RPGM - Completed - Empty-66822 [v10.2] [Lonery-Moon]

This is a game that can be finished in about two hours, has a lot of potential yet unfortunately doesn't fulfill any of them before ending abruptly without answering most of the plotlines it left behind.
I'm playing on v10.2, there are some on thread that mentions how the game used to have more puzzles and combat that are removed from the final version. For all I know, the game is essentially a visual novel with slight control, and its story I'll be reviewing.

- Story -

- Etc -
Honestly, I'm hella confused since the story just left us with a bunch of questions. But the general implication is that E.R.E. Corp apparently did irreversible damage to the town you're living in and possibly brought about the end of the world, killing almost everyone like the villains in Dead Rising/Resident Evil series with Orange being an Sullivan/Wesker equivalent who uses the powers of the tower or her parents' corporation for evil?
But then, why is MC preserved so well judging by Orange's line about him being clean in contrast to everyone else?
Time-travel? Experiment subject?

I feel like there was a genuine attempt to build character relationship, but since the protagonist doesn't recognize anyone but Ann, and the characters' refusal to actually share details of the post-apocalyptic world and themselves, we ended up gotten a mostly nameless narrative that we're forced to piece together ourselves with very little clues. The lore style of storytelling can be done (even if bit overdone in today's market), but this execution is far from satisfactory and dare I say, terrible to the point I wish the dev would've just told a more straight forward tale.

Yet one can tell the dev made a lot of comprimises, either due to the limitations of the engine or feedback from his own playtester, until it became the final product that we've gotten. From the detailed combat skills that seem to emulate the attack triangle in Karryn's Prison, unused enemies, and removed puzzles and story segments. It's obvious that they didn't want the project to conclude this way either but cannot find a better one.

Besides, even though there were inconsistency or shaky lines here and there, the drawings in this one is still very good looking. Though some commenters talked about how the pale palettes took time to get used to, I think it brought a lot of charm to the game, especially in most of the scenes involving Orange.

Like even though most of the game don't scare me since the horror have very pronounced cameltoe and boobs in 'em, I genuinely enjoyed the teeth and eyes only scare, the only thing detracting from it is the ending's length.
Speaking of, despite the script being obviously written by an ESL and/or machine translated, I still think it's mostly understandable, just require a lot of proofreading and more details story-wise.

- Conclusion -
In spite of the game's many flaws, I still enjoyed what it had to offer.
Hell, I very much believe horror and porn can mix together if it's done well enough, one of my favorite game on the site had been Agony of the Healthy Sleep.
If the creator ever make another game, I can only hope them the best since they have the potential to make something truly great.

...but what the fuck is an "Empty-66822"

If you've gone deep enough on this game to check out the reviews, you probably aren't the typical F95 user. If you are, and the RPG Maker engine and insane name hasn't thrown you off yet, then I advise you leave. You aren't gonna find a fulfilling porn game here. But that isn't why I've given this game a 2, I would even go as far as to appreciate the fact that it isn't just made to jog your hog to. No, the reason this game has a 2 star rating is because it is unfortunately not very good.

But it really could've been.

Even besides the clear lack of English proofreading, the incredibly short length, the nonexistent story, and the very obviously cut content you see in all the previous reviews, this game has an imagination. It's really the games greatest strength. I've seen people describe it as "erotic horror", but that doesn't really fit honestly. It's barely erotic, any sex scenes being quite literally out of nowhere and completely irrational in both how they handle it after and the rational behind it in the first place. And horror? I suppose, but only for the atmosphere and aesthetics.

The artstyle made me cringe initially, but I found myself quite fascinated by it very quickly. The pale faces and deep shading can make dreary expressions, which say so much without ever speaking a word. It's the game's second greatest strength, but even then I'd be hard pressed to really call anything they do with it horror. It's more a brewing anxiety, one that you think is ready to pop at any moment, at any turn of the door or change of the scene. The game never goes that far though. It intimidates, but it does not impose.

Playing this game is really like reading a particularly unexplainable short story. The author does not and clearly is not interested in answers, and clearly encourages the reader to take their own meaning from the experience, rather then have it told to them. I find that fascinating, especially considering the typical storytelling you'll find here. To the author's credit, there is a lot to think about, most of it quite interesting. The memories, the town, the fog, the arms, the lab, the acquaintance. It invites your imagination in a way I find scratches a very particular itch in my brain, one that deeply wants to know more. Whether true or not, it seems like answers do in fact exist, it's just that they'll only be found in the sequel to a game that barely got released. And honestly that kinda rules. The game is permeated with the stench of melancholy and nostalgia; a lost, wasted past that somehow landed you in a place worse than hell. In this deeply unwelcoming environment, it feels fitting that you aren't ever given a straight answer.

Or hell, any answers at all.

Tons of reveals had me genuinely gasping, heavily invested in the setting, but it's impossible to genuinely recommend this game when it is abundantly clear that it isn't complete. I have no idea if we'll get that sequel, but in spite of how flawed this game is, I want the author to hold their head up and know that if they can dig deep and get into a rhythm they have a story worth telling. Hold pride in the fact that your game is a weird and esoteric mess, and don't apologize for the game not being perfect. Just improve, and know that there will still be an audience for you when all is said and done. Rooting for ya bud, I'll be there for the sequel.

The game kinda resembles old rpgm horror quests like Mermaid swamp. Its not primary a porn game, more like a quest with hentai content. And it's pretty good in that role despite sometimes obscure location design.

I love the art, and this game has a good atmosphere for an RPGM horror game, but the dev has made changes since earlier versions, and not necessarily for the best. I felt like I spent most of my time wandering around, not sure what exactly I was supposed to do or what I needed to find.

I warn everyone - I played this game for an hour and did not encounter a single erotic scene.
Perhaps this game has very well written text, I am not a natural English speaker, I can not appreciate this, I understand only basic things in the dialogues.
The game has interesting graphics, I was attracted by these unusual girls, but there is no graphics in the game, you are shown several identical pictures without erotic context.
The game has terrible mechanics, you go and poke at random places in the hope of getting into the hit zone. Some of them are highlighted, but most are not.
Overall, I was very saddened, you need to warn, make a sign "no sexual content" or something like that.

One of the best erotic horror games I've played.
I've already laid out my thoughts about it in the discussion thread so I'll keep the review brief.
+ Amazing atmosphere.
+ Cute and interesting characters.
+ Great writing that leans into mystery and fear of the unknown, revealing just enough but never fully lifting the veil.
+- Personally never encountered any game breaking bugs but by some of the comments it looks like many others have, your milage may vary. As for missing collision and things like that, I'm not bothered by it personally.
+- Game has good enough direction, but I did have to follow the guide to make all endings available.
- Bummer ending that feels undeserved for the characters.

I just finished it after 6 hours and I really liked it. I've been following the game for a while now since I think v1 or v4. It is at v9 as of writing this.

Bugs - There were some bugs that ended with me being soft locked. The Bus stop next to Mari's place is open during the second half (everything after the radio tower). If you enter it without progressing the story to a point you get locked inside. Another time was in the bathhouse when they're looking through the hole and the friend gets spooked ). I also noticed that when your traveling around with the servant you pick up her sprite doesn't show. I found this out after I ran around with the girl at the end (there's just a empty space were a sprite should be). I don't even know if she's supposed to be there or not. I do remember certain interactions will cause visual bugs but I did not get any as of writing this. Hopefully they will be fixed in any future versions.

General Gameplay - Unless you've played the previous versions or are just willing to venture around to find stuff its gonna be difficult to do things. The walk through (v7) is good for the first half but not second half for now. Once you know your way around its gonna be fine. The characters tell you mostly everything you need to know to do things. I do feel like I missed out on some content or maybe I accidently pasted them when playing. There's a scene with a nurse that got reorganized so I don't know if I missed it or if it got taken out. I'll have to go through the game to find anything I missed. Also, save often and don't save in the same spot. I used all 24 slots just so I could double back incased I missed something and or see alternate routes.

Combat - The combative section of the game still isn't good. After unlocking the trader I just got orbs and either escaped or slammed the monsters. The first and last boss really bring this problem out. The lead up and intro for the first boss is something I really enjoy and the other ones don't have that same energy/detail. It would need more testing but to be honest the combat is probably the weakest part but the characters and story make up for it.

Characters and Story - There's has been a decent amount of story and characters added since the beginning. The artwork is what really sold me on this game combined with the general atmosphere and the lack of direction (good and bad thing). It feels like your taken from your home and tossed into some nightmarish version of the world. There are *scary* bits but not many. I assumed there would be more. The main line of characters are good and it has some comedic parts. The NPCs have mini stories if you interact with them which is nice. The endings are interesting. Not what I Imagined based on previous versions but they do fine to wrap it up. I am assuming there is gonna be a sequel game based on one of the endings.

Overall I enjoyed the game. It definitely stands out compared to other games I've played even in terms of art and story even though can be pretty annoying and frustrating at times. I am looking forward to see more regardless.

On the surface this seems like my kind of game.

A big part of why I play H-games is to find obscure little gems and the rough, childish art style like we see has marked some good games; Black souls, Mercenary Tales.

Empty lives up to its name. The atmosphere quickly evaporates after the intro, the combat is RPG maker standard, the story isn't currently fleshed out and the world is big and empty.

I could see this project turning out pretty good in the future, but when the already small H-game community thinks of Empty, this demo has probably cemented it in their minds as mediocre.

Keep it up though, I would tighten the map design. Focus on your settings strength, its atmosphere. Its hard to pull of a large and scary map, scale down and its easier to build tension.

The place where you get the screwdriver. Need I say more?

But seriously, I'm okay with a game-deciding not to hold your hand and let you explore, but you need some environmental guidance when you do that. If you can beat this game without a guide, you're either the most patient person in the world or the creator.

I quit after finding the screwdriver. Save yourself some time and don't play this trash.

TL;DR: It's a buggy yet interesting erotic horror game that needs more erotic content and quality of life features.

EMPTY-66822 puts you in the shoes of a faceless high-school student who gets dragged into a world of surreal horror after some chores down in the family basement doesn't exactly go as planned. Everybody you know has suddenly vanished, monstrosities now lurk around every corner, and the only person who might have answers is an enigmatic female soldier you find slumped up against the walls of your bathroom...with both of her arms violently torn off.

While it's definitely rough around the edges, the prologue level does a fantastic job immediately establishing the mood, the mystery, and the stakes. And what little smut you can access in this build (played v6.01 at the time of this review) gave me serious Black Souls vibes, especially with the artstyle and a decision to assist or "enslave" the aforementioned soldier.

However, as soon as you wrap up the prologue and go into the main game, EMPTY-66822 sorta takes a nosedive. Exploring the open world doesn't feel as scary since you can travel during the day rather than the night. Since the maps are so ludicrously massive with no proper direction, you're gonna be lost wandering around while running into an enemy every five seconds. And since combat is intentionally made to be as unfair as possible to encourage you to run away instead, you can see how this can get annoying REALLY fast unless you plan to cheat.

With some better world building, a more focused aesthetic (the fantasy style mages and knights suddenly showing up in what is supposed to be a modern city with no explanation was immersion breaking imo), and some grammar and bug fixes for good measure, EMPTY-66822 has the potential to become something memorable. Decent erotic horror is hard to come by these days, so if you're interested, I'd suggest keeping an eye on this and wait for the dev to come out with a bigger content update.

Here's to hoping that update includes more L-412 and Bartender smut!

The author is very activity great at fixing all the bugs and made an very compiling narrative the only problem I have is that is very addictive game and some minor combat issue .
I both dread and looked forward to the journey this game is going to take us through

Hey tbh great game with a lot of potential. Love the artstyle, reminds me of Lobotomy Corp and Library of Ruina. The starting section (in the house) is sooo great, the sense of mystery and horror is there and its awesome (I was expecting a jumpscare, sad that it wasn't there xD). The act after that becomes less of a mystery and falls off maybe cous its day now and you can see everything clear. The bar and baths seems a little out of place with L412 being like a member of some kind of hightech corp or facility or specops and suddenly the are mages and all of that but oh well I hope it all makes sense in the future.
Btw who thought of a boss that keeps summoning was fun - it wasn't. I killed it but it wasn't a pleasant experience.
Overall a great game with a lot of potential - gona place it in my "watch list". I think you need at least some kind of explanation and worldbuilding and there is too much space to wander around and as a result too many enemies. But hey for your first game not bad at all. Keep up the good work.

As of right now this game is a huge mess. You have absolutly no idea where you need to go 99% of the time, and you find yourself wondering around until you find what you were looking for.
Aside from that, the art style is rough, so don't go in if you don't like rough art styles. Lastly, in terms of content, right now there's pretty much near to none.
I'd advise waiting for this game to get more updates and to hopefully be more clear as to where to go. But as of right now it's not worth spending your time on.

I'm being generous to give it four stars, it will need the edge because a lot of people here just hate RPGM games.

This is a decent game, but it could be quite a bit better. It's quite buggy and feels a little unfinished in places. Save often and don't save into the same file slot all the time. The combat mostly isn't (you should run away or cheat most of the time). My game glitched into a half speed walk pace which drove me nuts given the large maps some of which are mostly empty. There isn't a lot of sexy times stuff in there at all, but what there is is ... well, sexy. Some graphics are just 'finish this later sketches'.