VN Ren'Py Yesterday's Crossroads [Ch.3 v0.4.0a] [CHAQUINN0]

[erkper]

Love this game, was very happy to see the update. The girls and story are A-MAZ-ING. Only one question (and probably one that could have already been asked though search seemed to draw a blank):

Why the fuck is there a sword in this firepit?

 

[Elduriel]

well if you only spend time with Kimberly she starts calling you her boyfriend and it feels good

or at least when people call you her boyfriend she does not correct them and that feels really good

that I agree on barley remember her path tbh unless that's from the update all I can remember is a lewd scene with her but I plan to give her a proper path and save when I play it

I actually starting to like her a lot now that I've done a proper save just for her, probably at the top of my list, even though it's hard to make a definitive list. I like most of them except Kim and Keyla (Kayla? )

 

[CrazyRabbit]

Love this game, was very happy to see the update. The girls and story are A-MAZ-ING. Only one question (and probably one that could have already been asked though search seemed to draw a blank):
View attachment 3854283
Why the fuck is there a sword in this firepit?

How else is MC supposed to fend off Keya if she pop out of nowhere ?

 

[Quetzzz]

Yeah, that Keyla married him after that was the point i finaly thought stupidity deserves to be punished and they deserve each other...that the MC and Kim got close (after she didn't break up with Zeke after the MC told her) was kinda a really bad reason to marry him.

Yeah, pretty much the worst reason. What kind of person makes a decision like that? Not a kind of person I'd want to associate with, personally.

 

[motseer]

Love this game, was very happy to see the update. The girls and story are A-MAZ-ING. Only one question (and probably one that could have already been asked though search seemed to draw a blank):
View attachment 3854283
Why the fuck is there a sword in this firepit?

What? You've never heard the story of The Sword In The Firepit?

Oh, wait... maybe it was a stone...

 

[Canto Forte]

People have been known to cauterise their emotional wounds with incandescent sharp letter openers.

The Sword In The Firepit

That thing is not even a long enough blade for that even.

 

[The Witcher]

So Olivia and Julia is mutually exclusive?

Don't know, it's mentioned in planned tags that harem is optional but i didn't see it in the game yet. choices like (Olivia or Julia) and having to choose one woman to date and miss the others isn't giving me that hope.

you have to make a few saves for each LI to see all the scenes.

 

[Simpgor]

I respect this!

And, speaking for myself, please consider my criticism as coming from a place of respect and love of the game. In the end, it's just my subjective experience.

With the risk of overstepping, here's some things I think can be cleared/cleaned up:

• Leyla and Zeke: I'd change the backstory slightly, keeping the cheating of Leyla and the MC, albeit making it shorter (weeks instead of months), and them both agreeing to put a stop to it. They could feel guilty, and Leyla could re-affirm that she made a commitment to Zeke, and intends to see it through, despite her cheating on him. This would show that Leyla made a mistake, but wants to be loyal (She also made Zeke a promise, after all). It would also give a good reason why nobody told Zeke, with both Leyla and the MC wanting Leyla x Zeke to succeed. She can still pine after the MC, explaining her behavior after Kim leaves, specially as her marriage is comfortable but without passion (which is also a good hook for "the grass is greener on the other side" / "the grass is greener where you water it").
• The way Zeke is demonized makes me wonder why we're even still friends with him. Did he need to be a cheater in college? I think this needlessly complicates the narrative. Having replayed the game yesterday, I got the impression that you're spending a lot of time trying to explain what & how it all happened with MC + Leyla + Zeke, while it could be very straightforward

Perhaps things change after the point I quit (basically after ex gf coffee scene) but at this point Zeke has not doing anything nor have there been any hints that he is anything other than a normal guy? Where on the other hand Keyla is confirmed liar (lie by omission to MC), and cheater (MC) as well as the one who seems to be "trying less"/"messing up the relationship" (when Zeke comments about the electrically bill in any way she is innately primed for it to turn into a verbal argument) and then you top that off with the only information about her and zeke getting together being "she wanted to say no but then said yes"..... (the years in between saying yes and the current game time are ignored i guess? )

I assume (in line with narrative depth so far) that Zeke is made "worse" so that its even easier for people to say "well then i guess i can pursue my friends current wife!!!!1" without making the MC even less logically consistent as a character.... as others have pointed out it makes no sense that the guy who tells his gf to leave for korea with 0 notice (for her own good) is fucking his friends WIFE which is not good for the wife (assuming divorce) and for sure isnt good for Zeke (obvious).

Not even mentioning that either Keyla, The Ex GF, or the dev are lying(plot hole) about how long Keyla and the ex were in contact before she got back.... Keyla says (to her random english friend love) that the Ex messaged her two days ago, The ex tells MC that she did not contact ANYBODY until yesterday? Normally I would assume its just a plot hole but since both the girls have been confirmed to be able to lie directly to MC for months i assume the same here


oh and to be "helpful" transtions in the early game would for sure help.... dev dont even need new scenes just an extra line or two before fading to black or a line during the black screen saying x time has past or Xday (like it does for the year long skip) would help quite a bit without being much more work (every negative review mentions the transitions)

 

[Justaphase]

One of the hardest parts about developing an episodic game, especially one with a heavy story focus like this, is that revealing every little detail at once makes it predictable and quickly loses its appeal.

I wouldn’t call it handholding, but telling the player exactly what they need to do for a specific outcome takes away from character and story development.

Games like Man of Medan, Detroit: Become Human, and Until Dawn, which are big inspirations for me, don’t do that, but they are complete and much well rounded games from the start, which makes things easier for the player. Has anyone played them just once and got all the outcomes right off the bat?

I’m not saying that the complaints aren’t valid -- I do understand. But at the same time, if you want a badass MC who makes all the right decisions, where everything goes according to plan, and all characters are so perfect they have VIP entrance to heaven, then this is not the game for you.

Have I made some bad decisions? Absolutely. Looking back, I definitely understand some of the frustrations. That’s why I am reworking some of the previous content and adding extra content to the earlier chapters to address those problems.

So I do understand the points and frustrations, and I take all feedback to heart, even the ill-intended and insulting ones.

Truth is, a game for everyone is a game for no one.

Personally I'm really enjoying your game so far. Don't feel like you need to rewrite your entire story to please some negative people who even after you change it, still won't support you and ultimately it still won't be good enough for them.
Is the MC perfect? No. Has he made mistakes, and likewise other people in his life? Yes. Life is messy and anyone who disagrees hasn't been around for long enough to find out or have been living under a rock.
For me the imperfections are part of what makes it relatable and makes the characters feel human and not mindless sex dolls like other AVN's that I won't name.

Oh and can I have lots more Alessa please? I've been kinda obsessed with her since she was introduced.

 

[Hengat]

• Leyla and Zeke: I'd change the backstory slightly, keeping the cheating of Leyla and the MC, albeit making it shorter (weeks instead of months), and them both agreeing to put a stop to it. They could feel guilty, and Leyla could re-affirm that she made a commitment to Zeke, and intends to see it through, despite her cheating on him. This would show that Leyla made a mistake, but wants to be loyal (She also made Zeke a promise, after all). It would also give a good reason why nobody told Zeke, with both Leyla and the MC wanting Leyla x Zeke to succeed. She can still pine after the MC, explaining her behavior after Kim leaves, specially as her marriage is comfortable but without passion (which is also a good hook for "the grass is greener on the other side" / "the grass is greener where you water it").
• The way Zeke is demonized makes me wonder why we're even still friends with him. Did he need to be a cheater in college? I think this needlessly complicates the narrative. Having replayed the game yesterday, I got the impression that you're spending a lot of time trying to explain what & how it all happened with MC + Leyla + Zeke, while it could be very straightforward.

Exactly this. Their story just gets layers after layers which are unnecessary. Her saying yes when she wanted to say no was a final nail to the coffin for me of how stupid she is. She didn't want to tell Zeke about affair to avoid hurting his feelings and to avoid ruining relationship of MC and Kim, that's ok, but the fact she thought marrying Zeke (the guy she cheated on, didn't love and who was best friend of MC for whom she still had strong feelings) was a good idea for moving on is absolutely unreal to me. I simply don't understand, she wanted to leave MC because he was happy but that doesn't mean she couldn't break up with Zeke for whatever reason. Is there anybody here who likes Keyla after all that revelation? Was the idea for her character was to be second Kim?

And Zeke banging every sorority girl in college... What is that information for? What does it add to the story? Do we need more information why their already dead relationship didn't work out?

 

[Canto Forte]

This goes both ways: Zeke said nothing to his supposed best friend about his future wife to the point MC still thought Zeke was swimming in high school pussyes at the time Keyla came back to him = MC said nothing to either Keyla or Zeke of his true feelings.

Is there anybody here who likes Keyla after all that revelation? Was the idea for her character was to be second Kim?
And Zeke banging every sorority girl in college... What is that information for? What does it add to the story? Do we need more information why their already dead relationship didn't work out?

Total asssholes like to take advantage of the effeminated naive skeamish MC and his backed up emotions where MC just does not have the guts to say no to those two. He only runs away so as not to face them if he can manage it, or else he if whipped.

Like you were friends with this dude for yeaaaars

And you never knew he ever had a girlfriend or that it was Key - just his boistorous galavanting that he was swimming in pussy - case in point MC is only good when Zeke tells him of the hot pussy at the gym - that Zeke himself is pursuing if you actually read the conversations and not plot armor the villainous asshole you like so much in this game.

Yeah, i just don't get that choice...like no one in their right mind would say yes to that proposal, no matter how desperate Zeke was (for what ever mysterious reason), or you don't want to hurt him.
That was just a moment i thought, you know, you really deserve a darwin award (or at least Zeke)...even if they were young and stupid, this is just too stupid from Keyla...

It is called emotional blackmail towards Keyla - thretened her with telling MC about them - yeah, talk about vilainous assholes and dumb broads ... and Zeke has a rivalry with MC - clearly as MC is backed up emotionally and Zeke keeps wanting to steal girls away from MC - boys do this idiotic dance of ice and fire - Daemon stealing his niece from his brother even tho Daemon is swimming in pussy in every episode of that house of the dragon dumpsterfire show.

 

[Simpgor]

Is there anybody here who likes Keyla after all that revelation? Was the idea for her character was to be second Kim?
And Zeke banging every sorority girl in college... What is that information for? What does it add to the story? Do we need more information why their already dead relationship didn't work out?

According to the reviews and the sentiment towards people claiming otherwise yes people not only think she is believeable/realistic but also that she is in the right (I hope it isn't because they personally were in a long term loveless relationship) . And yes because without the information that zeke waa "askually the bad guy the whoooole time" someone could be worried Keyla would lie (even more) and cheat on MC

There's a reason there isn't a hint of him cheating at all (maybe the rework will add it in) even people being positive about the game don't mention zeke always being bad it's always "when the story gets the x point"


Like you were friends with this dude for yeaaaars and the only time he is "cheating" is the period where it makes Keyla x MC ok? That's realistic alright! if we are working off of a coomers dream

 

[Maviarab]

to avoid ruining relationship of MC and Kim

He never cheated on Kim. If you search Chaq's posts here he has posted a full timeline of events.

Is there anybody here who likes Keyla after all that revelation?

Yes.

 

[Raziel_8]

(the guy she cheated on, didn't love and who was best friend of MC for whom she still had strong feelings)

Add to that: the guy she was told has cheated on her with pretty much any willing girl available...

I simply don't understand, she wanted to leave MC because he was happy but that doesn't mean she couldn't break up with Zeke for whatever reason. Is there anybody here who likes Keyla after all that revelation? Was the idea for her character was to be second Kim?

Yeah, i just don't get that choice...like no one in their right mind would say yes to that proposal, no matter how desperate Zeke was (for what ever mysterious reason), or you don't want to hurt him.
That was just a moment i thought, you know, you really deserve a darwin award (or at least Zeke)...even if they were young and stupid, this is just too stupid from Keyla...

 

[Elduriel]

Yes.

 

[Maviarab]

Spoiler: I am and...don't call me Shirley...

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[Elduriel]

Spoiler: I am and...don't call me Shirley...

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you must also love Kim and Kaija then

 

[Hengat]

He never cheated on Kim. If you search Chaq's posts here he has posted a full timeline of events.

I know, I've read that Chaq's post about chronology of events. I never said MC cheated on Kim. I'm talking about what Keyla said here:

Add to that: the guy she was told has cheated on her with pretty much any willing girl available...

Oh yeah, I forgot that she also knew about that before saying yes.

 

[Crimsonfiend76]

Don't know, it's mentioned in planned tags that harem is optional but i didn't see it in the game yet. choices like (Olivia or Julia) and having to choose one woman to date and miss the others isn't giving me that hope.

you have to make a few saves for each LI to see all the scenes.

Is there any walkthrough or some paths explanation somewhere ? It's somewhat confusing and I don't really want to play this 6 times to see what goes with what. I'm fine with some replayability but I'm like 2 hours in and I see this gets really stuffy and I'm sure I missed a lot of stuff. Some simple explanation from someone who had more patience than me would suffice too like a spoiler answer with X/Y/Z girls can be a throuple or harem ..and A/B/C dont, etc.
I think I got it from reading some posts that this is not a "gotta catch them all" harem thing. Thanks in advance for any answer that clarifies this.

PS: I saw there is a mod, but it's made for an earlier version and it doesn't seem to be getting updated anymore, or anytime soon for what is worth.

Despite the planned tags indicating a possible harem, unless dev changed his mind I don't see that happening or at least not a full harem. I have an excerpt of a post dev made several months back:


So while we do not know which girls are willing to be in the MC's 'harem' or share him, it appears there are several that are confirmed mutually exclusive and according to dev's own words, it's a safe bet none of the main LIs MC works with will be happy or ok he is dating them simultaneously. While possible. it is heavily discouraged since it most certainly will not end well.

-I can confirm from the discord Alessa can be pursued with or without Vera. Alessa will ask if the MC wants to form a throuple with Vera, but Vera solo is NOT option. She is down for fun with the MC and him joining the relationship officially, but will not cheat on Alessa or leave her.

-There will not be a point where the player gets to choose which girl they want to finish the game with. Instead, the choices they make throughout the story will determine that, funneling their routes to a point of a breakup. This may be due to the MC's misbehavior, missing a date, doing something wrong, and yes, even discovering another girl.

- An example of the above mentioned:
One of these things will already happen in Chapter 3, which actually already started in Chapter 2; Olivia's art class scene serves as a point to show the player that they are not free to do whatever they want, turns out Olivia actually knows Julia. Her charity event, if the player is dating Julia and decides to attend that event, it will already be the end for Olivia's route. Though, this time, you can still dodge that bullet, that won't happen every time.

-Alessa is much more open-minded than most of the other LIs. Despite still having feelings towards the MC, she’s exploring herself and will not lock you out of anyone else’s path for the time being. Her only limit is her sister.

-Kimberly is afraid of losing the MC's attention, which leads her to accept the fact that you are in a different relationship with another LI, but she will fight tooth and nail for him.

- A possible Alessa/Vera/Kimberly path seems to be confirmed, though not sure for how long.

-Zeke has no idea about the MC and Keyla’s past, nor did he know they had a secret relationship in college. However, he was suspicious, which prompted him to propose to her as she was about to break up with him (this was meant to be told in Chapter 3, but I guess it’s fair to bring it up now anyways). Zeke never questioned any of them, as the only thought in his mind was that she could be developing feelings towards the MC, nothing more.

-Kimberly and Alessa (and Vera) are the ones fine with an open relationship, the other ones not so much.

 

[Joratox]

Despite the planned tags indicating a possible harem, unless dev changed his mind I don't see that happening or at least not a full harem. I have an excerpt of a post dev made several months back:
View attachment 3854450

So while we do not know which girls are willing to be in the MC's 'harem' or share him, it appears there are several that are confirmed mutually exclusive and according to dev's own words, it's a safe bet none of the main LIs MC works with will be happy or ok he is dating them simultaneously. While possible. it is heavily discouraged since it most certainly will not end well.

-I can confirm from the discord Alessa can be pursued with or without Vera. Alessa will ask if the MC wants to form a throuple with Vera, but Vera solo is NOT option. She is down for fun with the MC and him joining the relationship officially, but will not cheat on Alessa or leave her.

-There will not be a point where the player gets to choose which girl they want to finish the game with. Instead, the choices they make throughout the story will determine that, funneling their routes to a point of a breakup. This may be due to the MC's misbehavior, missing a date, doing something wrong, and yes, even discovering another girl.

- An example of the above mentioned:
One of these things will already happen in Chapter 3, which actually already started in Chapter 2; Olivia's art class scene serves as a point to show the player that they are not free to do whatever they want, turns out Olivia actually knows Julia. Her charity event, if the player is dating Julia and decides to attend that event, it will already be the end for Olivia's route. Though, this time, you can still dodge that bullet, that won't happen every time.

-Alessa is much more open-minded than most of the other LIs. Despite still having feelings towards the MC, she’s exploring herself and will not lock you out of anyone else’s path for the time being. Her only limit is her sister.

-Kimberly is afraid of losing the MC's attention, which leads her to accept the fact that you are in a different relationship with another LI, but she will fight tooth and nail for him.

- A possible Alessa/Vera/Kimberly path seems to be confirmed, though not sure for how long.

-Zeke has no idea about the MC and Keyla’s past, nor did he know they had a secret relationship in college. However, he was suspicious, which prompted him to propose to her as she was about to break up with him (this was meant to be told in Chapter 3, but I guess it’s fair to bring it up now anyways). Zeke never questioned any of them, as the only thought in his mind was that she could be developing feelings towards the MC, nothing more.

-Kimberly and Alessa (and Vera) are the ones fine with an open relationship, the other ones not so much.

Thanks a lot for taking the time to explain, it made a few things clearer. Cheers