Review: Coming Out On Top [SFW!]

I never thought I’d live to see the day where I’d be talking about full-blown (or is that engorged?) penises on Stevivor. Yet, here we are with Coming Out On Top.

Coming Out On Top is a gay dating simulator that can be many things for many people. On the surface, the game gave me an initial understanding of why Hatoful Boyfriend is so popular to so many; pigeons were replaced with hunky men… and they, in turn, made good use of the penises they were attached to. Like those who claim to only read Penthouse for the articles, I’d be lying if I didn’t say that Coming Out On Top’s hardcore side didn’t do it for me to some extent. After all, I enjoy male-on-male stuff, and artwork by Obscura and Doubleleaf — raunchy or otherwise — is quite enjoyable to look at.

Still – and this is where I assert my enjoyment of the game really came from – COOT is a Choose Your Own Adventure-style title. You can make decisions in your character’s daily life in an attempt to land the perfect guy. And then replay, seeing where a different choices would have led you. And then replay again to nab a different man. While COOT‘s pretty pictures are nice, the real meat (hehe!) of the game is in its storylines.

As much as Coming Out On Top is a dating simulator, it’s also a coming out simulator. You’ll always start off as a character who’s struggling to come out to his two roommates. Along the way, you’ll encounter side characters and love interests who are all a different stages of acceptance of your – and possibly their own – sexuality. While those discussions can be cast aside for the more raunchy aspects of the title, they shouldn’t be ignored. While they’re not overly in your face or preachy — and there’s not really any character who’s homophobic — there are a few dramatic bits full of screaming and face slapping to be had if you go down the right path.

On the topic of side characters, you’re either going to love or hate the purple-haired, app-making Penny. If you’ve played the game, I’d be curious to know where you stand.

For those who like in-game management, Coming Out On Top also offers this in the form of having to juggle finances, school work and friendships on top of your love life. It’s not required of course, but being successful in all avenues of life will certainly affect the ending you receive. And trust me: there are a lot of endings.

Much in the same way, the game also allows you to tweak characters, giving options for facial and chest hair. Hell, during sex scenes, you can also control whether condoms are used or not. That’s where customisation ends, sadly; while you can have a scruffy love interest, you can’t change things like muscle mass, eye colour or the like (read: penis size). A majority of the characters are ultra jock-like, which suited me just fine, but those into other body types may find the game a little too ‘magazine cover’ perfect… though I doubt anyone will criticise the game for endowing all the guys with above-average members.

Despite my love for its story, you have to treat Coming Out On Top as a rather niche game. If you’re absolutely against male-on-male sex, you might want to consider giving the game a miss. If you’re open enough to it and want to try a neat little western take on a bara-style game, you won’t go wrong for $20 USD. On top of current offerings, Obscurasoft is actively adding content to the game as well; an artwork gallery was recently released and new dating content is expected in May. Dive in and see where you emerge.

Coming Out On Top was reviewed using a retail code on Windows PC, as purchased by the author. The author has followed the game since its successful Kickstarter campaign, but did not back the game.