The game's evolution leaves me conflicted, as the quality seems to waver between being decent and falling short. The dialogue has lost its depth, often feeling rushed, poorly written, and occasionally marred by many noticeable mistakes. The narrative sometimes takes shortcuts, with many elements feeling overly predictable or telegraphed.
Situations arise that contradict the established rules of the game's universe, and characters sometimes appear out of nowhere without any introduction or backstory. Other characters, almost like deus ex machina figures, lack real characterization and seem to act on the author's whims, without following any clear logic or convention.
While there have been some visual and technical improvements since the game's release, many issues remain disappointing. Problems with framing, action, and character positioning, as well as color grading and shadow/light management, are noticeable. The recycling of standard assets, common in other games, is hard to ignore, and certain pixelated or low textures in the environment are particularly off-putting.
Character models often appear visually cheap, and the animations, which are rare and inconsistent in quality, tend to fall short. For example, the last animated scene in the patch is a letdown compared to the first, with noticeable pixelation, motion blur, and stuttering. The sex scenes are also generally poorly done, lacking visual polish and detail, making for an overall unsatisfying experience.
The main character often seems to lack worthy adversaries or real challenges. The last battle presented in the game, which was not animated, ended anticlimactically, without any significant stakes or tension for the player. Consequently, the fight was rather dull and flavorless. The hero has not experienced a well-controlled evolution of his potential and strength, advancing too quickly and without apparent effort.
There are also issues with the personalities and characterizations of the protagonists, with many characters having little screen time. Several characters receive relatively superficial, linear, and stereotypical treatment. The main character lacks charisma, and his physical model appears to be recycled from another character in the story.
The narration has transition flaws, lack of good staging with elements of suspense and dramatic tension being completely and deliberately defused within a minute. Characters who have been completely sidelined for a while are suddenly and artificially reintegrated into the plot through rather shaky, noticeable, and predictable narrative tricks.
Some dramas drag on unnecessarily, harming the pace of the narrative, which can sometimes be abruptly halted for long periods without adequate compensation. Certain characters commit contradictory, illogical acts that go against their previously established personalities. The author seems to sometimes confuse external descriptions and the perception of an individual by their surroundings with deep psychological traits.
The save transfer system from one version to another has not been correctly implemented and proves to be counterintuitive and frustrating for the player. Problematic bugs are also to be lamented.
I would also note that the game has issues in the sound department, with a limited number of music tracks and sound effects that fail to bring vitality and immersion to the action. The sound design is poor, repetitive, and lacks dynamism.
So, overall, I remain quite unconvinced, or rather dubious, about the direction the game seems to be taking, especially since the protagonist's departure for France until the end of this patch.
Although I had some enjoyable moments at the beginning of the game, as I got familiar with its world and objectives, the somewhat shaky technical execution and the increasingly noticeable flaws in the writing make me doubt its direction and its ability to convince and captivate me.
I still wish the developer the best of luck in completing his project and will continue to follow the game, hoping to see real improvements in the future.
