VN - Ren'Py - Wild Cats [v0.3] [LopaPhi]

Best written game, best visual, best story. This game is thought out, it's quite outstanding, never seen Haiku, the anime but if this was inspired by it then I now get why everyone loved it.

This is the most realistic story i've seen in this site just yet. Totally recommended, the sex scenes might just be an extra at this point.

As of V0.3

I played this game not expecting anything of quality, since most of the games in f95 right now are AI slop or games that isn't interesting as it's mostly just mindless sex. And how can an AVN about volleyball be interesting, compared to the likes of Eternum with multi-verses? But oh boy, did this game prove me wrong.

First of all, the story writing so far is EXCELLENT. The way Lopaphi has introduced the characters, the way we dove into each of the characters. He didn't beat around the bush with the development of the in-depth character story telling, and that's what made it more interesting for me. I think that a good character introduction and in-depth explanation of the characters can lead to a game's success. No one wants bland characters that are stereotypically in every game. And secondly, the MC's character development was excellent as well. He went from an unlikeable asshole to a leader that will lead BSU Wild cats to greatness. His realization of what really matters in life (which is being optimistic) by talking with lexi and desiree. The moment where he realized that he loved volleyball more than the one bad experience he went through with it. I think that was executed very nicely! It was a touching moment for me, personally.

Regarding the sex scenes (though there's not much), it's very polished! Dare I say that it's close to caribdis's style! And most importantly, the audio that supports the visual! Most AVN's sex scenes fall flat because it's just animations, and no audio to support it. It really kills off the scene where it should've been an intimate and hot moment. And the animations are very smooth and looks well made! What more do I have to say?

PROS

• This surprised me, I'm not really a fan of HS cause they can sometimes look a bit same-y. But the visuals and animations are top notch, HS2 done well.
• The story is successful in drawing your interest. I find myself actually caring about this team and the girls' struggles.
• There is actual character development, MC starts of as an asshole but begins to soften.
• I like the diversity. Now character is the same. Different personalities and looks. There is something for everyone.

CONS

• Its pretty linear, as long you click on the dialogue option that the girls want to hear from you, you should see everything in one playthrough. There are some unofficial short bad endings (more so 'I give up' scenarios) but that doesn't really count.
• It is kinda tropey. Male MC teacher and the student LIs. Gary stu MC with a big dick thats running around solving everyone's problems. You have the tsundere Zoe, delinquent bad girl Fiona, classic good girl Eve, slutty popular girl Lexi (all the sex scenes so far are with her btw), and a token asian girl and a token black girl. How many games are like this? A lot. But honestly it does it well and I don't feel like this is another run-of-the-mill student dating sim like many others. Its using an establish genre but its doing it very well and to a higher quality than others which is why I gave it a high rating.

Written as of [v0.3] :

GRAPHICS - 4.5/5
The first thing you'll notice about Wild Cats is that LopaPhi really loves what I'd describe as a sunset filter on most of his scenes.
More often than not everything is in warm yellows and oranges that make the game look cozy.
There's a graininess that overlays most of the renders, especially around the hair, as probably as a result of equipment that's not up to snuff, but I actually really enjoy it as part of the overall look of the game and I'll be sorry to see it go if LopaPhi gets a better GPU.

Our main girls are, on the whole, very well-designed and detailed (with the exception of Fiona, in my opinion. With no evidence, my assumption is she was added on as a sort of homage to Alex Bardot from Eternum and didn't get as much attention to character or design as the others).
I've seen a dozen AVNs using Honey Select suffer from same-face syndrome or worse, a dead-eyed doll look, but Wild Cats has very rarely followed suit on that front.
Eve's freckles and moles on her body are a favorite of mine, I always prefer something like that to flawless, perfect skin on every character.
The girls' expressions are obviously chosen with care at all times. You know exactly what they're thinking just by the looks on their faces and it can often be complex.

It genuinely really helps someone like Saki as a character that instead of her expressions being in turns happy, angry, sad, horny, she'll look sardonically amused or intensely frustrated, sarcastically beaming or warmly grateful.
If there's any AVN character I've ever seen who can pull of a masterclass ragebait with a head tilt and a blank look it's Saki.

That detail doesn't extend to the side characters, unfortunately.
Desiree's two friends Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dipshit (Rebecca and Anna) both look like they came fresh off the HS2 assembly line not much changed from the standard default Japanese girl you start character creation with, which is a shame because I kind of enjoy their comedy bits.
Same can be said for a lot of the one-off throwaway male characters, although the models for the protagonist and the SIT Alpha Wolves have some of the best models for men I've seen in HS2 games. It's not strictly necessary that they look unique, but it would definitely be a bonus if they did.


STORY - 3.5/5
So far the plot is simple and serviceable.
Johan is a former volleyball prodigy who had to quit due to a chronic injury, and gets recruited to be the coach of a failing girls' volleyball team in exchange for a scholarship.
The first three updates so far have centered around Johan recruiting the team and getting them to commit, and also not hate him.

He'll go out to hound one of the girls on the Gallery roster, and be rebuffed but get a little closer to getting through to them, usually takes three or four interactions before they actually join up.
Interspersed between these are actual practices, which I think are where Johan as a character actually shines the most, and his passion for the sport comes through really well in the writing.
I'm not sure if the game will actually end in three months when he has his deadline to meet, but I hope we follow the team all the way to the end of the season.

The worst I can say about the plot in general is that its themes can get very melodramatic without much there to justify the time it takes.
Johan's father is a one-dimensional asshole who's physically and emotionally abusive as part of a conga line of misfortunes he goes through, and to justify why his temper causes him to insult people and (potentially) strike a girl he's just met for back-sassing him.

There's an occasional rapist hiding around the corner for our hero to protect the girls from. Lexi is almost assaulted at a party while blind drunk and afterwards acts like it's happened to her before.
Fiona is the victim of social ostracization thanks to a rumor, Saki suffers from an inferiority complex and acts out thanks to absentee parents and an overachieving sister.

All of these are juggled simultaneously, none with any particular depth. Johan

CHARACTERS - 4.5/5

Johan gets laid by virtue of anime logic and a shared interest with the girls and very little else.
I've seen people on here complain that he scares the hoes too much, but they're coming at it from the position that the hoes are overly scared for no reason, which is hilarious.
He's severely socially stunted and can't pick up on basic romantic cues, gets aggressive at the drop of a hat, he's petty, stiff.
Once, while spanking a girl, he unironically verbalizes the thought that her ass reminds him of a volleyball.
If you ever went to high-school or college you knew a guy like this, and at the time you knew he was NGMI.
But this one does! Mostly because LopaPhi is aware that Johan is a weird sperg and his mannerisms start being more funny when you realize he knows how to write normal characters to react to him.

As for the girls, I won't go into them individually further than I did above because it really is best you get a read on their personalities yourself, but it is worth saying that LopaPhi is very confident at giving each of the characters a unique voice.
With the combination of their vocal habits and the stellar use of their expressions and poses it's so easy for me to imagine their voices.

I'll touch on this as well; this is not an anime game where girls go "Kyaaa!", trip over the weight of their H-cups and land mouth first on the protag's dick, then promptly fall in love with him.
About half the cast spends a lot of the game so far getting over their initial impression that Johan is a weird creep, but it's genuinely satisfying when they come around to see he doesn't have bad intentions.
I really like all of Saki's scenes in particular, she's easy one of my favorite characters in any AVN.


SMUT - 3.5/5

This is a pretty good harem sports VN first and a smut game second.
There are currently four sexy scenes each spaced about two hours of reading apart from each other, and a bunch of stills that girls can text over to the protagonist if they like him enough.
The models of course look very pretty, but the animations themselves are pretty standard for Honey Select.

You'll enjoy them as much as you enjoy the dynamic of the characters involved, so don't expect to skip through to the porn and expect to be satisfied.

damn bro, the animations, the design of characters, the plot, the funny parts, all of their are perfect, i dont have any complains about this , or well, i have one, and is wait for updates, i want to continue playing

This game comes as a masterpiece better with each update. All scenes have so much detail and the h-scenes have an incredibly good setting.

The story and characters are excellent especially for a sports game where it is quite a challenge to come up with something good.

So far I can't really find a any weakness whatsoever, excellent quality in all aspects. I can't wait to see how the rest of the game will progress, easily goes in my top list.

Pretty good game and one of the most promising new releases so far. The premise of building a volley team from the ground up feels fresh compared to most vanillas games here and it's well built on.

The LIs roster it's great, very different types and personalities that clashes and interacts with one another in inteesting ways. Technically speaking everything is well done, animations and sexy scenes too.

My only nitpick is how quickly the MC turns from an asshole to a gary stu that says everything right, but I understand that is necessary to develop the relationships this quickly without sounding unreosanable unrealystic

Great story. Each character has an interesting backstory to follow. The main character also develops and matures from chapter to chapter. The pacing is just right, not slow, but not too fast.

Plus, the soundtrack is comfortable while reading.

The rendering has improved significantly with each chapter.

This game truly demonstrates the developer's passion and excellent work. I highly recommend it. Please support the developer, guys.

Wild Cats [v0.3]

Eh, could be worse, but 'meh' writing and dislikable characters ruin everything. And good animations with not bad models won't save it.
Pros:
1. Most of the models.

Cons:
1. Animations. Mostly default loops.
2. Shallow, super "anime-cliche" characters. Even my plate of soup is deeper than almost all of them combined. 'Don't care' and 'skip' will be your best friends. Again. Most of the cast is forgettable smocks that you have to engage with. Real chore,
3. Writing like in some D-rated anime or 200X comedy, don't know what's worse.
4. Story itself is pretty boring and all over the place.
5. Stupid filters. Pics sometimes look awful to look at.

Story :

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The story's about a rising athlete who unfortunately had to stop playing after suffering a career-ending injury. He's offered a scholarship but with conditions to get the women's volleyball team into nationals as their coach. He has to overcome challenges to recruit members into the non-existing team.

Originality :

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Pretty much one of a kind when it comes to adult visual novels. You could say Haikyuu-esq but with adult themes !

Renders:

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Renders are slightly rough in chapter 1 but improves significantly in upcoming chapters.

Sound :

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Decent background music which suits the atmosphere of each scene.

Playability :

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Very straightforward when it comes to choices. As the writing is amazing when it comes to the plot and characters, the novel is very replayable.

Performance :

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Pretty much flawless with no crashes whatsoever.

Bugs :

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No bugs whatsoever.

Animations :

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Some amazing custom animations when it comes to volleyball animations which I believe takes a lot of effort !

Voice Acting :

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No voice acting but the novel is so good I don't think anyone cares.

Grammar :

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Grammar is perfect except for some rare typos.

Amount of content :

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Contains a LOT of content for a game that is only in 0.3 and made by a solo developer.

I'm fairy picky when it comes to games as I expect a certain level of quality from all the facets that make a game great. I need memorable characters with distinct personalities, art that I find pleasing, storytelling that isn't the same boring tropes rehashed over and over. Music, prose, dialogue, proper editing, etc. Wild Cats, to me, is oozing with personality. It's not perfect. The art, while good, lacks refinement at times. The music is ok, with certrain tracks standing out immediately as being used in more popular AVNs. My problems with the game largely end there. This isn't a story that takes itself too seriously, and the writing reflects that. I went into this wanting a good time, and I finished it excited for more. That's what any artist should want. I think the foundation is here for a wonderful AVN and I hope everyone gives it a try. I highly recommend it.

It's a decent if mildly overdone story, though I think the reviews raving about the writing here also overhyped it. There's some nice character variety without falling too far into the standard tropes, but I think the development and the relations with the MC are just too cartoonish, a common pitfall with having multiple LIs. The VN also tries to balance dark / edgy with wholesome / funny and ends up melding into the sea of VNs doing the same thing rather than being particularly unique. There's a good baseline and potential here, especially with the LIs, just nothing extraordinary.

V0.3
I had wanted to wait to rate this until the next episode...but I'll just give my thoughts for now. This is one of the better HS2 game on here...mostly because of the well-thought-out writing. Its great and well-paced. Some may complain about the lack of scenes for now, but it serves to show how important it is to cook and develop characters in stories. By this point in the game, it's good that it cleared up and provided needed information about each character and their motivations. My pet peeve of mine when it comes other AVNs is how LI's just throw themselves at the MC just because without any reason or cause. However, they all feel like characters who are not just stylistically different but have unique personalities to each of them. They’re written with care, and it shows. You can empathize with them, understand their choices, and see why they connect (or clash) with the MC.

Last thing that really impressed me is how the protagonist is handled. The MC isn’t just a blank slate or a passive observer—they’re given room to grow. Their reactions, relationships, and internal conflicts feel believable. You can see how their choices shape their emotional trajectory, and that makes the story feel personal. It’s rare to see an AVN where the MC feels like a character with the player, not just a vessel for the player.

If the next episode continues this level of quality, I’ll be even more excited to see where the story goes. For now, I’m impressed.

Reviewed: Chapter 03

A good written story goes a long way! You can have amazing renders or great animations, but if you don't know how to tell a story, you're ~lacking~ (to say the least)

This is a great example of how storytelling can be effective; it's immersive and compelling, hooking you instantly.
In terms of graphics, it's not mind-blowing, but serviceable & it gets better in-between chapters .

It's a slow burn so no lewd fest, you'll have to get to know the girls first, and trust me, it's really enjoyable. If you like story-driven AVNs, give it a try and enjoy the ride. I think it's worth it.

I started playing the game at 23:00, ended up staying awake until I finished the current Patch, 0.3. Not many games hook me like this.

Firstly the characters are all very hot, and very well written. I quite enjoy every female lead quite a bit, even the ones where I dont like the character concept that much, are written in such a way that allows me to feel for them.

Something a lot of people, including me, dont like a lot is when the main character is prick for no good reason, making things worse and actively painful to watch. This I feel is what this game shines at, making the main character their own person, while still being extremely relatable to the average player. He never goes out of his way to be a prick, but he certainly goes there quickly.

The volleyball animations are also gorgeous, along with the sex animations.

8/10, impatiently waiting for 0.4

Great game.
I really appreciate how the developer treats each character — everyone has their own personality, and it truly shines through in the gameplay, in the interactions, and in how the characters react to what’s happening around them.
In my opinion, that is what gives the game so much depth and quality.

The story is solid, and the characters’ backgrounds are also interesting, but the real standout here is how vividly their personalities come through during the experience. Every game has its strong suit, and for me, that expressiveness and attention to character detail is what makes this one special.


As of the time of this review, we’ve had three updates. The third one took a long time to arrive, but it was a complete chapter — well-crafted and clearly showing the developer’s commitment to quality storytelling.

I genuinely hope the creator manages to fully realize their vision for this game.
Keep up the great work.

Really good!!! Love the characters and the story! Wishing to see more of Fiona in the new update. Also Eve and Desiree are the BEST i don't think anyone is beating those two. Anyway congrats to the dev and the team outstanding work!

Great story and writing.
Believable and well designed characters.
Very cute girls and overall super nice visuals - thanks to dev's good work with HS, which is rare nowadays.
And now I love volleyball. And you will too.

Man I hope you see this, what a increadibly TALENTED person with this piece of fine art. If giving the feeling of fuzzy, warm, cozy, positive to the players were your intention, heck man you did it.
Story was well written, the girls were alive alive, breathtaking visuals from every girl, (the introduction of Eve), the Hscenes are magnificient, feeling and emotions were out of this world, background music was also top notch, how you put it all together Im speechless, it really is good. Please keep doing whatever you doing.
I just hope you find a way to produce animated scene quicker, like making a team or something like that. I normally can't tell from other games, but with yours I can, you ought to be putting a lot of time down to make a few seconds of animation. But I do really appreaciate you making and continuing to update on this game.
I wish you success and hope to see the next update soon !

An amazing AVN! I looked at preview pics and decided to take a chance on it, and it didn't disappoint! All the girls are interesting and have their own personality! Honestly, the writing on this AVN is well above average!


I highly recommend it!