VN - Ren'Py - Eternum [v0.9.2] [Caribdis]

Review for v0.4 beta, subject to change for future update.

I used to be a fan of Caribdis' works, but after this update dropped I'm a whole air conditioner.

Creating an amazing AVN means that the developer has to strike a balance between sensual contents and story-writing presentation, and Caribdis manages to accomplish that goal once again with his latest work Eternum, a sci-fi romance story mimicing the worldview of Ready Player One where you as MC set out to win the ladies' hearts, as well as to uncover the mystery of the virtual world that is more real than real life. So far Caribdis with his amazing writing skills has made the story, with intricate plot and great humor, more and more interesting. I don't want to spoil any of it, you have to try it yourself to see.

Character arcs are also one of Caribdis' strong points. Just like Once In A Lifetime, in Eternum we are once again presented with seven girls who are all fascinating in their own right. What's more, they're not just for the sake of fap materials or damsels in distress; instead they actually help push the story forward. I myself prefer more real-life models than Honey Select, but even though the characters in Eternum are created using Honey Select 2, their "weakness" is greatly mitigated by the choice of facial animations, which makes the characters more likable and "lively" than HS characters in other games (for example: there's a scene where MC and Annie go out to a Eternum date and Annie's facial expressions when MC expresses his love to her is just priceless).

The music and sound effects are also incredible in helping shape the story, and the latest addition of "audio log" is certainly a pleasant surprise.

Overall, Caribdis has once again done an amazing job in creating another AVN masterpiece, which is easily one of my Top 3 AVNs, and I love to see how the story unfolds in future updates.

(0.4)
Amazing renders and characters, also the setting is really cool! Top notch game hands down.
It's a pretty lighthearted game with all the girls drooling over you basically from the get-go, but yeah that's fine for me, this is an hgame in the end. My only complaint is how linear the story feels (to me) despite the dozens of choices you are offered. I can't really explain why since there are some (brief) branches but to me they all seemed not really story-changing, often it's just a matter of making the right choices to stay in the girls paths (which is rather easy). Other games gave me a much bigger feeling of "freedom", but it may be just me

Anyhow, good job Caribdis and keep up the good work! (and sorry for my borked English)

This game is great, they work with what they have, it's fun, it has intrigue and mystery, the story makes sense considering that it is a universe to which we are new, the rhythm of the story leaves you glued, you don't lose interest in the characters, the humor is understandable and you relate to it (English is not my native language), Keep doing a great work

I really love this game so much. I'm not good at English But the context of this game is not too difficult to understand. There are also very melodious songs. For me it's a very good gaming experience.

Version 0.4 first playthrough


This is officially the best Game in the section VN. Funnily I wrote this before I actually realized, it is the best reviewed game atm.
The grafics are spectacular (for HS).
Yeah, MC's overpowered, the girls are unrealistic (but very sexy) and the characters are a bit clichéd.

It doesn't matter a bit! The story is absolutely masterfull told, and the little parodies here and there (or the VERY BIG ones, like Warthogs) make it even more interesting to follow.
This gets all praise I can give because of its creativity, the mastery in execution of said creativity, and the little things they throw in here and there to amuse me.

Man I love this game. These are the games that ruin every other VN because of the high degree of quality in the title.

Caribdis is a fantastic writer and really that is what steals the show in this game. Sure the girls are hot, but it's really just a normal VN with not much other gimmicks other than a currency system. You make a few choices, blatantly decide who you want to romance and who not, and right now there aren't even many sex scene.

But the writing, the story, the pacing its all just fantastic. I can not stress enough how GREAT the writing of those game is, and it is certainly the best of any VN I have played (XXX or not).

There is a reason this game is at the top of the highest rated games. Immersion.

10/10 pictures and animations.
10/10 sound
1010 immersion
10/10 humor
10/10 pacing of the game.

You are the main character of this story. And there actually is a story. No grinding, no over the top 100+ girls to date. It just guides you through different words, story plots and so much humor. And great humor. A very thought out game. Which doesnt go all out of choices, which will always bite the creator in their ass. Simple and linear, but very well made. I wish more of these games were like this. Instead we usual get bad written English stories that jump from sex scene to blowjob scene. Give this a try! I do not have a bad word to say about this game. Yeah, maybe that updates take too long, but we cannot have quality without waiting

Great setting, humour and knowledge of the technology used to make these games lets Caribdis to succeed after his previous game Once in a Lifetime.

Great models, dialogue and a tight story and cast

0.4 Beta review:
I've played dozens, if not over a hundred AVNs at the point, and yet Caribdis manages to make a masterpiece that stands above most of them. I'm so enthralled by this game that I'm writing my first ever game review for this.

This game doesn't have the most niche kinks - it's a fairly typical harem game with HS/college aged girls and a very young milf thrown in. Fairly vanilla stuff as of 0.4 Beta, but plenty of hot and sexy scenes so far. The main girls have a slower progression than side characters, but I feel the sense of progression is fine. Every single LI is hot to the nth degree it makes it difficult for me to select which is the best. I certainly am not disappointed with the adult scenes so far in this game.

In terms of visuals and animations, this is a HS2 game, which usually isn't my preferred medium. There are other games on this site with more realistic renders and better animations, but let me say Caribdis manages to make one of the best HS2 games out there - on par with or even better than Pale Carnations and Ripples. No knock in the visuals/animation department from me at all.

By far the biggest draw for me in this game, is the deeply engrossing story that Caribdis has managed to weave into this adult game. Many games on this site are little more than images/animations to spank to, with stories that are either too convoluted or non-existent. Caribdis manages to create a fascinating sci-fi storyline that blends just the right amount of humor and sometimes heart wrenching backstory. Each of the main LIs of the MC are getting more and more fleshed out with each update, and this 1000% makes this game one of my most anticipated ones, every time there's an update. I've played this dev's previous game, and I truly believe he or she has improved tremendously in their craft.

Best part about this game and dev is - each update is a sizeable chunk, with a decent spread of H scenes, unlike some other famous devs out there. If there's any dev who deserves monetary support on this website, Caribdis should be near the top of everybody's list. Keep up the fantastic work!

Edit: One more part I forgot to mention, this game has great music that complements the scenes very well. Very few VNs have music and some that do just play random songs. The music in this game enhances the atmosphere and makes the game that much better.

Again Carbidis has graced us plebs with honeys of varying shades and sizes and again he brings a tale of mystery and titties. Mostly tittles but still the mystery is there. The game is the only one I can remember actually having a page system for saves, as in you go to 11 and the pages below change. Revolutionary.

MC Player Person Man exists! And he has a female friend! Also Chang, he's a bro, but he doesn't have tits so he only gets a 9/10. Player is going back to his old town where there are Childhood Friends and other Waifus to woo when a PLOT surprise happens, like a rat thrown from a crack addicts underwear you have no idea where its come from or where its going next. But it 100% leads to titties, with jiggle physics.

There's music, I like it. Not seen any issues with the grammar or spelling so far. There's a variety of Waifus to war over. Nova is the best, disagree and you're retarded, this is known.

Play it.

Imagine a super fun sci-fi/fantasy game with great lore, amazing characters and a story full of action, adventure and laughs; add a pervert main character - you get Eternum. I´ve compared AVNs to Marvel and Oscar movies - This is Spider-man, the very first one from 2002 - great action, funny and full of tiny moments that elevated itself to greatness; add a pervert main character - you get Eternum.
Play it now. Thank me later.

Story - 3.5/5: Nothing too special, but good enough to keep me engaged

Writing - 4/5: Sometimes, the writing feels quite rushed. Some sex scenes feel forced, like the author had an agenda to put a character's sex scene in the version, so they just shoved it in between some cutscenes here and there. An example from version 0.4: Maybe it's because I played OIAL in its entirety in one sitting after the final version was released, but the buildup and tension in OIAL felt much more natural than in Eternum, where it honestly feels like some girls only have the hots for the MC because it's an adult game... not to mention that somehow all these smokeshows have almost nobody other than the MC going after them. Most of these girls, who would put supermodels IRL to shame, have never had a romantic encounter in their lives, let alone had a boyfriend or sex before. But this is a common trope in a lot of these non-realistic games, so I'll let it slide.
I might sound quite negative about the writing, but there's a reason why it's still 4/5 after all the criticisms. Caribdis' uniquely unexpected and entertaining writing style is why despite the story itself not being fantastic, Eternum (and his previous game OIAL) is such an immersive and entertaining experience, even outside of the sex scenes. If you can get past some of the unrealistic/inconsistently paced aspects of the writing and play with the mindset that you're simply here to catch some hot girls and get laid, it'll be a fantastically amusing and enjoyable time; just don't expect it to be a Nobel Prize winning novel.

Music: 3/5 - Nothing special, and some of the music feels jarring during some sex scenes, but overall not bad.

Characters: 4.5/5 - All the characters are amazing and have their own charms, and if the writing does anything right, it's getting you to learn about these characters and become invested in them.

Visuals/18+ scenes: 6/5 - What makes this game one of the best, if not the best, games on this site. I mean, this is what we're here for after all, right? It's a shame that Honey Select 2 is rarely used by great developers, but this game totally makes up for the lack of good HS2 games on the market. Obviously, attractiveness is a subjective matter; however, I'd seriously consider reevaluating your sexuality if you find the models in this game unattractive. Caribdis is one of the only developers on this site that gets everything right; not just the body proportions or the graphic quality, but the finer details, like hair, animation smoothness, and facial expression (my god, how many great models have been ruined by every single girl having duck faces).

This game is a masterpiece. I've played many VN games so far but this game is the best. Good story and music, great sense of humor and the girls are so stunning. Try this game and you won't regret playing it.
(Sorry I'm not very good at English)

I have rated one other game on this site five stars, and that was fair, but I wish the scale could expand to ten so I could put Eternum in its proper place: alone at the top. Caribdis is the master storyteller in this genre: the Shakespeare of the adult visual-novel. So far he has specialized in writing comedies, but I like to imagine what a great tragedy he could create incorporating NTR elements. Maybe next time....

Played for the porn, stayed for the feels - the horror/mystery bit with Luna is EXCEPTIONALLY well-done. The characters are all likeable (except the ones deliberately not likeable, of course), and the story is engaging as all hell.

I dont write reviews much and i just finished the update so this might be a little biased but

Eternum is easily approaching the echelon of one of the best games i've ever played. Beyond the fact that its an "adult game" it definitely has the story and writing to contend with other story heavy games in any market. This has one of the most finely crafted environments and character creation on top of easy going dialogue that can't help but pull you in to read each line carefully, sometimes twice.

In my honest opinion, this games easily already surpasses OiAL. Noticing how Caribdis labels his games, theres probably 6 more updates until 1.0 and the game would be done and I both cannot wait to play this game in full and will be utterly crushed that this game is over.

This game has 10/10 writing, 10/10 world creation, 10/10 characters, 10/10 everything

Cant even forget about the sex scenes because they are so incorporated into the story its nuts. They are in their own right 10/10 and never seen Honey Select models look so good or been so well animated.

WHY ARE YOU HERE AND NOT PLAYING THE GAME DUMB FCKS LOL. Easily the best dev whose games ive played.

writing 5
graphics 5
girls/wifus 5
action/horror/fantasy/comedy/drama 5
sound/mood/atmosphere 5

Overall a very enjoyable experience

pros:
-Well written and diverse cast
-Fun music and great art direction
-Lots of inclusive options
-no noticeable bugs or typos
-Luna is best girl

cons: no NTR
lol

I think I went into this game with to high of expectations considering it is the highest rated game on the site. The visuals are pretty dang good and that alone is worth a play through. The dialog is where I can't find joy, I am thinking that I need to be more cautious when I see the 'humor' tag as I don't tend to get or enjoy the typical sarcasm I have encountered both in life and on many vn's.
I found that the characters didn't really have a true individual personality and all seamed to have extremely similar personalities, especially in the girls closest to the MC.
I would give this VN a 4 or 5 star if I was just in it for the porn, but that's not why I play vn's.
I will return to try the game again and hopefully I will be able to bypass my own hangups and find a new joy otherwise it will be one of those vn's that I turn on the skip function just to get to the choices and the porn.

I will start this review by saying that I really love Caribdis comic timing. I never laughed so hard while playing any visual novel game than with the Micaela introduction scene. I was laughing so hard that I had to stop playing for a while to catch my breath.

All the characters are interesting in a certain way, and the plot itself (while don't being something too new), has a great potential if developed correctly. It is a +18 visual novel, but I'm more invested in the plot than with anything else. I just want to know what will happen, and why is that happening. I've played the v0.3 and literally can't wait to play the v0.4

We have a long way until the final version, but the raw potential of this game is immense, and I have enough faith in Caribdis to know that it will become a great game. All people that like a good history, good and unique characters and don't mind some jokes in the way, this is the game for you to play.