{"id":70832,"date":"2026-08-10T23:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-10T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=70832"},"modified":"2026-08-10T17:51:42","modified_gmt":"2026-08-10T08:51:42","slug":"japanese-dev-releases-free-soulslike-dating-game-react-to-your-girls-questions-correctly-in-mere-seconds-or-die-instantly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/japanese-dev-releases-free-soulslike-dating-game-react-to-your-girls-questions-correctly-in-mere-seconds-or-die-instantly\/","title":{"rendered":"Japanese dev releases free \u201csoulslike dating game.\u201d React to your girl\u2019s questions correctly in mere seconds or die instantly"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Japanese indie developer Hokuto released their free visual novel <strong>Kobayakawa-san is a Soulslike <\/strong>for browser (via<a href=\"https:\/\/plicy.net\/GamePlay\/234704\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> PLiCy<\/a>) and PC (via <a href=\"https:\/\/hokuto1017.booth.pm\/items\/8690025\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/hokuto1017.booth.pm\/items\/8690025\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">BOOTH<\/a>). If it\u2019s not already obvious from the title, the game is heavily inspired by the \u201csoulslike\u201d genre pioneered by FromSoftware\u2019s games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Talk to your crush.<br><br>But it\u2019s a Soulslike.<br><br>Choose your response:<br>Light Attack<br>Heavy Attack<br>Parry<br>Dodge<br><br>\u201cKobayakawa-san Is a Soulslike\u201d<br>Now available in English!<br><br>Free to play \/ ~5 min \/ Browser<br><br>Play link in the reply \u2193 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7bbHgW5k8t\">pic.twitter.com\/7bbHgW5k8t<\/a><\/p>&mdash; \u307b\u304f\u3068 (@hokuto19981017) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/hokuto19981017\/status\/2086090690505875745?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 8, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the game, you (the protagonist) decide to spend some time after class with your love interest, Kobayakawa-san. But rather than attempting to seduce her by flirting or compliments, you can only win over her heart by \u201cbattling her.\u201d Once she finds out that you were hanging out with another girl, Kobayakawa turns into a \u201cTwilight Inquisitor,\u201d and gives you only a few seconds to respond to her (rather indiscreet) questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"985\" height=\"553\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 985px) 100vw, 985px\" src=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260810-708320001.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-70835\" srcset=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260810-708320001.jpg 985w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260810-708320001-380x213.jpg 380w, https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260810-708320001-768x431.jpg 768w\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Just like in any souslike, you get to react with a light attack, a heavy attack, a parry, or a roll. Making the wrong choice results in an instant \u201cYOU DIED,\u201d so you\u2019ll have to carefully read the girl\u2019s emotions and hopefully avoid getting killed. Of course, you are free to die-and-retry however many times you want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to the developers, the game has already reached over 13,000 plays one day after its launch, and it seems like <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/N3939393\/status\/2086293524602097917?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">players are eager for a sequel<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"ja\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/hashtag\/%E5%B0%8F%E6%97%A9%E5%B7%9D%E3%81%95%E3%82%93%E3%81%AF%E3%82%BD%E3%82%A6%E3%83%AB%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%82%AF?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#\u5c0f\u65e9\u5ddd\u3055\u3093\u306f\u30bd\u30a6\u30eb\u30e9\u30a4\u30af<\/a><br><br>\u4e00\u6669\u3067\u8a0813,000\u30d7\u30ec\u30a4\u3092\u7a81\u7834\u3057\u307e\u3057\u305f\uff01<br><br>\u30d5\u30a1\u30df\u901a.com\u69d8\u3001\u96fb\u30d5\u30a1\u30df\u30cb\u30b3\u30b2\u30fc\u30de\u30fc\u69d8\u3001Game *Spark\u69d8\u306a\u3069\u3001\u5404\u6240\u3067\u3054\u7d39\u4ecb\u3044\u305f\u3060\u304d\u3042\u308a\u304c\u3068\u3046\u3054\u3056\u3044\u307e\u3059\u2728<br><br>\u5b9f\u6cc1\u30fb\u914d\u4fe1\u3084\u611f\u60f3\u3082\u60f3\u50cf\u4ee5\u4e0a\u3067\u3001\u307e\u3060\u8ffd\u3044\u3064\u3051\u3066\u3044\u307e\u305b\u3093\u304c\u3001\u4e00\u3064\u305a\u3064\u5927\u5207\u306b\u62dd\u898b\u3057\u3066\u3044\u307e\u3059\ud83d\ude4f<br><br>\u672c\u5f53\u306b\u611f\u8b1d\u306e\u6975\u307f\u3067\u3059\ud83d\ude47\u200d\u2642\ufe0f <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/95MwmKcksN\">https:\/\/t.co\/95MwmKcksN<\/a><\/p>&mdash; \u307b\u304f\u3068 (@hokuto19981017) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/hokuto19981017\/status\/2085881032361099336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 8, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With around five minutes of playtime (that is, if you don\u2019t find yourself getting killed over and over again by the girl of your dreams), the game is available in both Japanese and English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kobayakawa-san is a Soulslike is out for browser (<a href=\"https:\/\/plicy.net\/GamePlay\/234704\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">PLiCy<\/a>) and PC (<a href=\"https:\/\/hokuto1017.booth.pm\/items\/8690025\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">BOOTH<\/a>), for free.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kobayakawa-san is a Soulslike is a free indie romance visual novel from Japan with Dark Souls mechanics. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":70834,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[{"did":"did:plc:uzrrhkfyjrfdsynj2voztcf2","date":"2026-08-10T14:30:13+00:00","uri":"at:\/\/did:plc:uzrrhkfyjrfdsynj2voztcf2\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3msqcsndqd32b","response":"{\"uri\":\"at:\/\/did:plc:uzrrhkfyjrfdsynj2voztcf2\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3msqcsndqd32b\",\"cid\":\"bafyreibons3h2cyq7pd6zv67xhfobm7md3mjkc77nrw37rrnhcam4pm5lq\",\"commit\":{\"cid\":\"bafyreihwc47uqeusryyryoapp5szjc7hy4bulhogn3ugirvm7iac34kco4\",\"rev\":\"3msqcsndx5t2b\"},\"validationStatus\":\"valid\"}"}],"autoblue_post_url":"","autoblue_publish_document":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,3],"tags":[39,17],"class_list":["post-70832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-indie-games","category-news","tag-indie-games","tag-japan-related-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.0 - 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