itch.io

Hmmm. I can see why you might suspect I only like Harem, and indeed, I appreciate that. But I would argue that something like a Poly path is NOT true Harem.. and that too will do. Indeed, I do not even mind SOME romance, monogamy pathways.... either. What I do not like, is narrow, on rails, kinetic, by the numbers gameplay, when the game is a Monogamy Romance Dating AVN. 

Give me some agency, allow me to taste the flavours of love, and give me some depth of character, and enough exposure to a deepening relationship, with a female love interest, and I might choose something to buy, so to speak. The VERY VERY best Romance AVN I played with Monogamy pathways to proper endings, was one where one of the L.I's was so unique, deep, well made, written, well integrated, and unique in her character, that I WANTED to be with her over anyone else. Except ONE other character, for whom the Romance/Monogamy path was OPTIONAL, and she could A: be ignored altogether, and B: was one of two characters open to being in a Harem, or the MC being Poly, but was SO .... good... so... unique... so flaw, and real, and human, but also just epitome of the perfect Ride Or Die for life bitch, that showed what she could be to the MC when he was willing to be in her corner, that she too, made it so you felt like you ONLY wanted to be with her. 

DIK, on the other hand, lets you have moments where you get a little something something.....but often with women who are not even END GAME pathways, and will NOT be LI's proper, and then forces you down a path of choosing... from cookie cutter same same characters. Every single girl is a Mary-Sue, if a slightly tragic one, even if you go the Bad Boy path, be a Dik instead of whatever the 'Nice guy" path is called. Yet also, it does not ever dedicate ENOUGH time with each one, where there is NO dramatic arc. You are comforting them, or helping them, or counselling them... and growing closer. OK sure, cool... but maybe, there can just be call them up and go on a date... for the sake of just being together, NO story arc, no pressing need, nothing related to the progress of the overall game narrative? Maybe you could, and this does seem counter-intuitive, be the one with serious problem, be given NO agency as a player to address the MC's situation, and THEY come be your Prince... or I guess Princess in that case.....  maybe there can be some natural time given over, to characters which have WAY more writing and lines bestowed upon them, than they have, to really give them extremely well fleshed out personalities, flaws, strengths, something deeper the superficial liking of tea over coffee or being in to music and playing guitar. 

DIK does NOT do that. And the supposed depth of writing and quality story, for me, just felt a little cliche, and reliant on the same tropes all those similar games, like College Kings et al, rely on, and was all rather simplistic and predictable. Certain characters who were presented as potential Love Interests, were NOT, and your did not even get to have adult time with them.... they just went so far, and no further... there was one or two in particular on the 'Dik' path, with bad girls group, which were like that, to the point it stood out. Like they were given so much time with, and were shown as getting so close with the MC, they SHOULD have been more... but never were. Because the writer had everything set in stone. Everything would, no matter play path, or how divergent things might have got through the limited choices.... always converge back. Back to the same cookie cutter, soap opera, good girl Mary Sue choices as the Love Interest, and ONLY ONE of them... even if one did come as, in fact, two. 

I found this to be wholly mediocre, and poorly done, and given the rave reviews on Steam, incredibly overrated. So much of the game did not live up to the hype, nor even the description the Dev provided. So many things could have been handled better, so many in game arcs, and choices, the dev seemed to be hinting at, and inviting you to make, could NOT BE, and came to NOTHING. When I pointed this out, the Dev accused me of being a troll, and deleted my criticism like the fragile little prissy Prima Donna, I have no choice but to assume, by his actions, he is. 

If that is shitting on a game too you, I think you are two invested in that game, for it is in fact, wholly fair criticism. As subjective as that is, I am entitled to my opinion, after playing the game at least 5 times through. On the basis of those problems, and the trite uncreative arc of the game, and in some ways, due to even some parts IN the game, which I consider promises made, I found the game lacking, and wholly overrated. You urge to White Knight for the game, and dev, reflects a emotional connection to the game which evidently blinds your understanding of my position. There is no need for nappies here, there is no faeces being dump upon any game, there is simply someone who felt the game did not deliver what promised, both in marketing AND in some ways set ups IN GAME, and felt it done poorly if it was going to be a game which FORCED a Romantic Monogamous ending pathway on the player. 

I am sorry think that point of view makes someone mental. I think perhaps you might be a little too sheltered, naive, or fragile to be entering in to debates of this nature.