What is Angelique?

[elyusion]

Something for the 90s-loving yume, fu, and himejoshi!
(Even if you're not a joshi you can join in on the fun too, just as I do ❤)

Because why read Wikipedia or something when you could read a post on a blog, right? I highly recommend reading this on a webpage where you can open and close the cut tags.

Thank you for your attention! For the sake of my mutuals who watch me reshare illustrations of lanky, godlike men in confusion, for the sake of those who see my art and wonder who these strange people are, and for the sake of those curious about video game or joseimuke history, I have written this. I will mainly focus on the first game Angelique (1994) and its rereleases, but I'll be sure to mention characters and such from the other games too.

The Basics

Angelique is a series of video games along with a media franchise encompassing anime, manga, novels, drama and music CDs, and much more. It's a series of simulation games - with one JRPG aberration and two digital board games - that forms part of the otome umbrella. In fact, it's the first otome game in history! (What is an otome game?) It's made by Ruby Party, who had to fight to prove making a game aimed just at women would work out. It's also part of their Neoromance series, a franchise of dating simulation games for girls. (Others include Harukanaru Toki no Naka de/Beyond the Stream of Time, Kiniro no Corda/La Corda d'Oro, and Neo Angelique. Maybe you've heard of them!)

The first game released in 1994 and centers around an exam to choose a new Queen for the universe. As the current one loses her power, her aide Dia leads the exam to choose a new one. Two girls from Smolney Girls' Academy on the Main Planet, Angelique and Rosalia, are chosen and whisked away to compete for the throne. To win they must properly harness the powers of the all-male guardians to nurture their own continents. Whoever fully cultivates their continent first gets to be Queen. Obviously it will go better for you if you're in the guardians' good favor, but be careful -- the Queen must be entirely devoted to her work in supporting the Universe. Or, put into other words, girls with boyfriends can't be queen.




Future releases of this game will add more emphasis on the budding friendship between normal girl Angelique and her beautiful but arrogant rival of noble lineage, Rosalia -- as well as fix some fugly sprites, make the music a little better, add more events, voice acting, animated cutscenes, etc.

These are all the games in the series:
1. Angelique (1994) for the Super Famicom and (years later) Game Boy Advance. Has 9 love interests, by the way.
2. Angelique Special (1995) for the PC-FX, Playstation, Sega Saturn, and (years later) Windows. The same game as Angelique (1994), but with all sorts of little changes that make it obviously superior.
3. Fushigi no Kuni no Angelique (1996), aka Angelique in Wonderland, is for the PC-FX, Playstation, Windows, Sega Saturn, and Game Boy Advance. It is a board game that I personally think carries a hidden evil within.
4. Angelique Special 2 (1996) for the PC-FX, Playstation, Sega Saturn, and Windows. A sequel game with a new protagonist, rival, and six new love interests.
5. Angelique Tenkuu no Requiem (1998) for PC-FX and Playstation. A JRPG with dating simulation elements that acts as a sequel to Special 2. The popularity and experience gained from this game is what inspired another Neoromance franchise, Harukanaru Toki no Naka de, but this post ain't about Haruka. Adds one new love interest, who was wildly popular.
6. Angelique Duet (1998) for Playstation, Sega Saturn, and (years later) Nintendo DS. Another version of Angelique (1994) which, among other changes, makes Rosalia playable and adds an Angelique/Rosalia route. Needless to say, this route is (")platonic.(") The animation is rather strange-looking, but that's a small price to pay for Rosalia.
7. Sweet Ange (1999) is another board game for Game Boy Color. It doesn't have the added love interests, but it has the added protag and rival. It's a school AU!! Really really cute game.
8. Angelique Trois (2000) for PS2. Sequel for Tenkuu no Requiem, but not a JRPG. Honestly, I don't recommend it unless you are madly in love with someone from the previous games. Doesn't have a rival, which makes the simulation part of the game suck, but you can still talk with Rachel, Angelique Limoges, and Rosalia, so the talking-to-your-fave-girls part is okay.
9. Angelique Etoile (2003) for PS2 and Windows. Also not recommended unless you're madly in love with someone (specifically a man. Relationships with women are kind of eschewed here)... Or willing to meet someone new, because this game adds 3 new love interests, for a whopping total of 19(!!) love interests. Also doesn't have a rival. Booooooo.
Some people count the Neo Angelique games as Angelique games, but I don't, so I won't be including them.
10. Angelique Maren no Rokukishi (2011) for PSP is, in fact, the one Angelique game I haven't finished. It's a visual novel developed by Otomate, and I played Angelique to escape such things, so after I realized what it was I dipped. If you really enjoyed the villains in Tenkuu no Requiem you should check this game out though.
11. Angelique Retour (2015) for PSP and PSV. A full blown remake of Angelique (1994) that appeals to modern sensibilities. New artist, designs (including whitewashing the hell out of Zephel, which says a lot about society), UI, dialogue... I don't recommend it as a replacement for Angelique '94 like I would with Special or Duet, but I loved the game! And you can totally play this as your first Angelique game; it just doesn't replace the older games, which is fine. #1 critical flaw is that it doesn't include the Rosalia route.
12. Angelique Luminarise (2021) for the Nintendo Switch. It takes place in a different universe which contains our Earth, so the entire cast is different. Has 9 love interests, like the first game. The character designer is different from both the older games and Retour. I think the nicest thing about it is that the protag and rival are both adults who worked as office ladies before getting pulled away from Earth.

Gameplay

I should talk about the gameplay of the average Angelique game, specifically envisioning Angelique '94 and its rereleases. Allow me to describe the average month in such games: Every day, Angelique wakes up with a certain amount of stamina. Depending on what you need, you (the player) will either hope a guardian comes to ask you out or pray that everyone leaves you the hell alone so you can handle business. If it's a weekday, you'll probably go to the office of a guardian and either (A) ask for them to send their power to her continent, (B) ask for them to take away their power from Rosalia's continent, (C) just chat with them about their opinions on things, or (D) ask them what they think about another character. You can also ask for the fortune teller to make her relationship with someone better, or ask her what all your relationship stats look like currently. Another option is to ask the head of the Research Facility what your continent needs, or ask to personally visit your continent and scope the scene yourself. Doing anything costs stamina, and when you run out you go to bed and repeat the cycle again.

Saturday is continent visitation day, where you have to visit your continent and hear what your oracle/prophet has to report. Hearing the current state of affairs is important! ... But you don't actually have to go. You can skip it, but the research head will be pissed. (He's not romanceable, so don't worry about that. However, you might pay for your irresponsibility in other ways.)

Sunday is your chill day. A guardian might come to your room and ask you out, but if not, you can go to their office and ask one out yourself... if they're in there. They might be outside already, and you can't ask for a date if they're out of office. They can also reject your date proposal, and if too many guardians say no you run out of stamina and have to go to bed, so watch out for that.

At the end of the month you OR your rival can gain more stamina by winning what I'll call a mini-exam. It's random whether it's judged by whose continent is more cultivated or who more guardians vote for (which is ostensibly a popularity contest). And I'm warning you now, once your rival has 2 more hearts than you, you might as well delete your save.

The game tells you your goal is to win the examination and fully cultivate your continent before Rosalia does. Fill it with life and happy people, etc. Then you'll become the new Queen of the Cosmos! :D But the game can also be beaten by having a guardian reciprocate your love for them and you deciding to drop out the contest. You can't do both. Work or love, which will it be? Hey, doesn't this sound familiar...!?

(You might think it old-fashioned to have to choose between these two, but consider the time and country of origin. 🙂‍↕️)

Other games may play differently, but this would be so much longer if I were to go through all of them.

This is an otome game, right? Talk about the characters!

No problem! This might be a really long section, but the characters are the most important part of such games. Their outfits differ with each game, so I chose pictures that reflect the fit they wear in their first appearance.
Here From the Start
Angelique, later given the last name Limoges to differentiate her from a certain somebody, is the protagonist of Angelique and its rereleases/remakes. She's a commoner girl from the Main Planet, and a student of Smolney Girls' Academy. She's very positive and kind, just as you'd expect from your average shoujo protagonist. Her name can be changed in the games where you play as her!

Full body artwork of her.

Rosalia de Catargena, is the protag's rival and (later) best friend. She's a noble girl from the Main Planet, and a student of Smolney Girls' Academy, specifically focusing her studies on how to be Queen. She looks down on the protag at first, but underneath all that pride she's a nice girl.

Full body artwork of her.

Julious is the Guardian of Light. A natural-born leader, he has high expectations and low patience. He was also born into nobility, and it shows in his tastes and the way he carries himself. A very professional man.

Artwork of him.

Clavis is the Guardian of Darkness. Not very chatty and carries an air of mystery and gloom about him. Certified kuudere. My personal fave, but who asked?

Artwork of him.

Randy is the Guardian of Wind. To me he feels very #boy...? As in, he's very active, outgoing, and happy. You know, that kind of love interest. He's kind of JRPG protag as fuck. I mean, just look at him.

Artwork of him.

Lumiale is the Guardian of Water. In a game series where everyone is nice he is kind to a fault, and incredibly easy to talk to or hang out with. He's kind of like if a MILF was a man. Whoa, who said that????

Artwork of him.

I don't know why he looks so serious here when he normally has such a gentle smile on his face.

Oscar is the Guardian of Fire. The flirt of the series with a mature feeling. Whereas Randy looks like a teenage JRPG protagonist, Oscar looks like an adult from Fire Emblem or Langrisser.

Artwork of him.

Marcel is the Guardian of Verdure. Most translate that as Guardian of Green or Greenery, but I like Verdure. A sweet kid like a little brother. He is the newest and youngest Guardian.

Artwork of him.

Zephel is the Guardian of Steel. Total tsundere, sharp-tongued and bratty. Also prety smart!

Artwork of him.

Olivie is the Guardian of Dreams. Yassss bitch slayyyyyyy (*my advisor whispers in my ear that I should give an actual description*) A flamboyant young man who admires those who work hard to achieve their dreams just as much as he enjoys beautiful things. He's lowkey a flirt too, but I suppose he's sillier about it than Oscar.

Artwork of him.

Luva is the Guardian of Earth. Patient and knowledgeable. It's safe to say that he's pretty much a nerd, or perhaps it'd be nicer to say he likes learning.

Artwork of him.

The Queen is the current Queen of the Cosmos. I can't say much about her that isn't spoilers!

Artwork of her.

Dia is the Queen Aide. She leads the exam, and offers advice if you ever need help.

Artwork of her.

Pastha and Sara are the head of the Royal Research Facility and Fortune-Teller, respectively. They're both from separate Dragon Clans. Pastha leads trips to your continent and handles information related to it, while Sara tells you about and boosts relationships

Artwork of them.

Introduced in Angelique Special 2

Angelique, last name Collet, is the protagonist of Angelique Special 2 and its sequels. Her personality slightly depends on you!

Artwork of her.

Rachel Hart is Collet's rival, and later best friend. A very smart and self-confident girl with a spirited personality.

Artwork of her.

Victor is the Instructor of Spirit. I'm going to be honest with you, my descriptions of the love interests from here on out are going to suck, because I care about the original 9 the most. He seems like the type that looks scary, but is actually gentle? You know how it is.

Artwork of him.

Sei-lan is the Instructor of Sensitivity. Out of all the love interests they added, I like him the most. He's cynical and capricious. I think this makes him a little silly :3 Silly artist :3

Artwork of him.

Timka is the Instructor of Dignity. Every game needs an Indian prince 💯 Uhhh I mean, normal guy! He is a completely normal boy.

Artwork of him.

Ernst is the head of the Royal Research Facility, replacing Pastha. You can probably tell what his deal is just by looking at him. Gonna be real, I have never spoken to him beyond how much I need to for gameplay.

Artwork of him.

Mel is the new fortune teller, replacing Sara. He's the youngest member of the cast, and shy to boot.

Artwork of him.

The Merchant is a perfectly normal merchant, nothing to concern yourself with here. I'm not even sure he's dateable! Why is he even here!? Haha... ha.

Artwork of him.

Introduced in Angelique Tenkuu no Requiem
Arios is a mysterious swordsman, the kind of character made in a lab to make teenage girls swoon. Walking spoiler.

Artwork of him.

This game actually introduces a lot of characters but uh. Um. I'll let them be a surprise for you!
Introduced in Angelique Etoile

Leonard is the to-be Guardian of Light for the Sacred Beast Cosmos (Universe). I don't know how to describe him. Like if a bad boy was a man instead...? He's kind of wild, not like regal Julious at all.

Artwork of him.

Really good art, right? The way Yura Kairi improves over the years is truly a sight to behold.

Francis is the to-be Guardian of Darkness for the Sacred Beast Cosmos. He's very empathetic and easy to talk to, but he seems to have some secret(s) of his own. The type who is kind and all smiles but looks unhappy when in private, you know?

Artwork of him.

Heuye is the to-be Guardian of Wind for the Sacred Beast Cosmos. I'm going to be honest, I know nearly nothing about this kid. I skipped over nearly all his dialogue because I was so over Etoile at that point. I am so sorry. (Well, I guess I can say he is very stubborn.)

Artwork of him.

Introduced in Angelique Retour
Brian is... uh... um... Okay, look. He can only be romanced after completing at least one route, and I only played 1.5 routes before moving on. I have too much in my backlog to stay on one game for long. Just from looking at him though, I can assume he's an Arios replacement, so he's probably just like Arios. Unfortunate his name had to be Brian.

Artwork of him.

Gerard and Silvan are butlers; whichever you pick is yours, and Rosalia gets the other one. Their personalities? Exactly what you'd guess just from looking at them. Both boys, by the way.

Artwork of them.

Introduced in Angelique Luminarise

Ange is the protagonist of Angelique Luminarise. Average overworked career woman. You can change her name.

Artwork of her.

Reina is the rival of the protagonist in Angelique Luminarise. Compared to how past rivals act at the start, Reina is very friendly. Still, she's a hard worker and determined to win.

Artwork of her.

Yue is the Guardian of Light. He's confident and energetic; really great guy to have around.

Artwork of him.

If I were him I'd position my arm differently, but I'll let him do him.

Noah is the Guardian of Darkness. "We have a new Guardian of Darkness!" Fucked up a perfectly good emo is what you did. Look at him. He has anxiety.

Artwork of him.

Vergil is the Guardian of Wind. Relaxing to be around and polite.

Artwork of him.

Kanata is the Guardian of Water. He's from Earth, just like Ange! Also a gamer. His personality? Normal guy, I guess.

Artwork of him.

I don't like his CG for using his power, so I'm using a different one. My post my rules babeyyyyyy

Shuri is the Guardian of Fire. Cold and serious.

Artwork of him.

Stop! In the naaaame of looooove

Milan is the Guardian of Verdure. Chill asf 💯 but kind of odd...?

Artwork of him.

Xeno is the Guardian of Steel. Really compassionate and thoughtful.

Artwork of him.

Felix is the Guardian of Dreams. A perfectionist. I have personal beef with him. If I saw him out on the street I'd jump him.

Artwork of him.

Lorenzo is the Guardian of Earth. An intellectual, mature guy, as well as the local flirt.

Artwork of him.

Taira is the head of the Royal Research Facility. He also comes from Earth, but doesn't remember all that. To me he's the epitome of "some guy."

Artwork of him.

Cyrus is Ange and Reina's butler. Complete oddball. It's said he's unromanceable when he's so obviously the best boy.

Artwork of him.

Why I Like It (And Why You May Like It, Too)

This was originally written as multiple bloated paragraphs, but for your convenience I have shrank it to bullet points that lack explanation or context. Sometimes it's better to be straightforward! If you have questions, that's what the comments are for.

• they're not (Otomate) visual novels


• has numbers that go up


• presence of a rival hits that competitive nerve


• loose story means I create the story, or that everyone's story with the games are different


• get to watch Yura Kairi grow as an artist over time (you may recognize her work from Saiunkoku Monogatari)
• 
  
• beautiful baroque/luxurious setting


• reeks of 90s fantasy design tropes; very JRPG in design


• most characters have long hair


• many characters wear long robes instead of pants


• makes you feel like a p... pr... prin... I can't say it


• possibility of femdom


• inclusion of important female friendships


• lots of stuff to check out outside of the games


• lots of art


• nice voice actors


• cute pixel art/animation


• the models in trois (the only 3d game) are so cute


• how dates work in each game


• the cupidesque angel that saves my file


• the silly cast


• really really really cute/sweet

Possible Squicks & Other Negatives

I think the first odd thing is the age gap between the protags and love interests. This isn't information given in-game (except in certain games?? I don't actually remember), but the protags are normally 17 except one who is 16 and one who is 25, and the guardians range in age from 14 to 34*.

I know there are people disgusted by opulence and such, so I will say it's canon that the guardians and queen candidates have servants. The place the exam takes place in seems to be utopian most of the time, and I want to say the Main Planet is too, but conditions get worse the further away from the Main Planet you get. I don't know of any outright dystopian planets though. Rather than "worse," I should say "more backwater," really. Sorry fellow leftists😔

Mentioned earlier, but worth mentioning again for kissing fans that these games collectively have enough kiss CGs to fit in one hand... out of enough CGs to fill two or three buckets. There's lots of other types of touch though! Just not kissing. It's kind of funny sometimes. But you might take kissing VERY seriously.

All of the characters are nice or nice deep down, which I know is a no for people who NEED evil villains. It's just a good vibes kind of series.

The early character art will probably put people not used to 90s anime-styled art off. Get filtered I guess.

Okay, I like BL though. What's in it for me?

Managing your relationships in these games is important, but the guardians also have relationships among themselves! You would definitely not be alone in making and enjoying BL content of them. I see it all the time. In fandom, I feel like I see it almost equally as often as het content...? In official Angelique side content BL is forbidden, but there's 5 billion comics and stuff about their friendships (or enemyships) which can still be lowkey gay if you have your gay goggles on. Which you should! You always should.

I don't want to spend time getting into who is best friends with who and who can't stand who, but I will say soooooo many characters have Julious as the person they get along the worst with, which is really funny to me. This post is so long... so long...

Also Angelique and Rosalia have official(?) genderbends if you're into that sort of thing. Official? as in they're not canon, but the character designer drew them, so... Yeah!

I can't make this shit up.

Who is that ponytailed man, you wonder? Don't worry about all that.

Okay, I like GL though. What's in it for me?

A little less than if you were a fujo, but there's GL content for you.

Let me let you in a little secret. Rosalia? The original inspiration for the villainess genre. Except incredibly warped, because Rosalia isn't like that at all. She's a rich girl and the protag's rival, but by the end she becomes the protag's closest friend. (It's kind of a case of the original trope creator doing something "subversive," but it's not subverting anything because they created the thing. Like Urusei Yatsura feeling like it's subverting the harem genre but it actually created it.) Yes, Rosalia was so popular fans wanted more Rosalia content, and allegedly created so must fan content that it all ended up being the primordial soup for the birth of the villainess trope.

But it's not just Rosalia. Rachel also has yuri potential. So do the first Queen and Dia. Etc. The friendly relations between women here bring all sorts of possibilities.

And it doesn't end with queens and their aides. There's also official character designs for genderswaps of the original 9 guardians, and I've seen yuri between them as well as with normal Angelique and Rosalia. Less of it than BL, but by no means is it rare.

I could probably make this shit up.

Clavis (Clavia) and Julious (Juliana)

Marcel (Marcela), Randy (Ranran), Zephel (Zephita)

Oscar (Not given a name, but often called Scarlet), Dia (Dias), Lumiale (No name, but often called Lumiela)

Olivie (Olivia), and Luva (Luvia)
I have so many opinions on these names and designs but this isn't the time nor place, so WE MOVE

I'm sold! How do I get into Angelique?

Okay, before I answer this, you have to promise not to get mad at me. Do you promise? Swear on everything?




Exactly zero of these games have ever been translated to English. None of them. Apparently Angelique Special is available in Korean, and that's it. Someone is working on a patch for Angelique Duet but they need a programmer, so if you know anything about that sort of thing maybe see if they still need a helping hand? But yea, if you don't know Japanese you're in for a hard time.

I think the side material isn't all that good without the context of the games, but I've seen people be fans solely through interacting with that & through osmosis of knowledge from fans who played the games. Your mileage may vary depending on how dedicated you are, I suppose!

If you know Japanese, or you're in the midst of N3 and above: Congrats, you can play Angelique! If you're Japanese isn't all that good, congrats on finding a new way to practice it. I don't think Angelique is exactly easy to read, but it's not hard either. The tutorial in the first game is the hardest part, honestly. And because it's a simulation game, lots of dialogue is repeated. You should start with one of these games:

• Angelique (1994), if you're like me and like playing the first game in a series first. It's not bad or awkward, perfectly serviceable game. The rerelease just adds a bunch of stuff that makes it better.


• Angelique Special (1995) is what I really recommend you start with. It's got voice acting, less-awkward portraits, animated events, and being able to talk to Rosalia! If I remember correctly Angelique also walks faster, which is a huge help. Her walking speed in the first game is that game's biggest flaw.


• Angelique Duet (1998), if you're a huge yurihead. The game adds more things Special didn't have, like more places the guardians can take you to, as well as the Rosalia route! The thing is, there aren't animated events, and what animation exists (the opening and endings) looks really fucking awkward. I don't want someone's perception of Angelique to be tainted by the weird animation, so I wouldn't recommend you play it first unless you love girls sooooo much. All fans should definitely play it at some point though.


• You could play Angelique Retour (2015) or Angelique Luminarise (2021) first, if you prefer something that isn't obviously dated, but for fandom purposes it's kind of mehh. If you play Retour first, the designs you're used to seeing will be different from what most fanon stuff looks like, and your understanding of the lore will be a little different, which might be weird. Not that bad though. Playing Luminarise first will have you not knowing what goes on in most fanon stuff at all, but it's not like the Luminarise-exclusive community is dead silent. (I know they're around, but since I care about the original games most, I don't keep tabs on them.)

If you don't know Japanese, or you're not very good at it at all: Don't worry, there's still a way around the language barrier.

• Refer to the list above, and play one of those games with the Google Translate camera open on your phone. Kind of tedious, but I've heard of people playing games this way!! You can try it and see how bad it pisses you off.


• Check out side material anyways, but be aware adaptations are often worse than the source material. Especially when the source material is a simulation game... They aren't renowned for their story. I'll recommend some.
  
  
  
  • Angelique (1996, manga) is only translated up to the halfway point... SO FAR! This scanlation, which was last updated 8 years ago, may be picked up by someone else soon. How do I know? Lets just say... I know a guy. 😏
  
  
  • Angelique (2004, OVA) is pretty darn okay.
  
  
  • Koi Suru Tenshi Angelique (2006, TV): Kokoro no Mezameru Toki, and then Kagayaki no Ashita. I think this show is certified mid, but maybe you'll like it more than me. I might just be saying that because the trope of a girl becoming prettier by removing her glasses irks me. Can't she get prettier clothes AND keep the glasses? Okay whatever, this post isn't about my beef with meganekko oppression.
  
  
  
  Everything I recommended should have English subs, but if you can't find it subbed just message me :p I don't know even know if this is subbed or not, but if it is, do not watch Shiroi Tsubasa no Memoire. Don't do it. There's better out there.


• Keep an eye out for translations of other things! More on this in the links later.

Pro tip for those willing to play the very first game: It's on Super Famicom Online, so if you have Nintendo Switch Online and a Japanese Nintendo account (incredibly easy to make) you can play Angelique on your Switch <3

More Info

You read through my whole post and still want more info? Well, feel free to try hitting me up with questions, but I also have even more things you can read! Yayyy!

• Koei Tecmo Wiki's Angelique article


• VNDB's Angelique page (if you're like me, you go straight to the characters section)


• Official Neoromance site


• Official Angelique Retour site


• Official Angelique Luminarise site


• Marfisa's Angelique site (fansite) (I believe you shouldn't look at the characters section here without playing at least one game first. Go to the VNDB one instead.)


• Angelique Love (fansite) (Don't look at the characters section here without playing a game either, if you will.)


• The Angelique Asylum (archived fansite)


• My Internet Archive list of Angelique stuffs (and for the love of God, do NOT read the Message Collection book without playing Angelique 1994 or a rerelease.)


• Rubiroma is a fansite ran by a guy I know. Pretty cool, pretty cool.

All the pictures from this post are from these sites, so this is functionally a credits section too. One exception being the very first picture in this post, which was pulled from Anim'Archive.

Final Comments

Thank you for reading all this!! I don't think I'll be writing anything this long again for a long time. I looked it up, and apparently it's about 13 pages long? Maybe it doesn't seem like much, but this post was created over a span of several days. I really, really hope it's useful or entertaining to someone. Please have a good day, and if you're really planning on trying out Angelique, I hope you have as much fun as I did when I played them all (except one, intentionally) in a year. Feel free to ask me anything you're wondering about. Have a great rest of your day.

Notes

joshi: Japanese for woman/girl. By the way, a yumejoshi is a girl who self-inserts, a fujoshi is a girl obsessed with BL (boys' love, content with male homosexuality front and center), and a himejoshi is a girl obsessed with GL (girls' love, content with female homosexuality front and center).

joseimuke: Media aimed at girls/women. Since the word is Japanese, it mainly refers to media from Japan that are that way. Examples include shoujo animanga, otome games, takarazuka, BL, some GL, some audio dramas, some seinen animanga such as The Apothecary Diaries, etc. etc.

What is an otome game? An otome game is any video game where the protagonist is a woman and the cast contains one or multiple love interests, all or mostly male. These games have multiple endings depending on the choices you've made, normally ending (assume it's a good ending) with a confirmation or declaration of love between the protagonist and the person she has pursued. These mainly come in two flavors: the dating sim and the visual novel. How do you know which is which? If you're playing the game and thinking "this is like a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book" or anything about books, it's a visual novel. If you're playing the game and getting mad at chance and luck and percentages and stats, it's a simulation game. And if it's a dating sim, said math is calculated with the purpose of determining relationships. A regular visual novel has branches, not stats. Angelique is half dating sim and half not because the game has goals beyond love, so I'd rather refer to it with the more-general term "simulation" rather than the specific "dating simulation".

Why must the protag be a woman? Because otome is Japanese for maiden or young girl. Otome games are Young Lady games. It would be weird if Young Lady games were led by a man or nonbinary person, wouldn't it? If you want more diverse options, look into amare games for anything x anything, bishoujo games for (main character) boy x (love interest) girl, GL games for girl x girl, and BL games for boy x boy.

kuudere: A character who is cool and cold/emotionless at first, but cute and loving once they've fallen in love. Clavis is a rather mild example on the loving side since he doesn't start acting like a puppy or anything. You'll see if/when you romance him.

tsundere: I'm not going to get into tsundere definition discourse here. Just know that for Zephel's situation, I mean that he acts mean at first and is dishonest about his own feelings, but becomes cuter once he's surely fallen for you.

* In Luminarise, where the protag is 25, the love interests are 18-30, by the way. The 14 year old love interest is from a game with a 17 year old protag, and the 34 year old is actually from when his 17 year old has turned 20 -- in the game where they first meet, she is 17 and he is 31. Yup.

meganekko: A girl who wears glasses.