Ren'Py - A House in the Rift [v0.7.14b1] [Zanith]

I'm sorry guys i just don't see it with this one. I genuinely don't know how this game has the ratings it does.
I reckon over the past year and a half I've put about 10-14 hours in to this game, each session barely lasting more than an hour because I just don't want to keep playing. Kept on giving it another go because 'well its one of the most popular games it must be good im sure it gets better' but I'm done now.
Animations and render quality are meh at best, the premise is interesting at first but the story isn't the least bit compelling in practice.
The sandbox playstyle is constricting, especially since you HAVE to progress each characters story so you end up only being able to one specific event at a time which means a LOT of just skipping time.
Additionally being forced in to the paths of every single character is pretty annoying, it certainly doesn't help that the story is incredibly grindy and slow moving.
In other games a slow burn romance can often times be rewarding and compelling, i haven't found this to be the case here because well... i just dont like any of the characters. I don't find myself caring the slightest bit about anything happening in the story and thats a bad sign, its supposed to draw you in and keep you in suspense and this just doesnt do that.

Bland and 2 dimensional characters, weak and uninteresting story and progression, production quality that does not come close to reflecting the popularity of this game, and grindy and boredome inducing gameplay and UI.

I don't like writing negative reviews but this isn't a game worth your time.

This one took me by surprise, enough so that it's the first game that's inspired me to review it here.

First off, the story is compelling. I keep playing because I really want to see what happens next, and the ether-walking gimmick leads to so much potential for interesting setups, anything can happen and it would be supported by the world building.

The characters themselves are good. I mean, I'm absolutely in agreement with everyone calling Rae best girl. Possibly the first VN girl I'm actually crushing on... But ALL of them have me wanting to spend time with them, and I'm really looking forward to more updates with some of the less popular girls (I think the orc girl Yona is awesome.) The game loop is a great mix of linear and open, without being too grindy, and there's a LOT to do for a game in progress, including some excellent repeatable content. Definitely one of the better harem games I've seen.

I'm not super familiar with the different selections of models used in VNs or how it all becomes a scene in a game, but from what I understand this uses Honey Select, and creates some fine looking women. The animations are also possibly some of the best out there... Maybe not in terms of visual quality (which I still think is better than most HS games) but the attention to detail. The camera angles and motions, the character movements, the expressions, all come together brilliantly.

Hats off to this dev for creating something smart, endearing, entertaining, and sexy as hell.

Story-5/5
Grammar/English-5/5
UI-3/5
Characters-4/5
Progression-4/5
Sandbox-3.5/5
Graphics-4/5
(no spoilers below)

Story:
Story is quite good, and the events are plentiful and rather rewarding, the exploration of the small space you have to explore seems more redundant and a bit odd at first, but you get used to it quite fast, parts that are locked in dialogue are also not boring and incredibly linear like some sandbox games, where you would have the sandbox mode for 5 minutes then be locked in a dialogue hell for 15 minutes before you can make any choices outside of a dialogue box, progression is somewhat linear, where events are locked behind some events, but that is to be expected in a visual novel, progressing in the game doesn't feel boring either, but also doesn't feel too fast paced, events are the right length to keep interest in them but not too fast where you feel like the entire event wasn't explained properly.
(bits of story continues in the section below in Writing)

Writing:
The progression of the story and the writing of it is also solid, there are very, and I mean VERY few grammatical errors, or poor usage of English which can often break immersion into a game, nothing is so overly explained that you lose your need to explore the areas yourself but they are also not left so up to interpretation where you will be lost for hours without a guide, some scenes are a bit dragged out but are so few and far in-between that they can be forgiven, typically the story progresses very naturally, characters feel like the information that they are given through your interactions and the answers and feelings of the other characters is actually impactful, and affects their specific ways of conversating with said characters too, instead of just being bags with personality traits that reset back to their default state in every conversation, which is a massive bonus, since it makes the game feel like your actions genuinely have impact.

UI:
I already talked about sandbox, but ill fill in a bit more here.
The sandbox itself wouldn't be as big of an issue if the UI wasn't as clunky as it is, its nowhere near the worst possible out there, but its impactful enough where it makes the pace of the game in sandbox moments feel more sluggish, going between the UI, the guide, the "heart" system, the characters, the missions, then moving around the non marked areas of the sandbox makes it that at the very start where you don't know every clickable area yet you can get "lost" for some time. Which isn't the worst fate, you will figure it out eventually and not too slowly either, but its a bit of an annoyance.

Graphics:
The models, like in many games seem to be honey select models, which is not bad, the models are personalized to a point where they don't feel like they're cookie cutter copies of other games that use similar models, the characters are also very easily distinguishable from each other with little to no trouble so the game doesn't feel like you're playing 5 different routes of the same character with a different hair style.
The map you play on is also very original, while there are quite a few sandbox games where you play in the characters home, the idea of you being completely confined to that home because you're stuck in an interdimensional rift is rather unique, the way the girls get introduced in the game is also something I've not seen before, so a lot of props for that.
The animation is also good, its not "made in blender for 15 hours" level insane, but its also not 2 static pictures going back and forth to imply an animation bad either, its solid, gives good choices between animations in every interaction where there are some, and good points of view, instead of ones where you're stuck to the point of view of an ant on the inner thigh of the MC .

Last thoughts:
Very solid game, has some things it falls in quality a little bit in, but most games do, generally a very well made, well thought out experience that I'm very excited to see more of. Good luck on updating and making more

The main story progresses a bit slowly, but the characters are quite charismatic, and you quickly grow fond of them. It's really a great game.

Azraesha is definitely my favorite, and I think most people feel the same way. But honestly, I'm not a big fan of Yona. I feel like they've kind of neglected her in the game. Her story is alright, but her design doesn't really convince me or inspire me much, you know what I mean. I'm interested to know what plans they have for the game's future and if they're going to add more characters down the line.

This is my favorite VN on the whole site.

At first glance, it looks like a generic Renpy harem game with vanilla fetishes. But, it's the best written game on the entire site, and the only one that makes me feel a genuine connection to the characters.

This game is crazy good. Gameplay wise, it is just like most decent VNs: repeat certain actions until you have enough affection to trigger new story moments.

The thing is, the girls are pretty well written. They each have different personalities, "fetishes" and progression. Learning more about them is a treat because dialogue is snappy and funny. It is technically a fantasy setting, but the writer won't murder the mood with weird lore dumping.


Some feedback on this site can be very silly. Like people complaining about stuff that makes the game unique and interesting (?). I hope the dev doesn't take everything to heart and stick to their vision.

A strong start, that loses steam and focus after a while and becomes a meandering, boring mess.
6 girls, only 3 get actual focus and they definitely aren't the best. Bizarre shifts in characterization that have no reason or explanation. An MC that has no personality of his own, and the provided "choices" are usually just good/neutral/bad but with no consequence to justify them, other than a inconsequential stat loss that can be immediately gained back.
The gameplay is the same boring sandbox you can expect from this kind of games, raise a girls affection via repetition of the same action, followed by a hunt for the next trigger across a dozen locations and time slots. And that is despite the fact the game takes a very lengthy tutorial to teach you how to fight, for a grand total of one (1, uno) fight in the game itself, basically wasting the time of everyone involved, players and the dev(s).
Visually, a decent use of honey select, but it's still honey select, so don't expect to be amazed.
A competent VN, but unfortunately the big dip in writing will definitely stop it from being anything above a mediocre experience.

I really love this game, its very... chill, laid back. The animation is really good, the writing is really good, the characters... vary, but that's the point I imagine, some aren't to my taste but likely are to others. I usually like romance in my games and there's some overtones here but its more friends with benefits than anything committed, although that might change in the future.

I do wonder how this story will end, I have my hopes for a Harem ending but we'll see I guess.

Simply put, this game is fucking amazing overall, and the content with Lyriel is mind-blowing.

The story and dialogue are decent, characters have real personalities and none of them look like clone copies that you have seen very similar variants of in other games. The animations and just overall graphics quality are TOP NOTCH. The story and your emotional connection to the LIs is so well-done that I am actually really invested, and seriously fretting over how it's all going to turn out! That is rare as hell, at least for me, in an H game.

The story progression also works very well considering how non-linear it is. You will rarely if ever feel like you are just waiting for an event to pop up, I don't think I ever even clicked the skip time button - there is always something interesting to do in one of the rooms.

Other bonuses? Refreshingly, they did not feel the need to cram the game with incest, NTR, or FUTA content.

As far as cons, I will say this - I only really care for two of the LIs (Rae the succubus and Lyriel the elf.) The decision to include a giant beefcake pirate chick with huge muscles, AND yet another giant beefcake in the form of Yoma the orc, AND a short overweight dwarf, is a little puzzling to me, but then again I'm one of those old-fashioned types who prefers my women to, you know, actually be pretty and feminine. Cait the bookworm is feminine enough but her personality kind of blows, and I wouldn't call her attractive, but at least she isn't 50 lbs overweight or taking anabolic steroids.

I will say I like having Naomi (the roidrage pirate lady) in the game, because of her hilarious antics and conflicts with the other LIs, but they really could have left it at that and then given us another couple of beautiful characters each with their own unique personalities and quirks. At least the game doesn't seem to force you to progress the less desirable LIs too much, at least in the current version (0.72) - if that changes it would be a major con. Please note, I do think you have to continuously progress Rae for the story to advance, so if you don't like her you are shit out of luck, but I think it would be hard to not find her attractive.

At the end of the day, the content with Lyriel alone makes it all worthwhile.

It's a good game.

And the story proceeds at a steady pace.

But it's a slow pace.

I had thought I'd be fine with that.
However after ignoring quite a few updates, and checking back in.

I'm going to drop this. It's no longer fun. And the mc is . . . . no character. He'll either be a horndog, uninterested or have no initiative.
I've lost interest. It's a shame. I was hoping to see more romance developing and all of naomi's talk about "boyo, are you seriously trying to give me a brood." was particularly inspiring hopes of impregnation content. . .

ah well.
have fun it this is still what you're looking for

Amazing art and cut scenes. good-great writing, narrative, premise. would recommend 9.5/10. azshaera is probably my fav of the lot, but you can tell the amount of detail in the model, physics, angles, and dynamic motion that she's probably Zanith's favorite too.

I'm wavering between 3 and 4 stars. I'm going with 4, since everything here has such inflated ratings.
This game is good: the writing is mostly solid, although it isn't special, the girls have different personalities
There are bugs aplenty. Most annoyingly, the game is sandboxy, and each girl progresses separately, AND many events occur on their own time. So some days there are events that overlap and you'll have to wait until the lower priority one comes again on a later day, and many days you have nothing to do for two of the three time periods. It's really irritating. I forget what the bugs actually are, but I remember that they relate to this.

While I don't particularly like all of the girls - in fact I dislike some - you are given the option to not have sex with them, which is nice.
There are mild consent issues - things that wouldn't be illegal, but wouldn't exactly be clearly ethical. That is pretty common in these games, but still a minus. And sometimes there isn't a way to slow things down and get proper affirmative consent. Again, not uncommon, but a negative to be certain: I'm bothered less by the presence of unethical options than I am by the occasional lack of ethical options.

Accidentally came across this thread and I am so happy I did. Extremely interesting environment, love the character models, renders and animations. A bit repetitive if you miss a days task but forgivable because there is so much to do. Absolutely loving the story and there are quite a few genuinely touching and funny moments.

5 Stars

A surprisingly deep (if convoluted) storyline with interesting characters that are well modeled and animated. Well worth checking out, especially if you enjoy character development and story-driven play.

Easily one of the best games i have played in this genre. The characters are well written and beliveable, the "Grind" is obvious not too long and not too short. The Girls and sences are very creative and hot. The story is a very fresh take in this typ of games, cant take a game seariously if the 0815 story plays at the start. 10/10 can recommand

I think it's one of the best H games i've played in the recent years. Story is good and engaging , characters are lovely and beautiful. Lots and lots of H content. For me it's a 5 star and a full load on your hand garanteed

Game version: 0.7.0r1

I have been a fan of this game since the very first release here on FN and that's why it hurts me even more what has become of it by now.

Where the story and gameplay has been strong with this one once, the more girls entered the house the more dull and boring the game became. And this is something very unfamiliar to me, because I LOVE harem games and such.

Since ~ a year or so, there hasn't been anything exciting added to the game. The goblin and orc are bland and purely redundant, because the dev chose to focus on the (obviously) most popular chars and these would be the elf and the succubus. After them, there is a gigantic void of nothing!!
And there isn't a sign that issue will get resolved by changing back from quantity to quality once more.

Reviewing version 0.6.16r1

Initially the VN starts off as a 5/5, however that doesn't last unfortunately.

As it progresses further and further it starts to lose it's charm and instead becomes a lot more tedious and boring.

The premise is very good, but the execution is half baked and doesn't really feel like it's going anywhere.

Azraesha (Succubus) and Lyriel (Elf) are a solid 5/5 and are very attractive , however Naomi and Caitlin are more like a 3/5 , tolerable, but just that.
Yona and Blair are ugly as sin and look like NPC's.
Personality wise Azreasha and Caitlin definitely have the best writing between the characters, while Lyriel has average writing , and the rest quite terrible.

The writing unfortunately starts to really fall apart once Yona and Blair get introduced.
They add nothing to the plot, they don't feel fleshed out, and they aren't even attractive.

Overall it starts off strong, however it becomes painfully boring once too many half baked heroine's get introduced.

Hopefully they get redesigned , but as they currently are , they just don't do it for me.

fun enough when it starts. quickly drags down into the usual open world clicking around waiting for things to advance.

lewd scenes sometimes just seem to come out of nowhere without much reason.

eventually got bored and gave up.

not really sure why it is as highly rated as it is.

Gameplay: 4/5, Fun and easy to navigate, however, the money seems useless and is unnecessarily hard to grind for. As it currrently exists it could be removed with no issues, as there's already enough grind/content as is. The scheduling system also starts to get annoying into the late stage due to how many possible variations there are with 6 characters.

Story: 6/5, A great story that has clearly been thought out to some degree, you really feel the tension and anxiety when things start to change later on.

Characters: 4/5, these are ratings based on how they fare in the current patch, not future potential.
Rae: 4/5, To avoid a paragraph rant, she's my favorite. She's well fleshed out to an insane degree, however, getting all of her content takes so long compared to anyone else if you don't rush the main story. Her current cliffhanger ending + vagueness also leads me frustrated due to how MC isn't allowed to push for more answers.
Naomi: 5/5, I've met people just like this in real life, the dialogue is consistent for her and even when main event ended I loved seeing her interact with others.
Cait: 5/5, Super smooth progression from her being a naive girl with no experience to becoming a "lover". Sometimes annoying but it's a nice quirk.
Lyriel: 5/5, Really nailed the progression from angry and household mood wrecker to a great participant in the "family". Current story is decently long but it doesn't dig into motives enough.
Yona: 3/5, her appearance threw me off at first, but I really warmed up to her later. Her story does seem much more fast paced than everyone else's though which makes her a weird outlier.
Blair: 4/5, Well paced character who goes from annoying and aggravating to fresh and fun once she realizes what's going on.

Overall: 4/5, Gamplay is good, story is great, characters are mostly great but occasionally frustrating.