VN - Ren'Py - Pale Carnations [Ch. 4 Up 4 Public] [Mutt & Jeff]

[Ch. 3 Update 3 Public]

Pale carnations is one I saw at the top of F95, and was just never grabbed by and it's exactly the "never judge a book by its cover" metaphor.
Its story, themes, and characters weave an intriguing and honestly gripping narrative that exactly deserve the praise it gets.

H-scenes
Overall the animations and statics are phenomenal. Truly wasn't expecting how dynamic and subtle some are.

The "worst" complaint you will find is the darker tones and ethics of what the set-up is. May be a little too "real"-- a bit too depraved for some.

A lot of kink variety given the nature of it; though a lot of the PCs choices are on the "tamer" side for most selections.

In conclusion: Absolutely was not expecting to love this as much as I did, and it fully deserves all the praise it gets. Can't wait for more. Play it

[Reviewed Chapter 3, Update 3]

One of the best games in active development. So much well-developed content, beautiful girls and renders, engaging dialogue amidst a gripping story.

The Good ()

• Some of the most fully-realized characters in VNs
• Gorgeous models -- hyper detailed and beautiful (all with Honey Select models!)
• The girls are all super busty and curvy -- absolutely my taste but may not be for everyone
• Intense, sexy H-scenes with great animations
• Intriguing, unique narrative that is contained to a specific series of events -- giving it an end in sight
• Hours and hours of content

The Not-So-Good ()

• The game has a number of pretty dark, central themes -- BDSM, humiliation, male- and female domination, urination, etc. These are not my typical preferences so I've skipped through a lot of scenes to avoid this content, but they are largely unavoidable.
• Unremarkable, ugly MC that quickly finds his way into the hearts of all the girls -- the plot at least tries to support this with story points but it's hard to find it super realistic
• You have to "pick" a main girl early-ish in the story -- at the current phase, you don't lose access to much content but I could see more branching in the future.

Overall, an outstanding title with so much care and consideration for the story, art and dialogue. Can't recommend this enough!

For me this is probably the best game I've played on the site. It does a lot of things very well, and it's probably the first time I've actually cared much about what happens (and I've played a fair few games on here). There is genuine importance to your decisions, and the character motivations and reactions are as realistic as possible given the scenarios while still being entirely a porn game. This helps it feel more grounded while still being a hyper-real fantasy. Some of the themes go a little too far for my liking, but those things are mostly avoidable. The game encourages moral reflection in a way that no other game on here does. The art is also top tier, as is the majority of dialogue.

So, I had to play the game. I am usually a big fan of 2d art, but I had to give it a try because of the ratings. Man, I was in for a surprise ride. I stopped playing the game at first after seeing the shit that MC's mother went through. But I decided to try it again to see where things go. The character design and storytelling of this game are something else. I am amazed how a brothel game can be so entertaining. I love most of the characters too (Except veronica and I am glad there is an option to pee on her ). I also love the paths and stat system of the game. Although I believe there is maybe a bit too much text. But the sex scenes are pretty damn good.

This game is definitely not for weak-willed people as there is some realism implemented in the game.

It is hard to believe how much distance a porn game can reach!

Way to much internal dialog, and unnecessarily explaining what is happening. Some is always needed, but this is just overkill. Very little body variation in the models. The only one that's different is the bodybuilder Veronica, and she still has big tits and a large ass like the rest. The concept for the game is good. Love the mother's past twisting the MC's perspective. The writing is also pretty good, but if you are going to put in sounds you don't need to write them out as well. I was a bit disappointed overall probably just because of how highly it is rated. I was expecting it to be on the same level as other games rated that highly. It's still a good game just not a great one. I'd have given it 3.5 starts but that wasn't an option. Good luck to the development team, and perhaps I'll check with this again down the line.

Good game
The drawing is beautiful
+ The plot is cool
+ Some gameplay features are interesting
- I went too far with the heroine's breasts, too large, disproportionate to the body, hangs ugly in the scenes
- Entering the story is delayed
- Sometimes skewed towards gameplay rather than porn

great game!
This is one of the best … It’s still in progress but there is lots of great content and the overall execution is top notch.
I look forward to more of the competition and the progression of the sub arcs.
I have one minor gripe regarding how arcs can go fubar by one bad choice but other games do the same so it’s fine… I was screwed on my first play through of RosaLind and missed all her content but fortunately I had a save and it was recoverable.

Keep up the great work.

*edit* … I enjoy the overall BDSM overall & the sweet/dirty pleaser characters (Rosa,Felicia,Mina)

Very good game, love the setting and direction of the story. Characters are good too, personally a fan of Hana and Felicia.

Maybe this is me being unreasonable, or perhaps this is actually the roadmap for the devs, but I feel like once you consider the story and situation the girls are thrown into, it's not actually that depraved or hardcore. I personally feel like the challenges and scenes could be turned up a notch, but again maybe this is just the devs easing into things and they do plan on doing a lot more hardcore scenes in the future.

edit: Hana finally got the holy ghost fucked out of her!

(Light spoilers) - Ch. 3 Update 3

I've played quite a few AVN's over the last few years, and I don't think a single one of them has hooked me as quick and thoroughly as this one. I was really not expecting it at all. As of writing I've only played through it once.

Its most appealing quality (for me) is the writing. This game may not be 'socially conscious' in a traditional sense, but it's not completely divorced from the cruel realities of things like sex work and porn. I'd imagine these are the kinds of things a lot of consumers of AVN's aren't interested in thinking about, and sure, a lot of these games are just for getting your rocks off, but I find it refreshing for a game to ask you whether it's ethical to help push a desperate mother into a depraved game show. One way the writer(s?) drive this home is by giving you a close, personal connection to the sex world: your loving mother. Her plight constantly came up in my playthrough, and I was glad for that. It really helped ground that 1) our MC and his mother love each other, and 2) the porn industry can be brutal and somewhat indifferent to the struggles of the people involved in it.

Most interestingly, the game allows a level of nuance I wouldn't have expected. The club ultimately is about indulgence, and many of the game's great characters have varying ideas about what that means. The ability to make dialogue choices allow you to come to your own conclusions as well. Are you working at this club just to get into med school? Do you think it's okay to torture these characters because they "volunteered" for it? I appreciate that the game is willing to ask these questions in a way that doesn't feel like it's forcing me to definitively decide one way or another.

Pale Carnations is also willing to allow genuinely sweet moments between characters. In many ways, it is a pretty dark game, with people being exploited all over the club. In that context, allowing very human interactions between the characters is something I really appreciate. One moment in my playthrough that stuck out was our MC's cuddle session with Rosalind, in which he's brought back to a nostalgic moment with his mother playing piano. It's a legitimately beautiful scene and I was a little awestruck that I was even seeing it. In most games, you have the sex scene, then we cut to the next scenario. Pale Carnations is willing to let you sit with the characters, talk, reminisce, and trade these small human interactions. It's about as refreshing as some of the bigger moral questions that I mentioned before.

Overall, I really enjoyed my time with the game. It is remarkably well-made in many more ways than the ones I talked about (the character designs, for example, are fantastic, as are the animations) and I'm really looking forward to seeing where the story goes.

Many adult VNs are the work of a single creator. And some are more talented at writing while some are more talented at the art. Pale Carnations however is the work of two creators that have joined their talents in both aspects, and it shows. This is probably the best that an HS1 game can ever look. The characters's poses and facial expressions are right on spot and diverse, as is scene setup and camera work. But this is also accompanied by great writing that could easily make this story just a great text novel to read.

After playing this it's really hard to find many another AVNs that can live up to the bar of expecations that this game has set.

I am a pervert of many campaigns. A seasoned connoisseur of smut and hands down this is one of the best games I've played.
Credit where its due the art is amazing. Yes its HoneySelect, but The Dev's put work into facial expesions not to mention that they aren't just using standard models like a few other games I can list.
The story is actully good! Honesty I went in expecting a kink fueled romp and didn't really care at first. Then I got sucked in and enjoyed it even more so much so I have reccomened it a few times and became a patron.

Time will tell things continue in the right direction, but for now its pretty damn good.

I'd want to confidently say, this is the first Adult Visual Novel of it's kind (for me anyway). I'd say I for one am an extremely picky skeptic in terms of the goals and themes of characters when they're in play in a story. And would gladly like to admit that throughout my experience on the recent build of Pale Carnations, not once was I in the headspace of "Why the fuck did he/she do that?".

Each character in the story has their own wants and desires, and in contrast to that, showing how they live about their lives make them all grounded in said reality created therein. Not one of them you could call "opposite sides of the same coin". Taking it up a notch, one could say each one is a coin all in of themselves, that have their own sides, with each surface having a beautiful and at the same time grotesque carving of their hearts, fully displayed in this extreme exhibition of degeneracy and depravity.

On that note, through the experiences of the protagonist, I'd say his reactions completely encapsulate how I'd also react if I were in the same shoes, completely disturbingly beguiled by the circumstances that take place. Disgusted. Confused. Unsure. Despite that, completely tips it towards the favors of carnality, willing to deprave of oneself of any morals held beforehand just to indulge in the moment. Shit's good.

I'm gonna support the fuck out of this. +1 Patron.

Absolutely stunning as an adult visual novel. The visuals are top-notch, the character models are absolutely stunning, the premise and story is kinky but somewhat grounded as it gives a slightly mild view of the underground sex scene, the story is written well enough to make you connected with the characters, the sex scenes are hot but could be improved more, and finally the branching narrative makes is an additional plus.

Great work with this one and hopefully the next update comes soon.

TLDR: Pale Carnations exemplifies the components that make up the initialism AVN. The graphics are stunning, the story is well written and engaging, and it deals with topics for adults in an adult manner. This last bit might turn some people off, but if you are secure, the rewards are well worth it.

If I had to give an elevator pitch for the game, it would be "behind the orgies of Eyes Wide Shut, but actually hot and interesting."
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Pale Carnations is a sterling example of just how much working with a partner can have exponential returns. Both GIL or TD alone could great beautiful and engaging works, but together they push the each other to ever higher hights, creating what is my favorite AVN.

GIL's artwork is simply breathtaking, with all the women somehow being impossibly beautiful, yet somehow realistic. He has also managed to make male characters that actually look like people instead of just being a means to get a dick in front of the women. He has a keen eye for detail and composition and it shows. Every render in the game is of a high enough quality it could easily be used in pormotional art.

TD's writing adds depth and vibrancy to the characters, making them feel truly alive. It is also the only AVN I can think of that has a main character that actually feels like a character instead of a blank canvas meant to serve as an easy self insert. This makes the story feel more like you are a fly on the wall watching one of the luckiest guys instead of just someone fantasizing about banging hot chicks. That said, there is still plenty of banging hot chicks.

In between (and during) the sex scenes you watch a young man grapple with suddenly getting power and struggling not to let it corrupt him (or giving into it and embracing his sadistic tendencies, depending on the choices you make). He has to do this while navigating the complex and messy relationships that actually feel real. Sometimes the girl you like is in a relationship already (with the MC's best friend, no less), or maybe she's not yet ready to move at the speed you are (but she sure is willing to use you to get off), or maybe she's not actually interested in you at all but is using you instead (or so she claims but maybe that facade is starting to crack under pressure), or one of the other relationships that you could find both in game or in the real world.

This all combines for a dizzying amount of content for a game that is not yet even halfway through it's story. Not only will you need to have several playthroughs to see all the content, you will want to.

Even if it somehow managed to break into the top three games here, I couldn't help but feel it is being criminally underrated. That is just how fantastic of a game these two have been able to make.

First game I've ever submitted a rating for as well. I am very happy that I was introduced to this website, it opened up the world of AVNs for me, and it lead me to this absolute masterpiece.

I'm not picky with my porn games, unless I view them as something more than a porn game. Pale Carnations is one of the few games I've played that kept me coming back for more and more of the plot, while finding myself skipping through the lewds during some moments just to see what happens next.

The characters are all intriguing with clearly defined personalities, likes, dislikes, desires, etc, and you can't help but find yourself falling for and caring for all of them.

There's something for all avenues of pervert who are fortunate enough to come across this gem. Plenty of avenues for different kinds of fetishes.

To the dev, well fucking done. I'm so excited to see how the game progresses.

This is the first game that provoked a review out of me in any forum.

The writing is depraved, extremely erotic, and wild. I found myself disgusted within the first hours of playing, to intrigued until the end of the current version. The plot, for me, is thicker than a bowl of oatmeal. Animations are nothing short of great.

This is top-shelf stuff. This is the AVN.
But don't let me spoil it for you, play it.

Pale Carnations is a fever dream. TD and GIL have crafted a world absolutely brimming with concupiscence, rich in atmosphere and driven by compelling characters. It is immediately obvious to anyone who plays the game that there was an immense amount of care put into all the game’s minutiae. Every piece of music was meticulously curated, every pose of a character’s model was diligently selected, every garrulous word was fastidiously chosen.

The partnership that TD and GIL share is mutually beneficial. Each member brings a certain idiosyncratic passion to his respective half of the project.

TD’s writing is an unmistakeable love letter to Japanese eroge, but his personal alterations coalesce into a veritable wonderland of sexual fantasy. The lewd scenes that the characters find themselves in are intense, satisfying, and unique for a western VN. TD has a particular endgame in mind, and no scenes are wasted en route to that end. Each girl has her own voice, and it is loud and genuinely individualistic. Hana is the pugnacious punk rocker sheltering a soft exterior underneath, Felicia is the busty blonde smoke-show hiding her brilliance like an ace up her sleeve, Rosalind is the timid housewife acting duplicitously to further her own agenda. Characters are motivated, and it is tough to choose whom one wants to win the prize at the end of the day.

On the other hand, we have GIL: the twin-tail master, the Godfather of HS1 blonde bombshells. The models used by GIL are gorgeous: Mina, Hana, Felicia, and Rosalind are just the standouts for me, personally. Each animation is obviously carefully directed, but the effort and zeal that GIL puts into ostensibly simple, vanilla kissing scenes is especially noteworthy. The attention to breast worship is also notable. Some shots that GIL has created, primarily facial expressions (Rosadgecall), are seared into my brain – this last update markedly featured a slew of unforgettable renders.

Mina is probably my favorite HS1 character overall, of all the games I’ve played: her looks, combined with her personality and revelations (particularly in the last update) make her exceptional. I’ve yet to find another character that can match her ethereal pulchritude.

Ethereal, of course, is the key word when it comes to this game. Pale Carnations is transcendent: it is a gem of iridescence among the grays of western VN monotony. It deserves a prodigious level of support, and I hope the devs receive it as soon as possible.

The quality of this one is absolutely astounding.

It has superb writing, an interesting premise and an enjoyable cast of characters that all feel distinct & unique, especially the headline girls. MC himself is fairly well written and his initial response to the scenario of getting involved with the club felt grounded, authentic and real as opposed to being a yes-man, simply to further the plot and get to the scenes. The pacing is also very well done which I can appreciate.

Plenty of lewd / erotic content on offer here for those that want it and given that it's accompanied by what I feel is a well-written story, I find it quite easy to recommend. Really looking forward to seeing the final build of this one.

Very high-quality title.

Excellent game that's more on the kinky side. It gives you the option of being a complete asshole, though it is just as possible to play MC as a fairly decent guy who's still a sadist in sexual context (big plus for me). Writing is (generally) good, sex scenes are great, girls are very hot while also being interesting, complex characters. Game is also, farily uncharacteristicly for a porn game, quite nuanced in how it handles ethics. There is a LOT of content here - many hours, if you take your time. Overall, a strong recommendation.

Gosh! What a game! I thought it would be just a boring harem game but it's a marvel. It's one of the best written game I've played and it has some amazing animations. Highly recommended. Caution: it's VERY depraved (but not senselessly depraved).