Ren'Py - A House in the Rift [v0.7.11 Beta] [Zanith]

[Reviewed in v0.6.2.5]

A unique setup with excellent execution. The girls give a nice range of looks and personalities and are largely enjoyable to look at and interact with. The renders are great, and the animations look original and very high quality. Highly recommended.

I was initially drawn to this game by the unique setup in the description, though partially concerned about being stuck in a house with nowhere to go. While you do spend a very large portion of the game stuck in the house there is still plenty to keep you interested therein. And, there are plenty enough opportunities to get out and explore, just not as much as most other games, given the setup.

For a long time I put this game aside despite being very intrigued by the description because the sample images with the red-head looked like her head was very strangely narrow, and I feared the character designs would be too off-putting. I am very glad I did not let that stop me since largely I enjoy the girls' designs, and said red-head quickly became one of my favorite characters.

The first girl, a succubus, is easily the best, both in personality and design. The large muscular pirate captain I like, but she feels lacking in ways I can't really put my finger on, both in looks and personality. The red-head is endlessly enjoyable to chat with, and her head which initially put me off became quickly unnoticable. The elf is initially severely abbraisive, but eventually reveals a very cute personality and look (though she never wears the bunny costume in the banner). The orc initially girl seems far too passive and submissive, though her last interaction reveals that could change and make her much more interesting, and explains her initial disposition; and personally I wish her skin were just slightly less dark. And finally the dwarf, is absolutely perfect in my eyes, she's everything I've ever wanted in a romanceable dwarf girl and I cannot wait for more. As for MC, he's as blank slate as they come, and I continually wish he would do more to try and clear up missing information and misunderstandings, or try to learn about the situation himself, but it's not even close to a deal breaker.

If you're looking for something with a new and original setup, this game is a must.

One of the most interesting, Ren'py games with a simple story with very flexible sandbox mechanics, that isn't over bloated or complicated.

You play as a Nameless MC character, chilling at a park thinking about dirty thoughts. Suddenly a portal comes out of nowhere and takes you to a house in the middle of the rift. You're stranded and start having dreams of girls from different races and fantasy places and start to live in your house, and started the harem life.

The Gameplay is in mixture of Visual novel sandbox and runs in the Honey select engine. You make choices and it mostly changes the Intimacy and Lust of the girls. No girl is going to hate you, just be more open and more to sex scenes as you increase their stats. You go to dreams and get more girls and go a dating simulation with them.

The hentai scenes are great and fully animated. They range from Maledom, femdom, vanilla sex, anal sex, paizuri, blowjob, footjob, handjob, and other positions later in the future. You have many great girls, that started off confused to immediately loving and understanding. Many will have favorites, My favorites are Rae, Cait, Lyriel and Jennifer.

There is very few minor issues but most of them are nitpicks. Not all of the girls are your liking, you will be repeating the same (but varied) events over and over again to raise the girl's intimacy and lust, and specific quest not triggering even if you followed exactly what period drama quest said.

Overall a great game that I kept playing nonstop until I reached the recent version of this game (V0.6.5r2). Hours of content and tons of character development for everyone. Easily a great recommendation.

Ver: 0.6.5r2

A house in the Rift has became something of a comfort read for me. It was one of the first Ren'Py games that really sucked me into the story and made me a fan of the sandbox format. While the lewd scenes are top notch, the best part I would say about this game is that the story and character development has been great to read and has genuinely made me care about these fake waifus.

The only real complaint I have about the game is that a few systems in the game seem to be a bit useless, like the scavenging mechanic with the fridge and the RNG money thing with the closet. However, I'm sure that the author will make use of it later on.

Highly recommend if you are fan of sandbox games and (sorta) monster/fantasy girls. Good plot lines, interesting and varied character designs and overall, a very comfy play. Approxmately 6-12 hours long as of right now if you do all current main story activities and side activities.

(v0.6.5r2)
Before I play:

It's 2022 with all those beautiful 3d games, who cares about ppt?
Porn game, right? So let's shut up and get to business.
The more, the merrier!
Demons are evil! Stay away from succubus!

After I play:

Okay VN is good if done right. You don't really want to see every at any possible angle anyway.
Now caitlin would you please wait until tomorrow? Not that I am uninterested in you of course, but you see I am taking rae to buy her dress tonight, so......
Rae is best!
Okay I finished the QFT course, now tell me how to do the experiment to the rift!


And please remember the most important:

DON"T CALL RAE A GIRL!

5/5 Recommend

Not much to be said, just go in blindly and be amazed.

I started to play without any expectation and was mind blown, can't recommend enough.

If sandbox is your favorite type of game, you can go no wrong with this one.

Pros
-Many high quality if not the best animations of all games on the site.
-Well written story that either makes you interested if not invested in the characters
-Most scenes you acquire from just playing the game
-Will hit that nut button many many times.

Things that can be looked at with negatives or altered for a better game.
some of this is roasting the 1-3 star reviewers here.
-Some characters are simply not to my liking in personality or taste in porn
-Some scenes require a little bit of grinding to get to ( it is a game, usually need to do certain objectives to get the reward after all) I don't find the grind too excessive but I guess some can see it that way.
-Not working on a character that I'm interested in. (Then enjoy the characters that you do enjoy.)

Top notch game. Usually these type of sandbox navigation/VN style games leave me frustrated or unsatisfied in some way, but not this one.

Here is why....

- I actually read all the dialogue. This is very rare for me in these types of games, but in this one I never got bored or disgusted with the writing. It's concise and to the point, yet filled with character.

- The girls. Each of the girls has their own very distinct and likeable personality (I especially like Rae). They never become a bore.

- Progression. This is a big deal for me. I hate grind and I hate not knowing how to proceed. There is almost none of that in this game. Almost every move you make progresses things forward smoothly and if you don't know what to do there is a simple checklist telling you what to do next. No fuss, no muss, no bullshit.

- NO DUDES. No male characters outside of the MC and no renders of the MC outside of POV renders. Who the hell wants to look at dudes while they're playing a porn game anyway?

- The animations. Some of them are good, most of them are great. There are a handful however which are just spectacular. Like seriously good quality you would not expect to find in a porn game.

There are other things worth mentioning, like the story (which is genuinely interesting), but you get the point. A 5 star game through and through.

The core story is a default isekai harem, but overall it's well-written, sometimes cute or mischievous novel about girls from different worlds and times.
I spent about 20-30 hours here and some content was left unseen.

There is no meaningless grind here, nor that random_event_1/100_chance_to_get. You have a clear path to each next step in your journal, and each step grants you a new event.

Art is good. It's not the best you've seen, but still pretty enough to perfectly complement the story.

Developers done a really good job. Gonna support them.

An absolutely amazing game!
In summary, everything from the great character development, the amazing story, the fitting music and the excellent camerawork, it's all of extremely high quality.

The game feels very professionally well done, with a lot of love and care and attention to details, and there is a lot of content.
I wasn't counting the time but by my rough estimates It took me about 60 hours spread across 6 days to finish all the currently available content (as of this post) from start to finish.

I'm seriously considering making a patreon for the first time just to subscribe to this project and this project alone.


A more complete overview:

For somebody like me who likes to fully immerse themselves into any game they play, the setting feels incredibly safe and comfortable, to the point where the house invokes at times the same feeling of safety my own home does in real life.
I greatly endorse the fact that it's so spacious and there's so many interactions with the items across the house.
10/10 for the perfect setting.

And then there is that very soothing yet at times mysterious music playing in the background; I believe it is original music rather than public domain, as I haven't heard it before, but regardless of that, it fits into the mood of the game really well, and it is also very simple and non-intrusive, and thus hard to get tired of it, if only there were a few more tracks like it for diversity across different events, it would truly be perfect
9.5/10 for the sound track, would be an easy 10 if it was just slightly more diversified, but it's not bad the way it is now either.

Where do I even begin with the characters? They are so full of personality and stand out from each other, that I sometimes found myself wondering "did one person write all those characters or did they hire multiple people for some of them" which says a lot about the great attention to detail and love that is infused into this game.
And while not every character is my cup of tea (Naomi for example) I can still appreciate their presence into the game, for even if not romanced, they still play integral roles in the story and it's genuinely fun to see what they are up to next; and I can appreciate that they may be somebody else's cup of tea too.
On a side note, whoever the writer of Rae is, I have only compliments and respect for that person.
I believe to be able to write a character like Rae who is so intelligent in such a natural way that it doesn't feel forced, requires a writer on the same level of intelligence and tact as the character they're making, and Rae is VERY intelligent.
10/10 for a very good cast of well written characters.

And while at the subject of characters, the character development feels on par with books I've read before. Without getting into spoilers, throughout the course of the story I've seen these characters interact with the main character and with each other and seemingly grow emotionally and intellectually from those interactions.
This is really good and feels organic and natural, as you would expect from real people to do.
10/10 yet again for excellent character development.

And then there's the story, which is directly tied to the setting and advances at an adequate pace, as the main character expands his repertoire of skills, visiting many interesting places in the process.
If there are any complaints I may have, it's that the different worlds can feel rather similar sometimes, and I believe this arises from the fact that we only see bits and glimpses of each world, but it's nothing more than a pet peeve for me, and a minor one at that.
It doesn't stop me from enjoying the story and immersing myself into it in any way, and every now and again the characters will use different words for the same things, bringing emphasis on the fact that they are from parallel realities.
9.8/10 for an interesting and very enjoyable story.

Now onto what people may consider the most important thing in such a game, although for me it's equally as important as the story and character development, and that is the sex scenes.
Because of the great first-person perspective camerawork that glances around in a natural way, the sex scenes feel far more intimate than in most other games, which is a massive plus.
And not to mention that everything is animated, which is yet another massive bonus.
On top of that, the player has some minor degree of control over how the sex is going to play out, which makes for what I consider to be essentially the perfect sex encounters in a video game of this sort.
However, I personally would really wish for a couple more threesome/gangbang sex scenes, where the girls join with each other to satisfy the player, as that would amplify the feeling of having a harem.
Regardless of that, absolutely well done.
10/10 and would even go past that and say 15/10 for the sex scenes and camerawork, if only that wouldn't undermine the previous scores.

On an ending note, the game warrants maximum score and I highly recommend it to anyone that reads this and hasn't played it before.
Very well done @ZanithOne and congratulations to you and your team (if you have one) on this masterpiece.
It really sets the standards high for what a good game looks and plays like.

It´s a very good VN with a good story, good renders and the Girls are very interesting. Altough getting Money from the Closet is sometimes a pain in the ass but you can avoid it if you want. So overall 5/5 stars

PS: Rae is best Girl

I enjoy this series very much. its got a nice story and alot of beutiful character and cute personality. The render is amazing not to over the top and uncanny its just beautiful *chef kiss*. Bless the dev and thank you

Version [0.6.3r1]
Quality game, the story is very well written, original and highly engaging (at least it was for me). Decently mysterious yet contains frequent enough sex scenes to keep the viewer going.

Playable, nobugs were found during playthrough.

The pictures are realistic and quite well-made and were beyond expectations. Some could do with a bit of polish, some clipping through here and there, but nothing major.
The amount of content is very much sufficient, especially if one delves into it properly. Took a couple of days to get through it at this stage.

A thing missing is maybe some changes in previous repeatable scenes as relations change. A few more different scenes could very well be added so as to make it less repetitious.

All in all quite a quality game, definitely worth one's time.

This game surpassed my expectations based on the synopsis and the fantasy trope. Usually I have issues when models look so different and have ridiculous size differences, but in this game it didn't take away from the experience.

The writing is great and I can tell how much care went into forming each character uniquely. One thing I would like to see more of is scenes with multiple girls and more scenes with secondary characters while visiting other worlds--like Becca from the store or the girls at Cait's academy. Rae mentioned early on that her presence makes everyone nearby more sexually aroused, but this hasn't really been shown or explored much at this point.

Also, the scenes and animations really deliver and make this game a competitor with many of the most talked about AVNs these days. Many of the scenes are truly hot and have a solid build up of tension that really satisfies.

It's such a good game! I hope for the ending to be a good one where you might be able to choose a girl to bring back with you or to go with. It seems like that's the direction it's going with Rae at least and I hope that that continues because she seems like a perfect match for the MC.

For the TLR crowd:





As an Adult VN fan I have quite a few games on my hard drive. They're sorted into folders labeled Recently Updated, To Be Continued, and Useful. If it's in the Useful folder, that means what you think it means. A House in the Rift is in my Useful folder, and is one of the few games that I honestly look forward to updates on. An easy five stars.


For those who don’t mind reading a little more:



Pros:

• Renders are excellent. Characters are unique and beautiful. There are occasional clipping issues but this is to be expected for a solo project.
• The story is engrossing and I look forward to updates for the story as much as for the adult scenes. Due to plot reasons you end up in a house floating in nowhere, and through other plot reasons you end up rescuing women from various universes and bringing them to the house to live and, due to you being the only male around…well, you know? It sounds cheesy but the dialogue makes it believable, and it wasn’t long before I started caring about them and where the story will eventually end up.
• There’s music! It’s well chosen and fits the scene mood perfectly. I’ve even left the house theme running to help me sleep. Listening to it reminds me of my original journey through the story.
• The adult scenes are unique, well-rendered, high framerate, contain multiple stages, and are plentiful. They tend to be much longer than your typical handful of repeated frames with the camera panning around the scene during the animation. Dozens of scenes that work very well for, lets face it, the main reason we’re here!

Cons:

• I’m struggling to come up with one. I could compare it to triple-A titles but that wouldn’t be fair. I was going to say that there aren’t any group scenes but now that I think about it there are at least 3 or 4 that come to mind. There aren’t any group scenes involving different combinations of the house-bound love interests, but I suspect those will come in time.

There’s not much else to say. The game is very well made, is updated frequently, contains numerous adult scenes that work very well, and has an engrossing story. I don’t know what else I could ask for.

Another masterpiece which I somehow managed to miss earlier, but finally being able to witness its perfection.
What can I say? This game deserves maximum rating for its efforts. The developer really put his soul in this game.
Review of v0.6.3r1


VISUALS
I saw someone's words regard this aspect of the game with which I fully agreed. Let me copy it a little bit : This game has some of the best use of static CG I've seen in a H-game. It really feels dynamic because developer cleverly paced dialogues in order for sentences to flow into changes in the character's posture as conversation advances.
I cant say that this game has revolutional graphics for this engine, but its really good. Overall - 4.5/5.


STORY/WRITING
I'd say the writing in this game is great. Developer really knows what he's doing.
I'm fan of plots with paranormal activities, magic etc.
In this game you are somehow stucked between countless realms (as I understood) and start collecting your harem by saving different characters from danger through your dreams. Pretty interesting idea I'd say. Through the game you training to control your hidden power to visit other realms. Pace is good, there is no such things as "rush" or "delay" like after first training you are capable of everything or after 10 trainings you are just useless. Everything comes with good tempe, after each visit you feels like you can keep yourself in different realm for a longer time, or take more peoples with you. There are few missing parts in such magical setting of the game, but hey, there is more that enough place and time to perfection. Overall 4.5/5.


GAMEPLAY
Honestly, I cant say that I'm fan of games with sandbox elements, but this game was more than okay. Here you have really comfortable map to navigate with character icons to find exactly who you are looking for. You also have a journal with quest progress and hints for those quests. Personally, I did not have a single moment in which I did not understand what I should do in order to complete this or that quest. Also, for a variety of gameplay, "secrets" were added all around the house. This is a nice little thing that makes you strain your attention from time to time, and not just mindlessly move from location to location. Overall, 4/5. I took off one point only because I don't like the sandbox mode, for those who like more active gameplay this part is 5/5.


SEXUAL CONTENT
Speaking of sexual content, I can confidently say that this game has exceeded all my expectations. Honestly, I did not expect that this part of the game would be made so well.
The developer really put his soul into it. I was very pleased when I saw looping scenes with changing angles and animation of the faces of characters who behave as if they were alive and try to show their sensations and feelings. This is just phenomenal work, compared to a huge number of games in which there are no animations but just two pieces of wood hitting each other. The developer of this game does an amazing job. Definitely 5/5.


MUSIC
As for the music, I don't know what to say. Just good and pleasant music throughout the game. There was no such moment that I could note, therefore I cannot give the maximum rating. So 4/5.


CHARACTERS (how could I forget, I almost posted my review without single word about this)
In current version we have 6 different characters If I'm not mistaken. There is more than enough content.
My absolute favourite girls are Lyriel (elf) and Azraesha/Rae (succubus)
As soon as you'll meet them, you'll understand why exactly those two. I dont want to describe each of them in details, because it would be too long. Each of them have different personalities and you can feel it.
The only thing I can say is that Rae is the perfect waifu. Why though?
Is she beautiful? Absolute yes.
Is she clever? Definitely.
Is she cute? Oh yes.
Is she interesting as person? Of course!
Is she funny? Yes, her "bad" jokes always cheered me up
Maybe she's not responsible girl? Thats a NO. From the beginning of the game she's worried about every person in your house and try to help everyone.
If all of this is still not convincing for you, than I dont even know what I can say. Oh, almost forget. She is also pretty lewd girl and she knows when to show it.
I could use all of this space to describe in general each of girls, but I decide to talk about one and only - Succubus. Appreciate this or fight me.
Just because last 2 characters weren't my type at all (although its not that big deal) , I'd say Overall 4.5/5

FINAL WORDS
In recent days, this game has really brightened up my everyday life. I tried to play it little by little so as not to complete it too quickly. Every day I was filled with different emotions and it's just wonderful. I am grateful to the developer for this game and will look forward to the next updates.
I will gladly save this game on my device so that I can replay it regularly. (It's really worth it)

A game with really good kinky hardcore scenes locked behind wholesome characters, wholesome interactions, a calming soundtrack. Each character oozes personality in their own way and well lets say Azraesha is my favorite succubus in all of porn games ever played tied with Anath from Bound by lust. I adore Rae so much along with every single character. This game is a heartfelt one and they day their adventure ends will be quite a solemn day in its own.

Awesome game with russian translate,thats rare and instesting story line) But little foot fetish content ,whants more and with more characters. Last two chars for very specific tastes,that's distressingly.

It can be pretty comfy at times and really spicy at times which brings me back for more. The story gives growth to some characters that need it in a healthy manner that makes it really interesting and it exposes a more tender side for other characters. I'm always happy when this gets updates and I really hope more people check it out.

Awesome game. The dev put a lot of effort in it
Good animations, pretty characters, nice story. only minimal inconsistencies but totally understandable with so much story and text.
i want more
hopefully voices will follow