Plot
CollarXMalice starts off with a 21 year old Woman name Ichika Hoshino who became a Rookie cop for the Special Regions Crime Prevention Office or SRCPO for short in Shinjuku. Which is a City district in Tokyo, Japan.
While being on duty, Ichika gets an urgent call from her Higher-up, Mochida Masanobu(Voice by Hirofumi Nojima). Telling her to come with him to a location of where X-Day is. As Ichika investigating the site where X-Day might be, out of no where Ichika gets attacked by an Unknown person. Soon after Ichika wakes up in an unknown location that looks like a Church, then notice a Man name Aiji Yanagi (voice by Masakazu Morita) who has come to her rescued, then takes Ichika back to his secret Head quarters. Which from there Aiji introduce Ichika to his Team that he has form together.
Starting with Mineo Enomoto (voice by Saito Soma) who is an Former Field Ops Officer
Shiraishi Kageyuki (voice by Ryohei Kimura) an Active-Duty Officer who is the Director of the Field Ops Department
and a Surprised introduction of meeting SP Officer Kei Okazaki (voice by Kaji Yuki).
Together Ichika and the 5 Love Interest will try and solve the X-Day cases while Ichika also help out one of the 5 Love Interest depending on the choices that you choose in the Common route.
Going with one of the 5 Love Interests’s Route, you will learn about their Struggles they’re currently dealing with on their own privately, whiles solving the X-Day cases and stoping X-Day from taking over Japan.
My take
When I first play CollarXMalice back in 2020 I will inform you that this is a very Plot heavy Otome. Back when I first play CollarXMalice, I couldn’t finish it in under a Week. Unless this was the only game, and even the only Otome I have to play and nothing else. And at that time I wasn't an Advit reader, so the longest I could go to read CollarXMalice in one setting without feeling like I need to take a breather by ether doing House work or doing a Work out at Home would be 3 chapters each day. Because the Chapters are long and like I said earlier is very Story driven 95% of the time, so you won’t get to the Romantic stuff or know more about the LI’s back story until you get to Chapter 4 or 5 in their Route.
One of the things I enjoy in my Play-thru playing Collar X Malice is going threw both perspective of the MC and the Love Interest's Point of view. Before I play Taisho X Alice All in one, most of the Otome games or Visual novels that I’d played as of now of doing this review. You only get to read the MC’s Point of View and not two or multiple characters. I also want to applaud to the Writers for going in depth in discussing subjects for not only going threw issues like Mental health, Family relationships, Bullying and Cyber-Bulling, but a standing ovation for them to accurately discussing about issues in America like Gun-Violence and Hate Crimes.
(Which sadly is the Dark side of living in America which I can speak heavily but not go into a tangent on this because I was born and raised in America.)
The cast who voice the Characters and Side characters done a stellar performance. I was really shock about Reina Uena’s performance which she Voice Suzune Uno, around the time I play CollarXMalice the only Role I know her for is Voicing Kisa in the Fruit Basket reboot. But looking at her Resume, Ms. Uena has so much range in her Voice that she can play similar Charcters like Kisa and Suzune Uno. For a fair warning get ready to get jump scared if you get a Bad end and her Character pops up.
Eguchi Takuya’s performance voicing Kazuki Hoshino, made me have a very hard time warming up to Kazuki for how good he done this Character. All the Anime I watch that he’s voice in none of the Characters I see Mr. Takuya voiced are nothing like Kazuki Hoshino. And I know his Resume is very massive so he probity have played Characters similar if not close to Kazuki. But I had a hard time warming up to him and the only time I start to warm up to Kazuki was in Takeru’s and Aiji’s Route.
Route Tier List (Spoilery for my brief thoughts on each route)
Collar X Malice will be an exception for me not ranking it from A to D tier, because all the Routes are good in their own way and no route a I personally feel was a Bad route. So instead I’m going rank the Route a in full detail on my personal tier list for each route.
*To note this is how I personally felt about the Route when I first play it in 2020. I’m considering to to playing it again but my self back when I first play it. How I name the tier got me with this emoji -> 😂
First tier
I will replay their Route over and over again until I get tired of it
Before playing all the guy’s route I was happy to play Enomoto’s route because Saito Soma voice him, so when I have to play Enomoto's route first I was really happy. But now I just love Enomoto just for who he is as a person and the stuff he went threw I feel for him.
I really enjoy Kei's route and I relate to him more in this game because I have trust issues but I'm currently over coming them, I’m almost adventurous in wanting to try stuff that most people wouldn't try but not to Kei's level because the snacks he loves I wouldn't try out.
Yanagi’s route from trying to remember how I felt playing his route. It truly feel like a True route and I love his Chemistry with Ichika. I need to replay his route again.
Second Tier
“You will have to pay me $50
to replay his route again”
Despite that I love all the CGs in Takeru’s route but his back story was very sad and Tragic. Ichika needs to give Takeru all the Hugs and Kisses that he deserves. When I first got introduce to his Character I didn’t care for him for how awful the treated Ichika. But that CG when he put Ichika in a Choke hold, one part I don’t know if I should feel guilty for thinking that was sexy when their are a ton of other Sexier CGs of Takeru after that but it was so hot. His CGs deserve an S tier alone but his back story is..ugh you might have to get the tissue on stand by.
3rd and last Tier
You will have to pay me $150
to replay his Route again.
Playing Shirashi’s route I really feel bad for him. At first I didn’t care for Shirashi that much until I play his route and I fell hard for him just like Takeru. One of my favorite CGs of him you could say is Spoilery but is when him and Ichika hold hands.
Ichika and Kazuki spotlight corner
(Spoiler-y if you haven’t play so skip a head )
During my game play of playing all the routes, I feel so bad for Ichika for what she has to go threw in this Otome, Growing up, and even in her own Home after she left the Nest. She even let her Aloof and Cold-Hearted 18 year old Brother live with her just so be can go to School. The same 18 year old Brother which she worries herself sick for him, would be slaving in the Kitchen for him and despite how awful Kazuki treats Ichika verbally, she still Worries herself sick for him. Is one thing if the Hoshino siblings where Twins, because Twins have a unique relationship. But they’re 3 years apart so you wonder what the heck happen between these two that their relationship became this ruff. I know Kazuki has a Redemption arch in Enomote’s, Yanagi’s Route and kinda in Takeru’s route to explain his Anger and Hatred towards Ichika. And despite that Kazuki at first was my lease favorite Character in this Otome. But even I resonated with Kazuke for the reasons why he act so Aloof and Heartless towards Ichika in the first place. So despite what I said about Kazuki earlier, but he’s truly not the awful Little Brother that I thought he was in this Otome. Both Ichika and Kazuki’s parent neglected both of them in different ways. With Kazuki he was selfishly-neglected while Ichika gotten the Middle Child syndrome level neglect and she the Older sibling. A side from that Ichika deserves all the love that she needs and thankfully she got it from all the LIs but with Shirashi’s was Bitter-sweet.
Recommends with a dash of fair warning
Before you happily head to the Nintendo eShop to buy CollarXMalice or go to your prefer Online store to buy a Physical copy of CollarXMalice. I want to warn you that I really don’t recommend playing CollarXMalice when your Mind is in a Bad or Dark head space. Due because they talk about subjects like Gun Violence, Bulling, and other triggering subjects that could be Mental or Emotional traumatizing towards you. But I don’t know you personally so I don’t know what things you can or can not Handle so you have every right to take my Advise with a grain of Salt.
So to finish this off I Recommend getting Collar X Malice if you love watching Crime shows, Angst, Plot Heavy story, some Kick-butt acton moments, and you love to get Jump scare. But I highly recommend this Otome for any of you guys who are a huge fan of Crime shows like CSI: Miami, Law & Order, Flash Point or if you’re a big K-Drama fan and you had watch “The Beast” then you are going to freaking love Collar X Malice.
I don’t watch a lot of Crime shows unless I have nothing better to watch, but at one point I was almost addict to watching this Crime show called 9-1-1 but it faded out. If you never herd of it is an American TV Crime show, so I don’t think this Show hit International viewers but if you have a VPN or you watch it on YouTube then you probity have watch it.
I don’t recommend playing Collar X Malice if you’re not:
*Good at dealing with subjects or get easily trigger by Gun Violence, Bulling, Revenge, Cyber Bulling, Asian-Hate, Blood, Death, and Kidnapping.
Over all
So the million dollar question, after reading the review that myself in 2022 wrote, would I in 2025 but more closer in 2026 have the desire to replay CollarXMalice?
Absolutely yes. I want to experience playing it a second go round just like with Code;Realized. Even Takeru and Shirashi’s route, despite back then how I felt playing it back then I want to take my old self’s advise for how she felt that it was to hard to go threw that you have to pay her $50 or $150 saids a lot. With your first Otome being Fluffy and then jumping into playing CollarXMalice after playing 3 Otome Games that is all fluff and no Angst my older self has every right to feel how she felt.
Thank you so much for reading my in depth Review, I hope you enjoy the Roller Coaster, especially when you find out the Master Mind of X-day. 🕵️♀️ 🐈⬛
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