VN - Ren'Py - My Bully Is My Lover [Ch.1 Ep.4 - CV] [NiiChan]

My Bully Is My Lover [Ch1 Ep4]

This is without a doubt one of the best AVNs I have ever played and that by a mile.

It has everything: an engaging story, terrific characters, a great MC, amazing LIs, and an excellent OST.

Seriously. Stop reading this shitty review.
Download the game and start playing.

I would say it's a hidden gem, but no! It's a well know game made by very talented people if the eroges games had a rating it's would be AAA.

The writing is superb, i loved the renders specially the close shots, the transitions from renders to animations are one of the best i ever saw.

If I would complain something about this game is the lack of gameplay mechanics, but i know how much people complains about it i understand the dev for not using those.

In general i think this game alongside Vae Victis it the best you find in F95.

This is probably one of the best VN's I've ever had the pleasure of reading. There are only a few VN's that illicit so many emotions out of me. I cried like a baby during certain chapters because of the story crafted by the dev. I also cried tears of joy for seeing the LIs and the Mc not only fix the cracks in their past but solidifying their emotions for each other. The comedy although not as prominent in the later chapters ( and rightfully so as the story demands more seriousness) got me doubling over (Gwen's facial expressions, no more explanations needed if you like her).
All of this is compounded by the fact that the Animations are smooth( as smooth as 3d gets) and Models are gorgeous.
Normally I kind of just cruise through waiting for scenes, but I had to stop and enjoy this VN for what it is, a visual novel and have to give it the credence it deserves.

I think this is the first game that has made me cry, multiple times. I lost my Mother less than a year ago to Cancer, so Emma's story hit harder than it should have. As soon as Emma's story was told, I knew the choice on who I wanted to pursue without any question. Now I have to convince myself to explore the other options.

Easily one of my favorite games out there. Has hot LIs, great renders, great animations, an interesting story and most importantly it's one of the few games I've played that evokes emotions other then horniness

I really love that you can just choose to run off with Emma and give her the life she deserved. The fact it's not intended to be a huge separate story just makes it more impressive that the dev gave us that route.

I would easily rate this 9.5/10.
it has its unique story(albeit it is full of cliches) which is full of melodrama and cliffhangers. I like how detailed each character's backstory is and how much effort has been put into the writing.
The writing and the story are the main highlights of this game. I mean it is such a well written script that goes way beyond what we see in regular VNs.
The story takes us on a journey well beyond the mundane and deep into the characters' heart and soul. I like it very much about this game.
Renders are good and the animation is like what we see in lot of the VNs. however, it feels a bit confusing with lot of characters without any defined relationship with the MC. And WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS LANDLORD, LANDLADY AND ROOMMATE SHIT WHEN IT IS CLEARLY GIVEN THAT THE MC IS THEIR BIOLOGICAL SON AND HAS A REAL SISTER, I am just sick of it. I mean with all the things going on, it feels cheap to even have this kind of option. It would have been okay if this was some cheap fap-only game. That's the only issue why i haven't given it a 10.

Definitely lost the thread the longer it went. Not just with too many LIs but with the plot becoming a mess and the writing getting more and more and more verbose until it sounds like some hybrid between a teenage girl's diary and an undergraduate's poorly written philosophy paper. Everyone sounds increasingly the same and they all are apt to just go on these long monologues or soliloquys for no reason and the actual content of their speeches barely even makes sense.

The visuals are fine. The animations are rudimentary but nice too. But in Chapter 1, it went from a fun, cute AVN to a chore.

I ignored this AVN for a long time. I assumed by the title, it was going to be a loser cuckfest but I took a chance and read some reviews and then decided to give it a try. Let me just say, it is NOT a cuckfest.

There is a lot to unpack as I am reviewing Ch1 Ep4 and I can't believe the amount of story content there is. There is not a lot of adult content, but the amount of story is crazy. Who ever is writing this, is pretty good. Some of the stoylines really tug at the emotional heart strings. The back story of Emy and the MC was just freaking awesome and the production and images were all spot on. Just that one story, IMO, is worth the download. Of course, if you don't give a crap about story and just want h content, you will probably want to just skip this AVN. Having said this, I have to say, there are several times there is just too much story.

Sometimes, when stories get too long, they can be cumbersome and plot holes start to appear. This is no exception. The whole underlying story is a bit off and does not entirely flow. I get Aine's Mom's motivation, but the way she goes about trying to get it, doesn't really make a lot of sense. I don't want to spoil anything, so I won't expand on this, but it just seems to me she could have gone a whole different direction and been a lot more effective then what she chose to do. Then there is the plan concocted by the MC's mother. Again, it's just an odd approach that seems really farfetched.

To their credit, the Dev goes all in on this approach and it works to a degree. The character interactions and the individual story lines are really well done and very well written. It's too bad the underlying story is thin and unbelievable because there is some really fantastic writing here.

Anyway, if you like great writing and are not looking for a fuckfest, give this a try. You will not be disappointed.

It is one of the best VN with a unique fantasy that also includes some cliches, you can even call it too cliche (Emma's ending no offense to Emma simps).
This VN doesn't lose on its story, not to mention THE ANIMATION, THE MODELS (characters), THE STORYBUILDING (i mean the dev has another game that is in this universe, which is also really good btw, dev is actual 5head for that), its peak VN, it touches the most overrated genres (fantasy) or its own title even??
But what separates this game from other fantasy VN is its storyline which is rich with cliffhangers and even more cliffhangers AND EVEN MORE CLIFFHANGERS that grab your attention leaving you wanting more. Continue making bangers dev, and hopefully, this game will be available soon on Steam.

Beautiful renders, page-turning story, great cinematics and animations, incredible music, funny, interesting, mysterious, drama, all in this game, absolutely love it, cant ask for anything better, definitely top 5 AVNs

Edited review.

Started off well and cute, but very quickly devolved into too many LIs and the plot got really convoluted. I think that's a bit of the "anime type story" that the intro suggests, so maybe it's just not my cup of tea (I think others who rate this 5 stars will certainly argue as much), but even though I'm not an otaku I've seen a few anime and generally liked their stories much more than this (ofc this is just an AVN by a solo dev, not a multimillion dollar project). The villain in the story is too cartoonish and the setup to what will ultimately be the great reveal is too convoluted while also being pretty predictable.

Renders are typical HS1 quality. OK and cute, but a bit underwhelming for today's standards. They don't take away from the experience, but I also can't give a star for them

There's very little porn, so I can't give it an extra star for that either.

Exposition is a bit too basic. There's a lot of editing that could be done here. I suggest watching this: In Praise of Great Exposition

Choices are a combination of being too obvious and not consequential. Someone waves "hi" at you and you have a chance of replying to get +1 RP or do nothing and have no consequences. These days, I tend to prefer a system in which everything is a choice and either alternative will influence a relationship, like Paragon and Renegade points (or Love and Corruption, for example). I think developers shy away from having too many choices because they think this grows the # of scenes they have to create exponentially, but I don't think that's right. That would only happen if every choice created a different scene, but if scenes are dependent on cumulative score rather than specific boolean variables, they can still be pretty manageable. The result is at most you get 3 scene variations (one if you're above a certain Love threshold, another if you're above a certain Corruption threshold, and another if you're below both thresholds). But any of those 3 scene choices could also not exist at all so, say, if you're above a Love threshold you get a scene, otherwise you get zilch. So rather than "scenes per each choice variable", think of the scenes you want first and then create "scenes per threshold check".

SPOILERS below

I think I know where people are coming from on the "great writing" which is the fact that the bully turns lover, MC overcomes his perceived limitations to rise above the challenge, etc. etc. but none of that stuff actually happens _in_ the story. We start by already seeing MC transformed, the bully is a nice person, etc. We're just told these things happened and we're supposed to care, but if we're not shown them, it's hard to really care. See https://blog.reedsy.com/show-dont-tell/

Anyway, the setup is very interesting but the execution left a little bit to be desired. Dialogue and writing improvements could take this from 2/5 to 3.5-4/5. Render and animation improvements could further take it to a solid 4.5/5

I think this setup with cute HS1 girls with cat ears has been done many times before and I don't think this is the best rendition of that fantasy, unfortunately.

Just amazing. Love Emma solo ending. Love the dynamic between MC and the girls. The animations are smooth and sexy. The story is good enough for me to care about the LIs. My favorite moment is properly when everyone confront each other about how they all fell for one guy, and it's hilirious.

My Bully Is My Lover [Ch1 Ep3 Part 2]

What a great game.

• Writing is top notch. It goes from heartbreakingly sad to funny.
• Animations are really good too, way beyond the standard HS.
• Amazing OST. Don't play this with sounds off.
• Characters have great depth and you get to really know them, their struggles and motivations.

One of the best harem games we have.

Great game! I've been playing this since a friend recommended it. I love how the story from the earlier versions connects to the current one. Can't wait to see what the next update brings, especially with the moon's story.

The game hits the nail spot on when it comes to triggering emotions. Each and every character has such a good backstory and arc that it becomes tough to choose your favorite. Not just the main LI's but even other characters are well written.

Prime example of a game that gets better the further it goes on. The early parts of the game are poor but the further it progresses the more the writing, visual quality and sex scenes improve. The most recent updates have had some of the better storytelling that I have seen in the current crop of updating AVNs.

What stops the game getting 5 stars is the poor beginning, character models that are lagging behind the competition at the top, instead sitting more in the average range and some story elements being out of place enough in the world to make a serious story come across as goofy.

This is one of the top games to watch and for now 4 stars is deserved.

This game is a fucking masterpiece. The story, the plot, the characters, are amazing. It's a bit confusing at times especially since there are characters that weren't really introduced so I assume that the entire game is part of an extended universe type of situation, but the story more than makes up for it. The build-up and pacing is awesome, I have never been more blown away by a game like this before. This made me cry more than once and I love it. I love this game. To any of you reading this. DO NOT HESITATE TO PLAY THIS GAME!!!! THIS IS ABSOLUTE CLASS!!!

I honestly didn't know where the plot was going for the first 3 hours of this game. Sometimes, the game's plot simmers in a nice hotpot of cute and fun moments. Then, suddenly, it decides to slingshot you back into the main plot OR it takes a long ass break to tell you the entire backstory of a character that has been only mentioned in name for over 2 chapters.

9 love interests is way too much, in my opinion. The entirety of the "prologue", which is over 7 episodes, focuses primarily on 3 girls. There's Aine - your bully, Gwen - this delinquent girl you hung out with, and Emma - your childhood friend. The 6 other girls aren't really main girls, in my eyes. Hell, your "sister", Sky, doesn't get any scenes for over 7-8 episodes. I was going insane at how little content she even had. Freya is just the token playful loli character. Klara is just your mom - and it's like she's mostly on business ventures half the time, so she's barely characterized other than being the sole active connection to the dev's other game, Sicae. Moon has potential as an interesting character, but it's rarely capitalized upon. Naomi is just your damn repairwoman, so she doesn't even make sense in context of the plot. Finally, Lily is literally just there. They introduce her so damn early, but she is barely ever involved with the plot besides being your coworker.

By the time you catch up to current updates, there will only be a substantial amount of sex scenes for like 2-3 girls. There are like 10 episodes total. 7 for the prologue, and 3 for chapter 1. Total time reading through everything (light skimming here and there for me) will be like probably 9-10 hours.

Everything I love about the game: Renders are good, MC doesn't look awful, girls look really cute, animations are great, sound effects are there, music can be extremely corny sometimes.

The story can be super dull or annoying at some points. I started out really liking it. Now, I only half-like it. The mafia family plot stuff is pretty good, but it takes a back seat so often to what's the equivalent to a shitload of filler. MC sounds and acts like a real moron sometimes. The appeal is there for an anime MC, since the dev is adamant on how anime-like the story wants to be. But I just found some things he does so illogical and scummy.

I really question why the dev didn't just focus on literally the three main girls of the game (at least judging by how much content/screentime is dedicated to them???): Aine, Gwen, Emma. It's super confusing at times, because Aine gets her backstory passed by word of mouth early on, but no real flashback episode, like what the dev does with all the other girls. The game is literally called "My Bully Is My Lover".

That being said, I do think Aine, Gwen, and Emma are the peak of this game's story. Especially Emma's story with the MC - to the point that you can even have an ending with her alone. When any of those three are on screen, this game feels a little bit more bearable. Other than that, you have 6 pretty bland or dull characters that don't have enough characterization to validate feeling much during their more emotional moments.

Overall it's a solid 3. As much as I complained in this review, I love a lot of parts in the game. It's just the game is so spread thin when it comes to characterization and plot significance. You can pull this number of love interests off, other games have proven it. But if you don't involve them into the main plot and give the more significance, they literally become nothing characters who just exist in the background and will make no sense in the long-term. The game wants to be a deep underlying mafia family drama, but the story rarely moves and it just suffers from pointlessly introducing and connecting characters from another game.

10/10
i not really good at English but after playing this game i have to write a review for it. The story emotional that make me cried at ep 5, the characters also interesting and unique that i love every single one of them (i love Sky and Gwen most).