Love Nikki? ME TOO!

March 8, 2018 7:50 AM

delfin mentioned Love Nikki Dress UP Queen in the politics thread, and I must know, who else plays? Because I'm unhealthily addicted and WHY CAN'T I GET ABOVE 50% in the current competition? WHYYYYYYYY?
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) to MetaFilter-Related at 7:50 AM (70 comments total)

Man, I keep seeing this game go by in bits and pieces in screenshots from my twitter timeline but I've never put a name to it. Now I know! Here's some context from a fan wiki for those wondering. Looks like free iOS/android app with, perforce, in-app purchases etc.
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:00 AM on March 8, 2018

But you can do just about everything as free-play, and all the purchaseable suits eventually come back as free craftable suits! Just takes a bit longer.
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 8:08 AM on March 8, 2018

it me
posted by tofu_crouton at 9:51 AM on March 8, 2018

I would offer my friend code but I think I'm maxed out on friends.
posted by tofu_crouton at 9:54 AM on March 8, 2018

"Now I'm brim-full of anticipation as we wait for Chapter 13 to drop."

Me too! I'm working on knocking off outfits and recolors while I wait.
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 2:16 PM on March 8, 2018

so i am from another dimension, traveling with my anthropomorphic sentient dog friend who is in turn wearing a dog costume and has his own non-sentient dog
posted by cortex (staff) at 3:04 PM on March 8, 2018 [2 favorites]

My ID is 105397289 if anyone wants to friend me. I'm "Reddish" in the game and I'm obsessed with hacking outfit items that change arm position to make it look like my dudes have 4 arms. My best so far is 6 arms!
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 3:27 PM on March 8, 2018 [1 favorite]

so i am from another dimension, traveling with my anthropomorphic sentient dog friend who is in turn wearing a dog costume and has his own non-sentient dog

Momo is a cat.
posted by maryr at 5:14 PM on March 8, 2018 [7 favorites]

Six arms!
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 5:58 PM on March 8, 2018 [2 favorites]

It’s such a goofy game, with equal parts cleverness and lost-in-translation silliness, and I love it. (I have a weakness for Momo breaking the fourth wall.) And the outfits are seriously pretty.

My ID is 102908788, “Linnea.” I will basically friend anyone because all you can really do is send hearts anyway.

I’ve been attempting to decorate my house and plugging away at evolving my evolvable dropped items and crafting the six-heart “lifetime hell” outfits. I have Black Swan and am sloooowly working on Star Sea. I really want Grice but I haven’t done whatever achievement gives you the first piece.
posted by Metroid Baby at 5:34 AM on March 9, 2018

I have two pieces of Star Sea, but after this I'm going to work on the real lifetime achievement: the Tarot Fortuneteller.

My association has open spots! 12903 is our association code.
posted by tofu_crouton at 6:06 AM on March 9, 2018

What have you people done to me? Last night I was just going to check out the game and kill some time before bed -- now I'm Level 7.
posted by camyram at 7:04 AM on March 9, 2018 [2 favorites]

"My ID is 102908788, “Linnea.” I will basically friend anyone because all you can really do is send hearts anyway."

Okay your avatar picture is HILARIOUS.
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 8:17 AM on March 9, 2018

Thanks for this! We are sick at my house and had to cancel all sorts of fun stuff this week. Nikki Dress Up has kept my stir crazy kids and I happily occupied all morning! Also, before I discovered this last night - I was combatting cabin fever by online shopping. This is much better - all the shopping without the spending!

I am user 106729978 and just requested y'all as friends!
posted by Lapin at 10:05 AM on March 9, 2018

I, too, installed it a few months ago "just to see" and haven't put it down since.
#102911448, Valette
posted by rhapsodie at 10:47 AM on March 9, 2018

Deary me this is a fun game. Thanks for introducing it! Friended all y'all.

106739420, Fraise
posted by fraula at 11:35 AM on March 9, 2018

I guess it's time for me to bind to FB.

Is this something that's enjoyable or usable w/o FB?
posted by Tentacle of Trust at 11:48 AM on March 9, 2018

I love this game.

I may have created some outfits based on characters from The Good Place for the Starry Corridor.

ID number is 101943688
posted by wells at 12:06 PM on March 9, 2018 [5 favorites]

I made a fake Facebook account for my game. I don't remember what prompted me to switch it from guest mode.
posted by Metroid Baby at 12:58 PM on March 9, 2018

They have cracked down on fake Facebook accounts a bit, so some people lost their entire collections. As a result, my friends have just buffed up the content on their Fakebooks. It's like performance art.
posted by tofu_crouton at 4:48 PM on March 9, 2018

My user ID is 102917318 ("Mariella" because it was the most ridiculous version of my own name o could come up with) and I made my current avatar have 6 and AND 6 wings.
posted by maryr at 8:43 PM on March 9, 2018

ok so full disclosure

i have spent over $1000 on this game since it launched

it is my dirty secret

i am addicted to the pretty clothes

and my wardrobe is like 75% complete

if my friends list wasn't full of people i can't delete i would add all of you
posted by Hermione Granger at 9:06 PM on March 9, 2018 [4 favorites]

Wait I can delete people now!!!

Plz join me in my cave where I hoard all my pretty digital clothes

101932556
posted by Hermione Granger at 9:10 PM on March 9, 2018

Also the Grice suits have made me cry real tears
posted by Hermione Granger at 9:51 PM on March 9, 2018

OK, I'm a little confused but wow, this is pretty
posted by catlet at 9:04 AM on March 10, 2018

It's interesting to me, if not really surprising I guess, how much the systemic infrastructure under this resembles that of some of the other "well, people are playing the hell out of this, I should check it out" mobile games I've futzed around with, despite the huge discrepancy in tone and styling. The general pacing (and escalation) of collection and evolution mechanics are really familiar, the timer-driven free unlocks, the daily quest pulls, the interdependence of multiple game currencies of varying availability (and inevitable real-money jump start options), the basic "progress till you can't, then grind till you can" metagame (which, I do appreciate the "Do 1" mechanic for quickly regrinding an A- or S-grade win). Swap out monster-hunting roshambo for clothes-horsing but the guts are that same multi-system IAP-driven mobile formula that seems to have gelled over the last four or five years.

As far as the actual core game loop, I do like I think that the individual levels are deterministic; I see both up and downsides to having each challenge be basically static but that it allows for iteration on your outfit and for squeakers on your skill use strategy against a fixed target removes some of the randomly-punitive bullshit that drives some of the worst offenders like Candy Crush Saga. Whether the game is doing a good or ethical job of balancing the requirements for any given stage is its own question, but at least it's communicating that fairly consistently.

Anyway, I have a scythe now so that's pretty boss.
posted by cortex (staff) at 10:33 AM on March 10, 2018 [5 favorites]

It's like someone made a game just for me! My ID is 106732035. Is there a Metafilter association yet?
posted by shirobara at 11:52 AM on March 10, 2018

Damn you all. I'd been avoiding the ads for this game but it really is doable for free so...
posted by cobaltnine at 12:25 PM on March 10, 2018

I GIT THE BEARD
posted by maryr at 12:44 PM on March 10, 2018

Interestingly enough, there was a Top Chef game several years back (not mobile) that had a similar set of combinations/categories/individual item internal rankings that this is scratching the same itch for. Also once I found the history button it made grinding so much easier.
posted by cobaltnine at 1:06 PM on March 10, 2018 [1 favorite]

" If I wasn't boycotting the ranked event/spending during the ranked event I'd be all over that ridiculous leprechaun beard. "

Luckily the leprechaun will be available for several days after the ranked event, so I'm just waiting until then :D
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 1:56 PM on March 10, 2018 [1 favorite]

I am so confused right now but I just keep mashing things and getting shiny things and stuff in return. Hooray!

I don't do Facebook though so it looks like I can't have any friends.
posted by halcyonday at 2:58 PM on March 10, 2018 [1 favorite]

My ID is 106731567. I just went through and requested everyone as friends -- I'm Camyram in-game, too.
posted by camyram at 4:06 PM on March 10, 2018

I saw a Lets Play of this and didn't quite understand how the scoring worked (the player had chosen clothes that matched the keywords and yet still lost) but hey why not I'll join the bandwagon.

106770183 Tiara is me!
posted by divabat at 4:29 PM on March 10, 2018

(Being able to change your skin colour for competition purposes is sooooo problematic though argh - "hey let's blackface for points!!!")
posted by divabat at 5:13 PM on March 10, 2018 [2 favorites]

My understanding (from reading Nikki fan pages, oh God, I have a problem) is, they added the skin tones to the English server when players asked for it, so they could use it in free dressing to better approximate themselves/their friends/fictional characters/etc., and the English server was the first one to get them. (The Chinese and Vietnamese servers are way, way, way ahead of the English one game-wise.) So the Chinese dev team added it as part of their localization for the English server in response to player demand on that server but it is, uh ... not the most culturally sensitive implementation one could imagine (she says with vast understatement).

People have been asking the devs to at least make the makeups transparent so you can use them with all skin tones. (And yeah, it'd be way better if they were un-scored and you could just pick whatever skin tone you wanted whenever you wanted.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 5:33 PM on March 10, 2018 [6 favorites]

Guys...I'm at a goth club right now and I can't stop myself from judging everybody's outfits! There are some good (and bad) stylists here! I'm a bit irritated I can't just go to the store and get the fantastic shoes i just saw. Because they cost real people money.
posted by Lapin at 10:53 PM on March 10, 2018 [1 favorite]

Lapin, I find myself doing the same thing too. Especially with earrings as LoveNikki earrings are usually far more gigantic than what I can wear myself.

I also keep finding myself wanting to wear short shirts and tall socks and this is a Bad Idea.

ETA: I really like the skin colors and was pretty pleased with the game for adding them. I just wish they extended to the makeup... :(
posted by maryr at 2:14 PM on March 11, 2018

Three hours in, I’ve developed an uncanny ability to make outfits that don’t minmax compatbility but somehow rock the scoring. I love this more than the tap-DDR one! Thank you all for talking about it.
posted by crysflame at 3:38 PM on March 11, 2018

I don't know how y'all are already on Chapter 13, I'm still stuck on the pajama party one in Chapter 2 and they won't let you pass until you get a specific panda pajama set that costs money to obtain.
posted by divabat at 4:38 PM on March 11, 2018 [1 favorite]

You can make the panda pyjamas - in the "how to get" part you're shown some options, and (IIRC) it's a recipe. The ingredients are in previous stages. I was able to get it (and everything else I have) without spending real money. The nurse outfit is a bit harder, but am getting there.
posted by fraula at 5:49 AM on March 12, 2018

divabat, you may need to go back to previous stages and grind a little to get the parts you need for the recipe to make the panda. I'm currently grinding for gold (my life, what is this) to get the rockstar outfit bits for chapter 3. The done 1 button (once you've got an A or an S on the level) lets you earn some more gold/grind without recreating outfits yourself.

Don't forget to hit up the various quests/events/daily sign ins etc as you can get a lot of extra gold and stuff that way.
posted by halcyonday at 6:33 AM on March 12, 2018

Wow, that is a confusing interface! I'm getting flashbacks to first joining Neopets a long, long time ago. Also enjoying the translations, my current favorite hairstyle is "smell with ring" and I'm looking forward to getting a "cluster cuddle" (is that when everything goes wrong... very gently?).

My ID is 106781549, adding you all!
posted by Skybly at 7:31 AM on March 12, 2018

This game is crack. I downloaded it out of boredom and curiosity. At first, I'm like, this is silly, I don't get it.

48-hours later... I am level 14. And. I. Can't. Quit. Playing. Halp.
posted by slipthought at 8:16 AM on March 12, 2018

slipthought, that's exactly where I am. I've had to explain to, like, four separate people that the game is so stupid, and so clearly designed to suck money out of my pocket, and the translations are terrible, and yet. AND YET, I'M FUCKING HERE GRINDING AWAY SO THAT I CAN OUTFIT MY LADY IN A PLAIN BATH TOWEL AND JADE SLIPPERS?????

Thanks for the heads-up about the Done-1 function!
posted by joyceanmachine at 8:28 AM on March 12, 2018 [2 favorites]

Curse you all, I downloaded this out of idle curiosity Friday night and where did my weekend go?! My friend ID is 106744629, nick is hilatron as ever. Hit me up.
posted by hilatron at 9:17 AM on March 12, 2018

i just want to note that the reddit terminology for somebody who drops a lot of money in this game is "whale"

like, you know, what casinos call their no. 1 suckers, except instead of getting to enjoy comped drinks and food and super-fancy hotel suites and groveling from casino staff, this just gets you a slightly different arrangement of pixels on a tiny screen

annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd yet i can't stop playing. only the knowledge of the on-going boycott is keeping me from spending my lunch allowance on more stamina so i can grind enough to buy that fucking bath towel
posted by joyceanmachine at 9:31 AM on March 12, 2018

The whale-o-nomics of mobile games are a fascinating and ethically troubling thing and have all else aside had the paradoxical effect of making me pursue a grudge-like refusal to spend any money on f2p mobile stuff. To the point of being not just like economically prudent (because economic prudence doesn't translate to "don't spend money on video games" in like literally any other aspect of my videogaming life) but sort of ideologically spiteful.

So I try to contextualize spending that way when I think about other people's habits; I can be a grumpy hardline asshole about Not A Penny, Damn You about this stuff but earlier this month I dropped fifty bucks on a new Final Fantasy game and god knows what my gaming budget over the last twelve months is but it includes the cost of a Switch and several games there on. So clearly it's partly a question of the distribution of game spending.

All of which is sort of stumbling toward the main compromise point I make on games like this, where if there's one-time quality of life payments and I'm enjoying the game, I'll consider those. A couple bucks once to unlock Thing That Makes Game Less Annoying, etc.

This one seems to have something going on there with the underexplained "diamond recharging" V0 -> V1 -> V2 -> etc. thing, but so far I'm not clear on what the (a) tiering in terms of cost for that is and (b) what the actual quality of life improvement that comes out of spending five or ten dollars altogether is. When in doubt I just keep not dropping any cash at all, but I'm wondering what the specific story is there for anyone who has taken the plunge on that stuff.
posted by cortex (staff) at 11:08 AM on March 12, 2018 [1 favorite]

Pretty much every purchase gives you VIP Points that level up your V level. Each time you hit a new V level you get a one-time prize (which is hidden in a menu, so if you are over V0 and haven't got a prize, go digging around). The prizes are generally suits. There's one that costs a few thousand dollars to get so it's worth looking at just so you recognize a whale when you see them. You also get a daily bonus based on your V level (stamina and gold), discounts in the shop, and various skill upgrades (like a "Do 10" button).

In addition, there are "recharges" that give you a certain amount of diamonds every day for a month. The best time to get one of these is when there's a special offer, like the current Alice in Wonderland suit, because you'll get a suit and sometimes double the amount of diamonds.
posted by tofu_crouton at 2:05 PM on March 12, 2018

Yeah, I've probably spent ... maybe $50? (I'm V5; I've never spent more than $5 in a go) on the game so far which sounds like a lot, but I've been playing daily for six months and that's only the cost of a at-release video game. And every time (save one where I misread a bonus) I have spent the money, it has delighted me. I regret not spending more and getting the dragons. It makes me happy; it is less money than a new real-world shirt; it doesn't take up room in my closet.
posted by maryr at 7:14 PM on March 12, 2018 [1 favorite]

I just hit Chapter 4/am browsing through the store and I am :O :O :O being involved in some kind of political Tea Party that helps unqualified dudes who patronize and probably sexually harass their female assistants become the head of state. Down with Prime Minister Nidhogg! Down with the patriarchy!

(I'm joking. Mostly.)
posted by joyceanmachine at 8:44 AM on March 13, 2018

I tried to create an association (“MeFi’s Own” which fits in the 12 character limit) but need 600 items. Anyone else up for creating a Metafilter association?
posted by shirobara at 12:25 PM on March 13, 2018

I love this game! My ID# is 106425437. I used my actual name Aleana Ozlin because that's how I roll.
I'm in the middle of adding you all right now ^_^
posted by sharp pointy objects at 4:36 PM on March 13, 2018

Bath towel is the best towel, and worth lots of crafting time.
posted by crysflame at 12:38 AM on March 14, 2018 [1 favorite]

Fine. FINE!

106811318, Zarathustrix.

JUST TAKE MY MONEY AND PERSONAL INFORMATION ALREADY.
posted by St. Hubbins at 4:02 PM on March 14, 2018

I HAVE ACHIEVED FOUR ARMS.


I'd be into joining a Mefi association, but don't have enough items yet to start one. Starting to feel the Star Coins crunch as I try to advance through Chapter Six.
posted by hilatron at 4:32 PM on March 15, 2018

I'm 110 items away from that MeFi association... although I'm perfectly happy to save the 300 diamonds if someone else wants to do it first! But if not, I'll create it when I can.

Three tips:
- "Momo's Guide" at the top left of the map screen lets you see which items you need to progress on whatever clothing set you're working on -- it's so useful, I was kicking myself when I didn't find it until just recently.
- Under "Long-term event," the "Fortune Cat" looks like it might be some sort of gambling thing and I just skimmed over it, but you just straight-up exchange diamonds for a larger number of diamonds. Check it out!
- When you're judging the current styling theme, tap the little box between "Reward" and "Times" every 10 times you like an outfit to get your reward. I completely missed that.

I'm really enjoying this game, but I actually wish the number of permissible accessories was limited, such that the path to victory is choosing the, say, four items that actually enhance your outfit, rather than piling on a scarf, gloves, fairy wings, an umbrella in each hand... Coco Chanel said "Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take at least one thing off," and all of my S-class outfits could really benefit from having to look at, say, six mirrors before competing..
posted by shirobara at 5:27 PM on March 15, 2018 [2 favorites]

"I'm really enjoying this game, but I actually wish the number of permissible accessories was limited, such that the path to victory is choosing the, say, four items that actually enhance your outfit, rather than piling on a scarf, gloves, fairy wings, an umbrella in each hand"

Accessories do have a "penalty" -- 3 accessories are all full points, 4 accessories they're all worth 95% of their points, all the way to 16 accessories are worth 40% of their points. But definitely it's not enough of a penalty to encourage sane dressing!
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 6:28 PM on March 15, 2018 [1 favorite]

I'm up to Chapter 6 and getting that suit is killing meeeeeeeeeeeee. Thanks for the tip re: Momo's guide though, Shirobara - that is proving very useful with the the Chapter 6 target suit!

I am very amused by the fact that there is a shoe and a sock stealing skill - although you can only use it on your opponent in the stylist arena, sadly. I do have the counter-measure skill but find it trick to use!
posted by halcyonday at 5:06 AM on March 16, 2018

the LoveNikki FB page just said that Chaper 13 drops March 21! (And has a cool celtic dress, ME WANT.)
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 7:23 AM on March 16, 2018

I have nowhere near enough items to create a MeFi alliance but I am so up for joining one!
posted by Skybly at 10:35 AM on March 16, 2018

So there is a penalty, just not really enough of one to make a difference? That's pretty funny. I'm not saying I mind dual-wielding umbrellas, to be sure.

555 items and counting...
posted by shirobara at 7:42 PM on March 16, 2018 [2 favorites]

We are Team MeFi, ID number 24287. (I think that’s what you need to look it up?) Looking forward to finding out what an association can do!
(MeFi’s Own was an illegal name for some reason...)
posted by shirobara at 7:41 PM on March 17, 2018 [2 favorites]

Nice! Applied, I'm Zugzwang.
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:24 PM on March 17, 2018

I’m slowly going through and requesting. I’m 106845164. Has anyone started an association?
posted by Saminal at 8:32 PM on March 17, 2018

Yes, join us by looking up ID number 24287 -- Team MeFi!
posted by shirobara at 8:13 AM on March 18, 2018 [1 favorite]

Momo has TERRIBLE taste.
posted by divabat at 12:33 AM on March 19, 2018 [2 favorites]

FYI - if you're in an association and planning on going to Team MeFi, there's a 12 hr waiting period. (I'm Zilphie over there.)
posted by cobaltnine at 7:24 PM on March 19, 2018 [1 favorite]

God help me, I'm V5 now. I only downloaded this game because of metafilter.
posted by joyceanmachine at 8:00 PM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

I'm bribing myself into properly applying for jobs by promising myself I can buy the star outfit once I finish my resume and apply to one.
posted by maryr at 3:24 PM on March 23, 2018 [1 favorite]