I feel there’s no better way to start this new direction for The Grim Tower than by reviewing one of the best adult games I’ve ever played in my life. That would absolutely have to be Sinisistar. You’ll find loads of video footage for it on PornHub, along with several walkthroughs and complete runs. These would have gone on YouTube just fine, but with censorship as it is, I cannot blame people for putting those on PornHub along with runs of other adult games. In fact, I will bet money that not everyone on that site is looking at these runs with sexual urges in mind. The reason for that is because games like Sinisistar can be appreciated beyond the h-content and viewers realize that. They’re just plain fun to watch. Why? Because a small Japanese game development team (consisting of just three people) actually cares about game quality within the adult market. Games can be sexual, though they can also be fun and that’s what we’re getting here. Especially in the case of Sinisistar, they can also feature fine graphical details, like those on par with higher budget games during the 16 and 32 bit eras. So compared to many games in this market where it seems like the developers didn’t care about graphics at all as long as they could use the product to sell sex, in most cases spending more money on a handful of highly detailed sex scenes sandwiched into a game that looks like it was made on an Etch-A-Sketch; Sinisistar feels like it is in a league of it’s own.
GAMEPLAY:
Essentially, Sinisistar is a horror-themed action platformer. It only features a handful of stages, but each one of them has it’s own unique theme ranging from a den of giant spiders, an unruly garden, an ancient castle and even a tiny village where the inhabitants have been taken over by parasites. Our large busted heroine is equipped with a trusty sword that thankfully doesn’t break and a slew of arrows that serve as long-range combat (which is completely necessary at times). In fact, there is a Lovecraftian themed boss that can only be defeated by arrows (which are provided during the fight). The game features a surprising, yet lackluster final confrontation which feels a bit lacking, although the head developer did mention that he is working on adding more to the game in the future. I truly feel that it could benefit from a much more satisfying final encounter, a boss that would truly test all of your skills. However, considering the fact that the game can be finished in an hour or less, I think that perfecting your run may serve a suitable challenge. There are a couple of interesting things that happen to our swordmaiden on her journey, like trudging through deep muck (and the slimy things that squirm around in it) running from an oncoming avalanche of spiders, becoming a play toy for possessed villagers and being captured in a castle where her sword and arrows have both been taken as she looks for a means of escape. All of these things happen as well as spider babies, so be careful what you allow to get the better of you in this game. Controls can be a bit sluggish at times and I noticed a small bit of slowdown around my third or fourth time through, but nothing too major. You shouldn’t find this one too frustrating, but it does have a few areas like the boss fight in the castle shortly after the heroine recovers her sword. This boss, while quite small in stature, can be a bit of an issue. Especially due to the fact that losing against the boss puts the character all of the way back in her cell.
GRAPHICS:
The graphics here fall very much in line with the Super Nintendo’s 16 bit style. Like many H-Games, it has a very retro look. However, what I’m not seeing here are a bunch of used assets. All of the content in this game, or at least most of it seems to have been built from the ground up. There’s also an air of bleakness to the whole thing, so very few textures pop out. It feels like a Super Nintendo cart released later in the console’s life, just as the system’s graphical capabilities had peaked. Every creature looks and feels unique and some of the larger than life bosses stand out quite a bit. You almost with they’d make a version of this without the H-Scenes, that way at least the commercial indie scene would be able to take it as a serious product, which it is. Remove all of the adult content and you’d still have an exciting game. That’s definitely not easy to achieve.
STORY:
In all honesty, little is known. It seems that the developers wanted us to explore their world and uncover what terrors lie within it. You know how you felt when you first turned on Castlevania for the original Nintendo? That’s the feeling I’m getting here. There’s a warrior woman, a great deal of monsters and treacherous areas that only reveal themselves as we make it to them. Nothing is known ahead of time and everything is a surprise. Truly the best part of classic gaming.
SOUND:
The game has a surprisingly crisp soundtrack. It’s not heavy metal inspired, nor is it friendly music. You may think of something dark and ominous like Silent Hill. Atmospheres are also featured. Various monster sounds and of course, her moans can also be uttered. This isn’t a world class soundtrack by any means, but it fits the game well enough.
HENTAI/ADULT CONTENT:
The developers did design sex or H-scenes, but they are not highly detailed pieces that don’t feel like a part of the game as you’ll find in several RPG Maker adventures. Rather, they incorporate the game’s own graphics, enemies and bosses to show how much they want to show our incredibly brave heroine some love. Folks, she puts her body through the ringer in order to continue this quest, although it is entirely possible to complete an entire run without seeing a single H-scene. Oh, and I completely forgot to mention – a lot of the monsters are hungry, especially the larger ones – and they want to eat her. Yes, vore does play a role in this game and she certainly doesn’t look like she enjoys being in the stomach of some of these things. Really and truly, if you asked her how she felt about some of the things she had to do during this nightmare adventure, I’m quite sure she’d have a laundry list of complaints. Though to be fair, it is obvious that the large plant monsters just want some love. I mean, they may be using her body for photosynthesis, but it is entirely possible that a few of these creatures just want her to be a part of them. Not too far removed from women’s inboxes on social media, I’d say.
CONCLUSION:
Despite it’s length, Sinisistar is a lot of fun to play. Coupled with a great soundtrack, I haven’t had this much fun with an H-game in years. I’ve played it several times through and would even go as far as to call it one of my favorite retro gaming experiences in recent memory. Sure, it can be entirely sexual and perverse, but a well-built game sits on top of all that and you’ll want to play through again and again. The developers actually considered this, so there’s a fun new game+ mode that allows you to pick your stage and tweak other options that you wouldn’t have had earlier, as well as another outfit (which is still quite classy, this is not the bikini option, and don’t you think those monsters are horny enough as it is?) Ultimately, I’m quite happy that I decided to give Sinisistar a go and it’s the team’s first game, so try it out and support them. Stop clicking the download links on PornHub and buy it straight from DLSite. This way you get to support them in making even better games down the road. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Sinisistar looks far too professional for an H-Game and that’s the way it should be. Developers need to start putting more work into these kinds of experiences, because H-Games should never only be about the H-Scenes. If that’s all you want from these games, then you can just go watch porn. Sinisistar is equally fun and horrific, showing the true indie spirit of Japanese gaming.
FINAL RATING:
