I Want to End This Love Game — Episode 1

What’s it about? Yukiya and Miku have played a game ever since they were children: a “love game”, that is, one in which they purposely try to fluster each other by taking turns saying those sacred three words. But now that they’re in high school, true feelings of love are starting to come up. Will they actually be able to say those words with meaning, or is life truly just a game?

I Want to End This Love Game immediately establishes one thing: kids love Splatoon! Well, okay, that’s not really the point, but this premiere does open with Miku trying to break Yukiya’s cool facade as a sixth grader by declaring her love to him while he’s playing a video game. This quickly escalates into a day-to-day game where now-teens Yukiya and Miku try to break each other in public by playing a less-sexual version of the Penis Game as frequently as possible. Only they’ve so obviously caught feelings that this game is starting to become reality as they race to see who will confess to the other first.

And…that’s kind of the gist: Yukiya and Miku trade who’s holding the silly romantic ball back and forth for the entire episode as they step into their own as high school students who are so obviously in love—well, obvious to everyone around them, that is.

I Want to End This Love Game is perfectly fine. It’s not remaking the romantic wheel, it’s not egregious: it’s kind of just a simple love story about two teens who keep playing at faux love on their own terms and the world around them. It’s classic childhood friends to lovers here, and I think for that, Love Game does a solid job.

That, coupled with the fact that it’s immediately obvious these two—Yukiya and Miku—will eventually get together, actually makes this a pleasant enough premiere because you already know the end. It’s the journey there that’s the real plot, and so far, it’s been well established. Yukiya and Miku are pretty clearly wrought characters: Yukiya keeps a cool facade because he thinks Miku is cute but also is very much a teen boy filled with a lot of romantic feelings for his friend. Miku, as his genuine friend and equal romantic partner, leans on the fact that she’s cute and can needle Yukiya in particular ways. She seems equally aware of the tension between them, and while we don’t get her perspective as intimately as we do Yukiya’s, the fact remains that they’re both pretty self-aware.

That said, both are aware of the nature of this game, of how playing at romance but not committing to it overtly, could change the trajectory of their friendship. It’s part of why both of them have kept at it: this game connects them and since neither will commit, the game continues. Time will tell if they finally give in and have a high school romance—I mean, they totally will, but once again, it’s the path there that’s interesting. (And that path includes Yukiya reading a lot of shojo manga to make sure he’s properly romantic.)

Out of all the romance anime this Spring season, this is probably the weakest. It’s perfectly fine to watch, but I found that I had very little investment in Yukiya and Miku, despite the fact that this premise could be really interesting. I do think it’s nice that both characters are pretty aware of things, at least foundationally, but I’ll also admit in the same breath that I just found this pretty okay. I’d maybe binge it if it gets more complex, but for now, I kind of just want my time with Love Game to end here. It’s not bad, it’s not egregious, but it’s also not necessarily more interesting than other anime treading the same ground. 

My verdict? Watch if you like, but also, don’t worry about missing out on anything if you aren’t already a fan. You can definitely come back to this series once its complete and still get some mild satisfaction.