Recommending Story-first games

[365 others]

"Power Vacuum" Is it good? At first glance I just thought we would be in the shoes of a brainless muscular fool.

I've never played it so that's why I'm asking.

There are mixed reviews about that game, so I'll enumerate the main points I like and dislike about it:

Pros:

• It is conveniently divided into well-defined chapters (clear beginning, development, and end). It might sound ridiculous, but it helps me to "cut" clean a reading without leaving a too annoying hang cliff. You can stop at the end of the chapter and won't have the strong feeling something's missing.
• Every LI is well written (character traits, motives, likes, and dislikes), and their relationship with the MC is unique.
• MC evolves from a "brainless muscular fool" to a somewhat less brainless (still quite dumb, IMHO) during the story.
• The NTR is the consequence of bad decisions made by the MC. If you choose the right options, you don't get to see them. If you choose the bad ones, the game takes you to the decision-making point, so you can rectify, making the NTR "endings" not the canon ending.
• Good art (renders, animations).
• The stories (both the main arc and side stories) are interesting, and related to each other with enough order not to lose sense or cohesion as they go.

Cons:

• It seems the dev is rather absent. Not too many updates, not constant and the story seems to be being updated with drop counts.
• MC is quite dumb, it's hard to relate to him. Makes poor decisions based on nearly no rationalizing.
• While I like several traits of their characters, LI's are barely above stupid regarding the antagonist. I mean, it's crystal clear, and pretty much any woman I know would figure out something's wrong with the antagonist's antics, but for some reason, they are rather confident in him. It feels weird considering how they actively distrust the MC even tho they had no contact with him for years, while the antagonist is very clearly perving them.

Overall I liked it enough to keep playing it, but not to sub to it.

 

[Birdnman993]

There are mixed reviews about that game, so I'll enumerate the main points I like and dislike about it:

Overall I liked it enough to keep playing it, but not to sub to it.

Thanks for the response, it's basically everything I thought it would be with the images I saw, the MC model is almost always used when I see it to make a pathetic character in several titles, although I'll take a look at it.

The LIs might be entertaining enough to keep going.

 

[365 others]

Out of all the vns/games mentioned in this thread, which ones would you guys say have a smart MC?
I just started a couple of new VNs (well, new meaning I haven't played those before) and realized that so far I can't recall one where the MC isn't at least somewhat dumb.

I get that for the story's sake, MCs need to evolve as well as the other characters, but even for those I played in this list, I find many of the MCs slow in the best cases.

 

[Blizzard99]

Out of all the vns/games mentioned in this thread, which ones would you guys say have a smart MC?

In the OP post: Ashes of War, Leaving DNA, Nothing is Forever and Sorcerer.

Edit: I haven't played all the games mentioned in the OP post.

 

[Kavin123]

Can anyone suggest some great story games like chasing sunsets, leap of faith, intertwined and summer's gone????

 

[365 others]

Can anyone suggest some great story games like chasing sunsets, leap of faith, intertwined and summer's gone????

I asked something very similar, pretty much any of the games/vns in this thread have a good story. Check out Jaike's response to my question a few days ago:

Here's an edited list where I took out the definitely abandoned games and marked all the completed ones with C. I could tell there were way more completed games than abandoned games. I marked Elvensang as "abandoned?" because it was abandoned not long ago and then restarted.

Spoiler: edited list

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And here's a link to kotte's list.

 

[Arisushi]

The latest update of Twin Eclipse is out. I'd like to think it's a story first game. (It doesn't even have any sex in it yet.)

As usual, nobody really cares about the game on its main thread. So, I came here for feedback.

I let my real life situation dictate the direction of the vn and made some weird storytelling decisions. (Which I personally liked when making them). But I have no idea whether those choices actually worked, or if I've turned everything into a giant mess.

Would be really grateful if anyone here could check it out and let me know your thoughts on the update, game, or just the overall consistency of the story.

It's quite late in the night over here, and I'm pretty sleep deprived. So, if anyone responds while I'm offline and struggling to sleep, thank you very much. Means a lot.

 

[Tlaero]

Hey Arisushi. I'm not sure that I'll be able to get to it tonight, but I'll definitely read it sometime this weekend.

Tlaero

 

[FatGiant]

Hey Arisushi. I'm not sure that I'll be able to get to it tonight, but I'll definitely read it sometime this weekend.

Tlaero

I took a look at the OP couldn't build enough interest to download. It's not even the absence of sex, I dunno, there was not anything that interested me enough.

So, I'll wait for Tlaero opinion, paired with Arisushi clear interest in the story, maybe I can find something that grabs me.

Peace

 

[365 others]

The latest update of Twin Eclipse is out. I'd like to think it's a story first game. (It doesn't even have any sex in it yet.)

As usual, nobody really cares about the game on its main thread. So, I came here for feedback.

I let my real life situation dictate the direction of the vn and made some weird storytelling decisions. (Which I personally liked when making them). But I have no idea whether those choices actually worked, or if I've turned everything into a giant mess.

Would be really grateful if anyone here could check it out and let me know your thoughts on the update, game, or just the overall consistency of the story.

It's quite late in the night over here, and I'm pretty sleep deprived. So, if anyone responds while I'm offline and struggling to sleep, thank you very much. Means a lot.

I gave it a try and was quite surprised by a few elements.

First things first, I think it's the only Indian culture-based game besides Insimology I've seen on this site, and I have to say its premise looks far more interesting than the one on Insimology.

The art is very good. Even when I'm not much of a fan of that style (it kind of reminds me of the images in my old high school textbooks), overall the UI and arts are very easy on the eye, and I liked them.

I have to say, tho, that you did not do any favors or justice to your VN's premise on the OP. It lacks any hint of what the story your VN has, the banner shows something different from what is described on the OP (even if it later makes sense when playing it) and honestly doesn't seem very appealing.

The first chapter/act completely fooled me. I was on the edge of closing it, as It was completely out of my taste. I felt it was like reading some conversation taken out of a chick-flick rom-com, with honestly no meaning nor relevance to the story at all. Adding to it the fact that the game neither has nor will have adult content at all (at least not according to the laws in my country), made me disinterested in it.

However, I wanted to at least push through Chapter 2 to see if the writing style was still consistent with the chick-flick of the first chapter or if there were any new elements or anything I could somehow enjoy from it.

I'm glad I did, as it has become a bit more interesting. I found it funny, as it reminded me of that story about a teacher leaving the assignment about "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" and having his 2 students write a story that changed from a love-drama (on the girl's side) to a space-war (on the boy side) story. The storytelling goes from a boring conversation out of a typical rom-com in Chapter 1 to a Ghost Whisperer type of thing in Chapter 2.

I like the fact that you're using elements from your cultural background for the fantasy/mystic side of the story, and given that it's from India it kinda makes me curious about what these beings are, and what will be the relationship between the sisters.

I'm still not sure if I like it or not. The way the writing describes things (focused more on situations rather than introducing the characters or giving some background), and the type of relationship between the FMC and the people around her is not the type of story I usually like. Imho, it makes things a bit heavy to read.

I'll still read one or two more chapters and will update my feedback based on it.

 

[Arisushi]

Hey Arisushi. I'm not sure that I'll be able to get to it tonight, but I'll definitely read it sometime this weekend.

Tlaero

Thank you. Eagerly looking forward to hear your feedback

 

[Arisushi]

I gave it a try and was quite surprised by a few elements.

First things first, I think it's the only Indian culture-based game besides Insimology I've seen on this site, and I have to say its premise looks far more interesting than the one on Insimology.

The art is very good. Even when I'm not much of a fan of that style (it kind of reminds me of the images in my old high school textbooks), overall the UI and arts are very easy on the eye, and I liked them.

I have to say, tho, that you did not do any favors or justice to your VN's premise on the OP. It lacks any hint of what the story your VN has, the banner shows something different from what is described on the OP (even if it later makes sense when playing it) and honestly doesn't seem very appealing.

The first chapter/act completely fooled me. I was on the edge of closing it, as It was completely out of my taste. I felt it was like reading some conversation taken out of a chick-flick rom-com, with honestly no meaning nor relevance to the story at all. Adding to it the fact that the game neither has nor will have adult content at all (at least not according to the laws in my country), made me disinterested in it.

However, I wanted to at least push through Chapter 2 to see if the writing style was still consistent with the chick-flick of the first chapter or if there were any new elements or anything I could somehow enjoy from it.

I'm glad I did, as it has become a bit more interesting. I found it funny, as it reminded me of that story about a teacher leaving the assignment about "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" and having his 2 students write a story that changed from a love-drama (on the girl's side) to a space-war (on the boy side) story. The storytelling goes from a boring conversation out of a typical rom-com in Chapter 1 to a Ghost Whisperer type of thing in Chapter 2.

I like the fact that you're using elements from your cultural background for the fantasy/mystic side of the story, and given that it's from India it kinda makes me curious about what these beings are, and what will be the relationship between the sisters.

I'm still not sure if I like it or not. The way the writing describes things (focused more on situations rather than introducing the characters or giving some background), and the type of relationship between the FMC and the people around her is not the type of story I usually like. Imho, it makes things a bit heavy to read.

I'll still read one or two more chapters and will update my feedback based on it.

Thanks a lot for taking the time to play. Means a lot.

As I had replied to FatGiant in the game's thread, I can see how I shot myself in the foot by keeping the description so vague.

But it was intentionally made that way, so when the first "big reveal" happens, the players would feel just as shocked as the character.

Still, I understand how the decision might keep players away from checking out the game itself, and I'll try to make description that works better without compromising on the surprise too.

I understand the criticism about the slice-of-life / fluffy portions not clicking for you and almost taking you out of the game. And how the two shades of the game feel too different from each other.

Unfortunately, that's just the tone I'm going for with this series. So, there won't be any changes to the game on that regards.

Still, I'm glad you liked the magical parts of the story and found the cultural angle of it intriguing. Lots more of that to come in the future.

I hope I can do a good enough job to convince you to stick with the game in the future update(s).

Once again, thank you for the feedback. Much appreciated

 

[Raife]

I rewatched _Mad Max: Fury Road_ last night, which is pretty much my favourite action movie. It's hard to beat for pure spectacle and imaginative vision. But the thing that gets overlooked is the quality of the relationship-building between Max and Furiosa... especially the authenticity of the rapid buildup in intimacy between characters who start as antagonists.

MF:FR is not a romance, but the dynamic involving the two leads is something at AVN devs often miss in their romances. Respect, vulnerability, and intimacy are at least as important in romances as sex and attraction... and the way George Miller's characters show those feelings to each other during the second half of the film is worth emulating.

What's all the more remarkable is that so much of the relationship building is visual and non-verbal. The two actors do most of their communicating without words... not just in the final scene (which always gets me), but in nearly every scene after they start trusting each other.

It would be great to see more of that in games. Some devs _do_ get it, and have experimented with how to convey real intimacy (hat tips to Impious, Dark Blue, and Talaero) but MF:FR is a good template for others.

 

[jufot]

Just tried out Dancing Colors. It's about a nerdy stargazer guy doing... well, stargazing. It feels calm and atmospheric, and avoids a bunch of the usual tropes, like the jock best friend who is just a kind, normal dude; the girl friend who really is a "girl who is a friend" despite dating the jock; the mother who is completely desexualized etc. Episode 1 is very brief, and it's hard to tell where it might end up, but it's off to a good start.

 

[FatGiant]

Just tried out Dancing Colors. It's about a nerdy stargazer guy doing... well, stargazing. It feels calm and atmospheric, and avoids a bunch of the usual tropes like the jock best friend who is just a kind, normal dude; the girl friend who really is a "girl who is a friend" despite dating the jock; the mother who is completely desexualized etc. Episode 1 is very brief, and it's hard to tell where it might end up, but it's off to a good start.

I looked at it when it launched, the Cheating in future tags sealed it's fate.

Peace

 

[jufot]

I looked at it when it launched, the Cheating in future tags sealed it's fate.

I hadn't noticed that. We don't know who will be cheating, but even if it's an LI, I'm still interested because for once we might get a proper cheating storyline that isn't tropey netorare nonsense like humiliating the MC.

 

[FatGiant]

I hadn't noticed that. We don't know who will be cheating, but even if it's an LI, I'm still interested because for once we might get a proper cheating storyline that isn't tropey netorare nonsense like humiliating the MC.

Since you said that the "friend" dates the jock... maybe that's it.

I don't know... I'm yet to see a story here where the Cheating tag leads to anything of any value. All I've seen so far is pandering to the netorare crowd while narrowly avoiding it. All I know is that, unless there is a clear explanation of what the tag refers too, I will not touch it and will always press Ignore Thread.

Also, if a story needs to involve cheating for shock factor, or as a plot point, there's very little chance that it is any good. My opinion, I know.

Peace

 

[Bombmaster]

Since you said that the "friend" dates the jock... maybe that's it.

I don't know... I'm yet to see a story here where the Cheating tag leads to anything of any value. All I've seen so far is pandering to the netorare crowd while narrowly avoiding it. All I know is that, unless there is a clear explanation of what the tag refers too, I will not touch it and will always press Ignore Thread.

Also, if a story needs to involve cheating for shock factor, or as a plot point, there's very little chance that it is any good. My opinion, I know.

Peace

Good take, still cheating opener, is fine right?
is one reasonable motive to have a non vanilla MC. Starting from trauma/Betrayal
(allowing redemption or corruption esque plot)
I kinda dig, this way you have a pass to be edgelord. *in plot*

 

[FatGiant]

Good take, still cheating opener, is fine right?
is one reasonable motive to have a non vanilla MC. Starting from trauma/Betrayal
(allowing redemption or corruption esque plot)
I kinda dig, this way you have a pass to be edgelord. *in plot*

Yeah, but since this is in the Future Tags, doesn't look like it.

Peace

 

[Hildegardt]

All I know is that, unless there is a clear explanation of what the tag refers too, I will not touch it and will always press Ignore Thread.

Can we please not let this thread get infected with this entitled rhetoric, too? It's the last safe haven on this site.