VN - Ren'Py - Completed - Bare Witness [Steam Build] [AlterWorlds]

Chapter 1-4
8.5/10

Really beautiful romance game. The main story seems purposely unimpactful in a good way. It serves too push the game forward In time but the main focus is on the women and It works well.

On my playthrough, characters didn't seem overly complex. This is both good and bad, it doesn't give you some extreme emotion to latch onto but at the same time the game isn't a massive one. Forcing tragic character backstories on the LI's could backfire due to story length so I think it's good how Dev did it.

Li's are incredibly sweet though and I'm fond of the intimacy level (It was done really well) e.g a newly loved up couple would be holding hands and kissing a lot which helps with immersion and connecting with the LI, ALOT of games seem to forget this or CBA to add the scenes in.

Music is a strong 7.5/10 - Some good vocal tracks which bolster emotion and + BONUS POINTS for Lexi

Sex scenes are great, and Bare Witness probably has the hottest scene I've seen in a game with MC, Athena, Heidi and Mora.

The only real negative I would say is the early game content. I would love for there to be a few more dates and scenes between MC and LI before you actually make it official - It kind of comes out of nowhere and devalues it (Athena) Doesn't have to have any impact of the plot of course, just needs some silly/cute scenes to endear you more.

Conclusion:

Loved it ALOT. Not many games of this quality where the LI's and the main plot are "separated". It's a breath of fresh air, it gives the player a better sense of control instead of waiting to go through scenes to see the LI you are actually interested in. Give this game a go, I can't wait for the final chapter. Thanks Dev/team.

I love the story so far, not original but well told.

Renders of the girls are great except maybe Sadie, I don't like the proportions on her body. Also many different renders of locations and assets have been used which is good.

The different paths to follow (solo paths, throuple, quadruple) are fun to play and I really like to paths of Zenda and Val, their stories are well written. The story of Val got me emotional and explains her behavior.

What I disliked a little is the forced choosing of the girls, in chapter 4 I think, I know this isn't a harem game, but still... it came quite abruptly however I understand the reasoning behind it.. no need to drag the story on and on.

Lewd scenes are hot ( quadruple + mile high club ) and feel natural.

A little note from me as bushlover.... 6 girls and only Val has a landing strip....come on .
Would have loved to see a little red strip on my ginger beauty (Mora)!

Keep on the good work dev, eagerly awaiting the next chapter(s).

There are spoilers ahead.

Fist off the MC is so much of a character as he is a tool. He's whatever he needs to be to make the scenes work. For example, right from the start you can say on of his hobbies are gaming, playing games like Fallout and Bioshock, even wanting to start an MMO with another LI. But then comes a scene with another character where she want to play an RPG with him and he magically doesn't know what an RPG is because if he did the scene wouldn't play out the way it's "meant" to. His personality is all over the place and it's not handled well. There is another earlier scene where he finds out two of the LIs are already sleeping together. A situation I'm not thrilled about to say the least. But anyway, he can't even have a conversation about it with them without choking on his food. But conveniently he makes a cocky joke about his penis with one of them because again it's what's needed to progress with that character at the time.

The visuals are nice and the girls are different in their own way, They can be pretty tropey at times but you'll have that in these games. The relationship building with them is pretty hollow though. The choices pretty much just consist of do you like me? Want hang out? type of choices. It's not so much getting closer to them but more the game asking if your interested in them or not. Once you make your choice you pretty much just along for the ride. You either show interest or pretty much just avoid them altogether. A pick your poison kind of deal. Not that it really matters in the end because from the very first meeting with 99% of the LIs they are already swooning over the man standing in front of the. There's no chase at all. I can't comment on the animation quality because I didn't make choices that led to them and couldn't be bothered to play long enough to find any.

The game does have quite a few choices as you play but again it's really just down to picking who catches your eye and weather or not you want to see some extra lewd content. The overall story plays out the same way regardless of the choices so they to feel shallow. At least to me. There is also a lot of annoying explanatory text. "She blushes" "They are sitting on the couch talking." You sit down next to them.". All stuff you are literally see right in front of you that doesn't need to be stated at all. It adds nothing to the scene, it's just pointless filler to add more lines of text I guess. These are "VNs" but many dev seem to forget about the other half of their medium. This isn't just a written story, there are visual that go along with it unlike just the written word. The reader doesn't need to be told what actions are taking place because they can quite literally see it happening.

The game also started out as a faceless MC, much more immersive if you ask me. It doesn't last very long though, the dev just stopped for whatever reason and goes about showing him every chance they get. It sucks really because he isn't particularly attractive. Maybe they got lazy, maybe they changed their "creative prosses" but I hate it personally. He isn't very relatable for me to begin with an now it's just like I'm watching some random person go about their day instead of being the MC. It actually jumps between first and third POV, when it's convent for the scenes layout. Up until the first time jump and the dev just switches to full on third person, that's where I stopped. Another area of the game that is just as inconsistent as the rest.

There is a back story about the MC being in WitSec that shows up a little later in the game but it isn't really used much at all. Again I stopped relatively early so maybe its more prominent later but it was just something that came up in passing to remind the player that there is more than just run of the mill interactions with the characters.

TLDR: The game has to many inconsistencies to be engaging. That paired with the overall lack lust and boring scenes left me feeling uninterested in what was to come. It's average at best.

From what I've played so far (up to ch. 4), the game is great. The renders are beautiful, the variety of routes to choose is a big thumbs up, as it has something for everybody. The animations are definitly one of the best ones out there. I recommand everyone to give it a shot !

Version: Chapter 4

Good:
Presentation; visuals and music are nice.
LIs are both distinct and likable, with every major stereotype present.
Animations and dialogue make every sex scene feel very intimite and loving (no bimbo fuckdolls being degraded in this game - strong focus on romance)

Less good:
There is a partial harem path, but you need to stack the right girls in the right order. If you leave out one of them, you can't just mix and match between the rest.
The plot is weak and doesn't make sense/skips for no reason sometimes, and in the middile of the game there's a sorta-epilogue?
Moralizing. I do not wish to be berated by a porn game. I don't want to deal with the risks of unprotected sex in porno or care to have them told to me multiple times - I'm here to mastrubate, not be told about STD testing or why it's bad IRL to creampie girls that aren't on birth control.

I still strongly suggest you play this game and look forward to the dev's next project.

Excellent game, the characters are extremely varied physically and psychologically.
The plot is interesting too, without becoming too present and spoiling the game. Don't be fooled by the stereotypical introduction (a young guy who arrives alone at college), his story is less banal than in many other games and not only do we learn more during the game but it evolves.
I highly recommend

I'm surprised this has so high ratings. The renders may be amazing but writing wise this is bog standard "play as the stud that girls wanna (and do) fuck ". Zero 'chasing' or 'conquering' the heroines. They're either horny whores who want the D, or the insecure cutesy that need a man to lean on (as well the D).

I've waited a long time to review this, even though I played it from the start.

TBH, at the beginning this was a bit too much like many other games, well done with great looking girls and the usual super-cocky and super charming MCs, it was all fine but still it got a bit lost in a sea of similar games.

Now, why rate this with five-stars, if this is true?
Let me tell you why:
1. The girls look great, but they don't look completely superhuman with massive tits and asses.
Heidi fe. has a cute face, but I wouldn't call it beautiful, Sadie is a bit thick and heavy-set, even now, Zelda has very strong and striking features, but again, not necessary conventionally beautiful. Mora is so covered with freckles, if you aren't into them at all, it would probably be a turn-off.
Athena is pretty much perfect physically, unless you have a problem with tattoos, but she has an abrasive personality at the start.
Val... well, she is actually just about the most perfect milf I could think of, considering I'm into brunettes.
None of this is a complaint, it is the opposite, rather. By not making the girls perfect, always sweet, always obedient etc.. this makes it way more rewarding to manage to win them all for you and fan-fucking-tastic actually manage to get up to 4 in a relationship with you and each other.

Due to the different types, there's something for everybody.
The writing might not be perfect, but it is good. It tends to be very romantic, even sappy at times, but I personally happen to like that shit.

I also find myself actually liking that you can't have all the girls in the harem, sure it is nice to get the whole rooster at once, but this feels more realistic, as if it is almost possible (it probably would be, at least with Athena and Heidi) and still so incredibly hot.

This game has just about the hottest foursomes and fivesomes I know of, at least on par with the best of them. I won't lie, that is definitely one of the reasons this one rates so high for me. I like watching the girls enjoy each other almost as much as the MC railing them.

One thing I do have to say though, if you are one of these strange creatures who don't like the girls in a harem to actually interact with each other in the bedroom or "gasp" have actual feelings for each other, this game is not for you. The girls here are actual characters, not just meat-sheats for the MC's giant dick.

One last positive thing, the game has a lot of content, but the devs kept it within reason. The next chapter will be, as far as I know, the final one and will bring the story to a close.
I love how the devs kept themselves grounded and didn't make high-flying exorbitant plans only to then fail in realizing them.

As long as they don't go and make you decide between which LI has to die in the last update, this will remain one of my favourite games.

Bare Witness is like a telenovela in which each protagonist has a traumatic past waiting to be revealed in some post-coital dialogue but without having much impact on the overall story. The MC is a womaniser, just every woman goes for him, even background characters we don't even know the name of. They all wink, flirt and want sex, as quickly as possible and for reasons. And a creampie please, because that's what makes women's hearts beat faster.

As you can easily see, this is too much and too thick for me in many situations. It almost feels like a parody, but I think it's meant in earnest. And if it weren't for the good music, super renders, diverse characters and an interesting plot, I'd be less than convinced. But on the technical level this game is very good.

And I have to remind myself that there are VNs that are not heavy fare. You can spend a nice evening with them and ignore the logical contradictions and non-choices, just fly along and switch off. You can do that wonderfully in Bare Witness, because there are no real obstacles, no moral dilemma, just a lot of sex and superficial drama.

Very, VERY good stuff here. Renders are great, lots of beautiful LIs. Sex scenes are nice, would be nice to see a little more variety or even some outfits ..sex scenes and even animations are nice, but a little lingerie or heels would be a great add from, the everyone always just gets naked thing.

Why 5 stars, well..excellent english and character development. Very interesting interactions and story. BIG PLUS - my first round I focused on Val, the MILF in the story because I love MILFs and this one isn't a "Landlady" so its an actual LI in a non incest driven story. HOLY CRAP - hot, endearing, sexy, and an actual relationship. She is beautifully made and written. Double his age...wait DEVs don't allow those as permanent LIs, you have to accept the 20 year old later on and move on from your older lover. Nope, you get to cement it in the best way and seems like it will continue. Bravo dev for doing the thing very few do.

Excellently written, great story, beautiful renders. Simply wonderful.

Ch.4

I've played a lot of these games and lemme tell ya one thing. It's one of the best (if not the best) harem games I've seen. You can't have all gals, but you can have up to 4 (I think ?). Very hot and great group scenes in ch. 4. Incredible job from developers. Amount of different poses and angles, plus smooth animations..just wow...update was a fckn blast !

My one and only whim - no anal on this path. 1 scene in whole game on a different route to be precise. "Sacrifice" was made in favor of Pregnancy fetish I guess.

If I understood right - 5th chapter will be the last one. Still I wanna see much more from this dev team and I wish them all luck !

Please release your game in Steam, Imma support ya !

Stop reading, go play !

My review for Bare Witness Chapter 4.

One of the hottest VNs that I've played. Great renders, animations and soundtrack. The story is a little bit fast paced but it's understandable considering that the developer only plans on five or six chapters if I am not mistaken, however, it doesn't mean that it has less content. It has lots of great sex scenes with lots of gorgeous women. I loved Heidi's nipple piercings (can't help but include that in this review hoping for an option for genital piercings in the future for the women). The story about an MC being in a witness protection program is rare so it's kind of refreshing. The story is well written and each character has their own unique personality and story which makes it easier for the player to find connection with them. I have nothing but good words for this game considering it's their first. Keep up the good work and thank you for creating Bare Witness.

Music 5/5 - Merging sounds from GREAT games on this site is a genius move, and developers taste arent bad either.

Story and writing 4/5 - Story is pretty generic but had some good twists so far. Good enough for a "test" game as the developers have called it, what needs to be improved upon till next game is the normal dialogues between characters and jokes. I like the references and cameos from other games, its a nice touch.

The heartbreak and romance writing was pretty good, you do feel something.

5/5 - Renders went from good in the beginning to extrodinary in last episodes, animations are very good. Characters are hot and bodies are realistic (prolly best part of the game)

5/5 lewds, strong hng

I would say this is a very good game, but falls in the category of romance game with pretty renders and average writing in some aspects.

Edit: Played last chapter and it was awesome, the writing and the feels are hitting. The renders are bomb. Best endings for any last game

the best romance game

I've played Bare Witness only once and this game easily became one of my favourite despite all its flaws.

Let's start with story. Is it interesting? Well.. Not THAT interesting but still pretty solid and engaging to worry about MC and his situation at least a little bit. The cliffhanger in last chapter is kinda intriguing and dangerous at the same time, considering information that we get to know a bit earlier.

The main problem about story - timeskips. I'm not a huge fan of timeskips to say the least. Bare Witness used this feature a few time, instead of continuing to tell the story (it's like all the actions happened behind the scenes with no reason whatsoever. I really wanted to experience all the MC's pain/sadness/joy etc. but all I got - "6 weeks later").

The next problem is constant abruptions during some dates with characters. Again, it's like developers didn't want to show all the things happening during/after date and because of that, all we got is black screen and move on to the next event.

Another problem arises from previous two problems - development of relationship with characters. Because of timeskips and abrupt moments we haven't enough depth in main LIs, since most of the actions happened without player at all.

Don't get me wrong, characters in Bare Witness are really awesome, there is variety in their personalities and looks, no doubts. Also I like little details in overall looks of a few characters (like piercing and freckles).
Most of the characters has quite lovely, funny and unique personalities and some characters even exceeded my expectations about them.
But there is a "small" problem about these characters which I mentioned earlier. Some events/dates ends pretty abruptly, while those timeskips makes things even worse. I REALLY love almost all the characters (especially Athena, Mora and Heidi) but there is small feeling that I don't really know them as closely as game shows it. It's like there was indeed some "chemistry" between characters but developers didn't show it and we moved on to sudden kisses and sex scenes a bit faster than I'd like to.

The dates/events with all the characters are really interesting and more or less "unique" among the events that most of the AVNs are showing.

A few words about visuals and animations. I'd say it's more than acceptable, renders are really beautiful and close-up faces of characters looks fantastic. There are some background details in scenes aka other people in university/shop etc. which is obviously good point and it adds a bit of immersion (some of the games that I've played completely neglected this aspect, leaving all the events and scenes almost without any additional people/objects).
Animations are good, although nothing too special. I'd like to see more poses and speed variations, since many scenes felt a bit repetitive.

As for music, I can't praise it very highly but I can admit that I've really enjoyed like 80% of tracks and I've already added most of them to my playlist. To be honest, a few of them were a bit distracting from the scene itself but not too much. I haven't "mute" sound even once during whole playthrough.

Almost forgot about writing. I'd say it's pretty good but you shouldn't take my opinion as 100% truth, since I'm not very picky in this aspect. I'm satisfied with any writing (of course with exceptions of extremely bad writing) as long as it's not becoming too "cringy" or unrealistic and I haven't felt anything like that in Bare Witness.

Overall, I can say that Bare Witness is a very solid game with awesome graphics, gorgeous and interesting characters, more or less engaging plot and great music.
This is one of the few games where I wasn't bored of "oversweet" moments e.g. "I love you" every 5-10 minutes. Perhaps it's because I really love main LIs, unlike previous games with similar moments.
There is a bit of humor here and there, some of jokes were "meh", some of them were successful and made me giggle a little bit.
Also I really enjoyed all the cute moments in this game and I was genuinely happy for MC and LIs during some events. Sometimes I would not stop smiling and enjoying certain moments for 5-10 minutes.

Can I recommend this game though? Definitely yes, most likely you won't be dissapointed after playing Bare Witness.

Just finished the ch4 update at the time of this review.
Liking this one, characters look great and varied, there's even slight change in character aesthetic depending on player choice, sex scenes are decent to good. Story has multiple branches and is interesting enough to not make you skip straight to the next sex scene.
Unfortunately you can't have every girl in the game be a part of your harem but it works for the narrative.
If you're into the warm hearted romance type story I'd definitely recommend this one.

There's a pretty good game here. The writing isn't bad. It's not great, but it's serviceable. The characters are a bit interesting.

I think there's a limit to the amount of women in the harem to be a nudge towards - for lack of a better term - realism.

I'd recommend then, stronger reasons for the women to actually buy into the harem. Usually more extreme circumstances tie people together. Trauma, saving a family, things like that. Right now, as the game stands, I have a tough time buying that all these women are okay sharing one guy, especially when they're so attractive and can obviously select other men.

There are definitely choices one can make, at times. picking to spend time with one woman over another, either a few "to impregnate or not to impregnate" story points. I'd suggest more options. For instance, some may be into a harem, but not into girl-on-girl action. Perhaps we could have characters that are okay with sharing a dude without including an attraction to other girls.

I'd also suggest more variety in dialogue. It gets repetitive, and not just during the sex scenes.

The girls are pretty. We get to save them from some bad situations. Those parts are definitely fun.

I'd suggest a playthrough maybe avoiding a "harem" and maybe focusing on one girl. Multiple girls, in this setting, gets a bit implausible. Don't get me wrong, I love me a harem. But the more you push towards making things plausible, the more you have to work on why the women would be okay sharing one guy.

Another plus is the game makes an effort at showing the MC having fun with the girls, spending time doing things besides the lewds, and it's well done and fun.

Anyway that's a quick assessment of this game so far. Not bad .

I think what I like the most about this game -- aside from the fantastic story telling and amazing character development -- is that it's "Not a normal Harem" but still a polyamorous relationship.

And I say that, not because I have experience with such things (I don't), but because it doesn't FEEL like a harem. Bringing all the girls together doesn't feel inevitable, nor is it easy on the characters when it starts happening. But the result is beautiful.

There's only one more chapter left in this intentionally-short first endeavor from the Slockie and Storm, and I'm fully preparing myself for a not-so-perfect-but-fantastic ending.

But if, after everything else is done, they want to come back and tell more of this story, I'd be there in a heartbeat -- however it ends.

This has all the makings of a 5-star game but the execution is so poor and you wouldn't know it from looking at all these 5-star reviews praising the game. Apparently, all you need now is pretty renders and cameos of other popular games to get a massive fanbase.

The largest problem is the time skips. They are awkward, ruining the pace of the game and handwaving a lot of drama and relationship-building that is sorely needed. You've made a slice-of-life but basically cut out the meat and bones. I don't feel a connection with any girl in the game aside from the fact that they are really well-designed physically. Pretty to look at but have very little substance because the dev appears to be in a rush. The characters definitely needed way more fleshing out. It needed way more interactions where the characters aren't just making googly eyes at each other and whispering sweet nothings.

What is there is not interesting enough to keep me wanting to play. The characters are all in a relationship before I even know anything about them. The dialogue is quite cheesy. Every interaction feels like an extended pillow-talk scene, as if their entire character is defined by their relationship with the MC. The drama is not interesting because I don't care about any of the characters. Even Heidi and Athena, the characters living with the MC, are barely fleshed out at all. The harem is just mashed together with barely any effort to connect them. Father is murdered and I just laughed it off because the dev decided 'who cares?' and immediately skips 7 weeks ahead. Not that he was ever an important character, because once again, this game's characters are not fleshed out at all. It's all laughably shallow.

Overall, I had very high expectations for this game from the first update—it had incredible potential—but it just fell flat.

This game is spectacular. I honestly forgot about it given how long it had been from the last update (which I understand, not criticizing) , but holy shit am I glad I came back to it. The models are gorgeous, the premise, while extremely familiar, and mostly just an excuse for a harem game, it's still really nice. It's not choosing between being a douchebag asshole with anger issues at women, and being a reasonably balanced human being. No, you just play a dude, who likes women, likes pleasuring women, and gaining pleasure from taking care of his partner. Their is a massage scene midway through the content, that I've literally had with girlfriends before. So, yeah, that was choice content right there.

It's a loving MC, who takes care of his ladies, and genuinely tries to make them happy. And one nice feature, that you actually don't see as often as you might think in a harem game but, this one actually lets the bisexual women, be into EACH OTHER. Too often, "bi" in these games means, "the girl is cool with you banging some other chick, but they're both totally focused on servicing you, and only you." Not this game! This game lets the ladies enjoy each other, and enjoy watching you enjoy someone else. The layered kinks of exhibitionism, voyeurism, and polyamory blend together into a great....Voltron-esque mix of enjoyment and fun. The amount of rotational pleasure going on with some of the combos of lovers, is just great.

Seriously, it's really damn good. No angry incel douchebaggery, no alpha/sigma male dudebro bullshit. Just people being empathetic and caring with each other...and also being kinky as fuck with each other, to their mutual and enthusiastic enjoyment. And I for one, really appreciate that.

So kudos developer! You've made a quality product, keep up the good work!

This might be one of the best, if not THE best, well rounded games I've ever played.
+ First off, it's fun. I think some of these games miss that aspect sometimes in that it's a slog to get through. Not this one.
+Fun girls: Unique and not cookie cutter. I get a kick out of each dialogue scene with them and they have distinct personalities that makes you interested in them all.
+Banger sound track
+Hot as fuck models for the girls (and not an ugly bastard for the MC ha!)
+Again, it's fun. I'm not skipping scenes to get to the next one. I'm genuinely invested in every conversation. For me, that's where true talent comes in. Well done