The old adage was and is right, it cannot be denied: “the road to hell is paved with good intentions“. Maybe then, if a short pindaric flight allows it, hell is populated by people with good intentions, people with "deadly" feelings such as embarrassment, jealousy, frustration ... and why not, love.
Lovingly Evil puts us right in the context of discovering the good side of each of us and does so by putting in front of us who, par excellence, represents evil, malice and devilishness: the most iconic villains of literature and entertainment, those who feared us decades ago and defined themselves as the villains of the stories that were told to us but who now, with adulthood and the disillusionment of the moral Manichaeism now behind us, they can only unconsciously appeal to some hidden, profound, forbidden part of us.
Developed by Lizard Hazard Games and Green Man Gaming, Lovingly Evil sees us participate in a convention of villains par excellence, an event complete with a refreshment area, "merchandise" shops and interesting conferences. It all begins with the creation of the character, a section that gives good space to the definition of our "alter ego", but which is not enormously reflected in what our gaming experience will be: on the one hand, a purely meta is a pleasant and welcome concept , also because anyone in this world has the right to love and be loved, but on the playful side there is one sin slight superficiality which makes your nose turn up a little.
Having chosen and created our character, we leave for the conference. Immediately you notice the deeply (self) ironic tone by Lovingly Evil, seasoned with quotations and sarcasm, never excessive and always able to give us a smile. Wandering through the various "hubs" that the map of the structure hosting the conference offers, we will meet the different potential recipients of our interest and affection: from a lady who is more dangerous than poison to a floriculture enthusiast who is very reminiscent of a vampire Dorian Gray, up to to Satan itself and one of our clones. In short, at this conference, there really is something for everyone.
Here then we start with getting to know these eccentric characters, first allowing oneself a general smattering of all of them and then, inevitably, succumbing to the charm of one of them. In our run it was the android Nova to capture our hearts, a creature born from the hands of the "usual" megalomaniac doctor who, if on the one hand created it in the image and likeness of his ideal as a woman, on the other is ready to make it a commodity and sell it on the market.
Its charm has completely trapped us but, we confess, the curiosity towards two of the other possible companions remains, a detail that perhaps will push us to a second and third run.
Lovingly Evil, however, has an aspect in which it shows its side more: many of the interactions with our love interests take place through dialogues that can, in certain contexts, lead to mini-games:
- Does Satan have to go running errands? Replace it at grid of his food truck.
- Does the bouncer in the VIP area create problems for you? Face it at a game of ALE.
These are unfortunately hit-and-miss both in terms of fun and actual enjoyment as experiences included in what is, in effect, a dating sim.
Lovingly Evil starts from funny and almost superlative premises, which find in dating sim the best genre to expand and grow. Playing a villain is always fascinating and finding ourselves flirting with the likes of Satan is not an everyday thing. Unfortunately, the road that the title takes is not entirely new as the premises seem to promise, an aspect that does not spoil the experience too much but that cannot fail to be slightly disappointing. Lovingly Evil is peppered with mini-games that are of a very fluctuating quality and which, in effect, diminish the appeal of a second run. In all respects, the game of Green Man Gaming and Lizard Hazard Games is entertaining and has memorable moments so we are sure that, when the annoyance of some of the mini-games finally disappears, the memory of an enjoyable experience and source of numerous will remain. smiles.
