College Bound

When I first saw College Bound, I will admit I did my trademark eye-roll as I thought it was the same kind of lewd visual novel that I had seen a million times before! However, by the time I got to the end of what is currently available, I found myself way more invested in the plot and the life of the MC than I ever thought I would be. I will tell you right off the bat that as far as XXX visual novels go, this is not trying anything new, but it has great visuals, interesting characters, and a story that is far better than it has any right to be!

Summertime Loving, Loving In The Summertime

If you get that reference, you are awesome and we can be best friends! On a serious note, the story of College Bound is something that I enjoyed very much. We play as a college student who is living the dream. Thanks to all his hard work, he is about to go to Paris for an internship and best of all, so is his girlfriend! They are very excited about this amazing opportunity.

A Stuffy (Yet Very Hot) Old College Dean

Well, that is until the dean of the college denies him this! He is forced to stay in the USA and his girlfriend gets to go to Paris. Now he must deal with the pressures of a long-distance relationship. Can he stay loyal to his lady? Can he solve the weird mystery going on at the college? There are many twists to the story as well as multiple plots that were all way more interesting than I thought they would be. Ultimately, you can make the MC the kind of guy you want to be!

Getting Your Head Turned

College Bound is clearly a fantastic looking game. This game has some amazing character models and one of the things that I like about the ladies in this game is that there is a fantastic mix. There are all different ages of women for you to lust over and that kind of variety makes the many lewd scenes in the game that extra bit more interesting as you do not feel like you are just seeing the same thing over and over again. The sex scenes are also animated and animated pretty damn well I might add!

Being Your Own Man

As far as being a visual novel goes, College Bound is right around what you would expect. You will spend most of your time reading, but it gets to the good stuff pretty quickly. I liked how you could have the MC try and be a good guy and stay loyal to his girlfriend and help people around the campus. Or, you could just give in to temptation and get laid all of the time. You have to pay attention to what people are saying as this is how you know what choices to make.

Pros:

• I liked the main story
• Many interesting plot threads are going on here
• The graphics are fantastic
• There are plenty of interesting characters

Cons:

• The gameplay is pretty basic visual novel stuff
• Not sure this is the kind of game I would go back and play again

For some, an idyllic time off in a luxurious locale sounds like the perfect vacation – others might prefer an overseas trip that also includes some scholarly pursuits, like an exchange program. In any case, one thing rings true for any scenario: it’s much better when you’re with the girl of your dreams. College Bound understands that pretty well.

A visual novel for the scholarly inclined, College Bound sees you suddenly falling victim to an unjust headmaster who ruins your plans to spend some precious R&R with your girlfriend in Paris. That said, staying behind might not be that bad, especially since you soon discover there are plenty more fish in the sea.

Episodic Deliveries

College Bound tells its straightforward story in episodic releases. Think Alan Wake but with more erotic scenes. Each episode sees your character becoming increasingly desperate as he tries to convince his college’s principal that he deserves to go with his girlfriend on the student exchange program to Paris.

His girlfriend might be gone, but that doesn’t mean he’ll fly solo while she’s gone. In the same vein as BMO TV and HuniePop, you will meet a colorful cast of single ladies, all willing to get to know you better. Will your character succumb to temptation, or will his relationship endure the long-distance test?

Classic Adventures

College Bound was made using the classic Ren’Py engine. If you’ve played some of Akabur’s games (Princess Trainer, Witch Trainer,) you might remember what this aging engine is capable of. Now, even if it’s certainly a relic by today’s standards, there’s a reason why developers still use Ren’Py for visual novels.

The game just works. That’s the best I can say at the moment. I didn’t run into any game-breaking bugs or crashes while I played College Bound. That said, Ren’Py is most certainly starting to show its age in some scenarios, and I would have preferred some more interactivity in “certain” scenes. You know exactly what I’m talking about, I bet.

Renders Galore

The character models and locations all look pretty decent. Actually, it’s more than that: they look great by pre-rendered standards. Look, I know these games get a bad rap due to their uncanny character models, but College Bound managed to make most of its characters look like real people, instead of the lifeless mannequins you’ll find in most games like this.

If you don’t mind a few awkward expressions and the usual “uncanny valley” feel you get with this type of character model, you’ll find that College Bound does its best to tell a compelling story with what it has. And compelling it is, especially when you get to the good stuff. And trust me, there’s plenty of that here.

Pros

• Engaging story keeps you hooked
• Pre-rendered character models and locations look great
• Tons of story branches to experience

Cons

• Some hiccups due to its old engine