VN - Ren'Py - Abandoned - Strange Nights [v0.7.1] [LocJaw]

Strange Nights v0.7.1
Overall - 7/10
Recommend i guess. Was fun while it lasted
Abandoned... Story could've been very good, game feels polished and good. Just short maybe 1 hour game play.
Story - 7/10
MC teacher at uni/college - mainly relationships with students
Starts off MC in jail for a crime he didn't do? Gets put back in time before those events occur -> second chance, but somethings are altered and gains special powers
Story is cool but doesn't have enough content to explore the powers or what and how much has changed from this life to the other. -> so mainly just needs more content to flesh out the story
Models - 7/10
Reminds me a lot of telltale games models - Only really found Rachel to be attractive imo, but everyone else looked good
Renders - 8/10
Telltale style - backgrounds always looked neat - good stuff
Animations - 7/10
Simple
Audio - 6/10
Ok
Hscenes - 7.5/10
Handful of them vanilla but good - animations to duration and quality
Playability - 7/10
Very simple VN - game centers around EP and DP (empathy or dominance points) they allow you to choose certain options -> i.e. 14 DP required for an option
Short game + abandoned ..

Played v. 0.7.1 - Abandoned for almost four years. Is a parody/porn-continuation of the Life is strange universe. You play the villain of the game who developed strange mental suggestion powers that might allow him to change the past. Excellent dialogue, great characters (that are mostly in-character for their original selves) and the scenes and animations are pretty good too. A shame this was abandoned.
Has the Bdsm and female domination tag - only has a single scene where the male mc is blackmailed and lightly dominated by a woman. You can turn the tables and fuck her senseless.
Nothing else. Pretty short too - I finished in an hour or two.

I fucking love this game. That is all.

It's a true shame it got abandoned, because the writing and art is absolutely stellar. It truly manages to capture the feel of Life is Strange while telling its own twisted story.

At this point, I'm questioning if this Adult Visual Novel was a bait or if the developer vanished from earth. I'm serious, it was that good! An amazing experience that keeps you guessing. The mystery surrounding its status only adds to the intrigue. Pure brilliance, or a mastermind disappearing act? Who knows, but it's unforgettable

A buried gem!

(Be sure to get familiar with "Life is Strange" before you play Strange Nights.)

The game with the greatest potential on this site!
That may have sounded a bit over the top, especially considering that I'm obviously not familiar with all games here.
But I can't imagine what needs to be done better to outperform potential(!) of this masterpiece.

Is it the best game out there? No, of course not.
If the author had finished it to a logical end - perhaps it could have moved from "one of the best" to the "THE BEST" category.
Unfortunately there is just not enough content right now and there will probably be no further updates....
Nevertheless, this game is fantastic and surely goes to the "one of the best" games to accompany a few other games.

Other than the small amount of content, I can't really say anything negative about this game.

It doesn't even feel like a parody, it feels like a part of LiS world, one of the alternative timelines. Moreover, this game in some way gently polishes and corrects many flaws of the original characters, in my opinion they all became better. Perhaps due to the fact that here we look at the world through the prism of a much more "adult" character.

Humor - I loved it, there were at least a few moments where I laughed a lot.

Visual - as close to the original, as possible!

Story - One of those games that you can play just for the story, I guess. Too little content to say for sure, but even so the story is very good.

Sex Scenes - They're well done!
Like I said incredible potential:

Victoria - an excellent opportunity for two main branches where either she dominates Mark or he dominate her. And the whole scene with Vic in the classroom is probably the only one in this game to get into or atleast get close to "one of the best sex scenes".
Well, everyone has their own tastes of course, one of the things that I like is "domination", both male and female. If you are not into that stuff, perhaps it will do nothing for you, but still there are not all that many scenes that I remember from different games, this one with Victoria is one of them. There was a huge potential for a choice like "submit to her" and then this branch would go into femdom with Victoria and maybe her two "girlfriends" or on the other side "dominate Victoria" with about the same development as we saw in the game, where as a result we would have the opportunity to make her our obedient plaything.

Kate - once again, great potential. The scene with her is good, not perfect, but good. Cutesy and innocent. Let's corrupt shy, religious cutie! Would have given the Kate scene more credit, but unfortunately the best scene I've seen in this genre set the bar too high. And I don't really like innocent/shy girls. Anyway compared to the best scene I've seen, the Kate scene is only about a 5/10 or maybe 6/10, but again a very high standard, objectively more like 8/10 with future potential.

Rachel - a bit of a disappointment
No, her scenes are high quality and well-done, but the character doesn't really resonate with me, she wasn't alive(!) in the original game, so unlike the others, she's just some +- sexy girl.
Don't get me wrong, objectively the scenes with her are quite good, on par with the best games on this site. But her scenes are a bit "boring" in terms of the fact that it's basically "ordinary" sex, and in addition Rachel does not cause any emotional response from me, but this is mostly the fault of the lack of Rachel as a separate individual in the original game.

Overall the game is amazing, I would say that in many aspects it beats the original, the author was able to make the game more mature (and I'm not only talking about 18+), dark and at the same time sarcastic and fun.

First, I will say that I hope this game's creator is doing well. I know well how bad luck and misfortune can befall anyone at anytime, and until otherwise stated I choose to believe that the absence of activity is due to taking care of themselves rather than something malicious.

While it is a shame that this game looks like will remain incomplete, what little content we are left with was quite well written, and the art direction and animation were well done.

I admit at first that the actions of the main character would be shown to be much darker and more twisted than was actually presented (full disclosure: I've never played Life is Strange so I cannot comment on the authenticity of the characters' depiction in Strange Nights), so I was pleasantly surprised by some of the conversations between the students and the professor. Of course, that does not excuse his motivations that do not match with the professional ethics and morality expected of an educator.

All in all, I'd say the writing, the ability to make adjustments with 'Dominance Points' and 'Empathy Points' make what little there is of the game a good play.

Excellent writing, good story, really good arts with a "hand drawn" feel, good models. MC is not very nice, but at least relatale, LIs are relatable and interesting. Unfortnately abandoned, it seems.

Strange nights v0.7.1 [abandoned]

Enjoyed the game while it lasts. Based on life is strange. Nice thing this one is male protagonist. Artstyle is similar to original game. Without a doubt this one is a nice game. Even though it is abandoned there is a fair amount of gameplay. Worth playing.

Overall it's worth playing. It's a pity it is abandoned.

SHIT! The art direction and plot were awesome in this VN. I am so pissed I don't get to see more Rachael and Victoria. This was definitely going down a great track in terms of renders and animation and it's truly disappointing to see it abandoned. Definitely an inspirational route, hope to see more games inspired by this art style.

"Next time you ask a girl out for a movie night make sure she's alive, dumbass."

Strange Nights is an adult visual novel done right - audiovisually pleasing (atmospheric & consistent renders, animations, music and ambient sounds), but also well written (interesting & plausible characters, dialogue and story).

It's also extremely polished (and very funny at times).

One could argue that it's rather linear due to a lack of meaningful choices - which I personally don't mind since the story completely captivated me (I never played Life is Strange btw.).

Minor nitpicking: Some side characters are only shown as simple silhouettes - and the "continue" button looks a bit cheap and out of place.

In summary:
Excellent work. Too bad it's so infrequently worked on.

I've played the first 2 days. (all of the v0.7.1 content)
The art and the animations are nice, there is an interesting (dark) story with proper dialogues with funny moments, and an interesting photo binder that doesn't have any uses yet.
The only downside is the lack of choices. You have to select one of the 2 available paths (empathy or dominance) from the begging and stick with it.

I usually only play incest games, but the models in this game intrigued me enough to give it a shot despite never actually playing Life Is Strange. Well, I checked it out and I'm incredibly impressed. The models as expected are extravagantly wonderful, to the point I wonder why more people don't do what this dev is doing and just take them right out of games, but it's not just that that makes it good; the sex scenes are excellent. The models are only tools when you get right down to it, but it's the dev that employs them to their fullest potential with the way he composes the sex scenes. The backgrounds and everything else are also incredibly comfy, particularly for a person like me that's never played LIS so everything is new to me. Really enjoy the vibes you get from this sleepy little town in Oregon.

Now all that said, it's the writing in particular that really sets this game apart. It's so good that after finishing version 7, I tried to play a different porn game whose writing is quite well regarded (I won't say which out of respect) and couldn't endure more than fifteen minutes because it seemed so much more amateurish and less immersive by comparison. I suspect I'll only be able to go back to it after a few days pass and my palate is cleansed.

This is a really special little game that I recommend everyone try. Personally, my favorite girl is Victoria, so I hope we get a lot more of her and possibly even a chance for an ending with her. All the characters are wonderfully characterized and feel very human, but she's the cutest. I get the sense the protagonist doesn't enjoy her nearly as much as I do, but she's just such an adorable, trifling bitch that I can't help but want to spend the rest of my life with her. What a gem. Still, there's someone to enjoy for everybody, and I'm looking forward to seeing how the story unwinds from this version. All the characters are great, like I said. One thing I also want to mention is that if you played LIS and you're worried about playing as a villain and that it's going to be grim and horrible because of that, you really should give it a try. I don't like playing as a villain either, but the edges on Mark Jefferson are softened and he's not nearly the monster you might expect. He goes out of his way to help Max and Victoria at little benefit to himself and shows a tenderness with Rachel that'll surprise you. Even the dominance route, if it could be said to be a route, just makes him a jerk with a decent heart rather than what you might initially expect. And for anyone wondering, this change in his character does have a reason to exist, but I don't want to spoil the opening of the game (an impressive sequence) by giving it away.

Speaking of routes, if I had one complaint, is that there is indeed a bit of a kinetic novel rather than VN feel. My main gripe is that I initially tried to play the game maintaining a balance between empathy and dominance, with the expectation that I'd be able to cover most options that way and it's just the ones that have very high requirements in one of them or another that I would be unable to access, but in actual fact the options have a constantly climbing requirement regardless, to the point maintaining a balance is completely useless, and moreover empathy is useless too since it's only the dominance route that really gives you more content. This minnows down your worthwhile choices. It's a minor gripe, but it's there. Apart from that one thing though, this game is one of the most brightly shining hidden gems in the erotic games tapestry, and it comes heavily recommended.

[v0.7.1 review]
Wow this is fucking great! Totally blew my pants off! Everything is so ... smooth. Nice gritty tone. Good witty dialogue. Cool music. Hot as fuck scenes. Unique style. This is quickly becoming one of my all-time favorites. This is fucking QUALITY right here.

I'm super impressed!

I'm very excited to see where this goes next! I really can't wait!

Well, I'm probably going to hell, but I liked this a lot. Not just a good story, but a well done story, I was caught up through the entire portion that so far exists & have imaginative followups on all of the stories (read girls) that have yet to be developed. Great writing, great art, great portents (the dreams, you know), foreshadowing all over the place, you have to wonder up front if someone is going to die. & the mc, is he not headed for a downfall? He must be, but he's game. I'm game too, good work.

Do you ever find a game that makes you think: 'How can this be so much better than all the other games on this site?'

Well, this is one of those games!

Short summary: you are a 38-year-old art/photography teacher that suddenly discovers he has a mysterious power. And while he tries to learn more about this power and the things that happen around him, he builds relationships with lots of beautiful women (so far mainly his 18/19-year-old students).

Simply amazing! The story and artwork are sublime. The animations are some of the best I've seen on here. And the story has a nice pace, with interesting characters and dialogues that are funny, believable and never too long (which is rare).

Some possible minor downsides (that didn't really bother me personally):
- not a big fan of mind-control, although I think it's very well done in this game, not simply as an easy way to fuck everybody.
- the choices don't really make an impact on the game. You basically just get to choose whether you want to be a nice guy or a dominant alpha male.
- seen as this thread started in 2018, there's still relatively little content (around 2-3 hours for version 0.7), which is also positive because it means I can't wait for the next updates! And don't worry, there's already plenty of lewd scenes.

PS: If you like this game, I would also recommend Areas of Gray and Mist. Two games with similar high quality story/artwork and also a mix between mystery and sexy stuff.

Wow! Just Wow! The writing is very well done, the art style is reminiscent of the game, and all the charcacters are just joy to interact with.

The first play-through I didn't even do the deed because I was just so invested in the story XD

The gameplay is linear, usually you get two choices and you get outcomes based on that, the art style and scenes are well done. The content is of around 1 hr if played at normal pace.

Can't wait for another update!

I finished this game just before, and I have to say it is very good.
The artwork is nice and it remains faithful to the life is strange game itself, the writing and dialogue is also really funny and well done. It also has music and sounds, which is so much better than a game without these as they tend to feel empty. This game has a lot of personality, and it has the best sex scenes in any game on this site without a doubt, it's just a shame there aren't may of them yet.
The only negative was that it was over quite quickly, or that's how it felt, because I wanted more to play and this game when it is finished will be a one of the best on here.
Overall, I would recommend this game to anyone who comes across this, because if you have played the life is strange game, you will love this.

Damn i really didn't expect a lot from this game when i first saw it. I am pleasantly surprised with the game overall. The animations seriously are some of the best i've seen. They really do remind me of the old days with all the SFM porn on Tumblr, down to the way it's framed and how characters react. The story has some witty writing, with some fun twists on the original LiS. Thinking of donating to help him out because this game, imo, feels like it should be WAYYY bigger

When I started the game, I did not expect much from the game. The game started to improve when the game started, and the protagonist was very cool. You know, in most games you either don't show up or became a brat or a crappy main character. Nobody cares much about the protagonists looks. But this game has designed the main character very well. And the animations are just perfect. I really didn't expect such solid animations. The game definitely deserves respect. Sometimes I wished there was a mode that kept our empathy and domination numbers high and we could see the best dialogues. The game was definitely a game above my expectations, I hope more characters will be included in this beautiful game.

after the updated ui and new mechanics this game made a leap into one of the best on this site. i don't know if people unfamiliar to the original story can appreciate how great the writing is, all characters feel authentic and much more fleshed out than their shallow original ones. there are some instances that genuinely made me chuckle which i was not expecting.
the scenes are not all of the same quality level, but there are a couple of ones that are cream of the crop for all games in this site, referring of course to the Rachel and Victoria ones.