Ren'Py - Simple Beginnings [Ep. 5 v1.5.0 BETA] [Barbiecued]

I liked this VN, my rating is 4.3/5

Pros:
- Well-written characters, their dialogues and interactions
- Decent renders
- The plot, although at an early stage, is still interesting

Minuses:
- Intimate moments between girls are described, but not shown. For example, there is a description of how Jenny kisses Emma on the cheek, but nothing happens on the screen, this is a weird decision on the part of the dev.

Though there are some irregularities with English, particularly in verb tense, this is one surprisingly well written VN. I saw the just previous reviewer was angry that Jenny didn't tell Emma what her stepfather had done. That felt psychologically on target for me: Jenny doesn't want Emma to know how hard it is, because Emma would do something about it, and Jenny has a plan. All of the characters have a depth that lends reality to them. None of them are all knowing, or too wise to be believable. So I'ma balance that one star out with a five.

My opinion for Ep.3:

• The renders are well made, people don't look like plastic dolls (+1 star)
• Though the premise is intriguing, so far that's all there is , just a bunch of introductions and set-ups (-1 star)
• Zero sexual content, even less than the regular slow-burn stories. (-1 star)
• The pace feels very slow, it's episode 3 and so far nothing has happened at all. After 3-4 hours the story so far can be summed-up in 3-4 sentences (-1 stars)
• The interactions with her "family" are mind-boggling and anger-inducing. I get that it's supposed to make player hate them, but it's so over the top and out of character for the MC. She has no trouble responding to other people harassing her, but just accepts being assaulted by her step father like it's a normal thing, doesn't even mention it to her BFF. (-2 stars)

So far it's a waste of time.

Quick reminder that all reviews are biased to a point.

With that being I think that this VN is a great pallet cleanser if you're looking for a vn with a unique enough story and where sex isn't happening 24/7 just for the sake of it.

The mc is written in a way that makes me believe that there's some depth to her, like she is an actual human being. There's even a point where she sees a dick pick from some dude and (like most in that situation) isn't really happy about what she just saw. Just her reaction at that moment gave me hope for this VN because at no point was she ever like "omg what is this feeling, i've never felt anything like this". I'm sure that down the line you'll have the option to make her sexually liberated and normally i would go that route but the way this mc is written will have me take her in a more tamed route than I usually go for (as compared to other vns with a female mc where i'll try to find every sex scene because it's an ADULT vn).

Then there are the background characters. The mc's best friend also feels well written, at least that's the feeling i get when the mc and best friend just have their back and forth banter. Eventually there's a new swim couch teaching the at the mc's school and this dude was made to look like he goes to pound town 24/7. Add him to an all girls school and he's probably going to have his way with the girls there. Thankfully that is not the case. Even the new swim couch is written like an actual human being which is a nice change of pace.

as of ep three there are like 3 scenes with horror elements. They can be easy to miss if you have your brightness turned down. When I noticed these scenes the first time around I was genuinely unnerved, the best way to describe it is like those "when you see it moments". Hopefully in the future the vn will lean into the horror and add in some jump scares I think that it will fit in well.

TLDR: if you want non stop sex scenes skip this one. If you want to try a vn with an above averge plot then give it a try.

With there not being any sexual content at all I cannot give this a five star yet, but with the story being presented it looks good. I really like the look of the game and so far the story has me interested. The MC and the other girls look really good and I can't wait for the sexual content to start with them. I do wish there were more actual choices. Right now it seems more novel than game. I do hope this is improved in later updates. Also I also hope that you can do a pure lesbian run and that we are not forced into any sort of sexual content without a choice. The dev did put in game that there were crossroads decisions that the MC will make on her own based on the other decisions you have made so far. I hope this doesn't mean that if you are choosing to have the MC open up or be more sexual, then she automatically sleeps with anyone without a choice. This game does hold a lot of potential and I can't wait to see what comes next.