High school is already a nightmare without having to woo literal demon spawn, but multiplayer dating sim Monster Prom makes you want to relive the experience over and over. At times obtuse, at times hilarious, this is an education in monster romanticism. But you may not learn the same lessons as my friends and I, because its real strength lies in how varied each playthrough can be.
It follows typical dating sim logic: There are only three weeks left until prom, and you have to make the monster of your dreams swoon for you, or risk going stag to Spooky High School’s biggest shindig of the year. You have the choice of six suitors, from your typical werewolf and mermaid princess to a hipster vampire Instaphile and an undead thrill-seeker high on ecto-cocaine and constantly Yaaas-ing.
The characters designed by developer Beautiful Glitch each check a box for certain high school tropes, but modern twists keep them feeling fresh, like how the otherwise stone-cold gorgon resorts to tsundere when flustered. Voicing by famous anime voice actors like Cristina Vee and Youtube stars like Arin Hanson and Cryaotic give the characters a believability despite Monster Prom’s few spoken lines. And Arthur Tien’s lovely art only further piles on the personality.
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