Info about Love, Money, Rock'n'Roll:

Official game description:
The Story
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Nikolai, a son of Soviet immigrants and a _normal Japanese student_, has no idea that his world is about to turn upside-down. The familiar, everyday life will clash inside of him with the ghosts of the past. Nikolai will have to decide who he can really trust and learn why he has become of interest to people with money and power that make the lives of regular people lose their significance.
The Heroines
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Himitsu is Nikolai's childhood friend. She is kind, caring, always worries about him, and can sometimes even be too vexatious. But is she really satisfied with simple friendship? Perhaps the years of loyalty to Nikolai have earned her something more?  
Catherine is Nikolai's ex-girlfriend who left japan about a year prior to the game's events. Their parting wasn't on the best terms, and Nikolai still harbours unpleasant memories of it. Perhaps he would have forgotten with time, but Catherine suddenly returns and, moreover, transfers to his class. Why is she back and does she love him still?  
Ellie is the granddaughter of the head of trustees of Nikolai's school. She is a wilful, proud girl who knows her worth, yet she does not lack ardour. Is she as simple as she appears at first glance, or does a rebel hide under the guise of a pampered lady?  
Kagome is the representative of Nikolai's class. He had never paid much attention to her before, but a certain turn of events makes them get to know each other better. Kagome is disliked in the school, not that she is burning with desire to get friendly with others herself. Are things so clear-cut with this unsociable girl, or is there more than meets the eye?
Main Features
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*   Four heroines, each with her own story and several possible endings  
*   Over 100 backgrounds and 120 full-screen illustrations (CG)  
*   5,5+ hours of music  
*   Unity3D as the game engine  
*   Over 500 000 words in the script  
*   Fully animated sprites and animated backgrounds  
*   Multiplatform (including mobile versions)

Release date: Aug 4, 2022

Categories: Visual Novel, Choice-based Narrative, Multiple Endings, Romance, Dating Simulation, Cold War Setting, Mature Themed Gameplay


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price:
  - Community fair range: $15.00 - $20.00
  - Reasoning: The first review indicates that the base game price is acceptable enough to purchase directly, while the second review suggests that the full price is somewhat high for budget-conscious players, who are advised to wait for a discount. The mention of an existing 30% discount implies that the discounted price is considered fair by the community. Without specific dollar amounts, a typical indie game pricing context suggests a fair base price range around $15-$20, where a 30% discount would bring it to $10.50-$14, aligning with the sentiment that the game is worth it at a reduced price.
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 45.0h
  - Story completion: 6.0h
  - Session length: N/A
  - Endgame: N/A
  - Reasoning: The quote 'One route, if you read fast, is about 6 hours long' indicates the typical time to complete a single story route, which can be considered story/campaign completion for a first playthrough. The quote 'It took about 45 hours on my Deck to see everything' directly gives total game completion time, including all routes and endings. The German review '35 Stunden ... nicht alle Abzweigungen' confirms that 35 hours is not full completion, supporting that 45 hours is a reasonable estimate for full completion. No reliable evidence exists for session length or endgame content.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: The game hooks players with an addictive atmosphere from the start, but quickly becomes a tedious slog due to a boring mystery, insufferable characters, hindered agency, and pacing problems, creating a fun-then-drop experience.
  - Stance: Fun then drops
  - Anchor: N/A
  - Time to anchor: 0h 0m
  - Friction: tedious slog; boring mystery; insufferable characters; hindered player-agency; pacing issues; awkward transitions
  - Unlock drivers: N/A
  - Conditions: N/A
- Player Archetypes:
  - Romance-Driven Story Lover (sale)
    - Motivation: Emotional connection with heroines and immersive story
    - Playstyle: Chooses routes based on heroine appeal, aims for good endings, reads all text carefully
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: romance game fan; waifu enthusiast
    - Reference games: Lena
  - Critical Completionist (sale)
    - Motivation: Achievement completion and evaluation of game/story quality
    - Playstyle: Plays all routes, seeks 100% achievements, critically assesses writing and design
    - Experience: veteran
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: achievement hunter; story critic
    - Reference games: N/A
  - Ellie Route Devotee (buy)
    - Motivation: Emotional investment in the character Ellie
    - Playstyle: Focuses solely on Ellie's route, aims for good ending, ignores other content
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: Ellie fan; character loyalist
    - Reference games: N/A


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Stunning art and visuals (weight 0.41): Reviewers consistently praise the game's art and visuals, highlighting beautiful music and art, high-quality sprites, animated backgrounds, consistent illustrations, and character designs. The visual presentation is a major strength, with many calling it magnificent and like a movie.
- Excellent music and sound design (weight 0.32): The soundtrack receives high marks, with mentions of 88 tracks, fantastic music, and tracks added to playlists. Background sounds are pleasant, and the overall audio quality enhances the experience.
- Engaging story with plot twists (weight 0.2): The story is interesting and emotionally impactful, with surprising, well-placed plot twists that keep players engrossed. Some note the unpredictable nature and twists toward the end.
- Well-developed characters (weight 0.18): Characters are described as well-written with individuality, motivation, and growth. The protagonist Nikolai is praised for agency and charm, and characters feel alive, sympathetic, and realistic, including intentional flaws.
- Standout character routes (Kagome and Eli) (weight 0.15): Specific routes receive high praise: Kagome's route is often called the best with a happy ending, and Eli's route is also very good. Eli is considered the best character with a living personality.
- Excellent DLC content (weight 0.06): The DLC is described as very good, quick, interesting, and with a great story, adding value to the overall game.
- Overall high quality visual novel (weight 0.05): Some reviewers call it the best visual novel they have played, reflecting high overall satisfaction with the game.
- Good user interface (weight 0.04): The interface features are noted as good, though this feedback is less frequent and more vague.

Common complaints:
- Protagonist Nikolai is unlikable (weight 0.45): Many reviews criticize the protagonist Nikolai for being whiny, stupid, irritating, irrational, and aggressive. His personality is a major detractor, making him difficult to relate to or enjoy.
- Story and writing are flawed (weight 0.33): Feedback highlights poor story development, lack of meaningful choices, rushed endings, flat characters, overwriting, and an illusion of choice. Many players felt the game's narrative was disjointed and unsatisfying.
- Unfavorable comparison to Everlasting Summer (weight 0.12): The game is often compared unfavorably to its predecessor Everlasting Summer, with complaints about lacking atmosphere, less memorable music, and failing to capture the 1980s feel.
- Technical issues and inconsistencies (weight 0.07): Players reported game freezes and crashes within minutes of play, as well as inconsistent CG quality between the demo and late game. These technical problems hinder the experience.
- Catherine character is disliked (weight 0.07): Reviews note that the character Katherine (or Catherine) is not well-liked, and the protagonist's repetitive obsession with her is annoying and detracts from the story.
- DLC not recommended (weight 0.03): A single cluster indicates that the DLC is considered not recommended and provides a negative experience, though this feedback is isolated.

Gameplay feedback:
- Multiple Routes and Endings (weight 0.49): The game is a choice-driven visual novel with multiple character routes and endings. Players can follow different girls (Ellie, Kagome, Himitsu, Catherine) and experience branching stories with varying outcomes, requiring replay to see all content.
- 1980s Tokyo Setting with Russian Protagonist (weight 0.17): Set in Tokyo, 1987, during the Cold War, the story follows a Russian immigrant schoolboy protagonist. The setting includes political intrigue and a spy thriller atmosphere, with the protagonist chased by intelligence agencies.
- Large Volume of Content (weight 0.17): The game offers a huge amount of content: each route takes 10-15 hours, and full completion can exceed 100 hours. DLC adds 3-6 hours of additional story set seven years later, contributing to a very long gameplay experience.
- Point-Based System Influences Endings (weight 0.13): Choices are governed by an invisible point system that determines which ending you get. The system tracks relationship points and hidden scores, making consequences sometimes unpredictable and encouraging multiple playthroughs.
- Mature Themes and Dramatic Story (weight 0.12): Themes include drugs, abortion, teenage angst, romance, and dramatic twists. The story is emotionally driven, resembling a telenovela with a focus on the protagonist's internal struggles and heavy topics like single-parent families.
- Animated Sprites and Visual Features (weight 0.09): The visual novel features animated sprites and backgrounds, an immersive mode, and a VHS effect. Hints and fast-forward are available for convenience, and the game includes achievements and mobile versions.

Performance notes:
- Frequent freezes and crashes (weight 0.09): Players report that the game freezes and becomes unplayable after a few minutes of play, often within 10 minutes. These crashes are linked to optimization issues, making the game frustrating to play.
- Black screen in ending descriptions (weight 0.02): Some players encounter black screens instead of location descriptions during the endings, which breaks immersion and prevents proper story delivery.

Recommendations:
- Mixed overall reception (weight 0.7): The game receives both strong recommendations and strong avoidances. Many players recommend it unconditionally, while an equally large group advises against buying or even playing it. The feedback is polarized.
- Strong negative: avoid at all costs (weight 0.43): A large subset of reviews strongly advises against buying the game, calling it a waste of time and money, regretting the purchase, and even suggesting pirating or playing alternative games instead.
- Target audience warnings (weight 0.29): The game is often described as not for everyone. It is recommended for fans of visual novels, those who tolerate flawed protagonists, hardcore players, or those looking for a deep story. Conversely, it is not recommended for casual players, those seeking relaxation, or those who dislike nonsensical writing.
- Comparisons to Everlasting Summer (weight 0.22): Many reviews compare this game to 'Everlasting Summer' (Бесконечное лето). Some recommend it as a successor, while others advise replaying Everlasting Summer instead or downloading it for free. The comparisons are frequent and affect recommendations significantly.
- Route-specific recommendations (weight 0.18): Many reviewers single out specific character routes as the only worthwhile parts of the game. Routes like Ellie/Eli, Catherine/Katy, Kagome, and Elizabeth Kobayashi are frequently mentioned. Some advise a specific order, such as leaving Catherine/Katy route for last.
- Conditional on sale price (weight 0.16): Several reviewers recommend buying the game only when it is on sale or at a discount. They mention it is not worth the full price but acceptable at a reduced cost. Some advise waiting for a giveaway or adding to wishlist.
- Criticism of writing and story (weight 0.13): Significant negative feedback points to poor writing, nonsensical plot, badly written endings, lack of meaningful choices, and wasted potential. This is a major reason for negative reviews and lower scores.
- Game better for streamers or specific use (weight 0.09): Some reviews mention the game is good for streamers or for players who can turn off critical thinking. A few call it average and forgettable, while others find it worth playing with guides to get good endings.
- DLC not recommended (weight 0.08): Multiple reviews explicitly state that the DLC is not worth buying or playing. Some advise to buy only the base game, or to buy DLC only for achievements on sale.
- Technical and developer issues (weight 0.07): Some reviews mention poor translation, developer failure to deliver physical copies, poor handling of credits, and the need to remove the 2‑hour refund limit. These issues lower the recommendation.
- Positive highlights: music and visuals (weight 0.06): Several players praise the music, backgrounds, and illustrations. These aspects are often cited as reasons to recommend the game despite its flaws in story or writing.

Other player notes:
- Deus ex machina plot points (weight 0.03): Players pointed to specific story elements—Ketrin's pregnancy, Kagome being Eli's sister, and Eli being a drug addict—as forced deus ex machina that weakened the narrative.
- Development time waste criticized (weight 0.03): Players felt that the six-year development time was wasted, implying the final product did not live up to the long development period.
- DLC pricing concerns (weight 0.03): Players complained about the pricing of downloadable content, suggesting it was too high or not justified.
- Sarcastic feedback tone (weight 0.02): Some reviews used a sarcastic tone to express dissatisfaction, indicating a negative but non‑specific criticism of the game.

Emotions:
- Frustration (weight 0.23): Players felt frustration due to the protagonist's irritating and passive nature, meaningless choices, poor writing, and pacing issues. The game's unclear choice system and bugs compounded the annoyance.
- Disappointment (weight 0.17): Disappointment stemmed from high expectations not being met due to poor story, unlikable protagonist, filler content, and wasted potential after long development. Many felt the game did not live up to its predecessor.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.06): Satisfaction came from the high-quality art and music, engaging routes like Kagome's, and overall decent experience that justified the price and time for some players.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.05): Enjoyment was driven by the engaging story, excellent music and visuals, and compelling routes such as Ellie's and Kagome's, providing an immersive experience.
- Anger (weight 0.04): Anger resulted from the protagonist's awful behavior, misleading choice system, poor story quality, and feeling cheated after long wait or compared to demo.
- Appreciation (weight 0.04): Appreciation was expressed for the beautiful art and music, atmospheric quality, deep themes, and high production value of the visual novel.
- Admiration (weight 0.03): Admiration came from the exceptional visual and music quality, with some calling it a masterpiece and praising its art direction and overall execution.
- Annoyance (weight 0.03): Annoyance stemmed from the protagonist's repetitive whining, constant focus on Catherine, long credits, and irrational behavior.
- Excitement (weight 0.02): Excitement was sparked by impactful route endings, plot twists, immersive storytelling, and anticipation for future content like DLC.
- Boredom (weight 0.02): Boredom arose from excessive length, slow pacing, weak plot progression, and filler content making the game feel drawn out.
- Gratitude (weight 0.01): Gratitude was directed toward developers for creating a masterpiece, providing help during difficult times, and the quality of the free predecessor.
- Amusement (weight 0.01): Amusement came from ironic situations, the protagonist's misfortunes, comedic moments, and the game's contrast between reason and unreason.
- Sadness (weight 0.01): Sadness was triggered by tragic endings, empathy for characters like Himitsu, and the feeling of emptiness after finishing the story.
- Love (weight 0.01): Love for the game was expressed due to deep character development, emotional engagement despite flaws, and strong attachment to the story and characters.
- Disgust (weight 0.01): Disgust resulted from cringey dialogue, the protagonist's strangling action, low-quality plot, and contradictions in art.
- Nostalgia (weight 0.01): Nostalgia was evoked by the game's accurate recreation of the 1987 setting and personal memories, as well as its connection to the predecessor.
- Pleasure (weight 0.01): Pleasure came from general enjoyment, specific satisfying moments, and positive early game experience.
- Regret (weight 0.01): Regret was felt for spending excessive time and money, as well as early financial support due to subsequent disappointment.
- Joy (weight 0.01): Joy emerged from achieving satisfying endings, immersive experience, beautiful art and music, and emotional revelations.
- Hatred (weight 0.01): Hatred was directed at the protagonist's toxic behavior and spinelessness, as well as dislike for Katherine as a character.}