I've been playing otome games for quite some time, and I feel confident in saying Battlefield Waltz is the most difficult I've encountered. Before picking it up, I had (foolishly) thought that otome games like the ones that form the basis of the manhwa series Villains are Destined to Die were exaggerations, “what if” scenarios based on impossibly hard visual novels. But Battlefield Waltz is the real deal, a punishing game that means it when it comes to the word “battle” in its title.

This is largely because, unlike many comparable games, every choice matters. One wrong answer will set you on the path to a bad end, and that can be frustrating. Him, the Smile, and Bloom and Gensou Manège, two other recent otome releases, allow for a small margin of error; you can miss a correct choice or two and still get on a route or to a happy ending. Battlefield Waltz has affection indicators, and the requisite screen where you can monitor your beaux' affections; there are otherwise no guideposts to ensure you're on your way out of the common route. Much to my shame, I eventually had to resort to a walkthrough just to get off the common route. While this certainly won't be true for all players (especially if you're already familiar with the game from its initial 2014 PS Vita release), if you're more into relaxing games, this may not be the right choice. It's simply not all that intuitive.

Fortunately, it does come with a branching tree that shows where all of the choices are, which is always a plus. Each chapter takes about forty-five minutes to an hour to play through, allowing a nice pick-up-put-down flow; you can play a bit and then comfortably put the game down without trouble. (Assuming you're not sucked into the story, which is a major risk!) There are six love interests total, with three – Abel, Lustin, and Pash's routes available from the start and Tifalet's, Wilhelm's, and Nike's each unlocking after completing one of the original three, so finishing Lustin will unlock Tifalet, while completing Abel will unlock Nike, with Wilhelm only unlocking after the other five are complete. Each route is pleasingly unique, and while the men each slot into the basic otome game tropes, there are nice elements that keep them fresh, such as Lustin being the playboy but remarkably non-creepy.

Art is a major draw here. The main artist, Yumiko Takemura, has worked on several Voltage games, some of which are available on Steam, and this is my favorite of her projects. The art is beautiful, even with the occasional anatomical issue (mostly related to hands), while the sheer number of CG available, either through play or in-game purchase (not using real money), is astounding: there are over 200. The writing is also impressive. While it's not on the level of Gensou Manège or Cupid Parasite, it's still definitely on the higher end of the spectrum, with a logical story flow and interesting characters. Lan, the heroine whose name can be changed, is a bit of a wilting wallflower at times, but it makes perfect sense given what she's had to deal with, and while some might balk at her need to apologize frequently, I think that it makes sense; she's been made to feel inadequate in her new life, and with the shock of losing her home and family, it feels like a pretty natural inclination to me. The translation is also mostly good; one or two typos pop up, but like the writing, this is on the higher end.

While the “skip read” feature can be a bit hard to find and moves a bit too slowly for fast readers, this has made the transition to the Switch well. While there are two editions available, the fancier one is more than worth the money just for the book that comes with it, a hardcover that includes character and world-building information, art, and short stories set after each route's happy ending. Battlefield Waltz may be hard, but it's also deeply engrossing and more than worth the frustration factors to play.