RPGM - Completed - Scars of Summer After [v1.08] [shinachiku-castella]

Big review coming. You've been warned!

I'm a big fan of this circle and I still believe the first game to be a 10/10 - my opinion from years ago of playing it on release hasn't changed. The ambience, art, vibes and overall story in the original is unmatched imo - hence why to this day we still get bad Scars Of summer rip-offs every now and then. The game had a big impact and yes, while polarizing (with some people hating it) it is still influential to the genre. On that game, you had exploration and corruption - it felt as if the progression of events in general just had better pacing, and every route had it's endings and consequences (even the good one!).

After is, basically, an addition. You'll get a deeper look into what happened after most endings - or a deeper look into how Ryoka's fall into depravity happened. But, this time, it's done through a more linear way - you pick a route at the menu (after a soul crushing reminder of an opening to remind Keita that this girl that is the love of his life is about to be lost forever lol), and follow the days snooping around, trying to call her or understand what's going on as you spend one more excruciating week in the house. In most routes, Ryoka has already given in - she's had sex multiple times, is pregnant or things have already come to a point of no return. I love, once again, the ambience, music, scenarios - you really get used to the city and interacting with things feels meaningful. The game by default forces you to play one route at a time, in a different - but not unpleasant - gameplay structure from the first. It's sad because I'm seeing a lot of people say this doesn't qualify as NTR/BSS - when it quite literally defines it. You're watching consequences in 99% of the routes and scenes. In most routes, actually, in the menu, you can see she still loves Keita - only completely falling as everything progresses. If you see this game as a "chapter 2" to Sos1 it becomes easier to understand - the corruption won't start slow.


Once again, I love the NTR-writing. The endings progress naturally and nothing feels too out of place. She starts a family with the Vagrant in his ending, a classic thing where she was just completely stolen, with Keita coming back months later to see her pregnant and living happily. Then she marries Daisuke in his ending, completely conquered by the muscular weirdo - and Keita receives a fucking invitation to attend the fucking ceremony (which if you choose to go is SO sad). She becomes a baby factory in Oyama's hands - now married and bound forever to the dirtiest old man in the village, never being able to leave. Yasui is what you'd expect - Ryoka is forced into even more depravity and by the end has been fucked by pretty much the whole city (and her sister goes along with it), becoming a full blown whore. Just completely fucked up and tragic if you compare to how she is at the start of the story.

I wasn't a big fan of Masaru's or Nobuo's routes in this. They were cruel, yes - still twisting the knife in about her being stolen - but they felt more like cgs that should have been in SoS1 than their own thing. But I sure do love the Final ending - Keita finally getting married to her and blah blah blah. That last cg of her with their baby in the hospital was sweet.

And even though I was excited for the addition of another character - I think everyone agrees that his route was underwhelming. Yes, her getting dirty with this unknown weirdo and fucking him for money is cool, but... she's already done most of that, even in 1. I think that attention could have went in more scenes with the other guys, or even scenes with Keita? Idk. I don't hate them because I like the art and the sex itself, just didn't felt as good as the other ones.

Art is still top-notch. Very few characters in hgames are as charming as Ryoka is imo. The scenes are hot, there's different angles, expressions and details (even hickies/marks on her body you can spot), sprite sex, shadow/hidden scenes and lots of interactions involving perspective and the cellphone. And for the men, there's as much variety here as possible. Gyaruo, muscular, ugly bastard, fat UB, weirdo, playboys, shotas, normal-looking ass guys, you name it.

Saki was a surprise in this - she had a lot of scenes and teasing stuff all around. You can basically watch her fall along with Ryoka - doubling down in the pain of losing both of them (at the same time, in some routes). Though, again, I'd say I would be okay with like 50% of her content being directed towards Ryoka instead, but that's just me.

I like the game for what it is - an addition. It is linear, direct and delivers on what it set out to be. But it certainly doesn't top SoS1. Sadly I think people are misjudging the game and the creator - while being disappointed with their own expectations - which were fucking astronomical. I didn't see people being THIS negative even with actual lackluster releases (Ochikano, that last nuko majin game, etc etc).

Overall a good game - though far from the way stronger and more well-rounded NTR experience the original was. But then, again - the idea wasn't to make a sequel, a Scars of Summer 2 or a different story. See it as an expansion to this universe's content - adding to the great experience SoS1 was.

Give it a chance and support the dev if you enjoyed it - he went through some real shit to get this done.

I am a really big fan of the original. I loved the art styles and the story-telling as well as how well the writing makes the MC seem so useless and pathetic while making the FMC an innocent girl who succumbs to her own desires as well as the MC's inability to make the first move.

This game sells that same exact feeling, but I find it a little underwhelming. After 6 years in development, I do not want the same feeling, I want more.

FMC has already been passed around the entire village in my playthrough, so it makes very little sense as to why she's still playing innocent. It would make more sense if we were instead burrowing DEEPER into cuckold feeling. I expected more sluttiness, more assertiveness, more horniness from FMC. Something where the game opens with FMC and MC finally having a moment together, but now it's an upward battle to win her back from her desires in the original game.

I'm giving 4 stars because there is still has yet to be a game that comes close to a game where it delivers such a heartbreaking and devastating pain for cuckold POV.

SPOILER FILLED REVIEW

For having “After" in the title you'd expect more content that takes place after the original game. Yet what we are given is mostly scenes that are crammed in before the originals endings. This results in content that is incredibly similar and a lack of actual new developments. Most of the routes still have the massive time skips after the school trip that many thought this game shouldve filled in.

If you wanted to see how Ryoka progressed into the tattooed, dyed hair prostitute that takes drugs that we see in the last frame of Yasuis route in the original, too bad. All you get is more filler scenes that couldve been in the first game and then, just like the original, a skip to new content for one ending scene.

Oh you wanted to see Ryokas servant/master dynamic escalate in Nobuos mansion where the first game left off? No, heres some random new characters that were retconned in and hijack most of his route for no reason.

Fan of the original Oyama route and want to see it reach higher levels of lewdness? Nah, lets make half his scenes teasing only (they had already fucked for multiple days straight before in the timeline already) two scenes missionary with oyamas ass taking most of the view and then finally give them a threesome and pregnancy scene to end it off (wow where have we seen this before).

Also a problem is the animation. I have always found the artists rough art to be charming, but at times the little details and shading they had are sacrificed for these almost "chibi"-like animations where proportions and perspectives are just bizarre. Theres a specific blowjob animation where she just looks like a blob with no lips, which is a shame since its reused in just about every route.

There is just a massive lack progression. We do not witness Ryoka become corrupted. Its either skipped to for a final ending scene, or in a majority of the routes there is never any change in her or the relationships; Its just vanilla with an ugly bastard thrown in and a no-involvement MC vehicle to view them. We never see Ryoka become a sex addict or lose her passiveness. We already had a game focused on the drawn out building of the relationships, what we really needed was a focus on the corruption and sex.

As someone who enjoyed the first one and even subbed to the author during his development of the original game,I have to say: This game is mediocre and a disappointment, and when you remember the 5 year development time, it becomes a gut wrenching failure.

Sadly Japan have trend for few years like %60 erogame makers is making NTR games so if you go jp DL site you can find 10000 or more so what this means ? its like making trendy food until its gets old and boring its same for game its just anohter NTR game with dumb MC FMC and plus other chracters she falls and becomes whore of village town whatever is that then thats nothing more like every dumb NTR game out there sure theres few good ones but sadly this is worse then first and reason for that first is old and can be bad but second one needs to be better but you see there its not.
Art is good other things meh its like every classic NTR game out there you can play it for art and scenes and this is classic JAPANS NUKİGE aka knows as Fapping game nothing more. normally i give 3 star but for art sake i give 4.

I was really hyped for this game, and I hate to say it but is average to good. In the first game, you had a story that was destructively good, showing the pure way and the awful and decadent way. The first game explains why things ended the way they did, highlighting the inherent insecurities that all humans possess."

But now after the 5th day you just have a "line" the FMC is way more sexier in this game but all is just a line, and you can't do nothing except watch, the choises are 0 and of course is just sex that become boring. The only time they think about something is at the start of every story, then is just decadence and the "corrupt story" is after you finished 6 VN_RPGM storys (the gymbro, the homless, the richie rich, that one's that was in the first game)

The art is 10/10
The story lacks 5/10
gameplay shine by its absence 3/10
+Bonus that u can see the sister way more sexy
Is a solid 3.5 game

Art: 9/10
Story: 5/10
Gameplay: 5/10

Actually downgrade compare to previous game, gameplay like a VN with just a little rpg element
And heroine already corrupted so nothing to do here, mc not even react with anything

edit: if you want good ntr game try Yuri & Claire - Balancing Love and Betrayal by Nitoowa, art is decent but the story and character development is really top tier ntr