VN - Ren'Py - Abandoned - Fallen Roads [v0.2] [Boketto Games]

I only found out about this game through a conversation with a fellow with similar taste and it got me curious. After playing through it, as it's been abandoned for good, I can't give it more then 2 stars BUT I still going to say you should play as with the main purpose, how NOT to handle a specific theme (cheating on MC).

To me it short, in this game which had potential yet got abandoned, the story is about MC and two Love Interest + some random girl you meet on his adventure. The theme is rather realistic but still breaks some rules for specific things that can happen. The obvious trend is going to be MC mental health which sounds interesting at first, but is annoying at best and laughable at worst.
A warning: This is NOT a NTR game, but it has many NTR elements in it as:
- One LI sleeping with with MC bully (depends if you believe it or not)
- One LI dating MC other Bully friends while ghosting MC for a decade.
- All these LI treat MC like a doormate while day dream about other dudes.

The game renders, models, animations, execution of the quick time effect and music was still one of the best VN I saw in recent times. But all this can mean nothing if a big thorn in the eye keeps you from enjoying this game.

So let's get to the “best” part, or let's say what made this game abandoned.

I get what the Developer intended to do with a specific character here. Perhaps he changed his plans later on as there is an obvious, big difference between Ch.1 and Ch.2 in that said character's behavior. Perhaps this was all planned but it was obvious, clearly visible in advance how people would react to that. And if the whole game premise plays around her and a second Love Interest, which also plays around that said character, you would see the big conflict and therefore the frustration, anger at her or as I was reading the comments -> the game itself.

At the very end of Ch.2 you find out this “was just a big misunderstanding”, and as I mentioned before, I see where the game wanted it to go. But the difference between people feeling relieved about it and focusing on that said character, or how people reacted here with hatred towards her and the game, is the delivery of the game and as I was reading the comments to see if I was in the minority but as it turns out it was more of a afterthought, perhaps a quick “fix” as we didnt even saw why she was naked in the first place. And this is why I cant go above a 2 as such things are easily fixable if you want it to be a romance game, which the game supposedly was going to be.

But obviously this is my own take on it, people will think different here as everyone thats why I said you should still play it and see how such similar themes can be handled differently.

Very deep story and keeps you submerged into the problems of these characters. Wish Yusuf and family the best and hope everything will be ok. So he can get back to the things he loves doing creatively. P.S. Thanks for the wonderful vision of this world and the characters I thought you did a remarkable job.

When I played the first version I was really excited for the second version. But in the second version it felt like render quality kinda decreased compared to the first version. But it's still better than many other games. Story is also good. After playing first version I hated ava for cheating MC I know it's beacuse she drink alcohol a lot. I was like drugs or no drugs she cheated MC that's what matters also that guy was her childhood crush. That's what we get to know after playing first version. But in the second version we get know more details about it. She was drugged by that bastard. But even she was drugged she resisted his attempt and stayed loyal to MC. But that bastard went with dirtiest method ever , sleep sex. But it's not visualised in the game thanks for not visualising it dev. I'm happy to know ava actually didn't cheat MC. . But in version 0.2 there are many things in the story that many people can't accept like Annie dated another bastard in the past. but the game is mainy focused on the story so yeah these events are for the sake of the story. But overall game is good. Worth playing. Looking forward to next updates

Great atmosphere and very good looking renders; plenty of really well made scenes that give the player certain intense feelings. Certain scenes seem pointless now (o.2) but the future might change that. Could become a classic.

v0.2
The art is pretty good, the animations look great to be fair but they're kind of pointless but that doesn't really matter because there are much worse issues with this VN.

There are 2 main Lis right now and both of them are really unlikable so far and the problem is that I think these will be the only 2 Lis in this game, the rest of the women will just be sidefucks. That's how it feels like at least.

The writing is so inconsistent that it straight up doesn't make sense sometimes. The dev said that this is supposed to be realistic but it just isn't. Things just conveniently happen when it's the right time for them to happen and that just feels like a cookie cutter soap opera writing. The drama just keeps piling on and on and I think we're not done yet. The last thing this game needs right now is even more drama.

It has potential no doubt but the bad writing just kills it for me.

This VN has issues. Let's start with the positive. The renders are great,and the MC isnt your typical cookie cutter male model lead. And the MC while steamrolled by the 2 main LI's,at least tries to call them on their bullshit. Ok that's the good

Now let's start with the bad. So typically you want LI's in these games to be somewhat likeable. They don't have to be perfect,but you'd like some sort of redeeming feature. Sadly besides having big ol titties,neither of the main 2 LI'S has a single redeeming quality. They're both extremely manipulative,they use the MC repeatedly for their own benefit. And don't listen to a word he says . There both untrustworthy,and both have ulterior motives So if you're interested in reading the story of 2 chicks using a dude as their doormat,well you sir or ma'am are in luck. If not,I recommend waiting for chapter 3,and praying for a miracle.

Well , while everyone's butchering this game for NONVANILLA LI and calling it bad writing,just because girls are not perfect ( wow, can't believe this could be for real , right?) and too much drama going on i will say this . This is obviously a game about self stuggle, past mistakes and a way to move foward, so if you are looking for a brainless harem porn game with 3 diff angles scenes- this game is just not for you, stop calling it bad writting ,please.
At this moment (ver.0.2) it seems like a slowpace game with a ton of self-eating in mc behaviour, who is just begun his way into recovery,so if you are looking for a pleasure , i think you will need to wait couple updates for sure. But in my humble opinion this game has a good potential to be not just another nsfw game, but a well composed story telling adventure with excellent renders. GL

Have to agree with the dissenting view of the two main LI.

That AVA girl still wanted initially to go upstairs with the MC's bully and obvious bad guy (even then). How did the MC get notified to come to see his gf cheating in all her glory? Seems like a set up for me. Cheating/Rape is worse than just rape. All I want is to never see her in this VN again. Really hope there will be a option to cut her loose from the LI position.

The second one is even worse if possible. She claims to be high and mighty (studious smart cliche girl) who dates and probably fucks her best friend's bully. Dump her ass to the curve and meet better girls my (MC) man.

Terrible characters. The type no one with standards would want in their lives. Sorry Dev but you have to do much better to get a compelling story

This game is not the typical game found here. This is not a feel-good fap game. Read the original post and you see that is by design.
If you can’t relate to flawed characters or simply don’t want to, then this game probably isn’t for you. Because as the player, you become one of those flawed characters, set to follow a path of plot twists and mystery. Too early to see if the Dev can pull it off but I’m willing to stick around to find out.

Renders are great. Animations can be a bit too much for my tastes. Expect lots of forced pauses.

Review for V0.2

The writing is a pretty mess in the latest version , it started out as a great game in chapter 1 with amazing art and animations and in chapter 2 it went downhill fast with a story that doesn't make much sense now . We have two love interests uptil now both of them are not suitable for romance , one who have a crush on MC bully and acts slutty , doesn't respect MC wishes and gets herself into the unfortunate situation with the bully and another LI who is MC childhood friend and she had a previous relationship with another MC bully and bosses him , trusts a stranger more than him and we have to travel along with them to move forward in this game with no choice of ignoring them both . The game started out great and in this chapter it turned out to be worst , have to wait for the next update to see how the future of the game turn out to be .

Just piss poor manipulating writing all around with characters that constantly remind you you're in a never ending soap opera because every character is so broken that it sucks the simplest joy you could ever obtain from this game.

Renders are OK.
Animations are really fucking dramatic and only serve to remind you you're better off watching a movie than playing this slide show sad affair.

Its funny how the opening warning screen advises that people with problems shouldn't play this game as it may be upsetting yet the opposite won't get a better experience either.

This isn't just porn folks, it's MISERY PORN

As of now i can't rate it more than 2 stars, to me the renders are really good, settings are really good, models are beautiful, but the story is just too manipulative with the intent to make the player feel like shit, it just erases everything that's good about it.

Storytelling is a trade, player accepts to be manipulated by the writer to a certain extent, when the writing only takes and gives nothing in return there is no point to keep playing, it's masochism at this point.

Amazing. You can tell this game isn't going to be a straight up fantasy or follows most VN tropes. It gets really serious and challenges the player with topics that might be too dark for some. I really commend the dev for trying something new and trying to push the boundaries of AVN storytelling. I wouldn't pay attention to the negative reviews in all honesty. If you like a realistic VN that deals with drama and very serious topics, while also making time in between for some fun and good laughs, i would pick it up. Otherwise, don't. It's very well written for what it is. I think some people just aren't used to shit like this in the AVN community, but this will definitely be one to remember.

Great game. Interesting characters, good pacing and storytelling. One thing I did not like is how grumpy the mc behaves all the time. Also the quality at the beginning was a bit rough, though it gets a lot better towards the end of the chapter.

The major twist at the end which is presented brilliantly doesn't seem convincing based on the mc's pov early on in the game.

Those issues aside, I think it is a very unique VN.

Very good first chapter and a bad second chapter.
Rape/cheating tag missing which made players deal with drama that wasn't expected to say the least.
The entire chapter narrative is too damn convenient.
Dev is telling you a story so so far your choiceless.
There's two LI and all I want is to run away from them. One was slutty, the other bosses the MC around constantly.
I hope it improves on the 3rd chapter, I just don't see how. If it does, I'll will be happy to change my rating.

As of version 0.2
First of all only pros are renders and animations are great other than that everything is bad .
I loved this game when the first update came out , in the second update everything turned out to be worst . The story writing is inconsistent and you are forced to interact with characters , there is no way to avoid them . I'll wait for the next update to see whether the writing is improved or not .
Overall renders and animations are great but the story and writing is bad so I'll give it 2 stars ( may change in the future updates )

This game is so meh, the promo renders are nice but the game renders are so meh, flat and boring lack of color in some places, weird scaling on objects like some people taller than houses and roads and walls are tiny in comparison, weird flat renders the MC doesn't have any facial expressions like he's had bad plastic surgery and lost muscle functionality in his face, story is okay but a bit boring of sad guy going across country to try and get happy again.

Hopefully dev improves.

Incredible attention to detail in everything, everything looks handmade.
Story is going places,not that much to see at the moment.
The sound effects, the visuals are all great. Hope to see more from this dev. He just earned another patron!

Possibly one of the best games I've ever played, it somehow manages to nail everything, which is insanely impressive considering this is a new developer.

The character design is some, if not the best I've seen (even characters that aren't your main LI's still look amazing) and the writing is super good.
It also goes over a very serious topic while still taking some time out to make jokes etc, which I can really appreciate.

The characters have their own personalities and genuinely feel real, the art and renders are also super good for a first release, and that tied with the superb character design ends up making a package that is really good.

The overall story is well made and depicts a topic which is really hard to describe to someone who hasn't gone through it, yet this game does it extraordinarily well.

Overall, possibly one of the best games on this site (imo), almost certain I will support it (especially if the developer becomes a bit more active on patreon).

Wish you the best of luck man.

I'm actually tempted to take off a star for being "too good" because let's get real, this is an astonishing amount of effort for the characters getting in a car for a roadtrip. If the dev is hoping to maintain this pace and visual quality, I'm afraid we aren't going to get more than an update or two.

That out of the way, the atmosphere is good and the models are exceptionally pretty. Writing is solid, if a little on the nose in spots (far better than most h-games, but I think this is aspiring to be an actual story, so it's hard not to judge it by that standard). Lots of vibes like Depraved Awakening and maybe Autumn Boulevard for me, but YMMV.

And again, If you're the type to get your hopes up from great 0.1s and then melt down when the dev burns out, I'd give this one a hard pass. If the dev sees this, I'd suggest focusing on key scenes, push through to the end, then go back and layer on all the nice transitions, movies, side stories, etc.