Being a DIK Review
I’ve played a few indie VNs and thought they were pretty well made. Who knew that VNs that are extremely superior in overall quality existed? I didn’t. The “Being a DIK” gameplay experience was way beyond my expectations. Everything present in the game just screamed “Quality” at you. I was taken aback by the game’s stunning visuals, interesting plotline & amazing sound design accompanied by unique gameplay. It was truly a One-of-a-kind experience!
Storyline
VNs are always story-driven. They rely heavily on the game’s narrative & visual aspects since there isn’t a lot of gameplay involved. The VNs I played before had a very short story that lasted for about 2-3ish hours. I was surprised to see that this game’s storyline could go up to 12 hours depending on your playing speed. Pretty rad if you ask me. You get a lot of content for the price you pay!
Here’s a short overview of the game without any spoilers
A low-income young man leaves his widowed father and his summer love to attend college at Burgmeister & Royce. As he is thrust into freshman life and persuaded to join the up-and-coming fraternity Delta Iota Kappa, he will be introduced to a new world full of conflicts, alcohol, drugs, and sex.
When you launch the game for the first time, the developer & the mascot of the game, Jill (At least I think she is the mascot), ask you a couple of questions like if you are over 18, if you are depressed, etc. This will give you a fair amount of info on what the game’s plot would be like.
I jumped into this game thinking it would mostly revolve around making love & sex. I was completely wrong. There’s so much emotion. It felt as though I was watching an Ecchi anime with drama & a handful of Sex scenes. Unlike other VNs, Being a DIK doesn’t throw all story contents at you in an instant. The entire plot unfolds slowly, giving you room to take in whatever is happening.
Sometimes, I forget I am playing an NSFW game. People usually play such games to get off of them. But here, you will get immersed in the story of the game. The game doesn’t fail in getting you emotionally attached to a character. And obviously, you have a shit tonne of choices to make. This enormously overarching storyline will intersect in an amazing manner. A lot of work & thought has been put into it!
To be honest, there’s nothing more to say. I recommend playing the game & experiencing it all for yourself!
Gameplay Mechanics
It’s a VN Game. Such games usually rely on their plot rather than their overall gameplay mechanics. Let’s be honest, there’s nothing much to do in such games apart from clicking to go to the next scene. It’s a bit different in this game since it has something called “Mini-games”. Well, from the name, you can easily deduce that they are occasional small in-game games (I know, that’s a very childish way to refer to this) that act as an added source of entertainment apart from the storyline. When you start a new game, you get to choose whether you want to play these mini-games or not. They give you special renders, money & trigger some special events. I recommend you play them!
Apart from the Mini-games, ability to free-roam & access to a phone, there’s nothing really unique gameplay-wise. You’ll find everything that you see in other VNs; Auto-Save, auto-scroll between scenes, quick save, etc. In the settings, you have almost full control over the dialogues. This comes in handy as it allows you to alter the speed of the text as per your reading speed allowing you to play the game using auto-scroll & watch it like a movie!
To show that your choices play a major role, the game has a meter that shows your affinity to being a “Chick” or a “DIK”, the former being the good one & vice versa. The scale’s order goes like this: Massive DIK, Huge DIK, DIK, Neutral, Chick, Huge Chick & Massive Chick. The ruder/colder your responses are, the more your affinity to being a DIK increases. How do these affect your gameplay? Well, they change how certain characters approach you. This is vital if you’re trying to establish healthy relationships with all characters. You get the idea, right? So, be careful when making response-related choices.
Visuals & Audio
This is the other charm of the game. This game has outstanding visuals. I couldn’t find any other better word to describe it. Like bro, the character models are so detailed. You can legit see the effort they put in each scene. It’s a high-quality VN for a reason! The animated sex scenes are elaborate & the minute details are what make them visually pleasing. And here I was, thinking the other VNs I played had amazing visuals… A real 10/10!
The sound design is flawless, ngl. I love the Soundtracks they used. It’s, by far, the best I’ve seen in any VN game I played. It’s so vibe-worthy. I usually listen to songs on Spotify when playing such games, but I was forced to close Spotify while playing this game since the soundtracks were amazing by themselves. I really love the main menu theme song! Good work on nailing every aspect possible!
Pros
- A very broad storyline that is not only focused on sex & love. It has a lot of drama & emotions infused in it.
- The character design is top-notch. All models & animations are very detailed & a feast to the eyes.
- The audio work is honestly amazing. I love the soundtracks they used!
- Each & every choice you make has an impact on your gameplay experience.
- It gives you more than you asked for. People come to this game for sexual pleasure but stay for the interesting storyline.
- The game is 9-12 hours long. It’s pretty lengthy when you compare it to other VNs.
Cons
- I’ve not found anything bad in this game that affects your gameplay experience.
Conclusion
This game blew my mind. It showed me what a premium VN looks like. I always thought VN games were short & were carried by their story alone. Being a DIK introduced so many elements I’ve not yet seen in a VN to date. Well, that may be because I’ve not played a lot of VNs, but still. This game is an easy 10/10. The price, right. I’d have paid more than the game’s base price. It’s worth it! Do not hesitate to spend money on this game even if it’s not on sale unless you have enough patience to wait for a sale.
Rating: 5/5
(This is a gem! would rate higher.)