Only You - Re Cross -

T''his article is for the 2001 remake. For the 1996 original, see Only You: Decadent Juliets''

About
Only You - Re Cross - is a remake of Only You - The Decadent Juliets that was released on July 26, 2001, five years after the original, using Alicesoft's System39 game engine.

Only You - Re Cross - was created in response to the surprise popularity of the original game, which was available only through a limited mail order offer for members of the Alicesoft user club. As the original version heavily borrowed character designs and aesthetics from pre-existing properties, Alicesoft was hesitant to give the game a full retail release out of fear of violating copyright laws. As a result, it was decided that it would be heavily redesigned for its wide release. While retaining the same central themes of "Pure Love", "Vengeance" and "Manhood", several aspects of the original game's story were drastically altered, making it closer to an entirely different game than a straight remake.

One year following the title's initial release, an all-ages port was made for the Sony Playstation 2 console. While the Playstation 2 version removes all erotic content, it greatly expands other aspects of the game, adding full voice acting, several animated cutscenes and many additional sprites for the characters. Additionally, a secret ninth ending focusing primarily on the background of the character Ragou Karasuma that can only be obtained after certain conditions are met was added to this version.

Differences From The Original

 * With the exception of Tiger Joe, the entire cast of the game is drastically redesigned in order to remove their resemblances to copyrighted characters.
 * Yuuichi Magami, whose disappearance is an important plot point in the original version, now appears from the very beginning of the story and serves as an extremely important character throughout it.
 * Rin Reiran, who was deceased in the original version, is added as one of the eight main heroines.
 * Matsumi Kagamimori has been completely removed from the story and replaced by a new character known as Moegi Kagamimori. As a result, the storyline centering around the character has been completely changed.
 * Misaki Nitou's father Ryouma Nitou, who was merely sickly in the original, is deceased from the beginning of the story, substantially altering Misaki's storyline in the process.
 * Narumi Karuizawa, who was considered to be a secret heroine in the original, appears earlier in the story and has her personality altered slightly in order to be established more definitively as a main heroine.
 * Simone White has been renamed Simone Kyoko White, and has been made the advisor of the Phoenix Academy Martial Arts Club, making her role throughout the majority of the game much different.
 * The Mark of Ruin appears on Yuuji Magami's right hand rather than on his forehead.
 * The player is able to enter in battle commands for their next three turns in battle, rather than only for their very next one.
 * Many more techniques have been added to the game, and the effects and properties of the pre-existing ones were heavily altered in order to diversify them.


 * The order in which certain plot-important techniques are learned has been altered, causing certain scenes to play out slightly differently.

Gameplay
The gameplay of Only You - Re Cross - is largely similar to that of the original; a hybrid of adventure-style map exploration and turn-based combat. The player is able to move the main protagonist, Yuuji Magami, to various locations across a world map in order to perform tasks such as shopping, training and meeting with other characters. Interacting with one of the game's eight heroines will increase Yuuji's bond with them, pushing them closer towards becoming romantically linked, while interacting with Yuuji's friend Jun Wakato at certain intervals will allow the player to view an erotic scene from his extensive pornography collection. Completing each action causes time to pass, with a game over occurring if the in-game timer runs out. The player is able to reset the timer by finding and defeating various enemies hidden throughout the map, requiring them to devote some of their allotted time toward investigating their whereabouts in order to progress further. New areas are unlocked as the game continues, making time management become increasingly more difficult.

As with the original game, an emphasis is placed on attaining "Pure Love" with one of the eight possible heroines, as the player is unable to progress beyond a certain point unless they have reached a high level of affection with one of them. After reaching this point, all other heroines beyond the selected one will become unavailable for the remainder of the game. Every heroine has both a good and bad ending that is dependent on how honest and loyal the player acted towards them throughout the story, and occur regardless of whether or not they were pursued romantically. Because of this, the player is encouraged to attempt to form bonds with all eight heroines regardless of whether they intend to have them become their love interest.

Combat consists of one-on-one battles in a turn-based style reminiscent of the system used in Alicesoft's Beat Series, and focuses on combining attacks in creative ways in order to unlock new and more spectacular techniques. Training Yuuji between battles will allow him to increase his physical abilities as well as acquire new skills to use against his enemies. Yuuji's attributes can be further modified by equipping him with items, which can either be bought from one of several stores located across the game map or by completing certain tasks for other characters.

Story
Yuuji Magami is the captain of the Martial Arts Club at Phoenix Academy. Three years ago, his older brother Yuuichi Magami won the world fighting championship, only to mysteriously disappear immediately afterwards. In the hope of one day reuniting with his brother, Yuuji trains everyday to become strong enough to qualify for the championship, supported by his friends and adoring younger sister Megumi Magami all along the way.

Yuuji's daily life is interrupted by the sudden reappearance of Yuuichi, who returns home one day without an explanation of where he was or what he was doing during his long absence. Yuuji's joy at their reunion is short-lived, however, when a mysterious man with a strange cross-shaped mark on his left hand known as Ragou Karasuma appears at the Martial Arts Club dojo one day in order to challenge him to a battle. Utilizing an obscene level of martial arts skill, Karasuma easily overpowers Yuuji and causes a mark identical to his own to appear on Yuuji's right hand. The fight is then interrupted by Yuuichi, who demands that Karasuma fight him instead. The two martial artists exit the dojo to fight in a more suitable area, leaving a shaken Yuuji to walk home by himself.

Upon returning home, Yuuji finds his house destroyed and his parents murdered by a strange assassin. The assassin informs him that he has been targeted by an assassination group composed of the world's most powerful warriors due to the mark that has appeared on his hand, which he claims holds the secret to destroying the planet. Barely able to fight off the assassin, Yuuji is pushed even further into the depths of despair when he sees the corpse of his younger sister Megumi in the bloodied hands of his beloved older brother Yuuichi, who reveals himself to be in league with the assassination organization before promptly disappearing.

In his darkest hour, Yuuji's feelings of grief and sadness transform into ones of anger and vengeance, causing him to turn his back on his friends in pursuit of the power necessary to have his revenge. Before Yuuji loses himself completely to his rage, however, a mysterious masked man known as Tiger Joe appears before him and, after effortlessly beating him into submission with unbelievable martial arts skill, instructs him to not allow his soul to be consumed by hatred. Tiger Joe then tells Yuuji that the true secret to obtaining the strength necessary to overcome any obstacle is by harnessing his desire to protect his loved ones, and orders him to find someone in his life worth protecting.

After receiving Tiger Joe's advice, eight very special women soon begin to appear before Yuuji. In order to obtain the strength to fight off the strongest warriors in the world, Yuuji must come to recognize one of them as his one and only true love. The path of love is not an easy one, however, and Yuuji will only face even greater hardships as he steadily learns what it truly means to protect the ones you care for.