Ragabul wrote:I'd argue there is not a "correct" choice since it's an RPG, but if there is, the case for the other option being correct is nontrivial. For one, if you choose the "you do you" choice, Naoto is explicitly relieved and says something like "Oh thank goodness." Secondly:
► Show Spoiler
She is the one who requests to stay over the night at Christmas instead of Yu if you make this choice. This speaks volumes for her increased comfort and confidence in herself as herself. The only thing you lose is a costume. I suppose I can hypothetically see how her actively putting it on as a show of affection is endearing because she is stepping outside her comfort zone, but for me it's not even close to enough to get over the acute discomfort that otherwise permeates the scene. And she starts wearing girlier clothes regardless of what you pick so it's clear she is getting over her gender hangups even if you don't explicitly push her. On some level, I'd say Naoto performing "girly" is still a kind of performance. Touching the feminine is healthy for her, but she's never going to be archetypal "girl" material.
*Edit* I am going off the English translation here. Frankly from how you are describing the Japanese, it doesn't seem like there is a non weird option in the Japanese. Either she keeps referring to herself as male or tries to start acting explicitly girlier, neither of which seems great as an outcome.
I don't know why they didn't just make it an explicit question if Yu would like to see her in a dress in both the Japanese and the English and she just independently stops with the faux baritone or male pronouns. 0 weirdness then.
The New Years event and optional dates gives more context.
► Show Spoiler
Without the Golden content, it would seem more crass with the English translation as is, granted. Hard to glean the author's intent without the ability to read the script. If any of you guys know where I can find it, I'd like to take a crack at a small sample.
With regards to pronouns, I only know the initial one she used was probably "boku," but not the later one. There many first person, personal pronouns in Japanese, with their own connotations. For example, if you were hanging out with the girls, you'd refer to yourself as "uchi" or your first name, generally. With family, "atashi." In public settings, "watashi." Whereas I would use "boku" only as a young boy, and then "ore" with friends and family, and then "watashi," "jibun," and "boku" in public settings, depending on context. And then for formal speech, you have all kinds of new ones, like 'watakushi," "ware," and "waga." And quite a few more. So asking Naoto to drop "boku" for "watashi" is quite different than other options, as "watashi" is technically neutral but has a feminine bent, but I don't actually know.
She's explicitly happy to show Yu the girl's uniform on Christmas, if you make the request for her natural pitch. Then on New Years, she's anxious about not wearing a kimono, because wearing formal womenswear in public is too much this early, but she wanted Yu to be pleased. The non-asshole options assuage this, but the asshole option is the one that actually explains it. Then on further interactions, she makes it explicitly clear that she's glad to be a woman, in at least one part, because of the relationship.
So putting myself into Yu's head, my conclusion would be that Naoto wants him to help make her more womanly, in a patriarchal, leadership sense. The emotional intimacy awoke a joy of being and urge for a male complement, hence all the talking about it, and then the physical intimacy demonstrated the physical joy of womanhood, hence the conversation that goes, "I feel really glad to be a woman," followed immediately by, "Let's go to your room." So what she wants isn't purely supportive acceptance of status quo, but a firm pull, not push, into what she has mentally accepted. So the "correct" path appears to be "Act more girly when its just us, don't worry about in public yet."
Normally I wouldn't bother to analysis the writing this deeply, but despite being a Japanese story about Japanese people (and the translation is very likely missing implied nuance), the writers do a very good by vidya game standards, so it seems fair to read into what we're given.
