Why do people use NTR instead of cheating or cucking?

takoko

New Member
Oct 21, 2023
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I never understand that. I mean I know it's a japanese word, but isn't cheating or cucking more or less the same? Like you don't use the japanese word of pussy (manko?) for pussy. Why is NTR (the word, not the genre) became so ubiquitous? Or is there a subtle difference between them?
 

Count Morado

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Respected User
Jan 21, 2022
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I never understand that. I mean I know it's a japanese word, but isn't cheating or cucking more or less the same? Like you don't use the japanese word of pussy (manko?) for pussy. Why is NTR (the word, not the genre) became so ubiquitous? Or is there a subtle difference between them?
There is a subtle difference between the three, yes.

Because the genre has become popular to a point that the term netorare is better known than using an English equivalent, and the fact that many of the games use the Japanese genre as a foundation for their own work - it makes sense to simply use the term netorare than attempt to find an English equivalent.

It's difficult enough to get people to agree on an established definition for netorare - attempting to establish an English equivalent would only magnify this problem.

Oh, and then we would have multiple threads about why aren't we just using the term netorare instead of attempting to use an English word.
 

NeonSelf

Member
Dec 3, 2019
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NTR covers all possible ways of sharing a partner, not just cheating or cucking.

What if MC is sends his girl to work as prostitute? Is it cheating or cucking or sharing?
Most slave trainer games do just that.
 

Count Morado

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Jan 21, 2022
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NTR covers all possible ways of sharing a partner, not just cheating or cucking.

What if MC is sends his girl to work as prostitute? Is it cheating or cucking or sharing?
Most slave trainer games do just that.
Netorare is not simply cheating/cucking/or sending a love interest to work as a prostitute, either. This might be your personal opinion, but it isn't the of the generally accepted meaning of the word.

One of the most important aspects of netorare is the emotional pain inflicted upon the person from whom something is being taken. If it's simply a romantic partner having sex with someone else without the other partner knowing, that's not netorare - it's just cheating. If the romantic partner has sex with someone else and the other partner knows, but they don't mind or even perhaps enjoy the idea, that's not netorare - it's just cuckoldry. If the person sends their romantic partner off to work as a prostitute, that's not netorare - it's just human trafficking (sharing).
 

F4C430

Active Member
Dec 4, 2018
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Because the genre has become popular to a point that the term netorare is better known than using an English equivalent, ...
2 comments later and you're already disproving your own statement by trying to educate someone... :ROFLMAO:. Even people who are into it can't agree on the definition, just like certain other Japanese loan words used here.

I think the actual reason why it's used on F95 is because the tags here came from VNDB (source needed, i'm too lazy right now to search) or some other database.
 

VegitoHlove

Member
Apr 27, 2018
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I never understand that. I mean I know it's a japanese word, but isn't cheating or cucking more or less the same? Like you don't use the japanese word of pussy (manko?) for pussy. Why is NTR (the word, not the genre) became so ubiquitous? Or is there a subtle difference between them?
Oh boy, you've done it now. Opening the flood gates for the connoisseurs to discuss the finer details and point of the difference. ignoring the fact that we use English tags for most other things why not this. I also personally think we should just use English words to tag this.

That's not gonna happen.
 
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MarshmallowCasserole

Active Member
Jun 7, 2018
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If it's simply a romantic partner having sex with someone else without the other partner knowing
... then it's also falling under NTR umbrella. At least here. I'm commenting on this specifically because there's this common trope that I don't understand. That is that the cuck is clueless to the point of idiocy. The game is absolutely obvious about what's happenning and yet the MC doesn't get the hint, and is not jealous (because how can you be jealous if you don't suspect infidelity?)

Also fem MC cheating on her BF can also be tagged netorare. Or, let me rephrase. Not can be tagged. Have been tagged. So let's not pretend these tags have good, enforced definitions, at least right now.
 

woody554

Well-Known Member
Jan 20, 2018
1,551
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I never understand that. I mean I know it's a japanese word, but isn't cheating or cucking more or less the same? Like you don't use the japanese word of pussy (manko?) for pussy. Why is NTR (the word, not the genre) became so ubiquitous? Or is there a subtle difference between them?
netorare, ntr, cuckolding = someone fucking your girl in a way that makes you suffer jealous hurt. the masochistic hurt is the main thing here.

netori, cheating = you're the one fucking someone else's girl. no hurt for you.

netorase, sharing = willingly sharing, being very happy that someone else fucks your girl. no hurt for anyone.


people mix these up because they share the same stem, but obviously they have nothing in common and are completely different words AND fetishes.
 

Thin Bastard

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Mar 13, 2022
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This thread was created with the help of VNDB, E-Hentai, Google and other sources.
I could cook a pot roast after watching Hell’s Kitchen and say I made it with the help of Gordon Ramsey, but that doesn’t mean it will be edible.
 
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chainedpanda

Active Member
Jun 26, 2017
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I feel like no one actually answered the question and just fell into the age old "what's the 'true' definition of ntr" debate. Also, NTR is a catch all term that refers to any love interest being romantically or sexually involved with another character. Full stop. Get over it.

The true answer is related to the culture and history surrounding adult games. Japan was the first culture to actually make adult games regularly. A small scene of translators grew to translate those games and from there the western scene as we know it now eventually formed.

Even so, Japan still have a huge influence over adult games. Not only to we have a bunch of anime inspired games (not including parody), but even two of our most commonly used graphics engines are made by Japanese developers.

This is why we still use some Japanese terms. It's not just NTR, but we also have Bukkake and Futanari as well. If you dig a bit deeper, we actually use a ton of Japanese-originating words but unlike those three, several have been translated. These include Trap, Dating Sim and even Visual Novel.
 

desmosome

Conversation Conqueror
Sep 5, 2018
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... then it's also falling under NTR umbrella. At least here. I'm commenting on this specifically because there's this common trope that I don't understand. That is that the cuck is clueless to the point of idiocy. The game is absolutely obvious about what's happenning and yet the MC doesn't get the hint, and is not jealous (because how can you be jealous if you don't suspect infidelity?)

Also fem MC cheating on her BF can also be tagged netorare. Or, let me rephrase. Not can be tagged. Have been tagged. So let's not pretend these tags have good, enforced definitions, at least right now.
I'll just go with this one to reply. So many answers up to this point, and as usual, everyone has their own ideas about what it means lol. I'm not directing the next portion to anyone specifically. Just some food for thought for anyone interested.

Have you noticed that the vast majority of NTR games from Japan indeed does feature a clueless male? Have you noticed a very large number of them feature the female protagonist even? Are you thinking that these Japanese people have no clue what the fuck they are talking about? But maybe you are the one that don't quite understand what their angle is with this brand of stories where a clueless guy is getting his girl stolen throughout the story?

If we get down to it, netorare is dealing with the immorality, betrayal, and corruption of the woman. Whether the player chooses to self insert as the cuck, or just use him as a cursor and plot device, his role is basically just to be the one getting cheated on. In most cases he doesn't know until the ending sequence, because most netorare stories are not about the cuckoldry fetish that is popular in the west. The focus is on the woman. The way it differs from straight up cheating is that her cheating is initiated by the antagonist. She doesn't seek him out to cheat initially, but is corrupted by whatever means into cheating willingly later on. You could talk about Netorare Type A or whatever vndb wants to do, but there is a reason that you don't see very many Type A stories from Japan. It's an off shoot of the genre for them. The vast vast majority are Type B which are about the girl being corrupted. You could also say that whether she cheats willingly or not, it's still cheating, and you'd be right. But netorare is a more... focused and prolonged story arc, more than any single act of cheating itself.

As you can see, netorare, cheating, unwilling cuckoldry, etc etc, they all kind of blur together. It's understandable to be confused, but the simple and most consistent way to view netorare is to just think of it as a corruption story where a female is subjected to the corruption arc by the antagonist and eventually falls completely by the end, throwing away whatever bond she had with her loved one prior to the story. There are of course variations, but we can look at the majority in the genre and come to some understanding about what is driving this fetish.

And what's more, the things that being stolen, or broken, is the bond between two people. Actual couples obviously share a romantic bond and expectations of faithfulness, but netorare doesn't limit itself to strictly romantic bonds. Close friendships and familial bonds being common ones.
 
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Amanda Carter

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Jun 7, 2017
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At the start, netorare was used at Japan as "stealing someone's loved one by sex." So for something to be netorare, the girl/guy must be pure at the beginning and must be corrupted slowly until she/he is totally fallen. Cheating and cucking was different at that time. But, as netorare becomes more successful and prominent, people started to call all cheating/cucking as netorare. One of the reasons for it is, of course, how much netorare is successful and people are ready to pay for it. So, if you call your movie/game/hentai as cheating, it will sell less than when you call it netorare.

Most of words meaning change with time. For example, French were using the word "goupil" for the fox at the middle ages. Then, a very famous novel is published about a fox named "Renart". And french started calling all foxes as "renard".