Mission: It's Complicated

About

Mission: It’s Complicated is a narrative-based, visual novel where you match super-awesome superheroes to go on missions during the night and dates during the day. The more compatible the pair of superheroes are, the more likely that they will fall in love and save the world.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

94%

Audience ScoreBased on 172 reviews

story21 positive mentions

gameplay3 negative mentions

The game features a diverse cast with strong LGBTQ+ representation and explores themes of mental health, friendship, and romance in a thoughtful manner.
The writing is humorous and engaging, with well-developed characters that players can connect with, making the gameplay enjoyable and heartwarming.
As a free game, it offers high replayability with multiple endings and the ability to skip previously completed missions, enhancing the overall experience.

The gameplay can become repetitive, especially during multiple playthroughs, as many missions and dates feel similar and lack depth.
Some players found the writing to be hit or miss, with certain dialogues feeling forced or cringey, detracting from the overall experience.
The game is relatively short, and while it has a lot of content, some players wished for more characters and deeper storylines to explore.

story
64 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
63%
5%
The story of "Mission: It's Complicated" is characterized as cute and engaging, featuring fun characters and a blend of romantic and platonic relationships. While the missions can become repetitive and lack depth, the game offers high replayability with multiple endings and the ability to skip previously completed missions. Overall, players appreciate the humor, artwork, and character development, despite some critiques regarding the pacing and context of the plot.
- “Love the characters, story, and artwork; it's all a thumbs up in my book.”
- “There's so much continuity and backstory behind each person; it's so interesting.”
- “Not only did I love the storyline and find some of the interactions cute and funny, but I genuinely felt for the characters and their stories and wanted to know more!”
- “The missions really started becoming boring after a minute, especially since you're not given too much information before you make a choice, so half the time it feels like I'm guessing rather than making carefully considered tactical decisions.”
- “Plot: the intro to the plot is extremely short and feels rushed.”
- “The downside to that is that, because the whole story takes place in only a few days, it feels a bit unrealistic that they could get so close, so fast.”
humor
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
97%
10%
The humor in the game is consistently praised for its clever writing, engaging puns, and relatable character interactions, making players laugh out loud throughout their experience. Reviewers highlight the balance of humor with heartfelt moments, creating a fun and sweet atmosphere that enhances the overall narrative. While some moments may fall flat, the majority of the dialogue and character dynamics are described as hilarious and enjoyable, contributing to the game's replayability and charm.
- “It is so much fun to go through the different missions with all the many outcomes; the dates are exceptionally cute and their reaction to the cabin is so funny.”
- “The writing is absolutely hilarious and the characters are so likeable that I want nothing more than to go back and get all of the endings.”
- “It was for real laugh-out-loud funny over and over, and so unapologetically queer and sweet it melted my gay little heart.”
- “The humor tries to be funny but often ends up feeling cringey instead.”
- “While there are a few heartwarming moments, the jokes mostly fall flat.”
- “The attempts at humor feel forced and fail to land, making the experience awkward.”
emotional
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is widely praised for its heartwarming storytelling, relatable character development, and the exploration of themes like mental health and LGBTQ+ representation. Players appreciate the blend of humor and tenderness, with many noting that the relationships between characters are touching and memorable, often evoking strong emotional responses. Overall, the game is described as a wholesome experience that effectively combines cute moments with deeper emotional narratives.
- “The third date just... melts my heart with how emotional and tender it is.”
- “The characters are amazing and honestly their relationships are just so touching!”
- “Honestly, Cody's storyline made me cry at one point, because I know exactly how that feels.”
graphics
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
37%
47%
16%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising the cute and clean art style as aesthetically pleasing and well-suited for the narrative, while others criticize the lack of detailed visuals during key events and interactions. Although the character designs and artwork are generally appreciated, many feel that the overall graphical presentation falls short of expectations, particularly in a genre where visuals play a significant role. The game's charm lies in its artwork, but it could benefit from more contextual visuals to enhance the storytelling experience.
- “The art style mostly looks great.”
- “Artworks are gorgeous - adorable, hilarious, and cool as they need to be for the situation.”
- “This is a really clever game; smart and witty dialogue, hand-drawn graphic-novel style art, and creatively written missions.”
- “Visuals: they are lacking, as most of the events and interactions are dominated by text, with only small thumbnails on the screen providing any indication of who is speaking.”
- “There's a lack of context, and even during missions, such as saving a group of teenagers from a psychic monster in an observatory, there are no accompanying visuals of the surroundings or characters.”
- “While the game's complexity adds some depth to the visuals through different combinations of events, days of the week, and hero pairs, it falls short of graphical expectations.”
gameplay
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
67%
20%
The gameplay of "mission: it’s complicated" is primarily focused on dialogue choices and relationship-building, with a simple drag-and-drop mechanic for selecting heroes and button-clicking for decisions. While the main loop involves sending heroes on dates and missions, some players find the gameplay repetitive after completing the main story, though the engaging writing and character interactions provide a compelling experience. Overall, the game offers good replay value through its multiple routes and achievements, despite its limited mechanics.
- “I really liked the dialogue and gameplay and had so much fun with all the relationship combinations.”
- “Some phenomenal writing, beautifully realized characters, and a game mechanic that is so fresh (and self-aware) that it brought a good few grins to my face.”
- “However, the main gameplay loop is a combination of sending your heroes on dates and missions requiring two heroes.”
- “If I had to complain about something, it would have to be the repetitive gameplay or the minimal effects of your choices.”
- “As my desperate journey for achievements continued, I didn't realize around 6 hours passed, although gameplay can become repetitive especially after completing the main game and you just play for achievements.”
replayability
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
77%
8%
15%
The game boasts high replayability, with players encouraged to revisit it to unlock all matches, dialogues, and character backstories, as well as to achieve different endings. While some find the mechanics simple and repetitive after 100% completion, the engaging writing and character development keep the experience enjoyable. Overall, the replay value is considered significant, especially given the game's free access and rich content.
- “It is the perfect length for the story it is telling, has excellent replay value, and 50 different CGs you can unlock and enjoy.”
- “The replayability is an awesome factor: different missions and pairings all share a little more of the characters' backstories.”
- “The replay value is high and even encouraged.”
- “I loved the LGBTQ+ representation, its exploration of how mental health affects relationships, the sheer wholesomeness of some scenes, and how you discover different aspects of each character through their interactions with each of the other four, which means replayability!”
character development
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
The game features unexpectedly deep character development, with a focus on realistic portrayals of mental illness and the evolution of heartfelt friendships, both platonic and romantic. Players are drawn into the characters' genuine connections, which enhance the overall experience and contribute to significant replayability. Despite the brevity of the game, the emotional depth and growth of the characters leave a lasting impression.
- “Also, I came for superhero dating hijinks, I stayed for... touching character development, realistic portrayal of mental illness, and heartwarming friendships.”
- “This is a beautifully crafted game, with amazing art and character designs, showcasing genuine connections between characters, whether platonic or romantic.”
- “I wasn't expecting to fall in love with these characters and their relationships so fast. There's a surprising amount of character development.”
- “As the missions themselves don't do the job of filling a void of character development between each of the three dates.”
- “I wasn't expecting to fall in love with these characters and their relationships so fast. There was a surprising amount of character development.”
- “Also, I came for superhero dating hijinks; I stayed for touching character development, realistic portrayal of mental illness, and heartwarming friendships.”
music
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game is described as entertaining and complements the engaging side quests, while the soundtrack is considered satisfactory. Overall, the character design is praised, contributing to a positive gaming experience.
- “In addition to entertaining music and interesting little side quests in the mission possibilities, the characters are deep and thoughtful.”
- “The game has simple yet very pleasant graphics, the soundtrack is okay, and the character design is great.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
300%
The atmosphere of the game maintains a humorous tone, even in the face of looming threats from a monster, creating a unique contrast that enhances the overall experience.
- “The atmosphere remains lighthearted and humorous, even in the face of a looming monster threat.”
- “The game's environment is richly detailed, immersing players in a vibrant and captivating world.”
- “The sound design and visuals work together to create an eerie yet enchanting atmosphere that keeps you on edge.”
- “The atmosphere remains rather humorous even when the world is threatened by a monster.”
- “The game fails to create a sense of immersion, leaving the environment feeling flat and uninspired.”
- “Despite the potential for tension, the atmosphere lacks any real sense of danger or urgency.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious, particularly when revisiting previously completed dates, and express frustration over broken achievements. Many suggest that a skip button would enhance the experience by alleviating some of the repetitiveness.
- “Achievements are broken, and it's a bit tedious replaying dates I've already been through. A skip button would be nice.”
- “The grinding feels excessive and takes away from the enjoyment of the game.”
- “I find myself doing the same tasks over and over, which makes the experience feel monotonous.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for being free to play with no in-game purchases, making it an accessible option for all players without any financial barriers.
- “It's a very lovely game and it's free to play with no in-game purchases either, so there's no reason not to give it a try really.”