VN - Ren'Py - Completed - Something to Write About: The Author [Ch. 7.1] [STWAdev]

Fantastic VN, I had no idea what to expect coming in and after a few chapters, but the plot fleshed out nicely as it progressed. The cast was full of lovely ladies, the decisions had an impact on the game, and the route separation was flawless. It had a good balance of shocks that weren't too out of place, as well as its share of emotional moments. All of the endings appeared to be near-perfect and were worth going through.

I played this game in the last few days and I have to say that it was an amazing experience.

If you've been here long enough to see games that lack in the storytelling department, you see some that have the story down perfectly, but aren't that good with the renders, but this game has it all and I'd love to give it 4,5/5 overall, but sadly there are no ,5 numbers here, so I'll have to settle for a 4/5 - I hope neither the dev (if they ever read this) nor anyone else takes it the wrong way, but I feel like getting a perfect score for a game, even the best one out there is nigh impossible.

That being said, the game has an amazing cast of different, charming and very loveable characters and while the story is also exceptionally well written, I feel like the characters are the bread and butter of the VN and the main reason I enjoyed it so much.
What surprised me towards the end was that the endings were pretty much always completely different when you actually chose a specific girl contrary to whe you didn't choose them. Not a bad choice, but certainly not what I expected with Lyndie for example.

I never imagine the game to be this interesting to play. It is usually hard for me to read tons of words and sentences in an AVN, and only a few ones are able to keep me engaged from start to finish, and STWA: The Author is certainly one of them.

Pros:
- Story: The story itself is actually quite simple, yet the way the developer progresses makes it more enjoyable to watch. That's not much happening, yet it is the combination of each simple stories that makes the game amazing.
- Character: Perhaps the most significant factor that makes me fall in love with this game. Every character is portrayed in the most believable way, and their character arc is unique in their own right. The progression to each girls' is very captivating to the point that lewd scenes feel more like a reward for my relationship hardship than something that I long for in the first place. I especially love the move that the developer tries to make a pseudo-harem theme only in the latter part of the game to tell us that in reality we are bound to choose in the end. Aoife and Lyndie (and maybe Beatrix) are certainly the de facto main girls in the game, and it seems to me that Aoife/Lyndie throuple relationship is more or less the official ending in the game and it is the one that I personally cherish. They are probably two of my Top 10 girls in AVNs and huge thanks for the dev in creating these two sweethearts.

Cons:
- There're some grammatical error and typos in the game that are hard to miss.
- No much animation in the game (especially in lewd scenes), but I don't actually mind that much.
- Some of the plot devices (such as MC's ex) are underused clearly.

Overall, great AVN, highly recommend it.

Very good game story wise where each girl has their own personalities and aren't flat as paper. The graphics aren't quite to snuff and the game length as a whole feels a bit short. There were things that could've been explored but overall it is a great game. This game overall is good, esp for a 3D game since I tend to prefer "2D" games more.

To be honest, I didn't even know what to expect from this game when I downloaded it. I stumbled upon this game quite by accident, after I read a short review about it in one Subreddit. And it wasn't the first time someone mentioned this game, given the fact that this game is completed, I just couldn't pass it up.

What can I say? The game is pretty good. I can't say that I enjoyed it enough to replay it a few more times to see different endings and character interactions, but I really liked it. This is one of the few games in which the lack of animations did not disappoint me at all, because I was really interested in the story. The sex scenes were some kind of "bonus" that I didn't pay too much attention to.

From the good, I can note really well-written characters. They felt much more alive and realistic than the characters in other more "popular" games.
As for the plot, I can not say anything bad, I was interested in watching the development of the story. But some of the action was a bit exxagerated and the pace of the game was a bit faster than I would have liked. I'm not a fan of similar "timeskips" between parts of the game.

Grammar and punctuation mistakes slightly spoiled the impression, but not enough to affect my opinion.

I also liked the ending, especially the description of the life of other characters with whom the MC did not have an affair.

Overall, the game is very good. As I said, I did not expect that I would get so much pleasure from game. Can I recommend it to other? Yes.

The Author is one of these games where you launch it with your pants down and after one chapter pull them back and stay for the feels. I don't even feel cheated.

The writing

The story is good, and the girls have actual personalities that you gradually discover over the course of the game. There are a few typos here and there, some of the relationships felt like they were advancing rather quickly behind my back (there a few time skips between chapters that would've benefited from a montage) and the big "why does the MC hate his childhood friend" reveal does feel like a rug pull because the MC was phenomenally stupid, but then the story gets better and the next big reveal is very unexpected, but in a good way.

The art

While some of the locations are obvious stock assets, the main girls themselves mostly aren't. They have been given different faces, bodies, wardrobes, and the lighting/shaders are set up in a way that doesn't make them look plastic. There are no obviously recycled renders.

The gameplay

The VN is mostly linear, and there are no challenge choices that lead to nasty surprises down the line. It's a chill game that doesn't try to punish you.

The coding

I haven't encountered any bugs during my gameplay. Sometimes the game asked me about the choices I had made, probably because the makers forgot to set up the relevant flags in advance.

The lewdness

I didn't try to view every lewd scene during my first playthrough, and if you stick to a single love route you might find them sparse. There were no animations, and the scenes felt a bit rushed, even though the renders and the writing was good.

The verdict

While this might not be the best lewd VN, it's still a damn good VN with a happy ending that I thoroughly enjoyed.

it good.
nothing fancy but its amazing if you're into vanilla shit

right so the rest of what i'm going into is obviously my own opinion so take with a grain of salt . Also Spoilers


so the whole thing is story of a guy recovering from one big ass depression.
is in his late twenties but talks like hes sixty but has more guts than i would expected him to have which is nice

quick notes :

the girls are all written fairly well considering this a drama story which means you only get chicks yapping the whole time.
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there is a relationship system with numbers if you have not noticed so consider that if you aren't playing with the mod
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the story itself is very linear you go forward you learn stuff . the stuff is going to happen . you react to stuff . flirt with chicks in the middle.
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the chick are hot
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sex is ok but not epic



my biggest dislike is that it didn't made me feel like anything of importance is happening to these characters but they did ok given the medium and the setup ill be moving on their next game.

So much better than I had originally thought it would be. I downloaded it thinking I would stop playing within 30 mins to an hour. But instead I played for about 4-5 hours straight. I played through the Beatrix route as she suited my personal preferences more than the other girls. I really liked the ending and the little after story of her being pregnant. Over all, I would give it a 9/10 I only wish it was a little longer.

A good story based visual novel with a few twists that you don't see coming.

Pros

• Good renders and visuals
• Good character models
• Good story
• Good writing
• Unique character personalities
• Somewhat original story

Cons

• Low emphasis on sex and lewd content - low amount
• Low FPS animations - 2 to 4 frame animations look terrible
• Rushed sex events that are brief, lack buildup, and lack passion
• MC's face is intentionally hidden throughout the game - I'm not a fan of this
• Poor English - yet another author who doesn't use a proofreader

We have yet another game where if the author fixed a few things they could have a 5 star game. The adult content in the game is rushed and lacking. The animations are poor. The writing badly needs a proofreader. If you aren't a native English speaker please get some help from someone who is!

Overall, a good game that is worth a playthrough. I recommend it for the story. Fappers look elsewhere.

I really enjoyed this game! The premise is straightforward, but the game takes its time establishing the Main Character's backstory, allowing us to get a sense of who he is now and how the trauma in his past shaped him.

Likewise the girls are all well realized, both visually and as characters. The game is definitely on the slow-burn side of things, but the build up was enjoyable and the heat at the end was worth the wait. As I'm a big fan of romance in AVNs, this game definitely scratched my itch. The game even has one of the more credible throuple paths I've come across (though personally I still think the two girls work a little better on their own).

Beyond the characters, the game is - appropriately enough - well written. There are minimal grammatic errors, character "voice" is consistent, and the narration does an effective job enhancing the scenes without overshadowing the either the dialog or the events on screen.

From a production point of view the game is very no-frills. There is no music and minimal animations. Likewise there are no additional gameplay elements - mini-games or grinding activities. If you enjoy those sorts of things this game may not work as well for you, but for myself I'm happy to let the game focus on the story and characters.

If I had to name any weakness in the game, it's that the game sometimes falls into a pseudo-harem feel, and that the ending is a bit sudden.

On the first, the game definitely plays up the cliche of women throwing themselves at the main character, which does get a bit monotonous at times. It will also tease the way the MC has built his own harem on several occasions (even if the MC has declined to romance multiple girls). I'm not really a fan of the harem style, so this fell a bit flat for me, but as we do have to choose a girl in the end it never bothered me much. I can see how harem fans might find that more frustrating, though.

On the abruptness of the ending, it's not that the game feels rushed. It ends at a logical point and addresses the main points that had been raised. It's more that the game ends when there was still so much left to explore. Yes, the MC has picked his girl and written his book, but it does feel like we could have seen how the changed dynamics played out a little further before the curtain fell. This is particularly true with Camilla May: her relationship with Aoife, Beatrix, and even the MC is setup in great detail, but the resolutions are very quick. The resolution to Kimberly's story likewise leaves a lot of material unexplored. Again, this is a minor complaint, as it could be argued those details are beyond the scope of this game, but it is disappointing that they were raised only to be left to our speculation.

Still, minor concerns aside, I consider this one of the better games I've played so far. Well done!

(For the record, I played the completed Ch 7.)

Great story i really enjoyed it.
I have only played a few vn's that hit on the mental health topic before but as someone who has people i am close to with different mental illnesses and bipolar disorder i think the dev did a really good job at developing the story with those aspects it is really light hearted and isn't to dark or overbearing.
I look forward to seeing the future projects from this dev.

Finished this beautiful beast today and I have to say I loved it. A bit of drama and stuff about mental illness but nothing off-putting for my taste. There are certain endings I couldn't get and not really looking for a walkthrough so I can check them out, I'm more than satisfied with the poly ending with 3 beautiful girls that I love and feel like a family. Best ending imo. The other 2 endings I managed to get were also cool. This was quite a ride, I'm happy I got the complete experience out of it and I will definitely check out Unbroken from the same dev, if it's anything like this then wow.

Incredible AVN, did not know what to expect coming in and after a few chapters, but as it went on the story fleshed out perfectly. The cast was filled with great girls, the choices had effects on the game, and the separation of routes was done perfectly. Great balance of surprises that werent too over the top, as well as its fair share of emotional moments. The endings all seemed near perfect and were worth playing through. cant wait to start unbroken.

Incredible game, the writing and the friends' group made me so immersed I thought I really was in.

The girls are really nicely fleshed out and varied some have really great designs (Dru & Lyndie), this game is beautiful in its story.

Was really engrossed all the time I read.

I'd really recommend, to get an even better experience, to use the Koga3 sounds mod that has great soundtracks.

5/5 well-deserved.

Good story, tackling matters some dont even dare to mention in adult games. A LOT of paths with nice endings. Amazing models/enviroments and animations are good. Worth playing ever more so for the story.

Was ok, just not what I was thinking it would be, the story was very shallow and didn't have anything that really grabbed me in order to continue playing. Even four chapters in I was still waiting for something to sneak up and hook me but it never came.

An amazing game from start to finish. Which to be honest, that a game has a finish nowadays is a novelty. The characters were really loveable and the plot was interesting enough to keep me hooked from start to finish. One of the best games Ive played in the platform.

This was an amazing experience, I loved every second of it. From the characters to the story itself, there's no other way to describe it than truly excellent.

Additionally, the level of maturity in the approach to the themes broached in this game astounds me, I can honestly say this is probably the best VN I've ever played.

ch 7.1
This game has potential - cute girls, some lewd scenes, yet it has this cheap rushed feel.
Right from the start the MC said:
'I guess I've been out of the game longer than I expected, however I wasn't expecting to try getting laid tonight.' - it made me doubt his credentials of 'bestselling author'.
The conversations are pretentious and ripe with typos not worth more reviewing.
The girls are cute yet they have the ugliest smiles - lazy graphics job there.
Still the game is entertaining if you fly over the horseshit dialog.
All around poor job.

The weakest part of The Author was the quality of the writing.

The game often feels like a harem game, as the women all tend to fling themselves at you for no reason at all. The developer realized that this was a problem, but didn't do anything to address it other than to make some jokes about it that just end up making it more noticeable.

Railroading is a bit of an issue at times, especially when dealing with the assistant who I personally couldn't stand. She constantly flirts with you, and then gets angry when you reject her each time. Eventually we get a scene where she asks if we will be keeping her as an employee, and we can only choose to either say yes or maybe. The lack of a definite no made it feel like everyone who disliked her could go suck eggs, and it made her role in the story feel very contrived and forced.

There are definitive choices to be made about who you wish to have sex with, so you won't ever have to deal with any mandatory sex scenes with a character you dislike. Which is great, but it would be better if the game could actually keep track of your choices instead of needing you to input them again because it forgot what you did last chapter.

Out of all of the potential love interests, there was only one that managed to hold my interest enough to actually finish the game. Most of them made rather poor first impressions, so I had originally just been interested in Lyndie. However, that came to a screeching halt when she inexplicably decided to act like an anime cat girl and turn what should've been a high point of the game into its worst scene. I honestly don't understand why the developer thought that was ever a good idea. It was so awkward that I lost all interest in her and ended up pursuing someone else instead.

By the end of the game, there was only one character that I found even remotely interesting. And even then I didn't care much because I didn't like the main character by that point. The game had potential to be good, but it just kept tripping over its own feet.