Ren'Py - Abandoned - Duality [v0.1.8] [Per<3rsioN]

i actually love this renders are wicked isnt too grindy pacing is pretty good the renders anre some of the best on the site so far alteast for what i like and the girls are all very likable and good looking, not more then like 3 or 4 games on this site that check that many boxes for me (also i like a lot of the themes and fetishes)

Let me start with the good things first: great images and renders. The storyline is not new, but okay. Now the bad things: the sandbox system is extreme repetetive and boring. This reduce the fun of this game a lot. Then the nameless days pass away, you do not know which day of the week is actually. There is no interaction with the maid possible... A lot of work ahead to make this game great, but there is some potential in it to become a hot game.

Rating as of V 0.1:
Good grammar and I didn't notice any typos or problems (at least for English - not sure if there are other languages available), the character models/art look nice; nothing mind-blowing but better then the norm, the system and plot is pretty cliche in terms of this genre of game but some decent reasoning, foreshadowing and build ups are used so as long as you don't hate the "moving in with hot older woman that may be family" trope you're good there. As of right now, the dev mentioned there are still hijinks here and there and a lot of the lewd stuff present has been brought ahead of schedule so there is lewd content in the first release so it will hopefully be more "natural" in future versions - such as characters going from eating tolerating a light brush to eating semen (random example).

Overall, decent release now - especially from a new dev. Good amount of content even at first release so a playthrough won't be wasted, lot's of potential if more quality updates are released. The only thing that could be frustrating is the system of "right place - right time" for most events and until there are solid walkthroughs that can be a pain in the ass. Regardless, would recommend playing the game and supporting the dev if you can.

Very good first release. The renders and the characters in this game look beautiful. In terms of gameplay it's what you should expect from a sandbox game. There is a bit of a grind but there is an easy mode that reduces the amount of grind you have to do. The world feels a little bit empty right now but that is to be expected since a lot of the girls will be introduced in later versions. Overall it was a very enjoyable experience for a first release.

[V0.1]

This is what we get when most amateur devs try to tackle the dreaded sandbox.

Most "sandbox" systems barely qualify as gameplay. It consists of moving around rooms repeating the same events over and over. People have amnesia and have the same exact conversions dozens of times until you grind enough stats for it to change slightly. There is no sense of coherence in the progression of the character relations. A woman who would resist you and cry would start gulping down your cum the very next day just because you molested her one more time to reach 40 perversion instead of 39. There is no smooth progression of events. Each location is independent of each other. You molest her in one location and that doesn't factor into your relationship at all. It merely increases the stats so you can eventually get past a threshold. You can sleep rape aunty on the 2nd night and she smacks the shit out of you. Next day, it's business as usual as if she isn't housing a vile rapist lol.

Most locations are empty. Sure, they can be expanded with events down the line, but that's rarely the case and development cycles in sandbox games are inconsistent, with save incompatibility that can pop up very often. Every character has a set of defined routine that rarely changes. Same place at the same time, with the same conversations, and the same renders. It's absolutely immersion breaking and obviously not fun at all.

I enjoy gameplay eroges when it's actually fun and compliments the plot. There are maybe ~5 western sandbox games that use the system to it's advantage rather than as a poor attempt to pad out the playtime.

It's a shame because the corruption vs romance, corruption and dom writing, and individual interactions are pretty hot. Add this one to the pile of shitty sandboxes that will stay less than mediocre unless the entire system is overhauled. I'm not holding my breath.

Pure sandboxes are hard to pull off and really doesn't belong in this type of story to begin with. It's appropriate for adventure games, actual life sims, management, gotta catch em all, etc. Hybrid sandboxes or story based sandboxes with more intricate coding could work without too much immersion breaking though.

Other than that, there are major issues with labeling of characters. Her, him, mom, sister, brother, etc. Seems like they just randomly pick one of these when referring to any character.

Looks very nice, and i must give it 5 stars as it is well made in my opinion compared to other trash first releases.
Sleepsex is nice (i rly like its not game over when she wakes up, but the reaction changes), fear factor and future physicality is yummy.

Reviewing Duality as Initial release of 0.1
For a new Dev - it's a nice start.
Top notch renders, Pretty girls and ability to choose what kind of relationship you want.

Gameplay 3/5 (varies if you're into sandbox gameplay) Usual Sandbox style, come in exact time to the exact place and magic will happen. Not sure for now how grindy is it

Story 4/5 - Stereotypical "You left your house and now you're living with beautiful MILF

Girls 5/5 Cute ones, really well made

Renders 5/5 Amazing! Worth to set them as wallpapers))

Game promises to be kinky as hell later on.