itch.io

Hello AV team! I'm taking the time to write out a detailed review regarding this game, because I just finished the demo tonight and I loved every moment of it. Not only will be I leaving this review, but I will also support the game financially through your Patreon, because I want to see this game succeed and I think it has massive potential!

To begin with, as a fan of large-breasted women, I am so glad that our battle protagonist Verity is so well-endowed. Absolutely A+ character design for her, Verity is extremely sexy, and I hope future designs for any other female characters (such as Amara, previewed at the end of the demo) follows suit.

Relatedly, the game's dark and eerie atmosphere, as displayed through the art direction and the music, is phenomenal. I hope the full version of the game includes a gallery mode to view character portraits / designs, and a soundtrack mode to listen to the BGM. These would be perfect for future unlockables.

On the subject of designs, the monsters look great for generic dark fantasy beasts: zombies, goblins, etc. The boss monster for the demo is a unique monster design, and I hope boss and future enemies continue to become more unique as the game goes on. 

I also was able to play the demo entirely on my AYN Thor (through GameNative), thanks to the keybinding feature. I'm sure console play wasn't at the forefront of development as a web game, but it does work and again, the game looked fantastic on the device. 

I noticed that the demo included no true dialogue, narration, or even a prologue to describe the setting, since that information for the player was given through the game's description on this page. I do hope that the full game includes more of that-- perhaps collectable lore entries?-- in order to draw the player more into the setting (we did see Verity and Amara exchange a bit of dialogue at the end of the demo). Similarly, will Verity have any characterization, or is she more the strong-and-silent type?

Regarding movement and combat, Verity's animations are beautiful and smooth, but also limited, perhaps because it's a demo. I do think we should have the option to walk and run in the full game. Also, Verity's halberd is an impressive weapon, but with only one attack animation, Verity has a huge blind spot right in front of her where if the blade doesn't hit the enemy, she's left open to damage. I love the idea of the halberd being her signature weapon, but I hope the full game would allow her to equip different weapons (i.e., a sword or spear), with each weapon having its own AOE and damage ranges, for more versatility. It would even be great to have different armor types, which could affect her ability to take hits, inflict more damage, her movement speed, or even just be a new outfit for Verity.

Additionally, since the game is, at its core, a beat 'em up, I think it would be a great idea to introduce a counter system to track her hits (2 hits, 3 hits, 4 hits, etc). Perhaps her damage output could increase if the player is successful in dodging attacks and maintaining a combo. 

Also, I love the trinity of combat you've incorporated for enemies in the game, where some attacks can't be dodged, some attacks can't be parried, and some attacks can't be blocked, depending on which icon is displayed before an enemy hit. It reminds me A LOT of the weapon triangle from Fire Emblem, and I think it's a great way to keep players from simply spamming the attack button and to really lean into the combat system. 

There was only one power up in the demo, obtained from a chest through progression in the level. I think that's fine for any major power ups, weapons or armor in the future, but I definitely felt the lack of loot or power ups dropped by defeating enemies, which I think is essential for a game in this genre. Enemies should be dropping health or other powerups for Verity, or possibly even G to allow her to purchase items or weapons (again, ideas for the full game).  

I noticed that although Verity has a jump animation (thank goodness for that, love to see her breasts bounce, ehehe), there was no reason to do so in the demo, since the level was flat with no obstacles, and she also has no air attack. Verity should be given an aerial attack if she's going to be able to jump. I assume future levels may include trap holes or other obstacles to put the jump function to use. 

When Verity saves by praying, there should be a dialogue confirmation that says "Save successful." The save function works, but not having that confirmation meant I often saved more than once due to an abundance of caution.  

Because this is a demo, Verity could die repeatedly and always re-spawn at a save point. But, since this game is intended to be difficult, in the full game, the player should definitely have a set of limited lives with limited 1 ups obtainable, with a true Game Over screen if she dies with no lives left. This would encourage the player to not rely on the save system but to learn how to combat enemies, to keep her alive and progress through the game.

Finally, I've saved my best feedback for last, regarding what we all came here for (heh): the game's erotic content. As I stated above, Verity's design is beautiful and sexy, and I want to see more of her. First, I think there should be an option to turn off the sex scenes, because if I want to play this game in public on my handheld, it would be very nice to not have to worry about offending some person's poor sensibility when they see Verity getting pleasured (?) by a monster.

Second, I think the sex scenes should be able to viewed in a gallery mode, unlocked when the player loses to that monster. That way, there's an incentive for the player to lose at least once to each individual enemy and see her defeat, which would give more time for those animations to shine, and gives the player more opportunities to see Verity in all her glory.

I also think each enemy should have at least 2 different sex animations with Verity, so that there's variety for the player when they die to the same enemy more than once (so for example, the goblin could have the animation it has now, where it's having sex with her by holding her up, and if the player dies a second time, now the goblin is penetrating her on the ground, for example). This would make her defeats more erotic and also less monotonous. Also, I noticed none of the orgasm animations included any visible cum. Semen should not be lacking during sex, it's half the fun!

Third, Verity should be cumming herself in each animation. If I'm going to watch her die and get raped by enemies every time I lose, I at least want the satisfaction that's she's being satisfied every time I see it. The first boss animation, for example, is good ol' fashioned tentacle porn, but it's only penetration; Verity doesn't appear to actually orgasm from it. Give us her orgasm!!

On a related note, IF the full game is going to include vore, or God forbid, gore content, I would like to see a toggle to remove those scenes specifically, if only so the player has to option to avoid seeing Verity be harmed beyond what's in the demo. Look at me, empathizing with our nun protagonist already! I want to see her cum, not get torn apart, but that's just me; it would be nice to have the option. 

And finally, when the player defeats a boss, I think there should be a sex scene of Verity pleasuring herself in some way. Not only would that give the player a treat for beating a boss-- I can already tell from the demo it's going to be a hard time-- it also lets Verity have sexual pleasure for herself beyond it being applied violently to her, which I think is very important for our female protagonist, to have her own sexual autonomy.  

I also want to note that while there is no voice acting in the demo per se (not sure if she will speak in the full game), I think whichever actress you got to voice her Japanese lines is very appropriate for Verity's voice.

And that's all my feedback for this demo! I loved the game. I loved Verity's design. I want to see her have more sex and enjoy it. And I'm very much looking forward to the game's development. I'd even pay for a physical version if things go well! Thanks AV team, and I hope to see an update to the demo soon!