The Most Anticipated VNs of 2018
10) Ambition: A Minuet in Power (Joy Manufacturing Company)
One of the consistent arguments I make when talking about different narrative elements is that everything included in a story should be there to help advance the overall plot. That isn’t a hard and fast rule of writing. However, Dating simulators, and simulators in general, usually get this part right as everything you’re doing in a simulator is done to unlock a narrative route. It falls apart with the execution of the narrative, however that structure can be used to successfully tell a story. It just takes the right premise and a Hell of a lot of work.
Enter Joy Manufacturing.
Ambition: A Minuet in Power takes the structure of the dating simulator and puts a political spin on it: placing the main character in the waning days of the House of Bourbon in France. The audience will have to use all mechanics at their disposal to position themselves properly: whether that be in the royal court, with the Jacobins, etc. It’s an exciting take on the idea that promises to fully utilize the mechanics of a dating or life sim without falling into the narrative trap that so many sims do. Hopefully, we’ll get a demo before the full release so we can get a better idea of what’s in store. For now though, it does have my attention.
