Our Life: Beginnings & Always is easily one of the most beautiful dating sims I’ve ever played, and I’ll do my best to put my love for it into words...somehow. (For context, I played it on Steam and loved it so much that I immediately bought all the DLCs there as well. Worth every penny.)
This game had been on my radar for a while, but I only recently got around to playing it. And I’m so glad I finally did. For my first playthrough, I started with just the free base game, and even that alone was an incredibly rich experience. The way you can shape not only your character but also the world around you felt so special. Watching the story progress through four different stages of life, seeing the characters grow not just in age but in personality, was deeply moving and created such a strong bond between the player and story.
After that first run, I knew I had to get the DLCs, and wow, they elevated the experience to a whole new level. Even the small changes they added brought such depth that it felt like a fresh, more complete journey. Growing up in Sunset Bird truly felt like being part of a living, breathing story.
And then there’s the man of the hour: Cove James Holden. What an absolute dreamboat. Watching him grow alongside the MC was so natural and heartfelt that falling in love with him was effortless. He’s so well written...sincere, genuinely sweet, layered, and just incredibly special. His story never felt forced or cheesy, it unfolded in such a genuine way that I was fully swept up in it every single time.
A huge shoutout to the Derek and Baxter DLCs as well! At first, I wasn’t sure how romances with them would feel compared to Cove’s story, but GBPatch completely nailed it. Both routes felt just as natural and emotionally rich, with their own unique charms in their respective Steps. Exploring Step 4 in different ways because of these DLCs added even more layers to an already wonderful game.
This game was such a perfect experience, and I’m truly hoping to see more like it in the future. Thank you, GBPatch, for something so special.