What is Mystic Messenger? I want to hear it from your viewpoint.
a real-time dating simulator game that takes place in an undisclosed location in korea, developed by cheritz (creators of Dandelion and Nameless, also dating games), and made by a team of around 28 people.
mystic messenger has you, the player, enter the story after a strange unknown person sends you to an address to return a lost phone after you downloaded an app onto your own. you wind up in what is supposed to be a secure, secret, chatroom meant to help organize parties for the RFA, a charity foundation that raises funds for those in need.
over the course of eleven days in real time, you’ll get scripted texts, phonecalls, and chatroom messages from the members of the RFA, choosing a favorite to romance as you do in dating sim games. since it’s aimed towards women, sadly, it only uses she/her pronouns.
the game stands out by having surprisingly good writing and an incredible depth to its characters. as the days progress, more and more gets revealed of the RFA, how you were led there, and what kind of people the members are. each route reveals its own part of the mystery, and the ability to “call” characters to learn more ups the replay value greatly.
the game is also, shockingly, free to play. while you can purchase hourglasses, a form of in-game currency used to unlock bonuses, missed chatrooms, gain access to future days in advance, i have managed to get through three entire routes without spending a dime since cheritz so kindly gives users bonus glasses with each update they do. i do suggest that people who can invest in some of their neat bonuses tho! cheritz offers vip packages (for a big price) that allow players to make unlimited calls, use special features, and get a load of physical merch and a book that gives bonus info on characters.
be warned tho, while the game has a rating of 12+, it covers lots of sensitive topics and at the very least implies several types of violence, including but not limited to:
• suicide• physical, sexual, and emotional abuse• frequent unreality (fourth wall breaks)• sexism and minor discussion of sexism• domestic violence (towards children and adults)• animal death• depression and other types of mental illness
of note is also that the game involves lots of sexual implications, as such i personally recommend it as 18+.
overall, without spoiling too much, i feel that the game manages to be astonishingly good at creating an emotional investment and in establishing well-written complex characters for you to care for. even when it comes to the sensitive things mentioned above, the characters remain incredibly empathetic. it also manages to be very progressive, with a confirmed bisexual character and a route to date a woman (keep in mind this is a dating game aimed towards women so!!).
if you have a lot of time on your hands and a desire for cheesy sappy romance with a twist, please play and support this game.