VN - Ren'Py - Past Tense [Ch.1] [Howie]

Game Review: Past Tense Ch.1

Past Tense starts with a premise that unfortunately feels a bit tired. The story of an MC who has faced or is facing a tragedy and now has to "become the man of the house" has been done many times before. This game doesn’t add anything new to that formula. One of the biggest issues is how it handles the emotional core of the story. From the start, you know the MC is upset about something, but you’re not given any context or backstory. Without knowing what happened or even what his relationship is to the family, it’s hard to relate to his feelings, and the emotional weight just doesn’t land.

The dialogue isn’t much better. There’s no inner monologue or depth to the conversations, which makes it hard to connect with the characters or get excited about where things are going. The romance so far feels lackluster as well, though it’s worth noting that this is still an early stage of the game. Even so, a stronger opening would have gone a long way.

Visually, Past Tense does well. The graphics are pretty good, though for some reason, the MC’s design feels a bit off—he just looks strange compared to the other characters. As for the music, it’s repetitive to the point of being distracting. With the same tunes playing regardless of the scene, it lacks the variety needed to set the mood or build immersion.

Overall, while Past Tense has some decent visuals, its unoriginal story, weak emotional setup, uninspired dialogue, and repetitive music hold it back. It’s still early days for the game, so there’s room for improvement, but as it stands, it doesn’t leave a strong first impression.

While this initial 0.1 release is still in its early stages, there's an undeniable spark of potential here. While the writing has potential with some intriguing character dynamics, right now it's mostly setup with various plot threads that don't quite connect yet. Most scenes feel like they end just as they're getting interesting, and the romantic tension hasn't had a chance to develop beyond lingering glances and subtle hints. For a 0.1 release the art is impressive, even if the story content is still finding its feet - if the developer can maintain this visual quality while expanding the narrative, they could have something special on their hands.

Writing: Solid. There are a few instances in which I would've changed up the phrasing just to make the sentence flow better or sound more natural, but apart from that I have no complaints.

Renders: Very, very good. Love the lighting. There are a few renders which could use some fixing up here and there, but that's the same for every AVN. The one visual complaint I have is the MC's skin looks a bit 'plastic-y' at times. I want to stress that this isn't the end of the world, and you shouldn't re-do any renders with him in it. But you might want to consider changing the skin for Chapter 2 and onwards. Apart from the skin, the MC is definitely one of the more attractive MCs out there.

Plot: I'm very intrigued with the direction of the story. It's too early to comment on how good it is, but it seems as if it has a very solid base. I've read some complaints with regards to the fact that the plot is confusing. The only thing which is confusing is those complaints. It's true that we're left with more questions than answers, but that's to be expected given it's only Chapter One. I imagine as we receive more content, those questions that we have currently will be answered in the future.

I also want to stress the fact that I love how the dev doesn't explicitly tell the reader some information, but hints at it instead. A good example is Robert's and MC's relationship. When MC first sees Robert, he doesn't think "this is my best friend", the dialogue between Robert and MC tells us they're best friends without explicitly stating it. This is a sign of good writing, so hopefully the dev keeps doing this.

It's too early to have a favourite LI... but if I had to choose, mine would be Amanda thus far.

Rating: All in all, a 5/5 because it's in my top 20% of AVNs. As a monogamous, romantic AVN with an actual narrative as well, this AVN is right up my alley. Can't wait to see more.

This rating is for Ch. 1

It's not the worst start into the game, but the dev really needs to do a lot of fixing and adjusting to make this project last. Start with working on the MC's face, it's hard to identify with someone who looks like pacman.
The twist also feels rushed. Teh girls seem very generic and dialogues are okay. I will be happy to update this note in the future, but I doubt I will looking how the incest sh*t is pushed at the player

+ The models are not bad. (Though I prefer small breasts, IRL very often seen on young girls).
+ Renders quality is good.
+/- Characters have different personalities. (But they can be weird. Yola, the prettiest girl, that seemed kind and nice, suddenly is some heartless bitch. Amanda is just inexplicably weird, and that doesn't feel good, even though I expect it would be explained later).
- Dialogs (and storytelling in general) seem clumsy. A typical exchange:
rs "Are you sure it's nothing? You look... sad."
p "Yeah, it's nothing. And I am not sad, you worry too much."
p "Hey... I'm sorry I make you worry. I promise you I'm fine..."
I mean, the same feelings, relations, situations could be expressed in more natural way, you know? In a rather short "Chapter 1", the word "sorry" is used 19 times. And MC and Rosie make huge deal when a strap of her bra goes a bit down. That doesn't make sense, you know? (Especially because her boobs are still fully covered, why get so hysterical?..)
- Choices are not clear. Suppose I like the girl; should I choose "Be bold" or "Be polite"? In the dialog before that choice MC sounded like a wimp, in 3 phrases saying "sorry" twice. So I choose "bold", but somehow that leads to being arrogant (and stupid). And it gives "-1" to love from that girl. Now, how would I know that being bold would be punished, and being a wimp rewarded? That girl didn't seem to be the type to like wimps!..

To conclude: I'll give it 4 stars, but only because I hope that the game will become better in further updates. Now it feels more like 3 stars, due to mediocre writing and unclear choices, though models are OK, and the story itself seems to be interesting and promising.

[Ch.1]

So far so good.
Pros:
- Good story telling so far but there are a few unclear things.
- Each person has a unique personality
- Renders are of a good quality and are inline with some of the better VNs

Cons:
- Not really a con so much but found one typo that I am sure will be fixed later ( "the you of two" should be "the two of you" )
- All the females have larger breasts some are WAY over the top even for my liking. ( I know this is an opinion but I think the largest size like this is rather discussing )
- Along with the above there is not enough female body type verity (not that its a big deal) would have liked to see a bit more verity in this area

Looks like we getting good drama here and I'm all for it!
Interesting cast and its full of beauties.
Great start, definitely gonna be keeping close eye on this one.

Good luck on your development path!

Interesting Story which promises drama to come.

Fun characters that are diverse enough to feel fresh. Good-looking renders that seem crafted with love... I will be following the development with great interest.

Best of luck to the dev!