VN Ren'Py Companion of Darkness [Ch.9] [Berkili4]

[HiP1]

MC's recovering power is so powerful that even his clothes can recover into original form from dust, first time to see a character can make his power on their clothes too.
The password said by blake is quoted from fallout new vegas veronica! Even the music in the bunker is actually the Hoover Dam's background music!
Alyssa remind me that re:rudy is almost like abandoned for a year, still don't see the future of that game...
Sooner or later we will deal with claire, hope it will not be too bad at that time...
So now dark one can be pregnant, when will we get the pregnancy content of noel or nael?

re:rudy dev started another game, that's why.

Nael has to allow them to get pregnant first she didn't allow it yet, only let Amy and MC's kid continue

 

[JJJ84]

because Gab was dumb enough to not tell her he went in her place, so there is no consequence for her... knowing someone close had to be sacrificed could make her pause, especially when it's someone that Clara loves like a big brother.

I don't see it that way at all.

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you mean Claire, right ?

Yes, Claire. This was just a mistype from my end (happens sometimes when a post gets a bit lengthy lol).

Gab can't die. Nael destroys the universe if he dies.

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No, the player only finds out the details if you pick the high order. like the MC.
and MC and the player are separate entities. sure, you can make decision based on what you know for the MC, but it doesn't change the fact that MC finding out late could have consequences later. he will be unprepared.
if you argue that branches are unified later anyway, then you essentially say that no decision matter too. so whether you chose the brotherhood or the high order doesn't matter, as it all comes together in the end.
this game does unify branches quite often but there are still branches that have not been unified/resolved for quite some time, and not just LI related.

additionally, that choice isn't about picking a side to ally with at all. it's just selecting the method to stock the attack.
I can argue that "siding" with the brotherhood actually hurts them more. because MC argues with the team that he meets, then he has to follow them all the way back to their commander without being able to use superspeed, then "negotiate" with that commander, until he gives the final order, by that time there are tons of brotherhood members that were killed, and the high order soldiers still hold a big grudge against the brotherhood afterwards... while choosing to help the high order, you take the lead immediately, you investigate and find the sword quickly, and the explanation is sent back over comms to all the soldiers. so the grudge is lessened if not erased.

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Sorry Clara, you're innocent, but your mom is an evil psychopath who needs to be stopped.

 

[Rodrigoofb]

Nael can't be the "go-to-solution" everytime something goes wrong, and it forces MC and ones around him to find solutions on their own.

I would bet on something like that happening in the future, otherwise there's no real danger. Something's gonna happen that will make so Nael can't just fix whatever problem or do anything she wants without consequences. I remember Gab saying "there's always a bigger fish" when Claire questioned him about who could be a threat to the MC with him around earlier in the game.

 

[JJJ84]

I would bet on something like that happening in the future, otherwise there's no real danger. Something's gonna happen that will make so Nael can't just fix whatever problem or do anything she wants without consequences. I remember Gab saying "there's always a bigger fish" when Claire questioned him about who could be a threat to the MC with him around earlier in the game.

Yeah, I agree.
And there's no reason why that can't apply to Nael.

Sure, she's the almighty in terms of all Dark Ones (and not even all other Primordials hold a candle to her), but if even she finds some being or rules etc which restricts what she can do?
That would actually add weight to characters and their deaths.

Cause so far, whenever our MC got in a situation which he can't solve, it was always Nael & Gab who bailed him out.
Death of Gab and Nael being powerless to do anything about it would totally turn that around.

Which I must say would be quite bittersweet, cause Gab is such a likable character yet his death opens up all of these potential paths where story could go.

 

[Rodrigoofb]

Yeah, I agree.
And there's no reason why that can't apply to Nael.

Sure, she's the almighty in terms of all Dark Ones (and not even all other Primordials hold a candle to her), but if even she finds some being or rules etc which restricts what she can do?
That would actually add weight to characters and their deaths.

Cause so far, whenever our MC got in a situation which he can't solve, it was always Nael & Gab who bailed him out.
Death of Gab and Nael being powerless to do anything about it would totally turn that around.

Which I must say would be quite bittersweet, cause Gab is such a likable character yet his death opens up all of these potential paths where story could go.

I really like Gab so i hope he's okay, but at the same time i would feel that there are no real stakes if he just survives again or Nael brings him back and that's it. It would make his sacrifice feel cheap as fuck, he put himself is harms way again to protect Claire and the people at the High Order even though they didn't really deserved it in my opinion.

 

[Havik79]

Yeah, not a bad game certainly has an interesting story and is unique, only real complaint is why the fuck when 99.9999999999% of the player base can not understand German? and French why even bother putting the scenes in with no translation.

I do wish the dev would hire a spellchecker, 9 chapters in and still lots of spelling mistakes in the early chapters.

 

[HiP1]

I don't see it that way at all.

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Gab could have told her or sent a message once he left and was waiting for Zero. at that point sending soldiers would be pointless as Zero would just kill them, and it would put Gab's life in danger.
but yeah, she is dumb too for not understanding that someone else sacrifices themselves to stop Zero, because she knows he always complete his contacts and she heard herself the description of the contract.

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it is already a fact. it's the latest bad ending. if you can't Gab can't convince Zero to let Emma go, Zero kills Gab, and Nael senses it and destroys the universe because for her there is no point to let it continue existing without him, and she CAN'T bring him back.
and just because Gab can't die because Nael destroys everything, it doesn't remove weight in death. characters can still die, even the MC. only Gab is spared, not because he cannot physically die, but because the story would end prematurely.
the real question is what will happen when he dies of old age, though. will Nael accept it and let go?

and Nael isn't the deus ex machine anymore, she already cannot intervene directly in the human world anymore. she needs a medium, like the pearl, or an agent like other dark ones that got orders from her. so eventually, she might have people that acts like Sam's guardians for her.

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again, you're confusing MC with yourself. what you see, MC doesn't necessarily sees...
it seems you can't understand that concept.

players seeing Swordslaves approaching high order facilities doesn't mean anything for MC...
players watching Ren and Claire make deals doesn't do anything for MC...

and like I said, seeing that, even the players don't know how the high order and Ren framed the brotherhood, even if they know they work together.
the only way to know is choosing to help the high order stop the attack. and from there, you learn that they planted a sword in the storage room, and they can cloak items from sight and from emitting easily recognizable energy (not a single one of the brotherhood dark ones could sense the sword), which is very important information, and that the high order CAN pick up on that energy even from far away, even if it's cloaked, which opens up other hypothesis again.

MC isn't prepared to realize and actually think that Claire will betray him. but he has a big lead, that will be actual undeniable proof, that removes any doubt that Claire is the culprit.

sure, there might be no real positive or negative consequences for the player, but the different path and context will bring nuance to how things play out, and how MC has to deal with what is to come. the actual drama itself and its size.

Brotherhood holding a grudge only leads to small skirmishes and guerilla for revenge, that can easily be squashed.
High order is much more powerful, and can wipe out the brotherhood anytime. having a grudge means finding excuses at every opportunity to hurt them more or be more cruel.
you don't understand the balance of power here.

keeping the peace for the high order is only a front, appearances. they only need an excuse. Claire is actively working to create those excuses.

before Az went crazy, the high order seemed to be a decent organization. not saints by any measure, but "redeemable" in the context of the companion world, at least. it's only after the tragedy that everything went south for them.
so when you say "High Order faction has always been irredeemable", it's factually incorrect. they were a government sanctioned organization that worked to keep the peace and the balance of power, as well as hide companions and dark ones from the normal world. hunting down ferals, or criminals, preventing wars and large scale destruction... it's pretty "redeemable".

I remember Gab saying "there's always a bigger fish" when Claire questioned him about who could be a threat to the MC with him around earlier in the game.

I think, at the time, he was just referring to Sam and other gods (we don't know if he met more). Gab didn't know, or wasn't sure, if Nael reached actual godhood yet, and what the consequences of that would be.

 

[HiP1]

Yeah, not a bad game certainly has an interesting story and is unique, only real complaint is why the fuck when 99.9999999999% of the player base can not understand German? and French why even bother putting the scenes in with no translation.

I do wish the dev would hire a spellchecker, 9 chapters in and still lots of spelling mistakes in the early chapters.

not understanding what some characters say in a different language can add flavor to the game, and it puts you more in MC's shoes as they can't understand it either.

some fans organized themselves to find and fix typos, spelling and grammar on the discord, but there are still lots that are not fixed or get through. some stuff that I pointed out were not fixed, while others were fixed. how the dev goes about it is still a black box though it's still helpful to point them out. you can participate if it bugs you as much as the other fans.

 

[Py]

eyes don't have a soul

 

[Bassjake]

This is a very good game i haven't played the new update yet last time played was chapter 8 i might wat until another update or 2 so chapter 10 or 11 before i play again so there is a lot of new stuff to get to when it gets there also any plans to gets this game on steam if its not on there already i haven't looked

 

[JJJ84]

Gab could have told her or sent a message once he left and was waiting for Zero. at that point sending soldiers would be pointless as Zero would just kill them, and it would put Gab's life in danger.

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it is already a fact. it's the latest bad ending. if you can't Gab can't convince Zero to let Emma go, Zero kills Gab, and Nael senses it and destroys the universe because for her there is no point to let it continue existing without him, and she CAN'T bring him back.
and just because Gab can't die because Nael destroys everything, it doesn't remove weight in death. characters can still die, even the MC. only Gab is spared, not because he cannot physically die, but because the story would end prematurely.
the real question is what will happen when he dies of old age, though. will Nael accept it and let go?

and Nael isn't the deus ex machine anymore, she already cannot intervene directly in the human world anymore. she needs a medium, like the pearl, or an agent like other dark ones that got orders from her. so eventually, she might have people that acts like Sam's guardians for her.

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again, you're confusing MC with yourself. what you see, MC doesn't necessarily sees...
it seems you can't understand that concept.

players seeing Swordslaves approaching high order facilities doesn't mean anything for MC...
players watching Ren and Claire make deals doesn't do anything for MC...

and like I said, seeing that, even the players don't know how the high order and Ren framed the brotherhood, even if they know they work together.
the only way to know is choosing to help the high order stop the attack. and from there, you learn that they planted a sword in the storage room, and they can cloak items from sight and from emitting easily recognizable energy (not a single one of the brotherhood dark ones could sense the sword), which is very important information, and that the high order CAN pick up on that energy even from far away, even if it's cloaked, which opens up other hypothesis again.

MC isn't prepared to realize and actually think that Claire will betray him. but he has a big lead, that will be actual undeniable proof, that removes any doubt that Claire is the culprit.

sure, there might be no real positive or negative consequences for the player, but the different path and context will bring nuance to how things play out, and how MC has to deal with what is to come. the actual drama itself and its size.

Brotherhood holding a grudge only leads to small skirmishes and guerilla for revenge, that can easily be squashed.
High order is much more powerful, and can wipe out the brotherhood anytime. having a grudge means finding excuses at every opportunity to hurt them more or be more cruel.
you don't understand the balance of power here.

keeping the peace for the high order is only a front, appearances. they only need an excuse. Claire is actively working to create those excuses.

before Az went crazy, the high order seemed to be a decent organization. not saints by any measure, but "redeemable" in the context of the companion world, at least. it's only after the tragedy that everything went south for them.
so when you say "High Order faction has always been irredeemable", it's factually incorrect. they were a government sanctioned organization that worked to keep the peace and the balance of power, as well as hide companions and dark ones from the normal world. hunting down ferals, or criminals, preventing wars and large scale destruction... it's pretty "redeemable".

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[HiP1]

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That's why I said he is dumb. he should tell her. because he understands her enough to know that leaving her without consequences will never magically make her change her current behavior.
it doesn't cheapen his characterization at all. it was a huge opportunity for him to open Claire's eyes that her actions is already hurting her loved ones, as he himself will have to be sacrificed. for now she still believes that everything she does will save them all, and that she does it for her daughter... but losing Gab would definitely make Clara depressed and resent her mother.
Gab is not above manipulating people. he lied to everyone except Nael.

I said sending soldiers would be pointless because it means Gab knows that Claire WON'T send soldier against Zero if he calls her while waiting for Zero to arrive... so he CAN and SHOULD call her. how did you understand the complete opposite ?

You really don't understand basic relationship dynamics ? When Claire was ready to go surrender herself, she knew she had NO choice but to do it even if it means hurting Clara. because Zero was coming, she has no means to stop him at all. Claire felt really bad doing that to her daughter... but after Gab left, she went right back to business as usual because she thought she was safe without knowing how it happened... she didn't know the price that was paid for her safety. if she knew Gab sacrificed himself, she would have reacted differently, because Clara would have been hurt. it's really simple.
She had a close call, and she is still safe, now she feels luck and fate are on her side, and she feels vindicated and justified in her choices, instead of feeling guilty and remorseful.

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You should go see the bad ending before writing all that.
1) doesn't change anything for the topic. completely irrelevant.
2) irrelevant again.
3) irrelevant again. Nael doesn't give a shit about Emma. if anything, she would want Emma dead, because it would mean Arsael would also disappear for a few years, and Nael is annoyed by Arsael...
4) doesn't matter. in the bad ending, she still destroys the universe with her sister in it. because the pain of losing Gab was too much for her.

Noel would not be able to stop it. it happens instantly. Moreover, even if she had a bit of time, Noel can't go in Nael's realm whenever she wants, she has to be summoned or go through the portal. so she would not be summoned, and she would not be able to reach the portal quickly enough... absolutely 0 chance to stop it. and even if Noel was next her sister, she could not convince her as Nael does it as a reaction, out of emotion. She doesn't destroy the universe after a long debate. the process is simple : Gab dead => Nael sad => World destroyed.

the fact that Gab is prisoner and being tortured is a plot device for suspense. the player knows (if they saw the bad ending) how they all flirt with the end of the world, while all the characters are completely oblivious to it. and it's funny too because Claire, Gab himself, Zero, and Albere are responsible for that whole situation where the fate of the world holds by the very thin and fragile thread that is Gab's life.

for MC is not immortal, he is "just" really really hard to kill. he can die if Amy is destroyed in a single hit. Dia, Arsael and Tessah can do it. also, Amy regeneration is not unlimited, she can do it as long as she has energy. if you deplete her energy, the regeneration ends. Tessah and Zero can damage the soul directly, Ren's swords too. the guardians should also be able to kill MC.

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yeah, when I wrote "the details" I meant the details... couldn't be clearer than that.

learning that Claire and Ren work together is not a detail, it's the whole overall plot...
if MC doesn't go with the high order, the player doesn't know HOW they worked together to frame the brotherhood. you don't have confirmation that it was Claire's plan all along. you don't actually know the real reason for the attack on the brotherhood.
you only know that Ren sent swordslaves to attack the legion and the high order. you don't know if the attack on the high order was agreed to by Claire. you could maybe understand that the attack on the Legion was planned by Claire.

MC finding the sword makes a big difference, because it gives him evidence that will lead to Claire. whether he is smart enough to use it is another thing entierely.
if he doesn't find the sword, he has no evidence. and can't connect the dots at all.

and both the player and MC learn something crucial with the sword: how could the high order detect the energy of the sword if it was cloaked and no dark one except Ciarara could detect it ? Even Cia needed to be close. how could the high order detect it from far away ? their trackers can't be better than Cia. it's most likely that the higher ups just knew the sword would be there and told the soldiers where to go to find it.

then you go on your irrelevant talk about WWII, Nazis, and dictatorships ? really dude ? either you didn't understand a single word of what I wrote, or you are trying to twist everything to make me out as dictator lover to try to make yourself look good thinking it helps your arguments at all ? it does not.
what I said was that the choice between high order and brotherhood changes the grudge the high order has against the brotherhood, and thus the cruelty and violence that will be inflicted upon the brotherhood. and choosing the brotherhood inflict more pain to them, because the high order is already too powerful.
it's not about resisting, good or evil. the war is already underway. and its conclusion is already written. the Legion is gone, destroyed both from the inside and by Claire. the brotherhood is also gone. what's in the code confirms it. Claire just needed any excuse for both, and she created one.
the remnants of both faction could rally behind MC as their leader. that's their best chance of survival. but that will be background noise compared to the main plot.

and again, you try to twist things to make it look like they mean something else. but sucks for you, we can just look what you wrote by scrolling up. no need to lie. you said :

High Order faction has always been irredeemable with how they went about things; first with Az, now with Claire, so I don't really care whether grudge on their side is higher or lower lol.

you clearly say "has always been irredeemable with how they went about things"... it's not about being "unlikable" it's not about MC or his relationship with them, especially since you talk about the grudge that we established is between the high order and the brotherhood, so again not about the MC at all. you even cited Claire. and MC and Claire have a good relationship even now.
I corrected your statement because it was factually false, then you try to weasel out by saying you meant something else entirely? LOL

 

[Mommysbuttslut]

4) doesn't matter. in the bad ending, she still destroys the universe with her sister in it. because the pain of losing Gab was too much for her.

I still think probability still leans towards Nael destroying the universe if Gab died, but I also think that with Noel being reunited with MC that does change the balance of her decision. Her sister being feral with no guarantee of being saved and her beloved being killed meant she had nothing left in the world. Noel being safe and happy significantly changes that.
Thinking about this made me realize something else though. Nael never cured Noel's feral state, at least not that we saw. Noel also keeps telling MC she loves him, and was able to (kinda) kill him when they met. It seems like Noel isn't bound to the pact anymore. That really changes the earlier discussions about MC's combat power if Noel would be allowed to directly assist him in combat now.

 

[JJJ84]

you clearly say "has always been irredeemable with how they went about things"... it's not about being "unlikable" it's not about MC or his relationship with them, especially since you talk about the grudge that we established is between the high order and the brotherhood, so again not about the MC at all. you even cited Claire. and MC and Claire have a good relationship even now.
I corrected your statement because it was factually false, then you try to weasel out by saying you meant something else entirely? LOL

Not gonna answer everything in your post (cause this is beginning to become a never ending circle), but I'll make this last bit clear and leave it at that, yes I did use the word "irredeemable", but you were the one who brought up the topic of grudge first and used it in your very first reply with the whole grudge between High Order & Brotherhood etc etc.

While I used the word irredeemable, I did mean it as unlikable and MC's relationship with others and those close to him (It happens when I'm in a moment of making a post and the right word doesn't come up in my mind. Wwether you think I'm lying or not? Well I couldn't care less tbh. And if you feel so proud about that, good for you lol).
And yes, this applies to Claire as well, given MC saw how Emma was turned into weapon of Mass destruction and was completely changed for the worse under Claire's influence.

Then you started going on about the whole High Order being government sanctioned etc etc in which I realized I didn't convey what I actually meant properly with the wrong word.

But now you're basically trying to twist my words with the intent to to start an argument for the sake of it (as you have been trying for couple of posts now).
It feels pointless to engage with you any further, hence I guess the only course of action is putting you on the ignore list lol.

 

[[Son Goku]]

Is it worth playing now or should I wait a little longer? The game looks really interesting, what do you recommend I do?

 

[ohhiimfox]

Is it worth playing now or should I wait a little longer? The game looks really interesting, what do you recommend I do?

If you dont hold the skip button and read it, you will enjoy it for a couple of hours (depens on your read speed ofc)

 

[Gtdead]

Is it worth playing now or should I wait a little longer? The game looks really interesting, what do you recommend I do?

Yes it is. Regarding's MC journey, you could consider the latest update as a tipping point, like the formal ending of his "second arc". So far we've seen MC's personal struggles mostly. Now the plot thickens because MC is finally "complete" in a sense and it's his turn to start affecting the world.

I obviously don't want to spoil to much and this interpretation is just my opinion.

Content wise, it's more than you'd expect from a VN that is a bit more than a year old, though due to some weird progression, some earlier scenes/characters aren't given proper attention and they feel like filler. But this is more of a nit pick.

 

[Meiri]

Is it worth playing now or should I wait a little longer? The game looks really interesting, what do you recommend I do?

There is plenty of content to play, if it caught your interest now it's a good time to start

 

[resgar]

Is it worth playing now or should I wait a little longer? The game looks really interesting, what do you recommend I do?

Yes. Definetly. I must admit that at first i actually dropped it. Right after downloading and watched couple scenes. Due to subpar graphics, weak language, grammar and, lets be honest, generic plot start. But after a month i was quite bored, sitting in my chair and dont wanted to delete already started game. And i restarted. And at some moment i got caught up. Right from 1 chapter. Now im in love. Unironically. While mentioned above flaws still there, a dinamic of story, idea, and overall scenario is really catching and entertaining. Better than many RenPy/HS games presented here. And dev keeps schedule, and keeps story in priority. That is quite remarkable.

So, yes. Definitely try. At least to end 1st chapter. That was moment that if fell in love with this game. It keeps deliver.

At the moment there are complete 2 arcs of story and just started 3rd. So there are plenty of content.

 

[HiP1]

I still think probability still leans towards Nael destroying the universe if Gab died, but I also think that with Noel being reunited with MC that does change the balance of her decision. Her sister being feral with no guarantee of being saved and her beloved being killed meant she had nothing left in the world. Noel being safe and happy significantly changes that.
Thinking about this made me realize something else though. Nael never cured Noel's feral state, at least not that we saw. Noel also keeps telling MC she loves him, and was able to (kinda) kill him when they met. It seems like Noel isn't bound to the pact anymore. That really changes the earlier discussions about MC's combat power if Noel would be allowed to directly assist him in combat now.

Noel being feral is not a catastrophe though. she just loses herself (she didn't thanks to her previous connection to MC), and wander around killing people. only primordials and their companions stand a chance against her in feral state. and if she gets defeated and drained of her energy, she is only too weak to appear for a few years which is nothing to a dark one. Nael is just overprotective of her sister, because even if Noel disappeared, she could just summon her and bring her back like she did for Tessah for the primordial meeting. Which makes me wonder why she didn't summon feral Noel to restore her. does the summon require conscious consent from the summoned ?
You make a really good point about Noel not being cured from her feral state the normal ways. Thanks !
I didn't think about it at all. she was restored the same way Eda was. though she didn't get the "pardon" part, but it might not be an actual requirement for the Pact. so yes, I think you're right, Noel should be able to harm humans now and directly join MC in his fights against companions. He could stand a chance against Zero with her then. Though she could already attack their dark ones for MC like she already did before.

But now you're basically trying to twist my words with the intent to to start an argument for the sake of it (as you have been trying for couple of posts now).
It feels pointless to engage with you any further, hence I guess the only course of action is putting you on the ignore list lol.

LOL. you got caught twisting words twice, and now you try to flip it over one me ?
sure, pull out the ignore list if you can't handle people calling you out.

Is it worth playing now or should I wait a little longer? The game looks really interesting, what do you recommend I do?

the game has an original and engaging story, and we reached the end of the current arc. it's definitely a good point to dive in.