Title: FLIP * FLOP ~RAMBLING OVERRUN~
Developer: DiGination
Release Date: 24th Feburary 2023
Age Rating: 18+
Length: ~5 Hours
Links: Official Website, VNDB
Taking place shortly after the beginning of the first game, we begin with the protagonist Rokugou Shinobu and his unusual Ai Assistant (known as “Tinks” in this universe) Io catching the eye of the genius inventor Tsukigaoka Ran. She has her heart set on getting close to Io (and thus Shinobu) in order to gather data for her own research into artificial intelligence and nanomachine technology. And thus begins the love story of the eccentric genius and the boy who holds the key to unlocking her potential.
Thoughts
Well here’s to the first review of a game actually released this year (yay~). I played the first Flip Flop game a couple of months back and, whilst the game had high production values, I wasn’t entirely enamoured. That being said, Ran’s character design really appealed to me and I figured ~3000 yen was low enough of a pricetag that I’d be fine taking a risk with this. So was Ran’s game any better than Io’s installment?
Even though the two games are a series and Ran’s game takes an alternate route from a certain point in the first title, you don’t technically have to play Io’s game before this because the developers included a handy “Introduction” section to the game. This gives a succinct summary of what happened early in Io’s game that is both helpful as a refresher for players of the first title & an introduction for new players.
I think the main selling point of this game is Ran herself and she should be the reason that you choose to play this. As cute as she was, I found Io a little boring in her game but Ran was the opposite – entertaining and even captivating at times. The actual plot/writing in the game was a little better than the first game too but I would still classify this game as a moege so don’t expect too much from the plot. I still have some unanswered questions but am hoping possible further episodes for Riko & Maaya deal with those.
Moving onto Ran herself and, as mentioned, she’s a great heroine. While she may sound a bit tropey being the “eccentric genius inventor”, she more than makes up with this by getting to know her a little better and learning that she’s a downright pervert, haha. She’s genuinely equal parts hilarious and adorable, with Sazanami Suzu doing an excellent job with her voice acting, making her even more endearing.
Another highlight would probably be Ran’s younger sister Ai – she is also pretty bemusing to have around and her character design is super cute – I’m lowkey sad she didn’t get an ending or something. Oh well, maybe we’ll get a fandisc at some point?
Production values continue to be pretty high with lovely artwork supplied by Matsumiya Kiseri and SD illustrations by Sukima. The proportion of normal to HCGs is just about okay (I’d always prefer some more SFW イチャラブ CGs but that’s just me).
The BGM is mainly the same tracks as the first game and is decent. I will say that I really enjoyed the ending track – 天才少女の恋愛定理. Really regretting not buying the deluxe version of the game now. 😦
Conclusion
Rating: 7/10
Whilst I do believe this game is just generally better than the first in the series, at the end of the day it is still a low-price single heroine moege so how much Ran appeals to you will dictate your enjoyment of this title. I personally found Ran to be quite unique and just generally a joy to read about.
I wouldn’t recommend this series for its plot but they do drop small titbits of information that could make it more interesting in later installments. I won’t hold out for it but do plan to play any further games in the series at this point in time. Hoping for a game for Riko (and therefore more Maruru) next!
Thanks for reading~
Zettai Renai! 