Posted on: September 9, 2023
jmcminn
Verified ownerGames: 770 Reviews: 2
Good Read, Great Art, Some Critiques
So lets start with the good. I really enjoyed this visual novel. It's more e-book with pictures than interactive story, but it is a good read and the story kept me interested, while the art was well done, and pleasing. I'd recommend it. I even gave it 5 stars. But that doesn't mean it's perfect. Some constructive feedback (spoiler alert, don't read on if you don't want spoilers): 1) I applaud the author for being inclusive. But it felt forced at times. And to be clear, I am not offended by LGBTQ content. I thought Rose was a great character for example. I thought Jackie being bi-curious was well done. It's just -- you'd have thought this game was set on Castro Street in San Francisco based on Jackie's social circle. Jackie having LBGTQ friends was awesome. Jackie's social circle being 80% LBGTQ felt forced and contrived. I also found the character that used "they" as a personal pronoun grating, but that is a grammar peeve, not an identity peeve. ("they" is a plural pronoun. It reads very awkward when forced into singular context.) 2) there were a few unexplored story arcs that were introduced but not really developed. I kind of hope these show up in a follow-up title or DLC. A couple of examples: - Jackie suggests taking other clients and talks about it with Kate. This is never further explored, even when her arrangement with Roman was strained. - Slightly related, but different, the story flirts with the idea of Kate and Jackie teaming up "professionally" at times but never really follows up on it except in Roman's orbit. - Jackie's inadvertent foray into amateur porn was also somewhat under developed (less so than the other two). But Jackie was almost comically just like, "ooops, I just made an unintended appearance in a porno film. Oh well, even though I have anxiety attacks over everything else in my life, I won't give this a second thought." Again, thought, I still enjoyed and would recommend.
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