Kadokawa unveiled the first promotional video, first key visual (by character designer Masahiko Suzuki), and July premiere for the second television anime season based on Yomu Mishima‘s Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs (Otome Game Sekai wa Mob ni Kibishii Sekai Desu) light novel series on Wednesday.

Kadokawa also presented new character visuals for previously announced returning cast members:

Akira Ishida as Luxion

Kenichi Suzumura as Julius Rapha Holfort

Kōsuke Toriumi as Jilk Fia Marmoria

Shinnosuke Tachibana as Brad Fou Field

Kōji Yusa as Chris Fia Arclight

Nobuyuki Hiyama as Greg Fou Seberg

Seven Seas published the light novel series in North America, and it describes the story:

Office worker Leon is reincarnated into a particularly punishing dating sim video game, where women reign supreme and only beautiful men have a seat at the table. But Leon has a secret weapon: he remembers everything from his past life, which includes a complete playthrough of the very game in which he is now trapped. Watch Leon spark a revolution to change this new world in order to fulfill his ultimate desire…of living a quiet, easy life in the countryside!

The anime stars:

Kazuya Miura (DRAMAtical Murder, Full Dive, Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out!) returns to direct the second season at ENGI. Kenta Ihara (Cautious Hero: The Hero Is Overpowered but Overly Cautious, Full Dive, Mieruko-chan, Saga of Tanya the Evil) is back to oversee the series scripts, and Masahiko Suzuki (sub-character design on Full Dive, Overlord II and III, Vivy -Fluorite Eye’s Song-) is again designing the characters and serving as chief animation director. Tetsuya Watanabe joins the new season as CG director, and Shin’ichi Komeya replaces Tomoyuki Ishiyama as compositing director of photography.

Other returning staff members include:

The first anime season premiered in April 2022. Crunchyroll streamed the anime as it aired and is also streaming an English dub.

Mishima launched the story on the Shōsetsuka ni Narō (Let’s Be Novelists) website in 2017. Micro Magazine‘s GC Novels imprint published the story in print with illustrations by Monda in Japan. The novels ended with the 13th volume, which shipped in March 2024.

Jun Shiosato launched a manga adaptation on Kadokawa‘s Dra Dra Dragon Age manga website in October 2018, and moved it to the Dra Dra Sharp# site when that site launched in December 2018. The manga then moved to Dra Dra Flat♭ when that launched in September 2020, and then moved again to Monthly Dragon Age in January 2022. Seven Seas is also releasing the manga in English.

The manga relaunched in Monthly Dragon Age in August 2025 with new staff and a new title, Otome Game Sekai wa Mob ni Kibishii Sekai Desu Ryūgaku-hen (Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs Study Abroad Arc). Tanuki Odoro is now drawing the manga, Seishirō Matsuri is in charge of composition, and FTops is in charge of production. The new manga’s first compiled book volume shipped on January 9.

Shiosato clarified that the change in staff was not due to any discord between Shiosato, Kadokawa, and Mishima, but was instead because Shiosato decided to “raise the white flag of surrender” on being the artist for the project for future story developments.

Micro Magazine has also published two volumes of a spinoff novel series titled Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of That Otome Game Is Tough for Us (Ano Otome Game wa Ore-tachi ni Kibishii Sekai Desu). Seven Seas is releasing the spinoff in English. That spinoff has also inspired a manga adaptation from artist Renji Fukuhara that is running on Dra Dra Flat♭.

Source: Press release

Disclosure: Kadokawa World Entertainment (KWE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, is the majority owner of Anime News Network, LLC. One or more of the companies mentioned in this article are part of the Kadokawa Group of Companies.