I will write my perspective and review on what Moniker Smith is trying to accomplish with this visual novel to help address the criticism in other reviews. This is based on what I have observed from playing through the scenes and as a corruption enthusiast.
The main fetish in the visual novel is widespread and individual corruption. The appeal of seeing a well-adjusted individual turn into depraved or primal reflection of themselves free of common worries. From a societal-scale, an uptight community will change into a hedonistic swinger society. In this niche of corruption, EVERYONE will change: the good, the bad, the weak, and the strong. Ultimately, every person will end up in the same social caste and circumstance. Their purpose reduced into the pursuit of earthly gratification and sharing this mentality with others. The central plot and many development decisions are designed with this fetish in mind.
Not everyone likes Honey Select (HS) and it may take time to get accustomed with the character models. The decision to use HS is to reduce development time and explore a larger variety of corruption scenarios. Each character ends up in the same state: black hair, red irises, pale skin, tattoos, fangs, elongated tongue, and exaggerated sexual proportions for both genders. While some will criticize the decision to make characters look the same, it reinforces the idea that every person will end in the same state of depravity regardless of intellect, personality, or wealth. However, there are still differences between characters through hairstyles, tattoos, physiques, and facial structures. Unfortunately, there is a lack of facial customization for male models in HS, so the differences are more apparent with female vampires. If you want more visual variation, the novel offers glamor forms in certain scenes which feature human disguises in varying colors.
In other reviews, the expanding cast of characters and POVs are off-putting. With this specific story premise, I would not have done much different either in game design. You need an expanding cast of characters to explore the different corruption avenues, scenarios, and interactions. There are hints which already exist in the character page highlighting the path to unlock various characters. A general direction can also be found in update notes or replaying certain scenes in the game. I personally didn't have a problem with the game design. However, I do agree there could be some improvements with the direction and flow to make it less disjointed for others or having a short guide on how to unlock scenes that you miss.
The greatest thing about corruption is the variety of other fetishes it can be paired with. Some that are featured in this game include: breast milk, gimbofication, incest (optional), etc. I've only seen one NTR style scene for those who may be concerned. Characters are in constant lewd scenes with different people, it's basically swinging and I don't consider that to be NTR. Keep in mind NTR and corruption are often paired together by many creators, so there may be additional exploration on this theme in the future.
In terms of production. Moniker Smith has exceeded many creators in both F95zone and other platforms. As of the time of this review, he has published 50+ updates of the game! He has consistent monthly renders of new scenes. Even with monthly updates, the quality of renders and writing has not decreased. People are able to access new patches for free a month after release on Patreon. For me at least, every update has enough content to leave me satisfied. Supporters are allowed to vote for story elements on Patreon. He also publishes daily pictures for both paid and free supporters.
In terms of my criticism, coming from a different perspective, I do agree with many reviews that the story has suffered a drop in quality. I will expound on my thoughts in a forum post. The things I am critical of can be easily rectified in future patches so it isn’t affecting my rating of the game at the moment. I do think the installation should be simple. Many seem to be confused because the names of the files are not clear.
Critique: https://f95zone.to/threads/moniker-smiths-bloodlines-v0-56-public-moniker-smith.43442/post-11960935