VN - Ren'Py - Chasing Sunsets [v0.9a] [Stone Fox Studios]

This game puts the novel in visual novels. Not my style, but I appreciate a tremendous amount of work has gone into it.

+ high quality renders
+ thoughtful story
+ characters have depth
+ lots of polish on the UI
- LOTS of text to read
- little freedom to shape the MC with your actions at the start. Eg having sex with a random woman without your choice
-some models have that uncanny valley effect from being so detailed but not human.

[Reviewed v0.9a]

One of the best games in active development, and seemingly underappreciated amongst the top titles. So much well-developed content, beautiful girls and renders, and a unique story / setting. Heavily relies on incest tropes but done in a believable way.

The Good ()

• Gorgeous, hyper-detailed models and renders
• Some of the most attractive character bodies in the genre
• A number of love interests and paths that don't necessarily exclude one another
• Well-executed cinematography and visual storytelling
• An original story that has familiar elements but still feels fresh
• Hours and hours of content
• Charged, erotic H-scenes with smooth, seamless animation
• Unique-looking, attractive MC that is believable in his role

The Not-So-Good ()

• Some of the plot points / background aren't super sketched out and are thin (story-wise)
• Heavy reliance on incest (the story is centered on this relationship) -- may be a non-starter if that's not your thing
• Some love interest content is binary -- choose Door A or B, but can't have both. Not exactly a harem game.

Overall, an outstanding title with a lot of content and beautiful character models. Can't go wrong.

Let me start by saying I really do like this AVN. The over-arcing story is relatively simple: Rich young man's parents die, leaving their fortune and control of their company to the MC and his sister. There seems to be a potential Harem set up and the models are very attractive, just not bimbo-fied. Parts of the story are disjointed or unclear and some of the character elements are not especially believable or well-written, but, overall, the writing is above average. There are many flashbacks in the story where we are jumping around in time and location, especially any time the writer needs a deus ex machina plot device to explain how a character learned something. The early scenes and renders leave a lot to be desired but, as of the latest update, the render quality is MUCH improved. I enjoy this AVN, but there is quite a bit of room for improvement.

It's mostly very good. However, the entire story has one big problem: the protagonist's history is extremely fleshed out, and full of very stupid choices.
Normally, in this type of game, the protagonist is in a shitty situation for reasons not entirely in his control. Here, everything could have been avoided, and would have been if he had behaved anything like me at all, or like most people would have. As a result, all the romantic plots are heavily colored by that, in ways that are detrimental to the story. I'm not saying that a protagonist can't have mistakes in their past - if their past is going to be fleshed out then they should - but their past should have things in it that aren't mistakes, and the mistakes should be the type that people commonly make, rather than unique fuckups like these.

I came extremely close to uninstalling the game early on for that reason, but I just barely decided to give it another try. I'm moderately glad I did.
The girls are hot, and interesting, and the non-romantic plot is solid (if a bit predictable at a number of occasions). The sex scenes are pretty good, but if, like me, you're looking for first person POV, then they're a bit sparse on the good stuff. The writing is good, and I like how decisions can have consequences, up to and including basically losing the game.

There's little in it that I would say is amazing, and there's definitely some stuff that I think isn't well done, but overall it's probably worth playing.

Initially this was 4 stars, then I noticed two things in the replay gallery: you can't change the protagonist's name from "Alex" (which, for personal reasons, is particularly problematic for me), and Jaye may or may not be a virgin depending on... what, exactly? Either she did or she didn't, and it would have happened before the game really started. And it doesn't seem to be based on the obvious choices.

Edit again: I find myself really looking forward to the next update for this game, so I'm giving it back a star.

Finished this VN earlier on the day of writing this review, and I dont know how to feel about it. I am both uncomfortable and intrigued, disgusted and eager to see more.

In my infinite wisdom, I downloaded this VN just because people said it was good, without reading what it was about. So to say I was a little surprised about some of its contents is an understatement.
And the worst part is that I actually enjoyed it. Its actually good, so good that I am eagerly waiting to see how the story wraps up.
It aint no masterpiece, not that I expect one, but what it does, it does well and as it went on I wanted to see where the story goes.

I was thinking of writing a long ass post about what made me stick around, but instead, I just recommend you give it a shot, as in my opinion it is a rare example of an actual good work within an ocean of visualy boring, terribly written trash that floods this genre.

4/5

Great visuals, very advanced writing and somewhat engaging story with great dialogues and witty jokes.

The game relies too much on Jaye and Alex relationship, if you dont like Jaye it doesnt make much sense. Animations are also very bad compared to other top VN.

Aside from that its pretty good.

This is a really great game. The story is interesting enough to keep you playing, and the models are gorgeous.

Graphics:
The models are gorgeous (especially the LIs) as mentioned above, and the environments are nice as well. Nothing to complain about here.

Animations:
Mostly static images, but the ones that are there, are very well done.

Story:
It's interesting enough to keep you playing. We don't know how it'll end, but there are some revelations that I thought was pretty cool.

Characters:
At times they can be annoying and deceitful. But as I played the game they kind of grew on me. Not sure if it had anything to do with my choices.

Audio:
It fits the game perfectly. Calm and soothing. Melodic piano pieces.

Dialogue:
Nothing to complain about. It's well written, without typos or grammar errors. It's also very humorous at times.

Replayability:
Not sure, but I think it's pretty good considering you can choose to go solo or share. Also pick one to do it with. I went with the "share" option so I haven't tried the other paths. I'm assuming there are at least three paths available.

Verdict:
Chasing Sunsets is a game worth playing in my opinion. The LIs are hot, and once (if) you get to know them, very adorable.

Excellent AVN t he story is interesting. The models are awesome. This is a creator that tics all the boxes. I am not saying all AVN's should be this. Just trying to give Credit to a developer that did an excellent job. I really liked the interaction with Amanda and an Ai (can't mention AI's name because of review rules) i never saw that coming, but it was a nice insert and fit perfectly with Amandas awakening. Can't wait to see the rest of the story. Thank you for an excellant AVN.

Well, This game hit me hard - great story telling, with good language, and actual emotional impact. I love how deep and tragic history of main protagonists was, It just somehow felt real. Probably one of few games that can be loved for actual plot and character development, and not for being ultimate f-machine. I just had to drop my money for it after my playthrough.

An extremely well-written game where the story and not just the sex scenes make you want to play through again from the start. The scenes and animations are well made and not just some bimbofied characters

One of the best AVNs out there. The dialogs are whimsical and fun to read and the art is top notch. Jaye is for me the hottest LI out there and the other girls are also beautiful. I also like the sex scenes animations. It's nice to play a MC who does not act like a 13 year old. TL;DR: it's a great all around AVN and one of the best I ever played.

I make it short: if you don't like MC's stepsister - do not play this game.

All game built around MC and his stepsister relationship.
These are some other minor LIs, but you can't develop relationship with them, because it's kinetic nover and future already predefined

This game is pure bliss!From the gorgeous women to the great story and dramas that , i don't hid, made me release some true tears. dialogue, banter with sys,humor and some cameo\reference that i don't get.. are all great..maybe the prologue is a bit confusing..cuz i still wondering if what we are playing is before or after the bar prologue..
I simply can't wait to play the next chapter..cuz this is easly one of the best VN outhere

5/5

(v0.8a)

Most of the women in the game are beautiful, but the one that gets the most screentime has an unfortunate skin condition that causes her to look orange enough to be the bastard love child of Donald Trump and an Oompa Loompa. But looks aren't everything, and her personality can easily have you forgetting about her Jersey Shore pigmentation as you wonder why anyone would ever put up with this bitch for any length of time.

Jaye is selfish, manipulative, unstable, violent, deceitful, hypocritical, entitled, and a complete writer's pet. She's constantly pushed on the player, even when you've chosen to distance yourself from her. The only other primary love interest in the game is saddled with an annoying side kick who is also pushed on you in ways that don't fit the story. So there is a good chance you're going to be left wishing that one of the side characters were a full fledged option.

The game begins with a prologue that is understandably linear since it is primarily a giant series of flashback scenes. But the game fails to let you take full control over the player character once into the main game. There are tons of choices to be made in this game, but you are often railroaded into certain situations regardless of whether or not they fit with the character you are playing and the choices you made.

The game frequently undoes the character growth that occurs due to your choices in order to relentlessly stuff Jaye into the spotlight and revert the player's character back to who they were at the start of the game instead of letting them grow into who the player has been shaping them into. And the same goes for Jaye, who's actions have completely gone against her end of chapter summaries that I've read for the last four chapters. That's half the damn game. It's a big problem.

First of all, if you are a defloration (Female first time sex), pure love, wincest lover, this is for you. You will enjoy it.
Now...


Character Renders: Simply gorgeous. This kind of style is usually only available in those western VNs where the girl had 10 exes or a slut or something. But here, the dev made great use of the models and the ambience.

Plot: The main thing. As I have mentioned in the first part, this is a romantic, wincest, defloration game. That means no sluts, non-virgins or drugs, peeping on your mom and other whacky shit. Unfortunately, this still has casual sex but not too much. . Also, beware that . The romance is pretty in-depth. It isn't the usual "Girl you're hot, let's fuck". "Oh MC your dick is so big, I'm in love" type of 'romance'. It has proper romance with tons of emotional rollercoaster.


Others: It's made with Ren'Py so the usual UI that'll let you speed through stuff.


As a wincest romance game, this deserves nothing less than 9.5/10 in my opinion.

I have played this game once almost a year ago and left it, when I got to Sicili in prologue... I do not know why (probably, because at first I did not like the MC and his action in Sicili... I know, I know... ), but decided to give this another go as others really recommends it and this AVN being at top ever made... So...

As the story unfolded, by the second chapter I started to understand and finally saw why this is loved by many. I have immediately liked it and now I am sad I have finished it... The longer time you spend with the story and characters, the more you connect with them (at least in my case), so it is hard to have pause from it . But I am really looking forward for continuation of this, as this is also amongst my top AVNs I have ever read. (God, the list is already around 10-15 all time favorites, plus count this...).

Thank you Stone Fox Studios for making this wholesome and interesting story about sibling love. It was so cute, so funny, so adorable...
You gotta love ferocious kitsune .

Jaye is so beautiful, so... real, believable, so supportive and finally, so loving.

Mallory as a character is also endearing... Her story being sad, yet she tries to make it fun. And as a friend is very enjoyable to have, plus her friend Amanda - peanut is quite handful, yet amusing and great .

The story itself is interesting, gripping and greatly fitting for whole sibling relationship and just what they needed (after long wait and played strings of fate), for their beautiful bond to unfold and bloom.

The setting and scenes are well done and few had me on the edge of seat for being so damn nerve-wracking, dramatic, and thrilling, yet everything was in context and fitted seamlessly.
And I have not even mentioned other side characters as George, Tanaka, and many others who makes this story a bit more down on earth, real and much more enjoyable.

Every little mischievous action by Jaye, every loving moment with her and connection with MC were so endearing to see.
I love this game and am very thankful for being able to read it... So I can only recommend it for others. You will not be dissapointed.

There's a reason this game is rated so highly. I want to give this game something between a 4 and a 5, but I can't do that so I've given it a 5. It's rare to see a story this logically consistent and intriguing. The writing is great, and I never struggled to understand the information being presented to me.

The music is great, but I wanted more of it. The sound effects were also great, but I also wanted more of them, particularly accompanying the sex scenes.

Speaking of the sex scenes, they're fantastic once the animations begin. The first leg of scenes don't have great animations, but that changes later in the game. Very satisfying scenes.

The LIs are attractive and likable, particularly Jaye. Mallory is cool and all, but this should really just be Jaye's game imo, especially if we're going to be made to choose a path anyway.

All in all, very impressed with Chasing Sunsets. Glad I played what content there currently is, and very excited to see what comes next.

The prologue and first couple of chapters are excellent. I loved the narrative device of the main character telling his story to his friend, giving an unreliable recollection of events while we see what happened via flashbacks. I wish it would have continued like that with brief, meaningful scenes framed in conversation. Unfortunately after the prologue it shifts to a more standard method of storytelling, although I think the MC is still sitting there in the bar recounting events to his friend.

I started losing interest around chapter four as I became aware of some issues with the story. To be clear: this is not a bad game, nor is it "average." I think it definitely qualifies as "good." But I can't say that it maintains the excellence from the prologue either.

My biggest issue is with Mallory. Jaye is obviously the primary love interest of the game. The whole prologue is about her, and Mallory is an add-on to the story that becomes increasingly strange as time goes on. At first I thought she was just another side character that the MC gets to have some fun with before the relationship with Jaye is mended. But then she shows up on the chapter review screen right beside Jaye with her own full list of points. Several chapters later it becomes impossible to get all the points for both Jaye and Mallory, and it becomes clear that you have to choose one or the other. Of course I choose Jaye, and then Mallory drops out of the spotlight for a while. Then she's back, there's a fake-out scene with her, and the chapter review says that she's friend-zoned me. I'm not even going to address the weird plot twists about who Mallory is and her importance to the story.

Plot twists aside, why is Mallory here? To be an alternative love interest to Jaye? I doubt anyone would play through the prologue (which is all about Jaye) and then decide to be invested in a completely different girl. It's a hard binary choice too. This isn't a harem game, which is fine, but I'm not convinced that Mallory is a real alternative option to Jaye. She has fewer scenes, and just to drive the point home again, far less backstory and character development.

Mallory is the worst of the "side girls" in my opinion, but they are all poor additions to the game overall. I don't think any of them have more than one scene right now. Fiona, Linda, Erika, Lisa, Tara, Amanda, the flight attendant, etc. and at least a few more to come from the looks of it. Why are they all here? It's painful to try to get invested in these characters when they are clearly meant to be recurring but end up as text conversations that go "hey MC, I'm still here, can't wait to see you again and have some fun." In my opinion side characters in a non-harem game need to do one of two things:

1. Show up once and then disappear. Maybe show up again out of the blue later on, but not feign at having any significance to the story.
2. Be integrated with one of the main love interests. Amanda does this with Mallory, and if I didn't dislike Mallory so much I'd be really interested to see how she fits in. Tara kinda does this with Jaye, but she's only had scenes in flashbacks.

"Too many characters" seems to be a common pitfall for visual novel developers. I understand the temptation to provide variety and more content overall, but in a game like this one it really drags things down. I think that the best story here is the one with the MC and Jaye, and everything else is just a distraction.

What can I say? This game rightfully has a big following and the renders are up there with the best in pretty much any game.
I actually think the story is one the better ones out there, with an interesting and diverse arc spanning multiple locations over time.
Add in 2 of the hottest love interests in the AVN world today and you understandably have an AVN that shines amongst it's peers.
I am sure as the game continues to come towards it's conclusiom the game will only get better.
Stone Fox - make sure you nail the landing with the endings!
*Edited for several spelling mistakes*

Really good game with a good plot about biology and science, with beautiful girls, and a good sense of humour. I hope the ratio of 4th wall breaks, inside joke remains identical: more would be not good for the work itself.

About the girls, the main ones are really beautiful and I like their personalities. I hope the "harem" can be sustained until the end, because both main girls are charming but their path is not different enough to justify 2 playthroughs.

I'm quite curious about the final length of the game : there has to be a lot of things yet explained, but not too much to avoid unnecessary duration.