Nekopara ~ Catboys Paradise

And so begins the first look into one of my guilty pleasures: otome games, which also generally fall in the realm of dating sims. (laughs)

However, calling「Nekopara ~ Catboys Paradise」a dating sim wouldn’t really be correct since there’s not much in terms of actual romance in the game. (Would this be more on the side of ‘kitten love’? lol)

Since this is my first post talking about a game with multiple routes, I wanted to discuss how I will be going about handling this type of genre going forward. (This may be my first post about otome games, but it certainly won’t be my last.)

At first, I thought I could talk generally about each route, but realized it would still make this post too long. Instead, I’ve decided to discuss the game as a whole here and write four additional posts for each catboy later. (A hefty goal, I know.) I don’t think they’ll be extra long, but it would definitely make this post shorter. It would also put my YouTube channel to good use since I’m currently in the process of recording “no commentary” gameplay videos for each of the routes.

And boy, did I need a refresher on how I even found out about this game. Thank goodness I streamed it, otherwise I would not remember how I came across it.

About two years ago (Has it really been that long now?), I stumbled across an otome game blogger named Otome Kitten. At the time, I hadn’t kept up with otome games for a while and wanted to get back into the genre. Not knowing where to turn, I did a quick Google search on otome games and that’s how I found out about Otome Kitten. After reading a few of her reviews and then purchasing those reviewed games, she is now who I turn to when I need a new otome game to play. (laughs) If you want actual reviews of otome games, I would definitely check her out!

Anyway, I saw her review of Catboys Paradise, I saw the pretty catboys along with the voice cast, and I was sold. Hook, line, and sinker. 😅 (Look, I know what I’m weak to, okay?)

Without further ado, let’s open up shop, shall we?

Update 10/2/24: Added a “Read More” line.

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Your grandfather has recently passed away and you end up inheriting his café and house. You intend to keep the café running as a tribute to your grandfather, but you have no idea as to where to start. That’s when a school gets in touch with you and asks if you are willing to host some trainees who have some experience in running a café. You take the offer without much hesitation. To your surprise, however, the trainees are not four humans but four humanoid cats! Humanoid cat workers aren’t that rare these days, but this is still your first interacting with one. And thus, your story begins as you work alongside four catboys!

~ Summary taken from the game’s Steam page

First, I would like to make a note that this is the only Nekopara game I will be playing and it is also a kinetic visual novel, meaning there are no options to select from and no branching paths leading to different endings. And honestly, sometimes it’s just fun to sit back, relax, and enjoy! Additionally, Catboys Paradise is free to play on Steam, so you really have nothing to lose and four catboys to gain. (laughs)

🐈‍⬛ The Catboys 🐈‍⬛

Needless to say, this game is pure fluff; the most slice-of-life game where you run a cafe with some cute catboys. There is no order you need to play the routes, so play them in any order you’d like! I purr-sonally (I couldn’t help myself haha) started with Fennel because he is a cat megane boy and I am weak to megane boys 😅

Fennel (voiced by: Wataru Komada)

Fennel was hands down my favorite going into the game, and after playing through all the routes, he is still my favorite. Not only is he voiced by Wataru Komada, who voices Jade Leech in Twisted Wonderland and Jyuto Iruma in Hypnosis Mic (both of whom are my favorites in their respective series), but he is also a megane boy who wears gloves? Sign me the hell up!

Laurier (voiced by: Kaito Ishikawa)

Laurier was the next route I completed and I’m not really sure why since Yuuichiro Umehara’s character exists. (I actually really like Ishikawa as a voice actor and am always happy to see him when he appears.) I enjoyed this sleepy kitty, and Ishikawa voiced him well. Laurier was a little too needy and pushy for me in terms of him wanting attention, but his secret obsession with sweets was really cute! The gap moe was too real with this one. (laughs)

Sage (voiced by: Yuuichiro Umehara)

I finally get to talk about Umehara’s character! (boy, do I love Umehara’s voicework haha) Admittedly, Sage isn’t normally the type of character I lean toward, but I couldn’t resist since it’s Umehara. But really, Sage is such a sweetheart. (And did I mention he protecc? 🫣) He also gave off this big brother energy that I enjoyed. Having Umehara voice him was just the cherry on top!

Dill (voiced by: Junya Enoki)

Like Sage, Dill is not the type of character I gravitate toward (like at all) and I’m unapologetic about it. I can admit the route is still very cute, though. I mean, a guy who loves fashion and makeup? That’s a vibe right there! Just… not the vibe I’m looking for. From a character design standpoint, Dill is also the youngest of the bunch, which is another reason why I don’t gravitate toward these types of characters.

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While Catboys Paradise is filled to the brim with fluff, it’s also the shortest otome game I’ve played to date. It’s also the easiest otome game I’ve played since the only selection is picking which route you want to read. I actually let the game autoplay on its own and it was about two hours per route, clocking in at 8-9 hours in total to complete. There’s not much extra content like with other otome games, but since it’s free, it’s nothing to really complain about. Like I said before, you have nothing to lose and four kitties to gain! Overall a very cute game that’s short and sweet! 🥰

I will eventually go into a little more depth about each route, but let’s get the main post finished first. (laughs)

Until next time! Bye bye~

🌸 Hiba