Orion: A Sci-Fi Visual Novel

About

"Orion: A Sci-Fi Visual Novel" is a game that plunges you into a battle to determine the fate of humanity in a futuristic setting. The game features an original 25-piece soundtrack, composed by Nathanael Platier and 'Tav,' that captures the essence of the Orion Era. The soundtrack is available for purchase and comes highly recommended to immerse yourself in the game's atmosphere fully. However, the game's specifics, such as its storyline and gameplay, are not provided in the given description.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

51%

Audience ScoreBased on 63 reviews

story30 positive mentions

character development3 negative mentions

The artwork and character designs are visually appealing, showcasing a unique style that stands out.
The voice acting is generally well done, adding emotional depth to the characters and enhancing the overall experience.
The game features multiple endings, providing some replay value and encouraging players to explore different choices.

The writing is often criticized for being poorly executed, with weak dialogue and underdeveloped characters that fail to engage players.
Many players found the story to be rushed and lacking in depth, leading to unsatisfying and anticlimactic endings.
The gameplay mechanics are frustrating, with choices that feel inconsequential and a lack of clear direction, making it difficult to achieve desired outcomes.

story
92 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
62%
5%
The story of the game is criticized for being poorly executed and rushed, with many reviewers noting its lack of coherence and depth. While it features multiple branching paths and endings, the narrative often feels generic and fails to engage players, leading to a sense of disconnection from the characters and plot. Despite some intriguing ideas and decent visuals, the overall impression is that the story lacks the necessary development to be truly compelling.
- “There are 4 main story branches you can take, each with 2 endings.”
- “The story turned out to be solid and interesting, and I liked that the main character had realistic personality and emotions rather than being caricatural.”
- “The storytelling and concepts the game portrays are very interesting and pulled me in immediately.”
- “The plot is very rushed, barely giving you the time to get to know any of the characters or the politics of Orion at all, before launching you headfirst into a convoluted story where all of the side characters refuse to properly explain anything at all.”
- “You make decisions but you have no idea what this is actually about, and it doesn't feel like a coherent story at all.”
- “Whatever story this game does have is half-assed and sloppily executed.”
graphics
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
58%
12%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with praise for its unique blend of anime and western art styles, which some players find charming and visually appealing. However, the inconsistency between character sprites and CGs is often criticized for creating a disjointed experience. Overall, while the artwork is considered above average and contributes positively to the game's atmosphere, it is marred by distracting stylistic shifts and a lack of cohesion.
- “The game normal presentation is the anime style illustrations but as you unlock scenes, you find these watercolor painted style artworks which glow and bloom, like it's meant to be an 80s neon wash render of Logan's Run, which seems to be the reward of playing the game and seeing the different endings.”
- “Visually, Orion looks great with its manga-inspired artwork and beautiful coloring.”
- “The artwork has a western illustration style with plenty of sci-fi elements (as opposed to the traditional anime) and does a great job portraying the story.”
- “The artwork is okay, but doesn't come together well.”
- “You have anime-style character portraits and scenes, but when you get the most important CGs, everyone is drawn in a completely different western art style that's much more realistic.”
- “The same character looks way too different between the two art styles, creating a sloppy production effect.”
music
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
32%
14%
The music in the game has received generally positive feedback, with many players appreciating its quality and how well it complements the story and visuals. While some found the soundtrack to be decent but not particularly memorable, others praised specific tracks, including the ending song, as standout moments. Overall, the sound design, including voice acting and ambient noises, contributes to an immersive experience, enhancing the game's emotional impact.
- “The music is good and fits well with the story, and the background art is very nice.”
- “Voice acting, sound, and music give a premium feel that really goes the extra step for immersion.”
- “Furthermore, the sound design in this game is very nice, which made reading this visual novel even better; I found myself enjoying the music more than I realized because it fit the mood so well of what I was reading.”
- “Pity the soundtrack isn't up for sale.”
- “Also, the sound is capable and there are even some ambient noises for immersion, but the soundtrack itself is not very memorable in my opinion.”
- “Well, the music was ok!”
gameplay
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The gameplay of this visual/interactive novel is criticized for being minimal and primarily consists of clicking through poorly written dialogue, leading to questions about its quality and publication. While some users found the story intriguing, the overall gameplay experience is deemed lacking and unengaging.
- “The story seemed interesting too and I thought it would be a visual novel I could love throughout the entire gameplay.”
- “If you guys would like to watch some gameplay before playing this yourself, here!”
- “As a visual/interactive novel, this doesn't feature any notable gameplay; it's just a lot of clicking through badly written dialogue that would never have been accepted or published in print, which poses the question, 'how did something this badly written end up on Steam?'”
- “The story seemed interesting too and thought it would be a visual novel I could love the whole gameplay through.”
character development
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Character development in the game is criticized for being underwhelming, with many characters feeling underdeveloped and lacking depth due to insufficient narrative content. While the plot and character designs are appreciated, players express disappointment over missed opportunities for richer character arcs and more satisfying resolutions to subplots. The ninth "true" ending, while informative, is seen as failing to adequately address these character development shortcomings.
- “Ultimately, I enjoyed the plot threads, the music, and the character designs.”
- “There's simply not enough text here to have any proper character development - everyone feels like a shadow of what they could be with a more fleshed out plot.”
- “There was so much more potential for more endings and character development and subplots.”
- “The ninth 'true' ending is basically the ending that reveals the most information in terms of build-up but kind of the worst ending for all of the dangling plot threads and character development in the game.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional impact of [i]orion[/i] is significantly diminished due to underdeveloped characters and inconsistent artistic representation, leading to a lack of connection when relationships shift. The dialogue, while enhanced by voiceovers, fails to compensate for the shallow writing, resulting in a one-dimensional emotional experience.
- “The characters are one-dimensional, their dialogue and appearance in the main art panels differ in style and sometimes also in detail. There are voiceovers for the dialogues that are good but fail to provide the emotional depth that the writing lacks.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is well-received, with players finding it genuinely funny, particularly enjoying the character Virgil, whose sassy remarks consistently elicit laughter. Overall, the comedic elements contribute significantly to the game's appeal.
- “The line 'Keep eating.' had myself and most of the folks in the room chuckling.”
- “My favorite character was Virgil; his sass made me laugh out loud so many times.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users find the grinding aspect of visual novels and e-books tedious, likening the experience to a frustratingly slow reading process where each sentence requires a click to advance, detracting from the enjoyment of the narrative.
- “Visual novels and e-books can be tedious at best. Imagine the best novel you've ever read, whether it's 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', '2001: A Space Odyssey', or even 'Twilight' (if you have terrible taste in literature). Now, translate that into a format where the words dribble out, and you have to click your mouse every time you want to read the next sentence instead of just turning the pages.”
- “Grinding in this game feels like an endless loop of repetitive tasks that drain the enjoyment out of the experience. It often feels like I'm just going through the motions without any real sense of progress.”
- “The grind is so excessive that it overshadows the actual gameplay. Instead of feeling rewarded for my efforts, I feel like I'm stuck in a monotonous cycle that makes me question why I even started playing.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
300%
The game offers moderate replayability due to its branching story paths, allowing players to experience different outcomes, despite a relatively short completion time.
- “It doesn’t take too long to finish, but most of the story is a branching path, so there’s some replay value here.”
- “The game offers multiple endings and choices that make each playthrough feel unique.”
- “With different character builds and strategies to explore, I find myself coming back for more.”
- “It doesn’t take too long to finish, but most of the story is a branching path, so there’s some replay value in here.”
- “Once you complete the game, there’s little incentive to go back and experience it again.”
- “The lack of meaningful choices makes replaying the game feel redundant and uninteresting.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users have reported stability issues, noting that certain paths in the game can feel buggy, with choices leading to the same outcomes unless specific earlier decisions were made.
- “Some paths felt buggy; choosing between two options often led to the same outcome unless I had made specific different choices earlier.”
- “The game frequently crashes, making it nearly impossible to progress without losing significant progress.”
- “I encountered numerous glitches that disrupted gameplay, causing me to restart levels multiple times.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere is generally described as charming and pleasant, though it can feel slow at times. Overall, it has several positive elements that contribute to its appeal.
- “The atmosphere is nice; it's a charming piece, albeit a tad slow at points, and there are some good elements to it.”