{{Short description|1998 video game}} {{Infobox video game | title = Getter Love!! | image = getterlove.jpg | caption = Cover art, featuring Reika Kongouji from behind | alt = A tan-skinned girl wearing a pink and white sailor uniform is posing attractively while facing away from the camera. One of her hands is on her hip and the other is running through her blonde hair. The Getter Love logo appears in front of her, with the Japanese caption "Chō Renai Party Game Tanjō!!", meaning "A Super Fun Dating Party Game Is Born!!", positioned above it. The Nintendo 64 logo is located in the top right, the Hudson Soft company logo in the bottom center, and the game information such as the number of players and required memory card space is in the bottom right. | developer = Hudson Soft | publisher = Hudson Soft | producer = Hidetoshi Endo | director = Masato Tobisawa<ref name=64D-29/> | designer = Kokoro Nakamura<ref name=64D-29/> | writer = {{ubl|Katsunori Takahashi<ref name=64D-29/>|Kazumi Katou<ref name=64D-29/>}} | programmer = Kimihiro Nishino<ref name=64D-29/> | composer = Shohei Bando<ref name=64D-29/> | artist = Akihiro Shibata<ref name=64D-29/> | engine = | released = {{vgrelease|JP|December 3, 1998<ref name=famitsu>{{cite magazine | title=新作ゲームクロスレビュー | trans-title=New Game Cross Review | magazine=Weekly Famitsu | url=https://www.famitsu.com/cominy/?m=pc&a=page_h_title&title_id=14547&redirect=no | issue=521 | date=December 11, 1998 | page=29 | language=ja | access-date=January 29, 2026 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220414131914/https://www.famitsu.com/cominy/?m=pc&a=page_h_title&title_id=14547&redirect=no | archive-date=April 14, 2022}}</ref>}} | genre = Party, dating sim | modes = Single player, multiplayer | platforms = Nintendo 64 }}
{{nihongo foot|'''''Getter Love!!'''''|ゲッターラブ!!|Gettārabu!!|lead=yes|group=lower-alpha}}{{efn|Also known as {{nihongo|'''''Getter Love!! Chō Renai Party Game'''''|ゲッターラブ!! ちょー恋愛パーティゲーム|Gettārabu!! Chō Ren'ai Pātigēmu|{{lit|Getter Love!! The Ultimate Dating Party Game}}}}<ref name=64D-26/><ref name=GC/> and '''''Getter Love!! Panda Love Unit'''''<ref name=N64magImport/><ref name=TC/>}} is a dating sim party video game by Hudson Soft for the Nintendo 64. In the game, four players compete to be the first to get a girlfriend by successfully romancing their female classmates. It was released only in Japan in December 1998, and received mixed critical reception. Hudson created an idol group based on the characters to promote the game. A few typing-themed spinoff games were released between 2001 and 2002. The game later received an English fan translation in 2023.
==Gameplay== thumb|In ''Getter Love!!'', all players and NPCs move across a map simultaneously during SAMS gameplay segments.|alt=A three-dimensional map of a small town is displayed. Multiple tiny characters are shown walking down the streets towards their various destinations. In ''Getter Love!!'', players control a male freshman at Panda High School, who is competing with his friends to get a girlfriend before the end of their summer vacation. Players can customize their name, hairstyle, and personality type.<ref name=64D-26/> The goal is for players to build up connections with the female NPCs, with the intent of eventually declaring their love. The first player who acquires a girlfriend will win the game.<ref name=64D-26>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/64dream-November-1998-ozidual/64Dream%201998%2011%20%28J%20OCR%29/page/n69/mode/2up |title=ゲッターラブ!! |trans-title=Getter Love!! |magazine=The 64Dream |issue=26 |publisher=Mainichi Communications |date=November 1998 |pages=68–73 |lang=ja}}</ref> The game features seven romanceable girls, collectively known as the "Panda Love Unit": trendy Ayumi Shirai, childish Natsuki Itou, free-spirited Hana Tsuzuki, standoffish Makoto Minagawa, shy Kiiro Amami, sickly Shizuku Morimura, and excitable Meihua Lee.<ref name=64D-26/> Each girl has different personality traits, favorite locations, and topics of interest.<ref name=64D-28/> Alfonso Roberto Martini, an Italian exchange student, is the game's host who explains the rules and provides updates on the players' current standings throughout the game.<ref name=64D-26/>
At the start of each game, one of the girls is designated as already being an acquaintance of the players, making her slightly easier to romance.<ref name=64D-29>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/64dream-February-1999-ozidual/64Dream%201999%2002%20%28J%20OCR%29/page/n111/mode/2up |title=ゲッターラブ!! |trans-title=Getter Love!! |magazine=The 64Dream |issue=29 |publisher=Mainichi Communications |date=February 1999 |pages=110–113 |lang=ja}}</ref> Players are given a time limit of two in-game weeks to successfully confess their love to one of the girls.<ref name=64D-26/> Each day is split into three phases during which the players can act: morning, evening, and night.<ref name=64D-26/> During each of these phases, each player will select an area on the map to visit, with all players and NPCs moving to their destinations simultaneously after the last selection has been made, known as the Simultaneous Activity Map System (SAMS) mechanic.<ref name=64D-26/> During SAMS segments, players have a limited ability to dash, to arrive for a date early or reach a destination before a rival, or brake, to avoid running into someone and triggering an unwanted interaction.<ref name=64D-28/>
When a player enters a location, they may encounter NPCs that can alter the player's stats, offer information about the girls, or grant "topic balls" which can be used to start conversations during dates.<ref name=64D-28/> Items can also be purchased from shops, which can be given as gifts to the girls or used to interfere with rivals.<ref name=fanslation/> If the player encounters a girl, they can chat with her, offer her a gift, or ask her out on a date.<ref name=64D-26/> Players will earn love points by talking to girls, giving them gifts, or using topic balls during a date, with gifts and topics the girl likes being worth more points.<ref name=64D-26/> Conversely, choosing topics the girl dislikes or missing an arranged date will cost the player love points.<ref name=64D-26/> During dates, special events may occur that will significantly increase the number of love points earned.<ref name=64D-27/>
During the game, players must manage an appearance meter, which will lose them love points if they do not maintain their hygiene; a stamina meter, which will cause them to miss dates if not sufficiently rested; and money, which can be spent on items and dates.<ref name=64D-29/> If two players enter the same location, a battle minigame will take place. The winner will be able to steal a rival's items, topic balls, or money.<ref name=64D-27/> An eighth girl, self-obsessed Reika Kongouji, can also engage in unsolicited attachment toward any of the players, causing her to lower the player's stats and ruin dates with the other girls when she is encountered.<ref name=64D-28>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/64dream-january-1999-ozidual/64Dream%201999%2001%20%28J%20OCR%29/page/n73/mode/2up |title=ゲッターラブ!! |trans-title=Getter Love!! |magazine=The 64Dream |issue=28 |publisher=Mainichi Communications |date=January 1999 |pages=72–77 |lang=ja}}</ref><ref name=64D-27/> Any time they encounter a girl, players can choose to confess their love. The player's success will be determined by whether they have earned sufficient love points.<ref name=64D-26/> Each girl has four different possible endings that can be earned based on the number of love points the player has accrued with them.<ref name=64D-28/>
The standard game mode can be played in single-player against CPU-controlled rivals Chikashi, Daisuke, and Sesshuu, or in multiplayer for up to four players. There are also two alternate multiplayer modes: one in which players all compete for the same girl's affections, and one in which players attempt to earn the most cummulative love points from all the girls. A battle mode allows players to play any of the battle minigames.<ref name=64D-27>{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/64dream-december-1998-ozidual/64Dream%201998%2012%20%28J%20OCR%29/page/n23/mode/2up |title=ゲッターラブ!! |trans-title=Getter Love!! |magazine=The 64Dream |issue=27 |publisher=Mainichi Communications |date=December 1998 |pages=24–27 |lang=ja}}</ref> A "Memories" menu allows players to replay any of the topic balls, special events, or endings that they have encountered in previous games.<ref name=64D-27/>
==Development and release== ''Getter Love!!''{{'s}} concept originated in December 1995 with designer Kokoro Nakamura, who had been attempting to come up with ideas for a four-player competitive game for the then-nascent Nintendo 64. Noting the popularity of romance games like ''Tokimeki Memorial'' (1994) at the time, Nakamura decided to adapt the genre for a multiplayer format.<ref name=64D-26/><ref name=fanslation/> The name of the game and its characters were chosen by random chance through fortune telling.<ref name=64D-26/> At one point, the development team considered including as many as 50 possible love interests.<ref name=64D-29/> Some of the non-datable NPCs were based directly on members of the development team.<ref name=64D-29/> Nakamura noted that Makoto was the game's most popular girl among Hudson Soft employees.<ref name=64D-27/>
''Getter Love!!'' appeared as part of Hudson's lineup at the 1998 Tokyo Game Show,<ref>{{cite web | title=TGS: Hudson Bounces Back | website=IGN | date=October 13, 1998 | url=https://www.ign.com/articles/1998/10/13/tgs-hudson-bounces-back | access-date=January 30, 2026 | archive-date=February 19, 2025 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250219185805/https://www.ign.com/articles/1998/10/13/tgs-hudson-bounces-back | url-status=live }}</ref> and was released on December 3 of that year.<ref name=famitsu/> To promote the game leading up to release, Hudson held an audition on September 24 for actresses to portray the members of the Panda Love Unit in an idol group of the same name.<ref name=64D-27/> The seven winners were spotlighted in issues of ''Dengeki Nintendo 64'' and ''The 64 Dream'', and held a live concert in Meguro on December 24, with subscribers of the magazines granted free admission.<ref name=64D-29/><ref name=64D-28/> On December 18, Pony Canyon released a ''Getter Love!!'' soundtrack album featuring tracks from the game, some of which had been given new lyrics written by Kaori Morikawa of the Go-Bang's and performed by Panda Love Unit, as well as several lines from the game recorded by the group's members.<ref name=64D-29/>
==Reception and legacy== {{Video game reviews | Fam = 26/40<ref name=famitsu/> | N64 = 2/5{{efn|While ''N64 Magazine''{{'s}} standard reviews rated games on a % system, their review of ''Getter Love!!'' declined to rate it, giving it a rating of "??%", pleading confusion.<ref name=N64magImport>{{cite magazine | title=Get A Love: Panda Love Unit [sic] | date=March 1999 | issue=26 |page=90 |last=Weaver |first=Tim |author-link=Tim Weaver (author) |magazine=N64 Magazine | publisher=Future Publishing}}</ref> However, the "N64 Directory" of past reviews at the end of each issue included a secondary "star mark" rating out of five, intended to represent an updated score, and gave it 2/5 stars the following issue.<ref name=N64magDirectory>{{cite magazine | title=N64 Directory | date=April 1999 | issue=27 |page=136 |magazine=N64 Magazine | publisher=Future Publishing}}</ref>}} | rev1 = ''Total Control'' | rev1Score = 10%<ref name=TC>{{cite magazine|last=Jones|first=Nick|title=Quantity Control|magazine=Total Control|issue=6|publisher=Rapide Publishing|date=April 1999|page=126}}</ref> }}
Reception to ''Getter Love!!'' was mixed. Japanese publication ''Weekly Famitsu'' gave the game a score of 26 out of 40 points.<ref name=famitsu/> ''Game Criticism'' felt that the competitive nature of the gameplay made it more accessible to a wide audience than traditional dating games.<ref name=GC>{{cite magazine|title=ゲッターラブ!! ちょー恋愛パーティゲーム|trans-title=Getter Love!!: Chō Renai Party Game|magazine=Game Criticism|issue=24|page=48}}</ref> Reviewing imported copies, ''N64 Magazine'' and ''Total Control'' found the game impossible to effectively play due to its extensive use of Japanese text.<ref name=N64magImport/><ref name=TC/>
A spinoff game, {{nihongo foot|''Typing of the Date'',|タイピング OF THE デート|Taipingu OF THE Dēto|group=lower-alpha}} was released for Dreamcast on September 27, 2001.<ref>{{cite web | title=ドリキャス用タイピングギャルゲー | trans-title=Typing Gal Game for Dreamcast | website=ITmedia | url=https://www.itmedia.co.jp/news/bursts/0109/18/hudson.html | date=September 18, 2001 | language=ja | access-date=2026-02-02 | archive-date=2005-01-19 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050119215037/http://www.itmedia.co.jp/news/bursts/0109/18/hudson.html | url-status=live }}</ref> It removes the party game elements in favor of typing challenges and minigames using the Dreamcast keyboard.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=タイピング OF THE デート |trans-title=Typing of the Date |magazine=Dorimaga |issue=May 2001 |publisher=SoftBank Group |date=July 27, 2001 |pages=68-69 |language=ja}}</ref> Makoto, Ayumi, and Shizuku all return as potential dates; the remaining girls, as well as other characters like Alfonso and Reika, appear in NPC roles.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=タイピング OF THE デート |trans-title=Typing of the Date |magazine=Dorimaga |issue=August 2001 |publisher=SoftBank Group |date=September 7, 2001 |pages=134-137 |language=ja}}</ref> Two other typing-themed spinoffs, {{nihongo foot|''Gettyping Love!!''|ゲッタイピングラブ!!|Gettaipingrabu!!|group=lower-alpha}} and {{nihongo foot|''Gettyping Love!! 2'',|ゲッタイピングラブ!!2|Gettaipingrabu!!2|group=lower-alpha}} were respectively released on October 25, 2001, and February 12, 2002, for cell phones via the i-mode mobile service.<ref>{{cite web | title=ダイジェスト・ニュース | trans-title=Digest News | website=GAME Watch | url=https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/digest/200110.htm | language=ja | access-date=February 2, 2026 | archive-date=May 23, 2025 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250523185458/https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/digest/200110.htm | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=ハドソン、iアプリに新コンテンツ「着信☆スタジアム」「ゲッタイピングラブ!!2」追加 | trans-title=Hudson adds new content to i-appli: "Incoming Call Stadium" and "Gettyping Love!! 2" | website=電撃オンライン | url=https://dengekionline.com/data/news/2002/2/5/52d5fe8f8af68602ebd5d1429d199eb1.html | date=February 5, 2002 | language=ja | access-date=February 2, 2026}}</ref> ''Getter Love!!'' characters also make guest appearances in the 2001 Game Boy Advance game ''Hatena Satena''.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=新作ソフトダイジェスト |trans-title=New Software Digest |magazine=Nintendo Dream |issue=62 |publisher=Mainichi Communications |date=November 2001 |pages=101 |lang=ja}}</ref>
An English fan translation patch for ''Getter Love!!'' was released in December 2023. The patch took four and a half years to develop, and was released to coincide with the game's 25th anniversary.<ref name=fanslation>{{cite web | last=Handley | first=Zoey | title=N64 seduction party game Getter Love: Panda Love Unit gets fan translation | website=Destructoid | date=December 5, 2023 | url=https://www.destructoid.com/n64-seduction-party-game-getter-love-panda-love-unit-gets-fan-translation/ | access-date=January 29, 2026 | archive-date=July 23, 2025 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250723192913/https://www.destructoid.com/n64-seduction-party-game-getter-love-panda-love-unit-gets-fan-translation/ | url-status=live }}</ref>
==Notes== {{Notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040813094936/http://www.hudson.co.jp:80/gamenavi/gamedb/softinfo/getterlove/ |date=August 13, 2004 |title=Official website}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Getter Love}} Category:1998 video games Category:Dating sims Category:Hudson Soft games Category:Japan-exclusive video games Category:Multiplayer and single-player video games Category:Nintendo 64 games Category:Nintendo 64-only games Category:Party video games Category:Video games developed in Japan