VN - Ren'Py - Hillside [v0.15.1] [DarkBlue]

Version 0.9 beta
A great game with good renders, likeable cast of character and great plot. By far the most captivating story in an adult game I have ever played. Keeps the player in suspension even without nude content.
The game has only still images and no animations. Hopefully they will be added in the future

This was quite interesting. (No sex scenes so far, btw)
Graphics is good, no music just a few sound effects.
Writing is OK, story is engaging, characters including MC are reasonably relatable. Some illusion of choice (but seemingly no large branching).

Some other reviewers mentioned a few problematic points:

The daughter looks and acts like 14, not 18. But that does not seem problematic to me: I assume she is *supposed *to be 14 (but this cannot be said for patreon or whatever reason). As there is no sexual contents with her (and I assume such content can at least be avoided in future) this is fine, the MC rather seems to act as replacement father figure.

Yes, the mother seems quite damaged (but I do not find it absurd or outrageous, as other reviewers did, that she did not leave her profession and move away). She acts quite unpleasant towards the MC. Again, the MC is not forces to have any feelings for her or pursue her, so I see no problem here.

Other daughter and sister are fun and feisty.

One thing I found a bit off-putting was the immediate violent-holy-rage-respond by the MC to the baddies. One would assume the MC as professional bodyguard has his aggression under control (not to say he would not want to take bloody revenge or whatever, but staring at people like a bulldog and clenching his fists seems a bit silly)

nice and interesting start.
mama thinks Mr bodyguard a thug and keeps thinking he's dangerous lol that's very hilarious.
girls are hot.
but after all those scripts no scenes at all?
huge giant blue balls ;(

This game is not a porn game nor erotic. Just a story of a bodyguard doing bodyguard things for his client. The story is cliché, simple, boring, nothing happens. The characters narrate events from the past and that's all, "this happened, then this and now we are here, SEE YOU IN NEXT UPDATE" lol
Renders are decent in the first couple of chapter but then something bad happened to the mother's face, she's ugly AF in the last chapters, the lady is not aging well
About the daughter: Only in one renders she looks 18 or older, then she looks like a child the entire game, it sucks.
Sad fact: The sexiest scene is an attempted rape

Review for Hillside [v0.8]

Contains A Major Spoiler, Contains Minor Spoilers

I love this game despite the fact that there are no explicit sex scenes. The story itself carried my interest better than most of the games I play with sex around every hallway. The story is well paced and satisfying as you attempt to protect our queen a girl being stalked by most likely a bartender or a classmate or possibly even your long-lost twin brother. Probably not but the fact that I spent more than a second trying to actually solve this mystery on my own is more than a success in my books for any developer of these type of games.

As for the technical side, its great. I do not notice much noise or low-rez textures anywhere. There are probably some here and there but the fact I never noticed during gameplay means its negligible. Lighting is great and there are no hiccups from my end so you can count on an amazing looking stable game.

Overall, I enjoy this game a lot. I played it all in one sitting and I never was once bored. If you read this review and were on the fence, get to downloading this game and enjoy an amazing game, just don’t go into it expecting sex filled game.

P.S. Those who attacked Emma will rue the day.

I think this is an awesome game and I really want to see where the story goes.
All in all:
- Nice and interesting setup - its cool to be a tough guy and not some highschoolboy
- entertaining story with promising storylines
- Beautiful looking girls and a nice graphic quality
- it feels like the author knows his stuff and I am looking forward to any more content.

(Game version 0.8)

The idea behind Hillside is not a bad one, the game deals with some subjects considered "heavy", the story goes on at a considerably slow pace and that may bother you who are reading this text now, character development is one of the differentials of the game, the game a system that I don't particularly like to show what the other characters are doing or thinking even without the protagonist around, another thing, the game manages to make the player create a minimum bond to the characters, moral choices has little impact in the short term.

Below are my grades for each category, where 10 will be the maximum score:

History: 9.7;
Character development: 10;
Plot: 9.5;
Graphics: 10;

Note: I did not see bugs and as I always leave the volume of these games at 0, I did not evaluate the soundtrack and effects.

Verdict: It's worth a look.

Review of v0.8
First thing i wanna say the game was released almost a year ago and there's still no sex, so expect this to be a slow burner.
Now that doesnt mean the game is bad.

Pros:
Pretty interesting story tho some characters are a bit exaggerated(more on that later on).
The renders are amazing and the attention to detail is 10/10. The dialogues dont have 1 render for the hole scene.
10/10 models, all the characters look amazing.
Sound effects?

Cons:
The Emma character acts like she is 14, ok i get it that she is sheltered but this is on a hole diff level. Also who puts CD movies in 2021 lmao .
Charlotte's inner dialogues will become even more annoying in the future. She is so skeptical about the decisions she takes that if she wasnt the plot would have moved alot faster.
No animations, to be expected tho since there's almost nothing to see.
Very slow updates.

Its an all around good game i enjoyed it even some characters can get your nerves.I'd probably rate it 4stars but the slow updates dropped it for me.
Def a game worth playing but i'd suggest waiting for more content.
I'll prolly revisit this game in 3 years till finished.
(Somehow i feel this game will have a bad rushed ending resulted by the slow updates..)

I start with the positive, even if it's not a lot. Now the characters all look pretty and the locations vary too. I also liked the basic premise of the story. A bodyguard to protect the daughter of a famous model from a stalker sounded promising. So that was it for the Positive.

I think it seems a little unfair to give this game only two stars but I just can't overlook the many shortcomings. A first minor flaw is the absence of background music, which is not very important.

The characters are very unbelievable, I mean Charlotte has suffered so much in the fashion industry and now no longer trusts any man about what our main character gets to feel from her every time.
Her daughter, who is actually 18 years old, acts like a toddler. Even the fact that her mother is too protective of her because of her own terrible experiences does not explain this childish behavior.
Now back to the mother, I mean, why doesn't she finally leave Hillside with her family and live in a quieter, more normal residential area without the perverse scum that they are apparently exposed to on a daily basis?

I could talk about the main character the sister and the other daughter, but compared to Charlotte and Emma the three are almost normal believable people if you turn a blind eye.
So if there are no significant changes in the characters I see no reason to touch this game again.

Pros:
Great render, characters look lovely. Somewhat grounded story and a slow burn that isn't really a problem. The story is generally good and i didn't mind the path it was taking.
Cons:
What killed it for me are the characters. The mother Charlotte up till I played showed no redeeming qualities, her dialogues and actions were just getting on my nerves. She never shared one tender moment with MC but somehow MC has a choice that he loves her.
Also the daughter Emma, her character is 18, but acts like 12. I know she's supposed to be a sheltered child, but come on, going her route made me feel really conflicted cause her dialogue and actions are so childlike.

Honestly the only somewhat fun character is the Sister/Aunt.

In reality unreal

It's one of the more serious games here so:

+ The story is amazing and the characters could easily be real people in real situation.
+ I really love how different and real every character is!
+ The renders are stunning and made with taste.
+ The different dynamics in every relationship is refreshing.

There is a lot more I want to say BUT.... in 0.8, it was just too much drama for me and too much mind changing and swapping of opinions. The game is real GEM but the dramatic aspect of it is becoming too much for me. It's just too real... people in exactly that situation would act most of the time exactly like that.

Really amazing game, but it hits too much of a reality for me, I hope next updates wont be so heart-shattering. <3

Something different finally, i actually like these kind of vn's, there was one like this one before named lexi, but unfortunately got abandoned. When i read the preview first time even before even trying once i got the feeling that yep this is the one and boy you did not disappoint me.
Plot/story ~ 5/5
Characters ~ 5/5
Renders/grafics ~ 5/5
You earned yourself a patreon buddy keep up the philanthropy.

I came across Hillside on a whim, and I can safely say, I've never been so grateful to myself for giving this game a chance. The characters, setting, and circumstances are captivating to my intelligence and empathy. Frustrations and drama are done masterfully and I want more. If you're looking for a game to enjoy- give Hillside a chance!

I love this game. It's so unapologetically...real. Not hesitating to show the horrific treatment of women in our society that folks all too often like to dismiss.

I typically don't get too attached to characters in a WIP, because they rarely get finished, but I fell in love with these characters almost effortlessly. Emma is not my type, but I do really feel the MC's need to protect this girl from the horrible world outside. Surrogate Father-daughter bond is strong there.

Charlotte is a character that I really have to applaud the author for. As someone who has been abused and traumatized, I felt that the portrayal of Charlotte's PTSD, and her inner turmoil over the way it colored her worldview, was very respectful and truthful to how that experience feels for victims. I didn't feel anything but respect and admiration for her, what with all she's been through. Definitely attracted to her, but I love that it's a slow burn, because anything else would trivialize her trauma and be completely unrealistic.

The models are great, the dialogue is dynamic, and character voices are unique. All in all, this is one VN I am happy to give 5 stars, and I genuinely hope that the author continues this work. If I had financial stability, I would donate to Patreon to support this work even more, but I hope this positive review will suffice for the meantime.

This game is....... tricky.

The story is really interesting, the renders look good and the characters are all great.

The problem is that the story is REALLY SLOW. That's not a bad thing unless it's in this medium. The slow burn is fine and feels right, i really enjoyed the story and the time to get to know the characters. But when you consider that in this time of medium you have to wait A LONG TIME for updates, and when those come out, there's usually not alot of content, it starts to get a bit frustrating.

I have played this for a few hours ( 3 to 5 hours, start to finish) and by the end of the current content it felt like very little had advanced in the plot.

This is the type of story that you only enjoy when it's already finished and can play from beginning to end. Until then it's dificult to put up with the constant wait for more content.

On a final note, don't play this if you're looking for adult content (there's almost nothing so far, maybe in the future) or if you want something light and with humor. The story is very interesting but it is heavy on drama.

[Review written for version 0.8]

Hillside is an amazing true crime drama with strong sexual undertones. In the spirit of the best whodunits, my conviction of the perpetrator's identity changes moment by moment as clues are revealed. I can't wait for the next installment.

I put off playing Hillside for a long time because its plot summary seemed to me like the basis for a cheap porno flick. I couldn't have been more wrong. I am very selective of which games I support financially, but against all of my expectations Hillside easily made the list.

I should explain that my rating is based (obviously) on my personal preferences, whereby story is king and sexual content is only a positive factor if it contributes to the story. Gratuitous sexual content is a neutral or negative factor. The raw quantity of sexual content is irrelevant and does not affect my rating.

This game could be excellent or not much at all depending on what you are looking for out of a game. There are things you should know before sinking a bunch of time into it though.

1) After 8 updates there still is no real adult content in this game. The pace is very very very slow. It's like watching paint dry. I take that back, watching paint dry is quicker. There is something to be said for a good slow burn. But that is relative. This may be much slower than you are looking for, or it may be right up your alley.

2) The renders are decent. There are a few standouts, but most are the quite generic 25 year supermodel. The stand outs in my opinion are Lucy who has just a slight pudge in her belly that makes her adorable, Emma because of her somewhat naïve nature that is reflected in her face, and Suzi's roommate with her blemishes and freckles.

3) The dialogue can get overworked, especially between the mom and the MC. There is way too much effort put on how she really just hates men and the MC in particular. Yes we get it, you don't need to spend chapter after chapter re-iterating the same thing over and over. The other thing is this plays off of the old 'let's not communicate with each other or it will ruin our plot points' style of writing that many people find irritating (myself included).

Right now this is more of a story and not an adult game. So go into it knowing that you're not going to be getting adult content out of this.

Pretty Good Game . Nice story telling and character building. It's not just a game with mindless sex scene and Fap materials. And also hope to see this game to be completed. Pleas don't abandoned this project.

And many would say that I gave 5 star rating to every game that's not true. I only reviews those games that I believe is a good game and I only reviews those game who deserves 5 star in my opinion.

Thanks Developer/Developer's for delivering such a Excellent Game.

Thank You Guy's ❤

Phenomenal story and the graphics to match......it's a slow burn as far as sex goes, but I've been so pulled into the story it doesn't matter. My only annoyance now is having to wait between updates......

Keep up the amazing work.....you've got a gift for this....can't wait for the next chapter

V 0.8 : I played the game without skipping the dialogue, so that means that the story was inetersting enough to catch my attention. However, at the end (of V0.8 version), I have to admit the game needs improvement.
Emma is too childish, even with the tragedies that Charlotte has experienced, it is as if she lives on another planet without Internet, without social networks. I would suggest, if the author wants to continue to exploit his kidish side, to move the story to the 80s, (we will have to think about removing cell phones and PCs), this could explain that his mother managed to maintain it in such an airtight bubble. this would also explain the relative impunity of men, because once again in the age of social networks and the me-too movement, how can we still imagine this kind of story ...
About the graphics, they are quite good, except maybe the MC on which I do not stick, it is not at all on the same level as the other characters. It really deserves to be reworked. The head in particular, but the rest of the body would also benefit from being a little drier. It's barely if you don't see him with love handles when he comes out of the shower ... not really something to make you dream of.
But at the end, I have to admit I enjoyed it and I'm waiting for the next update !