Olympia Soiree (Nintendo Switch) Review

The premise of Olympia Soiree is a strange one. The titular young lady and protagonist, Olympia, is the last of an extinct clan. Her entire people were wiped out when she was five years old, and she was taken to live on the strange land of Tenguu Island. Now, on her 18th birthday, there are high hopes for Olympia. She is a 'White' and in this world based on colours, her clan was tasked with a unique responsibility. When the Sun goes dark, they must appease the Sun Goddess to relight it. Her being the last proves problematic, and so when the sun goes out once more Olympia is summoned to not just to relight the Sun with Amaterasu, but to find a mate to repopulate her clan. Ensuring this duty can be continued by her descendants.

…There's a complexity to that though. In this world, breeding is strictly controlled. An individual's colour is everything to them, and society is based around the rigid class structures based on these colours. For example, should a primary colour breed with a lesser colour, the offspring could end up being a mixed colour, one of less importance, and sent down to an orphanage in the pits of Yomi, a subterranean land for the dregs of society. This fate cannot be inflicted on those of the White clan. Any colour a White breeds with will produce a White baby. So, Olympia has her pick of the litter. Quite literally.

Olympia's white privilege (yes, it's pretty on the nose in the symbolism, especially when the bad class is black) allows her a wider selection for her potential mate, as she's able to cross the boundaries of class and meet a wide array of individuals. In doing so, she finds a world of discrimination between the colours, especially the mixed breeds. Olympia is a fantastic protagonist. These types of games often deliver an anaemic personality vacuum. A punching bag. A blank slate. It's so great to see someone with some strength. Some independence. Some passion. There are six routes to experience and like most Otome games, there are four right off the bat to choose from after completing the prologue, then the two secret routes are unlocked upon completing the four main routes.

First up on the routes is Riku, a route that introduces the detail of the caste system to the player. Riku is a Blue, and one who has been tasked with ensuring the unsavoury clans that reside in the Yomi are kept in line. The warrior. The straightlaced. The overload of information. The prologue is already heavy on establishing the world and its lore, but Riku's route is equally laden. So much time is spent explaining the caste system. On the whole, this is the weakest route, but conversely contains one of the best romances as the pair's relationship slowly develops like a classic courtship. Riku is played by Nobunaga Shimazaki, a voice actor with plenty of credits to his name, likely best known for his performances as Rin in Free!, Yuma in Black Clover, Yuki in the recent Fruits Basket remake, or as Baki in Netflix's Baki show.

Next up is Amakusa Shirou. Those with any knowledge of Japanese history will be well versed with this individual, one of the most well-known Japanese Christians of all time. He's not quite the white-haired, sword-casting warrior as he was portrayed in Fate/Apocrypha, instead he's the cute boy of the cast. He's just 17, and is introduced as a friend to Olympia as opposed to a lover. Young Shirou is an Outsider; a foreigner without a colour clan. These Outsiders can become part of a clan thanks to a gem, but despite not suffering from the stigma of a colour Shirou fights alongside Olympia to change the status quo. Shirou's romance is picturesque, a heart-warming and sweet growth where the two develop from friends to lovers. Shirou is played by Yuto Uemura, an actor that may not have a litany of credits to his name, but some impactful ones. He starred as Thorfinn in Vinland Saga - one of the best Seinen stories out there - along with taking the starring role of Yusuke in one of the thousands of new isekai series that litter every season. Thankfully an enjoyable and underrated one, called I'm Standing on a Million Lives.

Jumping from the cute, nice boy to the hot flirty one! Next is Yosuga, he is the unofficial leader of the land of Yomi. Yomi is where criminals and the dregs of society are cast down, including the mixed colours. In this land of outlaws, Yosuga is something of a patriarch, a charming rogue with a heart of gold. His romance is the one of choice for those who want a heart-fluttering and exciting affair. Not to mention something of a forbidden romance element. Yosuga he has been forbidden from marrying or mating. Yosuga is played by Yuma Uchida, a relatively small name in voice acting with a few big hits, staring alongside Riku's VA in the new version of Fruits Basket as Kyo and recently as Kawaki in Boruto.

Next up is Kuroba, the charming doctor who flirts with everyone, an utter charmer and overflowing with charisma. Well-loved by all, yet he's of the lowest cast. Kuroba is a Black who has clawed his way to the top, and is now single-mindedly obsessed with hunting down a cure for a disease that strips the colour out of all it infects and leaves them covered in crystal. Kuroba's route holds some of the darkest elements, and feels completely out of place with his cheerful persona. Kuroba is played by Tomokazu Sugita, a huge, huge name in Japan. This is the man who breathed life into Gintoki in Gintama, Yusuke in Persona 5, not to mention the legendary Joseph Jostar.

Those are the four main routes, there are two more routes that it's worth experiencing first-hand to find out just who they belong to. Each has a good ending to aim for, along with several bad ends for poor choices. Like some of the recent Otomate games, Idea Factory seem aware their audience is growing more mature and are intertwining more mature themes into the games than the simple vanilla romances of the past. While it is a welcome addition, it is rather heavy-handed. With the bad endings here feeling unnecessarily harsh and extreme.

The art of Otome games is always a huge draw, and Otomate have produced some stellar looking entries in the past. Such as Diabolik Lovers, and fans of that will be overjoyed to hear the artist - Satoi - is the one who produced this stunning creation. The art across the board looks superb, the background craft a vibrant and lush world, beautiful wisteria hanging above reflective pools all draped in warm glows. The character art impactful upon them and best of all the characters are given some life. Not just still portraits, but the little details of blinking, of small movements, and changes of emotion. It's little details but details that help to make the experience even better. It's a shame the soundtrack isn't as impactful, there are too few tracks and they feel recycled far too often.