VN - Ren'Py - Glowing Stones : Heroes' Awakening [Ch.4] [MoonLightDevCorp]

Chapter 4

I really enjoyed Glowing Stones. The story feels like the start of a dramatic epic, but at the same time it's balanced with a mostly lighter tone for the time being. The girls each have a unique feel and character and it appears they will all have an important role in the story instead of just being filler sex partners (like many of the so-called "well-written" games on this site).

The animations are excellent and the UI is really well done, too. I also enjoyed the custom musical score which enhances each scene.

Good job, dev!

English:............7/10
User Interface:.....7/10
User Experience:....7/10
Art:................7/10
Dialogue:...........6/10
Story:..............6/10
Opinion:............7/10................
Avg:..............6.71/10 [3.35/5]

My initial first paragraph was very heated. Dunno why, but it came out harsh, so after a bit to rethink, this game is not terrible. I don't think it's bad, but I do know the first few releases were lackluster and short. After getting though a bit of the game, it's no longer short(though who knows I could hit continue and the next line of dialogue be the end, I don't know) I think I've played every release of this game? I don't quite remember. My issue with what I did play was that it didn't even get to the premise of the story. But now, everything story related is so rushed I don't know what to think. If I downloaded another 4Gb game that still didn't get to actually set up the story, I've wasted my time. Even if what's new is great, there has been major changes EVERY release, that I've played, and none of the past work was updated, just handwaved away. On top of the story speeding to a stop every time. ALL THAT being said, I only remember MC's dad dies, gives him a rock, his friends all gather around to console him, and ...the end. It was never bad, don't get me wrong. It just feels like up until THIS release, what was put out wouldn't even be a first release for some games.

This opens in the way I like the least, the characters introducing the story like they're actors or something. I will never like this trope, it feels like they're trying to convince me that it's not real... But it's a game with uncanny models and super powers, I know it's not real. Anyway, MC wakes up to see Amy, his roommate that is ACTUALLY a roommate for once thank god. She's his childhood friend and it's his birthday. They also do the "What's in the box" reference. I think that's the most overused reference in media lately, it's annoying. Then you meet Aurora, the neighbor, as they just moved in and are going to have a party so this was a warning/invite. I like this because it's not his first time meeting his neighbor after moving in 10 years ago, it's natural and not weird shut-in behavior. Though, this has the big indication it's not written by an English speaker as Aurie is misgendered with a "him" when MC looks at her room. I'm pretty sure that was in every version so far, so it has not been edited yet. Nice. I can say their date banter is decent. It's light, tries to be charming, and doesn't have them sharing their innermost secrets, desires and character traits. Take notes, other devs, lol. You also meet Sheila, but that's a quick nothing. And Aurie gives MC a kiss for his birthday, wrapping her gorgon hair around his head as she shoves her tongue in his face lol. Leading to MC getting the news about his dad. Cutting to the time jump, waving away the character redesign of Amy, as she's now Jell-o neon green. And all the praising of dialogue I had kinda disappear here because of how theatrical the funeral scene is. I don't know what it is about it, but it feels so acted out to me. And Aurie's singing... It doesn't translate to a VN well, unfortunately.

The funeral event seems to have happened a lot later, but also at the same time, as if it feels like the same day? Maybe I missed a time card, and obviously it'd take a few days to arrange all that, but time passing isn't broadcasted well. You also get the first sex scene here, Amy, who constantly says "let's not complicate things" complicates things? While Aurora listens. Signaling to MC, date them all, it's okay. Which is fine, he hasn't been dating either, just a little too accepting in my opinion. Next is date night with Amy, you get the most unnatural exposition dump about Sarah. It's a shame, really. Aurie had such a decent intro with no lore dump of her life, then it seems like everyone else narrates how they got to this exact moment in time after that. Where did the energy go for character writing? I get they all can't be bangers, but more than one at least. Then the fabled first fight. MC beats three attempted rapists and you the player wouldn't be able to tell he moved fast or slow because of how VNs work. Amy just gushes about it later and calls him a superhero. If he did more than three punches and a kick, maybe I'd buy it. But she just says he was fast, not that we could see it. Celeste just supplies this chapter's sex scene along with her back story. I want to say that the GIANT ARROW and flashing phone is really annoying. Especially with how linear the game is. "HEY GAMER! YOU DID THE ONLY THING YOU COULD DO!" I get it, you worked hard on the screen and want people to look at it. But it really needs to be less intrusive. I'll look at it when I want to. I also don't know what the heart button is supposed to do. The next little bit is a bunch of meandering before MC meets the big business guy that probably killed his dad. Or be a scapegoat for his anger. They go to an attempted cover-up of one of the two stores available in the DAZ catalogue. A bunch of generic art posters around for some weird reason. After meeting Mood, MC is gifted money and a car. Then you get YET ANOTHER long exposition dump by Cassie where she explains the full history of the city? Why? And the second heavy handed reference to another AVN in Jolina.

Eventually MC saves a firefighter and goes into a coma. His powers make him pass out I guess. Then after he wakes up, Sarah gets in a fight and is injured, because similar events have to happen together. Anyway, MC gets healed and when his friend Greg and wife sheila check on him and he's not home... They have sex in his room? Pardon me? "My best friend that has been dead sick and just got fired isn't home, lets have sex in his bed." When is that a thought that crosses the mind? Also why is sheila treated like a LI? I guess Greg might die, but he's not yet... So we shouldn't get points for her until then. Maybe there's sharing? I don't know. And I don't care one way or the other if that is the case, I just don't see why if she's obviously solely devoted to Greg. Then Whisper... This ENTIRE interaction gives me a headache. Every time she tried to tell MC something, HE INTERRUPTS HER TO ASK HER WHAT SHE'S SAYING.
"I'm gonna tell you what's going on."
"WAIT! You have to tell me what's going on."
"Okay, let me--"
"I'M JUST SO CONFUSED, break it down simply!"
"I--"
"SERIOUSLY, I'm clueless!"
Are you kidding me? Let her say something. I understand she wants to give him his supersuit or whatever, it's not rocket surgery. But seeing as MC has been nothing but a complete goober this entire story, I guess autism is a hell of a drug. Little by little the praise I had for the writing just slips away. Decent character intro? Here's 4 bad ones. Decent emotional moment? MC now barely understands speech. Come on. Not to mention most of this is trying to convince you that "The future is ahead of yourself" is some profound statement. You're not going to make the next spiderman, I'm sorry. MC shouts it out to the first villain he meets like it's gonna make them change their ways. Not to mention the jewel heist MC just stumbles into? You don't even know why MC is there just suddenly he's stopped and thinks "I'll save the day" This whole section makes them seem like high schoolers that got powers, not functioning adults.

MC meets a reporter, he admits and shows her everything outside of his powers, then she tells him to not show anyone? She's about to publish this story though? And Mc says he learns stuff to think about, but all she said was "No one knows much about the stones, and it's a bunch of conspiracies" That isn't information, that's speculation. Leading to Sheila's exposition dump of a backstory. I'm so saddened by the writing now. And... She starts to express doubts about Greg because... Nothing? They were having sex IN MCS ROOM EARLIER THAT DAY. Or the day before, time makes no sense in this game. But still. WHY? I can appreciate what they're TRYING to do with Sheila's backstory. Self doubt because she was adopted, that works if the character just found out about it and/or is not already a successful adult. She's a TV news anchor that already has a lot of self confidence, suddenly she's an orphan and thinks she might just stop functioning? Gimme a break. Every time they go about being vigilantes it's just so amateurish, they have yet to even practice or even think about what, or how, they're gonna do things, just jog in and try to save the day. Like Adam West Batman type shenanigans. It completely drops off through chapter 4, It's not good but it's not awful. I kinda blanked out and forgot to write thoughts down, because nothing was happening. MC has his second sex scene, woohoo I guess. Then you get to name your hero. Godspeed. You mean the major villain in Flash? Not a great namesake lol. And it's only NOW that they get the idea to train. Are you serious? MC needs some milk and a nap anytime he thinks faster than a snails pace, this should have been day one stuff. And when they do train? Three fireballs and Amy's little glowstick. Wow. Then YET ANOTHER heavy handed reference to another game. I can't take this, way to weaken your narrative with "HEY. READER. DO YOU LIKE OTHER GAME. I DO." Then it ends after Aurora, I mean Sirena, tries to destroy weapons from Stark Industries or whatever it's called in game.

I REALLY want to like this. It's not another shitty incest story. It's got some okay writing and world building undertones. And there's effort in places I rarely see on this site. The issue is the more I read, the dumber MC gets. Or the worse the writing gets. Is it terrible? No, never. But they continue to act like idiots and it has that typical "Good things just keep happening" style in all these AVNs. The English is almost there. It gets stiff and phrasing is weird sometimes, but it's not gonna be distracting. The UI/UX is alright. It's a little tacky and the USELESS phone notification is distracting. Sure, you can turn off the GIANT arrow pointing at the phone. But It doesn't tell you why it just appeared? You also can't turn off the glow. There's also the heart button in the quick menu. It tells you ONCE what it does, I forgot and clicked it multiple times, nothing happens. So, cool... The art is alright. Touch up the first chapter, you're using all the same stuff and it's short. It will be better for you and future players in the long run. Animations are okay, but the posing and movement are all that floaty "outward elbows" thing that make it all seem unnatural. The dialogue is alright a lot of the time. Nothing noteworthy, but it's not painfully robotic, just gets annoying when MC interrupts everyone all the time. He's in a perpetual state of surprise and I don't know why. I, the player, am neither of those things, so him stopping dialogue to say things that are useless gets grating. The story is okay too. It's that "Big business is bad, we must fight for [INSERT CAUSE HERE]" Because they really don't have a plan, Amy just says "Wow you're fast lets fight crime" And MC just does it? Why not have a reason, or a thought of your own my guy? It's kinda fun, never terrible, but MC is an idiot. Do with that what you will.

The renders are OK, the early scenes could be better (especially how some of the girls look early on) but as the game goes on it does get better.

The girls are OK, few of them look pretty bland/bad in my opinion, but it's possible to reject them (more on this later) so it doesn't really matter. But the non LIs look better than the LIs for some reason, which is quite a let down (also more on this later).

The animations are good, good posing and fluid animations.
The only thing I'd like to mention is that I didn't like the shift in the dialogue positioning during the animations, but this is probably only just my personal preference.
Basically during H scenes the dialogue box moves to the top of the screen. I guess this is for better viewing experience but I didn't like it.

Writing is OK, not great but not terrible either. Feels like the MC is getting dragged along by other characters rather than MC (or the player) deciding what to do.
Kinda feels like that the story is on rails and feels rather kinetic.


My main issue with the game is that it's clearly set up to be a harem game BUT don't quite feel like it.
Meaning:
If you reject an LI you'll get a dev scene 'Are you sure you don't like <insert LI's name>?' which basically tells you that you should keep romancing said LI.
So no LI is forced on the player, but it feels like romancing everyone is the canon route but I find some of the LIs not so great looking so there's that.

The first slap in the face comes with Sheila as this character is not an LI but looks way better than most of the LIs, why include a character like her in a harem game if she is not romanceable is beyond me. To top it off you catch her and her husband doing the dirty in your own room at home (not an actual scene where you see any nudity, just deducted through conversation after).
The same goes for Jen/Sarah who are also better looking than some LIs and judging by the code they are not LIs. Well Sarah is a lesbian, not sure about Jen.
Then later on you'll find out one of the LIs is a stripper, but according to her she only dances and not giving 'extra' attention to anyone. At least she quits her job by her own when things get serious, so there's that.

So this game is set up to be a harem game and yet for some weird reason there are girls who are better looking than the LIs who cannot be romanced and that just doesn't belong in a harem game in my opinion.

All in all it is an average VN, worth the read but it leaves a sour taste in the mouth after discovering that not all girls are romanceable.

As of Ch.4


PROS

• Good looking models
• Different story than usual.

CONS

• Forced into scenes.
• Constant reminders (dev self insert) that your choices are wrong.
• Those choices don't really mean anything , MC reacts one way only and NPC's just ignore MC anyway.
• Not a lot has happened, either story or LI wise this far in.

CONCLUSION

It's different, you can tell the dev wants to tell a story BUT the problem is they ONLY wan to tell their story so the choices that you have don't really affect anything. The NPC's straight up say MC is wrong and then MC changes their mind.

It's a Kinetic Novel in disguise so if you're looking for routes and choice don't bother.

Story 2/5
Not a bad story, but the way game mechanics are setup is enough to ruin the game atleast for me, the forced LI in a game where it should have choices is idiotic, might as well make it kinetic.

Its one thing game tries to push a girl on you, but when you constantly turn her down and show 0 interrest in her, theres really no need to show her nude playing with her self when your with someone else, all that does it make it a big turn-off when you hate the bitch you arent with and its pointless to show it and alsoo ruins the point of having choices if your forced to see some bimbos with big tits when you dont have that fetish.

Also if theres one thing i really hate its forced LIs in a game with choices, you can turn down the girl next door, then your forced to save another girl which is fine but as a thank you she is forced on you???? giving you a BJ and not untill AFTER that can you refuse her and turn her down i mean wtf how can it be that idiotic? and then some shit pops up saying your not supposed to reject her? what? and then you can reject yet again?, makes no sense what so ever.

To make it even more idiotic there is a relationship system where you can gain hearts, why it is there i have no freaking clue the girl MC saves that is forced on you, i had 0 hearts ZERO and yet ends up getting a BJ....that just makes the hole hearth system pointless and useless and it also removes any relationship build-up since you dont know fuck all about the girl that is forced on you and it removes any chance of staying faithfull to Amy which i was trying to do.

And apprently for some weird reason every time you reject someone, it pops up with some idiotic love character asking if your sure, i mean what the fuck? i dont click reject if i dont want to reject....feels like game was ment to be kinetic and accept everone and it feels stupid as fuck.

So game really just became unplayable to me, i dont enjoy mindless fuckfest games or forced LIs in any way.
I wasent a fan of MC either hes just way to submissive and just follows along with whatever Amy tells him to do, making her the MC more the MC himself, forcing him to accept people to help forcing to be a hero, nothing is MCs own decision.

Girls 1/5
I barely found any of them hot, i was ok with Amy but thats about it but game dident really allow for that, also the diversity in builds are pretty poor as well, as so many other games its main focus seems to be big tit fetish.

Animations 4/5
Animations are pretty good, cant say ive seen many yet so it might change if i give this another try at some point, but for now ill give it 4.


Music 4/5
Music is good and suits the scenes, proberly the best thing in game.

Chapter 3

A very good start into an interesting superhero story.
Renders and animations are good and the dev really paid attention to details like the music.
LI´s are all hot and not one dimensional, although the hottest woman in this vn isn´t a LI :\ But thats the only thing i don´t like so far

Review of Glowing Stones ch3 = Stuck Chapter2

The VN seems okay, some odd choices here and there, aka... some music/sound choices and redirects to other VNs.

The Story is good, nothing groundbreaking, but a decent plot, can follow it without issues.
renders are good too, some that im not a fan of, but that doesnt detract from the overall aesthetic.

alot of small animations, not sure if thats good or not. i know that sounds weird. but the vast majority of VNs dont, so i think its a lack of exposure thing. certainly not a negative id say.

only issue i have sofar is the fact the game is stuck/broken and can't progress. as a result i cant give it more stars.
its stuck in a loop for me because i rejected one of the chars as a LI. so now penalised for it. simple solution of course would be to restart and not reject. but that defeats the whole point of a choice and player freedom. if this char is so integral, then why is there an option at all? even after rejection you see her alot.

so unfortunately for me i can't play chapter 3 or beyond, unless the dev fixes it. so unless something changes, my rating will have to stay at 2/5 stars.

This game reminded me The Sorcerer. The story seems interesting. This game deserves high rate, I'm kind of disappointed that it has only 12 votes so giving this game thumbs up! I hope the updates come quickly. I can't wait!

Though each chapter doesn't seem very long, I've actually really enjoyed what I've played of the game so far. Right now I'm up to Chapter 3. I definitely think that this game is worth playing.

I've a fondness for games with superpowers, and this one definitely has a lot of promise. The ladies in this are all interesting to me so far as well.

I enjoyed this game a lot, all things considered.

It's got common superhero tropes, what I'd call a fairly predictable story (so far), a few inconsistencies in the dialogue, a bit of a pacing issue, and plenty of grammatical errors. There's also something unnatural about how the characters talk though I can't quite identify what it is--it just reads wrong. The characters are all diverse, if a bit cliché, and I appreciate the inclusion of both female friends and a male friend who isn't just a simp for the MC (and/or pure comic relief) but actually has a life of his own.

The visuals are good, I quite like the models and how unique each of them is. A common problem I have with many of the VNs on this site is that the models (especially the women) can sometimes look so similar that they all begin to blend together, so such contrasting characters are a welcome sight. The animations are also very good, especially the action scenes.

I'd call the audio generic. Sad songs for sad moments, chirpy songs for everyday situations, the usual (though the lack of a country song in the country bar scene irks me a bit). I don't remember there being any ambient sounds or actual noises from the game, just music, but I could be blanking out on that.

I'll bring up something I usually dismiss entirely because it actually managed to leave an impression: the UI. There are idle animations in the stats tab, biographies in case you're like me and have the memory of a goldfish, nifty indicators of when things are added. The only thing about the UI I don't like is choice of font (same one that's on the banner).

Finally, the biggest reason why I like this game so much and think it's worth playing: it's just generally wholesome and vanilla. I don't know about everyone else, but I'm kind of tired of the seemingly endless stream of samey games we've been getting lately. You know the ones. This VN is a breath of fresh air without using some weird fetish, and that deserves praise and acknowledgement.

In conclusion, despite its flaws it managed to keep me engaged and left me wanting more. I hope the Dev continues with this project, I've wishlisted it on Steam and I'm quite excited to see where it goes next.

Great start of a supernatural story.

Renders are fine, story building seems to be good and the UI is really interesting with the tablet.

You can see that the dev is paying attention to details.
Waiting for the next update.

[Ch.2]
Good h-game with superpowers setting.

Art is good not too realistic or too cartoon-ish.
Couple of h-scenes.
Some music, but no h-sounds (as far as I heard).

Awesome "walkthrough" feature (shows the routes you chose).

The most remarkable is plot, but there is only 2 chapters right now, so not much to see.

There are some choices, but I didn't see changes h-scene-wise (Chose only love/friendship choices).

Overall.
A good game to try out and for some it can be cool, for others average.

V.ch2

starting with art, it's good. it does the job without making uncomfortable viewing but not a feast for the eyes either.

the story is, as of yet, nothing thought provoking. a lot of similarities with current superhero trends. it may improve and become something more in future but as yet.....

i'm at about a 2.7 for this one as i knocked off 0.5 just for the nods to other games. i find this a really stupid move to include in a unique work as the moment it happens, like the cafe scene, my mind is then on SOMEONE ELSES unique work. nothing says immersion like making readers think of something completely different....D'oh

i didn't enjoy this as much after that as my mind was already elsewhere.
no prizes for guessing what i will be playing next.

the only other two things i disliked was the lack of a spell checker, which in a VN is also a huge mistake, and the choice of music for the singer at the bar. country music singer in a country music bar and not even close to country music soundtrack.......what? straw hat, pigtails, knotted shirt, high cut-off jeans and cowboy boots? nope an almost see-through evening dress.
surreal choices.

nods, weird choices and lack of google/in-built spell check aside, some will find this really good and there are some signs that it does have structure and seems thought out before going into production. a good sign for it's fans

for me, i'm fence sitting for now until i get tipped either way by future updates.

It's the beginning, but so far so good ! There is a nice feel to it, not too cliché, the lines feel natural, the NPC aren't all bimbo, I'lll play the next chapters with pleasure ! One erotic scene so far.

As of Ch1:

First off, it has a nice amount of content for a first release. Gets to the point soon enough, but also takes it's time to build up the characters involved.
The story is... well, it's the first chapter. Nothing that big get set up. The world is sketched lightly. What I saw - I liked. It seems there was actual thought process behind the scenes (unlike in many other games), what is said in them and they serve a purpose way beyond "ugh, dialogue builds up characterisation, right?". So that's good. Did not expect the french(?) poem.

Technically the UI is good and does it's job well. Few things can be improved (something pointing to what character info was updated would be nice).

Graphically the game is very pretty. The girls are a bit bustier and a bit assier then what I usually like, but not annoyingly so. The animations are smooth..

The music is there, but barring one scene it was... just ok, I guess.

Overall a very good start. Hope it grows in popularity and we see the whole journey.

Chapter 1

A very good start into a superhero story.
Renders are good and the dev really paid attention to details, both in the renders and the Renpy gui.

A good amount of content for the first release with an interesting story and cute girls.

Review Ch.1
Looks good...renders and girls are beautiful especially Amy (the childhood friend). Story is great...got touched by the dad funeral scene

Keep up the good work and best of luck for the future

Wow, Killer animations done right were you can choose between the different angles. The story kind of having a sad part but also understandable to help with the story line was aces in my book. Lol always wanted to say aces hehehe. Beautiful women with different body sizes=perfect. Going to love watching this game grow. Thanks so much for sharing.

Review Ch.1

A great start in a fantasy genre here. It´s about a guy who get superpowers through a magic stone but don't know it for sure at the beginning. We need to wait on how the story will develop but i already cant wait for it

The story is well written! It starts even with some action (not normal for a first release but i love it) and the girls are stunning also the render and animations.

It is a very good start of a very good game!

Great start to a wholesome superhero AVN. Girls are sexy, animations are a step above, and the plot is setting up to be intriguing. It is a new project from a new dev, but one I know has a lot of talent and drive. I look forward to seeing what he can do and accomplish as he learns and sands off the rough edges we all go through in this biz.