such as ‘announcement/release date/demo’ plastered all over it. So after some photoshopping, I managed to recreate the above image that is similar to what is seen on the official website. I’m quite happy with how it turned out, and that is why there’s a small watermark on the image.

Storyline ★★★

-The Story-

Ema Tachibana is a tall, gloomy and unsociable girl with a bad case of resting bitch-face. With all that working against her, she’s never really had any friends. At school, everyone’s too scared to approach her.

But Ema herself is quite content with that state of affairs. In fact, she was all set to spend the rest of her time until graduation invisible as ever…

That is, until two men turned her life upside down!

“It’s you… I’ve finally found you! You are, without a doubt, MY MUSE!”

Miki Hiraizumi—recently returned to Japan from abroad, he’s loved making clothes ever since he was a little kid. He has a strong desire to help make charming, unusual women shine. (He’s also a bit of a masochist.)

“Listen up, twerp! You’re no good the way you are now. But even you have some potential to shine… I’ll just have to polish you up!”

And Saito Shinjou—he frequently finds himself bored because things have always come easy to him. He aspires to accomplish something so big, it’ll change the world. (He’s also a bit of a sadist.)

These two ambitious and attractive fellows decide to give Ema Tachibana a makeover!

But Ema has other ideas.

“Yeah, well… Who asked you?!” (Offical Website Summary)

To summarise Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome in a few words: it is whacky, ridiculous, extremely exaggerated, and downright hilarious. It’s a romantic school life comedy with a very light-hearted storyline that explores the transformation of a regular high school girl. As a protagonist, she is down-to-earth, blunt, straightforward and quite relatable in several aspects to a lot of people. For example: her love of food, sleeping and her struggles with socialising with her classmates.

It is upon meeting the two male bachelors that her life is essentially turned upside down and changed forever. Now this is where there has been a lot of mixed reception and controversy amongst players, in regards to their treatment of the protagonist in transforming her into a model.

This game has the running theme of very exaggerated gags, notable satire, and it’s almost a parody in itself. There are many moments throughout Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome where the characters break the fourth wall or poke fun at stereotypical otome game tropes.

As a result, the characters use very extreme methods in essentially forcing the heroine to obey to their whims and model for Miki’s clothes. Black humour is prevalent throughout the game where they constantly body shame the heroine, insult and belittle her, and threaten and make fun of her. For some people, the message it sends to young and impressionable girls and the sense of humour trespasses the boundaries of acceptability.

If you’re not a fan of this type of humour, then I don’t recommend playing the game as it can become very uncomfortable for you. However, for me personally I was still able to enjoy the game because I can see the direction the writers decided to take with the storyline. Because of how ridiculous and whacky everything is, it’s very easy to distinguish that at the end of the day—Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome is a game, rather than a direct reflection of real life.

It’s definitely not something to be taken seriously or literally, and if you have a dark sense of humour—this game is comedy gold. I honestly cracked up too many times to count at the character’s crazy antics throughout the game, because of how bizarre and unexpected all the events were. The game has 10 + gag endings for a reason, and it was actually really enjoyable reading all of them. Normally I find ending collection a very tedious aspect in Visual Novels, but this was not the case for this game.

I really must praise the translations for Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome, as the game would have nowhere near been as hilarious without it. It is very good in terms of phrasing and adhering the jokes to a western audience, and a lot of it actually sounded better in english than the original language. It is obvious a lot of effort and work has been put into the translations, which really made the game so much more enjoyable to play.

That being said, I also had a lot of criticisms for the overall storyline of the game. If you’re comparing this to other otome games as a whole, then the plot was very lacklustre. There’s nothing particularly unique that makes it stand out from other school life romantic comedies. The storyline is simple, straightforward and without any twists or unexpected developments.

The game is relatively short, and would take an average of 10-15hrs to fully clear the game. As a result, the character routes didn’t feel properly fleshed out and ended rather abruptly. Although the epilogues definitely helped to conclude and tie up the loose ends of the story, I still felt quite dissatisfied as the romance between the characters were undeniably rushed.

If you’re expecting an immersive or detailed storyline with heavy plot, then Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome is not the game for you. It’s meant to be one of those titles that you mindlessly read when you don’t have a lot of time to play or want something fun and lively that requires little to no emotional investment.

The comedy and translations were the main factors that really carried the game, and I personally really enjoyed it despite its notable flaws and shortcomings. This is also considered a ‘low-budget’ title from Kalmia8, and it explains why there were so many clear shortcuts taken in the production of the game.

Character Development ★★★

WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD! READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION!

Overall, I really enjoyed the character’s relationship dynamic as a trio—probably more so than the seperate romantic pairings themselves. They have such interesting and very extreme personalities that creates both hilarious conflict and whacky scenarios throughout the story. I felt that the bachelors could be played in any order, and it’s up to your own discretion who you would like to complete first. I have a completed walkthrough of the game here.

I felt Miki’s route was a lot more romantic and fluffy whereas Saito’s route was more developed in terms of Ema’s character and feelings. Although both are meant to represent ‘masochists’ and ‘sadists’ respectively, I felt neither were very extreme in those departments at all. The H-Scenes are very tame and typical of an R-18 game, so if you’re concerned as a first-time player encroaching upon the genre—I feel it won’t really dissuade your enjoyment of the game overall.

EMA TACHIBANA: As a heroine, Ema is quite likeable and relatable as your average high school girl suffering from standard teenage angst. She is snarky, sarcastic and straight-forward, and she is refreshingly different from the usual otome game heroines you normally see. Although it is arguable as to how much she develops over the course of the storyline due to the length and events of the game, I still felt that she did notably progress as a character.

In comparison to the beginning of the story where she had no motivations for herself or any semblance of friendship with others—through the influence of the two male bachelors, she finally is able to break out of her shell. She is able to experience so many new things, discover different sides of herself that she never once thought possible and forge everlasting friendships.

Considering she initially believed that she would quietly finish high school and forever live a meaningless existence without others, this is quite a drastic change of character and evidence of her ‘successful’ makeover.

SAITO SHINJOU: Saito plays the role of a ‘sadistic tyrant’ whom Ema desperately tries to escape from initially. He is bossy, blunt, rude and stops at nothing when he has his eyes set on achieving a goal. Saito is the main driving force behind successfully recruiting Ema into their plans for stardom as Team-X. Despite his callous and cruel demeanour, it is shown that he cares deeply for both Miki and Ema. He places all his efforts and funding from his part-time job into their group production, out of genuine belief for their talents.

Although I know Saito’s character has received very mixed reception, I found that in terms of relationship and character dynamic—he suited Ema much more than Miki. Ema’s feelings for Saito are very apparent in his route, and she spends a notable portion of the storyline deciphering exactly what these newfound emotions for him mean. She becomes conflicted by the dilemma of winning Saito’s affections, and experiences all the ups and downs of experiencing her first love.

Saito on the other hand, I felt he really understood Ema’s character from all the time that he had spent on ‘reproducing’ her. Although he uses very questionable methods at times in order for her to obey his whims, if it wasn’t for his forcefulness Ema would have never agreed to their plans to begin with. Saito really pushes her to better herself, motivates her to reach her potential and is surprisingly considerate in his own way.

For example: the butler cafe chapter was comedy gold, and really helped to build Ema’s confidence and character. If it wasn’t for Saito, I genuinely feel that Ema would have never have developed so much as a protagonist. She transformed from a girl without any motivation or ambition, to someone who would chase after what she wants and embrace the spotlight.

What really detracted from Saito’s route was that until the very end, their relationship was never truly made ‘official’ and left completely open-ended. It was really disappointing, considering how forward Ema had become in their relationship with her own feelings. Saito never once tells her he loves her, and it raises questions on how genuine his emotions for Ema really are. It just felt really lack-lustre in the romance department, and even their first time together was very disjointed and abrupt.

I remember reading the events leading up to the scene, and thinking ‘there’s no way it happens just like that, right?’ And then it unfolded exactly how I dreaded it to. Not only that, but despite their feelings being made clear to one another—Saito renders the meaningful connection they had obsolete by pretending nothing ever happened between them. Although Saito was the better fit for Ema in terms of personality, there were many notable issues in the pacing of his route and the development of their relationship.

MIKI HIRAIZUMI: Miki plays the role of a ‘masochistic diva’ who is overjoyed upon finding Ema, as she is the long-desired muse that he has sought after for his fashion designs. He is a rather quirky and emotional character, and creates daring fashion statements that takes Japan by storm. To Ema’s dismay initially, his strange behaviour and mannerisms is due to his childhood upbringing in America.

Miki is extremely passionate about his designs and reveres Ema as an untouchable goddess for most of the story. He believes that his desires would ruin their fixed relationship as creator and muse, and render him unable to continue pursuing his dreams. As a result, he plays second fiddle to Saito and holds back his feelings for most of the story.

With Miki, I felt he made up for a lot of the issues I had with Saito’s route in terms of romance. He is very pure and straight-forward in expressing his feelings for Ema, and how much she means to him. Their love felt a lot more mutual overall and his route had a much more wholesome and satisfying conclusion.

However, their relationship lacked a lot of chemistry as I felt Saito’s personality better suited Ema’s passivity. He also played a much larger role in her successful transformation, which is an aspect that I felt Miki would have been unable to do alone.

Ema never saw Miki in a romantic light until he essentially forces himself on her, and it felt like she just ‘went with the flow of things’ rather than genuinely liking Miki himself. It doesn’t exactly help that you can branch onto Miki’s route from one decision point, despite choosing all of Saito’s options either. It just seemed very one-sided on Ema’s end, even though she does eventually return Miki’s feelings.

It never fully delves into what she loves about Miki, and Ema doesn’t disagree with becoming his girlfriend solely due to them sleeping together. Despite never showing prior interest or feelings for him, she rapidly ‘falls in love’ with Miki after the event and wants to become a model for the sake of his dreams. It was such a sudden change of persona and as a result, Ema’s feelings just weren’t as believable as what Miki felt for her.

Design ★★★

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The design and artwork in Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome were decent for an R18 Otome Game. The colours are very bright, lively and fun and the characters/CGs had crisp line work. I enjoyed a lot of the very exaggerated character expressions, as they’re obviously more overemphasised for the comedic effect. However, I did notice a general discrepancy between the quality of Saito’s art versus Miki’s.

In general, I felt the artist did significantly better with Miki’s CGs and facial expressions. For Saito, I immediately noticed many of his features were disproportionate to the rest of his body/face. In some of his CGs, he looked noticeably different from the art quality seen in his character sprite. Although I became accustomed to the differences over the course of the game, it is still an obvious discrepancy that was difficult to overlook initially.

Another aspect I found odd was that for some of the kissing scenes, the CG did not shift from the still image and the character’s lips would be on the other’s nose. It definitely distracted from the intimacy of the moment, as it looked out of place and was noticeable in several instances throughout the game.

If you’re playing the R18 version, then the H-Scenes overall were decently drawn. One of the major problems with R18 games are the body proportions as well as the unrealistic positioning of the characters. Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome didn’t really suffer too much from either of these problems, which was nice to see. However, the H-CGs weren’t anything outstanding or amazing and they were the typical scenes I expected to see in an R18 game.

Music and Voice Acting ★★★

One of the aspects that immediately stood out to me from Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome was the catchy and hilarious opening theme. It really captures the humorous and quirky tones of the game, and piques your interest from first glance. Unfortunately, as FLML is a low-budget title from Kalmia8—this really showed in terms of the music and track selections.

There were only a handful of BGMs that became noticeably repetitive over the course of the game. I felt that they didn’t contribute much to help set the tone or the themes of the game, and were akin to BGMs that only existed to fill the silence. The looping of a few tracks were quite prevalent, although it wasn’t so jarring as to distract from the game itself.

On the other hand, I really enjoyed the voice acting in Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome. The voice actors played the role of their ‘S’ and ‘M’ characters perfectly, and did a great job in capturing the hilarity and ridiculousness of the game. The heroine’s VA really encapsulated the extent of her character’s social awkwardness, which created a great dynamic with the two male leads.

Although a lot of players weren’t fond of her garbled ‘GAAAAAH’ and piercing screams, I personally found it amusing and it suited the hilarious moments in the game. There were also many comments in other reviews expressing their dislike of her voice and reactions during the H-Scenes. Unfortunately, this is an example of the cultural divide between east and west in the portrayals of women. If you’ve played other R18+ Eroge before, then this is definitely the norm that is prevalent in majority of the titles.

• Saito Shinjou | VA: Yotsuya Cider | 四ツ谷 サイダー |
  Brothers Conflict as Asahina Masaomi, OZMAFIA!! as Kyrie, and Ayakashi Gohan as Serigano Manatsu.
• Miki Hiraizumi | VA: Kuroi Isamu | 黒井 勇 |
  Ken ga Kimi as Tsuzumi Hougen and Sidekicks! as Shishiba.

System ★★★

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The system in Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome was quite bubbly and cute in terms of design. I definitely recognised the ‘fashion’, ‘makeover’ and ‘transformation’ motifs throughout the theme with the checker patterns. It’s very crisp, easy to navigate and use; however it is quite minimalistic and bare-bones in terms of extra unlock-able content. Although the user interface had a nice design and theme, it isn’t one of those systems that left a particularly lasting impression in comparison to other Visual Novels that I have seen.

It incorporates all the basic functions such as save, load, CG Gallery, and Ending List, etc. I particularly liked how the game auto saves for you after every option, which prevents issues such as forgetting to save, or the game accidentally crashing. The voice collection was a nice bonus, as it enabled you to save certain voice snippets that you enjoyed without having to replay the scene itself. It also has the coveted ‘skip to next decision’ function that helped a lot with obtaining all twenty endings of the game.

One disappointing aspect was that the game on release still had many notable bugs that were prevalent in both the steam and MangaGamer version. Many users experienced glitches that prevented them from unlocking the ‘threesome’ route, and as a result of multiple other glitches were unable to fully clear the game. Such noticeable errors should not be in a final release copy, but I was impressed with how MangaGamer handled it.

They were very quick in resolving the issues and pushing out patches to both platforms. This only affected those who purchased the game within the first week or so, and these glitches will not affect any new players to Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome.

Conclusion

In conclusion, despite some mixed reception around ‘body shaming/body image issues’ and the treatment of the MC—I still really enjoyed Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome. Unfortunately if these are issues that you feel very strongly about, then I do not recommend playing the game as it is a prevalent theme throughout FLML.

As FLML is a budget title, it’s not one of those games that you pick up expecting an elaborate storyline or an extensive amount of playtime. It’s a title you pick up if you’re looking for something fun and easy to read that doesn’t require a huge investment of time to play.

Although the dark humour, satire and gags isn’t for everyone, I personally found it hilarious and thoroughly enjoyed unlocking all the endings in the game. In terms of storyline, Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome isn’t anything particularly noteworthy and it doesn’t deviate from your classic high school romantic comedy tropes. However, it is a clear-cut example of how important translation quality is to a game, as the comedy would not have been so well expressed without it.

It made a significant difference to my overall enjoyment of the game, and the perception of the characters. It’s fairly tame in terms of R18 content, and it’s one of the few english localised titles that is pretty safe to start off with for first-time players encroaching the genre.

I would love to see more R18 otome localisations from MangaGamer, and hopefully with the positive reception of FLML it would encourage more releases in the future. The title I would love to see the most is ‘Yoshiwara Higanbana‘ by Maria Crown. The language in this is very difficult for beginners, and unfortunately not many are able to enjoy or play it. The storyline is amazing and it’s one of the few mature otome games of actual substance that does not solely revolve around the sexual content.

Thank you again to MangaGamer for the collaboration, and the games that I intend to review next are Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony (Review) and Bad Apple Wars (Review)!

Overall Rating: 3/5

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Written By Cherry