Reviews

• gamedeal user

  Dec 12, 2022

  Deeply masturbatory. The many non-het scenes feel written with a het perspective. Has an interesting premise but seems uninterested in it. Characters (including the protagonist) are vapid and immature. Everyone's face looks the same.
• gamedeal user

  Dec 24, 2022

  This well made visual novel may look like some sex game but its actually a well made visual novel game. Its about social manipulation. Its about putting up a mask to deal with the world you are. Its about consent. Its about trust. Its about to being open, yourself and vulnerable with the one(s) you care about at the end of the day. Its about letting yourself being taken care by others and vice versa, be it the stalker or the beauty you choose to be with. Also have a lot to show about BDSM and how to use it safely and caring of your sub. (read other reviews for detailed BDSM info in this game) ofc its all lesbian sex. Both romance options are opposite in dynamics where with stalker you have to be in control and with the beauty you let yourself in her hands and care. Also has a safe sex scenes option where you can make the characters wear Christmas sweaters. Story wise this game has the moments to make you laugh, sad, enjoy and cry.(depends on person to person) Dialog system lets go back few dialogs if you think you picked a wrong choice. Soundtracks are good and are dynamic with the conversations and the situations.
• gamedeal user

  Jan 13, 2017

  Gateway To Gaming Presents: Ladykiller in a Bind, A Visual Novel Review Disclosure: This visual novel was bought by the review. Visual Novel experience: Muv-Luv Alternative, Kindred Spirits on the Roof, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action Please note: I will try to keep this as spoiler free as possible. If you are interested in spoilers, I don't mind explaining in detail with a link to a separate group. The visual aesthetic's quality is a mixed bag, but nothing dips beneath terrible. The backgrounds and environmental set pieces are absolutely beautiful to look at, ranging from the hallways of the cruise ship to the dinning facility and pool tables located in the lounge. Random pieces of art are also included via the third epilogue, which had a couple of noteworthy pieces done in black and white shading. The UI and the option menu are all presented cleanly and in uniform fashion, something I wish a lot of other visual novels could mimic. In terms of the sexual content in this game, it is very tame with simply drawn genitalia (nothing detailed) and the most extreme act being penetration. It is nothing to write home about and due to some serious story issues, feels more tacked on than genuine. Yes, BDSM is also featured, but the use of the crop is never shown, just emphasized by sound effects. Character avatars are shown during conversation to help specify who is talking, but they are all rather similar in terms of build and height. The main menu screen illustrates this best, having each character side by side with their outfits and hair being the only real feature separating them. Faces, unfortunately, also suffer the exact same issue most visuals novels have when dealing with their characters. The faces are interchangeable with no definition to the way noses look and provide the strange case of "same face, different hair style and eye color. It just feels lazy, a feature that can easily be fixed by giving the time to provide cheek definition. This makes the characters look sterile, clean cut and bland. Thankfully, much more care was given to the outfits that range from spectacular (looking at your wardrobe Boss) to simply quaint. Clothing wrinkles and stretch lines were sown into most poses as well. The game actually uses multiple poses, different angles for each character that helps convey emotion over simply having the assumption from a single avatar. If it wasn't for the faces though, I probably would have given the character artwork a plus. Music, I am pleased to announce, was mellow throughout and never seemed to outstay its' welcome during the short duration of conversations. During times of tension, the tempo picks up and helps carry some scenes that otherwise fall flat from delivered dialog. It is by no means terrible, but once I finished the game for the third time, I honestly couldn't remember any of the melodies used. It would also help if the main menu could feature at least some form of music. Sound effects are minor, mostly given to the pounding of waves against the hull and the swift cracks of the crop. The only major omission from this visual novel is voice acting, which again, leaves the music to help carry scenes. Granted, the developer's other games lacked voice talent, but they were also not $30 dollars. Conversations play a major role in the manipulation game, influencing the way the story progress in regards to the individual classmates. While the main story follows the same script, the player can choose to interact with specific people at special times of the day, adding the chance to garner more votes while trying to avoid triggering suspicion. Each character has dialog paths that can unlock sentences worth of different text and others that are needed to progress down the path to either a peaceful resolution, breaking it off in poor taste or commemorating friendship on silk sheets. Certain conversation options are also blocked that can only be unlocked if certain interactions occur to gain information regarding that character. Options can also open up or disappear depending on how long you continue to listen to a conversation, which can be beneficial or harmful. Honestly, if the player goes to far into a conversation, they can roll back up using the mouse wheel and select a less impactful option in most cases. How can someone tell? Every dialog option has their profits and losses written next too it, which makes deciding on a specific path incredible easy. It also removes any real danger of rousing suspicion (except for one unavoidable situation) and makes the conversations less enjoyable. It is a great system (in terms of removing options) dragged down by unnecessary hand holding and a lack of discoverability. The game also handles the idea of a fail-state poorly. If a player somehow manages to get five suspicion points, the game cuts to the same conversation, the same outcome, then uses the unreliable narrator to reload the same time of day for a retry. This was a missed opportunity to examine the reactions that would have been made, leading to more potential endings and uses of the manipulation narrative. It all feels too "safe" in a genre that has given some very amazing story arcs during what equates to a game over. It boils down to a missed opportunity in a disappointing story. Story-wise, this is a mess of a title. This is without taking into account the dialog, the character motivations, the general lack of chemistry and the themes used by the developer (which are all subjective). It takes at least three play-throughs to get all the information needed to understand the main plot and goes from out of left field to incredibly outlandish for what was advertised as a simple story about high school romance and votes. The cruise is simply an excuse to set up the protagonist for the ending and doesn't involve any of the classmates plot wise, which makes the cruise seem more like filler except for the interaction with The Stalker and The Beauty (who wipes away your suspicion points if you decide to submit to her). It is hard to really pin point the issue without spoilers, so I will try it this way: this is two visual novels wrapped into one, with the first being a "fish out of water" romance comedy and the second being an origin story to a Call of Duty villain. That is how disjointed and out of place the ending feels, which would have probably just been a good place to start the planned sequel for this game. The core premise also takes a nose dive off the plot-line close to the end as it is revealed the need for votes is arbitrary, resulting in the same ending regardless of how many are acquired. On a side note: votes are needed to unlock certain paths during Day 6 for individual characters, not the main plot. It doesn't help that the chemistry introduced is paper thin (for the actual brother, not the sister). The reason for adding the consequences for certain dialog options was made to help play off the brother, I understand this, but there is barely any relationship or motivations revealed outside "he is my rival" or "I use to date her." If there were more details involving situations like the unavoidable conundrum I mentioned early, it might have been needed. The characters just don't have a well written history to give off or promoted angles to make them anything but one dimensional. Technical issues are also present on this little lust boat. Crashes have occurred three times during my play-throughs, once for hitting New Game and twice while loading two separate saves. Dialog also has a tendency to repeat itself, as if the scene was meant to be a placeholder for the finished sentence. Music would something play while I was reading something, cut off while I was reading that same page, then start again before clicking to the next page. <---See First Two Comments for Last Part--->
• gamedeal user

  Apr 3, 2017

  Has realistic BDSM paradigm 10/10 would submit to the domme again
• gamedeal user

  May 13, 2017

  If you're a kinkster or have a curiosity about BDSM, Ladykiller in a Bind contains two of the sweetest, most genuine portrayals of dominance and submission that you'll find in media (along with the graphic novel Sunstone, if you're looking for some further reading). Throughout the multiple runs and routes I've played through it has made me laugh, cry, and... well, it made me wish there were more people like the Beauty and the Stalker in the world. And at 15 hours played (at the time of writing, it's almost certainly more as you read this), I know there's still paths I haven't taken and content still to see. It's not a perfect game, of course, there's a few mis-steps here and there as you might expect with the characters and story-- mostly personal preference though: I didn't always agree with the political beliefs and statements of some characters and they ended up feeling a little grating at times, or I agreed with them so much it felt like they were preaching to the choir and stating the obvious multiple times in a row. When a story is this long (240k words in total, according to the internet) you can't expect it to strike gold with every single scene (and it doesn't), nor are you going to agree with absolutely *everything* an author is trying to say (but does anyone really expect to?) When Ladykiller in a Bind is at it's best though, it is so, so good and I consider it to be one of the best games I own on steam. There's a reason I've bought it for multiple friends (and will continue to whenever a sale comes around) and am working on unlocking all of the achievements. Ladykiller was my first introduction to Christine Love, and after playing some of her older work I'm pretty sure she has a fan for life. Now if only there was a guide to help me with the last few vaguely worded achievements...
• gamedeal user

  Jul 1, 2017

  This game is... so good? Like, I don't even know how to describe it. I'm not a writer, Christine Love clearly is. I went in expecting a refined and realistic portrayal of sexuality, and I got that, but also a really good story. And characters that won't leave my mind any time soon. And, like, way too many things that I want to try in bed. So, yeah, play this game.
• gamedeal user

  Sep 26, 2017

  This game is basically the anti 50 shades of grey, with a positive look into BDSM and combines it with an ACTUAL interesting story. I highly recommend it for those who are exploring BDSM terrains to have an insight of what safe, sane and consensual kink is. 8/10
• gamedeal user

  Dec 2, 2017

  This game took my expecctations and threw them out the window...in a good way. I had prepared myself for something less than feminist, some unsavory anime genre tropes. What I got instead was a patch of dew soaked lawn after walking a mile on sun scortched pavement. This game is dripping with consent negotiaitions! Mind blown. In making consent sexy, it is a cultural milestone, and a timely one. Come for the smut, stay for the respect.
• gamedeal user

  Dec 23, 2017

  This game is straight up porn at times. BUT! When it isn't it is an amazing dating game, with fantastic writing that is realistic and funny, and akward. This is game has one of the most accurate and positive description of queer and/or BDSM-related relationships. If you appreciate narrative-driven games, with decisions, jokes and some of the best dialogue I have ever seen, not only in games, but in art. This game has character development in it's porn. That is amazing to me. I normally keep my art and porn mostly seperated. But I allow this to cross the wires.
• gamedeal user

  Dec 29, 2017

  Are you a girl who's into other girls and also BDSM? Then this is the game for you.