Forget Cupid, Kitty Powers’ Matchmaker Makeover rewrites the rules!

Kitty Powers’ Matchmaker Makeover is the long-awaited remaster of the beloved viral dating sim, Kitty Powers’ Matchmaker, to commemorate it’s 10th anniversary.

Players reprise their role as trainee matchmaker, attempting to turn around a neglected dating agency by guiding quirky clients to find their perfect match, all under the ‘expert’ supervision of British Drag Queen and matchmaking maven, Kitty Powers!

Kitty Powers’ Matchmaker Makeover starts with a lovely scene that gives you all the feels of the game but also shows you the sass from the start!

While setting up your character for the game you choose the basics such as name and Gender (including a non-binary option), but you also get to add your birthday and corresponding Zodiac Sign. 

You then move forward into your profile with interests, attractions (including gender(s) you may be interested in including but not limited to men and women, or men and non-binary, as well as just EVERYONE option. You can also pick whether you believe in horoscopes and if you are vegetarian.

Players can then fully customize their appearance which includes not only facial shape and skin color but also allows you to add things like beauty marks, freckles, or even Vitiligo. Plus you can pick from 70 different hair styles, body looks, accessories (including bag, jewelry, harnesses, and much more.) The game then gives you a little personality test to help create your profile.

While the first part of the character creator was easy with simple options, the second half where you list your three interests and choose a profession comes with a long list. I found this to be a little hard to navigate as the buttons on the side seemed to jump more than just to the next page, and you could not use arrows. You were left to either click and drag, or painstakingly scroll for what seemed liked forever just to get past one word.

After you get through this, you end up with your profile card, as well as your cute ID badge which is what shows you your level throughout the game.

From here you get into the game. First you choose where to advertise, and then you are given a client and you must match them with a choice from Kitty Powers’ Little (to start) Black Book. You start with one page of potential 4 suitors, but as you continue through the game and get promoted you can buy additional pages (4 more suitors). 

Once a suitor is selected, you then move into a date where you pick the location from a envelope, follow the target, and select how it was shuffled to get the restaurant of your choice. You start with three, and again as you progress, you can buy more. 

Once all this is selected, your client and chosen suitor head out to their date. The ‘getting to the restaurant’ scene seems a little long, since you can’t click through it or move past. This scene repeats for every date, every time, and it comes after the loading screen. I wish there were options to move past this or a ‘skip after first date’ mechanic.

Taking on the role of the client at this point, once you get inside the restaurant you sit down, have quick casual conversations with the suitor, and then you order food. You ask the suitor what they want and then try to pick a meal that satisfies the suitor’s preferences.

While this part of the game is fun, if you are not a big foodie it can be hard when you don’t know the dishes, and even if you “cheat” and get a definition of the meal, you may still select wrong. This got frustrating and tricky on some dates, but then on others it was fun. 

During the dates you will play a variety of minigames which range from ‘Pull the Love Handle’, to ‘Wheel of Misfortune’, the dangerously titled Trying Not to Fart’, and even a game of Pachinko to determine how to split the bill.

Once the date is over you go back to the taxi and you have to choose whether to ask the suitor to become official, ask them for another date, or decide to just remain friends. But be careful, three red flags during the date (from choosing the wrong meal, getting caught lying, smelling from sweat, and much more) and your suitor will dump you!

All choices have reactions whether good or bad. As matchmaker, successful dates give you more hearts, high promotion points and better reputation, while bad dates will make you lose reputation.

As you get promoted you get to upgrade your “office” space and you add services and offerings that continue to enhance the game both visually on the outside or by adding services on the inside. 

One of the mechanics of the game I find really cute is the updates you receive from your couples. They can be good (which again raises your reputation) or they can be bad (which hurts your reputation). 

In terms of accessibility, as someone who is hard of hearing, I was glad to see that subtitles were always there for anything being said and that it was easy to read along. 

Kitty Powers’ Matchmaker Makeover is a cute, inclusive, low-stress dating sim where you create a highly customizable character and match clients through quirky mini-games and restaurant dates. It has tons of personality, fun mechanics, and accessibility features (like constant subtitles), though some menus and repeated scenes can feel clunky. Overall, it’s a cozy, engaging game that’s easy to pick up and fun to keep playing.

I look forward to continuing my match making skills and to one day overtake Kitty Powers’ herself as the best Matchmaker in the game! 

Kitty Powers’ Matchmaker Makeover is available NOW on Steam, iOS and Google Play.

Rating: 7/10

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