A while back, I did an Impressions piece on the interesting, though weird, Boyfriend Dungeon. Boyfriend Dungeon is a dating sim in which you play a wielder who can use and, importantly, date people who change into weapons. If you don’t know much about dating sims, you might be thinking, “wow, that’s strange,” but suffice it to say, it’s actually really not >_<

I greatly enjoyed the variety of characters the game offered. I also appreciated the blend of standard visual novel like approach to conversations that you expect from a dating sim; however, I really appreciated the battle system and it being action based. Great soundtrack, solid art, fun gameplay, few complaints overall.

Then the game released the Secret Weapons DLC/Title Update, and I finally got around to giving it a go. Secret Weapons adds a lot to the game, more than I expected. A character that in the base game disappears after you meet him is now one of the weapons you can date and use in battle. In addition, it introduces two other new weapons, though one is not wieldable, and… I’ll have more on her later. It also adds another dungeon and furthers the story in various ways. Most of this is actually really cool, and I am glad I dove back into the game.

The two new, fully added weapons are nice. Jonah, the aforementioned character that would disappear, is a really cool addition. He is a kind person who actually really dislikes that he turns into a weapon. His confusion with the two different sides of himself is well done and compelling. Also, in a game that is pretty LGTBQ+ forward can be seen as a bit metaphorical. I also like that he speaks to general struggles with who a person wants to be.

Leah is also struggling with what she has wanted to do with her life since childhood versus being drawn to a new path now. Again compelling and relatable, especially because her old dreams are not really entirely available to her anymore.

Again, the third addition you can’t use in battle, is… She’s not a terrible addition to the game, but I don’t love some of the ways she is used, especially in regards to implied kinks and the like. She is also weirdly developed and tied to an aspect of this DLC that I wasn’t in love with.

And that’s the new dungeon. It’s hard, like an insane difficulty spike from the base game, and the final boss as it were, at the bottom of it, is extremely challenging and must be done multiple times. In a game that never really felt like it punished people gameplay-wise, this sudden shift was a bit drastic and not my favorite. I still enjoy it, but I would have liked the new dungeon to be more equal in difficulty and skill required to the other two. Although a third is nice.

The DLC adds even more grind, which is mixed. This game already had a lot of things to collect, scenes to unlock, and dating/becoming friends with all the weapons took a while. It’s even more so now, which is not horrible as the game is fun, but it can get a bit tiring, to be honest. It didn’t kill my love for the game, but my enthusiasm started to dim a bit as I made my way through the game and DLC.

But I like that it added to the story, including your cousin’s wedding and actually meeting his girlfriend. It also added conversations between the weapons that you can interrupt, which is pretty cool. It gives a more immersive feel to the game and the idea that these characters interact with each other.

So bottom line? I still really love Boyfriend Dungeon and would love to see more dating sims combining action gameplay with visual novel. The DLC adds a decent amount of content, which I liked most of it. If you haven’t played this game at all, you should really consider it. If you haven’t revisited it since the update it’s free and worth it!

Happy Valentine’s Day!!!!