Review of UMCC & UMCH
Disclaimer.
I am by no means a professional. I've played the SVP games time and time again, and I enjoy them.
What I'm trying to achieve with these reviews is to give Vortex00 a critical and detailed examination of his games, specifically Classroom Cheaters and Classroom Havoc.
By no chance am I trying to be harsh or mean. I'm critical of his games because I'm a fan of his work.
That being said, I've chosen to skip and or give little review of certain game play elements here because they are improved in the next game Classroom Havoc. At certain times during this document I'll inform the reader that I will go review certain details in the next review for Classroom Havoc.
The Review for Umichan Maiko Classroom Cheaters (UMCC)
1) Game play
- Status/Stats for Maiko:
I want the stats to have more value, currently the stats feel like just another box on a checklist to be checked off and ignored the rest of the game. I'd like to see them be applied somewhere else, or be changed into something that can be applied with returning value/award.
- Relationships:
Relationships between Maiko and other characters.
I think this is a great mechanic, having a relationship stat with other characters can give more immersion and reason to grow attached to other characters. If utilized correctly, this can really drive the game forward in terms of game play and story. I'd like to see the characters become more than just 2D artwork with hentai scenes. If the relationship mechanic made a return, perhaps there can be more to it than just building up the numbers.
- Intelligence (Smarts):
Again, a stat with little to no value in terms of game play. I like the idea of keeping up Maiko's grades, but it should have real life consequences. If her grades are good, give some sort of reward to the player and Maiko. If her grades begin to fail, punish the player and Maiko but not too harshly.
Example, if her grades begin to fail perhaps her relationship with certain characters may suffer a penalty.
- Money:
Little to no use. Very easy to make. Not really sure if this is needed, but it does have uses. Maybe can be used for dates? Being able to pay for movies, food etc. Give it more value in terms of game play.
- Tasks:
This is fine, but an improvement could be if it was changed into time of day. Could use Day/Hours.
Example, Monday - 8:00 AM.
The following topics are gathered here because there is little to nothing I can say about them other than they have very little game play value. I feel though I wouldn't be fair to Vortex00 if I didn't give some sort of examination of these elements. I'll try to wrap it up in one go. I didn't return to these game play elements because I feel as if they give nothing in return. They are needed in order to progress some story elements, but to me they have no further use afterwards. There could be some improvement to these topics, but I'll give a further review on the Sentinel Battles, Photos, and Mini-Games in my next review for Classroom Havoc.
Sentinel Battles.
Photos & Photo shoot.
Clubs.
Mini-Games.
2) User Interface
- The Tablet:
A great idea, but it needs to be cleaned up. Too many buttons creates clutter.
The less buttons to press the better. Less menus is always a good thing in game design.
Areas (School, Park, Mall etc)
I don't mind the buttons to move around the areas, but it's a small hassle. If you played Hunnie Pop, or google it, the way they handle moving about their world is just fine. With UMCC, the constant clicking buttons in different areas of the screen gets tedious. I'll go more in depth with my next review in UMCH about how this may be improved.
3) Graphics/Artwork:
I'll have a more in-depth review of this in my UMCH review, since it was improved on between games.
4) Follower/Boyfriend and Hentai Scenes
The cream of the crop and one of the strongest attractions of these games and why people play them.
In Classroom Cheaters, I absolutly love the freedom to sleep/date all of the characters. I really adore having a "follower" in CC. Having another character by Maiko's side gives the immersion of having a friend go along with you, or having a boyfriend to be with. Sadly there is no more to this other than getting a hentai scene and it was upsetting to see this removed from Classroom Havoc. I believe this 'Follower/Boyfriend' mechanic has great potential. I'll have more on that in the next review for UMCH.
As for the hentai scenes, they are improved on in the next game (Classroom Havoc).
5) Characters
I'm choosing to skip this part because I'll have my analysis of the characters in my UMCH review.
6) Replay Value and Final Thoughts
Little to no replay value, although sometimes I return to UMCC to reexamine the Relationship and Follower/Boyfriend mechanics.
The Relationship and Follower/Boyfriend mechanics are great ideas but they are not executed with their full potential.
The freedom to date/sleep with any character is great, but was unfortunately not applied in the next game, Classroom Havoc.
My final thoughts.
The relationship stats, the follower/boyfriend mechanic and the freedom to date/sleep with anyone are the best things Vortex00 has for UMCC, but they need improvement. Other than that, I enjoyed UMCC. It was a good game with great ideas, and even some of these ideas and mechanics were improved on in the following game UMCH. Vortex00 did a great job with this one.