Sympathy Kiss

There’s nothing particularly flashy or exciting about Sympathy Kiss. As a slice-of-life narrative, being mundane is kind of the point. With that said it is incredibly well-written and designed, and while the protagonist may or may not match up with your own vision of how to behave in the workplace, the situations she deals with are often very relatable. Thanks to some exceptionally gorgeous art, solid storytelling, and some fun little systems that remind us that life isn’t meant to be all about work, it also ends up being a game of relevance today, and a reminder that the equilibrium between work and play (let alone romance) has become seriously messed up.

Overall, Sympathy Kiss is an enjoyable otome experience targeting a demographic not often focused on when it comes to video games: adult women immersed in the workforce. Despite having issues with one story route being potentially triggering, I truly enjoyed the rest of the time I spent playing this game. The other character routes have lovely development! Those looking for a game to provide them with their slice-of-life romance fix should give Sympathy Kiss a chance!

Sympathy Kiss probably won’t knock anyone’s socks off, but sometimes it’s nice to get a game that colors inside the lines with a fair amount of skill. The office setting and highly grounded plotline work as a useful anchor for the often unusual characters you’ll be meeting, and with a total of eight routes to play through there is bound to be a favorite dude here for anyone’s tastes. Its greatest strength is also its greatest weakness; it’s a very ordinary visual novel in just about every regard. Come in with those expectations, and you’ll find this a decent enough treat.

With the threat of layoff and the possibility of interoffice romance, Sympathy Kiss is a rather relatable visual novel. Although the protagonist is annoyingly ambiguous, the real stars here are the novel’s bachelors. They’ll assist with your work responsibilities during the day, while offering affection at nights and on weekends.

From the soft pastel colour palette and catchy title song there is a lot to love about Sympathy Kiss. The true to life and often surprising scenarios uncovered through multiple playthroughs make it an engaging addition to any visual novel enthusiast's library, although a few elements may elicit slight aversion to some audiences.

Sympathy Kiss is a simple but effective visual novel, with plenty of charming hunks to romance and a familiar office setting.