While the two genres often share a common visual presentation, dating sims are considered to be more statistically based, whereas visual novels focus on telling a branching story. This can lead to confusion, as visual novels are considered a subgenre of adventure games and are not included in the dating sim genre. The term 'dating sim' is also sometimes used incorrectly in English as a generic term for romance-driven games (恋愛ゲーム, ren'ai games), especially visual novels focused on romance. Series such as Sakura Wars and Persona combine RPG gameplay with dating sim gameplay. These games also often involve raising stats that reflect the player's skills and can be combined with other genres. The gameplay is largely dependent on statistics. The player must befriend and carefully build and maintain a relationship with one or more characters.
Dating sims, or romance simulation games (恋愛シミュレーションゲーム, ren'ai shimyurēshon gēmu), are video game subgenre of simulation games with romantic elements.ĭating sims are often dialog-heavy and focus on time management.
