VN - Ren'Py - Venomous Smiles [Update 4] [LikesBlondes]

The critical flaw of Venomous Smiles is that it doesn't do enough to capture the tone and atmosphere of World of Darkness. There's stretches of this game where the reader would be forgiven for forgetting there are even vampires in the setting. There aren't any powers or abilities being used, the game could be about humans and not much would change. Venomous Smiles leans too heavily on the reader being familiar with the setting and filling in the gaps. There's also a distinct lack of choice in the game that feeds into the aforementioned problem.
Let me provide an example: the main character and his sister are looking into the disappearance of their mentor. They have two possible leads. They investigate one but don't find much and leave. Now imagine if the player had been given a choice between which to investigate. While investigating they see that there are guards in their way. The player could fight, use stealth, or intimidate them. Maybe the sister suggests to use charm to distract them and the player gains a relationship point with her if he agrees, whereas he would lose one if he chooses violence. In the end the story arrives in the same place but this reinforces the setting, makes the reader feel like it's "their" story and provides character building.
Finally I need to add I witnessed some instances of the dialog not matching the image on the screen which is a mistake that should never make it to release.
It's a Dean's List C-

Venomous Smiles Review (Update 4)

I’ll start off by saying this is a rather disappointing game, especially after playing Rebirth.

The script feels overly simplified—almost like it was written for a grade school reader—with short, basic sentences and very little depth. On top of that, every line of dialogue being wrapped in quotes makes the reading experience awkward.

Visually, the renders are hit or miss. At times they appear blurry. The female character designs aren’t bad, but the MC definitely needs more polish to match their quality.

The music doesn’t help much either. It’s just a repetitive techno loop that quickly becomes grating—I found myself muting it before long.

As for the lack of sexual content, I don’t necessarily think that’s a flaw in itself. Some of the best AVNs build the story first and weave in adult elements only when they naturally fit. But given the comparison to Rebirth, it feels strange that this story hasn’t gone in that direction at all.

Another issue is pacing. The updates tend to be quite short, which makes the story progression feel choppy and disconnected. After four updates, I expected more substance, but the writing still hasn’t grown beyond simple sentences.

While I enjoyed Rebirth, I can only give Venomous Smiles about 3 stars at best. Overall, it’s a letdown in comparison. Hopefully the developer’s next project delivers a stronger narrative and more polished execution.

I really enjoyed the previous game, Rebirth—it was a great experience from start to finish. The new one is decent so far; it hasn’t quite reached the same level yet, but I’m confident it will improve over time. I’m looking forward to seeing how it evolves with future updates, keep up the great work.

VERSION: Update2
SUMMARY: Another "cheap" game that deserves to be avoided.
RATINGS: (out of 5):

1. Models: 3
2. Animations: NA
3. General Visuals: 3
4. Characters: 2
5. Story: 2
6. Writing: 3
7. UI & Gameplay: 3
8. Content (amount): 2
9. Sound & Music: 2
10. Fetish & kinks: NA

Average: 20 of 40 possible points giving a 50% rating i.e. 2 stars.

PROS:

1. Writing is fine, simple and unsophisticated but fine
2. Some decent looking female characters.
3. Decent AMOUNT of content IF you only interested in reading...and reading, no necessarily what I call good content though

CONS:

1. Models are not great, female models look nice, but MC looks stupid and many male characters just look wrong (for lack of better term) either out of proportion or just plain FUGLY
2. Boring and uninteresting/unoriginal vampire story.
3. MC character is actually pretty annoying and looks like Chuck Norris's younger brother with that stupid mustache.
4. No lewd scenes or any H content, pretty boring stuff.
5. No animations of any kind lewd or otherwise.
6. No other sounds save the same music that really eventually just sounds like some cheap 80s thriller/porno movies music.

FINAL THOUGHTS & SUGGESTIONS:

• Story is a boring knock off from other similar titles combined with the devs previous work, filled with more cliches and things done so many times.
• Honestly, I didn't really care much for the story, its long-winded and as is with this publisher/developer, ITS ALWAYS long-winded and there seldom is any action and his MCs are kinda dull, interesting and really just another drone in the greater scheme of things.
• I find this game the same as the previous titles boring and really uninteresting filled with pointless long winded story and nothing really fun, interesting, sexy, intriguing or thought provoking and I hope we get more honest reviews than the previous game which also was dull at best.