Under the Moon is an 18+otome game released for Windows; possibly the best known of its sub-genre. It is the second installment in a trilogy that also includes Love Drops and Ijiwaru My Master. With art by Toujou Sakana (also known for Detective Conan yaoi fanart), this game spawned a fan disk and a non-explicit PS2 port.The heroine of Under the Moon (default name: Ashe) is the daughter of the king of the demon world. All is not well in her father's domain, however — his power is fading and a succession crisis is brewing. The royal castle comes under attack and Ashe flees with her cait sith familiar (who can turn into a wingedbishonencatboy) and ends up getting transported to the human world. There, Ashe soon discovers that her magical powers have vanished. (Though they weren't much to speak of in the first place.)In no time at all, Ashe and Kyle happen across Leni and Seizh, twin devil brothers with vast magical powers who have been appointed as potential successors to Ashe's father. Neither brother expresses interest in leaving their new home in the human world to take the throne, but they agree to harbor Ashe on account of an ongoing "devil hunt". Angels have declared open season on devils in the human world, leaving Ashe not only unable to defend herself, but unable to go home. Ashamed of her powerlessness, Ashe takes it upon herself to convince Leni or Seizh to become the new demon king.Being a visual novel, Under the Moon naturally has multiple endings, the routes for which are generally grouped into two types: "pure love" and "love/hate". The "love/hate" routes are controversial for fetishizing sexual coercion and domination. It's got some yandere action too.
Tropes used in this work include:
Alien Among Us: Most of the characters aren't human, but manage to blend into human society. Leni and Seizh are old hands at the masquerade; Ashe, as a more recent transplant, is a Fish out of Water.
Always Second Best: Seizh feels this way in regards to Leni, who always seems to beat Seizh to the things he wants.
Bastard Boyfriend: Love/hate routes turn most of the boys into these, though Sena is the opposite, being a bastard boyfriend only in the pure love route.
Cain and Abel: Leni and Seizh's Sibling Rivalry is in a sort of ceasefire state at the beginning of the game, but the resumption of open hostilities is likely.
The Casanova: Leni and Seizh both have instant fan clubs of schoolgirls that they pick conquests from. Leni's modus operandi is to use a girl and toss her aside without remorse, while Seizh openly maintains a harem.
The Exile: Leni and Seizh were exiled from the demon world prior to the events of the game when their (first) love triangle with Ashe was discovered. (Ashe no longer remembers this courtesy of Laser-Guided Amnesia.) They've come to like life in the human world though.
Elegant Gothic Lolita: Ashe. Well, she does wear frilly black dresses, and she's a loli if there ever was one.
For Halloween, I Am Going as Myself: The twins advise Kyle to use his catboy form despite the ears, tail and wings he sports, trusting that passersby will be more likely to accept him as a cosplay weirdo than a talking animal.
Forceful Kiss: Perpetrated on Ashe by the twins several times regardless of the route, and always in play in love/hate routes.
Forgotten First Meeting: This Romance Game staple is unusually edgy in Under the Moon. Leni and Seizh have both known Ashe for a long time and they are hopelessly attracted to her, but she has forgotten them (through no fault of her own). This is a major factor in the bitterness and jealousy the twins feel towards her.
Green-Eyed Monster: Pretty much every love interest with love/hate paths, but applies to Leni and Seizh in all paths.
Leni in particular is a Crazy Jealous Guy who will flip out if Ashe interacts with men he doesn't know. In pure love routes he apologizes for it, at least.
Guy of My Dreams: Ashe has recurring dreams of a sad farewell with a man she doesn't recognize. It takes a while for her to realize it's more than just a dream, and indeed, she may never realize who it is (depending on the path).
Hello, Insert Name Here: Ashe's name is changeable, and the dialogue is recorded in a way to circumvent actually saying her name except for in her own lines, which you can mute separately from the others.
Horny Devils: This trope is an underlying justification for a lot of the game's naughtiness - devils (and mazoku in general) have greater sexual appetites than your average human. They often live for centuries, and thus are older than they appear.
The Ingénue: Ashe hadn't ever been outside the castle before the events of this game, and her father is clearly interested in keeping her away from men.
I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Believe it or not, Leni graciously steps aside in some routes where Ashe doesn't pick him. Not every time, though. Some characters he won't accept.
Insecure Love Interest: Seizh is very hesitant in his pure love paths, and requires a lot of convincing on the point that yes, Ashe really is in love with him.
Karma Meter: Impression points, gained by making dialogue choices, govern whether the guys view Ashe as a spoiled brat or a cutie.
Love Bubbles: Fluffy pink backgrounds drive home the unstoppable sweetness of Kyle's pure love routes.
The Mole: Sena. He's a half-angel so his dubiousness is readily apparent, but in his paths he manages to win the other characters over. Nonetheless, he hands Ashe over to the angels in the end.
Mysterious Protector: In the first half of the game, Zero appears out of nowhere to bail Ashe out of some tight spots, but disappears just as quickly.
No Name Given: Zero gave up his name when he left the demon world.
Noble Fugitive: Ashe. After losing all her powers, she has to rely on outside protection from the angels trying to kill her.
Our Demons Are Different: A big example of Dark Is Not Evil. Two groups, devils and monsters, live in the demon world. Devils are mostly indistinguishable from humans in appearance, while monsters have some sort of tell, like horns or wings. The demon world itself is depicted neutrally, though it has a rather harsh feudal social structure.
Puni Plush: The art style kind of skirts the line of this, especially in regards to Ashe and Sena.
The Proud Elite: Once you get past the cold, sarcastic exterior, Leni shows a lot of leadership potential. He's decisive, serious, and he projects authority. His bossiness toward Ashe turns outright domineering in love/hate paths, but in the pure love paths he tries to shoulder Ashe's burdens himself.
Real Men Hate Sugar: Leni loves ice cream, but gets embarrassed when he's caught eating some.
Strawberry Shorthand: The game often mentions that strawberries are Ashe's favorite food, drawing on the cuteness (and the eroticism) associated with the fruit. She smells like 'em, too.
Team Chef: Early on, Kyle volunteers to prepare all the meals while he and Ashe stay in the twins' apartment in order to shield Ashe, who has seldom ever entered a kitchen, from the cooking rotation.
With Great Power Comes Great Perks: Leni and Seizh live pretty damn well in the human world. No responsibilities, a penthouse suite and girls throwing themselves at them? No wonder they don't want to go back home.
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