Pre-Odyssey: Love at First Quack

I've played the demo on itch quite some time ago. This version is a totally different deal, much improved + achievements!

Pre-Odyssey is a very short otome that can be completed in a sitting or two. I played this when it was originally free to play on Itch.io and enjoyed it so much that I was happy to buy its updated release on Steam. Aside from the voice acting, I think the eye blinking in CG animations are new, and the in-game lore archive is new, but the rest is largely the same as the original release. The dialogue is very modern with narrative jokes that wouldn't make sense for the time period, but I thought they were fine since this is a very non-serious game. It's light-hearted and funny, and the addition of the ducks make it impossible for anything to get truly dark even when the game gets around to discussing a depressing backstory. If you love Greek mythology this is an easy win as there are a *lot* of references to various myths, some of which are fairly obscure! I don't normally like otome with just a single love interest, but since this is the story of two established mythological characters and we never really saw a full length myth about Odysseus and Penelope's courtship, I was quite happy with this. My only complaint is that the in-game walkthrough (unlocked after first good ending) is a little janky. I don't think it's intended to completely hold your hand since it describes itself as giving players a hint to find the rest of what they need, but at least one of the choices is out of order and the options it tells you to pick are often worded slightly differently from the actual text in game. I still managed to 100% the achievements in just under 3 hours according to Steam, but if you are an achievement/CG hunter it might be easier to use the walkthrough as a starting point and then when it ceases to be useful, leave a bunch of saves all over the place to reload and try other choices.

buff boi open mouth kiss 10/10 came for the ducks, stayed for the naked race

would you fall in love with me again if you knew all i've done the things i cannot change <3

大大，我们需要支持简体中文。

If Nolan wasn't a coward we could have an Odyssey movie with these fun visuals and playful humor. ... okay but for the serious part. This is a charming and sweet VN, and expertly blending modern otome conventions with trivia about the times. I AM a sucker for "cold and tough guys who go soft for one woman" and the OdyPen here DELIVERS that. It's a shame that there's only partial voice acting as the Odysseus actor reads his lines so well. Would love to hear more of his teasing to Pen read aloud, along with the chance to compare how his voice sounds when he's not talking besottedly to Pen. But that's perhaps my only complaint, as the art, music, and writing were so good. 100 percenting the game wasn't anything of a chore, as I enjoyed every minute I spent with this couple and their duck children.

We need more vns, especially otomes, with birds. It was quacking beautiful!

I thought the game would be a comedy because of the ducks. It ended up being one of the sweetest and most wholesome experiences that I've had in a while. It's the little details that really elevate this game - from the UI, to the short explanations, the POV re-tellings of ancient stories, to the chosen silhouette for the spoiler blocker. The whole experience just felt like comfort. I solidly recommend this game for anyone who just wants a relaxing palate cleanser between playing all the darker games coming out.

有成就 没中文 《奥德赛前传：一见钟情鸭》 斯巴达的海伦公主是世界上最美丽的女人，几乎令希腊所有的国王和王子都为之倾心。 来自天南海北的求婚者纷纷涌入王宫，期望能赢得她的芳心，与她成婚 —— …… 但这个故事的主角不是她。 登场的是佩内洛普，海伦不太受关注的表妹。 在叔父的宫殿小住期间，她遇到了海伦众多追求者中的一位，声名远扬的 “诡计多端之王” 奥德修斯。 不过，这位斯巴达公主本身也名声在外…… …… 是因为她是伊卡里俄斯王子最宠爱的女儿？ 不，不是这个原因。 我是说，是因为她是出了名的 “鸭子女士”。 本故事基于廷达柔斯的誓言，以及其他几则围绕佩内洛普和奥德修斯展开的神话创作而成。 35000 + 字篇幅 满是 “鸭” 字双关语（谐音梗） 1 位恋爱对象 2 个美好结局 2 个友谊结局 海量鸭叫声（大量 “嘎嘎” 声效 ） 10 余张可收集的 CG（电脑绘图 ） 可解锁的背景故事 / trivia（奇闻轶事、小知识 ） 部分语音配音 有鸭子！

DUCK YES I would recommend this. if you like duck puns, duck-based chaos, and Greek myths... this is DUCKING perfection! also, the cg's are voiced by a delightful chap (whose voice reminds me of a beautiful cross between Senku Ishigami and Erik Anderson.) my only complaint I guess would be... not long enough, I WANTED MORE, LMAO (even so, not a real complaint, this game was a solid 9.9/10 -.1 because I wasted like 20 minutes after getting confused by a step in the walkthrough)