, sometimes abbreviated to ComiPa, is a dating sim video game by the Japanese game studio Leaf. It was first released on May 28, 1999, for Windows with adult content, but re-released with it removed for the Dreamcast, Windows, and PSP. The main focus of the game is the creation of various dōjinshi by the player's character, during which there are varied opportunities to interact with a cast of girls.
Comic Party is inspired by the real world event of Comiket (Comic Market) held in Tokyo each summer and winter. This is a convention where various artists gather together to share both parody, homage, and original work. Since the series was inspired by Comiket, it comes as no surprise that the "Comic Party" convention also takes place in the same building as Comiket, the Tokyo Big Sight convention center near Ariake, Tokyo.
Comic Party has spawned both a manga (illustrated by Sekihiko Inui) and an anime series since its inception, as well as a Dreamcast version of the original PC game which added a new character (Subaru) and removed the pornographic elements (reverse-ported to Windows, that version is called "Comic Party DCE"). Many artbooks, figures, and fan-made homages have been produced for it.
The anime series was licensed in North America by The Right Stuf International and the Sekihiko Inui's manga is licensed by Tokyopop. Comic Party Anthology Comic, a related manga originally published by Ohzora Publishing, is published by CPM under the title "Comic Party: Party Time", which is a series of doujinshi anthologies featuring stories by independent manga artists set in the Comic Party universe. Diverging frequently from Comic Party canon, this offshoot manga series includes more yaoi elements than the original materials. A sequel anime series, Comic Party Revolution, came out in 2003.
The game was ported to the PlayStation Portable (PSP) as Comic Party Portable on December 29, 2005. Promotional videos show that the Comic Party Revolution character designs are used, rather than the original designs from the Windows and Dreamcast games and the first anime series. Characters from Comic Party are featured as partner characters Aquapazza: Aquaplus Dream Match, a fighting game developed by Aquaplus with characters from various Leaf games.
Gameplay Comic Party is a point-and-click first person perspective dating sim game. It is the player's task to decide the schedule of the main protagonist, Kazuki Sendō, as he prepares for the Comic Party convention that takes place once a month. How fast Kazuki can complete his dōjinshi, how many copies he can sell at each convention, and what girl he is able to date depends on the player's choices. Only one action can be chosen on each weekday because Kazuki must attend college during the day, and two actions can be chosen on Saturday and Sunday. It is only on the weekend where the player is given the choice to leave the house and contact the girl the player wishes to pursue.
During the course of game, the protagonist will come in contact with other characters. These meetings composes mostly of text of the dialogue and actions that happen during the interactions. At certain points of the conversation, the player will be asked to choose between two or more actions that can affect the feelings of that person you are interacting with and can lead to other events.
The game begins on April 1 and ends on March 31 the next year. The ending depends on whether the player succeeds in winning a girl's heart. Although the player does not have to win a girl's heart to reach the end of the game, if the player fails at completing their monthly dōjinshi before the deadline, the game will end early.
Synopsis
Plot Early April, Kazuki Sendō is invited by his friend, Taishi Kuhonbutsu, to come with him to Tokyo Big Sight. He is surprised to see thousands of people waiting in line to get in. Apparently they are at Comic Party, a giant dōjinshi convention. Once inside, Kazuki meets some of the dōjinshi artists and is surprised to find himself enjoying their work. Taishi convinces Kazuki to draw dōjinshi after their visit because he recognizes Kazuki's skill as an artist, but Kazuki's childhood friend Mizuki tries to talk him out of it because she believes otakus are smelly, dirty, and disgusting. Her reasoning does not help because Kazuki already made up his mind and begins to draw his first dōjinshi.
Characters
Brother 2/Two Brothers
Masami Kikuchi (Japanese), Sam Riegel (CP English), Leraldo Anzaldua (CPR English) The protagonist of this title. Throughout high school, Kazuki Sendō coasted entirely on his natural talent for art, only to get a reality check when he failed to get into art school. Left with a lingering feeling that he could have done better if there were a more competitive environment for him to hone his artwork in, Taishi introduces him to the world of dōjinshi where he finds exactly what he was looking for. Together, they form the dōjinshi circle "Brother 2". Often spends so much time on drawing that he forgets to buy food or do his school assignments. In the anime, the character is reworked into a high school student and his backstory is trimmed down.
Kōichi Tōchika (Japanese), Liam O'Brien (CP English), Jessie James Grelle (CPR English) The other half of "Brother 2", he is a typical otaku who sees the dōjinshi concept as the leading pop-culture format of the 21st century. Grandiose in the expressions of his dreams, he takes charge of the logistical aspects of the partnership (paying registration fees, arranging printers, etc.), leaving the actual artwork to Kazuki.
Main heroines
Riko Sayama (Japanese), Rachael Lillis (CP English), Luci Christian (CPR English) Mizuki Takase is the protagonist's friend since the first year of high school and eventually end up in the same college together. She is energetic and athletic girl with past thigh length hair in a side ponytail. She's hostile and skeptical towards otaku and dōjinshi, and is initially opposed to Kazuki's new activity. However, she's also torn by Kazuki's expressions of satisfaction with the dōjinshi process, and worries that it leaves less time for them together. As the game goes on, she slowly becomes interested in otaku culture, even trying cosplay and purchasing expensive DVD sets.
Kaoru Morota (Japanese), Georgette Reilly (CP English), Tiffany Grant (CPR English) Yū Inagawa is a Kansai-speaking, passionate dōjinshi enthusiast. She is from Kobe, but comes to Tokyo often for Comic Party. Her parents own a Japanese inn and hot-springs resort that she will inherit when she is older. Yū is the sole member of the circle "Karamitei". She teaches Kazuki about dōjinshi publishing and comics exhibition. She is nicknamed "Hot springs Panda" (Panda Onseniko) by Eimi because she owns a hot springs and she has large circle glasses that is similar to the dark patches around the panda's eyes. In the anime, she's a transfer student at Kazuki's high school.
Shizuka Ishikawa (Japanese), Jessica Calvello (CP English), Larissa Wolcott (CPR English) Eimi Ohba is an egoistic dōjin artist who self-proclaims the title of "Queen of ComiPa". She is the sole member of a popular dōjin circle called: "CAT OR FISH?!". She is fiercely competitive and believes the value of the dōjinshi is based on how many its sold. Although a savant at drawing dōjinshi, her poor academic performance leaves her on the verge of failing to graduate from high school.
Mie Sonozaki (Japanese), Carol Jacobanis (CP English), Kim Prause (CPR English) Aya Hasebe is a timid third-year high school girl who draws original dōjinshi. She usually gets Kazuki's attention by pulling on his shirt rather than calling out to him. Aya's circle is called "Jamming Book Store". Her dōjinshi does not sell well because she has a hard time attracting customers even though it has good artwork and costs only 200 yen. Kazuki admires her artwork and creative story so he tries to help her sell whenever he can.
Miho Yamada (Japanese), Lisa Ortiz (CP English), Allison Sumrall (CPR English) Minami Makimura is the head staff of the Comic Party conventions. During the conventions, she is seen patrolling the grounds. She always checks Kazuki's dōjinshi to see if it's acceptable to be sold there.
Sumie Baba (Japanese), Lisa Ortiz (CP English), Kim-Ly Nguyen (CPR English) Chisa Tsukamoto is the daughter of the printing shop where Kazuki gets his dōjinshi printed. She is hardworking and looks after the business when her parents go out of town, but she is clumsy and scatterbrained and makes mistakes with the printing process. She is often seen chasing a runaway cart. In the anime, she's a junior student at Kazuki's school.
Akiko Muta (Japanese), Sara Van Buskirk (CP English), Laurie Gallardo (CPR English) A member of Team Ikkatsu, a four-girl dōjinshi circle who draw fighting game-based yaoi dōjinshi. A hardcore fan of the Fighters' Breaker series, she works part-time at the local arcade to keep an eye out for anyone playing her favorite character and fanatical obsession, Sho Kusakabe (a parody of Kyo Kusanagi from the King of Fighters). She's always enthusiastic to show her love of fighting game characters, be it through cosplay or dōjinshi. Due to a misunderstanding, mistakes Kazuki as a rare male fan of yaoi and decides to fan his interest in the hobby. Attends the same university as Kazuki and Mizuki. In the anime, her obsession with yaoi and fighting games is removed and replaced with more emphasis on cosplay, moving her part-time job to a cosplay cafe.
Other heroines
Satomi Koorogi (Japanese), Kerry Grant (CP English), Jessica Boone (CPR English) Asahi Sakurai is anime and manga fan by day and a famous idol by night. She is the voice actress of Card Master Peach, the main character of the popular anime in the Comic Party world (and a double parody, of Wedding Peach and Cardcaptor Sakura). Even though she is an idol, she is nervous around people so she often stutters and forgets what she was going to say. Asahi disguises herself with eyeglasses and a hat when she wants to enjoy the public without a crowd around her which quickly forms when her identity is revealed. In the original PC version of the game, she's treated as a secret heroine, going by the alias "Momo-chan" until she develops a bond with Kazuki. Because of this, Asahi's role in the first Comic Party anime adaption is limited and she does not interact with the main protagonist. Instead, she is only heard on the radio and briefly seen singing at a concert. Later ports of the game openly advertise her alongside the other heroines.
Masayo Kurata (Japanese), Jenny Larson (CPR English) Miko fighter obsessed with hero stories, but terrible at creating dōjinshi. Her group is "Sin-jyusyokakutei." A new character added for the Dreamcast release of the game. She doesn't appear in the original PC version of the game or the original anime series.
Kimiko Koyama (Japanese), Kerry Grant (CP English), Cynthia Martinez (CPR English) A mysterious anonymous benefactor known only as "Tachikawa-san" who communicates with Kazuki entirely through e-mail. She first took notice of Kazuki's talent at a high school art exhibition and became his first fan, encouraging him to push his talents to new heights. Despite frequently sending Kazuki expensive gifts and having the carrier leave personal gifts on his tables at events, she chooses to keep her true identity hidden. Treated as a secret heroine in all releases up until the PSP port. In the original anime, she instead plays the role of Kazuki's first customer, meeting him in person at Comic Party events. Tachikawa is not used in the manga adaption.
Minor heroines , , and