Amber's Magic Shop

"Amber's Magic Shop" is another visual novel from Winter Wolves, that I just can't recommend. [h1]Art. [/h1] I like the art style, although it is a bit inconsistent (different art styles for different characters). I like how characters grow, not only in description, but their sprites also reflects that [spoiler] Why Lair's though? Wasn't he like 70 already?[/spoiler] What I don't get are those panty shots and pin-ups. I'm more than fine with some teasing and even straight up adult content, but usually images like that fit to the context of the game. "Amber's Magic Shop" isn't too much focused on sex (although it seems to try). It's just a very plain romance story with fantasy setting, tiring alchemy sections and "main plot" going on in the background. [h1]Characters. [/h1] Good ideas, that came out wrong. You have prince with daddy issues, you have your best friend, who should marry said prince, you have vampire that wants to be human, mercenary, that has too high ambitions and ge...

It's a good game and I enjoyed playing it, BUT there are WRONG and RIGHT choices. I started playing thinking that dark choices would lead to a darker ending, of course, but "happy" or at least "bittersweet". Something like Amber becoming evil. However, dark choices in most cases lead to terrible, sad endings for Amber and her romances. The info said there were no wrong or right choices, but there are. You have to be a goodie two shoes if you want the main character to have a successful relationship. And... meh. Dark choices are more interesting and in a lot of cases, make more sense [spoiler]Why should Amber kneel before that imbecile of a knight? Nope, she's strong, smart and values herself. Why is it a bad choice that she refuses to kneel before someone who is being racist and insulting her for no reason?[/spoiler] Apart from this, the music was really good and the time skip allowing the players to see the characters become adults was great too. No complaints about the art, it was g...

I can without a doubt say that this game is not worth buying. Not at it's current price, or any price. The game sells itself as a visual with an Alchemy crafting system, to help tell the story and to fill the space between the visual novel sections. However, what the game is in reality is 95% Alchemy and 5% visual novel. That's way to much filler if you ask me. But thats not the end of it. The Alchemy system is a barebones as it can be, with the player simply choosing a recipe, selecting what items to use and then crafting the item, only to then sell whatever item they have made for money. That's it. The only reason the 'Alchemy' mechanic is in the game is to serve as filler to make the game seem longer than it is. It's not fleshed out, or interesting. It's purely there to make the game seem longer so that the developers can justify a higher price. The visual novel side of things is also terrrible. The characters are bland. The interactions are lifeless. And the player made choices a...

Amber's Magic Shop is an interesting story about dark elf girl becoming master alchemist and finding her love. Game has visual novel mode with crafting being fully cut out and plot feels to remain relatively solid in it (game will politely ask if player wants heroine to succeed or fail at creating story related potions). Timewise the game is divided into two parts: 1. Teenager stage when Amber is learning the craft - this part is more concentrated on visual novel component of the game since there are a lot of characters to meet and get to know; 2. Adult stage when Amber starts to run her own shop and new significant challenges appear in her life. In this part we also define Amber's sexuality, what romance she is going to follow with time and, obviously, the game focus shifts to crafting (since adult life is significantly less eventful and consists of work, work and work... salt of life! >.<) [h1]The Battle between Light and Dark[/h1] The game presents new alignment system: Dark vs L...

Cute, but overpriced. Clicking through dialogs, but no "real" crafting (just clicking on ingredience in storage or instantly bought). Also no "real" foraging, Mining etc. Basically one is just investing daily energy points for various tasks.

I really wanted to like this game- I love Winter Wolves and I love the main character's design. I almost succeeded, but ultimately this game's horniness is its own downfall. Now, if you take a look at my library, you'll see that I'm no prude. I enjoy the occasional horny game. However, let's just say that the way this game engages with sex put me off. For example, Reed and Cosmina- [spoiler]You spend a good 75% of the game thinking they're siblings, and are only told otherwise once you walk in on them boning.[/spoiler] Or how, there's a scene where the main character and her mother are assaulted by vines, complete with CGs. Perhaps if this game were advertised as horny and silly, I would be able to accept these things, as I can with other games. But if it weren't for these scenes, Amber's Magic Shop would have been as plot-heavy as any JRPG. It feels like the fanservice is fighting with the overall tone, rather than contributing toward it. The truth is, that this game is mediocre. With...

Pros: +You can date female characters and even have poly relationships if you're into these things. +The dialogue wasn't tiresome. I have played some visual novels that have heavy dialogue that bores you after a while. Cons: -The characterization is actually rather poor mainly because you actually barely get to spend any time with the characters. I wish there were maybe fewer characters so that you could spend more time with each one of them -The crafting is generally alright, however the final quests are a bit too hard, even on easy mode. It is way too difficult to raise the stats to the required level. I think they should have made it a bit easier. -There is actually very little romance. I felt that this was more of a game about friends than about romance. Overall, I was disappointed and I expected more. It's not a terrible game, but I felt like they wasted its potential. The idea of the crafting mini game was interesting but the execution was rather mediocre.

I cannot recommend this game, it is mostly grindy and the romance aspects of the game are over quickly. Not really enjoyable, more of a time waster.

I loved this game, I found it delightful and interesting. As the synopsis suggests, you are Amber, and having grown up in the woods being raised by your adoptive mother, you’re sent to the big city to become an apprentice alchemist. You spend the first portion of the game at this stage, where you get to know your new love-interests/friends, and make decisions that shape how your personality develops (i.e. do you want a light or dark alignment, are you selfish or selfless, etc…). Later you progress to the ‘adult’ stage (complete with a change of appearance for you and the other characters), having (hopefully) passed your exams you start your own business, a ‘magic shop’. It’s slightly weird that none of this game seems to focus on actually RUNNING the titular magic shop. You gain ‘jobs’ elsewhere (and occasionally a customer will come in with a special order), craft the required objects and gain money/xp/loot/reputation (depending on what reward you wanted). You can ...

Hey, this is my first review of a game so it would not be perfect but I'll try. [u] The Gameplay [/u] Amber's Magic Shop is first and foremost a crafting game with dating sim aspects. However, if you're more of a reader then you can skip the gameplay entirely and focus more on the storytelling. At first, I was confused by the crafting system but after some practice, I got used to it and enjoyed it. The crafting does get a little tedious over time but I still found it unique and enjoyable. As for the dating sim part, the choices for the romances you're pursuing are very different from a usual dating sim. The choices you make will affect your alignment with the romances instead of your relationships with them. I'll be elaborating more on the romances further down the review. [u] The Storytelling [/u] The story here is about Amber, a dark elf, who is trying to be a master alchemist. Due to her race, she experiences discrimination from the other races. Despite that, she does meet open-mi...