I tried to remember the last version i played before this one (since i'm not the type who download the game every updates) i read the changelog to retrace and turns out it was v.0.718
I forgot how many months ago that version was, but i remember that i could at least play that version for days before i got bored. I can't really point out what's wrong with these recent versions (i tried both 0.747 and 0.738, so with and without the progression system) but now i couldn't even stand to play this game for more than 1 hour...
It's probably a combination of all of the questionable design decisions Derelict has made along with general burnout. Everything he adds just makes the game more tedious. I recall him mentioning on discord that he has "played very few games" which would explain why he seems so out of touch with the things he adds. Everything sounds good on paper but his implementation leaves a lot to be desired, for example:
-Portals are added and for the most part function well enough but the recent changes were totally unnecessary and the portal at home is just far enough away from where you spawn to be annoying. You're supposed to be free to choose which gate(s) to open first but unless you like running all over creation this makes a single path almost a requirement.
-Fern changing the more you interact with her sounded cool but you have to initiate
50 animations with her, this takes lust which you need for everything else, all for the ultimate reward of...accessing her phase 3 animation which you can't even see the penetration of due to her flower. Even if some reward came from this that wouldn't warrant the work you have to put in.
-Surprise sex sounded interesting but it amounts to nothing more than a free easy way to capture any creature and blow your mouse out at the same time, then surprise BJ's were added which
you can't even control the outcome of.
-Breeding requests seemed like a much needed feature but until fluid prices are fixed they're meaningless and until leveling is rebalanced would still not be worth the trouble in the slightest.
-Sex positions being unlocked could have been tolerable had the costs not been so high (made worse by the low favor you get for selling) and the trainer behind multiple gates.
-Locked gates are a mixed bag, personally I thought they sounded like a good way to add actual progression but unlocking them doesn't really make me "feel" like I'm advancing, this is partly due to the fact that this
came way too late in development and because the quests themselves are all over the place. Getting fluids is easy but redundant because you're more than likely to be full of them anyway and acquiring them is hardly interesting or challenging. On the other hand you're expected to not only get a hybrid but they
have to have the fertile trait and a high level and they have to be female (having futa enabled can make this much harder).
Even with cheats enabled this is an absolute chore because up until now you could just fuck around in the field until the right trait showed up but since this is a hybrid they have to be bred which means you really have your work cut out for you. You need to have at least one fertile trait on one of the parents and breed them until you get not only the hybrid but the right gender (having futa off helps with rng here) AND the trait, on top of that you have to get her to a level that--even with a kindhearted partner--takes countless breeding sessions. I kid you not I bred so many creatures that my barns got full and I still couldn't get the right combination, all because I had futas enabled.
It was at this point I asked myself: What the fuck am I doing? There's no reward for this and it's going to get wiped next update anyway so I bailed and have lost all desire and interest in this game. I think the final nail was a comment Derelict made over on discord, he said he wanted to add a succubus character that randomly visits you when you sleep, the end result being that you wake up with no lust...I have no comment. I'm at a point where I enjoy bitching about the game more than I do actually playing it but as cathartic as it's been I'm going to have to call it here.
