Date Everything: How to romance River

If you're looking to romance River in Date Everything, you’ll quickly realize she’s one of the more layered and emotionally fragile dateables in the entire house. As the living embodiment of your home's water, her identity constantly shifts — not just in appearance but in personality too. And while that might sound intriguing, underneath it all, she’s just trying to figure out who she really is.

Your job? Help her see that she doesn’t need to twist herself into someone else just to be loved. You can meet with any running water inside the house, like a sink. That’s enough to get River in Date Everything to show up and introduce herself.

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How to romance River in Date Everything

In Date Everything, your first ending with the character gives +5 Empathy, no matter the outcome (Image via Team17)

River is tricky, not because she’s hard to please, but because she’s trying so hard to be someone she’s not. The first encounter won’t go deep right away. But it lays the groundwork for everything else to follow. You’ll often catch her mimicking other personalities, flipping tones mid-convo, and more.

In every scene, the key is to stay grounded — don’t get swept up in her changes. When she’s trying to be someone else, steer the conversation back to her. Let her know that you’re interested in the version of her that’s calm, uncertain, or even awkward — not the one that’s putting on a show. Never define her, and don’t pressure her into choosing who she should be. Just be honest and consistent, especially in scenes where she struggles to find her footing.

As you continue supporting her through those identity struggles (including moments when she bumps heads with other dateables), River will start dropping the personas. Eventually, she opens up completely. That’s when the real romance appears — you’ll get the choice to tell her you’ve fallen for the version of her that isn’t trying to please anyone.

Alternate endings

Not every path with her needs to lead to love in Date Everything. If you take the same supportive path described above but want to keep things platonic, you can switch to a friendship route instead.

If you’re aiming for the hate ending, that’s a whole different story. Be rude, dismissive, or mock her when she opens up. React coldly when she tries on new identities. Be the exact kind of person she’s terrified of being around. Eventually, it will lock in the hate ending.

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SPECS requirements

To unlock River’s true ending in Date Everything, you must hit some solid milestones in your stats. Here’s what’s required before her full arc opens up:

• Smarts: 45
• Poise: 45
• Empathy: 45
• Charm: 65
• Sass: 50

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River's collectables – How to get them

Her collectables are mostly earned through natural progression in her storyline. You need not hunt for them like with some other dateables. Just stick with her scenes and conversations.

• Collectible 1: You’ll get this automatically when she cracks a pun about a certain singer.
• Collectible 2: This shows up during her story when you talk to Bathsheba.
• Collectible 3: Paint with River when prompted.

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If you're patient, kind, and genuinely interested in helping her feel comfortable in her skin, romancing River in Date Everything ends up being one of the most rewarding arcs in the game.