Beyond R: Rule Ripper

Edit: Previous bug has since been resolved, but there are still some save-issues, but I would recommend the game whole-heartedly now, whether going for the true ending or not! Might still be a decent start before branching out though. The time-travel system has it's own set of minor bugs, but they are not game-breaking. So: Good story, flawed save system, could honestly have dialed down a bit on some game systems to focus on engine stability, but still worth it for enthusiasts of the genres if keeping these caveats in mind.

So I played this game with 2 other people watching and guessing the story and plot line alongside me. Were there a lot of twists and turns in this story? Oh hell yeah there was, and ones 3 minds put together hadn't even thought up (I say this when we spent HOURS coming up with theories and still got parts completely wrong.) Did it keep us entertained? Yes. Did we come back for more? Of course we did. And then we got to the ending... Now there were a few bugs in places, such as being unable to save for some reason, the characters would glitch over one another, but that was completely fine for myself and the others watching. We were there for the story, we were INVESTED in the characters, what their rules could be, how was this going to end? I loved the nods to games like danganronpa and zero escape [spoiler] (maybe it was just me, but I saw a nod with a certain ace card in someone's drink, perhaps?) [/spoiler] and I loved the way this was a new spin on the traditional death game. That said, what those games excel in is the ease of information and getting around when you mess up or miss something. The dialogue in danganronpa can be skipped for example, zero escape has a branching system where you can see certain decisions made and easily get back to them without having to faff around; this game had things that could be so easily missed, it was a nightmare to figure out what was right and what was wrong. It was hard to go back (we didn't even realise there was a rewind that could be used until nearly the end of the game and yes, that is with 3 of us!) and know exactly what the right choice was and what we could have potentially missed. I think a clearer way of seeing paths, decisions, and a means to skip through dialogue MUCH faster during councils would vastly improve getting to the key parts needed for multiple playthroughs, but again, it didn't stop us from loving the game. The BIG gripe, was definitely the ending, and while I understand why it was done, it did feel like a punch to the face as the player in regards to things not feeling resolved. As I said, I understand why, but it didn't feel good going through hours of the game to then get [spoiler] the surviving characters knowing the answers, but ha ha, you woooon't! [/spoiler] Most definitely will look out for the next games in the series, and I hope with feedback the series will develop and grow in a much more unique and interesting way!

I'm gonna rip someone's rule

First off, I have to overall rate this game positively - I think this is my first ever review, so it really is a special game and clearly a crime of passion by the developer, who is a super cool person that seems to be very committed to improving the game in any way they can. However, I can't help but feel that there are some growing pains that this game has, and to me personally it failed to deliver on some of the promises that it had made (implicitly), which makes it hard for me to 100% recommend to everyone, however, if it looks cool to you, I think you should play the demo for sure. Ignore my playtime, I AFK'ed a bit while playing, "true ending" should take around 30ish hours to complete (this is how far I've gotten), with some extra story bits taking a few more hours to see. I got kinda burned out, so I did not see all endings. Absolute positives: + The soundtrack is amazing and fits the vibe of the game perfectly + The dialogue is well-written, next to no grammar mistakes or typos + The characters are all very intriguing and interesting, especially the POV character + Kinda rudimentary but cool gameplay segments Up to taste: * This game is more of a very in-depth character study(/studies?) than a mystery story. I don't want to spoil anything in the game, however, lots of questions are presented and some answers are alluded to, but in the end this game is about the players as people interacting with each other within the confines of the game. There aren't many twists and turns, I was expecting something akin to the Zero Escape series, but got something pretty different. Still very cool and interesting, but different. Not a major spoiler IMO, but beware: [spoiler] really cool that we will be getting more of our questions answered in potential sequels, however, that does make this game feel a bit incomplete in my opinion. [/spoiler] * I felt like the trial and error style gameplay didn't really fit the story, keeping track of what you've seen can become tedious, and even though there does exist a mechanic to alleviate this I still didn't see what purpose it serves that for a given segment you can collect 4 out of 5 tidbits out of which you need 2 to progress five hours later down the line. Again, nothing major, just about the nature of choices in the game: [spoiler] I kinda would have preferred a more linear narrative, or one where your choices always have immediate visible effect. I guess I've just been spoiled by flowcharts. [/spoiler] Maybe this style is just not my cup of tea, I have not played a ton of VNs aside from the big popular ones (Danganronpa, Ace Attorney, Zero Escape). I ended up completing the game with a guide, but I felt like it didn't detract at all from my experience. The negative: – The game is buggy, no two ways about it, however, the dev is super passionate about fixing everything that they can, so it's getting better every day Play the demo, and if you are hooked, buy the game, you won't be disappointed - but be open to a different kind of experience!

Very impressive for a first game. The main frustration is the progression system. Often times you would need to go back and pick some choice(s) that happened multiple hours ago. This combined with the skip being somewhat janky made finding the correct choices annoying at times. That aside, the premise of the game itself is very interesting and it is overall well written. Looking forward to more from this team.

DEATH GAAAME! I'm still on the game but I have to admit, am loving this. I like the overall flow. Am invested on this :D Also Its nice that starting part has creative way to introduce them, and make us remember the characters with the drink icons, to ease on introducing the many fun individuals.

I really like to encourage smaller devs, and after getting the true ending of the game, I figured I'd give my thoughts on the game. Firstly, let me say I did definitely enjoy this game, and if you are on the fence, I encourage you to get it, just to support indie devs. It's absolutely worth the money in my opinion. I think the strength of the game is absolutely the characters and in-world game. The characters are generally all very well written and believable, and I find myself sympathizing with everyone involved to an extent. There's a wide range of very believable reactions to the situation they find themselves in, and I found myself very immersed in their interactions. The protagonist's emotional journey is absolutely worthwhile and intriguing. On a similar note, the game the characters are playing is designed very well. The short premise is each character is secretly assigned a game rule, and their death removes that rule from the game. The interactions between rules and evolving gameplay as certain rules are removed from the game is really intriguing and it's easy to imagine different ways the game could've gone were certain rules removed in different orders, or if characters were assigned different rules. For length it took me under 25 hours (including demo playtime) to get the true ending, though I read fast. There's definitely a bunch of smaller/post credits scenes I still need to get to. This is pretty well in line with what I expect for an indie game, and I'm glad it ended up not being too short, as I find it harder to get engaged with those types of stories. In terms of the mystery/detective aspect of the game, that part felt like much less of a focus. It feels far more of an exploration of how these characters react to the situation they find themselves in, rather than a full mystery game, but there are still some mysteries going on that are intriguing. Still, at the end there are unanswered questions, which might be a deal breaker for some. The dev is clearly aware of this, so we'll probably get these answers eventually, but if having lingering questions is going to bother you, I can't recommend it until those answers are available. As any indie development, the game isn't without it's flaws. There are certain points you can get yourself "stuck" without required solutions and required to go back in the story to find the keys that do feel a little annoying, but the game offers a bunch of tools to mitigate this, so it's not the worst. Still found it a little tedious to have to do it to continue the story though. There also are a few bugs. I didn't find anything significantly gamebreaking, but a few times things would show up on the wrong part of the screen or something similar. Nothing that bothered me, I don't expect AAA polish on an indie game. Overall I really enjoyed my experience, and would recommend it to anyone who appreciates a good story about well written characters being thrown into rough situations, and again if you are on the edge I encourage you to support indie devs. It's a big part of how we get more original and unique games.

Very cool game, its best aspects are story and music. However, not everyone might like it, it's quite an unconventional death game visual novel. STORY It has many endings in a branching structure like 999 (but with 26 endings and more extras). The story follows the main character Bill, who starts off as an idealistic young man searching for the perfect ending, but has to face the cruel reality of the game. He's not your typical hero protagonist, and his psychology and backstory are explored very well in the course of the entire game. I said that not everyone might like the story because it doesn't [spoiler] answer all the mysteries... Almost none of the big ones, in fact. However, there are other good twists and character backstories before the true ending, and the story is more about the journey than the destination. Bill is no hero, but I think that is established pretty early on that you shouldn't expect Junpei or Phoenix Wright moments from him [/spoiler] GAMEPLAY The game has little gameplay, mainly dialogue options. A big gameplay thing is intervening during the councils,but no Ace Attorney-like trials. MUSIC The ost is jazzy, fitting the bar the game is set in, and it's great. From tense tracks to relaxing ones, character themes, council themes... Truly fantastic music. The OST will be released on youtube and other platforms. TECHNICAL ISSUES AND DEV I playtested the game about a month before release. It had (and still has) quite a few bugs, mainly visual, with some other bugs that impeded progress or crashes a few times. However, the dev is really fast to respond and fix things after you point them out in the Discord, W dev. I think the game is still worth it despite some technical issues, and the dev has also recently added many QoL features that make it easier to navigate through all the paths and endings compared to when I played it. Steam clound syncing doesn't work but hopefully it will in the future FUTURE UPDATES The game will be updated in the future with more story stuff, I won't say more, see for yourself after you get the true end, it's explained there The game has an extras section with a registry of all the endings and [spoiler]Beyond[/spoiler], and concept art, CGs and backgrounds, which are unlocked from getting the endings EDIT: Steam Cloud syncing now works, and the ost has been published

Beyond R: Rule Ripper is an excellent visual novel-style game. Beyond R excels in terms of cast, atmosphere, music, and in its unique Rule Ripper game. Many of the characters are quite interesting, and none are dead weight or detract from the game. Without getting into spoilers, there are certain specific ones that are handled superbly. The game transpiring within the Golden Jack and associated environs assigns 10 rules to various participants, each imposing effects and ramifications. Possession of a given rule affords exemption from that rule’s constraints. The death of a participant erases the related player’s rule, a fact which adds a layer of dynamism to this evolving death game. Additional factors include number links between two players, accusals, and councils. Dilemmas and moral quandaries arising from this situation constitute a core theme in Beyond R: Rule Ripper. Such issues are explored in various branches, permutations, and endings. While a true ending/route does exist, playing through most of the other possible endings/routes is necessary to get the full experience, particularly in terms of elucidating and fleshing out key details about many of the characters.

Excellent game in the genre of 999 or Danganronpa.