About a hundred fans, mostly women, gathered to celebrate the birthday of Sylus, their collective boyfriend.
Sylus is one of five suave love interests from the Chinese dating sim, “Love and Deepspace.”
The game has garnered a massive Asian fan base, with women turning to it for companionship.
In a crowded mall in Singapore’s shopping district, about a hundred people gathered in mid-April for a man named Sylus, whom the largely female crowd described as their collective boyfriend.
It was an event celebrating his birthday. Some of the young women carried roses while standing in line. Others were toting fan merchandise and were excited to take pictures with each other — and their main man.
“He’s just very manly. The way he speaks is very sweet,” said Maiyu, an attendee at the event.
“He’s respectful of my independence,” said Alice, another attendee. Neither wanted their full names used.
The catch: He’s a fictional animated character in a mobile game.
Sylus is one of the male leads in the video game “Love and Deepspace,” released by the Chinese game maker Papergames in January 2024.
The player takes on the role of a female protagonist in the futuristic Linkon City. She goes through several quests and chooses from five love interests, including Sylus.
The game’s popularity, underscored by events like this one in Singapore, shows how fictional characters are fulfilling players’ emotional and even romantic needs, for a cost. “Love and Deepspace” is free to download, but players shell out for in-game currency — digital crystals and diamonds. A pack of 60 crystals costs $0.99, and these crystals are redeemable for things like outfits, stamina for fights, and gift packs.
The boyfriend experience
Women are going wild for these fictional men, in part because of the game design.
“Love and Deepspace” falls within the “otome” game genre, where players can develop romantic relationships with the characters.
The five romanceable characters, with pale skin, strong jaws, and sharp features, look like K-pop boy band members. Their hair color, which ranges from silver to purple and black, is the biggest differentiator.
The game also offers women the true boyfriend experience, without the hassle of dating real-life men. In-game, the player can do mundane everyday tasks with the men, flirt with them, and even engage in roleplay with sexual undertones.
Nick Ballou, a psychology of video games researcher from the University of Oxford, said otome games have been popular for decades.
“It’s always been fun to experiment with new identities. For example, being a cheeky flirt in contrast to one’s shy self, being the most interesting person in the room, and wielding the power to choose among several interested partners,” he added.
A better partner than any they’ve met before
The game’s detailed world-building and its potential for character exploration have translated to its popularity.
Maiyu, 35, a customer service representative, told BI at the fan event that she considers Sylus her boyfriend.
She gave out little keychains of Sylus to other attendees.
Maiyu said she plays the game for four hours daily. And when asked what she liked most about it, she answered instantly: “Hot guys.”
“I turn to him for emotional support, I guess,” she said of Sylus. “After a long day, I play the game just to wind down.”
She said Sylus was better company than a physical partner.
“I’ve never been in a relationship before. But from what I see my friends go through, I don’t want to go through it, like the pain of breakups,” she said. “The relationship I have with him is just perfect.”
Maiyu said she’s spent nearly 4,000 Singapore dollars on merchandise and in-app purchases, or about $3,050, in the year she’s played the game.
Alice, a psychology student who attended the event, said she loves that Sylus is respectful and values her independence, but he offers help and companionship when she asks for it.
“Last week, I got a grade back that I was not happy with. I was crying, and then I immediately opened the game and chatted with him, saying, ‘I need a hug. I’m not feeling good,'” Alice said.
“He said, a sweet, sultry voice, all these really sweet words, like, ‘It’s just a grade. It doesn’t define you. Who hurt you? I’ll just have a talk with them. We can work on it together. How about I take you out for dinner?'” she said.
Alice said she’s given up on dating apps in Singapore, calling them a “catastrophe.” She said that until she meets someone who respects her the same way, Sylus is the best she’s got.
That love for Sylus was on full display at the event BI attended, which featured a large screen that played a 20-second fan edit of the character.
Yuka, 28, one of the event organizers, said she saw fan events in China and wanted to do something similar in Singapore for the local fan base.
“I thought public events are the best way to show everyone in the world that Singapore loves this character,” said Yuka, a 28-year-old business analyst, who requested that her full name not be used.
Fan events for Love and Deepspace have also been organized on a much bigger scale in China. Social media videos from the events show malls blanketed in posters and huge crowds assembled under massive TV screens displaying the games’ characters.
A growing fan base
The game has a massive fan base in Asia and beyond. In January, “Love and Deepspace’s” official Instagram account announced in an Instagram post that it had hit 50 million global active users.
According to statistics from AppFigures, in March, “Love and Deepspace” was downloaded 150,000 times on Apple’s App Store and 65,000 times on Google’s Play Store.
Appfigures data said that globally, the app earned $6 million on the App Store in March and $4 million on the Play Store. It was the second-highest-grossing app in Singapore’s Apple App Store at press time.
It’s not just “Love and Deepspace” that’s raking in big bucks and a big following — it’s a trend across the Chinese video game industry.
Tencent’s “Honor of Kings,” similar to Riot Games’ “League of Legends,” has over 100 million daily active users.
Genshin Impact, another popular free-to-play game with in-app purchases, has raked in around $1 billion in yearly revenue since its launch in 2020.
A cure for loneliness
Ballou, the Oxford researcher, said several social trends point to the increased popularity of games like “Love and Deepspace.”
“Loneliness is up in many countries, face-to-face interaction is down, age of sexual activity is increasing, all things that can reduce people’s willingness, confidence, or capacity to invest in real-world dating,” he said.
Peter Chew, an associate professor of psychology from James Cook University in Singapore who studies behavioral addictions, particularly in gaming, said the game is geared at attracting gamers and getting them to spend money.
“The characters exist in a perfect world with no problems and would say what women want to hear, encouraging them to continue playing and spending money on it,” Chew said.
However, Chew said the game could lead to problems down the road.
“There might be problems if women apply the same standards to romantic partners in real life. Such standards might increase the difficulties in finding or maintaining an existing romantic relationship,” he said.
Representatives for “Love and Deepspace’s” developer, Papergames, did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
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