Succubus Series by Libraheart — Review

CW: Rape, Block Pushing Puzzles

Right, so this review is a little weird because there are 3 (technically 4) games in it… just think of it as a review-kake. Or don’t because that’s a horrible image.

So, why am I reviewing games that look like this:

Well, the answer is NOSTALGIA. Like most horny kids who discovered Newgrounds, I played my fair share of porn games. Not out of any real desire to play the games, I just didn’t know how to find porn on the internet yet.

Maybe I’ll do an article on those old flash games.

But this game invoked a serious sense of nostalgia so I contacted the developers who were kind enough to give me keys to both Tower & Sword of Succubus and Midnight Castle Succubus. And while there is a plot that runs through the three of them, I have no idea what it is.

Sword of Succubus

The first game in the series is Sword of Succubus, a Legend of Zelda style top down RPG where you have sex with a knight in the opening cutscene, causing him to poof out of existence and drop his holy sword. From there you wander around an overworld getting criticised by villagers for being naked.

You have a stab and the game’s main draw: the heart attack! No, that doesn’t sound right. The heart blast? You have the ability to make certain enemies spin around in arousal which lets you have a mana regenerating quickie with them.

And this is where the retro style really doesn’t gel well with porn. The low quality sound design means that, for whatever reason, the designers have decided that the custard like cumshots need to be accompanied by a sound effect that can only be described as squelch. Which, while you’re wearing headphones, is an awful experience.

Then there’s the fact that you are a powerful succubus and yet, you are always submitting to the monsters that you’ve heart attacked. I get that the target market for these games might have some issue with dominant women (heck, just look at the fact that femdom is a term) but c’mon, surely the succubus should be taking control here?

Oh, and of course, we’ve got lactation. Because that is apparently an important part of these games. I have an article planned on the common thread fetishes in these games so we’ll talk about that another time, suffice to say it doesn’t make much sense here either.

Its… not bad. The gameplay feels like a faithful homage to the old Legend of Zelda style RPGs. It’s not particularly erotic and can be a bit clunky at times, the weird jiggle physics whenever you make an attack are laughably bad but overall, its not a bad game.

Buut… there are free games that are better quality so, y’know, do as you please with your money.

Tower of Succubus

This is the intro cutscene. You get raped by a “powerful priest” who steals your magic. Yeah.

Much the same as Sword except that you’re climbing a tower made up of puzzles, some monsters, and the occasional boss. And again, the game isn’t that bad.

The pornographic aspects are a bit more overt in Tower as each level has you finding diary entries from previous adventurers. Sometimes there’s a tiny bit of explanation but mostly its just out of context sex.

But at least the player character actually looks happy with her lot in life in some of the sex scenes. The game feels a little less uncomfortable when she actually looks like she’s enjoying it.

As a bundle of games, I’d say give them a miss. You can get the same experience on Newgrounds for free.

Gameplay — 3/10

Eroticism — 1/10

Midnight Castle Succubus

This one initially felt like a better go at things. A very faithful Castlevania, you smack candlesticks to get coins, you have a whip, you can throw axes, you fight zombies, and you rescue fair maidens from rape monsters.

It was around that last part that I put my head on the desk and cursed myself for choosing to do this.

This time around you are an adventurer looking to defeat the succubus from the first two games, which is a nice call-back. There’s also a SFW version in case you want to play this with your parents. Which essentially just puts clothes on the loading screen model and cuts out the whole rape monster part.

The rape monsters are always these weird gloopy lookin things. I don’t know who wanted that but there you are.

If this review sounds quick and disinterested its because honestly, I am. The gameplay feels like a rough approximation of Castlevania to the point that I can’t say anything interesting about it. It’s fine. Platforming wasn’t frustrating, combat was difficult in a fair but sometimes annoying way.

The bosses were a wee bit interesting but you don’t have any interaction with them beyond whipping and axe chucking. This is a porn game where loss is clearly part of the appeal so why aren’t their unique scenes with the bosses?

Again, there are free games out there that are better. It’s your money but don’t waste it on this.

Gameplay — 3/10 because its just Castlevania without the story or polish

Eroticism — 1/10

Oh, and the fourth game doesn’t work. The publisher has disabled it so you just get a .txt file for the time being. You can opt in through the Beta settings on Steam but honestly, I doubt its worth it.

Top Quotes:

• “… You’ve got unexpectedly pretty nipples”
• “Whoa?! Those boobs sure are inviting aren’t they?”
• “Goblin smell on you!”
• “Could someone please kill my enemy? Give her a kick when she creates a barrier!”
• “Ohh please, I can’t afford to be delayed right now!”

TL;DR Medicore retroclones rely on scantily clad succubus to support sales, spend your money elsewhere.