otomejam dev notes

cross-posted from my website:

i actually REALLY like otome isekai stories. there's just something extremely silly about them that i adore.

this game was actually an adaptation of an idea i had for an isekai otome parody where there were like six different people reincarnated into the same house: the shut-in heroine, the villainess sister who went insane trying to avoid her fate, the villainess sister who went insane trying to become the ULTIMATE villainess, the maid who knew everything and thrived on chaos, the maid who had only played one route and held a grudge against one of the love interests, and the villainess mother who didn't realize she was reincarnated into an otome game at all because she was too busy being a deadbeat mother/living out her fantasy rpg dreams. it was a romcom with a heavy focus on the girls becoming a true family despite... literally everything about them.

the viewpoint character would have been the only character who didn't reincarnate: the elderly head maid who was exasperated at everyone around her being insane

trey was inspired by one pairing, which was the maid with a grudge against one of the love interest and said love interest. the idea was that they'd meet and he'd fall in love before he experienced the tragic backstory that made him such a detestable bastard, but the maid, not knowing that, would say to his face that she hated him, full name and all... only to reveal that she has no idea who he is, and that her reasons for hating him are completely illogical, considering he hadn't become a playboy asshole yet

zea wasn't really inspired by any character in the original idea, mostly because i hadn't come up with many male characters. he was born from me thinking "wouldn't it be really funny if the loyal stoic knight who kills people turns out to be way too serious and a dork?"

the reason for their names is just... "trey b allite" → "b trey all" → "betrayal" (thing he needs to do to his master) vs "zealot fanaticism" → "zea nattic" → "zea matthis" (the thing he is for the princess)

i love dating sim protags who have their own design and personalities, but mishie loves faceless self-insert mcs with customizable genders. it's kind of funny that we're complete opposites like that

kind of sad that we couldn't submit the game with finished art, but there were personal circumstances that happened, so it can't be helped. one day i hope we can actually add graphics instead of just... rectangles.