Neue Rezensionen von Nubi, Toa of Gaming

My first time ever changing one of my negative reviews to a positive one!

The first time I played this game, I couldn't even get to the boss of the second stage (that's how difficult it was for me) and there were no continues. Now, with the addition of the Casual difficulty level, I was actually able to finish the game and I have to say I enjoyed it a lot! The fighting felt fun, the music was good, and I liked the creative bosses and stage designs! (my favorite stage is the creepy mansion)

Big respect to the devs for listening to the community's feedback and thinking of us casuals! ^_^

A short but sweet VN with cute characters and gorgeous backgrounds (seriously, they are beautiful enough to be put in an art gallery!)

The plot is pretty intriguing and I like how you unravel the different aspects of the story depending on which character you romance. They all have different approaches and strategies in how they deal with the mystery.

If there is one thing that I think could have been done better is that the side characters (other campers and counselors) don't really get much screentime and feel somewhat superfluous. I wish we got to interact with them more to really get to know them, but I get that there isn't really enough time for it, and, at the end of the day, interacting with the romanceable characters is a higher priority.

If you happen to be from a non-English speaking country and want to play this game in English, don't bother.

This game utilizes a very old-school region lock-type BS which locks the game into whatever language the country where you purchased the game happens to have.

I really don't get what the F were the developers thinking when they decided that was a good idea. Shame on them.

Congrats on being the second game I've ever refunded in my entire life, Black Desert. That's.. an achievement, I suppose...

Forgive me, father, for I have simped...

Alright, I guess I'll be the first one to review this.

I like the game overall. It has a fairly unique story for a dating sim and some pretty good and diverse characters. The art is distinct and fairly enjoyable, though it can be a bit weird at times (♥♥♥'s head seems disproportionally small for his body and Eva's eyes are so big, they remind me of one of those troll dolls). That said, the sexy CGs are sufficiently sexy and the backgrounds are pleasantly pretty.

I do have to point out that the description of the game is a bit misleading. It says there are "6 girls to enter questionable relationships with", which is technically true, but in reality there is really only 4 characters you can marry (which is the whole point of the story), whereas the other 2 girls are just side routes that end abruptly (and, in my view, unsatisfyingly). It's possible there are better outcomes with these two, but I haven't managed to find them yet.

Either way, I'll be curious to see what the Sumooli Island Inc. will do next, whether it will be a new game or a bonus content for this one! ^_^

I dunno, guys, this is basically just a kinetic novel. I'm not sure why the devs even bothered putting the tiny, sparsely-paced, insignificant choices in it if they don't actually do anything.

If your ideal man is defined primarily by his bank account, you might dig this story. Otherwise, I'd suggest skipping this one.

Could this be the best visual novel of 2022? I think there's a strong possibility, even though it is only February!

There's really a lot to love here in terms of the story, characters, world-building, writing, and even animations. In fact, this is one of the most "animated" visual novels I've ever played! You can tell the developers put a lot of effort into the various cut-scenes, character movements, action scenes, and other elements that make the whole experience feel dynamic and alive. They didn't have to do it, but they did, and I commend them for that! ^_^

You can tell the writers know a lot about science and astronomy as some of the conversations and lore feel very well thought-out and researched. I feel like this is the kind of game you need to have a PhD for to properly appreciate all of the scientific details and lingo. Again, the devs didn't have to go this far, but they did and it shows just how much passion there was in this project. I am very impressed with that!

Overall, I will give this game a score of 8 out of 10, and you might be wondering how come it's not 10 out of 10? Well, there are two big downsides in the otherwise stellar experience, in my opinion:

1. The game NEEDS more save slots. This game has many choices, big and small, that are fun to explore and try out, but having only 5 save slots makes that task virtually impossible and unwise.
   
2. I really wish the alien characters were romanceable, at least some of them should be, I believe. I think that would add more drama, storytelling possibilities, and will just let the player get to know them better. It just seems like a big missed opportunity not to do it in a story like this, you know?

In fact, if the devs add a Kitheya romance route, I will personally buy 10 extra copies of The Star Legation and gift them to all my friends and whomever comments on this review!
YES, I AM VERY SERIOUS ABOUT THIS!

Other than that, I have a list of small nitpicks that I think the devs could look at and perhaps address them better in the game's dialogue and world-building,

• The Interstellar Union is not a mouthful of a name, so why do all the characters insist on shortening it to ISU all the time? It feels a bit unnatural to me.
  
• I find it hard to believe that the space-faring humans would use Fahrenheit and the imperial system instead of the metric and Celsius. Maybe if there was a better explanation as to why that's the case, I would buy it, but the game acts as if humans just always use those, even though in our world only about 5% of the planet utilizes those measurement systems instead of metric and Celsius, which are objectively better.
  
• How come Trey is only 27? I mean, he was in the military for years, then spent years managing a dangerous prison colony, and was even chosen to be the Humanity's representative for the Interstellar Union. I mean, sure, it could be just me feeling inadequate as I have turned 28 today and haven't accomplished even an iota of that, but I mean, he even LOOKS older! I assumed he was in his 30s just based on his appearance.
  
• I think it's a bit of a shame we didn't get to see the Krissethi homeworld more aside from that throne room. I mean, yeah, we saw some other planet of theirs, but it wasn't their homeworld.
  
• I like Akanutoka, but it feels like his addition was some kind of DLC of sorts as he doesn't appear on the game's title screen and there isn't really a way to get to know him or his people better. Was he perhaps a part of a plotline I missed?

Admittedly, I haven't finished the game yet, but I think I've seen enough of it to share my opinion with you:

I overall recommend it, but with a big caveat — the game is not quite what it seems.

What I mean by that is that the game describes itself as having "silly anime goodness", and while it does have it to some extent, the game takes itself far more seriously than it needs to. I think the best way to describe it would be like if you were invited to a fun party, which actually turned out to be a summit on environmental issues in disguise. There's nothing wrong with having a discussion about this, of course, but not when you expect to get something else.

For a game that is supposed to be a silly monster girl dating sim, there is a surprising amount of deep conversations about the nature of humanity, good and evil, environmental justice etc. There is even a bad ending early in the game where you can see yourself and another character die in a gruesome way, and it's played straight. It just comes across like the creators weren't sure what tone they wanted the game to have, so they went with both, but I don't think they pulled it off.

Aside from that, the characters are very likable (most of them) and the music is surprisingly good; it's as good as the art style is underwhelming. I don't hate the art style though, it can be pretty cute at times, but it has to be acknowledged for what it is.

Anyway, thank you for your time! ^_^

Queen Koni is best girl.

Peace!

I just feel really bad for Ader (the main character). He seems to be surrounded by complete a-holes who treat him like garbage for no good reason. Is that supposed to be funny? I don't get it.

The art style is great and the voice acting is nice, but it doesn't save the game from the unlikable cast of characters.

This game is extremely polished, but ultimately soulless.
It is the best the "sexy puzzle games" genre that has been plaguing Steam for a while has to offer and that's not saying much.
The characters just don't have any personalities really. They may have different hair colors and clothes but their personality doesn't go beyond "horny af".
Is this what the modern dating is like? God, that's depressing...