Virgin Roster

The Good
Even though this is one of Zyx's earlier titles, the level of quality is consistent with what we've come to expect. The art is well drawn, crisp, colourful, and even includes a few animated scenes. Music quality is standard fare BGM for this genre, and the voice acting is above par. Presentation-wise and technically speaking, there's very little to find fault with. It's a solid Zyx title, through and through.

Despite the other 2 reviewers' unprofessional and biased remarks, Virgin Roster is a QUALITY eroge. There's a difference between not liking something because of personal preference, and flaws you can objectively describe. In fact, Virgin Roster already incorporates many features which have become standard in this genre, from savegame-independant unlockables, repeatable dialogue (scrollback), shift / ctrl discerning text skipping, to name a few.

The Bad
Personally although I dislike the storylines (I prefer romantic endings, which aren't mutually exclusive even in dark-themed eroge), Virgin Roster is clean in execution. The only flaws in this title are the briefness of the story threads, and the linearity of same. If you're into darker themed games, Virgin Roster is right up your alley. I would have enjoyed longer scenarios, but there's nothing wrong with the characterisations per se. As it stands, it's a fairly short romp through each of the storylines, and the decisions you make don't exactly make it clear which way you are headed. Other than that, great game. I have no quarrel with the art, the characters, music, or voice acting. Everything got the standard professional Zyx treatment.

The Bottom Line
If you're looking for ren'ai games, stay away - the protagonist does not have any redeeming features, and stays that way throughout the entire game regardless of which plotline you go through. On the other hand, if you're into dark themed eroge, or are a fan of Zyx, Virgin Roster is another quality title which you shouldn't pass up, merely because of a couple of uninformed reviewers. As expected from Zyx, this is a solid title worthy of the genre.

The Good
Not a lot. Virgin Roster has very little in the way of redeeming qualities, aside from the artwork. The game has some of the best graphics of any bishoujo game title - the CG stills would compare favorably to any anime. The character designs are very good, although it is difficult to tell how interesting they are personality-wise as most of the game's dialogue consists of screams.

The Bad
Kengo Inui lives for one thing. To put it bluntly, he seeks virgins, rapes them, turns them into slobbering sex slaves, and leaves them. There's the game in a nutshell. There is no real story to speak of. You may "end up with" a particular girl, but she will of course be a shadow of her former self. None of the endings are "happy" (except to Kengo, of course). The sex scenes aren't erotic, they're scary. Need I say more?

The Bottom Line
I like to think of bishoujo games as belonging to one of three possible categories. In general, they can be fun/comedic, dramatic, or dark. Virgin Roster definitely falls into the third category, and dark games are generally not what I am drawn to. I had difficulty even finishing the game at all due to the extreme intensity of some scenes. The game would be somewhat excusable if the hero were an even remotely sympathetic character, or perhaps even found redemption at the end. But he doesn't - and in fact his persona is so two-dimensional that the game's story suffers as a result. There just isn't a whole lot you can do with a story about a deranged man who hunts down and forces himself upon virgins, other than one violent sex scene after another. Games are supposed to be fun, and this one isn't. Not recommended.