VN - Ren'Py - Completed - Acting Lessons [v1.0.2] [DrPinkCake]

In terms of story this is by far the best game of this type that I've ever played. I believe it has high artistic value and that story could be used as a successful movie scenario if they'd limit the amount of porn.
Sex scenes are well made but they are secondary to the amazing plot. Came for porn, stayed for the feels.

Pros:

1. Plot
2. LIAM THE ULTIMATE BRO (except the tattoo ),
3. Girls,
4. Some animations,
5. Choices

Only one con:

1. Game can hit you like a truck if u care about the characters

This has been one of the best stories that i could have played, totally worth it.
The decisions you take really affect the progress of the game and not only from 1 character. If you are looking for a good game, give it a try.

Well, that's what you get from sorting by review rating descending.

Didn't actually intend to write more than that, but so are the rules...
7/5 story telling
5/5 choices
5/5 character development
5/5 visuals

Need to replay with other choices and check if there were dead ends or actually even more content I did not see yet.

Only the greatest love can bring the fiercest hatred, and oh how I hate you DrPinkCake.

I chose this game after playing what was available for "Being a DIK". That was an innovative game, and this was an earlier game by the same writer. Also, a completed game which was a fantastic bonus.

Right off the bat, I got a bit annoyed. Sure, it wasn't quite as well made as the later game, but that was expected. It didn't seem as innovative either, but oh how wrong I was. The biggest problem was that I did not get one choice that I really wanted.

Yeah, when I play through something a second time, I'll go for a harem and try to bang everything, but the first time I like to make real choices. Well, I got to turn down the crazy nurse which was fine, but the MC just fell too damn hard for one of the main supporting characters... a fucking Polyanna! UGH! I HATE Polyanna's! Lucky for me, her best friend was also available. A bit more slutty, but at least I could work with that and maybe mold her into something more romantic.

I did like that there was a platonic guy best friend that I'd get relationship points with as well, but for some damned reason I just couldn't get rid of that awful naive girl.

After a bunch of restarts, I thought I wouldn't play it at all until I took a look at a non-spoilery walkthrough. Wow... 21 endings? The main point though was seeing that at some point I had to choose between that stupid Polyanna and her hot friend... fuck it! I can do this!

It seemed odd that the relationship points (or lack of them) never seemed to totally damage a relationship. Instead, the main supporting cast (including the male friend) got "birthday cakes" at the end of each chapter, which I realized represented happiness. Little did I realize how much this would hurt later.

So my little Polyanna got almost no birthday cakes. I'm flirting with her other friends right in front of her and they are eating it up. Also, lots of hot sex. Awesome. Scew this bitch.

By the time the chapter with the choice is coming up, I've got to admit... I'm liking the Polyanna just a bit more. She's growing with the help of her slutty friend, and she's even influencing her slutty friend to be more open with her feelings which I was trying to do myself as well. The Polyanna is no longer a Polyanna, we're all together with the understanding that at some moment I will have to choose between the two, and suddenly I am actually hoping that there is some polyamorous outcome.

That's when I had to make the CHOICE.

Why did I capitalize that? It's because I'm not just choosing who to be with. It's bigger than that. It's so much bigger than that, I actually started to cry.

I walked away from my computer with that fucking choice on my screen.

It didn't help when I remembered that this game shows you exactly how happy you have made the characters.

I played through as me. I made the decisions like I was a person in the game. I consider myself to be a good guy, but that CHOICE made me hate myself.

The story takes a major turn right out of left field, and yet the clues were all right there. No, I never in a million years would have guessed how things turned out, but I cannot deny that this is how things would play out with what I had seen.

This is some of the best storytelling, and the best gameplay I have seen.

Just... don't fucking hurt me in "Being a DIK" DrPinkCake.

———————— └(・-・)┘ ————————

Well, where to start... the game is good, less than Being a DIK (from the same creator) but good all the same.

Visually, it's very clean, the characters are endearing enough to keep us aware of their destiny. The MC is well balanced, not too dumb, not too overpowering for this kind of story.

On the other hand, the point that made me put a 3 star and not a 4 (I would have put 3.5 if I could) is the script. Too melodramatic, not in the sense that it made me sad to the point of sulking the work but rather that it got me out of my suspension of disbelief. It bothered me a little bit because at the moment of the "half-playful ending" I was no longer in it and I didn't care a bit.

I recommend it all the same and since criticism is easier than practice, i would like to say thank you and bravo to DrPinkCake for its work.

Signed Jack Beauregard

It is a great game the plot plot that has is very good for my opinion; as the characters are developing through the story advances I like and not only that the characters have a good depth and none are alike, your decisions have a big impact on the game, I love the 100% recommended game.

Since I played Being a DIK, I was interested to know more about the work of DrPinkCake. Acting Lessons was the name that came up and so, I tried to see if it was as good as Being a DIK. To be frank, it's worth playing, but it's not for everyone, unfortunately, like his current project.
The story tells you about a guy who makes a lot of money in cryptocurrency, with a difficult background of his marriage. He meets a girl named Megan for the first time who works in a convenience store. You also have Liam, a guy (also a great bro) which unveils to be a great character and one of the greatest cons of this game.
My run of Acting Lessons was not the best one, but I manage to have a good ending for what happens in the last episodes, even if it was brutal in every way. I was interested in Rena at first, but eventually, I end up with Megan, which holds very dear in every aspect of the game. Melissa is another great character, which you toy around a bit on first, but turn something serious as you know her. Rena... on the other hand, was a disappointment, since I couldn't figure her that much as I wanted, due to my choices. There are other side characters, but these should be the ones that you got the best experience.
Although the characters are great, I feel like the story centers a bit too much on Megan, on where you can have a difficult time being a dick with her. The relationship you have with her can also determine many of your choices as you progress in the game.
As you progress on the story, you start to feel this is not your type of "fap material", but more as a VERY dramatic and realistic plot which can give you very different kind of emotions, such as sadness, joy, determination, and self-improvement for any obstacle you have on life. You start to think that maybe this is not your type of game, so it's better to just leave it, because you don't dare to go through, or you simply are disappointed to not jerk off all in your screen like you were 5 minutes ago. If you start to feel like that, just stop massacring yourself and go enjoy something else. If you manage to hold your blood pressure and seek beyond what's behind this, I can guarantee to you that Acting Lessons is gonna be a fulfilling and rollercoaster experience.

Also, a warning...

Game is good. Stop reading the reviews and just play the game before you accidentally run into a spoiler. It's one of those games where after you finish it, you get jealous of people who get to experience it for the first time. Rendering is great after first episode, but story is great throughout

I'd heard great things about this game so I thought I would give it a go. What I got was quite different from what I expected but my only previous DrPinkCake game was Being a DIK. I went in with no hints and didn't use a walkthrough, and ended up emotionally drained all the way to the final choice. The event with Liam was a punch to the gut, but I did not expect the soap opera reveal. Thank you DrPinkCake for a wonderful story and interesting characters. It had laughs, romance, sex, action, and tragedy. But I enjoyed every bit of it. I don't think I will play through it again though, as my choices may be tainted by knowing what's to come. It is a shame, as I would love to have a blind play through all over again.

I really liked the story! Really did! It took me through the whole range of emotions in a very fluent way.
Graphics and animations were also extremely appealing to me.

Only reason I gave four instead of five stars is:

The choices are meaningless for the endresult. I mean... I REALLY tried to get the game to end in a different, less soul-crushing way. But it seems in the end you absolutely HAVE to make that damn choice . I would have appreciated to be warned...

A cut above the rest of the other games. Not to downplay any other creator but this actually made me like the characters enough to make me feel bad when I made bad choices that lead to them being hurt. It made me approach the girls of the story less as onaholes and more like people.

Should I take advantage of the obvious power disparity between me and this girl, even if they appear to want me? Should I rush in to have sex with the girl with serious personal and family problems? Is that healthy for them and for me?

5/5. A must-play for people trying visual novels. One of the few I've not deleted after playing around with it.

One word: PERFECT

It had happiest moments,funniest moments and soul crushing moments. In the end I didn't care about graphics or animations, story took me in great journey and rub beautiful characters to my mind. I think I'm not gonna forget them.

Melissa.......

Surprisingly a very well written game with great characters. Enjoyed the art, music and dialogue. The game is so much more than your average porn game & you can tell a lot of work has been put into it.

Keep up the good work!

All the compliments listed are right. This game was great. It is so very well written. It probably has my favorite, "MC's Best friend" in a game. Also this game has quite a twist that I did not see coming. Kudos and thanks for a gem.

I Got totally Caught Up in the Story. Story is Very Captivating. It is Not Often That I Wind Up Staying Up all Night Playing a Game. This is One Exception ! Wow, Fantastic Story and Characters. Everything was Amazing.

I'm going to rate this game as a person who sits down to play a game and not as a person who sits down to jerk off.
This game was as wonderful as it was difficult to digest. I really don't want to spoil much, but it made me feel so deep inside the story that I think it ended up hurting my feelings. Still, I have to rate it 5, because I really enjoyed that a game gets you so into the story that it can even make you feel bad. It really hurt.
I played Acting Lessons after playing BADIK and maybe that also affected my perspective on this game.
Dr. PinkCake, as I said in BADIK, here you have another fan. Your stories are fantastic, and the graphics and design team are too. Thank you.

This feels like a proper visual novel game. Great story and writing. Actual choices and consequences. Really good characters and dialogues. Really nice music. Real emotions. All of this is great and because of it the game is really engaging. You really want to play this more to find out what happens next. Definitely main focus of AL is story. It's a story driven game and it's really good in what it's doing. It's amazing VN experience. But it comes with the price.
This game is not a very good fap material. Renders, characters and animations are all very good, but they're not that many scenes in the game and sometimes story is getting so intense that you're definitely won't be thinking about getting laid. This game for sure can use slogan: i came for sex, stayed for the story. This is not a bad thing. Game is still excellent but for a porn game, porn here is definitely not the main thing. And this could be a little disappointing.

Alright game up to ep 4 or half of 5th, just do yourself a favor and stop playing there. Better to leave it in the middle then see it endings (no difference witch one)
Up to ep 4 Game deserve a solid 3+ or 4-

Edit: swaped rate from 2 to 1 cous i take in consideration the fact it supose to be a "pron game" and such plot twist destroy any even the slightest pleasure leaving you with just sadness or rage instead

I wanted to give four stars to this game because it's well-made, but this game is simply not "good porn" for me.

Ever heard of the difference between an eroge and a nukige? Eroge is a visual novel where sex is there but might be not the main focus. Some games even remove the sex scenes for a mainstream release. It's an extra, not the main appeal. Nukige is a subgenre in eroge where sex is the main focus and a central element.

Acting Lessons feels more like a traditional eroge. The story takes itself seriously. Very seriously. It gets very, VERY dramatic, especially towards the end. It almost doesn't want to be a porn game. It doesn't try to turn you on for the most part. The characters look great, but that's about it. It's not a pervert experience.

The story centers around you, a middle-aged man with a background in cryptocurrency trading, telling the story of how you met a girl named Megan during a life changing day. Megan is a young aspiring actress down on her luck and in desperate need for help. Will, you be there for her when she needs it the most and help her turn the tide? Will you be able to win her heart?