Yay! Well, at least he's got one excited fan already. And who knows? Pretty much every other otome game out there puts players in the more submissive role, even the ones with interesting MCs. Some of the best put us in a position of equality, which is nice, but it's almost unheard of to get to play the dominant role. I'm sure he'll gain fans once they get to know him (and their inner bully wakes up~).
I don't recall any otome game in which you can be the dominant one and pick on guys/argue back with them.
Closest one I can think of is Toma's route in Irresistible Mistakes in which the MC will bicker with him and even call him names. They're equals though, she clearly never has the upper hand. I heard good things about Sweet Fuse but never played it.
I hate being forced into a submissive role with no agency of my own, so of course I'll try to write my own MC in such a way that she can take control of the situation and not let things unfold in front of her eyes. And of course, she's not the one who gets flustered, but the guys instead (why would I want to read about how the MC gets flustered?). That's not to say my MC doesn't get flustered at all, she does, but she can flirt and tease the guys, which is like, never an option in otome games.
Cinderella Phenomenon isn't bad, she's pretty bossy in a few routes though overall it's more equal. 7kpp, though still in development has Emmett, and while there's no much bossing about he is easily flustered. It's been a while since I played Sweet Fuse, but I can only think of one route where she was really in the dominant role. In the others it was more of a mix, though she's definitely a feisty one. I keep coming up with more (all indies, I'm happy to make a list if you're interested), but usually they're in the "close but not quite" categorey.
I wholeheartedly agree with you about wanting to see the guys flustered rather than the MC. Both can be fun, but we're already drowning in flustered MCs. I'm glad you decided to go with something different.
CP's MC was pretty nice, but once she gets over the character flaw of being 'bossy and mean' she just, well, turns way more meek and no more dominating </3
I hope I can still strike somewhat of a balance, as I know plenty of players who were shocked with how forward my MC is sometimes. Hence why you can choose between being fierce or kind - the latter being more reserved and submissive, while the former is more aggressive.
Huh, you made me realize I didn't even ask people what they thought about the MC, Joselina.
I always want to be bossy and playful, but it sometimes feels like MCs can only be bossy x mean or meek x sweet. Have you played the demos for Ebon Light or Changeling? The former has chooseable personality types (charming, cunning, and tenacious) and a fair amount of teasing (but little flustering so far), while the latter forced me to break my "no more high school games" rule because the MC is amazing (as well as the rest of the cast). She's super snarky but more funny than mean (err by my standards anyway), and I'm pretty sure she's not going to go timid on us anytime soon.
The kind options were pretty sweet, but still good. I liked how they felt more diplomatic/mature than meek. I was happy with them until I learned I could harass the boys in fierce mode. I played kind mode with Neil first, but I haven't been able to be anything but fierce with Dimitri yet. Even being fierce, there are still some very sweet moments. I think people will like one or the other at least, and I see a lot of praise for games with tougher MCs. Your's is a bit unique in that she's both tough and very feminine, which goes well with running a boutique. I also like how neither feels like the default mode. Sometimes personality choices in games can lead to feeling like I'm choosing the wrong one, but both felt really natural in TT.
Are you considering any make-up options? Or more face options in general? OH! I forgot to mention how giddy I was when I saw the addition of boots. I'm a great fan of boots. <3
It's never too late to add the MC question!
...every time I respond I get the urge to replay your game.
No, I haven't tried those out yet, but I'm very curious abut Changeling! I prefer no high school games much like you, but I can make exceptions :)
I'm happy to see you say that neither feels like the 'default mode'. I don't want anyone thinking they made the wrong choice, any choice is the right choice. It's really more of a "how do you want the MC to act here" kind of choice. Eventually you'll get to a different ending, but neither are the 'true' ending, nor will you feel like one route gets more attention than the other. Both are equal.
I will eventually be adding different faces/make-up options (they'll be in 'bodies'), just haven't gotten around to those yet!