Recently on Twitter, people started to talk about romantic TTRPGs. A big part of this discussion was people saying that, despite liking the idea of a romance-focused game, they couldn’t find any game that catered to their needs.
This spurred me to action, as I am a massive fan of romantic games!
There are loads of amazing romantic TTRPGs made by indie designers that don’t get the love or attention they deserve. So, to help people find games that support the stories they want to tell, I opened up my library and made a list of 22 of my favorite romantic TTRPGs.
After posting this list on Twitter, several people asked if I could post it elsewhere. So, here we go, a massive collection of romantic and romance-focused games!
1. Light to Your Heart
“Building intimacy through candles, sharing, and the dark. Over the course of the game, players will learn about each other and possibly by the end, no longer need lights to truly see each other.”
2. Power Couple
“You two are in love. And the Earth’s greatest hope. Anytime an entity lands on Earth, you’re the only ones who can save the planet from catastrophe. Or help the entity to better their life.”
A super-cool two-player game that casts you as two heroes tasked with protecting the Earth from aliens. As the game progresses, you’ll need to juggle your job and your romantic life while also thinking about how your battles bring you closer together.
I wrote a whole blog post about this game if you want to learn more!
3. Tarot Telling For Two
“In this cooperative storytelling RPG, two players will each create a character and explore their characters’ relationship with one another using Tarot cards and their associated meanings as prompts.”
4. I Want Your Bite
“a mysterious bachelor has recently purchased the manor house overlooking the town. they’re in the process of renovating- starting a new life. and rumor has it- they’re looking for a partner. Compete against your fellow players for the chance at immortal love- a place by the Vampire’s side.
or: The Bachelor if the bachelor was a Vampire. “
The description is totally right, this game perfectly captures that “trashy reality TV dating show” vibe. This means it is great for parties as you all get to overact and backstab to your heart’s content.
A really good game for people looking to dip their toes into romance as a genre!
5. Are My Wings Even?
“A game about exploring closeted teenage feelings through the lense of young fae getting ready for a revel together. Do makeup, get dressed, help shape each other in ways that can’t be voiced.”
This game is really moving and handles gender exploration in a warm, nuanced, and touching way. The perfect game for Pride Month.
6. Temptation
“A three player larp about a fae monarch, their current vassal, and the human who may replace that vassal. A game of seductive immortality, submission, and what it means to leave humanity behind. Can the monarch and vassal tempt the human to eat their food, and leave the world of mortals behind?”
7. A Christmas Belonging
“A Christmas Belonging gives you snow-covered landscapes, quaint small towns, and the low stakes high drama experience of a made-for-TV Christmas movie. Recreate those cheerful stories of romance and family drama in this collaborative, zero-prep RPG.”
Another really good introduction to the romantic TTRPG genre as most are familiar with this style of Hallmark drama, plus their cheesiness means that they’re easy to roleplay, so new players won’t feel out of their depth.
8. Midnight’s Kiss
“Midnight’s Kiss is a solo roleplaying game where you use a secret journal to record your unfolding romance with a vampire lover. Over the course of thirteen journal entries, key events play out between you and your vampire. For each event, you may determine the outcome with a dice roll or simply choose the option that best fits the story you want to tell.”
If you love Vampires, you need to play this game. It perfectly captures the feel of so many classic supernatural gothic romances and it has loads of replayability. It also works really well as a character-creation exercise!
9. Love VS The World – A Game About Fighting Your Exs
“In this game, you will play a group of friends whose exs just won’t leave them alone. You’ll go on dates, go see shows, and maybe even go to the beach!”
10. Timetested
“Timetested is a…TTRPG about four friends, and how their relationships with each other change throughout their lives. Can their friendships withstand the test of time or do they go their separate ways?”
11. Conflict Of Interest
“A simple slice-of-life roleplaying game for two players who trust one another to keep a secret. It’s about hidden intimacy and loving fiercely in a world that doesn’t want you to do so.”
12. Magica: A 200 Word RPG
“You and your two to four friends are magical girls whose powers come from friendship. You’re also hopelessly in love with each other. It’s complicated.”
13. Trans & Together: A Lyric Game
“You’re a transgender person trying to enter a polyamorous relationship. Luckily, a local private forum called Trans & Together exists just for people like you! Will you find those with whom you belong?”
I adore this game’s concept, using a vintage web forum as a setting is so creative and the game’s mechanics make full use of the setting.
14. Live. Love. Die. Remember.
“Live. Love. Die. Remember. is a GMless RPG for 1 to 4 players about mechs falling in love with their pilots, reliving their memories of love before the end, and the cost of victory.”
15. LaMía
“Within a dark glade, along a pool of cool, clear water, the Knight and the Lamia meet and fall in love. Both have something they want, and something they need; something to show, and something they’re trying desperately to hide.”
16. Mircalla’s Fantasy
“A 2-page mini-TTRPG about European nobility’s vampiresses. Contains elements of romance, BDSM, erotism, otome, yuri, treason, and violence. It’s meant only for adults.”
This game is perfect for fans of ’70s vampire exploitation movies. Plus, it masterfully handles the adult elements, making it a great stepping stone for people who want some more intense experiences.
17. Our Love Will Destroy Us
“Fell in love with your target, the both of you. One of you was barely trained, untested, and didn’t know any better; the Guild might forgive you, but the other? You were meant to know better.”
18. Crash
“Five years from the launch, all technologic forms would power down. They would be collected like wayward children and gathered back into the factories that built them. Their data (experiences, relationships, growth) would be wiped clean, their software and hardware updated and upgraded, and then, they would spill back into the community to resume their existence as if this were the beginning of time, again. Every five years, like clockwork. Safety in repetition.
It has been four years, three hundred and sixty-four days, and twenty-three hours since the last time. This last hour was inevitable, and you both knew it.
What will you do when you know it’s the end?“
This game is always a gut punch. The doomed romances you create in this game will linger with you long after you finish, so play with a box of tissues nearby.
19. Help! I’m Demi & I Think I Like Someone!
“Help! I’m Demi & I Think I Like Someone! is a one-player “game” where you literally roll the dice to see what happens during a close encounter with a potential love interest!”
This is a simple but wonderful exploration of the creator’s Demisexuality, really capturing how awkward early dates can be as you attempt to get a feel for someone and see if you’re compatible.
20. Chernobyl Mon Amour
“You play an escaped convict who seeks to build a new life outside society in a radioactive wasteland. As you settle into the community of the Zone, you must juggle love and the attractive pull of the atom.”
21. Eroria
“This is a game about flirting, sex, and education. It’s a game of sharing a longing gaze, a lingering kiss, or a short, soft, touch. It’s a game where you can be the god I know you are inside.”
Eroria is one of those games that words can’t do full justice to, you really have to experience it for yourself. But it’s a fantastic example of modern game design, due to how simple yet profound it is.
22. SUITOR & COURTED
“SUITORS & COURTED is a romantic role-playing game about dating and love triangles in one of life’s most beautiful moments – courtship. But what if the same person is courted by multiple suitors at the same time?”
23. Seducing The Green Fairy
Seducing The Green Fairy is a 2-player game about performance, love, and midnight rendezvous. Players take the role of two cabaret performers who have to arrange secret meetings to avoid the cabaret owner’s prying eyes.
However, maintaining a secret relationship isn’t easy. One miscommunication could cause the whole thing to crumble to nothing.
Yes, I am going to be cheeky and slip in one of my games at the end!
I’m super proud of this game because it combines a TTRPG with beer pong and social deduction elements to show how hard it can be to maintain clear communication in stressful situations.
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Jonathon Greenall is a freelance writer, artist, and tabletop roleplaying game designer who has written for CBR, Polygon, Nintendo Life, Gayley Dreadful, Enbylife, and many other publications. They have also published several popular and highly-praised tabletop roleplaying games including “You Have One Ability….The Ability To Fuck This Up,” “Macarons, Milkshakes, And Magic,” and “Wander Wizards.”
Jonathon has always been fascinated by media, from the big hitters to the small, obscure, and often overlooked titles that linger on the sidelines, capturing both the on and off-camera stories that make these shows so fascinating.
Jonathon is also a major anime fan, having been exposed to the medium through shows like Sailor Moon and Revolutionary Girl Utena. Since then, Jonathon has maintained a passion for anime, watching most new shows each season and hunting down overlooked gems from previous ones.