Ten Dates Review: A positive second impression

The resurgence of full-motion video games, particularly from publisher Wales Interactive, has been a lot of fun over the past decade. Not only have these games retained the genre’s signature charm, but they offer a solid gaming experience rather than falling into “so bad it’s good” territory. The Pandemic Dating Game Five appointments became a surprise hit for the studio and now serves as an intriguing time capsule for virtual dating in the times of COVID. Now the publisher is back with a more ambitious successor Ten appointmentswhich offers two protagonists, same-sex relationship paths and more variety thanks to the switch to face-to-face dating.

Director Paul Rachid, who previously held the helm Five appointments And The complex, returns for the sequel, which largely retains the format of the original game. Playing as either Misha or Ryan, you go on a series of speed dates, make connections with potential suitors, and then decide who to pursue. It makes the game quite replayable as there are ten relationships that can either go well or go wrong depending on your choices.

Both Rosie Day’s Misha and Charlie Maher’s Ryan are incredibly charming and personable, which is a key component of the player actually wanting them to find the right match. There are many ways to play Ten appointments, regardless of whether you want to use the protagonists as self-promotion and follow your own type, want to role-play as an idiot or just be there to see all the many interactions. However, no matter how you play, it’s all fun due to the well-framed shots and charming dialogue.

While it’s packed with entertaining moments, it’s the more emotional and heavier story beats that make the difference Ten appointments an interesting and rewarding experience. Each of the dates usually falls into a trope – there’s jocks, jocks, techies, etc. – but each character is properly fleshed out. As the data progresses, you can learn more about each person’s backstory, along with some startling revelations, such as how the rough bash has dealt with more heartbreak than most can imagine. Uncovering each character’s layers is one of the true joys of the game, and serves as a reminder not to put people into convenient categories as everyone is unique.

Ten appointments fortunately also has many quality of life improvements compared to Five appointments making it much easier to progress through the game and see all of its content. For example, scenes that have already been seen can be skipped at the touch of a button, and unnecessary dates can easily be avoided if you simply want to follow the path of a specific person in a later playthrough. These are all thoughtful additions that make Ten appointments a better game than its predecessor, even if the exploration of post-pandemic dating isn’t quite as unique as what came before.

While Ten appointments loses some of the novelty of the original because it escapes the confines of pandemic romance, it still manages to be a worthwhile exploration of dating through the lens of an FMV game. The acting is great all round, with Day and Maher really contributing as charismatic protagonists with entertaining banter. Wales Interactive has once again delivered a solid interactive film with plenty of replay value that helps add to its ever-growing library of FMV gems.

SCORE: 7.5/10

As ComingSoon’s review policy explains, a score of 7.5 equates to Good. A well done piece of entertainment that is worth watching but may not appeal to everyone.

Disclosure: The publisher provided a PS4 copy for ours Ten appointments Review. version checked 1.01.