Review: Long Road Home

 Ed's H Game Review!

Long Road Home

Game Type: Ren'py Choice Based VN

Creator: OBD Games

Version Played: 0.4.1 (Incomplete)

Long Road Home... is not your average H Game. I mean, there's a lot of sex. But it all feels different than your normal porn games. The genres have really stabilized into a certain set of tropes, and this one... doesn't so much defy them but instead ignores them.

Before we get in, it's important to note that the game does have an American Right Wing bias. Bias, but not an overwhelming one. It's no secret that a lot of the digital pornosphere has a Far Right problem. Racism is abound. It's easy to blame 4Chan for this, since they're the insane cross section of racism and anime and porn. So normally, when I see things start to point to the right, that's usually a bad sign for things to come. But this game isn't like that AT ALL. While it does take some swipes at the American Left, for the most part, characters are handled evenly and humanely. A vegan character is teased for being vegan, but is never referred to as wrong, and the teasing character teases everyone. Plus sized girls are treated with respect. Two of the most sympathetic and positive characters in the whole thing are a pair of open Mexican gangbangers. There's a sense of sanity and humanity about the game which I deeply appreciate, and while the swipes directed at the Left may offend some sensitive players, I honestly recommend accepting this as a different world view and moving on. It's worth it to experience.

This is a game about crime. The game opens with the main character getting out of (implied to be but not directly stated to be) Ft. Leavenworth military prison, and swiftly hooking up with an office manager at the prison, Tracy. And Tracy's daughter Jessy. And Jessy's (almost literal) harem of girlfriends. The intro is long, and many choices for sex and respect are plentiful and make themselves apparent. What's interesting is, if you're TOO good of a person, you're given a Nonstandard Game Over and kicked out of the game directly, with a message that you're too nice for this game. Despite being a "Bad End" those quotation marks are deep because it's not bad in the least. It's presented as a happy ending. Play like a good guy, be rewarded for being a good guy, with one joke frame to show how trashy that ending would be in real life. It was honestly pleasant to see those choices rewarded, even if it's not the story the author necessarily wanted to tell. He's not shoving his own narrative down your throat.

In order for that story though, you have to commit a murder. You have to kill a guy. And that's where the intro ends, as the main character and Jessy get together and take a road trip back to the main character's hometown, based heavily on San Bernadino, CA. Where they immediately get mixed up in a turf war between two biker gangs over a local strip club. Unfortuately what's available stops at that point, but as intros go, it's very interesting.

The real standout of Long Road Home is its characters. Jessy is a tremendous "girlfriend" (though she refuses the title), sexually aggressive and very, very bi. She will hit on girls even more than the MC will. Rachael, a hostess at the strip club, may be the single hottest character I've ever seen in a Daz3D render. But every character, even the villains, are textured and largely explored evenly. The only one treated as outright evil is a molester and rapist. No guesses as to who your murder victim is. 

It's hard for me to talk about this game in too much detail, because it's just so worth it to experience. It doesn't follow the usual anime trope rules that are so pervalent. It's refreshing. It was a wonderful surprise, even in its infancy. 

Pros: Unique, human story. WONDERFUL character designs. Solid animations. Interesting concept. Well written and constructed. Decisions are rewarded.

Cons: Still in the early stages. Wears its politics on its sleeve.

Overall: 11/10

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/OBDGames