It seems dating sims are a dime a dozen these days, but as with any genre, they can be traced back to a singular point of origin. In the case of dating sims, ELF Corporation's Doukyusei (Classmates) is seen as the progenitor (no relation to the similary named yaoi manga which got an anime film in 2016, FYI).

Fanza Games recently announced that DiGiNation are developing a remake of the original Doukyusei, slated for PC on February 26 next year. They released a visual (above), which is an updated version of the original game's cover art (below).

Released in 1992, the first Doukyusei let players choose between 14 different girls to romance, with the opportunity to unlock lewd scenes if you make the right choices at the right times. The game spawned a franchise, including a sequel in 1995 and a spin-off called Kakyusei (Lower Classmates) in 1996, which later got its own sequel in 2004. The series also inspired a number of anime series, such as the 4 episode hentai OVA Doukyusei: End of Summer in 1994 and its 2 episode follow-up Doukyusei: Climax, released a year later, plus a 12 episode OVA that aired on TV at the time with the lewd scenes cut. Kakyusei 2 inspired a SFW anime in 2004, and later a hentai OVA called Kakyusei 2: Anthology in 2006 and its 2007 sequel Kakyusei 2: Sketchbook.

CGs hit different back then

Its unknown as of yet how or even if DiGiNation's remake will differ from the original. It could be a straight remake with an updated art style, but if you ask me the art style of the original has a certain charm to it. That era of MS-DOS and PC-98 games had gorgeous pixel art, and I'd happily take that over a cleaner, more modern aesthetic any day.

So, have you guys played any of the Doukyusei games before? Or have you seen any of the hentai OVAs? Are you looking forward to the remake? Let us know below!