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Paths Taken

Paths Taken Game Cover
75%Game Brain Score
story, music
graphics, gameplay
75% User Score Based on 79 reviews

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PCWindows
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Paths Taken Game Cover

About

Paths Taken is a single player casual role playing game with romance and anime themes. It was developed by Crystal Game Works and was released on June 6, 2019. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Become the noble of a country on the brink of war.

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Paths Taken screenshot
Paths Taken screenshot
Paths Taken screenshot
Paths Taken screenshot
Paths Taken screenshot
Paths Taken screenshot
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75%
Audience ScoreBased on 79 reviews
story8 positive mentions
graphics3 negative mentions
  • Paths Taken offers a heartfelt and meaningful story with choices that impact the narrative and character relationships.
  • The game features inclusive character customization, including non-binary options and romance possibilities regardless of player gender.
  • It is a free, short visual novel with charming art and pleasant music, making it a nice, accessible experience for a quick playthrough.
  • The writing suffers from numerous grammatical errors, awkward dialogue, and inconsistent or confusing worldbuilding.
  • Technical issues include occasional misgendering, incorrect default names appearing despite changes, limited character expressions, and abrupt music cuts.
  • The story pacing is uneven and sometimes boring, with underdeveloped characters and simplistic, predictable plotlines that limit engagement.
  • story
    49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story is generally described as a simple, short romantic visual novel with cute and wholesome elements, but many users find it bland, inconsistent, and poorly paced, with frequent grammatical errors and confusing dialogue. While some praise the meaningful character development and multiple routes, others feel the narrative lacks depth, cohesion, and fails to fully engage or make an emotional impact. Overall, it’s seen as an enjoyable but average story experience that may appeal to fans of light romance and quick reads.

    • “Paths Taken is a heartfelt and beautifully written story about choices, relationships, and personal growth.”
    • “I really enjoyed how naturally the characters develop and how each decision feels meaningful, shaping the story in subtle but impactful ways.”
    • “Short and sweet with only four routes that manage to make each story feel complete and each character distinct and lovable.”
    • “Too many inconsistencies ruin an already average story.”
    • “Short, buggy, and with a confusing, very anachronistic story.”
    • “The characters do not feel real enough to make me care about them, and the story is laid out in a way that is both boring and confusing at the same time.”
  • music
    17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music generally creates a warm, immersive atmosphere with pleasant piano and percussion, but it is often inconsistent, with abrupt cut-offs and awkward timing that can disrupt the experience. While some found it enjoyable or at least okay, others felt it was unremarkable or poorly integrated, sometimes prompting them to play their own music instead.

    • “The art and music create a warm, immersive atmosphere that makes it easy to get attached to the world and its people.”
    • “The music is good, mainly piano with percussion.”
    • “The music, however, was rather pleasant.”
    • “Yeah, the music sometimes cuts off where it should loop.”
    • “The music is also in and out at weird times.”
    • “I put on my own music to combat the issue, but then the game's music would kick back in at random intervals!”
  • graphics
    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics receive mixed feedback, with some users finding the art style charming and appropriate for the visual novel, while others criticize it as unappealing or uneven, particularly in the backgrounds. Overall, the visuals are considered mediocre compared to other similar games.

    • “A wonderful short visual novel with interesting characters and a charming art style.”
    • “Graphics were appropriate and I did complete all the pathways in a few hours.”
    • “I have a hard time recommending this as I did struggle to make it through all four paths and I didn't care for the art style.”
    • “Even the artwork isn't too great compared to most of the other visual novels you can find on Steam.”
    • “Artwork is a little uneven, especially the backdrops.”
  • emotional
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Paths Taken delivers a heartfelt and memorable emotional experience centered on choices, relationships, and personal growth, despite some uneven pacing and underdeveloped routes. Its thoughtful, touching narrative makes it a lovely, wholesome story that resonates with players long after playing.

    • “Paths Taken is a heartfelt and beautifully written story about choices, relationships, and personal growth.”
    • “It’s a game that lingers with you, thoughtful, emotional, and worth every moment.”
    • “Still a very lovely game and worth a read for the cute and wholesome story of young love.”
  • gameplay
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay primarily involves clicking through poorly written dialogue, offering little interactive or engaging mechanics. Users find the narrative and character events disconnected and subpar, leading to a lackluster overall experience.

    • “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 events that the characters go through throughout the gameplay didn't fit in either.”
  • atmosphere
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere is warmly immersive, with art and music that effectively draw players into the world and foster a strong emotional connection to its characters.

    • “The art and music create a warm, immersive atmosphere that makes it easy to get attached to the world and its people.”
  • grinding
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Grinding in this game feels tedious and slow, akin to reading a novel where you must click for every sentence rather than simply turning pages, making the experience monotonous and frustrating.

  • humor
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor is quirky and self-aware, using ironic and clever remarks that add a unique charm. It may appeal to those who appreciate dry, understated wit.

  • stability
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game suffers from stability issues, featuring bugs that affect the overall experience. Additionally, its story is confusing and feels outdated.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Paths Taken is a casual role playing game with romance and anime themes.

Paths Taken is available on PC and Windows.

Paths Taken was released on June 6, 2019.

Paths Taken was developed by Crystal Game Works.

Paths Taken has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked Paths Taken for its story but disliked it for its graphics.

Paths Taken is a single player game.

Similar games include A Pinch of Magic, Trick and Treat - Visual Novel, Invisible Apartment, A Wild Catgirl Appears!, Elisa: The Innkeeper - Prequel and others.