What makes a game good to you?

[Stompai]

I'm not talking about Speech.

But the problem is the usual lack of music and sound.

Agreed, I already had discussion with people about musics saying that they almost always turn off the music on adult games to instead put their own in the background.
And I also agree that music can be a powerful tool to either create or enrich the ambiance of a game, or at least a scene of that game. Actually it works with any audiovisual media, we all have "that" scene from a movie we remember because the music was awesome and fitted said moment.

The problem with music, in the particular field of adult game, is that either you need to find copyright free musics or sounds that fit with your game, which can be equivalent to search for a needle in the sea. Or that you need to find a copyrighted music (easier) but you need to get the "ok" of author or copyright holder to use said music for your game.

 

[Deleted member 229118]

Gameplay.
Stationmaster, Free cities, Take over, Labs rats 1 and 2, Hentai highschool+, superpowered, Jikage rising, etc.

I am looking for a game.
There are plenty of site's for story and movies.
But good games are rare.

Visual novels are on my auto ignore list.
Granted a rare concept or well done renders will draw my interest to check it out.
But very few visual novels have a story that is worth reading.

As i gamer i want to game.
I dont even watch movies anymore because they bored me to death.

As for what make good game design.
I remember one dev putting it like this:
Here is the problem and here are your tools.
Now go solve the problem.


Aka choice, options, variation.
It is extreemly easy for a dev to have a right choice wrong choice mindset.
And i hate those type of games.
The type that punish you not picking the choice the dev wanted.
No the best type of games give you multiple solutions to a problem.
Or the freedom to pick and choice your tools.

For example the reason i keep praising superpowered despite it mediocre story is because of the sheer amount of options.
You can rape, you can mind control, you can be a lover, etc.
You powers deside your fetishes.

Or hentei highschool+ who biggest draw for me is the school system.
Using it to corrupt the town while keeping a low profile as to avoid a game over.

Lab rats 1 has a good story, decent renders and believeable characters.
And the choice who you want to corrupt.
Lab rats 2 is a business simulator with decent sex system added to it.

Free cities allow you to costumize your city.
Want to create a religious socialy that worship incest?
You can.
Want to create a sociaty where one race rules over an other?
You can.
Want to have slave's freed after reaching a milestone?
You can.
Text baised games give a great many freedoms on what you can do that simple isnt affordable for none text baised games.
Animation/renders are expensive and time comsuming.
So the fact stationmaster manage to get 80% of freecities gameplay in animated form is downright impressive.

Or Jikage rising.
I dont care for naratu universe, the story is meh, the gameplay is limeted to find the trigger.
But the mind control is heavenly.
The dev manage to get mind control just right.
A challange enough to get control over people but total when you succeed.
The fact you use mind control during conversation to get someone to go somewhere(for futher mind control training) or get them to open up a secret shows the mind control is seen as more then a tool to get laid.

As mind control* is my favorite fetish seeing it done right is suchs a rare threat for me.


*My core fetish where all other fetish's come from is compleet control of woman.
Mind control allows the greatest level of control but mindbreak(getting a woman addicted to being a sextoy either via rape or just being really good at sex) incest, Male domination, Corruption, etc.
All work for me because at the end of the day all i seek is power over womans.
Men are rivals to remove or defeat.
I hope tyrant allow me to get rid of my rivals without killing them.
Murder is suchs a mood killer.
It is why snuff(killing a woman during or after sex) doesnt work for me.
I prefer to keep murder and sex seperate.

 

[215303j]

Interesting critique for Long Live the Princes. Personally, I would hold that game up as an example of how to do it right.

100% agreed. For me though, LLtP requires quite a good memory to remember all the small clues and twists, and personally I have forgotten too much after only 1 month...

On the other hand, there are plenty of generic incest games which I *think* I haven't even played, but get reminded when my browser wants to overwrite upon downloading...

Not to be disrespectful to the author, but sometime for me it feel like he's "whoring" his game. I prefer authors like Nottravis or hopesGaming, who take the time to put everything in the right place.

Oh, I agree. But, given that WVM does have several issues with regards to the story, people do keep coming back and stay invested.
I think that if WVM was on a quarterly (3-monthly) release schedule, it might be a forgetable game like many others.

As with Long Live the Princess, I'm not trying to be harsh, just using a certain game to make a point.
I'm a fan of both games to be honest.

 

[anne O'nymous]

100% agreed. For me though, LLtP requires quite a good memory to remember all the small clues and twists, and personally I have forgotten too much after only 1 month...

It's what made me stop following it, waiting for the last update before playing it. There's games like that, which are good, but don't go well with a release by update.

I think that if WVM was on a quarterly (3-monthly) release schedule, it might be a forgetable game like many others.

Perhaps not forgettable, because the story is interesting and include the sexual part right from the start, while still not focus on it ; which satisfy both those who want a story, and those who want porn. But yes, it clearly wouldn't have had such success.

As with Long Live the Princess, I'm not trying to be harsh, just using a certain game to make a point.

Same for me. Giving an example is always useful, it permit to explain our thought without having to go too deep into the details.

 

[baneini]

Devs need to play the games that came before, extract whats good about them while avoiding the potential pitfalls players complained about the most; Use that knowledge to create a product that matches players expectations while highlighting the devs unique strengths eg. more professional daz models, better character writing, better art, gameplay features that elevate it above the masses.

Those games feel good because they've iterated the shit features out so they don't distract you from what the dev really wants to express.

 

[Roman DeVil]

...a good story, a good rhythm, a good art are all that matter for a game/novel to be pleasurable, IMO! All the rest is an option, including a wide range of choices and endings or a lot of plot twists, but the more of them the better...

 

[medusa the mad]

A good game consists of something that doesn't feel like a game. You are so immersed in the story that every decision you make feels like it has an actual impact on the universe you are enveloped in. Therefore, decisions. Lots of decisions. Lots of branching trees, I'm afraid. Let them express their true thoughts. Not what you think your reader wants. We appreciate honesty. We want options and customization. This is the Starbucks era of self-expression. Also, no save scumming. Make it clear in the beginning. Every action has a reaction, and those cannot be changed. I would implement a system that saves the game after every choice given. Therefore I would not utilize Renpy and go with a custom engine (as I have done in my game). We all want to see every outcome, but what is the reward of scrolling up, save scumming etc? None. There is no risk. I desire nightmares and consequences.

 

[SISIMEN]

So when you're deciding weather you'd pledge or not to a creator (or if you're a full pirate - weather you'll follow and finish the game or not) what are the main things that compel you to go or not go for it.

Part time pirate here. That is, I view the products/creations as a 'try before you buy' - kind of like music you hear on the radio before you decide to purchase the song, or a book on the shelf (or sample from Kindle/Nook) before you purchase and read the whole thing. So, I have downloaded games/novels here and, if I like them, I support the creator...untill they disappoint (I explain this later)

How important is the render quality and lighting for you?

In most cases basic lighting is not a top priority for me. It does, however, change the mood of a scene, or even kills the mood, if over done. I recall a scene in a popular game (apologies, I do not recall which one), and everything was moving along nicely and then BAM! it was so fucking dark the details of the models - expressions, body positions, etc., were impossible to see. Killed the scene altogether. So, with that said, I would say my preference is consistency throughout; don't change the lighting in the middle of a scene or go to a different lighting system in the same location (room, etc.) in the story.

How important are the characters and their believability in context of the story for you?

I guess I would like more clarity on what you mean by a character being believable in context. If you are asking about a character that is in a story where aliens are involved and they end up having sex with an alien, well then I guess that would be believable. By comparison, a character having sex with a tentacle monster as part of a story about college kids visiting their uncle for the week just because the creator suddenly discovered they had a tentacle rape fetish - I would say that is not something I would accept as 'believable' in the story. So, I am looking for continuity and consistency in the story-line. If the creator plans to have tentacles, aliens, etc. etc. in the story-line, then I am fine with that as long as it fits with the remainder of the story. I am bit more picky about this than most people; the best example I can come up with is the Fantasy genre in literature. I prefer my magic and lasers don't reside in the same story - dragons should not be fighting robots (if that makes sense). Just my opinion, of course that's what you are asking for so...

Now, I would add, outside of the context, character types make a difference. There are so many examples so I will pick one that first comes to mind: Big Brother. Whether you are a fan of the story, I found the models to be one of the biggest attractions for me. The characters were exactly that: characters, not caricatures...except, of course Max's cock. Seriously that thing was stupid and I did my best to ignore it wherever possible when play that game I am not knocking anyone else's kink preference or fetishes, I just know what I like (and what I don't). If a tag doesn't appeal to me I will typically look for others, peruse the comments section and try to determine if the game/VN is something I can play/read and only get a small dose of those kinks/fetishes I don't care for. Another example is body type...I like most kinds, except when the proportions are ridiculous (see comment above on Max's trouser python). If the breasts on EVERY SINGLE female character are large enough to raise the Titanic, count me out - I like my fantasy worlds to be a bit more realistic, if you will

How important is the creators advertising savviness ( good promo material, nice f95 thread, great Patreon landing)?

If they put the work into their marketing, I appreciate it. I am guilty of judging a book by it's cover. I know that is an old adage: "Don't judge a book by it's cover". Although, I have found this is often more accurate than people realize. Think about an actual book cover with art that doesn't appeal to your sensibilities - now think, did the author have any say on that art work? Of course they did, it is imagery that reflects the story within (in most cases), so if the imagery on the outside is not appealing, and my decision process starts there, it is not a good start for the creator. I have seen banners, Patreon sites, etc. that might have a spectacular story available but I never take an interest because the cover is not representative of the creation within.

How important are the tags being to your liking?

Tags are a lot like the banner (cover) for me. If there is a "futa" tag, I will typically look somewhere else. Again, personal preference - NOT a knock on anyone else's preferences. I have played games with Futa in it because there were other tags that interested me, or I read comments where it was stated that Futa was avoidable content...I know NTR is a hot topic where this is concerned as another example. Regardless, if a creator has content that I don't care for and they make it avoidable, I will most likely give their creation a try.

...and how important is the general story being appealing to you?

While I like a good story, if they story is great and the imagery that accompanies it is mediocre or just plain bad, I will just plow through it or stop altogether (if it is bad enough). Conversely, if the story is so-so and the art is good/great I will be more invested overall...I don't think we are hear to get a New York Times bestseller, we are here to find something that appeals to our more base nature, and live out some fantasy that is not otherwise available in our everyday lives (or maybe that is just me )

And finally, how do you find those values that you find important clashing with some successful games that other people like and support?

Interesting question. Since I am just now thinking about all of this, I would say it there is a lot more contention and discussion with the popular games: Milfy City, Big Brother, Being a DIK, etc. I would guess that there is a correlation between the higher level of art work, better story/game play and the number of people. That is, if there is a game with decent artwork and the story/game play is bad it won't have nearly the discussion level that those with good artwork, good story and smoother game play will have. A good example of the "clashing" with my own personal preference is NTR...I honestly don't care. If there is a NTR tag on a game I will still play it; although this became a BIG issue with Eric in Big Brother. There were/are people that actually despise Eric...and he isn't even real!! I don't get too invested in playing the part of the MC in most of the games I play here and, as a result, I typically don't feel as though my preferences are at odds with other peoples likes/dislikes when it comes to more popular titles. Inverse to that, I have thoroughly enjoyed some of the less popular creations here.

For me personally character design and writing is king, then story then renders in that order of importance . I personally don't care very much if it's a pure VN, kinetic novel or open world.

I thought it could be an interesting and productive discussion for people developing and wanting to develop games for the community.

The characters must be appealing for me as well, so I agree with your assessment. I would add that, in the case of the character design, the stock models for DAZ and typical model caricatures (massive torpedo tits for me), you see in so many creations are a definite turn off. I am of the opinion that if you are going to take the time to create a character, make them unique and interesting to the viewer, otherwise we could all just load in DAZ or Honey Select and make our own scenes for fapping. As far as the type of creation, I am not picky...Visual Novel, Open World, Kinetic (in the order if I have to give an answer on preference).

I said, in the first part of my response, I would explain the support I give, or take away from creators I support. I have supported several creators over the past few years, and have a couple I continue to support because their creations appeal to me AND they are consistent with their process; Hell, I am working with a couple of creators on writing and some art (not going to say which ). There have been a few I have supported where they f'd up their game/novel part way through and didn't seem to give two shits about their supporters...so they lost me. I understand creators can get burned out or have real-life issues that prevent deadlines from being met, so I try not to judge too harshly. That said, I have a few pet-peeves when it comes to games/novels and there very few exceptions to these pet-peeves when it comes to my support:

• Don't create a game/novel and get several releases in just to change the engine you are using because you thought it would be easier for you...seriously? I have supported you for months, through multiple iterations and you change something forcing me to start over again. Nope. Done. I'll rip the CG and fap later. (Admittedly there have been a handful of games/novels I was willing to play through again because they were THAT good, not many, however).
• If you design something so damn convoluted that even a walk through doesn't help, what's the point? CG rip!
• Why, for the love of all that is holy, do you create a game/novel where you have to wait for a particular place or scene in order to save?!? CG Rip!
• Grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, CGI RIP!!

So, there you go, my opinion. Have a faptastic day!

 

[215303j]

A good game consists of something that doesn't feel like a game. You are so immersed in the story that every decision you make feels like it has an actual impact on the universe you are enveloped in. Therefore, decisions. Lots of decisions. Lots of branching trees, I'm afraid. Let them express their true thoughts. Not what you think your reader wants. We appreciate honesty. We want options and customization. This is the Starbucks era of self-expression. Also, no save scumming. Make it clear in the beginning. Every action has a reaction, and those cannot be changed. I would implement a system that saves the game after every choice given. Therefore I would not utilize Renpy and go with a custom engine (as I have done in my game). We all want to see every outcome, but what is the reward of scrolling up, save scumming etc? None. There is no risk. I desire nightmares and consequences.

This is what I like as well.
GGGB is an excellent example of this, in my opinion, and possibly the greatest adult game so far.
The downside is that there is a huge amount of content that will never be seen by a single player.
If we take GGGB as an example: I skipped the entire Tyrone path. I also skipped the entire thug path. Just not interested in those.

So it does seem like a waste. GGGB has (what seems to be) fairly efficient art, so maybe that's why the workload remained manageble, but if you require the same game, but then with fully rendered hi-res scenes, and the occassional animation, that would mean a huge amount of work for the dev, and, consequently, smaller monthly updates or somewhat larger quarterly updates. Still update size would be much smaller in terms of playtime than a more linear story.

Some games (e.g. Our Fate) make the renders fit different stories. In other words, the renders are used in different paths, only the text changes. But that risks that facial expressions etc. are not really matching the written story.

I have seen banners, Patreon sites, etc. that might have a spectacular story available but I never take an interest because the cover is not representative of the creation within.

Good post!

That's something I've wondered as well. There are many beginning devs where the image quality in v0.5 is way way better than in v0.1, but somehow they keep the renders from v0.1 in the OP and seemingly can't be bothered to at least update the OP, or, maybe even better, remaster the v0.1 entirely.

 

[Ozzice13]

Here are some things that I think make a good game or not IMHO;

-The Right Engine.

If you use RPG maker for a VN or VN style sandbox game, that's a negative score with me. RPG maker is great for what it was intended for; making JRPG. just use Ren'Py or Unity otherwise.

-Realistic People.

Both in looks and behaviour (unless you go for an over the top or caricature art style). Please don't make all the women look like Lolo Ferrari wannabees.
Their behaviour should also match their personality and not change at the whim of the writer. Give people a motivation and base it in reality, this is especially true in games with incest, just suddenly out of the blue wanting to hump your entire female family without a hint of any such previous behaviour prior to the start of the game is poor writing.
It works well in short porn scenes (as the front page of PornHub will attest) but it ultimately doesn't make for a compelling game.

-Art Work

If you have a great idea for a game but can't draw, don't friggen make a game! I've seen far too many games on here where the art seems to be done by a spastic 8 year old with the excuse "I'm still learning" If you're on Patreon or an other form of monetization, you should be done with "learning". If you really can't wait, get someone else to do the art.
Personally I also don't like art done with Trixxx or Illusion games every time I see a game like that I'm just thinking "I could be playing that game instead now"
When it comes to rendering in Poser/Daz Studio (is Poser still around?) pay attention to detail. Lighting is 40% of the quality of your render, learn to do post work in a Photoshop/PSP/whatever, learn to use magnets, learn to use props and poses properly, learn to make your own textures and scenes and for the love of god, learn to make your own characters.

-Proper Story & Dialogue.

Don't write your lines like you're writing a '80 porn movie. Write like you're writing out a play. Stick to the theme, if you go over the top stay there if you go overly comical keep to that theme. Nothing wrong with mixing it up but be consistent.
Think about your plot, if the MC finds a book that suddenly gives him magic powers, make it believable, it just lying around on a shelf in the library is nonsense.
Characters should have real motivations, not just the MC but the entire cast, write them as people, not plot devises.

-Pacing.

I like slow burners, where you really can work up to something/someone, but I hate the grind. Striking a golden path in-between is my sweet spot, heck give me a floozy or two that I can get at early on but have me work to get to the main content. (oddly enough '80 porn often got that right with the main cover girl not getting fucked until the last scene and maybe be in a lesbian scene earlier on).

Ah well that's enough of my rambling rant.

 

[Stompai]

Here are some things that I think make a good game or not IMHO;

-The Right Engine.

If you use RPG maker for a VN or VN style sandbox game, that's a negative score with me. RPG maker is great for what it was intended for; making JRPG. just use Ren'Py or Unity otherwise.

-Realistic People.

Both in looks and behaviour (unless you go for an over the top or caricature art style). Please don't make all the women look like Lolo Ferrari wannabees.
Their behaviour should also match their personality and not change at the whim of the writer. Give people a motivation and base it in reality, this is especially true in games with incest, just suddenly out of the blue wanting to hump your entire female family without a hint of any such previous behaviour prior to the start of the game is poor writing.
It works well in short porn scenes (as the front page of PornHub will attest) but it ultimately doesn't make for a compelling game.

-Art Work

If you have a great idea for a game but can't draw, don't friggen make a game! I've seen far too many games on here where the art seems to be done by a spastic 8 year old with the excuse "I'm still learning" If you're on Patreon or an other form of monetization, you should be done with "learning". If you really can't wait, get someone else to do the art.
Personally I also don't like art done with Trixxx or Illusion games every time I see a game like that I'm just thinking "I could be playing that game instead now"
When it comes to rendering in Poser/Daz Studio (is Poser still around?) pay attention to detail. Lighting is 40% of the quality of your render, learn to do post work in a Photoshop/PSP/whatever, learn to use magnets, learn to use props and poses properly, learn to make your own textures and scenes and for the love of god, learn to make your own characters.

-Proper Story & Dialogue.

Don't write your lines like you're writing a '80 porn movie. Write like you're writing out a play. Stick to the theme, if you go over the top stay there if you go overly comical keep to that theme. Nothing wrong with mixing it up but be consistent.
Think about your plot, if the MC finds a book that suddenly gives him magic powers, make it believable, it just lying around on a shelf in the library is nonsense.
Characters should have real motivations, not just the MC but the entire cast, write them as people, not plot devises.

-Pacing.

I like slow burners, where you really can work up to something/someone, but I hate the grind. Striking a golden path in-between is my sweet spot, heck give me a floozy or two that I can get at early on but have me work to get to the main content. (oddly enough '80 porn often got that right with the main cover girl not getting fucked until the last scene and maybe be in a lesbian scene earlier on).

Ah well that's enough of my rambling rant.

While I agree to lots of your points, parts of them. I think that it's not the kind of things that can be exactly relevant to single devs.
You're talking about how the dev should be proficient in writings, in game design, in drawing or 3d artwork, in coding as well since it's a game, etc.
But that's just not possible for single devs to achieve the level you expect... alone. Each of these category can be considered as life defining skills if mastered, and unless you underestimate what making a game can involve, it's rare to find a single person being proficient in all of them, "Jack of all Master of none" as the saying goes.

I disagree a bit with the "done learning" part, you're never "done" when it come to creative activities imo. Even judging the quality of this part is complicated since it's the most subjective one, with everybody having different tastes.

Of course what I said become irrelevant if it's aimed at a team with specialized members in their own category. But then the money part need to be involved because getting a team with members "done learning" who can work together on a project will make that money part reach a higher degree of importance which most often that not will kill the project before it even start.

 

[215303j]

If you're on Patreon or an other form of monetization, you should be done with "learning".

Good points, but Patreon is about supporting a developer, not about buying a finished product of a certain quality.

You can choose to support a developer for any reason or reasons.
Maybe you just support him because he is a nice guy even if he does nothing "correct".

Everybody has a friend, who is too poor to buy a round of beer, but they still ask him to come to the bar.

 

[chainedpanda]

I think I can say without certain, rather I enjoy a game or not comes down to four points.

Characters
Gameplay
tags
activity

Honestly, I think tags are the least important. Simply something that gets me into the door. I'll use positive, negative, and neutral to explain my point here,

I find many tags to be negatives, these are tags like prostitution and NTR, vs positive like male domination. I am a dominant person, thus I want to be in charge in every aspect, however, at the same time, I don't want to share. With the male domination tag, I am more willing to play the game but add in prostitution or NTR, I am much less willing to play, even if male domination is the main point of the game. Neutral tags like anal are invisible to me. Most of the time I see the tag and forget about it the moment I read it.

The third most important is likely characters. I do believe the story adds to the game no matter what. For that, you need good characters. I care more about their personality than their looks. I have played games in the past in which I went into it with an open mind, fully expecting to enjoy the game only to be done with it before the intro is overdue to shit characters.

Protagonists are also important. Protagonists with too much will, thoughts or emotions are a turn-off. Simply because in porn games it is hard to make it believable without making the protagonist stupid, annoying or a creep. For this reason, I prefer games where I am the protagonist, rather than walking in their shoes and making decisions for them.

Next is the activity of the developer. Devs that engage with their community, who are open for communication and/or put out a decent stream of updates and are decent updates have my utmost respect and I am more willing to donate to them. I have donated quite a bit of money in the past, now most of those games are dead, suck, or in development hell. I am burned out, and not willing to donate monthly anymore. However, I have no problem with throwing a few bucks to a game I like when a good update comes out.

Lastly, and most important being gameplay. I have no interest in kinetic novels, and they go straight to my ignore and forget in 5 seconds list. Visual novels, while I am not a fan, I have been slowly attempting to break my habit of dismissing them the moment I see them. Leading me to find a couple of games I generally enjoy that are visual novels.

However, no matter how good the VN is, I still prefer solid gameplay with no questions. Even games that are simply click randomly in hopes of finding an even or endless grind hold my attention better than most VNs.

 

[HerbertIronsides]

The best thing I can see for a game is the "completed" tag. I get so fed up with 0.1 and 0.01 games that never go anywhere and have like 5 mins of dialog and a voyeur scene and never get anywhere else for 6+ months.

 

[thecardinal]

Good dialogue can make for a great game. Universally-loved games that are lauded for their writing have room for improvement in this area.

 

[Deleted member 1370694]

Immersive dialogue, decent and well-placed humour and… nice tits and ass (after all I'm male)

 

[MoonSae]

-Good Story
-Good Design
-Animation
-A lot diffrent characters(mean that blond,brunette,black hair etc.
-Of course a lot of pathing to end the game(Most important to have a choose what/who you want)
-Diffrent scenes with good angles
-Some little games,maybe some grinding is good aswell to get us hungry a bit
-AND IMPORTANT AS WELL DO NOT DROP THE GAME IF EVERYONE LIKES IT ^^

 

[Dr. Javi]

There's a few things that will attract me to a game:

Attractive character models

This is no doubt the first thing that grabs the eye. If the girls don't look good, I won't look any further because realistically if I don't find the model attractive are there really going to be enough positives in a porn game to offset that? The more I like the characters models, the more invested I get in a project.

High quality animations

I'm not saying that a lack of animations is a deal breaker, but it sure is a major positive. If the character models are attractive and the animations are good, then I'm willing to overlook a lot.

The Engine

Maybe this should be first because aside from games from NLT I only play Ren'Py games.

Genres

Obviously we all have certain genres that we prefer and certain genres that are no-go's. While not required, if something is harem and/or incest I'm far more likely to check out.

Other Tags

Similar to genres, like and dislikes. Anal sex is one that I'm very like to check out. Vore...not so much.

Relatively regular updates

It doesn't have to be twice a month like NLT, but let's not go half a year.

Gameplay

I'm totally okay with a straight up visual novel. Sandbox games are not necessarily a "no," but too many end up as a mindless grind just going around and around in circles clicking everything until something happens. Often times the solution to, let's call them puzzles, are convoluted or nonsensical.

Writing (Characters)

The better and more believable the relationship with the main character, the more likely I am to care about and get invested in that character. I will look more forward to content with the character with the best relationship with the MC than the one that I find the most physically attractive.

Writing (Generally)

Writing in porn games tends to be, well, awful. All elements of making a game are difficult and creators are rarely good at all of them (why would they be?). Given that game creators tend to be programmers or artists, it is far more likely that the technical aspects of the game are good than the writing. Three years of handjobs do not constitute a build up. If having sex with the main love interest(s) is "Mission Accomplished" and the creator doesn't know where to take the story from there, then it's bad writing.

Creator Reliability

It seems like 95% of adult games get abandoned. Communication is key. Progress reports don't have to be weekly or overly specific, but if you are going to have a Patreon don't let a month go by without communicating something to your Patrons. Custom renders are certainly a plus, but are not required.

Just what comes to mind at the moment.

 

[joecoe]

Aside from the girls I find attractive and my favorite fetishes , the important element is consistency.
There are games with primitive silly stories where the MC fucks practically everything that has a pussy that I enjoy.

There are games where the story is quite sophisticated and the characters behave believably that I enjoy.

But I don't like it when the general attitude changes in the middle of a story and a game with a believable story turns into a fuck fest etc, or conversely, games where there was a large degree of hyperbole start taking things too seriously.

 

[Gojii]

When you tag search for some vanilla to mix things up and then go to settings and see this.


Then you get super confused expecting NTR the whole time and got what you were looking for while expecting that "surprise honey!" moment pretty much every part of the game. I like the whole subtle looming implied threat that never happens as a concept. Like where MC gets the W and a good end, but there's that extra spice of the threat being there the whole time. That "humanity restored" vibe of a super lewd partner/partners (if harem/etc) seemingly always at risk of betrayal (from MC's perspective) keeping you engaged even though it was never a threat to happen in the first place. These are just examples (I actually tend to like a lot of netori and even some netorase stuff but its literally turned into a copypaste fetish now that is boring/predictable/trauma for MC fetish).

Take risks and make a plot that you don't see much. Changing the setting with the same exact plot you've seen aside from that one aspect numerous times is the laziest writing possible, and its become rampant the last few years.

Good writing where it plays on your tastes and also the things you loathe. Not even where the love interest(s) are even put into those situations, but where there's writing that keeps you from just spamming through it for the sex scenes as some do.

Sandbox/multiple endings are usually good. For me I prefer the good ends. I don't see the point of of spending hours playing through a perspective that has the bad end happen to them.

Not having meme tier antagonists. The three overused types of the creepy boss/teacher of MC/love interest, gigantic goon type gyaru-oh/foreigner, and psychotic shota all with physically impossible dick sizes are tired tropes. I don't dislike NTR as a general rule btw. Saimin Seishidou is one of my favorite works, despite being normally turned off by "ugly bastard" content. Put in good humor and have the antagonists be real people that actually exist.

When people see the antagonist and can immediately know what is going to happen, it just becomes a matter of if they will get off to it or not. Your effort put into anything other than the art/animation good no longer matters and the plot becomes utterly irrelevant. Its why so many people download CG sets, because their game is shit.

Even if there are fantasy elements that override such things (hypnosis for example), having a character being legit retarded and taking no action and just becoming an fucktoy for the antagonist and from basically part 1 its obvious that's what the ending will be, is garbage. It might make good for a quick nut, but it makes for a shit game. Predicable plots are boring plots nobody will remember. Your product will be just one of 50 other ones that are virtually identical.

Spoiler: Elaboration-tl;dr-ing

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Sandbox games with character customization for NPCs that have more than 4-6 hairstyles/clothing options are good. If I can have 50+ NPCs in a game world, there needs to be variety. HHS+ does this well. I don't need the game to be flashy, but at least give me something to the game where every character is just color swapped variants.

Lastly, any game that allows its dev tools to be open or uses a platform in which mods can be relatively easily added in case something goes wrong/dev moves on. An engaged community that can create content, even ones the dev may not necessarily have in their vision is far better than a dev taking months to put content out and the game withers away.

This post is far too long as-is at this point.