discussion How big of a harem is too big?

[kikswit]

it kinda just depends on how well the story is written. some dogshit, low-effort storytelling where some immature dickhead has a magic dick? jam in as many "love interests" as you want. a well-written harem with an actual plot and well-fleshed out characters? usually, i think the best would be if it limited itself to like 5, maybe 7 at the most. there are exceptions (see: grandma's house, despite the criticisms) but they are few and far between. i genuinely feel like the harem trope is more often or not just a way to fit the preferences of more potential players into one single story (the giga-stacked goth, the lithe tomboy, the shortstack tsundere, etc. pick your favorite type!). could be laziness, indecisiveness, or even just efficiency on the part of the author. i mean, look at the never-ending discussions on who the "best girl" is in certain fandoms. those discussions don't happen in non-harem media (usually). in my most earnest opinion, the absolute best way a harem plot can be done is when the "main" girl gets off on the mc pumpin loads into other women right in front of her. having a genuine cuckquean as the female lead is peak harem beyond reason.

Agreed, harem is usually the author fishing for different groups of fans with diff preferences. But hey, the variety can be nice.

 

[The Daydreamer]

In an AVN with an actual story that is engaging, the limit should depend on the author's skills. For some, the limit could be 3 and for others that would be the sky Also, if the story veers towards the slice of life genre (I'm looking at you teacher/students-harems that focus on romance/corruption and drama ), it would be way easier to multiply the love interests since the MC won't always be on the move on some hero's quest with a plot leaving way less room for romance.

If the AVN is just porn with basically no plot worth mentioning then there is no limit since harem members would probably be extremely shallow and mostly there as collectables

 

[Ricketyp]

When I lose track of them and I need a cheat sheet to remember who she is, that's the limit for me. Aside from that, as long as your story supports it well, and the reasons are "believable" (such as "The Fiery Scion"), I say give it your best shot. Grandma's House is a good example of characters developed well enough to not lose track, despite the numbers involved. just my 2cp

 

[WolfXDs]

I think between 4-7 is enough, if the story is well written I would say 10-20

 

[SquirrelMonkey]

4-6 If the game has any story, to may more and everything gets watered down. If it is a game just meant to be a gallery of girls in scenes then it doesn't matter.

 

[DoctorWells]

Maybe 5 main girls that the story revolves around then a few ancillary girls on the side, any more than that and it's like certain characters get neglected

 

[hentairoad]

If you take care of the Girls 5-7 if you dont care and use them as sex toys may be 15-20

 

[hromixsyqxvusohi]

I think 3 is enough for novel. unlimited for tankoubon

 

[Ryuji]

That very much depend on my opinion, but in adult games I would say anything past 6 is too much, and 6 is already going a little too much for me but acceptable, with around 4 being what I would say is perfect
PS: And I do think all girls should be able to do things to each other as well

 

[punnknight]

can never have to many in a harem but i like how Talothral does in his games like sorcerer and terminus reach sentinel maybe max number could be 10 with proper story development also like with perverteer with sisterly lust and tales from the unending void

 

[starlord]

Depends on the condition of the MC

 

[pureslvt64]

Grandma House - i tired of LIs changing each other in my screen

 

[fker]

Harems are pretty popular, but what is the right number of girls in a harem? Can it be too big? I think harems are too big when it feels like you have to choose between girls in the harem, or you only ever see a girl when you're having sex with her. I personally like WVM but I feel like it may be pushing that limit. How big is too big for you, and have you ever lost interest in a game because the harem got too big?

YEah I usually aim for only a few characters. THe better moldes or drawn, andor personality.

 

[vaelenor]

I agree with the sentiment of 5/7 being a good size but I also don’t mind one offs with random characters from time to time like in power vacuum

 

[User_29852]

I don't really like harems, there's Pokemon if I want to catch them all.

 

[BananaPrincess]

The game 23 sisters goes from 23 sisters to hundreds in the harem, that is beyond too many.

You can't establish that many characters, it would be the same as booking a wrestling show
and you have 200 wrestlers, that is way too many characters to write storylines for and
get over.

So let's look at this from a game stand point.

So let's say you're the son, which is typical in games as the MC is often a father or
a son. So let's go with the son route.

Son has a harem of 1. mom. 2. older sister. 3. middle sister. 4. younger sister.
5. teacher. 6. school counselor. 7. cousin. 8. aunt. 9. we'll say 6 girls from school.
10. The lady from the quickie mart. 11. The neighbor. 12. The neighbor's daughter
13. His best friend who happens to be a girl that has a crush on him and he never
notices her in that way until several hours into the game. 14 . The mean girl i.e.
the smart aleck bully character that doesn't like him but somehow he ends up in bed
with before the game ends. 15. Mom's best friend. 16. Mom's best friend's daughter.
16. Mom's boss

So we're up to 22 characters. All these characters could be established with a game that
has longer game play.

Then you might have a sort of fly by night, where the MC and the family board
a plane and take a trip to some Island, and MC meets a girl selling pictures whose name
is Jade and becomes friends with Jade whose mother paints the pictures and is named
Jessica, and Jade and Jessica are Lesbians who like the MC etc.

 

[JLore12]

Yeah, I agree with the masses. It has to be 8-9; beyond that, it just becomes weird. I forget things from just one person, so imagine 30+

 

[Noxim226]

as long as i have 10 im good, there's only so many i can handle

 

[AbbaDoo]

I like a reasonable slow burn, and to me that is pretty much impossible for more than 3-4 love interests. I've played harem games with great models and animations, but lose interest when the MC just starts banging random chicks in bathrooms.

 

[punnknight]

The game 23 sisters goes from 23 sisters to hundreds in the harem, that is beyond too many.

You can't establish that many characters, it would be the same as booking a wrestling show
and you have 200 wrestlers, that is way too many characters to write storylines for and
get over.

So let's look at this from a game stand point.

So let's say you're the son, which is typical in games as the MC is often a father or
a son. So let's go with the son route.

Son has a harem of 1. mom. 2. older sister. 3. middle sister. 4. younger sister.
5. teacher. 6. school counselor. 7. cousin. 8. aunt. 9. we'll say 6 girls from school.
10. The lady from the quickie mart. 11. The neighbor. 12. The neighbor's daughter
13. His best friend who happens to be a girl that has a crush on him and he never
notices her in that way until several hours into the game. 14 . The mean girl i.e.
the smart aleck bully character that doesn't like him but somehow he ends up in bed
with before the game ends. 15. Mom's best friend. 16. Mom's best friend's daughter.
16. Mom's boss

So we're up to 22 characters. All these characters could be established with a game that
has longer game play.

Then you might have a sort of fly by night, where the MC and the family board
a plane and take a trip to some Island, and MC meets a girl selling pictures whose name
is Jade and becomes friends with Jade whose mother paints the pictures and is named
Jessica, and Jade and Jessica are Lesbians who like the MC etc.

that's a great break down of a fun harem. you should start making that game