Post Description

SchoolMate is yet another product by the best developer of sex games,  Illusion. After they brought their trademark physical gameplay to what looked like sheer perfection in  Oppai Slider 2, everyone (well, at least those who care for quality sex games... uh... okay, everyone) were impatiently waiting for their upcoming new game, with the classic high school setting and cel-shaded 3D graphics. Could it top "Oppai Slider 2" in gameplay finesse? Or maybe deliver a good story with some challenge, like  Des Blood series?

No, it couldn't. "SchoolMate" is, by all means, a letdown. But not all is bad in this game; it was still developed by Illusion, so it still comes with sparkles of quality we would expect from products by this company.

Every game Illusion releases has something that was not seen before - whether in gameplay department or in the stylistic presentation. "SchoolMate" has its own graphical style, which is quite different from what we've seen in other Illusion games. Since the release of the first Des Blood, Illusion always opted for realistic character models instead of the standard Japanese animé style. No disproportionally big eyes, super-deformed features, cutesy elements or ridiculously colored hair. The women in Illusion games looked like real women, mature and beautiful. In "SchoolMate", they deliberately chose to be more "mainstream" and to mimic the dominant cartoony style so typical for Japanese games. In order to combine the light colors and the simplicity of features, characteristic for this style, with real 3D interaction, they used cel-shaded technique.

The girls are 3D, but they look hand-drawn. They have big eyes and all the other attributes of traditional animé style, but they are not pictures, they are 3D models and they can be interacted with. Needless to say, when you see those cute pink-skinned animé beauties and realize you can do with them whatever you want, you'll have a hard time stopping the drooling in your mouth. You'll really want to eat those girls. Even though the style may not be everyone's cup of tea, its esthetical and technical value cannot be denied.

The gameplay follows (I think for the first time among Illusion games) the traditional "digital novel" template. A bulk of the game consists of reading text super-imposed on images of girls - in this case, not exactly images, but animated 3D models. There is a lot of dialogue in the game, which is also somewhat unusual for Illusion. Before the real action take place, you'll learn a lot about the girls, engage in conversations with them etc.

And then the party begins. Like many other Illusion games, "SchoolMate" features the traditional physical sex interaction. You select an appropriate action and then press and drag your mouse to control the movement. There is quite a bit of variety in the actions, so it takes a while until you figure out the possible combinations of your own body parts and those of the girl. As always, the most interesting part here is to admire the realistic animation of whatever you are doing with the girl. The sexual act is presented rather symbolically (collision detection still needs a higher technical level), but the way the girl's body responds to your movements is quite convincing.