Vampire Plague
In Blood Moon Calling, a mysterious illness plagues your once peaceful town. People are changing into feral creatures, attacking innocent villagers. It seems your hometown has become a feasting ground for vampires and to make matters worse your father’s gone missing. Together with the help of a priest, a physician and an oddly charming puppeteer, players must foil the vampire’s evil plans and of course, find love along the way.
Blood Moon Calling is a new vampiric dating sim by Genius Inc. Many dating games skimp on the storyline, which is why I find this title to be refreshing. Players may find themselves more intrigued by the game’s plot than the romantic aspects, which is rare in the dating sim genre.
Eligible Bachelors
Genius Inc often relies on a beauty and the beast style kidnapping trope. It’s a nice change of pace to play a dating sim by them that strays from this overused trope. Sure, the female protagonist still plays the role of damsel in distress at times, but not so much that she is defined by it.
Blood Moon Calling offers three sexy men for players to romance. First, there’s Raoul, your childhood best friend who is now a priest. Raoul is extremely kind and considerate, always willing to go out of his way to help others. Then there’s Virgil. A rather odd fellow, Virgil is a puppeteer who is well informed about the town and the terrifying plague. Though kind, his odd mannerisms may be considered an acquired taste. Lastly, there’s Cassius, the town physician. It’s Cassius who attempts to treat those afflicted with the plague. Though cold and brooding on the surface, Cassius cares deeply for his patients.
Paywall Blues
Per usual, Genius Inc’s paywall gets in the way of an otherwise enjoyable experience. The game is split into short chapters with each chapter costing one story ticket to play. After spending a story ticket, it takes a few hours to regenerate. Of course, you can always shell out some cash to receive story tickets immediately. One ticket cost $1.99, while ten tickets costs $8.49. Considering the chapters take about ten minutes to complete it seems like a steep price to pay.
You can also purchase rubies which let you make premium choices. Premium choices allow the player to woo a prospective partner. Any choice that will progress a romance costs upwards of twenty rubies. Much like a dealer, looking to hook a new client, Blood Moon Calling starts players off with enough rubies to make one premium choice. After that, you’ll need to cough up some cash. Rubies cost anywhere from $2.49 for twenty rubies to $20.99 for 250. Considering this title is primarily a dating sim, it’s frustrating that my every attempt at romance is thwarted by paywalls.
Lacking Bite
Blood Moon Calling is an entertaining dating sim with an intriguing vampire storyline. The three bachelors while still a bit flat, are more well-rounded than the characters Genius Inc typically offers up. However, Genius Inc continues to hide its romantic options behind paywalls. All in all, it’s a fun game but the constant paywalls keep it from being a title you can really sink your teeth into.
Is It Hardcore?
Nah.
Blood Moon Calling offers a compelling plot and intriguing characters. However, the experience is marred by paywalls.
