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#181
🕑 Added 2023-09-17 12:58:35 +0000 UTCParadiso Guardian By Team Lv.266 + BONUS CONTENT
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[Summary]
A metroidvania game heavily influenced by SOTN.
Play as Lenga, the Battle Angel, going on a quest to reclaim the floating castle occupied by the Demon army!
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Review:
I swear I was going to review another big ass and tiddies game, but man... that random trailer I came across on Steam once again put me in disbelief of the lengths devs would go to make us forget we're playing a porn game.
โ ๏ธ Fair warning, this is a pure gay game! (not even female enemies).
I've prepared a separate section below this review of the "usual" content for those who'd like to skip this one entirely.
With that being said, the game holds out on its own, so I absolutely recommend sticking around if just for the gameplay itself, rather than the 18+ content.
I don't really do gay or lesbian content that much, unless the overall quality is so good that even the straightest ruler among you will consider bending a little to try this sweet glazed gem.
Paradiso Guardian tells the story of Lenga - an angel soldier that went to investigate and put an end to a demon takeover in a floating castle.
On his journeys Lenga will encounter familiar faces and foes that stand in his way to test his resolve to complete his mission. But even when defeated, the losers still end up winners...
As you've read in the summary, Paradiso Guardian is indeed a Castlevania: Symphony of the Night clone, pretty decent one at it too.
It does everything by the book: Wide variety of gear, different weapons movesets, enemy loot, spells, summons, and of course unlockable abilities that open up further exploration in different parts of the map.
๐น๏ธ PG does not attempt to invent the wheel. As matter of fact, it doesn't even try to twist the formula at all. The gameplay is a 1:1 yoink of metroidvania action platforming content we're already familiar with on screens that are safe to play with grandma behind us.
Controls are as standard as they go: basic movement, jump, dodge, attack and magic.
But as fitting to most metroidvania, all of these features evolve to further enhance the gameplay and expand the exploration.
The coolest and most useful feature is performing close-call dodge similar to Bayonetta's witch time, where you slow down time, regen your mana and go HAM on your enemies until you burn out your "Angel meter" that will slowly recover again. (meaning you can't spam it to the same length effect)
After each boss you'll find a new mobility skill unlock, such as the classic double jump.
Magic is assigned to two spells of choice, and can be unlocked via shop or hidden around.
Weapons have different movesets, with special ones having additional combo or effect.
Another nice mechanic is the "bond" ability of summoning the bosses you defeated: these special summons can get further enhanced to their more advanced moves by romancing the bosses at the hub.
Gift them items and their favorite cuisine and unlock standard and expert rematch.
I heavily recommend attempting rematches at the endgame, since you'll be able to make most of these fights an absolute cakewalk with all the stats increases you'll find.
The boss designs have no right to be this good, and at any point in the game they are balanced to make sure you cannot steamroll them without exploiting broken gear.
Sure, they simply execute one pattern at a time, but focus and timing are mandatory to not get deleted by them. (or a lot of health potions...)
As mentioned earlier, it is very easy to forget you're playing a porn game, and gay one of all things. The SOTN vibes are very real when exploring the castle: From the music, to ambiance, to enemies behaviors, plethora of unique loot, secrets, etc...
๐ The entire game as matter of fact can be played without a hint of lewd to it - simply turning it off in the settings, and the whole narrative just turns into a slim and frail hero having chivalrous sparring matches with his shirtless giga ripped, well-equipped bulged mates.
But should you keep the experience "as intended", then you better be into steaming bara action. As someone who can't relate at all to gay porn, I was greatly impressed with the insane level of quality artwork after defeating the bosses.
I mean, these are probably the BEST dick drawings I've seen to my most recalled memory: supple, meaty, veiny, and overall more than just a fleshy rod with a colored tip as seen in many cases.
What's more, is that although the cast are beautifully voice acted in Japanese, the local censorship law appears to be barren from this project completely. (gay content favoritism?)
While the characters and enemies sprites were drawn in pixel art, the H scenes (as well as the cut-ins) are full-size still CGs. No animations at all unfortunately, but in all honesty,
a combination of over 9000 artwork, with great voice acting and entertaining dialogues makes a very worthwhile 18+ experience to keep enjoying long after the dust settles.
You may notice how by the end of the game you're missing quite a lot of scenes in the gallery. Well, that's because it wouldn't be a true SOTN experience without obscure secrets:
- Whenever finding an item with the description "you may be able to use it somewhere", then pop it at the shop for its own special boss fight and a special H scene unlock when beaten!
- Spend at least 100,000 at the shop to unlock a scene with the shopkeeper.
- Beat both standard and expert bosses rematches to earn their respective H scenes!
(and no hit for a special item reward!)
- Once all rematches are cleared, a special encounter awaits high above the clouds where it all started. Defeat him to unlock his scene and gain access to the True ending battle.
- Face the final boss again after you've completed all of the above to unlock a scene with the WHOLE cast!
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So I found myself playing the game from start to finish in one sitting.
Yes, it was that good, and yes, it could easily compete with other polished non-H indie titles out there.
There was a very clear intent to create a real game with H aspects to it, which was integrated in a very organic way that didn't feel like in other cases where the lewds have nothing to do with the gameplay itself.
Paradiso captures the true essence of H gaming - a game with porn, and not porn with gaming.
Devs should always respect their own skills first, before they might make the common mistake of calling a glorified gallery a "game". (or just go make a VN instead)
I'm very grateful that PG exist, not only for its own entertainment value, but also maintaining a high bar for other games to follow in the scene.
๐ Paradiso Guardian is available on Steam.
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โญ Rest assured, as I haven't forgotten everyone else that can't find it in them to enjoy a gay game, so if you skipped straight to this part, or still reading and wouldn't mind some extra bonus content, this section is for you:
๐ฅ NTR Dojo DLC: ~Aoi's Story~
As if the game wasn't already good enough, we also got a DLC with a brand new character AND extra scenes with the cute and naughty shopkeeper!
Aoi is a fully matured, but with a much younger look heroine - can be visited at the fishing area.
Unlike the other love interests, she doesn't have her own lover, so the NTR aspect isn't as dominant as the rest of the game.
The shopkeeper previously had only half the interactions that other characters get, so the extra scenes are very welcomed ones, and make the game feel more complete.
The DLC is pretty cheap, and well worth the purchase on DLsite.
โ๏ธ Glory & Miserable Survivors DX DLC (DaiSenka / Great War)
An already wonderful Vampire Survivor title, now with another two additional characters: a thicc nun and a skimpy catgirl.
New characters mean new playstyles and new scenes, but that's not all that is new, as more difficult levels were added, along with new unlocks and of course a whole lot of new items.
In contrast to how many VS clones we get almost what feels like a daily basis, there is a surprisingly shortage of such polished titles in the scene.
So if you enjoyed DaiSenka, then absolutely expand it with this must-get and criminally cheap DLC on DLsite.
โ๏ธโโ Erotic Rock, Paper, Scissors Ghost Edition
A third new installment have landed last month with a cute ghost girl that just cannot wait to lose to your rock in an RPS match.
The concept is exactly the same as the previous games in this short gem of a series.
The only thing that bothers me is the ridiculously low price they charge for it.
The dev is clearly selling himself short, asking for less than a buck for such a gorgeous, smooth and fluid pixel art with multiple scenes.
The kind of dev I'd easily support on Patreon if they had one, just to clean my conscience from paying so little for so much.
Our Ghost girl is also available as always on DLsite.
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Quite a long post, but I couldn't in a right mind divert so much from the usual content without considering my audience that can't resonate with it.
Those that do however... ๐
โค๏ธ For relevant H content of these projects you may contact me in DM for referrals.
