VN - Ren'Py - Wet Sand [v0.6.6f] [Likho Games]

v0.6.6f

This pains me greatly. I really, really wanted to give a higher rating. It is clear that a lot of love and passion went into this game and other ratings are very positive, but in the end, I thought that honesty would be better for everyone. Devs can maybe use some of it, or choose to ignore it. It is certainly possible that it is my issue, not content issue.

First, let's talk about what the game does well and that is art. I really liked the art style. I much prefer this style to typical manga/anime, perhaps because this is what I grew up on. Everything about it great, girls are hot, scenery is fantastic, there's enough attention to detail... it just works. That part is 5/5 for me, easily.

Things that I didn't like or felt "meh" are more numerous, hence the rating of 3*

1) Story
Story isn't particularly interesting. It is well developed at this point, there are a lot of dialogues, characters and text in general, but I was just not drawn in. I do not want to say it is bad, but I found it too goofy at time. It is also too verbose for its own good.
3/5*

2) Humor
Game wants to be funny, and while it is subtler than most, it just doesn't work. It is not unfunny, but it makes the serious elements AND adult content feel less impactful.
3/5

3) Adult content/porn
Adult scenes are few and far between. When it happens, the scenes look great, but they tend to be short, not very impactful (partly because of the goofiness) and the descriptions and dialogues are mediocre. To put it bluntly, fap game this is not, by any stretch of the imagination. 2/5*

4) Game play
There is some game play, but it is generally very basic fetch quests. Mini games (which you can turn off, thankfully) are varied but extremely basic.
It doesn't add to the experience it just prolongs it. It gives you some control, but for the most part, a typical VN with choices would have worked just as well, or even better as it would have reduced idle time. 3/5*

I feel like this game has a bit of identity crisis. It tries to be goofy but it deals with some serious issues like corruption, slavery, death... It has realistic porn scenes but spaces them out too far and cheapens the experience by not taking anything seriously.

I would think it either needs to move more into funny adventure style (like the Leisure Suit Larry series of old) and do away with the porn in favor of some actual adventure gameplay...

or

Embrace the adult aspect, and adjust accordingly. Go with a more serious tone, add more adult content and reduce the unnecessary time between sex scenes.

So, if you like the art style, don't mind a bit of goofiness in your porn, and are willing to tolerate a lot of gap between sex scenes, go for it. The game will probably be 5/5 for you. I'm not trying to persuade people not to play, I'm just sharing my view after playing it.

This may be a great game when its fully released, but at this point I think the ratio of minigame to content is pretty high. Plus, it's not challenging overall, but when it is, it's in a "oh you made a mistake? well, screw you!" kind of way.

Artstyle is great though.

this game is fantastic!
amazing art, captivating story, nice sex scenes, fun gameplay, beautiful girls, minigames can be a bit annoying
overall big recommodation, the developer deserves more attention

Wet Sand is a game that stands out for its engaging story full of twists and turns. It blends a pirate atmosphere with elements of fantasy, keeping the player hooked, even when it leans on some clichés. You take on the role of a young thief who becomes a captain, embarking on a series of exciting adventures. Along the way, you'll meet a variety of characters that you can bring onto your ship (or not), while balancing the needs of the crew, winning their hearts, and avoiding a possible mutiny—all while pursuing your character's destiny. The protagonist, Fabian, breaks away from traditional heroes; he's more human and vulnerable, often feeling overwhelmed by the situations he faces, which makes him easy to relate to.

Gameplay
One of the great qualities of Wet Sand is that it feels smooth, unlike most sandbox games that can become repetitive. The game gives you the freedom to explore and interact with other characters in your own way. You have to make choices that affect your relationships with the crew, which keeps things interesting. Additionally, the mini-games are a major highlight! There’s a bit of everything: from a super strategic card game to a cave maze that really makes you think. These mini-games are well-designed and add a lot of excitement to the gameplay. And, for those who prefer to focus solely on the story, the game allows you to disable the mini-games, ensuring a more linear and narrative-driven experience.

Moreover, Wet Sand offers the option to disable explicit scenes, allowing the game to be played as a completely SFW experience. This is a great feature for those who want to enjoy the adventure and story without worrying about inappropriate content in certain environments.

Characters
The cast of Wet Sand is very charismatic. Besides Fabian, there are several supporting characters who are quite interesting, even if they are somewhat cliché. What’s great is that despite these archetypes, the interactions with them are fun and help build a good chemistry within the game.

Art and Design
The art is amazing, full of detail, with a style that brings to mind comic books from the 80s and 90s. It's the kind of visual that might not appeal to everyone, but it has a lot of character. The explicit scenes are not excessive but are spread out in a tasteful way. Unlike other games that overdo it and end up ruining the story with unnecessary explicit scenes, Wet Sand maintains a good balance, integrating these moments without disrupting the natural flow of the narrative. You can tell that the creators really put effort into this aspect.

Audio and Soundtrack
The music fits well with the game's vibe, adding a special touch to the most important scenes. However, there are a few tracks that don’t quite fit, playing at moments that feel out of place. This slightly breaks the immersion but doesn’t ruin the overall experience.

Length and Development
If there is one downside, it’s that Wet Sand is still in development. Just when the story gets really gripping, the game ends! It leaves you with that feeling of "I want more," you know? But it looks like the developer is releasing updates frequently, so it’s likely that more chapters and content are on the way.

Final Verdict
Overall, Wet Sand is a fantastic game for anyone who loves visual novels and adventure stories. I highly recommend it, especially for those looking for a great adventure game that also offers, as a bonus, well-integrated explicit scenes. However, if you’re someone who dislikes sandbox games or is just looking for explicit content and, above all, a harem experience, this game might not be the best fit for you. The option to disable explicit scenes and play in SFW mode is a great feature, making the game accessible to a wider range of players.

For now, I’d give it a 9/10, as the game has everything it needs to become a big hit if it continues at this pace!

This game is a lot like What A Legend for me in how the game plays. and that's a very good thing. I think the author is doing a fantastic job with this game, the theme is great, the girls are great, hell even your male shipmates are great, it feels like a classic adventure game, and then porn is thrown in AFTER the fact, which is awesome. The porn is definitely not lacking though, which is also awesome.

I really love this game!

- the simple yet well written story
- character dynamic
- moral choices though mostly affect dialogue it being present is nice to see
- not grindy unlike most sandbox type of games which can get repetitive
- Love how lot of popular and enjoyable minigames r added into the main game ( I love the ship battle card game it was great and a lil challenging too which is nice, after playing that i tried to find some similar games to that mini game)
- Love that cave maze thing, u really had to think or u would've gotten disoriented and clicking along one side don't work there are some fairly decent mechanics at play, like if u go back the perspective shits so u feel like u r actually coming back the path, which is amazing as normally games would use the same viewing angle even if u travelled back , (Can u tell I really loved that part )
- And H scenes r not oversaturated but they r spread out in a enjoyable way (some games really ruin the story with unnecessary H scenes, too much H scenes that disturb the flow of the story)
- The art is amazing

Realy nice game, the art and the animation is nice (voiced scenes also). I found the story writing exceptionally good. Haven't found any bugs so far. Great adventure game with a touch of D&D feeling. Love it and looking forward for the updates.

I really enjoyed this! The writing is great; lots of tension, twists, variety, anticipation, seduction and so many other things that kept me immersed. This VN deserves it's high rating!

I would've given it 5 stars if it weren't for the sandbox elements... I'm just not a fan of it.

This game is an absolute delight. Very well made, a ton of content so far, with great writing and characters. I was finding myself attached to all your crew mates pretty strongly as the story goes along, and there is a lot of story and personality attached to these characters. My biggest issue is that affection is extremely strict, meaning you can miss out on a ton of scenes if you make a single wrong choice. I just used a cheat to make everyone max affection, and that made the game way more enjoyable.

An underrated gem for sure.
Heaps of content in this one considering how much attention it's gotten I was pretty surprised to find the amount of content I did.
Lewd animations are high quality, and in general the art design is impressive. This is by no means a complete game but it is definitely worth a try.

The minigames range between fun and tedious, in particular the card game (similar to games like Hearthstone I suppose) was fun, but I did find that it could be quite challenging and take a long time to complete.

At this point I just hope the dev is able to continue to push out steady updates as i'm sure this game will take off soon if so.

Overall I would definitely recommend trying this out!
This is definitely bordering on a 4/5 for me but I think the quality of execution deserves the extra star

[Reviewing at 0.6.4f]
Great Art, solid characters, decent story. overall its pretty damn good. im looking forward to more. The sex scenes could be a little longer and currently there isn't too much in the way of sex scenes but still really damn good

TLDR version: It's a lot of fun. You should try it out if you like pirates and good-natured stories about dead gods, fugitives, the treasures of Monkey Island and Davy Jones' tentacles.

Now let's be verbose. The story is entertaining, and the writing is good-to-great. It is not too serious to prevent it from being fappable, but not too goofy as well. The general vibe is amicable, light-hearted, and certainly very pleasant. The characters are cartoony in a good way: it is interesting to spend some time with them.

In terms of pure horniness, this is like 7/10, striking a good balance with lewd content being the focus while still letting you breathe for a time and indulge in more piraty activities such as playing pirate gwint (that's for seafights), pushing arrows in time (that's duelling - think Sid Meier's Pirates, but less entertaining) and saving damsels in distress.

This game is obviously a labour of love. There are some things that do not quite work here, but the flow is great. I'm not sure whether this game opts to be more open-worldy (some things surely suggest so, but as of Episode 3 it is difficult to say for sure), but I'm all in for a ride. It it certainly one of the more pleasing finds that I've stumbled upon.

Good story nothing too serious but good enough for reading.
Has some world building there are things that happen besides events with main character
Awesome art, kind of unique style with animations and good quality.
Decent characters writing
Good amount of content if you read its gonna be 2. 5-4 hours of playing

Never in all my years have I ever thought I would come across a genuinely good porn game, yet here we are. The art is amazing, the music fits perfectly, the story is on point, all the characters have their own intriguing personalities, etc. You've killed it likho games and I can't wait to see more.

P.S. The gnome girl is so cute

I love the atmosphere and UI of this game. It's a great point & click VN with great story, dialogues and exploration around the ship and also outside. Art is beautiful and elegant, and the game has this overall feeling of professional and well made. I can't wait to check future updates!

SHORT VERSION: Think of this game as a simple but well written "POINT AND CLICK" adventure with a bit of lewd content.

I am giving it only 4 stars, but they are well earned 4 stars. A few things:
- Even though I wrote the game is like a "point and click" game , it is a very simple/easy one. You shouldn't need a guide and there is a quest journal to click if you are lost.
- You shouldn't skip, the dialogues don't drag on for to long and the writing is pretty decent (which means leagues above the average in adult games)
- It is not grindy. That was one of my concerns, so I am letting yall know.
- Don't play horny, this is more of a game to enjoy for its story and shenanigans.

Ohhh boy I love where this is going, I m simply amazed at the start: great art, awesome story and huuugeeee potential. Honestly cant wait to see this game grow to its full potential in the future. I hope that the developer/s get the support they need to further grow this project. Great stuff.

Good start.
On v0.2.3a, you can already see great execution and good ideas.
There is not much content in the game yet, but:

1. The plot, apparently, will be quite intriguing, unusual setting (fantastic world) and conditions.
2. Art in the game looks great, stylish.
3. You can already see the in-game selection and interactivity.Already many places to visit on the ship.
4. Enough characters have already been added (maybe there will be gay scenes, there are hints of this).
5. Nice music in the game and nice (convenient) interface.
6. There are also mini-games that are quite funny and fit into the setting (if you don't like them, you can turn them off)

So far, there is little content in the game, but I'm still sure that it will turn out to be a great game. There are some (non-critical) bugs.

TL/DR: Take the role of a young thief become captain in a series of wild adventures. Meet a plethora of characters and bring them onto your ship (or don't)! Balance the needs of the whole crew and attempt to win their hearts and escape mutiny while still pursing your character's destiny.

v0.6.2f Updates

+Music was really unique and fit the setting
+Art is next level. The still are a lot sexier than the animations though.
+Somewhat novel system of having to vie for the different crew member's approval
+Gnome chick pretending to be a dude will be such a cute lil tomboy! That whole arc was pretty adorable. Hope there will be more!
+Pirate code is cool. Hopefully sticking to it will be rewarding to the player and following it (or not following it in some cases) will be narratively compelling.
+Has the potential to have a lot of sexy monster-girl content.
+A bunch of the plot lines feel like they could be pretty interesting
+Piracy theme has a lot of room for growth and exploration while still staying contained to a focused story.
+UI is really clean

Cons:
-The protag looks okay- but its kinda annoying to play as yet another short skinny youth. Hope he can grown up a little as the game progresses. If not grow, then I hope there are some scenes where he uses the transfromation artifact to be a more powerful person/monster ect ect for some hotter scenes.
-Mini-games (I'd prefer to just focus on the story- they aren't much fun)
-Minor amounts of Engrish. Generally pretty good though.
-The scene content could use more length , art, and frequency.

Yeah! Finally good stuff. Keep going - i want more content! Arts&story are impessive but, can we able to see more NSFW in the future? Really liked theme, and want to taste all the girls at once Wish you luck!