Yea, I kind of hate to admit at this point since ep 9 left me feeling sour but this is definitely the best overall VN. There are probably only a handful of others that can compete. I say "compete" because those other VNs usually have at least one thing they do better:
Just as one example: You can say, "X has better writing than BADIK" but BADIK also has a better soundtrack, a fun college setting that executes the American Pie/Rockstar's Bully-theme perfectly, a fuck ton of interesting gameplay features, been around for longer and already has hours of content, etc. That's just something I've seen all across the board when compared to this VN. It's like sending someone in with a sword to fight 100 unarmed people. Yea, you've got a sword but you're not going to win here.
I've mulled it over and I still feel kind of conflicted. There are times when I can appreciate the amount of detail and care DPC puts into this game and at other times dislike it because it starts to feel more "pedantic" than "perfectionist". It's hard for me to believe this VN not getting more popular as time goes on and at the same time, it feels like I'm never going to think it's as good as it was before ep 8. (Not really a problem with the crossroads, ep 8 just felt flat for me overall). I will never donate again or sit on my hands waiting around but I'm definitely going to play an update if I see it. BADIK is what got me heavily interested in VNs and my disappointment with ep 8 and 9 is probably what killed my enthusiasm for the most part in an indirect manner. I feel like the writing was a little "phoned in" for ep 8 and it feels like it increased in ep 9 but at the same time, I still recall a lot of my favorite scenes from previous episodes. I can't even say I have favorite scenes at all for most other VNs.
BIGGER, LONGER (dev cycles that is), BETTER with not much substance and relationships on repeat to create more melodrama. I still don't like ep 9 (haven't even done the Bella playthrough yet to this day) and I still think 1 update/year is just a waste of time but BADIK is a titan at this point. There are some games I personally like better but DPC ultimately blows them out of the water in terms of production level and having a setting that attracts a bigger demographic. He's also built up enough trust that assures people this game will be finished. Even if it takes 10 years...
I've made my peace with this. I would absolutely love it if ep 10 proved me wrong about my assumptions and all the miscellaneous, little details he's been working on end up making it all work together into something immersive and expansive. I'm just not holding my breath. It's more like I've just shifted to indifference and accepted that this is just the trajectory from now on. Still, it's not like I'll be paying for it so it's whatever.
In conclusion, it's definitely got its problems but so do many other VNs. For as long as I'm still interested in this medium of entertainment I'll still be playing BADIK. You can't be playing VNs and not still have at least a modicum of interest left for this one.
Anyway if you made it this far, thank you for your time. I will now proceed to go back to lurking and/or putting this one in the back of my mind until an update comes out.
- character writing
- interesting settings
- more comprehensive world building
- shorter dev cycles
- better renders
- scene building
- more impactful choices
- more organized dev team
- less soap opera drama and more actual intrigue
- etc, etc.
Just as one example: You can say, "X has better writing than BADIK" but BADIK also has a better soundtrack, a fun college setting that executes the American Pie/Rockstar's Bully-theme perfectly, a fuck ton of interesting gameplay features, been around for longer and already has hours of content, etc. That's just something I've seen all across the board when compared to this VN. It's like sending someone in with a sword to fight 100 unarmed people. Yea, you've got a sword but you're not going to win here.
I've mulled it over and I still feel kind of conflicted. There are times when I can appreciate the amount of detail and care DPC puts into this game and at other times dislike it because it starts to feel more "pedantic" than "perfectionist". It's hard for me to believe this VN not getting more popular as time goes on and at the same time, it feels like I'm never going to think it's as good as it was before ep 8. (Not really a problem with the crossroads, ep 8 just felt flat for me overall). I will never donate again or sit on my hands waiting around but I'm definitely going to play an update if I see it. BADIK is what got me heavily interested in VNs and my disappointment with ep 8 and 9 is probably what killed my enthusiasm for the most part in an indirect manner. I feel like the writing was a little "phoned in" for ep 8 and it feels like it increased in ep 9 but at the same time, I still recall a lot of my favorite scenes from previous episodes. I can't even say I have favorite scenes at all for most other VNs.
BIGGER, LONGER (dev cycles that is), BETTER with not much substance and relationships on repeat to create more melodrama. I still don't like ep 9 (haven't even done the Bella playthrough yet to this day) and I still think 1 update/year is just a waste of time but BADIK is a titan at this point. There are some games I personally like better but DPC ultimately blows them out of the water in terms of production level and having a setting that attracts a bigger demographic. He's also built up enough trust that assures people this game will be finished. Even if it takes 10 years...
I've made my peace with this. I would absolutely love it if ep 10 proved me wrong about my assumptions and all the miscellaneous, little details he's been working on end up making it all work together into something immersive and expansive. I'm just not holding my breath. It's more like I've just shifted to indifference and accepted that this is just the trajectory from now on. Still, it's not like I'll be paying for it so it's whatever.
In conclusion, it's definitely got its problems but so do many other VNs. For as long as I'm still interested in this medium of entertainment I'll still be playing BADIK. You can't be playing VNs and not still have at least a modicum of interest left for this one.
Anyway if you made it this far, thank you for your time. I will now proceed to go back to lurking and/or putting this one in the back of my mind until an update comes out.
