Ren'Py - Demons of the Hearth [v0.7.51] [Konvel]

This is one of the most unique VNs I've ever played. It's a potent mix of Urban fantasy, Magicpunk, Action, Political Drama and Religious elements. It's wrapped in a surprisingly high quality sandbox, featuring ambient dialogue, banter and character development remniscient of more mainstream RPGs. It has a lot of depth and strong aesthetic identity that leave a lasting impression.

Click the spoiler to gain an overview on what is happening in the game. It features light spoilers that the player learns in the early stages of the game.


The MC:
Nero Havelka is an interesting individual. His circumstances left him with a complete memory loss and a very difficult quest which prompts him to develop a guarded and inquisitive nature. He is cunning and uses empathy and charm to control his surroundings. Early on he makes a blunder which forces him to hide his magical abilities in order to avoid an investigation.

He is ambitious and doesn't take things for granded, always trying to improve himself despite his restrictions. He doesn't enjoy intrigue much, prefering straightforward relationships. He also has a mind geared to protecting his friends/allies and favors diplomacy over strength. This tends to create a constrast between him and his more action-oriented allies.

All in all, a fairly relatable individual. He strikes a good balance between being forced into a quest and retaining agency. Despite being extremely powerful, he isn't a Gary Stu by any stretch of the imagination. He has flaws and makes a lot of mistakes, but he also has strokes of genius and he is very perceptive.

The Cast:
The game as of 0.7.51 features 10 main girls with a hint at an 11th, and an extended cast of well crafted individuals. The characterization is excellent, every character is unique and has observable strengths and weaknesses. The dialogue and banter is well written, the interactions have depth and complexity.

While some of the characters are very quirky and some are too set in their ways, I can't really find any caricatures. Even the simplest characters can surprise you and the more complex ones are amazing. The game doesn't need to tell you if a character has complicated personality. The player can easily identify these characters through dialogue and observation.

The main narrative element is the dialogue. The game doesn't attempt to explain anything. The exposition happens either by the MC asking question, or by showing dialogue from different perspectives.

My personal favorites are Chelsea, Undyne, Tabitha and Kalista


The aesthetics:
Visually the game is adequate. It's not the best use of Koikatsu but it's good enough. The models themselves aren't the most varied, but the posing and the scene staging is effective and expressive with enough detail to understand what is going on without having to read the text.

The animations are mostly for sex scenes. Again, the operating word is adequate. It does what it's supposed to do. I'd say that it's better than average, but nothing to write home about.

Music is by far the strongest aesthetic point. It's very effective at communicating the intent of the scene, the character themes are very appropriate and the game makes great use of atmospheric, rhythmic, operatic and ethnic elements that add a lot of depth and dimension to the scenes.


The romantic elements:
Sex isn't the focus of the game. It focuses on relationship build, character development and romance. Most scenes feel organic, with minimal porn logic. MC will also may resist advances from certain characters because of trust issues/intrigue. The sex is mostly vanilla with simple animations that focus on positions instead of angles.

One of the things I really like about this game is that the drama is very good. You won't find forced overdramatic elements here that create fake tension. Of course this may also create some frustration because MC won't initiate anything with certain characters despite how attractive they look, but I won't complain because it's too well written to suddenly inject porn logic. The approach is remniscient of mainstream RPG games with romantic elements, like Dragon Age, The Witcher etc, but a lot more explicit (and of course adding the Harem dynamics, which are fairly light since the game doesn't focus on sexual relationships too much).

The sandbox:
The idea is straightforward. There is a main quest and character quests. They are intertwined and you have to progress all of them in an organic manner.

In order to progress the character quests, you need to farm trust. It's not that hard and currently it's capped at 13 so you can just spend 20-30 minutes maximizing it for all characters and you won't have to grind any more than that.

The strong point is that while you farm trust, the characters have unique dialogue that provides exposition, showcases elements of their personality, and there is a progression to them depending on where you are on the main quest.

The weak point is that the day-night cycle is a bit annoying and not every character is active in every time period. Additionally I couldn't find a skip button to progress the time, so I was forced into talking to them to progress the time, which can get frustrating after a while.

Another weak point is that because the quests are intertwined, you may progress them in a manner that the dialogue references events that haven't happened yet.

The best approach is to do all characters quests till they are locked, then progress the main quest until the a character quest unlocks. Rinse and repeat. If you somehow start an event that you didn't intent to, just rollback and check the hints. This method will give you the most consistent results.


So to close this:
- Expansive and detailed urban fantasy setting with magicpunk elements.
- Interesting and engaging story.
- Great drama and political intrigue.
- Amazing characterization and dialogue (with perfect english).
- Visuals ranging from average to above average.
- Average animations.
- Great audio.
- Straightforward sandbox with a few unecessarily time consuming issues.
- Focus on romance, relationship building and character development over porn.
- Formidable MC and a diverse cast of humans and monster girls to cover many different preferences.

This is an easy 5/5 game. If you like fantasy/magic, political intrigue and have a preference in story-first VNs, it should be right up your alley.

I had some preconceptions with this one. I figured it was "one of those games" i.e. a lazy harem story with a bunch of walking stereotypes waiting to have sex for no reason.

Surprisingly though, this is a very good tension-filled story with everyone having their own goals and motivations. In the end, it's still a fairly tame harem story, but there's depth to the story element, that I did not expect.

There is a sandbox element, but it is unobtrusive and doesn't get in the way.

I'd say, it's not worth it to play for the porn. There's enough of it but it's a pretty standard unmotivated affair, but it's also not important, because you'll want to know what happens next and that is a rare breed here.

It starts slow, stick with it.

Review of 7.5.1

This is my first review so please bear with me.
I've been following this game for quite a while now and seen how much effort is being put in by the dev Konvel is, and seen the lack of recent reviews that goes over some of the game so I decided to jump in.

First of all; yes this a story first game but of the games ten available of this updates girls, eight have sex scenes with a few having three, of the last two, one has a blowjob. There's optional blowjobs and sex with side characters if you wish. Talking of optional, yes you can choose which girls you romance so no need to worry about that. And the dev is actively going back to improve old sex scenes with a few repeatable events done first to test with hopes that they are brought in line with the later scenes like the threesome.

But of course getting back to the story its definitely the games strong point with the girls playing center stage along with Nero the Mc. A common complaint is that Nero is mostly avoids combatant. A reasonable complaint but its established why at the start. In minor spoiler terms they would quickly find out who he is while he is till gathering strength. But still I get why people want a more combat proactive protag, its a pretty common request on this site. Still the mc remains an active part of the plot rather than a bystander if thats a worry. But yeah this is definitely a game where you stay for the characters. It has quite a few twists even this early on so i'm afraid of spoiling.

It has a sandbox, a sandbox with minor point collection that you can max out at the start and never bother with again. Still the word sandbox causes chill down your spine doesn't it? if you've been on this site long enough. The sandbox though is heavily sign posted with indicators of where characters are so you don't have to keep click around. The requirements of how to get events are on the girls page so you don't have blindly guess either. And even that is planned to get streamlined from images posted.

I've already mentioned it but the sex scenes have improved from feedback over time so the dev is listening and is pretty open to feedback. And the end goal is to have at least sixteen main girls to romance with the allies screen as proof. So lots of different girls await

Lets talk about about bugs and such. This current updates has months of searching the game for issues and sending it back to konvel so we've caught up. And he would be happy to help if you find one. The continuity issues triggering were also looked at by myself since that seemed like a possible issue so unless me and konvel missed something it should be hard to get things out of order now since I've went through the game three different ways and attempted to break it. But if you do somehow get an out of order scene then please roll back to the sandbox, save and post the save and instructions or at least what happened in the thread or discord and we'll take a look.

If you lose a save then the game gives you an option to jump to the start of any available chapters with a checklist of any flags like romance

If I missed anything ask me in the thread and i'll answer, thank you. Have fun

P.S if you do have issues and how then please say, liking the negative review is your prerogative but it would help the dev more if you posted your issue in thread so konvel can fix it.

Review of version 7.5.1:

I'd like to give this about 4.5 stars, but that's not possible so I'll round it up. I really enjoyed the story, even though there were some things I did not quite understand. for example:

the MC seems to run into all sorts of powerful enemies and does not have control over his own power. Why has he been training so little? It does not really make sense to me.

The game also doesn't really benefit from an open world in my opninion, and the order of certain events is forced anyway, so why not a VN?

Other than that I really have nothing to complain, I enjoyed the story and there is a TON of content.

The Good:

1. The Story/intrigue is very well thought out and is so many miles above the majority of games on this site
2. The Characters are also very distinct and speak/interact like diffrent people
3. The Music is probably the best/most fitting in any game like this with there being several times where I stopped reading just to listen to the music

The Bad:

1. The Sandbox is the main fault of this game and while it does not suffer from an endless grind there is a fair amount of extra/useless clicking (even if you use the in game walkthrough as every time you use it 3 extra clicks are needed which can add up if you need it after every event (spoiler: you will want to), because like many "sandbox" games there are several times where you SHOULD BE forced to do events in a certain order which negates the idea of it being anything other than a regular VN with extra steps
2. The in game guide is unclear and if followed will spoil events same as playing blindly

1. The in game guide is

The Terrible/Game ruining :

1. The Continuity (or lack thereof) is a single thing that not only stopped me from continuing this game, will prevent me from recommending this to anybody, and imo ruins the entire point of this game,​

Imagine a book you are enjoying but when you turn the page from page 68 expecting to be on page 69 you end up on page 80 and thus spoil the end of the chapter. That has happened to me 5 times in 2 chapters ranging from small spoilers (like an extra scene spoiling that a side character can see the demon kings spirit inside of you), to spoiling the ending of chapter 1 while also missing ALL the context relating to Astrid. There are claims that no content is miss-able but on latest version I was able to skip into chapter 2 (reloading an eariler save allowed me to see the end of chapter 1).

One of the few games on here with a very in-depth story and lore.

Pros:
Story: While it is a lot of reading, the story is very well laid well, has a lot of lore building, and is imaginative so far.

MC: The MC is alright. He is deceiving and manipulative, but he is powerful and somewhat likeable so far.

LIs: There is a good variety of LIs and they are mostly likeable so far (but some lie too much or are too deceiving).

Cons:
Sandbox: I think this game would have made a better VN since you already have to do most of the events to continue the story. It is not the worst sandbox, but still takes quite a bit of clicks.


Overall, a VN with one of the most interesting stories I have seen on this site.

Content: Quite a lot
Pacing: steady
Plot line: Corrupt/Criminal School/World - gangs - serial killers - murders - organizations - demons - discrimination - MC revenge story - MC rallies people to his cause

Character Models: Quite OK during interactions - could be improved for some H-scenes
Personalities: Main Charm of the game - well defined - everyone got quite the backstory

Music: really badass
Animation: could be improved

Demons of the hearth is one of the greatest games that I have ever played. The story of this game is very engaging, and The characters are colorful, both figuratively and literally, and well written. The graphics are also decent. This game (a sandbox game) is better than most of the professional VNs out there just because of its story and characters. It is unfortunate that this gem doesn't receive as much support as it should.
If you seek an adult game with a great story and fleshed out characters then I recommend Demons of the Hearth to you, but You need a bit of patience to read through some text which is completely worth it in this case.

My English is very bad so please bear with me
I was very surprised how good this game actually is. I expected a game with average boring story with atleast good sex scenes but oh boy was i wrong.
Instead what i got was one of the most interesting story ive ever read. Plot is complex , there are alot of different characters who all are complex and unique.
There are sex scenes that are good and add to story but honestly the game is worth playing just for story.
Overwall i would say this game is definitely worth playing if you like visual novels in general and enjoy interesting story with well written memorable characters.

More than any other VN I've read, this game is filled with intrigue and suspense. There are nearly no clear-cut lines between friend and foe, or what kinds of situations may cause those positions to shift - this applies across the entirety of the cast.

The motivations of these characters, and how they intersect with those of the protagonist, and each other, creates a truly tense and special experience. Each update leaves me on the edge of my seat, wondering what will happen when each character's plots and secrets are finally exposed to one another.

Despite the dark tones and constant schemes, the game has a good sense of humor, and the bonds created with the characters often leave you hoping things can turn out for the best for everyone, as unlikely as that possibility may seem.

Visuals are "A+" as far as Koikatsu games go. Excellent and unique character designs, and posing, that complement their personalities perfectly, and with no ugly aliasing. Backgrounds are also mostly unique, and of excellent quality - even the ones I recognized (eg. the ever-present Koi Cafe background used in like 90% of Koikatsu VNs) had enough custom touches to make them feel unique.

Music is also far above the average - excellent matching to the tone of scenes, and in general I like the genres and styles used (though that's subjective). I also didn't notice a single one of the common royalty-free tracks that I find over-used in many other VNs.

My ratings on most VNs skew high, because I don't tend to follow through with reading VNs that I don't find myself enjoying early on, and so I don't bother leaving a rating on them. That said, this VN is definitely in the top 5 of the many in-progress VNs I've played (above many others that I would also give 5 stars to). I wish the author all the best, and hope they keep up the fantastic work!

Love the story and the characters so much,the game truly sets a bar to how demons (degmiato) should look like in games,really like all the different and unique personalities as well.
The only problem is how attractive some of the side characters and enemies are lol
Really hope this gets more attention since it truly deserves it.
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edit: Just disregard Simpgor's review,I have no idea how anyone would rate this 1 star lol

I was quite perplexed while trying to rate this game. On one hand, it's one of the better written VN's on this site. It starts fairly light hearted, with a lot of slice of life, but gradually becomes more intricate and darker, with bigger focus and world building, characters and story (even if sillier stuff is still present to some degree). There's intrigue, murder, assassinations (which is still technically murder, I guess), different factions with their own agendas, (almost) everyone is lying to each other or at least hiding something. Not to mention that at least two of the potential romance interests would be straight up villains in most games.

At the center of it is our MC, pushing his own agenda and balancing ties with different, sometimes rival groups in order to amass power and allies without tipping his hand too soo. All the while questioning what kind of person he really is, and how far he's willing to go. And while there is not that much meaningful choice here, other the whether you want to pursue specific girls romantically, what is there let's you make him a borderline villain as well. At times it feels like one of those long, complicated jRPGs that can completely engross you.

While writing fumbles here and there, it's still a very engaging story that will leave you waiting for the next update. So why was I debating how to rate this game? Despite how much I've enjoyed it, there's no denying that there are few faults here.

First of all, the sandbox aspect of gameplay seems rather pointless, and doesn't really provide much other then letting you choose in which order you want to follow specific plots. On the contrary, it serves mostly to break the flow of the game. That, however, might be question of personal preference, as I generally don't care much for sandboxes anyway.

Second issue is everything that makes this game fit for this website. This is possibly the least horny porn game I have ever played. Sexual content is fairly sparse, and for the most part not terribly imaginative, with few exceptions. It's not bad, per se, but it's clearly not the main focus here. Girls look nice, but they will have, at best, few of scenes as of writing of this review, and there is generally very little sexual tension outside of those segments. At times it almost feels tacked on, like it's the last thing on author's mind.

At the end of the day, whether or not you will like this game comes down to what you want to get out of it. If you are looking for something to turn you on, or have a quick wank, then there is a plethora of better options available. If you want engaging, elaborate VN with ocassional titties, then it might suit you well. Personally, I like it a lot, and I wish it got more recognition.

There are very few games with storylines as good as this one. This was the game that put visual novels on the map for me. I still havent found a better VN than this. If you want to get lost in a great story for hours, then play this game. you wont regret it

This game is absolutely underrated. It's not a H-Game but the scenes are still great, that said where this game really shines is in the story and world building department. I wasn't expecting this much content dedicated to making a believable environment, creating a solid plot and giving rather extensive backstories to some of the girls. I honestly can't wait to see how the story continues but from what I've seen so far I'm convinced that the developer will do a great job.

played a while ago but was very entertaining throughout.
interesting characters and story
good scenes
want to know more but updates as always take time
meaningful choices at times and navigation or more unique than the standard Renpy experience

So another Demon Lord game... I admit the premise didn't grab me at first, but damn this world the Dev created is so meticulously constructed it sucked me in. It starts a bit slow but once you're finally introduced to the Hearth, it takes off. That said, its a heavily story driven game so don't bother looking here for some quick faps. It really does feel more like an anime/manga than a porn game. So much so, I almost wonder if the lewds were put in just to get the game funded because I'd still play this without it. One complaint that I have- with all this wonderful exposition and intrigue, the game sometimes doesn't know if it wants to be a VN or a sandbox. All the sandbox element is doing is giving more fun character background and personality and lets you explore the Hearth; something a VN could do just as well. Still, a solid 4.5 (rounded up) and the only Demon Lord game you should bother playing.

As of right now, a hidden gem in the market.

I will be updating the review as I keep playing, but even early on, it shows incredible potential. The story latches onto you quickly, though I wish some of the exposition had more of a visual or tangible component to it, such as an image, it didn't turn me off like it can usually do. The writer has a good sense of when to stop.

In terms of plot and character, even early on, I am amazed at how well things flow together, and how natural the introductions of characters feel. The designs are tastefully done, I love Astrid's design, and the personalities are clear from their design, without being extreme or caricature-like.

The story beats flow well so far, neither too fast, nor too slow, and it keeps me engaged. The one minus, which is not the dev's fault, is that as a person who has dabbled in illusion software myself, I recognize the assets, and can even recognize a lot of the OST, but they're tastefully used and pushed about as far as they can be taken. In a future where they have their own custom art, they could create visuals that really make the game unique.

With blunt honesty, this is one of the only games on this site with a story that interests me without it being driven by my desire for h-scenes, and the characters stand out as colorful, without being overdone. All in all, tasteful, and subtle. These are characteristics that this genre as a whole lacks. I only hope that the dev can get the recognition they deserve.

A compelling storyline worth around 12-15 hours. The H-scenes and girls are alright, but the political intrigue and power struggle is the best fucking you can get out of this game. I hope the dev keeps writing it as good as it is. As it stands, this is definitely something to keep an eye out for.

Came for the fap (giggity), stayed for the political intrigue and interlocking interests. It's a bit surprising all things considered, but the world building, plot and characters are pretty great. And have I mentioned the political factionalism? Cause I love the political factionalism.

Interesting characters, quality visuals, a very intriguing premise, all these factors combined really make 'Demons of the Hearth' quite a solid AVN, in my opinion. While the sandbox grind can get a tad monotonous at times, the surplus of content that the game has currently more than makes up for the little extra time spent grinding. Not to mention, the superb writing and amusing character interactions that really help in bringing depth and a sense of uniqueness to the story.

All in all, I would definitely recommend the game if you have a preference for story over sex (most of the scenes aren't very long or all that great really) because where the game does especially shine, is when it comes to its compelling plot and premise more so than anything else.