VN - Ren'Py - The Nexus [v0.3] [Silent Raven]

It should be noted that this review was only started after a "moment" (presumably in chapter 2), but if the following spoiler is correct, then the game is undoubtedly "below average" considering the looks and the story/direction.


I am not kidding when I stopped the game right there, like literally that line of dialog, because given the quality of the writing/renders (in terms of little details), I feel like I not only know what will happen involving multiple characters but also the "behind the scenes" reasons why, which really deflate a story trying to be told.


Moving onto the reasons To put it cynically, the reason all of this very poor storytelling is happening is because both need to be "safe" LI for when ole "Horsedick MC Orphan #15645" gets both of them in his harem, which going by the lack of choices/how much the choices you get don't matter early on is going to happen (if you say no, the story will skip over scenes instead of writing narratives around you turning down all/various LI).

Now that the valid rant is out of the way, the game is graphically a few years "behind," even less than stellar games, but there are multiple instances of small things (characters moving eyes, etc.) that do go quite a bit in keeping the graphics as being a significant negative.

The story starts off competent, if very generic (MC family dead/killed, family friend Milf with daughter "adopts" MC, moves back to home town on first day of school year (college), spooky girls are here now, etc.). Sadly, it quickly (instantly) devolves into below porn logic levels once the "mystery" of the game kicks off, with the first example being the above spoilers and if the bios are correct (they seemingly arent for two girls?) she is just a human which means any human should be able to see her clear as day vampire fangs and if is not human than why does the human vampire myth (uses blood, weak to sun ETC) fit real vampires so well?

The sex scene (only saw the first one) is about the same level as the graphics overall, slightly behind the "curve," but probably fine for someone who cares deeply about those.

Unfortunately, I can't rate this game higher than 2 stars because I do think that no matter how you slice it (AVN, involving college, AVN involving moving back to hometown, AVN involving monster girls, etc.), it is less than average, with its main issue being more "character focused" (usually a good thing) but not having the plot or character writing to back it up. While "failing" as a pure porn experience due to it wanting to get you invested in the characters and the animations/scene(s) themselves being good at absolute best but nowhere near games known for their animations.

The synopsis also does not help as partway into chapter 2 the only choices with any impact haven been a couple +1 LI choices (nothing gated off yet), while none of the other choices have variables attached and URM has never defined a path split, and finally any time you say "no" to a choice involving an LI nothing changes (the next scene is literally 100% the same) or it is a false choice and a few lines are said before you are forced to make the ONLY real choice, meaning "the choice being in your hands" is right now a downright lie and the game just avoids the kinetic tag.

I would be more than happy to eat crow and update this review if the rest of the game somehow dramatically improves, but I doubt that is going to happen.
Overall: far from the worst game but fails to reach an average level (for 2024).

Edit: My predictions were 1:1 100% absolutely correct, as of chapter 3 the writing is still pulling the game down, telling you how to MC feels consonantly (little to no choices in dialog), while having him spout illogical justifications while perfectly logical ones are ignored
At the end of the day this game unfortunately earns its below average rating, with it failing as both a slow burn/romance/mystery/compelling and a fap game due to the amount of content and their quality relative to the amount of reading/skipping you have to do.

All the girls are cute and feel like real people instead of fleshlights with names. The story is not to be skipped or slept on, do yourself a favor and give it a play.
The opening flashback may drive off anyone whos worried the game has excessive violence or the like, but what violent scenes are in the game are varied and typically dont get into any detail.

v0.2 Review

I've always though that if you plan to use Honey Select 2, you need to edit the characters and rendering tech a LOT, as HS2 women tend to look very samey, and have a lot of issue with torpedo tits and such.

There's been some editing of the characters, mostly clothing and hair, but it does show that this is an HS2 game--the eyes are enormous and always overglossy, faces are blemishless and bland, etc.

That said, however, one of the main issues I see with a lot of HS2 games is improper facial/eye posing, and this game does at least focus a bit on fixing that.

The story for this game is fairly solid. A simple premise, which quickly unfurls into a whole shitshow. I do think the game could probably use a bit more story or days before we get to where the 0.2 version leaves off. I enjoy a good cliffhanger as much as the next guy or gal. But this one pops off almost immediately. And I didn't even see everything.

The content is somewhat cliche, but in a way that is mediocre at worst, and decent at best. Some mythos from other properties can be seen here, but not much.

It DOES feel like the MC and his blonde partner are more like 15 year olds, rather than 18 year old young adults--not in appearance (thank god), but more in attitude and approach. This doesn't mean it's entirely told through the lens of a teenager, but moreso that it feels almost like Supernatural and a Hardy Boys book. Not sure if that was the intention.


Outfits are a tad overdesigned, but they are each evocative and unique, so kudos on that.

UI/UIX is more or less default Ren'Py, so not really anything to say there.

Sex scenes (I don't think I got all of them) are good, not great. HS2 has some decent anims if you look hard enough, and the only one I was bored with was the succubus scene in the beginning. It felt like the same exact scene as in Ring of Lust/Murmur/etc. The others seemed fairly hot.

All in all, I'd probably give this a 3.8 score if I could get that granular. It is a fairly solid premise, decent sex scenes and fairly interesting characters, but is dragged down by a somewhat mediocre plot execution, premature pop off, and some of the same issues as any other games rendered in HS2.

The game is pretty good. I liked most of the characters, and the story is decent. I'm definitely looking forward to more updates. One improvement I would love to see is better graphics and possibly less cheesy dialogue. Overall, it's enjoyable for first-time players. Keep up the good work!