VN - Ren'Py - Esoterika [v0.4b] [Inkshade]

The present course of this title is that Cedric and that mesmerist fellow are going to sleep with the protagonist’s sister, partner, and closest companion secretly. The protagonist merely manages to have sex with Celes, and even then, there are only two outcomes: either the "cuckold seat" or Celes deceives him... that pitiful peasant protagonist who believes Cedric is his pal lol.

This implies, regardless of our preference, we’re encountering a revolting, miserable, failure of a protagonist who is a complete moron, and a female lead whose intelligence plummets the instant she spots a dark member.

I’m an NTR enthusiast, but these personas have no charm. Furthermore, this isn’t actually NTR; it’s a romantic triad. Celes adores both of them to the same degree.....

The ladies, the visuals, and the plot in this project are excellent, but regrettably..........
I adore Celes, but I despise her simultaneously.

In this project, I don't know who I’m intended to value... even the bulls have zero to provide aside from large organs; they’re just repulsive, arrogant, stereotypical personas.

You’ve developed the most stunning girl with the finest history....I’m referring to Celes....but you’re spoiling her...
Enjoy your day.
Let me just mention this: no one has an issue with dark members. A dark member on Celes's ass should be very hot, but ....<look back at the start of this comment>.

Somehow, this is going to be the first ever review I write on this site. I'm not sure why.

TLDR: the game shows promise, I like it and despite the writing being meh at times, the characters manage to be very compelling.

Full length: Some of the reviews I've seen for this game confuse me. The opinion that the there's not enough build-up to NTR confuses me most of all since there isn't truly anything there yet that would need building up to.

Some reviews complain that it is your typical NTR story, with which I would mostly have to disagree. Yes, the LI will presumably be wooed by bigger and better dick, but does that not practically come bundled with the NTR tag?

Having played my fair share of NTR games, I would say that this dev does a good job so far in giving us something new. First and foremost, the "antagonist" is not straight up a bad guy. He has morals and even . I am very intrigued how that develops into cheating. I hope the dev does not abandon the morality of the "antagonist" and instead explores how he can find justification or how he is corrupted into betraying his friend, just as we usually see how the FMCs of these games are corrupted. My point is that this is hardly a dynamic that is seen in NTR games, usually the antagonists personality is set in stone as a womanising bully if not straight up evil.

The fmc is also decently unique given her background as a knight from another world, this gives her a naivety and a virtious streak which isn't exactly ground-breaking in this genre, but her place as a paragon, albeit grounded, in a modern setting is not something I'd critisise as generic.

The path system does what a path system should at this early stage, giving us subtle but very important differences between the two routes. The exact nature of the routes confuse me a bit though. A few of the choices felt miss-placed or off the mark for what the alpha/beta route promises to be. Or perhaps, they confuse me about what exactly the alpha/beta route promises to be.

The writing will not win any awards, I would say that it is very uneven. Sometimes it's quite inspired, sometimes or maybe usually it is quite bad. It's enough however to actually make me say that the core set of characters are really good and compelling.

There was a bunch of screentime for the MCs sisters friend and her mother but whatever was going on over there did not grip me. It felt like a distraction from what I actually cared about to the point where I ended up speeding through that dialogue. I hope that I'm wrong and that whatever is going on there will be interesting without taking too much attention away from the main course. At the same time I hope that its not just an excuse to have some early sex-scenes (a common occurance sadly).

If I was developing this game, I would keep it simple. Focus on the life on and around the farm with the main lady, have the red-headed girl come in as a vehicle to try to separate the FMC from the MC and of course the best friend will be there for you-know-what. Keep the larger conflict mostly in the background of the day-to-day lives of these characters.

Besides the fact that its early days without much content, what stops me from giving 5 stars is mostly down to uneven writing and because of what I felt to be an uncompelling side-narrative. There's also a lot of confusion to me about the choices/paths in the game. I'm not sure what they are meant to be and I'm not convinced they make complete sense.

I will eagerly await future updates though.

Bad writing, meh designs, and boring one dimensional male AND female characters. No attempt from the author to stray from the generic established tropes. Boring, definitely a pass. At least add some sex scenes or something

The character designs are good, but that is really all I have good to say about this game. There's little build up to the cheating aspect (it isn't NTR since their relationship meh at best) which makes the emotional aspect of what is supposed to be NTR/NTS fall flat. If you want a quick jerk off then wait a few updates for any sex scenes. Otherwise play an actual good NTS game like Vulgar Reverie

There’s nothing that wasn’t already said that I can add. Generic “FMC randomly loves other guys”, which doesn’t fit in an NTR/NTS game. The renders are ok but the dialogue, writing, characters, and everything else in between is awful. Glazers will disagree

The game is a weird mixture of magic and BBC porn. I played it mostly for the porn rather than the magic, and I find the story more strange than interesting. However, we must give credit to the developer for attempting to create his own story. But when it comes to the porn component, I didn't find it impressive. It's the most primitive porn plot that we constantly see in interracial games; girls are overly lustful for bald black men. Seriously, it looks so primitive and uncreative.
The relationship between MC and his girlfriend/wife is also strange; it's not shown clearly. In the sex scene between them, MC just looks like a selfish moron. They kissed, and she gave him a quick blowjob. Is that what sex with a virgin girl looks like?
The visual part of the game is very average; some of the girls are pretty (though nothing special), and that's it. There is practically no attention to detail in the renders; everything is done to show the bare minimum. For example, the characters are in the water, and their wet skin isn't even shown. And again — those unnatural-looking tears. They look awful.
I would also like to mention the drawn-out, uninteresting dialogues. Towards the end of the game, I couldn't take it anymore and started skipping them.
It could have been better, but 3/5.

Review for Esoterika (v0.4b)

Story & Writing

Esoterika unfortunately fails to offer anything fresh or engaging within the AVN space, especially for players already familiar with NTR-focused narratives. The game leans heavily on the most overused tropes of the genre, resulting in an experience that feels derivative from the very first scenes.

The MC fits the familiar mold of the oblivious, passive protagonist—more a bystander than an active participant in his own story. Meanwhile, the stereotypical “friend” who checks off every box seen in countless NTR titles: muscular, gym-owning, overly confident, and conveniently endowed. By the end of this update, one of the MC’s two potential love interests is already within NTR territory, leaving little room for subtlety, tension, or emotional buildup. The narrative is predictable, and there’s no attempt to deepen or subvert established tropes.

Visuals

The renders land solidly in the “average” range. They aren’t bad, but they don’t leave a strong impression or elevate the experience. Nothing stands out stylistically or technically.

Audio

There is no music or sound design, which significantly hurts the pacing and atmosphere. Silent scenes that should feel tense, emotional, or erotic instead feel flat and monotonous.

Gameplay & Choices

Choice design is another weak aspect. The decisions you’re given rarely matter and do little to influence the direction of the story. The game feels almost entirely on rails, with player agency being minimal at best.

Summary

Esoterika (0.4b) is a by-the-numbers NTR AVN that brings nothing new to the genre—predictable writing, stock characters, average visuals, no audio, and near-meaningless choices. Unless you’re seeking a straightforward, trope-heavy NTR experience with no surprises or depth, this update doesn’t offer much worth playing.

Most developers just repeat clichés, and the weak, stupid MC is one of them.

He should have reciprocated Celes's blowjob in this update instead of just sleeping, but he couldn't because he's so weak and stupid.

The next problem is Celes's bizarrely romantic thoughts, actions, and reactions towards that weird Black guy. The two of them haven't even spoken for a total of half an hour. Did she fall in love with his bald Black head? Or maybe she's a size queen who prefers a big dick over everything else...

Unfortunately, this game's beautiful renders and characters are going downhill because the developer is relying on lazy, simplistic plot devices just for the sake of simplicity. With good writing, deeper characters, and more interesting motivations (instead of the obsession with big dicks), this game could have been a trending hit.

So, to summarize, the game's weak points are the writing, character development, relationships, and the lack of any new experience

This visual novel is really strong if the subject matter is what you're into. Keep in mind that it's a NTR/NTS game with strong interracial themes. If that may annoy you, don't play it.

Some of the pros/highlights:

• The fantasy-into-the-modern-world setting is done really well. It's a creative concept, and unlike some other reviewers, I think it's good that the author spends some time delving into it. It's an interesting fantasy world to explore but the author manages to switch the focus back to the story when things threaten to become boring. It also lays a lot of groundwork for where the plot could go in the future. I'm a big fan of it.
• The interracial content is interesting and promising. An innocent warrior-sorcerer maiden falls from the sky, only to be tempted by a muscular black man? Hot. The fantasy world seems to have some interracial element too? Creative, and hot.
• Good choices-- I almost feel like they don't need to be color-coded as they're pretty obvious.
• The NTR/NTS content seems right up my alley. I'm excited to see where it progresses. I'm hopeful that even as Celes is tempted and corrupted, she is still trying to love the MC as he loves her.

Cons (mostly a result of the early stage of development:

• Not much explicit sex scenes, especially with the MC and main love interest.
• Definitely a VN! Not a game to play if you're looking for a highly interactive game. I'm fine with that though.
• Story ends right as it begins!

So the only cons are that it's still being developed, and I'm very excited to see where things go!

Poorly written, uninteresting, and largely vapid. A very easily avoidable experience.

I downloaded the 0.1 ages ago and tried to play it, and was surprised about how bad it was. So instead I downloaded the new version, and I saw basically nothing changed in the quality. The story premise is interesting, but it's clear that the creator knows very little about the actual setting in terms of farming...or humans communicating with each other, apparently.

The decent visuals (not great) are the only reason it was 2/5 and not 1/5. The NTR is even lazy compared to how lazy NTR is in general. But even then, the idea to fit NTR into the plot is such a severe clash that it's like there's two different projects forced together into one. The plot of discovering this magic world and how these magic users interact with our world is just totally interrupted by trying to have these women get fucked by other dudes. It's just ridiculous.

this game is fantastic, the character designs are perfect and the story is quite unique where the woman travels to the mc's world. i mean, wow that's a really good idea. some scenes are really good and quite beautiful (especially making the wet clothes scene is hard my friend, it might take a bit of time but you can make it, that's cool).

The models / renderings look great. The plot is fine. Magic to corrupt characters is legit. The plot takes waaay too long to get to the 18+/XXX content. Would’ve been better just to start the game off where the main female character is already living with the protagonist, and have the backstory covered with maybe five renders and some texts

First of all, I don't want to talk about the strengths, as we all know what they are. Imagine I wrote 10 lines about them—there are plenty of strengths : rendering, writing, atmosphere, concept, story, MC, character appearances, relationships, facial expression, physiology, and so on

However, there are two potential weaknesses. The first one hasn't been proven yet, so it's still up in the air, but the second one is a major weaknesses:

1. The implementation of NTR for the MC's sister:
   NTR and corruption through magic is wrong because, quite literally, it causes the person to die, and someone else takes their place. For example, Gwen's mother had a character/personality, but when Bull cast the domination spell on her, she no longer existed as Gwen’s mother—only her body remained, with someone else inside. This new person has no inner appeal. There are many reasons why NTR and corruption through magic and spells are a mistake
   But currently, a simple spell has been cast on the MC's sister, If no other spells are cast, this simple spell can be overlooked
   
   
2. The FMC's personality:
   The FMC's reaction to Bull’s kiss in the truth or dare game shows weakness in her personality. She’s in love with the MC and has confessed to him, but in the game, She got really lost in Bull's kiss and had an inappropriate facial expression, as if she was in love with him. This contradicts her love for the MC—either she loves him, or she’s indifferent. Both can’t exist at the same time. So either she doesn’t love the MC, or she doesn’t love him enough, and that’s not good. The love between the MC and FM is crucial in the NTR genre
   Then, when the MC and FMC said goodbye to Bull and Julia, the FMC seemed overly eager to repeat truth or dare...
   Even from a logical perspective: this facial expression didn’t make sense. It felt like FMC and Bull spent a lot time together, and fallen in love, but they’ve only met each other once before

A great game with good writing and build up to the erotic scenarios.

It has an NTR & an NTS/Cuck path and it's easy to tell which choices lead to which outcome because they are colour coded which is a good idea.

The main LI Celes is amazing, and the other girls are really good too.

I would recommend this to anyone who's a NTR or NTS fan.

[As of version 0.3]
Great game. Really enjoyed the artwork and the animations. It has both NTR and Femdom. Good suspense story.
Would really love to see some femdom scenes from Celes. Also, Julia being taken away from the MC would be nice too.

A brilliant start to an NTR game. Top level renders, models, facial expressions, and writing. It leans into "blacked" fetish stuff, but with believable and well written characters so far, and a somewhat entriguing larger premise with other worlds and magical influence.

Would highly recommend to anyone that likes NTR that's based around seduction rather than blackmail, force, etc, thought there is an element of mind control with the magic side of things.

great game so far. the girls are hot and have distinguishing personalitlies, the NTR is realistic and hot asf, and the story is actually interesting. i didnt really expect to be invested in a story like this, but when you put magic and corruption and interconnected relationships, its genuinely interesting. give it a shot, its quick and has some GREAT foundation to build on.

10/10 NTR Game.

10/10 so far Amazing Game, Amazing Story, Amazing Plot, Fantastic Characters.
All the Characters seem realy interesting so far (with Female Characters with cool designs)

Really Liked the Female Main Character really sexy, One of my Favorite scnes is the Female Main Character in the Gym Showers, was peak.

Well done Game, cant wait for more will follow this series very closely ,
Hope the Dev can produce the story that he has in vision.

Review Version 0.2
Frankly it's to early to judge this game one way or another. But what I have played I liked from a story telling point of view as it's a reverse Iseaki. So far I really like 2 of the characters. If this wasn't a NTR game it would be hard to pick the LI. As I like the redhead the best but wouldn't want to make the blonde cry by breaking up with her. However since this is a NTR game I feel it will be a bit easier to have my cake and eat it to, since I wont feel bad for "cheating" in the future this title since NTR is going to be a theme.

Speaking of the NTR portion of the game. I'm a bit skeptical about it at the current stage of the game, need more updates to see. But right now it barley feels like a NTR game as it's too early as the girls feel like they want a relationship with the MC and not cuck him / NTR him. I'm suspecting the NTR is going to come in a form of the big bad guy doing some magic and not because the girls want to do it because they are having fantasies about other men / it's a fetish of the MC. So for me the NTR element is a wait and see as it's too early to judge it just yet.

There is one thing that is a bit confusing there are blue and red choices through out the game. It's unclear to me if those are different paths or will effect the MC or the girls just yet. As right now those choices don't appear to change any of the scenes all that much.

If I didn't really like what ive seen and the potential for it to get better I would of only given this 3 stars but I really like it so far and can't wait for future updates so for now 4 / 5 stars.

Currently not much content at all, expected of 0.1 of course. The content that there is not bad yet it is going in a bit too fast in to corruption.

Celes is a Fantasy Knight from a mediaeval world with what I assume, naturally, ethics and morals of that period so ı find it unbeliveable that she masturbates to the first guy that flashes her. Now this is most certainly an NTR game, so far the 4 or so choices have no difference between them, it plays like a kinetic novel.

All in all it is promising at least the premise, perhaps slowing the corruption or giving a plausible reason as to why The Main Girl is sliding into it so fast would be required in my opinion.

Promising but for now I suggest to those reading this that they should at least wait around 0.3 or 0.4 to try it out.