In terms of content, Episode 9 was a 3.5/5 for me.
renders looked amazing, (first initial) play-through was okay and story was enjoyable. The party planner mini game set me back a bit. But it wasn't as much of a chore than the old English class mini-game, so there's that. Took a few replays of the episode to really get into it.
But in terms of the lore, I really enjoyed the episode as a 'Halloween Special'. I wouldn't call this a filler episode but it has those vibes? If that makes sense. Like, it's canon, but its a holiday special? Either way, I'm curious to see what DPC has in store for future episodes after this one.
One thing that does concern me though is how early things are becoming linear? Permanent affinity has already been implemented and we've already been forced to
Makes me wonder how many episode are left. Overall, this episode has made me really excited for the next one.