One of the better starts to a game here (v 0.0.1c). The MC is edgy/serious without taking himself too seriously. His design is one of the few I find not douche looking, though that will depend on tastes I suppose.
The females all seem unique both in design (aren’t your standard Daz designs) and character development. This is clearly not intended to be a harem game, not sure if there will be any combo routes or not. And hopefully no more LIs are introduced as 4 to 6 is more than enough.
The writing is good, with great pacing, style, and it’s very readable English.
The plot is interesting though not groundbreaking. It’s a good mix of mysterious MC background, ex love interest possibly, magic—seems a world where many know there is magic but it also seems hidden from many and the setting is college where dark things are happening. The only stretch for me is getting the MC go to a school he didn’t even apply for or seem interested in. I get that he’s curious but idk; it’s like being a female at an airbnb agreeing to share it with an unknown man, who does that?
Not sure it’s fair to compare yet but I got vibes of Summer’s Gone but with magical and darker world (this is good imo).
Overall I’d say a 4.5 start, but rounding to 5 for a change rather than down like I normally do.