- Jul 29, 2017
- 539
- 1,140
If the points you make were portrayed at least somewhat realistically that would be OK, but the continuing complaint is that they're inconsistent and shallow. They exist simply to serve the gameplay, rather than have a compelling story altogether. Nobody initiates with Max because of the grind-style gameplay, he doesn't leave the house because that would require an entirely new location with options etc. etc.Maybe I'm a weirdo or getting it all wrong but I don't have any major problems with the game writing...
To me, Max is portrayed mostly as a young, hormone-driven sociopath who is eager to bang anything with tits. I see his incestious tendancies mostly as "targets of opportunity" since he never leaves the house and rarely shows any true empathy towards his family. Likewise, the women never seem to initiate with him. In that sense, the incest is incidental. So, I don't mind if he wants to bang Olivia, other than the fact that she is fake-tan-orange. IMO, the 3-somes with her and Lisa are among the hottest scenes in the game and I would probably pursue that path every time if the content wasn't mutually exclusive to Lisa's lessons.
I don't have a problem with Ann being consumed by Eric either. We don't really know how long it's been since she has had a lover prior to him. It could have been a very long time. In those circumstances, it's not unthinkable that she would be D-whipped from the outset. It's not her fault that she is not a strong and individualistic woman. That said, it's apparent that she is mostly just interested in the sexual aspect of their relationship as once you begin giving Eric the limp-dick pills, his influence rapidly plummets. Aside from that, we should consider that in a healthy BDSM relationship, it is the submissive who wields the ultimate power because it is by their consent that they are dominated. I'm not saying that their relationship is totally healthy but am also not inclined to believe that she is abused (beyond her consent) by him either (aside from the larger con-job).
With that in mind, I am not completely surprised when Ann is willing to take the word of her lover over that of her sociopathic son. However, I do think it would be appropriate for confrontations about Eric's peeping to serve in reducing Eric's influence (perhaps even lower his maximum influence over her).
Now, before anyone accuses me of being an Eric loving cuck, let me say that I hate the dude and take massive satisfaction in cock-blocking Eric at every turn. If done patiently and correctly, Eric will never touch either of Max's sisters or Aunt Kira. It's only too bad that certain paths seemingly can't progress until he is gone. I would love to be grinding Eric's gears by having him know that Max is buttfucking Lisa in the kitchen or having fun with her and Kira without him being able to do anything about it.
Sadly, I feel that the gameplay becomes super boring once Eric is gone (a hero is only as great as his nemesis, right?). Once he's gone, I have no motivation to visit the ladies of the house and find myself just waiting through whole days trying to get different progression events to trigger. Unfortunately, He eventually becomes a progression hinderance and there's no choice but to be rid of him. It is hinted there will be more content with him as a pawn in the future so I remain somewhat optimistic...
The hacker blackmail path has potential to become interesting. For reasons stated in-game, the bait and switch path to fucking Ann should not be so simple but I don't think it would preclude other entertaining scenarios such as Max jizzing on her while blindfolded or using toys on her. It is also hinted at that Max could find a consensual route to fucking Ann with Eric's help but that it would take some time to devise. I would laugh if indeed this became the quickest route to repeatedly fucking Ann (if not the only route).
There should also be a path to finding the hidden the camera that Eric has hidden in Ann's room (The one he uses to record Max and Kira). I think it's safe to assume he has also been recording himself and Ann and will be using these videos to help coerce Ann into signing over the house to him. Presumably, Max could threaten to tell Ann about it to further control Eric although there is a chance she would already know about the camera and being recorded.
Now, if DS really wanted to conflict folks, he would implement an opposite-spectrum mechanic to keeping Eric... Something like making it necessary to preserve a certain percentage of Eric's influence to keep him from cutting his losses and leaving on his own (after certain story flags have been set).
Ultimately, I'm pretty satisfied with the direction DS has taken so far and am happy to be a low-tier Patreon supporter. BB is more game than visual novel and I appreciate that. There's obviously still much potential for improvement. I hope we will be seeing much more "end-game/post-Eric" content and more variety in sexual encounters like Max titfucking Kira or exploring sleep encounters. It would also be great if you could completely cock-block Eric while he is at the house (ruin the morning bathroom scene).
Sorry for the TL: DR... just wanted to share some thoughts on a game that I think is pretty cool
What I fail to understand, when people justify Ann trusting Eric over Max, is where do you draw the line ? Would she allow Eric to bang Kira, Alice or Lisa due to being submissive ? If not, then why during a particular scene does she trust the person who's out naked with his dick in hand instead of her clothed son. How much more obvious could things be in that situation ? To top it off, Max is blamed for said act and suddenly turns so retarded he forgets to say he was going to the toilet. At this point you might argue that Max is actually retarded all the time, but how would he be able to take advantage of Alice in the Blog opportunity if that's the case ? Furthermore take another side of Max - anybody acting the way he does in real-life would be insta-shipped to military school without the need for Eric to suggest anything at all.
Inconsistency piled upon inconsistency, has desensitized some players to the point where they unconsciously accept them or excuse them with gameplay choices. Yes, these story points are made to serve the gameplay, but it's not impossible to have good gameplay which serves the story. As I've mentioned before - imagine if Eric wasn't a douchebag and built genuine affection with the rest of the family. The impact on gameplay would be roughly the same, but the story would become infinitely more mature/realistic than the juvenile fantasy it is right now.
P.S. I'd recommend trying out Dreaming of Dana to anyone who hasn't done so yet. Yes, the gameplay is much weaker than Big Brother, but writing-wise it's the best and most realistic (incest) story of any game. It proves you can have an interesting sexually charged narrative, without it devolving to nonsensical plot threads to create artificial drama.
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