Review: Love, Ghostie (Nintendo Switch)
I didn’t expect a simple game like Love, Ghostie to keep my attention as long as it did. The only matchmaking I’ve ever done was in Harvest Moon or The Sims. In Love, Ghostie you play as a little ghost who’s trying to help a bunch of oddball housemates fall in love. That’s it. No combat, no stress, no timers ticking down, just matchmaking and getting to know the residents that come and go from the manor.
When you start out, you go through a short tutorial explaining exactly how things work in this “afterlife dating game”. A cute girl ghost will explain the ins and outs to you. She will also be checking in on you every three days to go over your progress and allow you to upgrade your house, along with a couple other things. The premise is simple enough; the residents cannot see you, but you can do things to increase their relationships, give them gifts, and set up dates or outings for them to go on. And somehow, the residents never question how these things are happening or who is doing it.
Love, Ghostie is set up in a way that does not allow you to do everything at once. Each day, Ghostie starts out with four action points. Every action you complete will cost you one action point. For example, there are random items placed throughout the house each day, and “stealing” an item will cost you one action point. If you take the item and gift it to one of your housemates, it will cost you an action point. Setting up dates and things like that will also cost you action points. You get the picture. When you are able to upgrade your manor, you can increase the action points that you’re able to use each day, as well as a few other things.
It might sound confusing, but it’s a very easy game to get the hang of once you start playing. I actually found myself getting invested in these characters’ stories and their personalities. You will learn things about them that will help you figure out who they are compatible with and if they would be a good match/couple. There are no wrong answers, but there are definitely residents who are more compatible with others and ones who you can blatantly tell would not be good together. An example of this would be the emo giraffe and the bougie frog characters. While they’re not technically a great match, they can still be friends and develop a relationship. It really all depends on what you want.
Most of the characters are likable, but there were a few that I didn’t care for, mostly just because they were harder to please or got upset over silly things. You’ll be able to read the dialogue and see some cutscenes as their relationships develop overtime. If you set up a date, at the end of that day you will get to view the date in a cute little Ghost movie theater. Some of them go well, some of them don’t. You want them to go well, but the mismatched couples who go on dates they hate are always the funnest to watch.
The game is pretty cute overall, in a storybook kind of way. It’s simple, colorful, and charming. Each of the 12 residents feel like they came straight out of a weird cartoon you’d watch at 3am, with a mix of shy, bold, messy, and fancy personalities. They’re easy to grow attached to, and watching their relationships change feels rewarding in an odd, satisfying way.
The gameplay is pretty addictive at first. Each day, you get a few action points. You can give gifts, send characters on dates, or decorate the manor. Items and people have little “tags” (like fancy, adventurous, lazy), and matching those helps build relationships faster. Once I got the hang of that system, I found myself wanting to see every possible pairing just to watch how different personalities clicked.
That said, Love, Ghostie does hit a ceiling in depth. Once you understand how to match personalities, the gameplay can start to feel repetitive. Dialogue sometimes recycles between different couples, and the simplicity that makes the game so approachable can also make it predictable after a while. It’s an easy game to play in short bursts before bed or while chilling on the couch.
Love, Ghostie is a heartwarming and gentle game about love, acceptance, and connection all filtered through the eyes of a ghost with a big heart. It’s ideal for fans of cozy sims like Spiritfarer, Stardew Valley’s relationship aspects, or Animal Crossing. It’s not long or complex, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s a relaxing experience that lingers in its simplicity. The kind of game you play when you want to smile and unwind.
