VN - Ren'Py - Completed - Price of Power [Ep.30] [Pandaman Games]

Review of Ch1-Ch8 - Been following Price of Power since April 2021 and have very much enjoyed the journey thus far. Pandaman has been weaving a very enjoyable story through the latest chapters with detailed world-building and character development. And while it may seem like a kinetic novel, he isn't even a 1/3 of the way through the thirty planned chapters, and recent updates - as well as what he has shared on his Discord - point to things changing. Pandaman is an excellent storyteller, and you can tell he has a plan for this visual novel.
There are many VNs out where lewd scenes are just there and lead the "story" if there is even one. Price of Power's lewd scenes support the story and contribute to it. If you are looking for the former, you will likely not enjoy PoP.
Pandaman's artistic style and rendering are all top-notch, and he continues to work on those items he knows he struggles with, and I have seen the improvements over the recent updates.
For someone who is doing everything for this creation (writing, art, music, coding, etc.) while holding down a full-time job in rl, he consistently has been hitting deadlines and delivering a quality AVN at the same time.
Excited to see where he takes us next.

This game had me sold inside the first 30 minutes of playtime.

The pinnacle of classical romance, "God's" wit and wisdom, and almost faultless music.

Ahhhh...

I'm not sure what's going to happen later, but this emotionally intriguing Courtiship and comedy is uncommon.

Good job Padman Games

Review of Ch. 8
Pros: good renders, interesting setting, cool sci-fi twist.
Cons: It is far, far, far too wordy. I started reading every line, but after awhile found myself only half-reading them. By the end I was skipping past text with barely a glance, occasionally backing up if it looked like I missed something important. Reducing the text by 50% would be a start in the right direction.
There are also worrying signs that the author is making the story up as he goes along. That rarely ends well.

It's hard for me to start this review so I'll just write that the game is good. I will not say that it is very good because, unfortunately, it has its problems:
Pros:
- Good renders
- Nice music
- Interesting plot
- I don't know if It was specially made, but the way they talk fits this type of world
Cons:
- Heroine - Maria is very annoying and in a way that begs to be rejected (maybe a friend or lover, not a main romantic interest)
- Related to the previous one is the inability to choose your love interest
- The pace is really slow, but I hope it will get better in the future (although looking at the current one, it is a very, very long game for us)

Review Ch. 8

" Wholesome romance and an epic adventure awaits! "

The game exactly delivers what it says on the box.

The game is about two childhood friends (no euphemism for incest this time!) who haven't seen each other for 10 years.

The reconnect, embark on an adventure together and of course fall in love, although the last part probably isn't a spoiler.

So, this game needs to have a good story, good characters and good visuals.
It delivers on all of those aspects.

But, since this is a porn game site, what about the "wholesome"?

Also here, the game delivers exactly as advertised.
both the protagonist and the love interest are 25 year old virgins, and are not in a hurry to change that.

This game, unlike most, does not try to put as many lewd situations in as possible, nor does it offer the relief of a secondary love interest who does put out while waiting for the main dish.

Whether it is a reason not to play this is up to you.

I would recommend it anyway. The story is entertaining, the renders beautiful, the music is good. Just don't expect a porn game.

If I could make one critcism, there aren't a lot of meaningful choices, so the game plays more like a kinetic novel.

Anyway, this game delivers exactly what it promises, therefore 5 stars.

-Slow as snail.
-Short and nothing but teasing.
-Nothing burger as chapter 8.

+Nice models and rendering though.
+Great impression depiction in each frame dialogue ( kinda overkilled ) instead of stilled jpeg like most of the games in this website.

+/- Will give a better rating if future chapters pay off.

I'm conflicted. It's a really nice game, hence the 4 stars, but it's also lacking in quite some areas. Since I don't really know where to start I'll just write down my thoughts in a random order.

First of all this isn't really a porn game. It's a visual novel about adventure and romance, with some nudity (but very little so far). This isn't necessarily a problem, but since it's posted on this website I was expecting a bit more kinks and lewd stuff.

Related to that, the story is very immersive and well thought-out, with a massive plot twist halfway through. It's obvious that a lot of time and effort was spend on making this game, BUT at the same time about 80% of the dialogue consists of endless mundane and unimportant small talk. It's nice that the dev wants to give the story some substance, but I really don't feel the need to read 15 minutes of dialogue about how to prepare for an adventure.

Most of the renders look awesome. There are some beautiful and diverse shots of nature and the whole setup looks realistic. The only thing that stands out is the very plain looking MC. It's a shame that such a standard male model was used for the MC, especially since all the other characters look really good and unique. The animation quality is also very decent. I was however a little disappointed by the last scene (in the shed), since both the renders and the animation quality are very poor compared to the rest of the game.

So overall? It's a good game and I'm curious to see where the story's heading. But don't expect a porn game, and be prepared to read A LOT of (not always interesting) dialogue and random information.

The renders are pretty enough, and there are enough unique elements to the setting to differentiate it from other medieval games. I also found the central relationship between the protagonist and the LI to be believable in a way that is often lacking in these games.

The problems stem from the fact that the game is a little misleading. It’s really more of a kinetic novel than a true visual novel, choices are few and far between and they as of yet don’t seem to have any consequence. Likewise the lewd content is nonexistent, which on its own isn’t an issue, but if you’re not going to give the player agency in other areas then you’re really left with a very sparse experience. While the writing holds water, it’s not captivating enough or charming enough to really carry things along.

The renders are passable, the story is decent and this is due its originality. The animations are kinda janky and the characters again are passable. Nothing screams 5star about this game to me. I will adjust my score should this improve.

Captivating plot (one of the best I seen lately), outstanding graphics, but very few lewd scenes for my taste (praticly only nudity until chapter 6), and sometimes, very long, boring and unecessary dialogs. Don't get me wrong, love a good dialog, mas in this case, could be more dinamic. I will keep playing none the less.

This game is weird.

Starts off fine, decent premise, decent idea, incredibly annoying narrator. Then it changes to...whatever it is now, except narrator is basically taking over.

Ingame choices might as well not exist. There's 5-6 choices and they affect exactly nothing. Nothing wrong with just telling a story, but what the heck is the point of putting constant choices then having narrator say "nope, no can do, you can't take that, do it again."

Just tell the story! It's fine.

after receiving a warning about a negative review that was getting a lot of support from the community, i noticed that none of my reviews strictly adheres to the site rules of reviews as outlined by the trial moderator who messaged me regarding the warning.

i asked for instruction as to how to remove all my reviews, in order to comply with the rules and firstly received a speedy response telling me that a warning is only to highlight that i must change the rule breaking review.
except that the review in question had been removed in its entirety and was no longer available to change, making complicity impossible.

as no further requested instruction was given as to how i may conform with the site rules and remove all rule breaking reviews of negative and positive support, i kindly ask a viewing staff member to remove this

i apologise to all developers who may be effected by my loss of support

also worth noting that no positive review non-complicit to site rules for the same game have been removed which is rather curious

Superb Game. Very Nice Story. Good looking Characters. I hope Chapter 7 will release soon. After Compressing 2.29 gb apk below 2 gb I can play your chapter 6. I hope you will update your next chapter 7 with compressed apk within 2 gb. I like your game man. Because your game story is awesome .

I am enjoying the story development and romance. The "slow burn" aspect makes the relationship and budding romance more realistic . I look forward to these updates more than almost any other game on this site.

This game has an amazing story, but has some SERIOUS ISSUES.

For starters "Hardcore handholding" should be illegal there are limits to depravity that I will tolerate, but that is going wayyy to far (very sickening). Another thing is way too much time is given to make the characters believable and that they truly care for each other (people are objects, love does not exist (*cries in corner)).

Joking aside really good game but be warned it is slow burn (not that's it's a bad thing, it's just some people prefer to have the house on fire when they reach the main menu, (not me burn me slowly daddy)).

Version Played: Chapter 6

Time to Complete: 4.5 Hours

Disclaimer: The developer has contacted me regarding my review for Chapter 5, which could best be summarized as "it's good but I am weary of the future." While I have tried to minimize the effect this has had on this update to my review, I have also added additional information from them where applicable.

TL;DR: This game is in a state where it can go in either a positive or a negative direction. Although it is yet to be fully seen, I am optimistic.

[4.5/5] Story: This game tells its story in a manner which can subvert expectations. The first 2.5-3 hours of the game are spent as a slice of life with the only two characters being MC and the LI. While the bonds between the two develop rather rapidly, the relationship is a slow burn that is incredibly wholesome and cute to watch. Chapter 5, however, is a completely different story. The storyline evolves into a much more worldly drama with some characters being added, removed, and with time skips to get past the "boring parts." Fortunately, Chapter 6 is a partial return to the earlier chapters, with the primary focus coming back to the MC and LI, however it still retains some drama and the shake up that occurred in CH5 continues to leave me weary for the later chapters.

Regarding this, the developer has assured me that although Chapter 5 and 6 stray rather heavily from the earlier chapters, from 7 on they'll return much to the "original intent." He states that while "the story is always going to be primarily focused on the wholesome romance," there is a larger plot in place.

[4.5/5] Renders: The renders in this game are very good. There is no grain in either high or low light, and even in the darker renders you can still see clearly. The characters look good, with the LI simply being adorable and with that you can find yourself simply getting lost in. None of the characters are the best models you'll ever see, however they match the overall quality of the renders in general so nothing looks unusual or out of place.

Please add the sci-fi tag.
First 4 chapters (i think) are excellent, renders are nice and well done, but then...
Had high hopes for a medieval low fantasy story but instead after quite some time i got some scifi postapocalyptic thriller?!? The hell? Then the promise of shitty fetishes in the future "interracial", "group" freaking "ahegao". "WhOleSoMe" indeed. Complete 180. From swords and bows and rustic medieval setting to shitty scifi with robot dongs and orgies,
and this annoying 4th wall breaking (as you later realize) "AI".

This review is for the current Act I - Bugfixes update.
Just finished with what is currently available here, and to be perfectly honest, I loved it.

Amazing story with quite a surprising twist/reveal at the end of Act 1. It sets the stage for so much more, and there is just so much potential here. I can't wait to see how things develop from here.

As far as originality goes, this one is definitely an original story and the story is the main focus of the game, as it should be for any visual novel. 10/10

Everything that happens is related to the story, and those bits here and there that don't make sense right away will all make sense by the end of the current update. I can't say more about this without spoiling the reveal, just know that everything will make sense by the end of Act 1, and the questions that remain will most likely be addressed in later acts. Storytelling here also gets another 10/10.

As far as visuals go, they're stunning, if the screenshots aren't enough to prove that on their own. The overall quality is definitely among the best I've seen of the games here.
The animations are smooth, and the still renders are all of the highest quality. 10/10

The only thing that I noticed while playing were a few instances where there were minor spelling or grammatical mistakes, but those can easily be fixed before the game reaches its final release. 9.9/10

Overall / Total: 39.9 / 40
I'd definitely recommend this one to anyone looking for a game with great story-driven content.

This is a great game if you like great renders, an interesting back story and two people who are obviously destined for each other.

Renders: 5/5. Assuming you like the style, the LI's eyes just draw you in. Proportions are nice, thank GOD no enormous breasts! The MC even looks like a decent human being!

Story: 4/5. Well written, my only complaint is I'm not personally a fan of Religion and social position suppressing free will of women, but the LI is overcoming that quite nicely!

My only complaint is that I actually like the other female character a slight bit more than the LI (I'm a sucker for red hair and green eyes) and this does not have the harem tag. Still the LI is hotter than hot and has that shy, sexiness of a girl next door vibe going on.

Well worth playing and I am looking forward to more!

The game is impossibly good. Even though the First Act is just a prologue, the world-building is top notch and the atmosphere setting is amazing.
The models are beautiful, you WILL fall in love with Maria just by staring at her eyes.
The romance is wholesome and at a perfect rythmn. I anxiously await for the next Act!