Play and Date



Play and Date are social interactions between characters that have two or more full relationship hearts; in other words, the character has become the player's Buddy and is willing to spend one-on-one time with them. Playdates or dates can be initiated once per in-game calendar week per character; attempting to schedule a second playdate or date in the same week with the same character will fail, as the option is greyed out (unselectable) until the next week. Only one character can be played with/dated per day.

With the Social Maniac social skill, play can be activated at the Associate relationship level instead of Buddy.

While on a playdate or date, the partner character will follow the player wherever they go, can be invited to ride with them on their mount, and will fight alongside them if any monsters are encountered (unless they are adverse to combat, like Ginger and Aadit are).

Scheduling
After reaching the necessary relationship status, the Play or Date interaction becomes available. The interaction allows the player to choose a location – Workshop, Central Plaza, Peach Plaza, or the bridge on Amber Island – and a time frame to meet up and spend some one-on-one time with a character. The play date or date is scheduled to begin the following day within an hour of the chosen start time.

At the scheduled time, the playdate/date partner arrives at the designated meet-up spot. The partner character can be identified by a specific icon on the map: a play icon for a playdate, or a heart icon  for a date.

To start a date or play date, the player needs to approach the character they are scheduled to spend time with and choose the corresponding option. If that character has not arrived at the designated meeting place in time for the play date/date to start (due to their schedule, the date being scheduled on a festival day, or, in case of Ginger, slow movement speed), the player can still find them elsewhere on the map and interact with them. The option to start the date will appear regardless of the character's location.

If the player fails to start the date or play date within the scheduled time window, they will lose the option to start it and will get -20 relationship points penalty with the character they are meeting up with. However, if a playdate or date was scheduled to be during a festival, then there will be no penalty and an alert will pop up at the scheduled time to say that the playdate/date has been cancelled.

Play dates
While on a playdate, a number of blue icons appear on the map, signifying locations for play activities; simply approaching a play spot triggers a prompt for an action.

Action points are used during play time to perform most activities. The play date has a mood meter that indicates how the playing is progressing; a low mood meter may result in the play time ending early. Impressing the partner increases the mood meter. Higher mood meters yield more relationship points at the end of the play session. The relationship gain at the end of the date or play date is calculated by dividing the final mood point value by 3 and rounding down.

The date or play date ends after the player spends all their action points. In addition, the player's partner will leave and end the date by themselves if it is too late; most characters will end the date at 23:59, though Oaks can stay until 01:00, and Emily or Ginger can stay until 01:59.

The player can also end play time early by speaking with the play date and selecting End Play Time option.

Romantic dates
After a successful confession, the Play social interaction changes to the Date social interaction. Dates are the same as play dates except there are more activities, such as stargazing and more interactions while sitting on the bench.

If the player is in romantic relationship with several characters at once and is seen by one of these characters while on a date with another character, the date immediately ends and the date partner gets -50 relationship points. The character who caught them gets -30 relationship points. Both characters will be upset, display broken hearts in their social status, and will refuse to talk, interact, or date with the player. The broken heart status can be removed only by gifting an Apology Bear.

Action points
Action points are consumed based on the type of interaction used. If 50 or more mood points were gained, then when two action points remain an additional action point will be added. If the builder is reduced to three action points and then does an activity costing three action points, this bonus point can be skipped. The total amount of actions points can be increased by the Big Player social skill, which adds up to five more action points. Several clothing items also increase the number of action points available when equipped.

Balloon ride

 * Hours: 07:00 - 21:00CCC 2019-07-12 15-20-50 1.png
 * Not available on rainy or snowy days

This play option becomes available after the player has completed  Balloon Bonanza.

The balloon ride costs 3 action points and can be initiated at the balloon platform located to the west of Sophie's Ranch. There are several route options: During the ride the play date will ask the player to take photos of several landmarks they see. The player will get 3 bonus mood points for each photo they take if it meets the requirements (the photo is taken when the landmark the play date likes has blue outline). The player has the option to save or delete the photo.

When the ride ends the player and their play date will be taken back to the balloon platform.

Balloon shoot

 * Hours: 07:00 - 23:59

The balloon shooting minigame can be played in the game corner at the The Round Table. Shooting balloons costs 30 and 1 action point. The player will get a small mood bonus or penalty depending on how many points they earn.



Chatting by the sea

 * Hours: 07:00 - 23:59
 * Not available on rainy or snowy days
 * Dating only

This play option becomes available after the player has completed Portia Harbor. It is similar to sitting on the bench event.

Darts

 * Hours: 07:00 - 23:59

The darts can be played in the game corner at the The Round Table. Playing darts costs 1 action point and 20. The player will get a small mood bonus or penalty depending on how many points they earn.

Dinner

 * Hours: 10:00 - 22:00

Dinner takes place at Django's restaurant, The Round Table. The prompt to start dinner can be initiated by walking up to the fenced-in booth to the right of the doorway, with the large painting of a "Catmaid" (cat mermaid) above the table.

While eating dinner, the player can engage in various social interactions with the play-buddy, such as talking about favorite foods and asking about work.

The main event is ordering food, which usually requires memorization of the play-buddy's order. The play-buddy provides a list of foods to order, and the player must remember the specific dishes to place the order. Successfully ordering the correct foods increases the mood meter. Ordering too much food may yield fewer mood points, as will choosing the wrong foods or forgetting items altogether. A play-buddy may also mention a particular like or dislike (such as seafood), so ordering with that preference in mind can be helpful. It is advised only to order what the play date listed, otherwise they will say the player ordered to much, or to little.

The player pays for the whole meal. Occasionally, the restaurant has meal combo specials that are discounted. Ordering awards 6 happiness before any entrees are chosen. Choosing exactly what they were looking for awards an additional 20 happiness. Ordering can also only be done once per play date.

Asking about their favorite foods costs one action point and awards 4 to 6 happiness, but can be done twice. Asking about work also costs one action point and awards 4 to 6 happiness. The second option in asking about work costs two action points and awards 4 to 6 happiness. Each answer can be chosen once, allowing asking about work to be done three times. It does not matter which option is chosen or how the date replies. The happiness is awarded at random.

Gifts cost two stamina and award 50% more than their friendship value in happiness, and can be done once.

Food preferences
Everyone has unique preferences when it comes to dining at The Round Table. Most of the dishes that The Round Table serves for sit-in meals cannot be obtained as items, and are consumed immediately.

Each dish may have up to two flavors. If a character likes one flavor but dislikes the other, then those preferences will cancel each other out and the character will feel neutral about a dish with the liked and disliked flavors. For example, Ginger likes Sour Food but dislikes Spicy Food, so she will feel neutral about the Spicy and Sour Potato dish. For the precise preferences each character has, including the cancelled-out exceptions that are not marked on this table, please see the  Dine section of their individual character pages.

Doodle

 * Hours: 07:00 - 23:59

This play option becomes available after the player has completed the Amber Island bridge.

Doodling is creating an image on the sand as requested by the partner. The activity is located at the tip of Amber Island in the beach area. Drawing costs two action points.

The goal is to trace the image on the sand to create the image; simply walking on the line will trace the image. A 30 to 60 second countdown timer is in place during the event. Successfully drawing the picture awards 20 mood points. Drawing speed does not affect the happiness earned. Drawing can be done up to three times per play date.

Fireworks

 * Hours: 07:00 - 02:00
 * Not available on rainy days

This play option becomes available after the player has completed the Amber Island bridge.

Launching fireworks costs 2 action points. This activity requires the player to have Blue Fireworks, Green Fireworks, Purple Fireworks, Red Fireworks, or Yellow Fireworks in their inventory if they want to get a Mood bonus with their play date.

When the activity starts the play date tells which two colors of fireworks they would like the player to launch. The colors are chosen randomly. Then the player will have an option to place and launch the fireworks they have in the inventory. Up to 50 fireworks can be launched at once. The more fireworks the player launches the more Mood points with their date they earn.

The activity can be initiated even if the player brings no fireworks. Cancelling it gives a -5 mood penalty, and the action points spent are not returned.

Haunted Cave

 * Hours: 07:00 - 22:00

This play option becomes available after the player has completed The Haunted Cave.

The player can spend 150 Gols and four action points to explore the cave together with their play date. This activity earns the player around 30 Mood points and can be done once per play or date. Mood points wrong, through testing it seems tied to the final reward of Ghost badges, which is based on the time in the cave, for example at 3 minutes you get around 50 badges (depending on how close you are to the turn over to 3 minutes, milli seconds matter) you will receive the same number of Mood points, In practice this means that a good run of the cave on a date can reward 50 mood points which will refund one of the four points used to perform the activity.

Hot Spring

 * Hours: 07:00 - 23:59
 * Dating only

This play option becomes available after the player has completed  Hot Spring Villa.

The Hot Springs Inn is located on the Western Plateau. The player can spend 300 and two action points to get a mood boost and see a cutscene of their date and character soaking in the hot springs together.

The player will restore some Stamina and get an Endurance boost after soaking.

Seesaw

 * Hours: 07:00 - 02:00

The seesaw is located near the Research Center. Playing seesaw costs three action points. During the seesaw event, a 60-second timer counts down and ends the event when the timer finishes. The play date tells the player how high or low they want to go. The power gauge displays a red area, indicating how high or low the play date wants to go. However, a separate countdown timer for the power gauge limits how long the player can gauge the power meter. Charging the power gauge to maximum will cause the play date to be thrown off the seesaw and will reduce the mood meter. It will also immediately end the activity. Missing the red section of the power gauge results in loss of enjoyment.

Depending on the performance, the mood meter will increase or decrease. Successfully meeting the play date's expectations will increase the mood meter, and sending them too high or low will reduce the mood meter. Maximum mood rewards range from 21 to 24 happiness. This activity can be repeated an unlimited number of times as long as sufficient action points remain.

Sitting on the bench

 * Hours: 07:00 - 02:00

Sitting on the bench is a simple event and takes place under Central Plaza's Wishing Tree. The player can ask various questions of the play date. The play date tells the player more information about themselves, such as likes and dislikes, hobbies, and other personal life matters.

Conversing with the play date during this event generally increases the mood meter. Casual talk adds between 4 and 6 mood points and costs one action point. Compliments also add between 4 and 6 mood points and cost one action point regardless of the date's response to the compliment is or the compliment chosen. Gifts cost two action points and award 50% more than their friendship value in happiness. Complimenting can be done twice; each other activity can only be done once. After leaving the bench, the player and the play date can return and repeat all actions once. Giving the best gifts while sitting on the bench earns the most mood points possible per action point (tied with gifting while dining).

Some interactions are only available after confessing. While on a date, Rest on my lap awards 6 to 7 happiness and costs one action point. Hold hands awards between 4 and 9 happiness and costs one action point. Put arm around waist awards 4 to 8 happiness and costs one action point.

Sitting on the grass

 * Hours: 07:00 - 02:00
 * Not available on rainy days
 * Dating only

Sitting on the grass is similar to sitting on the bench event but is located on Amber Island. This event is only available for dating partners. The player can chitchat or ask questions of the dating partner.

Conversing with the dating partner usually increases the mood meter.

Stargaze

 * Hours: 20:00 - 02:00
 * Sunny weather only
 * Dating only

Stargazing is a dating event located next to the Church of the Light building on a clear night. The player can stargaze with the partner or chitchat.

Stargazing is looking at the night sky and playing connect the stars. The dating partner asks the player to look at the stars to see a constellation, to remember the constellation pattern, and to try to reconnect it. There are 17 patterns to recognize, one is chosen randomly. The player has only a few seconds to remember the constellation before the connections disappear. The player has to recreate the constellation by clicking on the stars. If the player recreates the constellation correctly they will get 10-20 mood points.

Swing

 * Hours: 07:00 - 02:00

Swing has two rounds in which the player can maintain a suitable speed and keep in rhythm with the partner. The swing activity is located near the Research Center. A progress bar fills while the rhythm of the partner is matched. Once full, an action button appears that completes the round. Each round lasts 60 seconds. Swinging costs three action points. Completing both rounds successfully rewards between 21 and 24 mood points. This activity can be repeated an unlimited number of times.

Other activities
In addition to the events listed above, the player can engage in their regular activities, like logging, quarrying, or fishing, while their date or play date is following them. The date or play date's mood will not be affected by these activities, but they will comment either by asking the player to do something else or by admiring the player's strength or skill.

The player can also take their date or play date to Hazardous Ruins. Taking them to the Sewage Plant and Ingall's Mine does not cost any action points and can be repeated an unlimited number of times, as long as there is enough time left in the day. While inside the Hazardous Ruins, the date or play date will actively help the player fight, and will get a small mood point boost (8-12 points) when the player clears a level by defeating the last boss.

The date or play date can be also taken to the Deepest Ruin for no action points. The player will earn two mood points with them for clearing each level regardless of the final rank, depth, enemies defeated, or reward. Once a character enters the Deepest Ruin, they will not be able to leave by themselves until the day ends. However, if the player spars someone, the play date will come to watch the match and be back on Follow after it ends.

Achievements
A number of achievements can only be earned on dates or play dates.