Wicked Willow

About

"Wicked Willow" is a narrative-driven game where you play as a powerful witch named Willow in 1993, navigating her life with a group of diverse characters, including a talking cat named Shadow. Faced with decisions that affect those around you, such as helping a friend with a serious illness, your choices determine Willow's path as she embraces her newfound abilities while dealing with her own tragic past.

Genres & Tags

Indie

Play Modes

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

91%

Audience ScoreBased on 64 reviews

story24 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

The game features stunning artwork and excellent voice acting, enhancing the overall experience.
The story is engaging with multiple endings, allowing for high replay value and exploration of different character arcs.
It tackles important themes such as LGBTQ+ representation and personal growth, making it relatable and thought-provoking.

The pacing of the story can feel rushed, with character relationships developing too quickly and lacking depth.
The main character, Willow, is often perceived as unlikable due to her aggressive demeanor and frequent cursing.
Some players found the writing and dialogue to be unnatural or forced, making it difficult to connect with the characters.

story
97 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
72%
3%
The story of the game is a complex and emotionally charged narrative that explores heavy themes, often with rapid pacing that can feel overwhelming. Players appreciate the depth of character development and the impact of choices, which lead to multiple endings and a rich, engaging experience. While some critiques mention plot inconsistencies and rushed character introductions, the overall storytelling, combined with beautiful art and voice acting, creates a compelling visual novel that invites replayability to uncover its many layers.
- “The storytelling is compelling, and the art is so fun!”
- “This game has a fantastic branching storyline and unique artwork that makes it stand out from other visual novel games.”
- “An intriguing, twisting and turning story!”
- “The story handles pretty heavy topics at times, and I wish it would do it more slowly, as sometimes you are just thrown into those scenarios, and I couldn’t help but raise a brow at how quickly things escalated.”
- “Relationships would go from 0 to 100 in the span of a day in the game; it felt just all very rushed simply for the sake of some of the plot points.”
- “There are times when the resolution of a story thread diverted so far from where it began, it feels a little like the storytelling was more in service of the diverging choose-your-adventure format than completing a natural narrative arc.”
graphics
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
70%
10%
20%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their stunning artwork and excellent animations, contributing to an immersive experience. While some players expressed a personal dislike for the art style, the overall consensus highlights the visuals as a standout feature, complementing the engaging story and professional voice acting.
- “The artwork is beautiful, the voice acting is on a professional level, and the soundtrack is pleasant to listen to.”
- “Not to mention the artwork is stunning.”
- “This game has a fantastic branching storyline and unique artwork that makes it stand out from other visual novel games.”
- “This is in stark contrast to the visuals.”
- “I have to admit that I didn't particularly like the art style.”
emotional
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is described as a mix of deeply moving moments and uneven execution, with some players finding it genuinely touching and others feeling it falls short of its potential. While the narrative can evoke strong feelings and even tears, critiques highlight that the character's emotional struggles may not justify her behavior towards others. Overall, the game offers a range of emotional experiences, from sweet and heartfelt to moments that feel less impactful.
- “Very emotionally moving story.”
- “This is so sweet & it made me cry!”
- “Very touching, even if the writing can sometimes be a bit silly.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by clever writing and unique character quirks, resulting in funny dialogue and engaging banter among the characters. While some attempts at humor, such as the portrayal of a vegan cat, may be unclear, the game offers a variety of endings that range from humorous to touching, showcasing the creativity behind the story. Overall, players appreciate the comedic elements woven throughout the narrative.
- “The writing is very good; the characters all have unique quirks and funny dialogue as they bicker and banter with each other throughout the game.”
- “There are more good endings out there, some funny, some almost really touching, so I do recommend trying out more just to experience the surprises and the overall creative work that went into the story.”
- “I get that they were trying to be funny with Shadow, but they also don't make it clear that you cannot make a real cat vegan.”
gameplay
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The gameplay is praised for its innovative use of a "pick your own adventure" mechanic within a time-loop narrative, providing an engaging experience without the hassle of traditional save and reload systems. While the intricate story and character development are highlighted as key attractions, the mechanics themselves are considered secondary to the overall experience.
- “I came in expecting a cute story, but got a surprisingly intricate yet neatly tied up time-loop journey that creatively embraces the 'pick your own adventure' mechanic of visual novels in a way I wasn't expecting!”
- “However, I do like the checkpoint system so you don't have to go all over the gameplay and the hassle of saving and reloading to check out the outcome of other options.”
- “So the characters are what's going to draw you in rather than the mechanics of the game.”
- “However, I do like the checkpoint system so you don't have to go all over the gameplay and the hassle to save and reload to check out the outcome of other options.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game is highly praised for its fitting integration and overall quality, contributing significantly to the immersive experience alongside the writing, artwork, and voice acting.
- “The music was also very nicely fitted in.”
- “I loved the music.”
- “From the writing, artwork, music, and great voice acting, it's one of the best visual novels I've played!”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
The game boasts high replayability, attributed to its engaging characters and meaningful narrative, which help it avoid the repetitiveness often found in visual novels. Players find the experience refreshing and worth revisiting multiple times.
- “This is a beautiful, short visual novel with loads of replay value, an incredibly relatable cast of characters, and a decent message to boot.”
- “High replay value too!”
- “This gives the game a replay value that skirts around the issue of repetitiveness most visual novels face.”
- “The lack of meaningful choices makes replaying the game feel tedious rather than engaging.”
- “Once you've experienced the story, there's little incentive to go back for a second playthrough.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players find the grinding in the game to be tedious and repetitive, leading to a loss of engagement as they can predict dialogue and events before they occur.
- “The grinding became so tedious that we could predict the lines before they even appeared.”
- “The repetitive nature of the grinding made it feel like a chore rather than an enjoyable part of the game.”
- “I found myself losing interest quickly due to the excessive grinding required to progress.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The reviews highlight strong writing and performances, but do not provide specific feedback on the game's optimization. Overall, there is no clear consensus on optimization from the available comments.
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Overall, users report that the game exhibits high stability, with very few glitches encountered, primarily limited to the credits section.
- “There are very few glitches; I only found them in the credits.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable.”
- “I experienced constant lag and frame drops, which ruined the overall experience.”