Looking back at Wales Interactive’s Five Dates in 2023, more than two years after its debut, reveals a fascinating look at what life was like at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s a game that leans heavily on the idea that the dating world has migrated online, forcing singletons to conduct awkward interview-style conversations with potential suitors. We certainly enjoyed it for what it was in 2020, but perhaps we’d argue that it aged better as a sort of historical artifact. a brief gateway to a world most of us would be too happy to forget.
Its sequel, Ten Dates, lacks the same innovation. While the pandemic is spreading around the world, many countries have decided to treat the virus as endemic, thus returning to some normalcy (whatever that is today). With that in mind, Ten Dates is very much a traditional affair. a game that focuses squarely on face-to-face interactions within typical social settings. It’s definitely missing the “novelty” of the remote interactions that made the first game so unique, but the focus on actual conversations makes for a more enjoyable experience all around.
In case the title doesn’t tell you right, Ten Dates doubles the number of dates you’ll go on compared to the first game. It stars Misha and Ryan, two millennials who embark on a speed dating event in search of that special personal connection. Each character will go on five initial dates each, four of which will be with a member of the opposite sex, with the remaining date being with someone of the same sex. Very simple things, then.
Ten Dates follows a similar structure to the first game. After choosing your character, you’ll create an online persona, complete with profile picture, interests, occupation, and star. These choices then filter into the conversations you have next. For example, if you choose arts and crafts as a hobby for Ryan, he’ll be fully aware of the concept of NFTs when brought up later, but if you choose something like travel, he’ll have absolutely no idea what the heck an NFT is ( it’s probably better that way). It’s subtle stuff, but it’s nice that your initial choices actually have a tangible impact on your experience.
Once you’ve finished creating your persona, you’ll start your first five dates, which happen naturally in the same environment thanks to the speed dating event. The cast of characters you’ll meet here is quite diverse, each displaying their own unique personality and quirks, including Azalea, who creates her own cocktails and studies astrology, Hazel, whose loyalty to her peers has come at a cost of her own freedom. and Ty, a cocky biker with more jewelry than manners. There are many others besides these three, and we really enjoyed interacting with each character.
Of course, the idea is that you have to narrow down your options until you are left with a final date with the man or woman of your choice. This is done by navigating through a series of dialogue options and what you choose will contribute to a successful or failed date. There are some scenarios where what you need to say to cultivate a successful date may seem obvious, but the game regularly throws you curveballs to derail your progress. This is frustrating at the moment, but we admit that this is quite true in life. you never know exactly how a stranger might react to what you say or do.
That said, the vast majority of interactions you’ll experience are pretty straightforward from start to finish. If there’s someone in those first five dates that you’re completely set on, it’s pretty easy to manipulate the conversation to go exactly the way you want, and chances are you’ll sit down with them on a third date without any real fuss. It’s by no means a bargain, but the experience isn’t particularly challenging in that regard.
One disappointing thing to mention, however, is performance related. Being an FMV title, there aren’t any issues in terms of graphics or framerate, but there were many instances where we made a dialogue choice and then the game kept going through every possible outcome one after the other until they were all done. has ran out. It’s a weird problem and hopefully it gets fixed pretty quickly because it can add dozens of minutes to your game time.
Overall, though, Ten Dates feels like a pretty significant improvement on the first game. In a smart move, Wales Interactive went with the “more is better” approach with the sequel, and the wider cast of characters helps create a more enjoyable experience. Props also go to the actors, who all embody their characters wonderfully with no dialogue in the mix. We wish there was a little more depth to the conversations to inject more challenge, but if you want a comfortable FMV experience, you’re unlikely to go wrong with this one.
conclusion
Ten Dates is a solid improvement over its predecessor, proving that more is indeed better in some cases. The addition of an additional protagonist, along with the five additional suitors he naturally brings with him, creates a more diverse cast of characters and a deeper overall experience for the player. Some of the chats lack depth and challenge, and the game is currently bogged down by a fairly serious bug that alternates all chat scenarios, but Ten Dates is otherwise a fun, relaxing experience that’s easy to recommend to fans first game.