VN - Ren'Py - Pale Carnations [Ch.4 Up.5 Public] [Mutt & Jeff]

Review based on Ch. 2 Update 2

Pale Carnations is a game that explores dark side of sexuality in a thrilling and realistic story. By "realistic" I mean that the character motivations and interactions are for the most part plausible and events depicted in this VN could really happen or are happening right now somewhere. For me that's a plus and the game very quickly took me on a journey of self exploration. This was a great surprise, BTW. You open a game thinking it's going to be a wankfest and you get catapulted to a new level. For some people it could be too much, I guess, as the game crosses the boundries of fantasy and seeps into reality.

The story itself is great and kept me interested from the beginning to the end. Currently it ends at first week of Carnations (play the game so you know what I mean) but it already has hours of content. Choices in this game matter, sometimes long down the line. Characters are very interesting and often hide some secret that you can uncover. Their motivations are sometimes outlandish but not implausible. When it comes to the plot you will get cut off from some of the content by choices you make, and you make them from the very beginning when you pick your character advantages and motivations. Again, I consider it a plus as this is the only way to create true reactivity in the game.

The models are gorgeous and scenes are very sexual (I'm looking at you, Felicia ). I may not prefer all body types (Victoria) but all characters are very well done. This is coming from a guy that generally dislikes Honey Select graphics - too anime for me. Not this time. The quality was so good that it didn't matter! I'm really looking forward to see all the hot beauties in next updates!

Overall, this is a great game that's easily in my top 3. I was wow'ed when I played it.

The art and renders and overall quality of the game are fantastic, but the writing is the best feature with well-paced and exciting plot and compelling characters with moral ambiguity. The story and writing is strong throughout, from establishing the world of this debauched competition to the well written erotic scenes. Top notch VN and a ton of content, looking forward to more.

Based on the (as yet) unfinished Chapter 2 v.2.

My usual disclaimers when writing reviews on here are that A. I am here for the "plot" not the plot and B. I generally dislike visual novels. So take both of those into consideration for my review when thinking about this game.

Pros

• Writing - My usual stance about erotic games is that the porn is the key and good writing will only be the cherry on top, and I stand by that. But in Pale Carnations it's a pretty bloody big cherry. Despite being 100% a porn game (with porn logic and so-on) it's also presented in a super believable and coherent fashion so that it doesn't feel like there's much suspension of disbelief or leaps of logic. The dialogue and characters are also just extremely well written so that not only does the broad strokes of the plot make sense, but the moment-by-moment character interactions are great too.
• Unique setting - Not only is the writing itself pretty damn good, but the overall premise is pretty neat! And it has the promise to keep being exciting too.
• Sexy sex - This is a SUPER fucking scalding hot game. Despite having an apparently extremely competent writer, it doesn't shy away from the fact that it's here for the erotic stuff. And this means that not only is it great to look at but the sexy writing is absolute class as well. 10/10 would fap again.
• Visuals - I think in general Honey Select can be a bit divisive on here, but I would say that Pale Carnations at least does a stellar job within the limits of the engine.
• Illusion of choice - One of my biggest issues with visual novels is how little it feels like you can impact the story or have an effect on events. In Pale Carnations though it really does feel like you can change the direction things are going an awful lot and have a great deal of influence on the outcome of events. Even if this isn't true it at least FEELS like you can, which is an important distinction.

Mehs

• Extreme kinks - I use the word "extreme" but obviously that depends on the individual. So this is kind of hard to judge. As it stands, despite the fact that the game suggests it will contain NTR, this actually hasn't happened as of yet. Which is great. It also only really dipped into territory I was unhappy with at one occasion (a particularly gross humiliation scene). However this is just one tiny blip and the rest of the time it remains very sexy. In fact, the NTR thing is quite interesting because I get the impression of thus far having your cake and eating it too (I.e. the story suggests there ought to be a LOT of NTR, but because of protagonist magic there hasn't been yet).

Cons

• Honey Select protagonist - My ONE single solitary dislike of the game is the protagonist's looks. I'm not sure if it's a requirement of Honey Select to always use the same model or something, but he's just boring, dweeby and unattractive. It's not a huge deal because you aren't looking at him a lot, but I would've like to see a bit more effort there...

Pale Carnations seems relatively new on the scene but has immediately leapt to the absolute top of my estimations. It is, quite possibly, up there amongst my top games on this site.

There are a lot of reasons for this but I think for me the biggest thing is that it succeeds in marrying proper porn with some plot. Mutt & Jeff (the devs) don't try and take the game's story overly seriously and shoehorn in tonnes of drama and silly "plot" nonsense to make the claim that it's all about the writing. It also doesn't just phone it in and throw a bunch of sexy animations at you, surrounded by broken English, and hope that's enough for the best.

It really is a case of having your cake and eating it too. It feels like a proper erotic game where the focus is all about the sexy stuff and getting laid and fucking hot girls in a BDSM-style environment. But it's also just written so bloody well that it's just so compelling and easy to accept. You don't need to internally accept a bunch of nonsense just to get to the porn, the porn seems to happen "naturally" within the rules of the story and that just makes it great.

It also helps that there is already a genuinely surprising amount of content for only two chapters (enough so that it feels like the game might end up being only like 3 or 4 chapters long) and a LOT of it is super hot and fun to play. Which is part of the importance, it's also fun!

I really had to nitpick to find my issue with the protagonist because otherwise I have to say I do give the game my wholehearted recommendation. The one and only true hang-up I have is that the game has demonstrated it's not afraid of diving into some fairly dark territory (both in terms of kink and story) and I personally hope that it doesn't dive too deep in the future and start using a bunch of kinks and stuff I dislike.

Mostly because I'm already hooked and would rather keep playing, but I'm doing so under the fore-warning that it MIGHT get dark at some point and that I'll just have to accept it.

What else can I say, this game is simply outstanding and 100% worth your time and support

There’s a reason that this game is on the first page when you sort the games on this site by highest weighted rating, this game is an absolute must-play. I’ll divide my review into categories to make things easy.

Story:

• I was not expecting to enjoy the story of this game as much as I did, it is phenomenal. The most important part of a VN porn game story imo is having a fun/unique story concept, and execute that concept to its fullest potential without making it needlessly complex by making the reader memorize every single unnecessary detail about worldbuilding or lore; all while making sure you have the potential to set up interesting and unpredictable developments. This game has all that.
• The story concept in this game is written in the bio but basically MC is a med student who needs to pay for his education, his friend’s uncle hits him up with a job opportunity to work at this place called the Carnation club where you meet quite the cast of characters and guide the participating girls through their rough journey of sexual shenanigans. Even if the way I described the plot does not interest you, trust me when I say that this concept is executed well which leads into my next point.
• The writing in this game is extremely good. No grammatical errors as far as I could tell, good use of slang/colloquial language, realistic dialogue, and no unnecessary blotches of text that make you want to skip the text.The story is well paced and there is a good amount of depth to be found. Like I said earlier, the story is not confusing at all, and still manages to be extremely intriguing and fun to experience.
• I realllllyyy like the work-place setting in this game. It works super well. The cast of characters that work at the Carnations Club feel like some sort of fucked up,dysfunctional family with interesting and unique character dynamics.
• I gotta say, I can’t wait for this story to hit its climax and find out more about the shadiness behind the elites of the Carnation Club as well as find out wtf is the deal with ex-employee Darius. All of this mysterious stuff really makes the reader want to continue playing the game

Characters:

• Like I said earlier, Pale Carnations has a likable (or unlikeable in a good way), interesting/fun cast full of memorable characters. IMO the characters are the strongest part of the game just because of how interesting they are. Like you really wouldn’t be expecting these types of people to work at a Gentlemen's club for the elite.
• Character dynamics and interactions are great. I especially love the dynamic between the MC and his boss Kathleen. Kathleen is lowkey an evil person but she has some sort of manipulative “soft spot” for MC.
• You can’t beat a good bromance in porn games and this game has a great one
• The characters also have a decent depth to them, especially Felicia, I was extremely surprised by her life ideologies.
• I have to say; I am extremely curious about the mom character (Victoria). I wonder what her role is further down the story and why she was designed to be so attractive because there is no incest in the game (at least for now), so perhaps her existence is going to lead to some NTR? Maybe I’m thinking too hard and the only reason she is attractive is to establish the MC’s mommy issues.

Renders/Sex stuff:

• I believe the engine used for this game is Honey Select (I’m not 100%), and normally I despise Honey Select Models but gahdamn are the girls in this game sexy. LIKE REALLY FUCKIN HOT. I think it’s because their faces are actually really attractive and well designed (unlike 90% of other honey-select models). Their titty sizes and asses are also to be appreciated by many.
• There are a good amount of lewd scenes with plenty of variety so no complaints there
• There are not many animations but there still is plenty of movement in the lewd scenes.
• Dirty talk is one of the most important parts of VN sex scenes and this game has great dirty talk
• If I were to have any complaints in this section it would be that I wish there were more sounds during the scenes. (Flesh slapping sounds during fucking, moans maybe, more blowjob sounds, etc.). There still are sounds just not many.

Gameplay:

• Thank god this game is not a sandbox so you won't have to be dealing with another door clicking simulator. There are a couple free roam sections but they are not confusing at all.
• This is NOT a kinetic novel so there are many choices that affect your game to be made and depending on which routes/choices you pick you may miss some scenes etc.
• So far there aren’t any MAJOR gameplay choices that will completely derail your game into a new route ( I like this because it would be too early in this game for a new major route to be delved into). Major choices should be spared towards the end of a game imo.
• You can up your affections which each of the girls which I hope in the future leads to a romance route

Conclusion:

• If you like this game, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE support the devs. They deserve the world for this high effort game. This is a top-tier VN and easily one of the best on this site. Do yourselves a favor and download this game!

Was a bit hesitant to try this as the kinks are not my thing, but I suggest everyone give it a try as it does have something for everyone. Awesome art/renders, good story, well-written, great presentation, hot as fuck girls... The list goes on.

Highly recommended.

What a fantastic game, I have played though this many times to see all the story.

The renders of the women are 10/10, and some great scenes. There has to to be a lady for every one.

I have enjoyed the story and it is a little different to other games.

Please do more scenes with Kat......

super hot game!!!!!

everything is just perfect for a erotic game, the render is 12 of 10, can't be better than that!!! I feel giving the dev 100 score for graphic is not enough, should be 120.

every girl is unique, I feel pity and horny for them at the same time.

Perfect renders, excellent content,music is fantastic, I feel two chapters in this game is 2 times bigger than the other game.

keeping updats more, it will be in the top 3.

This is excellent. The kinks and the story are gripping, if you're predisposed to those type of things. I'm not normally one for the asian-style artwork, but that doesn't matter here. Stunning.

Renders 5/5
Animation 4/5
Story 5/5

Really fun game, it has some difficult decisions, nice models and renders and a lot of kinky. It also have some nice music and really fun scenes. Be advised that this game contains bdsm, humiliation and stuff like that, but i personally love it!

This is a fun game. I like the visuals so girls are beautiful and renders are good. I felt like a personalized experience so seems like choices are matters. Lewd scenes are hot enough. I'm looking forward to new updates in the future.

So many compliments about contents, renders and so on, I do not want to repeat that.

What sets this game a league of its own is how GIL and TD1900 being very active with the community. I feel their love for the game and the medium. Most of devs complain about motivation issues, I have yet seen any from them (or might have skipped that ).

Since TD1900 mentioned Sei Shoujo as their inspiration, that is cool! I have always wanted to try Starless's who-to-trust dolemma, but could not stomach its porn. I seems to see that in this game, let who win, should I trust Rose, how to help Veronica, what is the reason Felicia enters the mess.

And to GIL, big boobs rule! Milfs rule!

Awesome game with a lot of potential

Visuals: Very impressive looking visuals. The girls look pretty darn good. The animations are nothing to write home about, but they're better than no animations at all.
The GUI is very cool and professional. No cookie-cutter stuff.

Story: The story is fun. I don't have a lot to say about it, but you'll find that your choices DO matter, and can lead to different scenes.

Music: I don't know if the music is original, but I must say it had me grooving. Pretty cool stuff

Sound: This is about the only negative thing about the game in my eyes. There is this one particular moaning sound that loops in a very noticeable and annoying way. You'll know it when you hear it. Thankfully, you can just turn sounds off.

All-in-all I hope to see a lot more from this game in the future

Review for build [Ch. 2 Update 2] Wow, this game is something special and gets a 5/5 from me. This game is pretty twisted and I have really enjoyed the creative ways the LIs are degraded. I'm not usually one for dom/sub genres but Pale Carnations does it right and I urge you to check it out. If you enjoy the game and are financially able, support the developers as it would be a shame to see this project end prematurely.

Pale Carnations is exquisite. It has beautiful art and the best sex scenes I've seen in any game plus it has interesting plot and very good writing. Characters are intriguing and with right amount of background and dialogues (so it's not too verbose or too laconic) and is rather refreshing. It's not another "you're living with your mother and sisters" setup or "you're going to school/college and every girl wants to get into your bed" setting but it's something much more original (up to this point I've checked over 150 erotic games and this one really has something new to offer).

Besides amazing sex scenes what makes this game great are RPG elements resulting in high replayability. At the very start we choose how to build our character, what background should we have and what perks we start with and later depending on our choices certain paths are open while others are closed. I've seen quite a few games attempt this but not as successfully as in PC, here our choices DO matter and change the outcome in a significant way.

Pros:
+ Superb art and sex scenes
+ Great writing and characters
+ High replayability
+ More than decent amount of content
+ Very high potential making you want more and more content

Cons:
- None that I've seen

10/10 game IMO and currently my favourite.

My favorite lewd visual novel. The writing is sharp and witty, the girls are hot, and the plot is incredibly depraved. The best thing about this game is that, unlike a lot of games that feature coercion, degradation, and other twisted themes, the characters span the gamut of reactions to the fucked up situation. This makes the writing much more interesting. The only thing I could wish for (besides continued development, of course) is more animations and more interactivity in the sex scenes (different angles, actions, etc.). Most of them are pretty 1-dimensional and non-branching.

Deep and interesting characters, good general plot and a well-written story with some impacting ingame choose! Scenes are really hot if you are into dominance or submission scene. I'm really looking forward to see what this game will become.

This game is something else.

It's undeniable a very good game. I could not find a single thing wrong with it. It had HS girls, but probably the best graphics of a game with HS girls that I have ever played. The interface was good. This is all in all a very closed to perfect game.

Having said that. Fuck man, it was a tough game for me to play. I felt I needed a shower after playing this game. The Hopeless situations that all of the girls are in. The exploitation, the asshole friend and the way he treats his GF was all hard to play for me.

I think it's because everything feels so real, that the game hits so hard. Variations of this game probably happens in every city around the world all the time. Most games on hear is an escape from reality, but this one slaps you in the face with the with the ugly side of humanity.

It's not all depressing, I might add. The girls are all very endearing in their own way. Fuck Killian, but I'm going for his girl! Hana is also pretty cute. So it's between Hanna and Mina for me. Red (Veronica) is also pretty awesome, but I think @Avaron1974 is more to her taste .I actually like Felicia, but I'm not fully sure what her deal is. Rose... Well I hope she wins.

So in terms of having fun playing this game.... not always. For me it's a fine line between too dark and enjoyment. I'm not on the feminist side of things, but most of the men (except Jacob, Spider and maybe the MC, depending on how you play him), are pretty loathsome.

So
Graphics: 9/10 (Even the HS models are out of the world)
Sex scenes 10/10 (The settings are depraved, but the very sexy)
Story: 9/10 (Gripping)
Gameplay 9/10 :Awesome

It's a definite 5/5 from me, but a tough game at times.

[Played Ch. 2 Update 2]

What can I say... This game is straight 5/5 for me. I always loved this kind of high-class debauchery setting with all sort of kinky stuff. Visuals are really great. I'm not a fan of oversized boobs, but you make it work for me. Writing, story and characters are good enough to NOT make me skip everything and just go for the "good stuff"... and that is quite rare. There is a decent amount of content and I'm looking forward for more. Thank you for the game and keep up a good work.

[As of Ch.2]

The Good:

- Girls are amazing.
- Good Art style.
- Multiple variables; each choice matters.



The Bad:

- Terrible animations (2fps thrusting jeez..) and when u finally had a somewhat fluid bj animation (the final 5some lewd scene) the graphics are off.
- The amount of sex scenes are really low considering you are working in a brothel.
- Girls lack variety. Every girls have the same tits size, sometimes you want to have a petite w/ a small-medium tits size as a refreshment.
- So much text.
- Average story, not intrigued.




Conclusion:
Girls are nice. Story is ehh, I quitted half way (stopped after the fitness girl fingerbanged my boss). I might revisit for future updates and animations rework.
3/5.

I'm definitely considering being a Patron of this game after the next update. The story and writing is really good, but what is really awesome is Mina! I'm a little more into femdom and that tag got me to try the game, but it turns out I can maybe enjoy some female domination on females, which isn't too bad. I'm not a fan of the old men but it makes sense with the story and what kind of club it is.