Recommending Story-first games

[Pgsurprise]

So I finished Mythos, after last having played it back when it was only 3 episodes.

I... can't quite say it met my expectations. The writing is the same as it has been, but the whole story sort of gave me this "promo issue for a series" thing, sort of like a comic book where there's just a lot of hits, winks and nudges towards larger things in universe, but not much *actually* happens plot wise and none of the characters have any meaningful development (that I noticed). Episodes 1-2 are setup, episode 3-4 is just bumbling about with a twist that uproots the entire plot and 5 is 90% fake endings.

And the endings, well the fake ones annoyed me for 2 reasons - it was a colossal waste of time (but that's really up to dev on what they spend it on) and more importantly, I didn't see *any* indication of the guilt of the actual culprit, to the point I skipped almost 1/3 of the ending thinking it was another fake one. It's not really a true mystery when you get no clues to actually solving it and are just along for the ride. Adding the dart toss option felt somewhat like lampshading the quality of writing where none of the options there really made sense.

So, it works as a setup for a better story in the world, but I do wish book 2 gets some *actual* plot and character conflict and development that isn't off-screen.

I can't disagree with any point on here. Especially the fake endings. I'm not even 100% certain I know who did it

That said, I still enjoyed the game and am glad I finished it.

 

[Tlaero]

EDIT: For bonus points, realistic gender dynamics! Compared to a man, it is much, much easier for a married (or otherwise comitted) woman to cheat, especially if they're just looking for sex. So if the man is the cheater, and he is only seeking sex, he better be god's gift to women or some Adonis incarnate.

I'm not sure I follow this. Are you saying that a woman who just wants sex will have an easier time finding it than a man who just wants sex? If so, yeah, I agree. I believe that's true on its own without even adding "cheating" into the equation.

But the last part about a man needing to be really attractive to get women to cheat with him seems off. It seems that some women choose to have sex with a married man for reasons other than his appearance. Consider women who go after (ugly) rock stars, or ones who go after rich (old) men, etc. Actually, if you add sex workers, it doesn't even need to be rich or famous men-- just ones willing to pay the going rate.

But I'm definitely with you on wanting games with realistic intrapersonal dynamics (cheating or otherwise).

Tlaero

 

[Jaike]

Jufot when he realised the closest to his request is that (in)famous BARS scene...

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I know you don't like it, but I think there are some scenes kinda, slightly like that in Defending Lydia Collier. Well, that's what the guide said. But they'd be about consequences for the MC or no consequences for the MC, not the kind of emotional relational perspective you want.

 

[Grimnir098]

Yeah, but why? Does the game talk about:
- Her relationship with her husband, their history, their issues, sexual dynamics
- The MCs character. Is he single? If so, why is he seeking married women, especially this particular one? If he's not single, why is he cheating? What is he lacking in his relationship, if anything?

A quick look at the game page suggests that the answer to the overall "why?" question is "cause that shit's hot" and if that's true, I'll pass

I'm not sure Game of Hearts is quite as in-depth as what you're looking for, but I know it 100% deserves to be on your recommended list as a story-first game.

 

[Dessolos]

I'm not sure Game of Hearts is quite as in-depth as what you're looking for, but I know it 100% deserves to be on your recommended list as a story-first game.

I couldn't get into Game of Hearts. I personally wanted more story from in it as I really was only interested in the Demon Story line instead way to many sex scenes too quickly for my taste. I think i stopped playing after the first or 2nd time you have sex with Julia. I got bored with it cause felt like the sex scenes were too frequent for me.

Tho I did hear the game started to focus less on the sex scenes and more story after I stopped. But for me it was a Sex first , Story last type of game.

 

[Finuee]

Impious Monk I just saw that you won "Best Slow-Burn" in the AVN Community Awards 2025, and wanted to congratulate you. Yeah, it was four months ago, I'm not the fastest one out there...

 

[Grimnir098]

I couldn't get into Game of Hearts. I personally wanted more story from in it as I really was only interested in the Demon Story line instead way to many sex scenes too quickly for my taste. I think i stopped playing after the first or 2nd time you have sex with Julia. I got bored with it cause felt like the sex scenes were too frequent for me.

Tho I did hear the game started to focus less on the sex scenes and more story after I stopped. But for me it was a Sex first , Story last type of game.

If you look at the criteria for what Jufot considers a "story-first game", you'll see "Sex scenes should serve the plot, not vice versa. If there is no story-relevant reason for a scene, it shouldn't be there." That is certainly the case with Game of Hearts.

It does have a pretty high sex scene to narrative scene ratio, but all those sex scenes are important, and I think the writing for everything, including the sex scenes, was consistently solid.

 

[Impious Monk]

Impious Monk I just saw that you won "Best Slow-Burn" in the AVN Community Awards 2025, and wanted to congratulate you. Yeah, it was four months ago, I'm not the fastest one out there...

Thank you! I'm not sure LDNA really counts as a slow-burn game but I'll take it!

 

[Finuee]

Thank you! I'm not sure LDNA really counts as a slow-burn game but I'll take it!

Yeah, well, recognition is recognition. You were also nominated for two other categories, though I can't remember which ones right now off the bat.

 

[jufot]

I just finished a game that I didn't expect to play or like. It's called Volleyball Heaven and everything from the blurb to screenshots suggested cutesy romantic lesbian shenanigans. I like queer stories, but saccharine love isn't my thing. I prefer more subdued, allusive romances. But boredom prevailed, so here we are.

This game surprised me, a lot. My overall opinion is positive, but I'll start the with the biggest negative because it colours everything else. The plot was written by a writer as a story, not by a developer making a game. This is simultaneously its biggest strength (and the reason for my recommendation) and greatest weakness (more in a bit).

The protagonist is Kayla, a somewhat unstable, penniless hillbilly lesbian who, in her own words, knows nothing about nothing. She moves to the big city to join her best friend Lana to attend college with her, and unwittingly joins the beach volleyball team of 4 potential LIs.

Unfortunately, because the story was not written with gameplay in mind, large parts of the plot only happen on certain LI paths, so you must play them all (on separate saves) for the events to make sense. Even then, there are gaps. Characters make references to things that you couldn't have known due to your choices. Plot points are sometimes alluded to without any follow up. You can work around most of these issues yourself. A little filling in the blanks, a bit of imagination and trying to read the author's mind goes a long way.

If that hasn't dissuaded you, great! Because now we get to the good stuff Despite its title, description and cute screenshots, this is a dark game (though never on-screen or titillating) with surprisingly good character writing. I'll try and put the really juicy bits in spoilers.

The four LIs (Lana, Zoe, Jade, Rika) are all strong personalities that don't mesh well together. The volleyball team is a small part of their lives, but it gives them a shared history which is full of tension and unhappy memories. Their initial reaction to Kayla ranges from benign disinterest to active hostility. Unlike most VNs, they are not tripping over themselves for Kayla. They aren't looking for anything more than a supportive friend. Some don't even want that!

Lana - The childhood best friend. Kayla is excited about their reunion, but her hopes are shattered bluntly and immediately. Lana has changed. She looks, talks, and acts differently. Cruel, belligerent. We learn that things haven't been going right for her for a long time, and she has been making ever more desperate decisions with disastrous consequences. It's a very dark path full of abuse, both mental and physical.

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Zoe - Cousin to Jade, comes from a rich and influential family. Uniquely among LIs, she is an out-and-proud lesbian. Zoe is blunt, powerful, and does not suffer fools. Not the loving type at all. She has no interest in a girlfriend. Yet as a contrast to all that, Zoe is deeply loyal and protective of the ones she cares about. She also has loudly progressive politics in a family full of old money conservatives.

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Jade - The other half of the rich bitches. Cousin to Zoe, and heiress to the family fortune. Outwardly, she is everything Zoe is not. Kind, unfailingly polite, well put together. Also a businesswoman, but more traditional. Assumed to be straight, which she never contradicts! Jade offers Kayla a job, which Kayla can't afford to reject, despite her misgivings about an employee/employer relationship. This is a weird path. It's mostly about Kayla hating herself, putting Jade on a pedestal. Kayla muses to herself a lot about how Jade is so impossibly pretty, rich, successful and aloof while she is a broke hillbilly with callused hands. I liked this path a lot because it develops into a genuine, vulnerable friendship that they both clearly need. Sure, Kayla lusts after Jade, but knows her to be straight and keeps her fantasies to herself. Then, something big happens and they go through a traumatic experience together. Which is where the path loses the plot.

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Rika - Bubbly Japanese girl with journalistic ambitions. She is the only one who is sweet and cheerful from the onset. She notices Kayla is a fish out of water, and wants to help her. We learn that something horrible has happened to her the previous year with Jade and Zoe. Lawyers were involved, leaving Rika traumatized. As her friendship with Kayla develops, she confesses that her sunny nature is a mask. She has a long history of being mistreated. First by a series of boys she liked, who just wanted to fuck an Asian girl, and dumped Rika once they got theirs. Then the events with Jade and Zoe - which she isn't willing to talk about - and she is left an insecure mess with abandonment issues. She is desperate for Kayla's friendship and can be quite irritating about it. That makes for a challenging path.

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And that's about it. Does that sound like something you'd like to play?

I don't think I've mentioned this before, but I'm a theatre nerd. I like Ibsen (where the most important stuff always happens before the story) and Chekhov (where there are no real endings, especially happy ones). In some small way, Volleyball Heaven reminded me of both. On the off chance some of you are also theatre people, I'd love to know if you see the same resemblance.

 

[Éama]

I'm not sure I follow this. Are you saying that a woman who just wants sex will have an easier time finding it than a man who just wants sex? If so, yeah, I agree. I believe that's true on its own without even adding "cheating" into the equation.

But the last part about a man needing to be really attractive to get women to cheat with him seems off.

Is definitely off. Lots of gigolos are more daring than attractive. Attractiveness is super subjective and provided enough opportunities arise I'm sure someone would bite for most people. But the opportunity for cheating has to be created by someone and daring people create them by default. (I'm not approving of cheating, it's just what I've observed)

 

[jufot]

I missed this comment somehow, sorry!

Are you saying that a woman who just wants sex will have an easier time finding it than a man who just wants sex?

Yes.

But the last part about a man needing to be really attractive to get women to cheat with him seems off. It seems that some women choose to have sex with a married man for reasons other than his appearance. Consider women who go after (ugly) rock stars, or ones who go after rich (old) men, etc. Actually, if you add sex workers, it doesn't even need to be rich or famous men-- just ones willing to pay the going rate.

That's a bit wider than I intended. I'm not talking about men and women seeking sex in general. My point was narrowly about those seeking to cheat. That is, married or similarly committed people in monogamous (even if unstated) relationships seeking external sex without their partner's knowledge. A sex worker would be one way, yes, but it wouldn't make an interesting story with the juicy dynamics I'm looking for.

I don't have first-hand knowledge, luckily, but what I know of from my and my wife's social circles, it is infinitely easier for a married woman to find an FWB or fuck buddy. Most of the pool of men available to that hypothetical woman have no compunctions about participating in infidelity or keeping it purely sexual, nor do they care that much about her looks, as long as she isn't hideous.

The other way around seems to be much harder. Far fewer women are willing to have a sex-only relationship with a married man. The few that do, have much higher standards as they know that it's a buyer's market.

It's just one of those gender dynamics that's neither good nor bad. It just is.

 

[GershGersh]

Seeking recommendations for cheating games, but not like that!

This topic came up a few times over the years, but we've never properly discussed it and no one ever recommended anything, so I wanted to see if anyone has ideas.

I'm looking for a VN (or similar creative work) that revolves around cheating, but in a more intellectual way.

Things that might help:

- Focus on causes: Why did they cheat the first time? Were there relationship problems? If so, what were they? If not, is it mere thrill seeking? Maybe something in their personality or past suggested an inclination?
- Focus on the impact for both sides: Does the one who cheat struggle internally? Why/why not? If they do, how do they balance pros and cons, what's their mental calculus? Similarly, does the one who is being cheated on know? If not, do they suspect? How do they feel about it?
- Preference for rationality: Despite how entertaining cheating threads on reddit can be, most IRL people in these situations don't just flip the table, dump their partner and go on to live their best life. Why? Maybe they have kids and don't want to share custody. Or they simply aren't that bothered by it. Others may decide that the pros of the relationship still outweigh the rest. If the relationship doesn't immediately blow up, what happens next? How do they navigate their next steps?

Things that won't help:

- Any hint of NTR or similar fetishism: I'm not interested if a character is getting off on being cheated on. I don't care about the sexual side, unless it relates directly to any of the points above. Likewise, I don't want any of the genre tropes of the small white guy getting cucked by a big black guy.

That should give a rough idea of what I'm hoping to find. Any ideas?

EDIT: For bonus points, realistic gender dynamics! Compared to a man, it is much, much easier for a married (or otherwise comitted) woman to cheat, especially if they're just looking for sex. So if the man is the cheater, and he is only seeking sex, he better be god's gift to women or some Adonis incarnate.

I think Love & Jealousy ticks most of your boxes albeit in round about ways. Though it is seems to be an ntr game, in my opinion its about so much more than that, and is the first game i have ever found that gives insight into the core reasons for cheating in a realistic way in terms of character motivations. There's so much to say but even now a week after playing it, i'm still having arguments with myself about which character's side i'm on, what seems acceptable and what doesn't. I'm a long time lurker so forgive me if this post, which may possibly be my first, is a bit weird. As a story first fan, this game is so well written i had to come out of my shell and give it some light. Is this the part i say thanks for your attention....

 

[jufot]

I think Love & Jealousy ticks most of your boxes

That's a very interesting recommendation, thank you!

Even the game's blurb seems to be written for me

What if an NTR game was unlike other NTR games? What if the point of the game was to tell an actual story? What if the MC wasn't a useless idiot? What if the story didn't even center around NTR, but instead about the characters themselves? What if it goes out of it's way to avoid traditional NTR tropes? Well, you might have this game. An NTR game written for people who don't like NTR. So, essentially a game made for no one.

Such a shame about the AI CGs though...

 

[GershGersh]

That's a very interesting recommendation, thank you!

Even the game's blurb seems to be written for me


Such a shame about the AI CGs though...

I had second thoughts about even recommending this game because of the AI CGs but then i reread the blurb and i thought well thats ero-fate working. Also the writing is so engaging that you kinda forget about the images, they serve more as a visual cue if that makes sense, at least i hope it will make sense as you play on. i wondered if the game would have worked with 3D or with drawn art and honestly i dont think so. better art would have just been a distraction... or perfection?

 

[Lynava]

I had second thoughts about even recommending this game because of the AI CGs but then i reread the blurb and i thought well thats ero-fate working. Also the writing is so engaging that you kinda forget about the images, they serve more as a visual cue if that makes sense, at least i hope it will make sense as you play on. i wondered if the game would have worked with 3D or with drawn art and honestly i dont think so. better art would have just been a distraction... or perfection?

I'll never understand people who HATE AI graphics. I can understand you not liking it, but hating it?

 

[Bombmaster]

did any of you guys played myhusbandboss? a kinetic ntr/cheating story.
I cant really ellaborate in a well manner but, is good. Renders on point in the emotions, not the sex act per se.
the woman looks real, the husband and his dillema.

The author is doing a kinetic to portray his vision, just by this is already 99% better than most patreon poll funded ntr games.

 

[jufot]

I'll never understand people who HATE AI graphics. I can understand you not liking it, but hating it?

Hate is a strong word. My objection is on ethics, not quality. "AI CG" is only made possible by the wholesale theft and plagiarism of meticulously, painstakingly created works by many tens of thousands of artists. Now, the companies that did the theft are shamelessly playing rent seekers.

Increasingly more VN devs pick "AI" for images not as a creative choice, but merely as the path of least resistance. They might argue that learning Daz etc. is too time-consuming to be viable. Even if we accept that (and that's not a given), there are much easier alternatives for making great games. Remember Camp Klondike?

did any of you guys played myhusbandboss? a kinetic ntr/cheating story. I cant really ellaborate in a well manner but, is good.

Never heard of this one before either! The blurb looks interesting, but this image on the game page gives BBC fetish vibes, and that won't work for me. Would you say it's a big part of the plot?

 

[Bombmaster]

Hate is a strong word. My objection is on ethics, not quality. "AI CG" is only made possible by the wholesale theft and plagiarism of meticulously, painstakingly created works by many tens of thousands of artists. Now, the companies that did the theft are shamelessly playing rent seekers.

Increasingly more VN devs pick "AI" for images not as a creative choice, but merely as the path of least resistance. They might argue that learning Daz etc. is too time-consuming to be viable. Even if we accept that (and that's not a given), there are much easier alternatives for making great games. Remember Camp Klondike?


Never heard of this one before either! The blurb looks interesting, but this image on the game page gives BBC fetish vibes, and that won't work for me. Would you say it's a big part of the plot?

No bbc for now, and the bigger picture is with Boss...
But who knows? Is light years ahead others of the genre.

The emotions captured in the renders are top notch.

 

[GershGersh]

I'll never understand people who HATE AI graphics. I can understand you not liking it, but hating it?

Hating it is a bit too much i agree, personally i like and even love some of it. it maybe to do with switching formats, i disliked text only games after playing mostly 3D games until i played a good one and i was fine after that and that happens a lot with formats you're not used to. sub or dub, manga or anime, anime or live-action, book or movie adaptation and so on. I think if the complete product is good then it doesn't matter the medium. there's bad AI art, bad 3D, bad html, bad music, bad 2d and vice versa.

*EDIT: As for the ethics and use of it to create, i totally understand as someone who has tried to create art before. The theft is unforgivable and having to lose something you have spent blood, sweat, tears and sanity on in such a way is painful in way not many will understand. i dont know the solution since the train has left the station, at least acknowledgement would be a start i think, as i cant even imagine how a compensation model would work at this point. As a customer yay more content, but as a creator f*ck those guys, at least if artists were in charge instead of profiteers.