I just finished playing the game and need some time to process the ending. I'll try to avoid overt spoilers, but much of what I have to say is potentially spoilery in context.
First, the good. The renders are good. Great, even. It's not often that a 3d-rendered still image can draw me in in these games, but this one did so repeatedly. Sometimes too well, as there was occasionally a side character where I thought, "Wait, is the game trying to make my character fall for this person too?" (Answer: No. They just really wanted to render them well.)
The music is good most of the time. Once in a great while it is too noticeable almost to the point of distraction, but more often than not it complements the scene(s) nicely. A little more variety would be nice, but when compared to a sea of silent VN's, it's still far above average.
The dialogue? I kept looking to see if there was a Spanish translation in the settings and perhaps this was the English robot-translated version, but it appears this is the only language. 90% of the dialogue was good, but there were those moments that made it clear it wasn't proofread by a "fluent native English speaker." Minor example: the cafe should feel "homey," not "homely." But again, still better than a lot of English translations out there, so points for effort. Just maybe find an English proofreader next game.
The story/plot starts off strong but quickly settles into a slow-burn slice-of-life, in which the protagonist tries to juggle his emotions and thoughts regarding his "ward" and "best friend" (if you're playing the unpatched version), and how they feel toward him in turn. (If this is at all a spoiler to you, I'm unsure how you got this far.) This might have frustrated me if I'd been along for the development ride, but I waited until it was finished before playing, so I didn't have to wait as long to find out where this was all going. Which, without spoiling the end, I'm not sure how I feel about the ending, but that's subjective to a point where I didn't factor it into my rating. The fact that it ends at ALL, really, is for me a point in its favor, as too many VN's don't have endings, usually because they're either abandoned or eternal WIP's. So even if I'm not a fan of the ending, at least it is one. (Though some may disagree.)
That being said, I was disappointed that the "gameplay mechanics" turned out to be almost completely meaningless. I did two different playthroughs, one as King (and/or blunt choices), the other as Prince (and/or sensitive choices.) And it turns out that both paths play out nearly 100% identical. I understand this from a "programming efficiency" standpoint, but from a player agency standpoint, it kinda sucks to learn that your role has no real impact on the lives of the supporting cast, other than some clothing choices, a one-off date night, and a couple variations during shorter sex scenes. (Of which this game has very few, it should be noted. I'm not counting that against it, just making it known that most of the chapters are almost Safe For Work.)
That last point, as well as the seemingly sudden wrap-up of the last chapter or two, are why this is not a 5-star rating. If there had been two clear paths (King and Prince), even if the events were largely the same to the end, I probably would have given this 5 out of 5. Or perhaps if at the beginning a message said "This is merely a kinetic novel that also gives you some variety in how you respond to things, but these will have no effect on the outcome and there are no right or wrong choices," that would manage expectations a bit.
All that being said, the game has a lot of heart, and it's clear a lot of time and care went into both the writing and the rendering, which is why it still gets at least four stars. I don't regret playing it, which is more than I can say of some other titles. The seemingly random plot threads near the end were distracting but not enough for me to give this a lower score. And while some may not like the idea of grading on a curve, I've seen far less satisfying games earn a 3 out of 5, so this deserves at least one more than that. But only in the context of the type of game it is, which is a slow-burn kinetic novel. If you're hoping for more of a titillating Ren'Py game where your choices matter, then this is maybe a 3.
First, the good. The renders are good. Great, even. It's not often that a 3d-rendered still image can draw me in in these games, but this one did so repeatedly. Sometimes too well, as there was occasionally a side character where I thought, "Wait, is the game trying to make my character fall for this person too?" (Answer: No. They just really wanted to render them well.)
The music is good most of the time. Once in a great while it is too noticeable almost to the point of distraction, but more often than not it complements the scene(s) nicely. A little more variety would be nice, but when compared to a sea of silent VN's, it's still far above average.
The dialogue? I kept looking to see if there was a Spanish translation in the settings and perhaps this was the English robot-translated version, but it appears this is the only language. 90% of the dialogue was good, but there were those moments that made it clear it wasn't proofread by a "fluent native English speaker." Minor example: the cafe should feel "homey," not "homely." But again, still better than a lot of English translations out there, so points for effort. Just maybe find an English proofreader next game.
The story/plot starts off strong but quickly settles into a slow-burn slice-of-life, in which the protagonist tries to juggle his emotions and thoughts regarding his "ward" and "best friend" (if you're playing the unpatched version), and how they feel toward him in turn. (If this is at all a spoiler to you, I'm unsure how you got this far.) This might have frustrated me if I'd been along for the development ride, but I waited until it was finished before playing, so I didn't have to wait as long to find out where this was all going. Which, without spoiling the end, I'm not sure how I feel about the ending, but that's subjective to a point where I didn't factor it into my rating. The fact that it ends at ALL, really, is for me a point in its favor, as too many VN's don't have endings, usually because they're either abandoned or eternal WIP's. So even if I'm not a fan of the ending, at least it is one. (Though some may disagree.)
That being said, I was disappointed that the "gameplay mechanics" turned out to be almost completely meaningless. I did two different playthroughs, one as King (and/or blunt choices), the other as Prince (and/or sensitive choices.) And it turns out that both paths play out nearly 100% identical. I understand this from a "programming efficiency" standpoint, but from a player agency standpoint, it kinda sucks to learn that your role has no real impact on the lives of the supporting cast, other than some clothing choices, a one-off date night, and a couple variations during shorter sex scenes. (Of which this game has very few, it should be noted. I'm not counting that against it, just making it known that most of the chapters are almost Safe For Work.)
That last point, as well as the seemingly sudden wrap-up of the last chapter or two, are why this is not a 5-star rating. If there had been two clear paths (King and Prince), even if the events were largely the same to the end, I probably would have given this 5 out of 5. Or perhaps if at the beginning a message said "This is merely a kinetic novel that also gives you some variety in how you respond to things, but these will have no effect on the outcome and there are no right or wrong choices," that would manage expectations a bit.
All that being said, the game has a lot of heart, and it's clear a lot of time and care went into both the writing and the rendering, which is why it still gets at least four stars. I don't regret playing it, which is more than I can say of some other titles. The seemingly random plot threads near the end were distracting but not enough for me to give this a lower score. And while some may not like the idea of grading on a curve, I've seen far less satisfying games earn a 3 out of 5, so this deserves at least one more than that. But only in the context of the type of game it is, which is a slow-burn kinetic novel. If you're hoping for more of a titillating Ren'Py game where your choices matter, then this is maybe a 3.
