remember learning about this game before i'd ever try rance, confused how a 1996 game with a rapist protagonist could possibly be anything more than weird fetish garbage.
how fucking wrong was I. This game is genuinely a masterpiece. I have so much good things to say about this game that as soon as I start writing one thing down I want to delete it and start writing another. I've rewritten this review so many times because I genuinely don't know what to say, because no matter what I write it doesn't feel like I'm doing this game justice. It's just that good.
how fucking wrong was I. This game is genuinely a masterpiece. I have so much good things to say about this game that as soon as I start writing one thing down I want to delete it and start writing another. I've rewritten this review so many times because I genuinely don't know what to say, because no matter what I write it doesn't feel like I'm doing this game justice. It's just that good.
2 Comments
I think it's greatest narrative is contained in the monster realm phase. As for greatest thematic density, I think it comes from the endings. There's a bunch of different endings to the game which all convey a different message or show a different side to the world (I'm not referring to the heroine endings, I mean the game end screens, such as Bandit King ending).
I think this game is all about moral choices, and the emphasis that a good ending is impossible for everyone in a world as cruel as the continent. This is highlighted well in the "ending" system for the female characters. For example, one that is minor in terms of importance as to not spoil anyone, there's a certain character who owns a theme park. She's a widow who runs a theme park for children in honor of her dead husband. There's many different ways to interact with this character and her territory. If I remember correctly, you can either negotiate with her or fight with her to take the theme park. You can negotiate, taking over the territory without fighting but it will cost you gold every turn to pay for the park's upkeep. You can conquer by force, avoiding the payment but you will kill the woman in battle. When you get her, you have 3 options. The first is to leave her in the harem, and the player chooses whether to have sex with her or not. The second is to return her to the theme park, losing her from the harem but giving her her happy ending. The final is to marry her off to a strategist in exchange for getting him as a general. She will leave the harem and get her bad ending but you get a general (albeit a not very good one, but thats besides the point.) There are many of these kinds of decisions in the game that force the players morals and strategy to interact, making for an unforgettable experience. Not everyone can get a happy ending, but who will you try to give one?
I think this game is all about moral choices, and the emphasis that a good ending is impossible for everyone in a world as cruel as the continent. This is highlighted well in the "ending" system for the female characters. For example, one that is minor in terms of importance as to not spoil anyone, there's a certain character who owns a theme park. She's a widow who runs a theme park for children in honor of her dead husband. There's many different ways to interact with this character and her territory. If I remember correctly, you can either negotiate with her or fight with her to take the theme park. You can negotiate, taking over the territory without fighting but it will cost you gold every turn to pay for the park's upkeep. You can conquer by force, avoiding the payment but you will kill the woman in battle. When you get her, you have 3 options. The first is to leave her in the harem, and the player chooses whether to have sex with her or not. The second is to return her to the theme park, losing her from the harem but giving her her happy ending. The final is to marry her off to a strategist in exchange for getting him as a general. She will leave the harem and get her bad ending but you get a general (albeit a not very good one, but thats besides the point.) There are many of these kinds of decisions in the game that force the players morals and strategy to interact, making for an unforgettable experience. Not everyone can get a happy ending, but who will you try to give one?
AllenVG
10 months ago