VN - Ren'Py - Our Red String [Ch.14.1.4 Beta] [Eva Kiss]

v0.9 Final

An incredibly well-crafted VN. The story is about two different POV characters, Ian and Lena, and their struggles in working through young adulthood. All the characters have strong personalities, motivations and wants, and character arcs are playing out. The choices all seem really impactful and get referenced throughout the story. There is a lot of content right now, it's a good game to play and spread out lots of breaks throughout. I really liked the art, and thought the sexual content was really hot. I just felt like at the end I really knew all the characters and had become a part of their lives for a while. A new favorite of mine.

Great game. Many choice and affect the story so make it worth to play again. Good character design but voice isn't good yet. Should have minigame like real snooker or something. The progress about skill is not showing right .

I just finished the available content:

I have to say, this game is pretty good. It shoehorns a certain type of behavior and isnt the most pleasant experience to "ride" if you are looking for a nice romance or two, but it is enjoyable.

Character art is great, Ian is a massive chad and Lena is adorable. I don't how the author continually used Ivy as a way to keep retroactvely changing Lena's past, adding more and more baggage to it, but I guess it's fine. You can ignore it pretty easily.

Either way, it seems very difficult to avoid corruption in this game. If its not Ian or Lena, it's Holly through Ivy, Alison or Emma through Jeremy, Cindy through Axel. I liked it better in GGGB, since you had full control and you could voluntarily go for the Corruption Route with the right mindset and enjoy it completely. In fact, some of my favourite routes were Corrupt in GGGB. But in ORS it seems like there isn't a way to avoid it, which is a shame.

There was an option to have an Open Relationship with Lena after all. But it required her being with Robert, Mike, or Louise. I don't really like that, as far as it might seem, since I don't like either of those people. They don't fit well with Lena (at least my Lena).

I'm hoping for a change in this in the future. It seems greedy from my part, but I really would like to have a serious relationship with Lena and Cindy. If not possible with both, at least have Cindy on the side.

Either way, Eva is a great dev. This game is great and is Top 5 or 6 in my short list of this site.

The only reason I don't give it the full 5 out of 5 is because it isn't finished and because I'm still holding on to hope that the two best girls will end up with Ian in the end.

Looking forward for the future.

The game is almost perfect. Great art. Great writing. Meaningful choices.

Dating sims are my favorite sub-genre and this one delivers a really great experience. I really like the 2 MC twist, compared to GGGB, but both are equally fantastic games by Eva Kiss and two of my favorite AVNs out there.

10/10. Will play any and all games by Eva Kiss.

One of the best game on the site.

I was a huge fan of EvaKiss' other game GoodGirlGoneBad and this might be even better than GGGB.
Unique/real characters. Good writing/story. Meaningfull choices.
The approach of relationships/drugs etc. just feels realistic which makes the game really good.

Update Period: ~6 months per big update/none for small
Play time - Total/Big update/Small update: 3 hours/30 minutes/-
Frequency of play: Every big update
Update type: Continuation of all stories, as this is a linear VN
Opinion on updates: Pretty good for a game like this, but the last 7 month one was a bit too long compared to previous ones
Personal notes: I wait for walkthrough/walkthrough mod to update and release and tend to skip through convos in general. I have 2 saves for 2 different playthroughs that I keep

When playing the previous game from Eva Kiss (Good Girl Gone Bad), I instantly loved the style of the narration and artworks. However, I struggled to relate to the female main character. Luckily, developers implemented two MCs this time and it is just great! You can expect that every decision counts and will alter your game experience. Characters are believable and you really want to know how the story and the characters will evolve. As the choices you make really lead to very different story lines, the game is replayable several times and you will still get new things to see (if you choose differently than before, of course). I also like the looks of the game, as all artworks are made with a lot of love and care and details. I absolutely recommend to try it out!

TL/DR Wonderful writing, stat system, and interconnections hindered by a sexually unappealing / pathetically small male MC and a lack of meaningful non-corruption content on the female MC.

Chapter 10 update: Ian's content remains flaccid and he looks pathetic. The best scene content is used to cuck him. He is barely a main character in the story. His art is used interchangeably with other 'average men.' Hollys content continues to be focused on corruption and we had little to no movement on anything that could be considered exciting for Ian. If you wanna play a generic female corruption game this is it. If you wanna feel good about the male protagonist or have an enjoyable time from his POV move along- he is designed to be a pathetic cuckold and his content focuses on that. He gets maybe 2 or 3 good scenes a release.

Pros:
~Holly redeems it a lot for me. She is the true gem / beauty of the series; no corruption added- she is perfect just the way she is. In fact, I will be very sad if she doesn't put her foot down at some point on her corruption route. Its so sad to watch a beautiful person like her get corrupted.
~Writing is fantastically immersive
~Characters motivations are mostly realistic and believable
~Stat gain system is interactive and interesting.
~Plot on the male side of the game is great.
~Really well written scenes.

Cons:
~ The male lead character is the the smallest, least well endowed, and least buff / physically attractive on the roster of males in the game (with the exception of Perry). It is very hard to self identify with such a tiny man-child. While the love vibes in many of his scenes are the best sexual energy in the game, he is so woefully pathetic looking that it is still very difficult to find his scenes hot at all- despite it being the content in the game I enjoy the most narratively.
~Almost every male character in the game is abusive / manipulative / horrible- more or less designed to try to sublimate the female lead.
~If you don't like corruption content playing as the female lead is a very flat experience - she does not fill her extra free time with self-empowerment or other content. Her route is just barren.
~There is more route content that I am disinterested in than that I am interested in.
~ Approximately 50% of corruption path Lena's decisions seemed to directly contradict her characterization
~ There aren't very many Lesbian routes.
~The 3 super-bull steal your girl antagonists in the game are walking stereotypes.
~lack of narrative consequences for NPCs who are being assholes.
~Lack of narrative consequences for when Lena is being a Hypocrite.

At first I was a bit concerned by the art style, as I usually like drawings that feel unique to the artist, and, well, I find those a bit dull.
And that will be the only criticism I'll have to tell, because it's simply the best adult game I've played. The writing is astonishing, and the story is really nice. Enjoy !

At first i was skeptical about male protagonist (because you know, man struggle have at least one sexual relationship not five simultaneously)
but Eva Kiss ingenious patches up plot hole with alcohol and witty charisma. and it worked, at least not cringe. Maybe because Ian don't fuck mother and sister and they not his sex slave or maybe Eva Kiss have talent and probably some experience in real life unlike other writers adult novels

a fly in the ointment:
I hope next updates bring hardcore fetish (f2m rimjob for example) but i understand fetish not good for "vanilla" story and i grateful for "vanilla" story without supernatural.
Holly feels odd. She is young petite redhead and successful writer. struggling to have relationship WTF but honestly i don't read her explanation.

P.S. Sorry for terrible English and terrible opinion

I was a huge fan of EvaKiss' other game; GGGB, so I was very excited to check this one out, and it has not disappointed thus far.

I really like both MCs; Lena and Ian, and I dig the whole "switching perspectives" thing. If not done well, it could be jarring for the player, but don't worry hypothetical player, you're in good hands, as Eva handles it perfectly.

The art style is so refreshing and is a noted step up from GGGB.

The sex scenes are very hot, especially the ones with Cindy, because I'm a major simp for her.

Speaking of, I really enjoy all of the supporting characters aside from Jeremy who kinda plays into a cliche trope too heavily for my liking, but it's not a deal breaker or anything.

As I touched on, I really like Cindy. The "forbidden fruit" dynamic between her and Ian is so fuckin spicy and well done. Makes me want to chase her and only her honestly.

Lena's scenes with her collective roommates are all super sexy as well, between the dom stuff with Louise and the teasing of Stan, it's hard to not get...hard.

I'd also like to note the creative DMT trip scene, I love meta shit like that. Gave me big Doki Doki Lit Club vibes.

Overall, Evakiss has fucking nailed it so far with this one. Great job again, Eva.

5*

v0.9

Good :
- Great artworks
- Excellent writtings
- Meaningfull choices
- Many options and branches
- Each girl has a unique personality that will suit every tastes
- Holly is the most adorable character i've ever seen in a VN
- Intimate scenes are perfectly brought out and realistic
- Male / Woman protagonist
- A lot of romance
- Cheats available

Bad :
- You can't change the protagonist's names

This is a very good. I wish i could play as Jeremy! The female mc is hot but the male mc is kinda bleh looking. The writing is good and LI's are good. Music is VERY good. Suprising even... I really wanted to play as Jeremy.

The quality of the game itself, the writing and graphics is superb. It manages to be a visual novel and a cyoa game at the same time. The choices feel real and impactful, and the character development is deep and strongly based on the choices we make.
The only point of criticism I have comes from my own expectations rather than the quality of the game. It's too serious for me. Let's be honest, I come her for sex games, more or less simple, at least as far as intellectual requirements go. I don't want to become sad or insecure and this is exactly how this game makes me feel.
I haven't finished it yet, so my feeling might change, but often I just don't feel like playing it, because of its too serious tone. But I guess that the problem is me and not Our Red String.

it's very good, I play the actual 9 chap available in 2 days. Nice story and well written. The story are very nice, each decision have an impact on the story and on the character. The more music can be nice. After couple hours you have make the turn.

Great game. Many choice and affect the story so make it worth to play again. Good character design but voice isn't good yet. Should have minigame like real snooker or something. The progress about skill is not showing right .

Game version: [v0.9 Final]

GGGB is one of my favorite games of all time, definitely my favorite female MC game, rated it 5 stars.

Playing this left me feeling bored and deflated.

It's hard to put my finger on what exactly is wrong with this game, I feel like it's a lot of small changes that add up to it just being a completely different experience. At first glance, things have improved. The art looks nicer I guess, there's a better UI, more stats, more systems.

Having dual protagonists makes the game worse. There is no real focus, no identification. Events get repeated without much benefit to the player. Unlike Ashley in GGGB, I don't really like either of these two characters. I also feel that even if you like both female and male MC games, it just doesn't mix. To me, it requires a different mindset and a different kind of game. It's like chocolate and steak, you might think either is delicious, but you don't want to put both on the same plate and switch between them during a meal.

The game also just feels so weirdly slow and vanilla compared to GGGB. Sure, GGGB had its vanilla elements too, but you could go into so many kinky extremes pretty quickly. I feel like that was kind of the appeal of the game. This game feels more like a vanilla dating sim. It's such a weird shift that it makes me put on my conspiracy hat and wonder if this is actually the story the dev wanted to tell or if these changes are some weird attempt at reaching a bigger audience. Then again, didn't GGGB make good money? I don't know, but whatever this is, I hate it.

You're playing 2 characters, male and female, in a small city where these two take turns to interact with each other and their environment.
Apart from the interaction, you're presented with literally the same storytelling as in the previous game of this author, Good Girls Gone Bad: select your favourite partners and watch them develop their relations. If you don't want to see someone, you just ignore them.
This was a pretty straightforward 4- or 5-star concept, which made GGGB so appealing as well.
The main difference (apart from 2 chars) is that the character development mechanics has changed: instead of "kindness" vs "corruption" + "money", you're introduced with multiple stats: "Wits", "Charisma", "Athletics", "Lust" + "money" + "Willpower" + "NPC relations".
Not a bad concept if implemented properly, and it allows you to shape your protagonists accordingly. Unfortunately, it is not implemented properly, and the mechanics becomes a borderline between you and the desired content. Fortunately, there is an official option to "cheat" and play with max stats, except for "NPC relations".

So, why two stars?

It is primarily related to Female protagonist gameplay.
Story-wise, in 0.9 the Female is cut off her main sources of income by a powerful businessman, unless you allow him to fuck her.
The main problem here is that it happens "Deus ex machina", regardless you interacted with that businessman or not. (what if I told you that he is the Female's biological father but none knows about it in 0.9)
In other words, initially the game presented itself non-linear, and you developed your Female character in one of the multiple ways.
Later, its non-linearity is destroyed by this story "node" for the Female.

I'm pretty sure that in 1.0, players will get another "god of machine" and everything will turn out in one way or another for the Female.
However, the problem of gameplay unsatisfaction won't actually go away -- a player puts efforts which are crossed with the stroke of a pen.

Luckily, the Male doesn't have this story "node", which is nice but doesn't solve the plot problem.
Also, fortunately, the game still has a cheat mode, and you can technically (but not story-wise!) ignore the whole "Deus ex Machina".

P.S. Please don't get me wrong, the DeM is an absolutely fine concept in story telling, it just shouldn't overwrite all your previous time investment.
Here the businessman feels similar to aliens landing in the middle of the Female char development.

I already liked "Good Girl gone bad" even tho i usually don't like female protagonist games. This caters much more to my preferences and pretty much has it all.

Great artwork

Good writing, (that isn't completely unbelievable..)

THE example for meaningful decisions in games.

Awesome job @ the whole team involved in this.