July 2023 Update
So obviously no-one's ever going to see this update, buried as it is beneath all the other reviews, but this one's just for me. It's mostly so that I can lambast myself for being an absolute fucking idiot when it comes to what makes a game good. 4 stars for this... I'm almost embarrassed.
I've obviously replayed the game recently and I could barely get through it. The dialogue was grating, the pacing was incredibly erratic (I know the dev is fixing this and making it so each in-game day doesn't feel like a whole fucking week but it's still not in at the time of writing and it was supposed to come out early 2023 so it's fair game,) the girls are almost all one-note and boring, the MC is simultaneously the biggest pussy of all time and an absolute gigachad ubermensch, one of the only relationships I was actually having fun watching progress (Azel) is actually never going to officially happen despite being telegraphed harder than every other relationship combined, every other man is fucking braindead and/or a piece of shit, the sex is boring, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera... I'm sure I could go on given enough time but I think I've made my point clear. This is not a good game.
Combine all that with the dev's work ethic and attitude and it ceases to even be an average game. I was wrong to ever give it a pass and there are other games out there which also give off that simple, uncomplicated happiness I talked about in my original review without making the whole thing feel soulless and shallow.
I said in my original review that this is a game I could play over and over again, and I couldn't have been more wrong. I'll probably never pick it up after this, and getting through it required actual effort on my part.
Oh, and there's next to no basketball despite that being one of its main selling points. What a fucking mess.
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This an uncomplicated game. There are no real stakes or struggles, nothing close to meaningful conflict or hardship. It's a straight power fantasy, with the MC being a Gary Stu that can do no wrong and is loved by everyone.
But I don't think that's a bad thing in this case. I'm not even sure exactly why, but this game just makes me feel good. It's a simple story where things go right and you get all the girls. There's no weird bullshit, no headache-inducing side characters to ruin the experience, none of the usual pitfalls in this type of game.
Not to say that it's perfect or anything of the sort. It's not going to redefine the genre or hit me with a meaningful message that'll stick with me for the rest of my life, but it's a game I can play over and over again whenever I want to simply feel happy, no strings attached.
And, personally, that's something I need.
So obviously no-one's ever going to see this update, buried as it is beneath all the other reviews, but this one's just for me. It's mostly so that I can lambast myself for being an absolute fucking idiot when it comes to what makes a game good. 4 stars for this... I'm almost embarrassed.
I've obviously replayed the game recently and I could barely get through it. The dialogue was grating, the pacing was incredibly erratic (I know the dev is fixing this and making it so each in-game day doesn't feel like a whole fucking week but it's still not in at the time of writing and it was supposed to come out early 2023 so it's fair game,) the girls are almost all one-note and boring, the MC is simultaneously the biggest pussy of all time and an absolute gigachad ubermensch, one of the only relationships I was actually having fun watching progress (Azel) is actually never going to officially happen despite being telegraphed harder than every other relationship combined, every other man is fucking braindead and/or a piece of shit, the sex is boring, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera... I'm sure I could go on given enough time but I think I've made my point clear. This is not a good game.
Combine all that with the dev's work ethic and attitude and it ceases to even be an average game. I was wrong to ever give it a pass and there are other games out there which also give off that simple, uncomplicated happiness I talked about in my original review without making the whole thing feel soulless and shallow.
I said in my original review that this is a game I could play over and over again, and I couldn't have been more wrong. I'll probably never pick it up after this, and getting through it required actual effort on my part.
Oh, and there's next to no basketball despite that being one of its main selling points. What a fucking mess.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This an uncomplicated game. There are no real stakes or struggles, nothing close to meaningful conflict or hardship. It's a straight power fantasy, with the MC being a Gary Stu that can do no wrong and is loved by everyone.
But I don't think that's a bad thing in this case. I'm not even sure exactly why, but this game just makes me feel good. It's a simple story where things go right and you get all the girls. There's no weird bullshit, no headache-inducing side characters to ruin the experience, none of the usual pitfalls in this type of game.
Not to say that it's perfect or anything of the sort. It's not going to redefine the genre or hit me with a meaningful message that'll stick with me for the rest of my life, but it's a game I can play over and over again whenever I want to simply feel happy, no strings attached.
And, personally, that's something I need.