The Night Market

Was going through steam as usual looking for upcoming games I was looking forward to; all of a sudden I saw this IF called "The Night Market" I knew immediately as a lover of well established stories, such as Arcadie: Second Born I needed to see what this story was all about. I am currently up to chapter 5 and I cannot gleam how absolutely amazing this story is. Up until now Arcadie had been in the number one spot for best pieced together fiction for me as it felt cohesive and tied the story and characters beautifully; up until I found this. I am currently on Milo's route and yes I read the negative review spoiler and yet knowing the horrible things flawed people can do truly intrigued me and I have been enjoying this immensely; every character is beautifully written and flawed and I love it. Pros: -Amazing LI's with their own backstories and flaws -Beautiful worldbuilding and citizens to get to see pieces of -Romance feels very genuine and not at all sapphic; can get gritty which I love -So much to devour and seems to be quite a bit longer than the 4-5 hours I spent on Arcadie Cons -Main thing I can think of is typos lurking around, can somewhat take you out of the story but ultimately does not fully ruin what I consider an amazingly immersive story Overall this is a hidden gem of true beauty in the IF genre, definite recommendation it has taken first place as best read and i'm looking forward to finishing whilst patiently being hyped for book two!

[STEAMDECK REVIEW] HOOOOOLLLLLY GUACAMOLE this ending was not what I expected, and this story was so in depth and thrilling I've been reading it non stop for the past few days! What have you done to me XD!? FIRST OFF I just wanted to say thank you & congrats to this book's release. Especially for the hard work that was put into it via it's creators and the others that have helped this process along the way, because you can tell with how truly amazing this book was? That there was major effort that was put into this. I wish I had noticed the KS for this tho!! I accidentally missed it :( Either way, I truly enjoyed this book from start to finish. It's left me crying and wanting to know more! Gosh dang it!!! The romances were fantastic and so were the written textual sex scenes. Sometimes they fall flat in text based games, or I don't feel like some authors write enough where the non-fade to black, ends up feeling like a fade-to-black scene anyways if you know what I mean? But here? Everything was perfect, in depth, very creative, and suuuper well written (every now and then, there were maybe some light spelling/grammatical errors. But that hardly made a dent in this wonderfully large text-based game enough to bother me). So YES YES YES and YES I 100 percent recommend this. Also, please take your time to play and enjoy it. Otherwise, you're not really experiencing the story if you haven't reached like 30hrs at least, of game play time. Because in order to understand the characters, the story, the romances and why they do the things they do or why it's all playing out the way it is, you really should play it all the way through to the end. Clearly game-play speed might be different for everyone, but I have to say...I'm a pretty quick reader. And even while playing around my work shifts, it still took me about 62hrs just to finish almost 2 romance routes/play-throughs of the whole game (I've finished one, and am almost done with the other which I'll be finishing soon). In the end, It was truly amazing. I also wanted to point out for those negative comments I saw in the reviews. That this isn't some rainbows & kittens type of romantic forever happy ending romance routes, at least for this book. But because of the hardships the MC encounters within their relationships? I honestly felt the romances were more real. It was probably what kept me so engaged so often. I think I honestly prefer romances that have a bit of realistic flaws to make them more relatable. These are the kinds that tear at your heartstrings, or make you put in the effort to resolve things! But that feel so worth it in the end, and also mushy inside during those sweet moments. Or well they should mostly be resolved...< <. *I'm looking at you Milo Next. We're gonna be finishing that conversation and having some heart to heart words next go around...and possibly some flying chanclas you'll need to dodge. WHAT! WHO SAID THAT?* Some Game Facts: -YES there is a cliffhanger, but don't let that stop you! This book is too good to pass up! And hopefully the second book comes out soon! -There are 4 romances and they all have their dark flaws and you don't have to take their ********, but you can also make things work out, which I loved ( Milo is a WIP XD, we'll see how it continues in the next book, can't wait lol). -For Milo's 2 sex scenes if you played as a male representing as a male character [spoiler] you get a scene where you bottom and a scene where you top in that order [/spoiler] -For Gabriel's (2?) sex scene playing as a male representing as a male character [spoiler] you get a scene where you top him [/spoiler] and I have yet to encounter a second sex scene like I had with Milo. I'm almost done with his route, and if that changes I'll come back here to edit that. *I usually like to play as both female and male in my games, so if I end up playing as a female, and/or the other romances, I'll come back here to edit how those are for anyone interested.* -Each romance route play-through is about 32hrs of game play for me personally (depends on how fast you can read, or skip already read content once you start a new route). Could be less or more for anyone else. -I'm assuming each romance route has 2 sex scenes like Milo did, but I could be wrong, while also having kiss scenes outside of those nsfw textual ones. Once again, this game is fantastic and kept me reading for a few days from start to finish and worked great on my Steamdeck with no issues personally. ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT, and I can't wait to see what book 2 has in store for us.

an absolute treasure of a story. i cannot stress how amazing this story is. i cannot stop reading, i may or may not have a little fixation on it. it certainly kept my attention, thats how good it is

Reviewing (mostly) every game (or DLC) in my library, part 299: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆ (9/10) [i] The Night Market[/i] is an atmospheric, romance-focused interactive novel set in an eternally twilight-lit bazaar. You arrive with no memory, must navigate intrigue under nine enigmatic barons, and interact with companions—romantic, friendly, animosity, or political—that shape how you experience this luminous dreamworld. It’s poetic, fey, and almost always memorable. 🛍️ [b]Pros:[/b] [list] [*] Rich, creative worldbuilding. One of the most unique settings I've ever read. Think candlelit courtyards, velvet booths, spirits trading cosmos in jars—anything could be on sale, from bottled moonlight to black-market secrets. It walks the line between giddy whimsy and uncanny fey lore with real style. [*] Character-driven romance with weight. Every romance feels built around personality, not convenience. Absolute fascinating arcs, too. Their desires and emotional arcs are intertwined with your own experiences—even in poly routes. Gabriel’s cautious grief, Milo’s messy loyalty, or Belladonna’s power-play all curve the story in unexpected ways. I, of course, ADORE Belladonna with everything in my power. [*] Prose with a lyrical edge. If you love evocative imagery, this game has that dark fairy-tale energy in spades. It occasionally leans into poetic excess, but you can feel the author’s passion in every shimmering description. Most writing is passable, if not dry, so this is a standout. [*] Inclusive and flexible MC customization. You can play as male, female, or nonbinary. Choices about gender and personality occasionally shift dialogue and unlock different responses. The typical, but much appreciated. [*] Four distinct romance arcs and a poly option. Milo, Hazel, Gabriel, and Belladonna each offer unique emotional journeys—and some can enter into a poly relationship for the most complex entanglements! Belladonna was a standout. Her route examined trust and grief and how to be emotionally vulnerable. It was just perfect. [*] The dev is active on Tumblr! And also responds to asks very often. [/list] [b] ⚖️ Cons:[/b] [list] [*] Feeling of limited agency despite scripted choices. Many choices feel aesthetic rather than impactful. The MC is often a passive witness in a world that unfolds around them, though it makes sense within the story. It's more of a romantic fantasy than interactive fiction, as the story behaves like a novel with light interactivity. If you're looking for branching narrative or stat-based checks, you'll be let down. [*] Some elements of the story, your character, and/pr poly dynamics may feel scripted. Some routes (like Milo’s) feel heavily tied to existing character arcs—MC is inserted into already-established relationships, not actively shaping them. Some readers prefer a completely blank slate, but I find that so boring. People live on, even without you. Having history between characters only helps to strengthen the background and relationships. [*] Because this is a rather long IF, there are some typos and punctuation errors. Nothing too major, though. [*] Cliffhanger ending! And Book 2 is in development, so it'll be quite the wait. [/list] [hr] If you enjoyed this review, please check out my curator page to find more: [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45814768-Verdict-Play-or-Pass/]Verdict: Play or Pass. [/url] Also, please leave a like and visit [url=https://steamcommunity.com/groups/Indie_Gems]IndieGems[/url] and our YouTube channel for more reviews like this one. [/hr]

Can't wait for Book 2. Simple as that.

[5/5] A few typos here and there, but a great story overall.

Amazing story with great worldbuilding. The characters feel real and are very well written. The story is more on the darker side and the end really got me. I am very excited for the second book. I only played one route so far, it took me around 12 hours.

I want to write this because I don't feel like this game/book has enough reviews, and it deserves them. It's SO good, absolutely one of those that you don't want to put down once you've started. The world building, the characters, the romance and atmosphere of the world, everything is amazing. Please check it out yourself, it is well worth the price.

I really enjoyed reading this, I have like 30 hours on record for playtime but that's just from one route. There's so much packed into this and I personally thought it was worth every second. I'm fascinated by the world and it's residents and the story was full of little twists and turns to keep you entertained and engaged. The characters aren't perfect and the story doesn't shy away from that fact, the world has it's dark side. The game is marked 'Adult Only' for a reason. I was surprised by how much content there was, I've played a lot of IFs and this is probably the longest one I've played and it's just book 1. I know the second book is currently being written and I'm looking forward to seeing this series grow

I played this game a lot when it was still in beta, and I cannot express how much I enjoy it. The characters are wonderful, from the romance options to the random citizens of the Night Market you encounter as the story progresses. The world is rich and intriguing, and the story keeps you hooked from start to finish. And it's only the first book! I'm extremely excited to see where this series goes, and I highly recommend giving it a read.