Ren'Py - Come Home [v9.19.16 Premium] [R.J. Rhodes]

An excellent game!

I was not expecting much given the plot summary (which sounds painfully cliché), but I was very positively surprised:
The writing is good, the whole thing seems in some sense "mature" and the people feel real in some way.
The MC is reasonable! (He *knocks* at a bathroom door! Instead of barging in with his 1m cock hanging out of his boxers!)
Most LIs are actually nice and relatable!
Even the stereotypical roles are filled well: The "bitch boss" is not just an archetype that has to be fucked into submission with said 1m cock, but is a reasonable and interesting and smart character. (Btw, the MC can get on the receiving end of sexual workplace harassment; but that can be avoided I think.) The hillbillies were a bit too stereotypical for my taste, though.

I think there is optional gay contents (did not follow it, so I am not sure),
and there is mild pressure to follow (well made) trans contents (but it can be avoided). If your manhood is threatened by such things, be aware.

Of course the story is completely unrealistic (or, to put it bluntly, stupid), starting with the harem setup (with a harem of ridiculous size) and continuing with some ridiculous many world quantum physics scifi;
but I found that quite forgivable.

The renders are fine but not fantastic. Several times the placement of characters in the background ore relative to one another seems off
(e.g. Kendra Toilet scene, or sitting on park bench, or the councilor touching the MCs shoulder which looks more like her hand hovering in front of him;
the characters on the title screen seem to have inconsistent head sizes;
MC does not remove shoes on beds and sofas, I assume because it would be more work to render?)
The facial expressions are sometimes exaggerated or strange, but that is OK.
The models are fine: Even the "MILF" type (a type I usually hate in AVNs) is done better than normally (she still has humongous tits, but at least combined with wide hips, leading to a more human-like overall impression)

I do not like sandbox mechanics, but here it is done lightly and did not annoy me at all.
Only sometimes the navigation was a bit confusing (I never found back to garage to try to repair the car, or the the backyard to mow the lawn?)

(Did I mention that there seem to be too many LIs?)

All in all a very good game, I am looking forward to updates...

Surprising amount of content considering the size of the game, with pretty good graphics, though the animations are not that good.
The writing is also pretty good, a lot of characters and each of them feel quite different and well written. I loved some of the interactions with character through the phone in the game.
There is lewd content in the game, some of them pretty good, others not so much, especially since most of them are not explicit enough imo. I almost always felt like that most of the scenes could have been a lot more exciting with a few extra camera shots and angles.
Also i was quite annoyed by the fact that almost all of the characters i was really interested in barely have any lewd content or none at all, like Jez, Juliana, Mrs McGee, Gertrude, Mrs Mills, Brandi, Whitney.
Overall the game is absolutely worth a try, and im looking forward to future updates.

Great writing with realistic characters with personality, albeit with a little "porn-world" progression to get things going. Models are pretty varied and hot.

Pretty big fan of the fact that there isnt any real, heavy drama in this game as well. I'd say that if you are a fan of games like Summertime Saga, this would be a great game for you.

There are not many games on this site that I would support via Patreon. This game is the exception to that rule. Amazing dialogue, fantastic array of characters, and great assortment of kinks/fetishes/sexual preferences from which players can choose. Absolute 10/10, for me. Check it out! You won't be disappointed!

I am Brazilian, and one thing that makes me laugh in this game, it's them talking about him going to a university in brazil being a good thing. Man the schooling here in brazil is horrible, most of teens learn english because of the games, most of people here is almost are almost killing each other for one chance to go to a "bad" university in the US.
This game make laugh a lot! Thank you.

Was not expecting to become attached to this game so much, much less a sandbox....but nevertheless I am

There's a deceptively large amount of content to go through with a very clear explanation of how things work so you don't need to worry about not having enough to play or knowing how to play. There are plenty of love interests to choose from that range across the spectrum and I'm all for that open acceptance of sexuality.

While renders I wouldn't say are the best, they did grow on me after a little while, especially with Kendra and the school staff. Dana, Mari, and Reba are all top notch baes.

Only thing I will say are that the animations need some work. While there are some that look fine, some of them either look like bobbleheads or demons being exorcised. The head/neck movement is herky jerky and irregular and a little offputting at times.

All that said, I still believe this is a pretty quality game that deserves its fair amount of attention

I'd give it a 5 for Izzy's butt alone but it also has more butts, some just as hot.

Let's put the butt's behind us and get to the rear end of the matter.

There are a lot of girls ranging from swinging wives to the girl next door, all of them have their own story to tell.

This isn't a harem game in the strict sense, you aren't collecting them all for the MC's own use and some girls tell you straight up they will have sex with other people and if you don't like it you can leave.

Everything is optional but if you do turn down swinging and sharing it does close the route for that girl down.

For instance, Izzy is the easiest one to explain, she likes sex and she will fuck whoever she wants. She tells you on day one she isn't going to stop so you have the choice to keep seeing her or move along. I am a very weak woman though and she has a glorious arse, no way am I turning that down.

Similar thing with one of the MC's teachers. She's married and is into swinging, she asks if the MC would be interested and you get the choice to pursue that route or shut it down.

Those aside it does have those girls more typically associated with harems being sweet in nature, here being Mari. She works in the burger shack, runs a farm and is a complete star. I adore her. She does flirt for tips though and if you try and stop her she'll tell you no.

Jamie is your girl next door. Long time friend of the MC and clearly loves him.

It also has a bisexual choice with Bai and a trans woman, Adrian.

It does have a lot to offer and a little something for everyone. For the more open minded there is a ton of content.

Running behind all this is the plot itself with the MC's dad going missing and lots of science.

Investigating his disappearance is Detective Rodriguez who also happens to be really hot.

While the game is not finished yet, so far it ticks all the right boxes for my entertainment. Lovable characters, check, some humor sprinkled in, check, diverse selectable kinks, check, good writing, check and the most important thing for me, no non-consensual content. As long as this holds up, will remain a personal favorite and will continue to garner my support.

I usually dislike sandbox games. But this game has no grind and is very well made. the characters are well written and well designed and are all loveable.

The individual characters' stories are great and get you invested and make you excited to play more and learn more about the characters. Awesome work Rhodes.

Dev deserves way more love

Let me just say first off, Sandbox games? I hate 'em. Usually requiring ridiculous amounts of grinding plus the whole what the fuck do I do next scenario. This is a sandbox game BUT has no silly grinding to progress with girls, just talk to them and advance the relationships in a normal way.

The characters are great, there is a lot of hot girls in this game. My favorites are the pretty redneck girl, the waitress, the skater girl and now, a new char who is a cute, shy asian girl.

The renders are top notch and really do add to the hot factor of the girls. The story is fine, if not a bit minimalistic but then it is a sandbox porn game. The ability to call your love interests at night is pretty cool and also allows new scenes to unlock naturally, as well as taking them on dates.

I like how the MC can be fucking around with lots of girls with no penalty as of yet Some girls will notice your dates like the waitress when you bring another date into her diner but thankfully it seems okay so far.

I cannot wait to nail the sister, she is hot but a bit bratty. She needs railed hard and learn her place in the harem.

Totally recommend this sandbox game. Its hot as fuck, easy to progress and quite fun overall.

5/5 for me.

really enjoyable and straightforward dating sim. An excellent variety of good looking and interesting girls. The game is a sandbox but it's very simple to navigate and you never need a walkthrough and it's never really a chore. Very good writing especially the sex scenes which are almost uniformly excellent with nice animations. The game can get a bit repetitive and the "main" story kinda feels a bit like it takes a back seat to all the girls but over all a really entertaining and enjoyable experience.

To start out with the game has some very well written characters and i am interesting in learning more about the MC's father. The renders are pretty good and it had no bugs that i seen. The MC had to come back home to help find his missing father and how he does that he gets to bang a lot of women.
The characters are all different with their own characteristics.

Ratings and review may change with more updates.

Sex. 8.5/10
Renders. 8/10
Characters. 8/10
Story. 8.5/10

I have no idea why I like this game so much, but I started playing and didn't stop until I had all the hearts up and there was no more content.
The graphics are not great, neither are the animations. They are not bad, some are average, some are good, but they can't compete with the top games on this site. Yet? Idk, time will tell.
I don't even like sandbox, but here I didn't care. It's intuitive and doesn't get in the way. So that's not bad.
The character models are between average/bland and super sexy. And the sex scenes are hot. Would be hotter if the animations were better.
I think what makes me give this 5/5 is that the connections to each of the many characters really grabbed my and drew me in. It's no big drama, more like drinking beer or wine over the evening, you can do it for hours and hours and it's good.
Yeah, I think that's what won me over. Really good connections to the chars and slowly building up to sexy time. Or in some cases not so slowly. )
Hope the devs ups their game with graphics and animations, there is a lot of improvement potential.

Just finished Update 7 and continue to love what RJ is doing! While some may not enjoy the sandbox nature of Come Home, I find her approach to it refreshing and her writing is fantastic (especially with Brandi . She has put together so many characters with such diverse backgrounds and stories (and scenes) that it just feels very fulfilling. Still hard for me to pick one over others; the beauty of her story is you don't have to! As the updates keep coming, you can see RJ's skills continue to improve on the visual side of things as well. Strongly recommend folks give it a try!

Overall this is an ok game, but it's pretty boring with the grindfest required to get the "heart" points up. Grinding and a point system can really kill a game. The "animations" are just average with just a few static images in a extremely short loop. After playing for awhile I'm really not sure how this game can get a 5 star rating. Maybe if there about another 50 or more events, or at least random ones during certain times of day. The UI definitely could use an overhaul. The models used are decent, but don't really stand out from most adult games on f95 or most other adult game sites.

Maybe in another 2 years this game might be worth a 5 star rating. In the current state it's an ok game. I'm sure it takes a lot of time, effort, and money to make a VN like this. Truthfully this game seems to have a lot of cockblocking in it. Especially progress with the 2 women the MC lives with.

Game is good but lacks lewd scenes for the characters who are supposed to be the main characters side characters seem to get more lewd scenes
(atleast some of them )
Renders are really good
No bugs
Usefull help button for each character
Great characters

Come Home is a fantastic entry in erotic gaming. The story builds anticipation and makes you earn affection without being too "grindy". Striking a near perfect balance between story and what we're all here for: hot H scenes to fap to.
The character renders are far more unique than 90% of the games currently available that use the same bland daz3D or blender models over and over. Remember the dev is quite new and every update is an improvement, but even with that caveat the rendering is ahead most of the competition.
After an intro and a quick and easy to follow tutorial you're straight into the story and an easy point and click free roam system, which I found easy to navigate and more intuitive than other systems I've played.
Do yourself a favor and support this game. It has a bright future.

TL;DR:
A diamond in the rough. Still a lot to do and improve, but it's already great fun. A lot of potential love/sex interests, mostly women, one man, ALL of them optional, none of them exclude any others. 4/5, but because of the bi-/pansexual dating OPTION: 5/5

Review for [Ch.6 v2.06]

Once again I will deviate from my usual GOOD/NEUTRAL/BAD scheme and instead look at the good and bad of certain aspects at the same time.

- I like the models. They are refreshingly normal and yet unique. Not another copy of overused assets. Also I like the proportions of most of them.
The MC's penis stands out, because it looks good while he's showering, but becomes a porn ubermegaphallus when aroused. (Dev's planning to change that in the future.)
"Normal" is a compliment here, because too many models in other games look exactly like models with oversized attributes. This game has a bit more diversity. I like it.

- The story is a bit rough, but not bad. Some of the daily struggles of life are simplified, which is absolutely okay for an adult game.

- Incest fans like me have to turn up our suspension of disbelief a notch, because the story is written in a way, that MC's actual mother died years ago and he comes home to his step-mom and her daughter from an earlier relationship. You CAN change the way you call each other to sis/bro/mom, and 95% of the time that works fine, but sometimes the story talks about your (deceased) mom or something similar. It would need a slight rewrite of the story to make an actual iPatch, but since only the dev knows where the story is going, I don't think that makes sense while the game is still in development.
Usually I don't like these "inbetween" solutions, but in this case I can live with it. The rest is just too fine to ignore the game.

- I like that the approach to the characters and sexual situations is rather relaxed. Despite one of the LI's aggressive father I never got the feeling of some main antagonist who is like a Sword of Damocles threatening the MC with raping their loved ones or something like that. There are some obstacles to overcome, some choices to make, but it doesn't feel forced.

- I like animations in adult games. Here I both love them and feel that something is off. The animations are really smooth and have good pacing, but the looping could be better. Feels a bit jerky at times. You can see a learning curve, so I'm optimistic it'll get better.

- As a bisexual man I'm really happy about the option to also date another man. It also doesn't feel forced. It's not blunt, and you get asked several times whether that is something you want to pusue. If you do it will be the first time for MC and the other guy.

- The sandbox UI is slighty different from others I've seen so far. Not in a bad way, I actually quite like it. I'm a sucker for sandbox games, but only if they're done right. This one is close and still being improved.

- I love the consent approach! No non-consensual sleep groping.

- Medium-slow buildup. You can emotionally connect to the characters, but it doesn't take forever to get anywhere.

- In-game hint system. Always a +1 for me.


Summary:
First time I played it I wanted to play for half an hour, one hour max. I ended up playing for three hours and had fun. As I said above, it is still rough around the edges, but in my opinion it stands out - in a quite positive way - from most of the other games with similar development time. I hope it will get completed eventually and wish the dev all the best!

One of the best up-and-coming creators out there, RJ has an excellent writing style and an ear for dialogue. While the renders aren't the best out there, they've been steadily getting better as the creator perfects their craft.

The love interests are diverse and interesting, the choices are fun, and the overall narrative is engaging. I'm looking forward to this one continuing, but also to RJ's next project.

Review as of Chapter 5: It's got some good build up, and a nice diverse cast of characters. I like the renders. Doesn't seem to be buggy anymore as a previous review stated at least I didn't find any. There are some some interesting choices. It's worth a play.