VN - Ren'Py - Dawnfall [v0.1] [Zebual]

well, what can I say?
I have a sweet spot for Power Fantasy games, no matter it's AVN or RPG.
I think this game has same potential as Eternum if this game will not be abandoned in the future.
it's deserve 5/5 rating for theme, atmosphere and story.

Incredible animations, great characters and pretty polished, TBH i didn't expect that this game would be any good, but on its 0.1 it stablish a great start, and the way the world starts building itself its amazing.

World building is good, there's no needlessly long explanation on why things are the way they are. Game intros with action which helps set the tone, humor is existent and placed at the right time. It's cheesy and kinda basic, sure but it does what it wants to perfectly, models are attractive, story (so far) has potential and it makes you want to care about the characters.
Girl wih ab giv me bonr

Solid world building, very obviously a tremendous amount of care has gone into making it not just some porn slop, but an actual world with a story to tell. Game looks really solid, some of the best character designs I've seen thus far. A few small problems here and there, slightly fast-paced, but overall nothing that can't be ironed out with future updates.

Extremely high quality 0.1, can't wait to see where it goes from here.

For now it's a 3.

Sure models are fine, but story seems to be a bit lame and too easy, teenagers stuff and MC looks like to be the wet dream of a virgin. More originality could be great.

Very few scenes for a first episode, hope to see a bit more, also don't rush too fast characters, better to have some real development and choices.

That can be a great game, but if dev is only looking to add girls and make MC even more edgy it'll end by being very bad.

Only first episode so it´s still very early, but it’s already super intriguing. The story leans heavily into fantasy and mystery, which I love. The main character is cool, and most of the girls and other characters seem really interesting so far. The overall quality is top-notch. Not much else to say yet, but I’m definitely hooked. Keep it up, dev!

Game do have a very HUGE potential with this setting at least in my eyes. Not only renders are good but story wise its quite nice. I hope developer will not dissapear XD and story will only evolve to be better.

I absolutely loved this one it has all the elements that I normally look for in a AVN especially a Honey Select one.

Pros
- Nice Story about paranormal with hunters, vampire, werewolf's and evil schemes behind the scenes.
-The MC is really cool he reminds me of Dante from Devil May Cry he is fun, playful, calm and a bit of playboy I really like him.
-Models and love interest are absolutely amazing psychically and personality wise
-Very nice art style for the renders they give a Eternum or Sicae kind of vibe
-Dialogue is very nice there is a lot of banter and cool interactions between the characters it never feels dull or anything
- The game has some cool animations they do need some work but still very nice to have.
-The music is really nice and sets the tone for each scene very good

Cons
-Honestly the renders need a bit more work in the lighting and the quality.
-Episode 1 was a bit short hoping they get longer as the game develops more

Overall I think this game has a lot of potential to become one of the best as long as the dev keeps working on it and keeps the same vibe of the game just improving on it I think this one might become big in the future.

Honestly, this game has a very solid beginning. I’m not going to criticize the story with absurd or overly subjective arguments like those I saw in a certain review, which honestly felt more like a personal attack than constructive criticism.

As for the plot, I found it quite interesting. It’s impressive how the creator builds a unique lore using familiar elements, but gives them his own twist. That said, I do feel there’s room to dive a bit deeper into some aspects. Still, considering it’s a new project, there’s plenty of space for development. From what I’ve seen so far, it’s a great starting point.

The renders are excellent. However, I believe the lighting could be handled a bit better to bring certain scenes to life more effectively. Regarding the character models, it’s true that, being made with Honey Select, they tend to look similar. But I trust that as the story progresses, the developer will polish them more and give them a stronger visual identity.

I don’t have many complaints about this work. Perhaps the animations could use some improvement—there are moments where they feel stiff or lack fluidity. For example, in the scene where Rosaria is masturbating, there’s a point where the animation loops in a noticeable way, which breaks the immersion a bit. Still, these are fixable issues, and since I’m not well-versed in animation, I won’t dwell too much on that.

The story didn’t feel too heavy or too light—it strikes a nice balance between serious and more relaxed moments, which I really appreciated. I like that it doesn’t lean too hard into a dark tone and that each shift in mood feels natural and appropriate. As an introduction, it does its job well and leaves you curious about how things will develop in future episodes.

Regarding the protagonist: I don’t know why, but he reminds me a bit of Dante from Devil May Cry, which I liked. He has a laid-back attitude without falling into the cliché of the typical edgy anime character. At first glance, he might come off as a Gary Stu, but he’s actually well-written. He has moments of vulnerability that make him feel more human. I’m intrigued to see how he evolves in upcoming chapters and to learn more about his backstory. His concept also reminds me of Hugh Jackman’s Van Helsing—a character who was kind of an incarnation of the Archangel Gabriel, fighting supernatural creatures.

As for the female characters, I liked them overall. While their introductions felt a bit rushed, it’s clear they each have distinct personalities. I’d recommend exploring their stories and their relationships with the protagonist more deeply in later chapters.

All in all, I think this is an excellent start. There’s clear creativity from the author, and the project definitely has potential. Hopefully, the pacing and narrative coherence remain strong going forward. It’s off to a very promising start.

Intro

You play as an anime boy who hunts vampires and witches for a secret group called Veilkeepers while flirting with every chick in sight. Sounded cool, but what I got was a hot mess of cringe, cheap fanservice, and a story that feels like it was written by a teen trying way too hard to be badass.

Story: A Dumpster Fire of Ideas

An anime teen with magic powers, hunting vampires for Veilkeepers to keep the supernatural under wraps. There’s some mystery about his past, tied to his well... ded mum, cus its anime, duh. and some chick named Zariel, and you get flashbacks and dreams that are supposed to be deep. But it’s a total mess. The story jumps from vampire fights to sleepy-ass conversations to weird visions without tying anything together. It’s like the writer threw every cool idea they had into a blender and forgot to hit puree. One minute you’re staking vampires, the next you’re bantering about pancakes or getting hit with a towel. What the hell? The dialogue is painful. Rex’s one-liners like “I eat my veggies” during a fight made me wanna yeet my keyboard. It tries to be action-packed, romantic, and mysterious all at once but fails at everything. I ain’t got time for a story that can’t decide what it wants to be.

Characters: Edgy Boy and His Harem... Plus Some NPCs I Forgot

Rex - The Wannabe Badass

Rex is the main dude, and god, he’s insufferable. He’s supposed to be this cool, witty vampire hunter, but he comes off like a kid who watched too many anime and thinks he’s the next Deadpool. His jokes are so bad I cringed hard enough to pull a muscle. He flirts with every girl like it’s his job, and it’s not charming it’s just awkward. Bro feels like a tryhard cosplayer at a con, But the chicks still fall for him

The Girls: Fanservice on Steroids

The female characters are even worse. Rosaria, Harper, Jasmine, and the rest act like they’re one step away from ripping their clothes off for Rex. Rosaria’s checking his abs for no reason, Jasmine’s trying to get it on in a classroom, and it’s all so forced, because the writer said "We need some useless porn that has nothing to do with the story here, because I can't think of anyway to do it better" (insert random bullshit go meme). They got no personality beyond being hot and horny. They exist just to be waifu bait, with zero depth or reason to care about them. I get it, harem games need fanservice, but this is so over-the-top it’s embarrassing. The girls ain’t people they’re walking thirst traps.

Choices: Pick Your Poison, It Don’t Matter

Your choices barely change anything. You can pick different dialogue options, like whether to flirt or play it cool, but the story just chugs along the same path. I tried different options, and it felt like I was just picking for shits and giggles. No real consequences, no branching paths. Why bother giving me choices if they don’t do jack? It kills any reason to replay this thing.

Graphics and Sound: The One Saving Grace

Alright, gotta give credit where it’s due, the art is legit nice. The character designs, looks decent. If you’re just here to stare at some 3D chicks, it’s decent fap material (I'm lying there's not much sex even in the future, cus they gonna start showing "how mindblowing the games plot is instead"). The backgrounds and fight scenes are pretty okay for a HS2 game. But don’t expect anything. The music, though? Total letdown. It’s the same few tracks on loop, and they don’t even match the mood. You’ll be fighting vampires to some generic chill beat that makes you wanna nap, not feel hyped. Sound effects are okay but nothing special.

Pacing: Sloppy as Hell

some scenes drag forever, others rush through like the game’s in a hurry to end. It feels like nobody proofread this thing before release.

Harem Vibes: Cheap and Tasteless

The harem aspect is a big part of Dawnfall, but it’s done so poorly it hurts. Every girl is throwing herself at Rex like he’s the last dude on Earth. There’s no buildup, no chemistry, just instant thirst. Scenes like Jasmine’s classroom stunt or Rosarias abs checking moment feel like they were written to feed a dry ass scene that have no build up, not for a story. A good harem game makes you care about the relationships, but here it’s just fanservice spam. It’s not sexy, it’s desperate.

Conclusion

Dawnfall had potential with its supernatural vibe and pretty art, but it flops hard. The story’s a jumbled mess, Rex is an annoying edgelord, and the girls are just horny props. Choices are pointless, and the music’s forgettable. The only good thing is the visuals, but that ain’t enough to save this trainwreck. If you want a fun visual novel, skip this and find something that respects your time. One star, and I’m being nice.

TL;DR: Dawnfall looks hot but plays like a cringe high school fanfic. Story’s a mess, Rex sucks, girls are fanservice NPC, and choices don’t matter. Only good for the art if you’re desperate. 1/5, don’t bother.

(Review is for 0.1 version. Rating subject to change in future updates or upon completion of game)

-Renders are pretty competent, and the models look good. Animations are really good too. Music is nice, even though the tracklist is sparse (tho it's not much of a complaint, but rather an observation)

-Story is a bit interesting, tho I wish it gave itself enough time to talk about the world and the organization Rex (MC) is in. And speaking of giving it time...

-Biggest negative I have for it is that it's one of those AVNs where the pacing is a bit on the fast end for me, like the dev is just too excited to get the show on the road that he just jumps through plot beats and character introductions without so much as providing enough context for me to care about them

And that's it for now I think. Overall, cautiously optimistic, I guess.

Early in development but still has enough to recommend to others. Girls are cute, story tells the world without exposition dumping the whole world on us, will have some nice fights.

Stuff that can be improved is the animation, dialogue and spelling, and transition renders, all of which the author has been receptive to on his discord to fixing and addressing with the next update.

It starts of pretty well and the author is receptive and open to improve, what more can we ask of a .1?

Do yourself a favor and go ahead and download this. You've already taken the time to open the link to briefly read through the synopsis and now you're reading the reviews. All I have to say is "Ginger Nation" rules along with the rest of the hotties you'll be introduced to in this engaging initial story. Looking forward to more.

Very nice start, renders and animations great and the story so far seems very nice as well. the ladies are all well done and look great and the story so far and fight scenes are nicely done, one of the better starts that i have seen so far and will be watching and waiting for the second episode as well.