10 Oddball Video Games That Turned Out Awesome

6. Hatoful Boyfriend

Imagine being the only human being in a prestigious private school filled only with birds - no, I'm not being derogatory to women here, but referring to an academy for the education of mumbling pigeons. The next question you probably have about this is 'What kind of pigeons?' Well, there are tumblers and dewlaps, and those maingy grey ones that terrorise all major cities, and... Hang on, that's not actually your question, is it? It's probably more like 'Just... why?' Well, Hatoful Boyfriend is a pigeon-dating simulator, where you go about life at a pigeon-boarding school at a time when birds have come to rule the world, with your ultimate goal being to find romance. Don't worry though, you won't see any stilted, Mass Effect-like love-making scenes here, as the whole game is played out through dialogue options against backdrops of pink-tinted school corridors and superimposed photos of pigeons. One look at Hatoful Boyfriend, and you'll think it's a bad joke, but it's actually a well-written, kooky game filled with branching storyline options as you respond to all the bizarre birds you bump into, and decide which one you want to be your suitor. It's deceptively challenging too, as you'll need to play to the idiosyncrasies of the birds you want to pursue - whether it's joining them on RPG quests or helping them find a pudding. Guaranteed to bring an open-mouthed look of amused disbelief to your face.