discussion How important are gameplay mechanics in a porn game?

[suplul]

I'm a writer, working on a game right now with someone, and I would like to make my own game at some point. I'll probably go with a simple VN for the first, but as a player, I've always enjoyed gameplay elements, like daily stat tracking, actual movement around a map, needing to balance who you spend your time with versus an antagonist, or competing, up to more complex elements like platforming and interactive realtime chat options or time trial components.

How much do ya'll think other people actually care about that kind of stuff, though?

I'm honestly not sure, since I myself often get annoyed at over-featured sandbox games or old-school turn-based games. Sometimes it can feel like a big time waster when you just want to fap, other times it makes the overall game much more fun, imo.

 

[MicoJive]

I'm perhaps an outlier. I cannot honestly think of an adult game where mechanics of any kind added anything positive to the experience for me in any way. The biggest "mechanic" I want out of my adult games is choices mattering, so if there is content I don't like, or a character I don't vibe with I can ignore/avoid it in my playthrough. Thats it.

I don't want mini games, I don't want a sandbox to try navigating around an empty world, I don't want to solve puzzles. I don't want a shop and having to manage money as filler time. I want pretty girls with good renders and a halfway decent story. Thats literally it.

 

[Rato]

I'm all about games with mechanics, be it a simple training/daily life simulator like Sister Monochrome type stuff, or deep management games like Free Cities, for VNs though, all you need is choices that matter, maybe affection/corruption points or a minigame tied to the theme of the VN, but it's just added stuff.

 

[grmbl]

I draw the line at time limits. That's not just for these kinds of games, I don't like time limits (or time trials) in any game.

 

[Abrakadabra]

Very! I immediately delete a game, if it's a grind fest.

 

[qfoggy]

To be honest i would like to see more games with actual playability. VN's these days are like books but they are in "Game" category. A "Game" without a "Gameplay"