Thank you Aksys Games for sending us a review code!

I have played many otome (reverse harem) visual novels and most of them are pretty light-hearted. Olympia Soirée is quite different from the rest as it deals with forbidden love between various characters of different castes. There are other heavy themes including a leprosy like sickness and child abuse/rape.

The main character in Olympia Soirée is an eighteen year old girl whose default name is Byakuya. You can change it if desired when starting a new game. Byakuya was born on Tennyo island, which was only inhabited by women with white hair. Thirteen years ago, all of the inhabitants of that island were killed with the exception of Byakuya. Ever since that day, Byakuya was raised on Tenguu island in the yellow clan’s leader’s mansion. Tenguu island has a color-based caste system. There are three primary color factions: Red, Blue, and Yellow. Below them are mixtures like Green, Orange, Purple, Cyan, Fushia, and so on. However, people born without distinct or colors too muddied, are cast off of the mainland and are forced to live in the underground city, Yomi. Marriages are typically arranged between equally ranked color factions and any sex outside of these factions is punishable by execution or expulsion to Yomi if the person caught has the right connections.

The residents of Yomi are not concerned about their colors and get along with each other. The surface dwellers, on the other hand, treat Yomi residents poorly and abuse them physically and sometimes sexually. Sadly, this abuse often goes unnoticed and unpunished. Many people from the older generation are happy with the status quo while the younger generation wants to find ways to reform these harsh realities to make life better for all of the classes.

Byakuya can be the agent of change needed to bring peace for those who are being mistreated. With each of the six romance routes, you’ll get a different perspective of life on Tenguu island. Each route has a good and bad ending and some of them are downright depressing. In one of them, Byakuya is blackmailed into a life of prostitution to keep the person she loves safe. By default, there’s a compass that will indicate if the choice you made was ideal or not. You can disable the compass if desired, and it’s always a good idea to save before you make a choice to see if you’re on the right track. If you want to unlock all of the side stories and artwork, you’ll need to play through all of the good and bad endings.

Akaza’s route can only be unlocked after playing through the other five. Akaza is the next in line of leading the Red faction and is the head of the army. He is the one who informed Byakuya on her 18th birthday that she has one year to find a suitable husband. If she fails, he’ll fulfill that role. She’s not too keen on that “duty” and vows to find a husband on her own terms.

Because Byakuya is the last of the White lineage, it’s imperative that she finds a husband and produces offspring to preserve her color class. As a resident of Tennyo island, Byakuya can only produce children with white traits which may deter some suiters like Riku, who want to preserve their color. The role of the White class is crucial to the island’s survival as they are the only one to appease the sun goddess or else everyone could be forced to live in darkness.

Not all of the inhabitants believe in the sun goddess. One of the romance options, Tokisada, is a Christian. He’s also seventeen which makes him a minor where I live. Marrying age for men on this island is twenty, but since Byakuya’s color is so rare, she gets the option to choose her future husband no matter the color class or age.

Some of the island inhabitants are outsiders and with their knowledge and skills are considered gods. Some of these characters have come back from the dead to assist this island in various ways. When people on the island die, they are converted into a crystal. The shade of the crystal is determined by their color class. These crystals are used as medicine, paint, offerings to the sun goddess, or as construction material to build a gate for the goddess. Those who commit suicide are cremated and their ashes are scattered into the ocean.

As Byakuya searches for her husband, she’s bound to fall in love and temptation. Though marriage and producing offspring is the ultimate goal, none of the routes wait until marriage before consummating the relationship. In one route, the couple exchange some vows before having intercourse. The love scenes all fade to black and nothing is described in detail. There is no question as to what happened as the kissing escalates beforehand and the pillow talk afterwards alludes to no regrets. Each love scene will unlock a new picture/CG.

Some of the art shows a lot of skin but nothing too risqué is shown. In multiple routes, Byakuys’s clothes get drenched in the rain and she has to take them off to dry. You’ll see her in black bikini-like undergarments. There are some still images of Byakuya and her lover embracing topless, but intimate body parts are not shown.

The voice acting is done in Japanese and is well done. Byakuya’s lines are not voiced. There is some language (d*mn, sh*t) and one use of “g*d*mn”. Since this game has many gods I don’t think it was directed at ours. The background music is pleasant and sets the mood nicely. You can listen to the soundtrack in the music player if desired. While I don’t have a desire to own the soundtrack, it is good enough to get stuck in my head on multiple occasions.

If you enjoy otome visual novels, Olympia Soirée is well written and has some good character development. I wasn’t a fan of the Tokisada character/route, but the rest were good. The social issues make this game more thought-provoking than the other Idea Factory games I’ve played. It’s certainly more memorable as a result. If you’re looking for a slice of life game, this is not it. If you don’t mind the social issues, language, sexual content, and goddess worship, Olympia Soirée is worth checking out.