Ren'Py - Destiny's Embrace [v0.7.1] [yqmo]

Current Version: 0.7.1:

A good little game with great visuals and excellent usage of the engine.

The story is a bit cliché and leans 100% in the usual shōnen tropes, including a seemingly OP MC. Subjectively, I really like it, as you can just turn your brain off while playing, but objectively it is probably more "mid" - not bad but also not overly good.

The overall design of the characters and the power-system seems to be inspired by JJK, which is fine, even though some character designs are a bit too similar IMHO.

The MC is cliché but not overly cringe, and we even have glimpses of the story to come and there might be a little bit more to him.

One of the smaller weaknesses, IMHO, is the pacing. I think there would have been space for more exposition towards the MC to establish his character instead of suddenly dropping facts about him in the middle of the plot that were not apparent before (for example the fact that he apparently does not show much emotions on the outside).

One of my main issues with the pacing:

the women suddenly jumping on his dick. It is obviously part of this genre of games and quickly explained at the beginning, but even with the knowledge of the story, it was kinda jarring that some powerful women "just went with it", without much exposition or build up before. I know there is that thing inside of him that increases his "draw", but it felt kinda off due to it being extremely sudden.

The biggest issue I have is with the sandbox elements. Currently, there is 0 value added with this kind of gameplay. The first part of the current release has completely unnecessary "go to the guild" parts, where you just click a few times on the screen to find the right building... why? Just make it story driven, at least until there is actual content to pad the other locations.
Once you move into the full sandbox and do the usual "talk to person X once a day" it does not get much better, as you currently can just skip through most times of day because there is not enough content.

I personally hate Sandbox in general, so my suggestion is to just ditch it completely, but obviously the dev has their own vision. If it is here to stay, I recommend to at least maybe make it easier and less tedious for the early stages until there is enough content so you actually have something to do at all times.

Story is very clearly inspired by JJK which also makes it quite humorous.
Although it's very generic and animations are okay you can see it slowly improving with the latest release which makes me hopeful for the future.
Right now it's an "okay" game. Nothing amazing. Play it or don't, you're not missing out on a whole lot.

Destiny's Embrace [v0.7.1]

Eh, sex scenes were good, I guess. Everything else, tho... oof.
Story, writing, dialogues are pure cringe, full of nothing and feel shallow, lots of cliche and all in between. Characters are flat, predictable, boring, "unrealistic" and full of "anime-cliche" ~Okay-good, great models and scenes. Shitty, annoying music. Fight scenes? Yeaaaaahhh... *excalibur face meme*

Check it if you have time and you are okay with cringe. Again, models and scenes look good. Just don't read into dialogues.

Story - ~0.6-2/5
Choices/Gameplay - 1/5 basically KN with "sandbox"
Characters - ~1.8)/6
MC - ~0,7/5 D-tier Anime MC in its finest
Models/Animations - ~3.2/5

Game version: 0.7.1

Surprisingly good.
I'm not a fan of the engine (Honey Select?) with its limited animations and visual style. Plus, most of these games had too simple scripts/ plots, so I started playing this game with a lot of doubts and prejudices.

Gladly, the story writing and pacing is very good. I feel like the dev is granting the story and the characters enough time/ space to unfold and develop in a reasonable way.
The fact that EVERY single woman, no matter her alliance, instantly falls for the MC ('s cock) is kind of a weak point of the story, even though it's well based on the fact, that he's the vessel of a Lust goddess.

The visual quality is- although limited by its engine- pretty good and detailed, too.

Animations during scenes are good, but not better than expected- I do blame the engine- of course. I would have liked more angles to choose from and more positions during each scene.

Navigation is another weak point of the game, maybe the greatest.
The sandbox/ free-roaming aspect of the game feels completely redundant, because, even with a well implemented quest log, you will NEVER have to search for any hidden triggers or surprises.
It's always "move back one or two locations to automatically trigger the next story event.".
Edit: I just entered a third stage of the story, where the real stat-grinding and the real sandboxing actually starts. So the previous setup/ semi-sandbox makes sense now.
You are even blocked from entering most of the locations if you weren't told to go there before.
It should just have been a pure visual novel, without these forced pauses in between the scenes.

The choice of women in this harem game is a bit too weighted (pun intended) towards MASSIVE booba; it feels like > 90% of the women have assets bigger than the MC's head. Same with the overall thicc-ness. A bit too bimbo-ish for my taste. I would have liked more diversity here.

TL;DR: Good, thriving story with reasonable and enjoyable MC development, decent scenes and definitely recommend to try out by me.

Destiny Embrance Review [v0.6.0]

Introduction and Setting Destiny Embrance begins in a way that, instead of introducing the player to the world in a fluid way, “pushes” a flood of information all at once, making the prologue somewhat forced and unnatural. Unlike other games that introduce their stories gradually and engagingly, here the introduction leaves something to be desired, being more intrusive than immersive.

Main Character (MC) The protagonist is a mix of characteristics that can both attract and repel players. He is described as boring OP MC, Cliché and shallow. On the other hand, he is incredibly powerful, strategic and basically untouchable, which ends up distancing the player from the possibility of influencing his development. Thus, the lack of control over the MC leads the player to focus more on the secondary characters, who end up being the real attraction of the game.

Plot and Structure Destiny Embrance's: story follows the pattern of a power fantasy, mixed with the idea of a "harem", but without offering freedom to the player, making the game less of a sandbox and more of a linear plot. The narrative revolves around becoming the strongest and accumulating followers, especially female ones, in a repetitive and predictable way. Anime tropes, such as the "childhood friend", are heavily explored, which gives the feeling that one is watching a cliché and light anime, without any dark depth or more complex themes. The plot, although light, lacks impact and seems to appeal only to predictable situations.

Treatment of Female Characters: One of the most problematic points of the game is the way the female characters are treated. After each battle, any defeated female character seems to automatically join the MC's harem, as if it were an established rule of the game. This treatment leaves the development of the female characters shallow and uninteresting. Instead of creating complex stories or alternative endings for villains, the game opts for a predictable and unrewarding path, where the attraction to the MC is instantaneous and without justification, removing depth or emotional development in relationships.

Gameplay : It also features a very old-fashioned system of forced sexual encounters with characters that you don't care about at all. I'm not sure what the point of the choices here is if you're still forced into these scenes. The player is forced to follow routes and scenes with characters that, at times, do not interest him, such as Angela, Airi and Umeko, with no option to avoid such events. This lack of choice makes the game less dynamic and frustrating for those who would like to avoid certain clichés, such as the “childhood friend fetish”. Lewd events are also delivered to the player almost automatically, without requiring any effort, which reduces the impact of these moments. One example is when the MC enters the Seven Deadly Sins, and, without prior development, already gets a laid with other commanders. the LIs throwing themselves at the MC, there's no romance, no build up, no nothing, This excess of instant gratification takes away the satisfaction of conquering and developing these relationships.

Chapter Pace and Structure The story unfolds too quickly, and each chapter can be completed in about 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the player's reading speed. This makes the game feel short and shallow, as the events occur in an accelerated sequence that makes it difficult to immerse yourself in the plot and the world of Destiny Embrance.

Technical Aspects In technical terms, Destiny Embrance shines. The graphics are well detailed, the animations are fluid, the cutscenes are well-crafted, and the character models are aesthetically pleasing. The soundtrack also complements the visual experience, but unfortunately, these aspects end up being the game's main attraction, since the story and gameplay are not on the same level.

Conclusion: Destiny Embrance is currently overrated a game, from what it showed me. that caters to those looking for a fleeting experience, ideal for “killing time” while waiting for updates to more engaging titles. Although it presents quality visuals, the lack of depth in the story, the restrictive gameplay, and the excess of cliché tropes leave the experience far below what it could be. In many ways, it resembles another title, Goddesses’ Whim "game I dropped months ago" which was also plagued by similar flaws, although Destiny Embrance has a superior visual finish.

Final rating F95, 3 stars.

Graphics: 5/5
Animation: 5/5
Cutscenes: 5/5
Story: 2/5
Models: 5/5
Content: 3/5
Gameplay: 2/5

This game is a solid 7/10, the plot is cliche as hell, straight out of a shonen anime turned doujin, power scaling all over the place, flashy effects, explosions, contrived character relations, it's a good way to turn your brain off. The girls are... a mixed bag, and there's really not enough sex content yet to pass judgment on them. This game could devolve into a 5/10 or evolve into a 9/10 depending on how the dev continues.

Review:

Game: Destiny's Embrace
Version: 0.6
Type: VN ( ) Sandbox (X)
MC: A god

Graphics: 5/5
Animation: 4/5
Scenes: 5/5
Story: 5/5
Models: 5/5
Content: 4/5

Suggestion: Could be a little more fleshed out, like the Family barely characters barely show up. The off screen h scene should be there too, I feel like is such a missed oportunity with the 2 hotties. Nevermind about the 'family', the 'end game' so far has a bit of scenes with them. 'Girls room' could be a little more obvious. There should be a better way to pass time than rest
Thoughts: Chapter 4 there's a h scene that happens off screen, pretty underwhelming. Feels like the sandbox is unecessary. Lots of big tiddies. OK, last scene with the girls and Himari in the hot springs, bless you man. Hopefully is only the beginning, looking promising

Overall F95: 5/5

While the animations are top notch, the story, amount of content and options are abysmal. While a reference to beloved media is most of the time the JJK references are intrusive to the point of asking why the game is not a straight up trainer or Jujutsu Kaisen spoof. The game also lacks a lot of content at this point which is a pet peeve of mine as most interactions have "implemented in the future" texts and the purported open world is mostly pointless at the time of writing. Exposition also becomes mind numbing as everything has to be explained over and over in excruciating detail especially since some players will have no frame of reference for the JJK world rules and setting.

All in all a visual feast with a depth of a pavement and at times even annoying or mind numbing to get through. If these things are improved or the story is re-written there is potential here.

Peak. I always enjoy lively animations no matter the engine for the models. The character models don't feel ripped off from somewhere else (besides literally rule 63 Gojo and Sukuna) so that's a plus. Perhaps the MC is getting OP too fast or the story isn't planned for so long, or there are more threats besides the demons, but MC's side in the story looks too OP for just CH4. Anyways, good game. Might want to proofread stuff tho. Really breaks inmersion to see poorly checked grammar.

Sure, the MC is kind of bland.
The game has a bug here or there when you load an old save.
But it's really hot. I'm definitely looking forward to this game's progress.
I wouldn't say you're forced into anything. That's just how some games aren, that's perfectly fine.
The personalities of all the characters are pretty good.
All of the characters that are horny are the right amount of horny. It's written pretty well, I think.
And... well? The sukuna marks on a hot big boobed girl? Great choice. I like the JJK referencing, without it being in the horror that is the JJK universe. Sure, the MC is op, but the point isn't for the MC to grow himself as much as to just build a harem. So, the point of it being a power fantasy is moot because it's not an integral part of the story, really. You can kind of just skip that part and you don't lose on anything.
I don't really care for a 'bland' MC, as long as the MC isn't offensively something or other. Like, an asshole. It's like having Link in BOTW- Link is kind of bland, because he doesn't speak.
Worldbuilding is good.

The scenes, the important part, are also really good. The dialogue is nice, the animation is great. The art does have room for improvement, but it doesn't take away from the rest of the scene and the room for improvement is erring on superficial.

after finished the v0.6, i have to said, the game is really good, when i downloaded it, i didnt expect nothing but the plot is really interesting, funny and all the girls are fking hot
i like Sukkuria, The Queen and her daugther

the only two things "bad" about it are: the after game there is not much to do, only a few scenes and doesnt have repetitive sex scenes

removing that, the game is really really god and promising

As of v0.5.0


PROS

• Effort has been put into the layout
• Interesting setting
• Animation

CONS

• Forced into scenes & routes
• MC's a bland OP perv
• LI's personalities (lack of)

CONCLUSION

Has potential and effort has been made on this BUT it's really shallow. MC has a set personality (bland) and the player doesn't get to have any influence on it. No disguising the anime influence. There's no choice in the game which seems to contradict the "freedom" of being sandbox.

For those who like the art and don't mind Kinetic Novels

There are VNs with overpowered Gary Stu protagonists who have everything go there way and always respond in an ideal manner to every situation. And then there's this game, which takes it to such an extreme that it pretty much becomes parody, yet nails the vibe so well that it provides a hilarious and enjoyable read.

Destiny's Embrace has a similar core premise to other harem VNs with a fantasy setting, some focus around an "adventurer's guild", and a protagonist with some sort of great destiny. I can think of at least two other Koikatsu VNs with a similar premise off the top of my head; I can't explicitly state them due to cross-promotion review rules but I wonder how many reading this could guess them if I described them as: "VN: A" - also really good, but starts with an isekai, and has a more oriental vibe, and "VN: B" - basically abandoned despite raking in massive Patreon dollars. I can say that while I like the VN described in "VN: A" too, this one is already impressing me in similar ways despite much less content, and so far is more over-the-top and has a bit of a (light) maledom leaning.

There hasn't been enough interaction with all the characters yet to have a strong opinion on them, but the typical "harem" trope of girls falling in love insanely fast is exaggerated to the point where it becomes funny (in a good way). Most characters are likable enough so far, but I can't comment too much on their uniqueness or depth until there's more to read from each of them.

The visuals are excellent for Koikatsu - no weakness with aliasing or low resolution that lesser Koikatsu games suffer from. There are some unique textures and shaders in use that give the characters a different style than a lot of other Koikatsu games as well. While the character designs are quite unique across the cast, I admit I wasn't the biggest fan of them at first, but they grew on me as I played more. The backgrounds are mostly stuff I've seen from asset packs, but they are customized enough to add some interest (eg. lots of colorful characters walking around in the city, and such).

It's too early to say much about H-animations, but they are custom, and mostly decent so far (the first one was a bit stilted, but that may have been intentional as it was the protagonist's "first time") - there haven't been a wide enough variety of positions/scenes to judge it too much positively or negatively yet though.

I like the music selection a lot, and none of them are tracks I commonly hear in other VNs. They're mostly chill or upbeat tracks that are a good fit for their scenes, and the often over-the-top and humorous vibe the VN gives.

I'm not normally the biggest fan of the click-directions-or-doors-to-navigate style sandbox VNs, but so far it's fairly unobtrusive - hopefully it doesn't become too annoying later. I'd recommend the dev uses it sparingly, and only enough to get any additional desired scenes/dialogues across, as I am far from alone in the dislike for this kind of sandbox.

This is an very promising new Koikatsu VN and quite underrated in my opinion (not many Patreon subs yet) - I wish the author luck and hope the traction and support pick up quickly.

One of the only games I've played where I could tell you every anime the developer has watched recently without any being explicitly mentioned.

It is absolutely littered with anime concepts and tropes, the most prevalent obviously being JJK (you literally have a genderbent sukuna named suku living in your body). I personally don't mind this too much but could see this turning some people off.

Overall, I'd say the story is an average power fantasy / comedy with very VERY heavy anime inspiration. I personally think it goes a bit too hard with this and could use some more originality.

Character designs, models, and animations are solid. Definitely better than your average Koikatsu game but not the best either. Sexual content seems like it will be quite frequent considering there's already a decent number of scenes when the story is still in the intro phase. You won't be going through 10 hours of dialogue to get a blowjob here which is a plus for me.

TLDR: play it if you like a power fantasy with plenty of maledom

Let it be clear that this is absolutely a power fantasy, so if you don't enjoy that type of story, this is not for you.
Still, I don't believe being a power fantasy is any reason to judge this game better or worse than it is, as power fantasy is really just a genre like any other.

That said, let's get to the things I would judge this on.
First of all renders are okay, nothing top notch or reality bending, but neither do I want to blow my brains out, so that's nice.
Animations are good, there's actually some rippling here and there, which is actually quite rare.
story is okay, nothing ground breaking, but its there to support the power fantasy, and in that perspective it does its job well.
The only LI's that's really been given any time to be be judged are Dalmata and the lust goddess, who are both likeable enough.

I also have a neutral point, which is that the MC's power seems to be rising at an exponential rate. I mean, the game feels like its barely begun, but by the end of the current update he's already on par with some of the highest echelon of sorcerers in the elven Empire. So how much story and character progression will there be left to tell? So far, it feels like he'll have the power to end everything with a snap of his fingers in another two or three updates.
But, maybe the dev has some plans still.

Now for the bad, the intro is a little all over the place. First, it talks about Empires, than it talks about Kingdoms, than it talks about cities. Apparently the demons attacked the empire, there was an explosion at the city gates, and the entire kingdom was alerted. I mean, I got the point, but it was still confusing as hell.
The MC is mostly okay, I like his relatively laid back attitude. What I don't like is how he constantly tried to refuse Dalmata's service. I mean, its fine when you say it once, but you don't need to keep hammering on it. He made it clear to Dalmata where he stood, Dalmata insisted, MC relented. That should have really been the end of it, but there was a whole bunch more that followed, and it got a little annoying.

Review for update: 0.4.1

Destiny's Embrace offers a interesting experience with its well woven story and plot, appealing to both nutzoomers and novel enjoyers.

• Unique (and honestly good) Storyline: The game excels in blending an engaging narrative that keeps players hooked from start to finish. The unique and interesting plot unfolds in a decent manner, drawing players into the world that yqmo has created.
  
  
• Pacing and Engagement: One of the game's strengths lies in its ability to maintain a decent pace, ensuring that we remain interested throughout the story.
  
  
• World Building: Destiny's Embrace really pulls you into its world, i personally feel like in a anime world when i read it and that's basically the biggest selling point for me.
  
  It does lacks a substantial amount of content. However, this should not deter anyone from experiencing this game. It's unique storytelling, well crafted plot and great world-building (so far) we see a foundation for a successful game that, I wish to see personally reach greater audience.
  
  That's all, thanks for reading so far, i rarely write reviews but i felt this game should deserve one, especially in it's current stage. Just keep it up yqmo, honestly you deserve this game to blow up (positively.)
  
  cheers, gown <3

[0.4.1 Review]

This game is quite good. Character models are great, H scenes are great and have a lot of detail in them. There isn't really enough content for me to judge the characters properly yet but they seem decent and the main character is pretty good (for being one of those mega overpowered main characters). The developer states at the start that English isn't his first language, and there were some points where I could see that being the case, but I probably wouldn't have noticed if he didn't mention it, so overall the writing is fine.

The amount of current content is promising for the time it's been in development, but in my opinion there still currently isn't enough to warrant a playthrough since it hasn't even entered the open world section yet (developer says soon, though).

It does a great job of explaining events and actions like a battle shounen, but it can go a little bit in to the over-explain-y side. If I had to gauge the game between being too obtuse, perfect, or being too verbose, I'd put it almost perfect, slightly leaning towards explaining too much. This isn't as much of a complaint as it is a light critique since I do appreciate thought being put in to the action sequences.

Overall great game that shows promise.

Really impressive considering this is the developers first game. I enjoyed it a lot, its a fun harem game with a power fantasy attached. The game is kinda short so it's too early to be sure but I like the characters and the MC's personality is good as well. Only thing I don't like is the inclusion of a woman who "willingly" and "happily" becomes the main characters servant I really don't like this trope. Especially when she could have just become an adventuring companion instead, it would not have have changed much. the only point of a relationship like that is so the main character can have a slave while side stepping the obvious problems with that. But that's more of a personal preference not an actual problem with the game. its great and if the dev maintains this quality I am looking forward to more

Very interesting so far, despite being the first game of the dev, the characters and animations look very well-made.

Good parts:

• Good looking girls
• MC that isn't a faggot or weak
• No bullshit and blue balling
• Dev is based and the game has promise

Bad parts:

• Few content because it's a new release
• The prologue is just text and name-drops so many characters and places that I had no clue what is what without an image reference.
• The navigation is a bit trial and error

Overall, this is a very nice game so far, and I enjoyed it a lot. I can't wait to see it grow.