This story has very simplistic writing, which can be a pro or a con depending on what you're looking for in your reading. However, the bigger problem is that there's no charm in the storytelling. I've read many fics that weren't skillfully written but were still compelling because of other things like vivid imagery, and endearing characterizations. Those are some things this story is severely lacking in. I'll detail what I did and didn't like, but be warned that there are spoilers.
[b] Pros: [/b]
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[*]The simplicity of the writing DOES make it accessible to people of all reading levels and to readers beyond sci-fi fans. There aren't many confusing science-y words to look up, if any, making it easy to understand the story.
[*]There are some genuinely nice and/or wholesome interactions with other characters. I especially liked the MCs conversations with the sassy AI and interactions with the Were people.
[*]This story provides LGBTQ+ representation.
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[b] Cons: [/b]
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[*]This could've used more drafts. There are some errors that could've been prevented with more editing and revising. One of the big ones I've seen is two characters speaking in the same paragraph when the bits of dialogue should have been separated as dialogue should be.
[*]With no achievements involved, there are no incentives offered to replay this game to see what other routes are like.
[*]The process of viewing your relationship stats is complete ass. You can only view ONE character's progress bar at a time, and every time you'd like to look at your progress meter with the companions, you have to do (Show stats + Relationships + Character relationships + Choose character). So much unnecessary clicking and wasted a lot of time. It would've been nice to see all of the bars for the characters laid out together in the same place instead.
[*]Characterization for the companions is awful. Even the side characters in the locations you visit are more interesting than the people who accompany you on your journey. [spoiler] For example, Yelena doesn't seem to have any traits other than quiet and nice. [/spoiler]
[*]This also unfortunately means that the romances are weak. [spoiler] There is just no way that Emil can go from huge assh*le to suddenly calling you "dear" in front of everyone and deeply in love with you to the point where he genuinely has to consider choosing between you and his father. It's such a short period of time, not enough for this to be believable. [/spoiler]
[*]Building off of the point about characterization, the characters have no growth between interactions. The biggest examples that I have played through are Emil and Larua.
[spoiler] Starting with Emil, the only way to progress your relationship with him for the first half of the story is to keep taking his insults I guess?? You can't pick the options that confront him about his poor treatment of you. In the beginning of the game, at your very own birthday party, you'll have to act polite with him instead of asking him what he gets out of being awful to you in order to unlock dialogue options that will allow for your friendship to improve (or your romance to be possible). Another instance is when you choose to walk away after he insults you, it decreases your friendship level by at least 3%. This is frustrating for people who play the game and want to pursue a male/male romance because if you play as a Wispy or a Wanderer, this verbally abusive douchebag is the only option. And nearing the end of the story, if you choose to be romantically involved with him, all he does is pass off his poor behavior towards you as his "weak attempts at humor." Sorry, but that's not enough. Where's his motivation? Where's his depth? Give me a believable reason as to why he's acted the way he has towards the MC. Build up characters' insecurities throughout the story, allude to the key events that shaped them as a person, etc.
Similarly with Larua, you as the MC can propose ideas or pose questions that challenge her way of thinking. But while it doesn't drop your relationship level with her, she is so condescending and toxic in the way she responds to you. This happened at least twice, where I wouldn't just agree with her and she would tear the MC down for it, and there is no change in behavior between the 1st instance and the 2nd. And after each occurrence, she acts like we didn't just have a negative interaction and proceeds to be super friendly. No apology, no acknowledgement of the argument. It's like they never happened. But to top it off, she storms away every time the conversation doesn't go her way. And get this, if you choose to go to the sand dunes for your first location, telling her that she's saying such sanctimonious bullsh*t launches her into a rage and she says "well at least I don't go around insulting people who are trying to do good!!" AS IF SHE DOESN'T GO FOR YOUR THROAT FIRST AND BERATES YOU HARD OUTSIDE OF CHOOSING THE SAND DUNES AS YOUR FIRST LOCATION, JUST BECAUSE YOU OFFER A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE. My god, I've never seen a story lack continuity so badly. It made me want to completely stop interacting with the character, and in my later replays to explore other routes, I had to pick another race even though the Wispies were my favorite because I couldn't stand to have such a huge b*tch in the group. Her outbursts initially make sense because the Wispies are supposed to be very emotional by nature, but the problem is that there's no aftermath to them. [/spoiler]
The fact that you can't confront your companions about their terrible behavior or stand up for yourself without being penalized is just so annoying.
[*]The lack of continuity is so detrimental to the story.
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While I can't say this story is good, I won't say no to trying out another one from this author if they put out another text-based game in the future. Each piece is a learning opportunity, and I'm sure the author can improve a lot from this experience. I can see the potential, and I believe this could've been very different after more rounds of editing and revising.
