Women of Xal

About

Women of Xal is a single player casual simulation game with fantasy, romance and anime themes. It was developed by PlotTwist Studios and was released on October 30, 2021. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

A political intrigue visual novel with romanceable elements. Player decisions weigh heavy as consequences can easily lead to hurt and trouble.

+19

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100%

Audience ScoreBased on 30 reviews

story11 positive mentions

gameplay3 negative mentions

Deep and engaging story with complex worldbuilding and political intrigue, offering multiple branching paths and interesting plot twists.
Diverse, well-developed characters with unique personalities and support for polyamory and LGBTQ+ romances, making relationships emotionally expansive and nuanced.
High-quality art including various sprites, CGs, and some impressive animated and voice-acted cutscenes, complemented by a varied and fitting soundtrack.

Inconsistent art styles and presentation across sprites, CGs, and animations, with some scenes feeling abrupt or low quality, potentially detracting from immersion.
Lack of clear guidance or in-game glossary makes navigating the complex lore, many characters, and branching paths difficult without external resources.
The story feels incomplete due to Early Access state, missing content like date scenes and final resolution, with some pacing issues and occasional bugs.

story
41 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
66%
7%
The story is richly crafted with complex characters, realistic emotions, and engaging political intrigue set in a unique fantasy world dominated by powerful women. While the main plot is mostly on rails, players can explore various side routes and branching choices that impact character interactions and outcomes, enhancing replayability. Some find the pacing uneven and the unresolved ending frustrating, but overall the narrative delivers unexpected twists, deep social commentary, and a compelling experience for those who enjoy layered, character-driven stories.
- “All characters are written in a distinct way, and their moods and backstory kick in realistically during the story, blending together with the choices you make during the game.”
- “Choices fit well in the narration, which is very well made and offers peaks of fun, sadness, surprising moments, and some unexpected plot twists.”
- “Wox delivers an enrapturing story with the use of unique lore and fantasy elements, complex characters, and a beautiful setting.”
- “It's pretty good but there's no way to tell what choices branch the story and I just keep getting the same ending over and over.”
- “A fair bit of warning: this visual novel is not a complete story; it doesn't just end with a sequel hook, the plot simply isn't resolved in a meaningful way.”
- “Not my favorite: it does drag in parts and honestly the lore is so involved it got in the way of the story a few times.”
music
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
55%
The music in the game is well-crafted, diverse, and enhances special moments with a mix of jazzy, calm tracks and intense combat themes. Players appreciate the quality of the soundtrack, though some feel certain tracks are too brief to fully enjoy. Overall, the music is praised for its unobtrusive yet impactful presence.
- “The game has been made with lots of care, featuring voiced songs and cutscenes, plenty of music, unique visuals during special moments, and interesting reasons to replay.”
- “The music is diverse, including jazzy tracks that create a calm atmosphere as well as harder, more intense tracks that emphasize the intensity during combat events.”
- “I'm a huge soundtrack nerd, so the game's soundtrack was a definite plus for me.”
graphics
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
The game's graphics feature a unique and carefully crafted art style that complements its dreamy fantasy setting, enriched with diverse visuals and animations. However, inconsistencies arise due to the use of multiple art styles across sprites, CGs, and animations, with some character depictions lacking anatomical accuracy and cohesion.
- “The art style is quite unique and pairs well with the dreamy fantasy setting.”
- “Look at the screenshots, there are four different art styles.”
- “The game has also been made with lots of care - there are many interactions and unique visuals dotted around special moments (as well as voiced songs and cutscenes), plenty of music, interesting reasons to replay, and situations that are more complicated than they seem at first.”
- “Look at the screenshots, there are 4 different art styles.”
- “The sprites don't match the CGs, which are often simply bad, especially when depicting characters doing more than just standing around; it shows weaknesses in anatomy and composition.”
- “Neither the sprites nor the CGs match the animations, which also feature multiple different art styles.”
gameplay
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
The gameplay is straightforward as a visual novel, offering a relaxing and engaging experience enriched by thoughtful worldbuilding and multiple romance options that encourage replayability. Players appreciate the indie developers' passion and the story's depth, which sometimes relies on understanding optional game mechanics.
- “This super relaxing game is a great way to spend a weekend :) You can tell the hard work and passion these indie devs put into the story and gameplay.”
- “Because of this, the story is worth a replay, not counting the different romances that one may miss or mess up during the gameplay.”
- “Some major scenes or revelations also rely on you understanding mechanics of the universe, which you may not know if you didn't take the optional worldbuilding lessons.”
- “Gameplay wise is a visual novel, as simply as that.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game delivers a strong emotional experience, balancing depth and nuance without feeling chaotic. Relationships, especially with female characters, are portrayed as emotionally rewarding and narratively rich, while the story respectfully tackles heavy topics and delivers impactful emotional moments.
- “It’s rare to see this done well, and it made the game feel emotionally expansive, not messy.”
- “Befriending and dating the women felt emotionally rewarding and narratively rich.”
- “It does however deliver the occasional emotional gutpunch and deals with some heavy topics in a good and respectful way.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Replayability is positively noted, with engaging writing that remains accessible to non-native English speakers; while some romances or characters may feel slightly off, this adds to the realistic, varied experience.
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor is characterized by witty and charming writing that successfully evokes multiple laughs.
- “Witty, charming writing that made me laugh more than once”