Developer: Male Doll Stories
Publisher: Male Doll Stories
Platform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch
Tested on: Nintendo Switch Lite
Baradroid – Review
As a gay visual novel now released on the Nintendo Switch, Baradroid features various handsome and muscular androids, and you get to ‘try them out’! Male Doll Stories previously released this game on Steam, Itch.io and PlayStation 4 and 5. In this review, we will be checking out this steamy gay visual novel and see if it lives up to our expectations. Sidenote: This game was reviewed on a Nintendo Switch Lite; it was only played in handheld mode.
Story
The story begins with our main character, Evan. Evan is a smart guy who lives on his own in this futuristic utopian city where technology has advanced greatly. There’s, of course, A.I., but there is also Virtual Intelligence, V.I. After applying for a project at the biggest tech company, Omega Industries, our character is selected to test out three new androids. These androids are called: C4-L8 (Caleb), N1-K0 (Niko) and D4-M0 (Daemon). Whilst their technology is unique and interesting, most of all, they are very good-looking, and this is something Evan immediately picks up on.
The plot isn’t necessarily original, and the characters may feel flat at times as each android portrays a specific personality trope and does little to deviate from their nature. Various events throughout the story keep the player entertained long enough to continue. In our initial playthrough, we also found occasional writing errors or questionable spelling of words, which may ruin the immersion of the game.
However, the humor and tension in the story are good enough to make at least one playthrough very enjoyable. Despite the shallow nature of the androids, they’re still lovable enough to invest your time and emotions in as a player to romance and woo your favorite character. Something to consider, however, is that despite being allowed to make different choices, they simply do not affect the story in the slightest. These choices will alter certain replies, but the story follows a linear path, regardless of previously made decisions.
Graphics
Baradroid is a 2D visual novel in a typical anime-style, specifically the bara-style. This means that all male characters you meet, including yourself, are big and bulky men with a lot of muscles. The game doesn’t shy away from showing these off, as there are quite a few nudity CGs featured in this visual novel. Aside from the deliciously drawn art pieces, the rest of the game lacks the same love these have gotten. Backgrounds are very static, always using almost the same color palette. The sprites of characters barely change, aside from their facial expression. Even when a character is supposedly shirtless or nude, their sprite will still be shown fully clothed.
Another item that was rather uncomfortable at first was how small the text tends to be in handheld mode on the Nintendo Switch. There is no option to make the text size any bigger, which was frustrating at times due to the choice of font used. Because most of the backgrounds feature a lot of white, the letters were sometimes hard to see, despite being in a teal text bracket.
Sound
There is little to say regarding the sound aspect of Baradroid. There is no voice acting present, nor any sound effects when certain events happen, which feels like a missed opportunity. Even a little chuckle or grunt would make the characters feel more alive, but unfortunately, this is lacking throughout the game.
Furthermore, the background music is average at best. The soundtrack can be described as lo-fi beats in a futuristic setting, which does manage to capture the essence of the story well. However, the variation in music is so little that it easily becomes white noise when playing for a while, to the point that the BGM is more of a nuisance than a welcoming addition to the story. Though Baradroid does try hard to keep the music fitting to the ongoing situation, it feels lacking and just doesn’t quite get to its full potential.
Gameplay
When it comes to gameplay, Baradroid fits the tag of being a visual novel. The main aspect is reading the story from the main character’s POV with the occasional artwork featured on-screen. The player is occasionally met with different choices during conversation, but as mentioned above, they do little to nothing to alter your playthrough. During our initial playthrough, it felt more like an awareness check than an actual part of the gameplay, due to how little this feature happens and how even less it matters. Aside from reading and looking at handsome android men, there isn’t much else to Baradroid. It is essentially a bara manga, turned into a visual novel game.
Conclusion
Though it is very pleasant to see LGBTQ+ representation in the Nintendo Switch store, it is a shame how unfinished this visual novel really feels. The characters are very interesting but poorly fleshed out, and the setting is very pleasant, but there is such wasted potential in further exploring these aspects of the game. If you are looking for a steamy gay game on your Nintendo Switch, this game will satisfy your needs for sure. Though if you are looking for more in-depth gameplay with proper romance, we don’t think Baradroid will live up to your expectations. All in all, it is an okay visual novel, but there is little else to say about this game.
Related Items
1 Comment
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
[…] this year, one of our fellow reviewers took a look at Baradroid, a gay visual novel brought to the Switch by EastAsiaSoft. Based on that review, it would appear […]