BL game

BL games (also known as yaoi games) usually refer to H games oriented around homosexual couples, though they can be any male/male dating sim or visual novel. The defining factor is that both the playable character(s) and possible objects of affection are male (BL stands for Boys' Love). As with yaoi manga, the major market is assumed to be female; in addition to BL games proper, many otome games have incidental homoerotic content. Games aimed at a homosexual male audience may be referred to as bara. A 2006 breakdown of the Japanese commercial BL market estimated it grosses approximately 12 billion yen annually, with video games generating 160 million yen per month.

Only a very few BL games have been officially translated into English. In 2006, JAST USA announced they would be releasing Enzai as Enzai: Falsely Accused, the first license of a BL game in English translation. Some fan communities have criticized the choice of such a dark and unromantic game as the US market's first exposure to the genre. JAST USA subsequently licensed Zetta Fukujuu Meirei under the title Absolute Obedience, while Hirameki International licensed Animamundi; the later game, although already nonexplicit, was censored for US release to achieve a 'mature' rather than 'adults only' rating, removing some of both the sexual and the violent content. The lack of interest by publishers in licensing further titles has been attributed to widespread piracy of both licensed and unlicensed games.

List of titles

 * 24-ji, Kimi no Heart wa Nusumareru ~Kaitou Jade~
 * Akai Yoru Hoshi no Sasayaki wo Kike
 * Animamundi
 * Angel Knight
 * Angel's Feather
 * Apocripha/0
 * Artificial Mermaid ~Silver Chaos 2~
 * Birdie ~Bokura no Ren'ai Shinrigaku~
 * Boku no Kareshi wa Juliet
 * Cafe Lindbergh ~Bokura no Ren'ai Shinrigaku 2~
 * Celestine ~Hikari to Kage to Uchuu Kaizoku~
 * Dynamite Darling
 * Enzai
 * Gakuen Banchou
 * Gakuen Heaven
 * Gigolo
 * Guisard ~Bokura wa Omoi wo Mi ni Matou~
 * Guisard Shuffle ~Bokura wa Omoi wo Tokihanatsu~
 * Hanamachi Monogatari
 * Hotel Chronos
 * Hunk's Workshop
 * Kannagi no Tori
 * Kichiku Megane
 * Kuro no Tsuki
 * Lamento ~Beyond the Void~
 * Lasting Snow
 * Laughter Land
 * ＬＩＶＥｘＥＶＩＬ ~Shakunetsu no Edema~
 * Lucky Dog 1
 * Miracle Heart
 * Mori no Kioku
 * Ore no Shita de Agake
 * Oujisama Level 1
 * PrinceXPrince
 * Saikyou Darling
 * Seikai Houretsuden
 * Seraphim Spiral
 * Silver Chaos
 * Soshite Bokura wa
 * Suits wo Nuida Ato...
 * Suki na Mono wa Suki Dakara Shōganai!
 * sweet pool
 * Teikoku Sensenki
 * Togainu no Chi
 * Zettai Fukujuu Meirei

Articles

 * America's first English Yaoi Erotic Sim Game "Enzai" Review, Akiba Angels, July 2006.