Game Review: Real Hentai 4

By Al

Players: 1
Platforms: Nintendo Switch

It's been a long while since I've reviewed one of "those" games. You know the ones, the ecchi-themed games that flood the Switch eShop, and somehow get away with having "hentai" in their titles. That drought ends today, as we're going to be looking at Real Hentai 4, a game that I don't think is actually the fourth in the series, as there is only other game I can find any info on. That odd mystery aside, I guess it's time to dive in and see if this one is worth your time. We're going to be moving fast, so let's just get to the review already!

I went into Real Hentai 4 not actually expecting there to be anything resembling a story, but I was still a bit hopeful. Going back to the Hitomi series of games developed by the same studio, these types of games sometimes feature plots that are so ridiculous that they make up for anything lacking in terms of gameplay. Sadly there's none of that here, and there actually isn't anything resembling presentation to be found. I was also disappointed to see that there was a step back in terms of gameplay, as they had a decent formula in the game Hentai Girls Panic that I reviewed last year. All that said, I guess I am glad that it ditched the slide puzzle mechanic that some of those games had. That was a formula that has long grown stale. What kind of gameplay can one expect to find here, you ask? Well, Real Hentai 4 is a puzzle game, a literal one. That's right, you have 20 puzzles of varying difficulties, and it's your job to reassemble pictures of scantily clad anime girls so you can bask in their glory in peace. That's it, that's literally the entire game. I do need to get through an actual review of this game though, so let's take a closer look.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't let down by Real Hentai 4's gameplay being so basic, but I was still willing to give it a try nonetheless. Going into this, I knew that putting together a puzzle of more than 10 pieces or so would be a total chore using a console controller, but thankfully some of the wonkiness is taken care of here. Rather than needing to place each piece exactly in designated spot, or make sure it attaches to the ones around it, you simply have to get it to the general area for it to lock into place. This sounds a bit cheaper than it actually is, and worked out fine for the most part. Seeing as actually moving pieces around with the analog stick or D-pad was indeed difficult, I was pleased that the feature was there at all. Other than controls, the game is pretty easy. There's no time limit, no way to make a mistake, and nothing that can be considered a fail state. You simply have to complete the puzzle, and move on to the next one. There's even a greyed out version of the picture you're currently completing placed under the play area for convenience. It really isn't a bad puzzle experience when you get down to it, but is it actually worth playing?

Even though you'd think story wouldn't be important in a game like this, I can't stress enough how lazy it feels when the developers don't even bother with something as simple as naming the characters found in the pictures. Not only are they all nameless, but they don't even have any sort of original sound or animations attached to them either. There is sound in the game, but it’s a mix of ambient music, and a handful of generic voice clips that did get on my nerves after a while. The music isn't too bad really, but it's just a single track you'll hear from the time you start up the game, right up to when you quit and close it. There's also the fact that the pictures themselves don't lend well to being cut up as puzzles. Most of my time with the game was wasted trying to figure out which solid color piece went where, and I was only able to figure that out by pure chance, or by leaving them until the very end. I guess this can be a problem with actual physical puzzles too, but I have limited experience with those. At the end of the day, the entire game felt rather hollow, and I only completed it because I kept wondering if there was more to it. That, and I of course had to write this review.

Probably the biggest issue I had with Real Hentai 4 had to be the art itself. I don't think I'm speaking out of line when I say that every image here looks to be AI generated. I can't confirm this to be the case of course, but they all have that telltale uncanny valley look and feel to them. This already put a bad taste in my mouth early on, and it wasn't helped by the fact that the game currently carries a $19.99 price tag. That is simply an absurd price for the amount of content you get. I 100% the game in about two hours, and most of that was me having to walk away from it for a bit because the gameplay was starting to wear out its welcome. I'm sure most players will be able to clear it in about an hour, and expecting people to pay more than ten dollars for that is just insulting. I can only assume the high price point is a trick of sorts so it can continually be marked as being on sale for 90% off, but it still feels wrong.

At the end of the day, I really don't have too much to say about Real Hentai 4. You know what you're getting into here, so I don't think any recommendation is truly needed. If you really must have every Switch game with the word "hentai" in it in your collection, then pick this one up, everyone else can safely stay away and not miss anything. This doesn't have the quirky silliness of the Hitomi series, nor the surprisingly fun gameplay found in Hentai Girls Panic, it just exists. It's a puzzle game that (probably) features AI art, and isn't even as raunchy as the title suggests. It's not a horrible game, nor even the worst of this niche of a genre that I've played, it just has nothing really going in its favor. I know I keep saying that I'm going to stop reviewing these types of games, but perhaps this time I've learned my lesson and will stay away from them in the future. I guess we'll just have to wait and see...

Check Out Real Hentai 4 on Nintendo Switch:
https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/real-hentai-4-switch/

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Story: N/A
Gameplay: C
Graphics: C
Music/Sound: C
Value: C

Overall: C

Pros:
+ Manages to pull off puzzle gameplay using a console controller surprisingly well.
+ Doesn't have any sort of fail state, so can be a chill activity for those who like puzzles. (Though they'd obviously need to like scantily clad, vaguely anime-themed, girls as well.)
+ While I wouldn't say the music was particularly good, it did go above the "ten-second loop passing as audio" threshold these kind of games usually feature.

+/- It's another hentai-themed game on the Nintendo Switch, you already know if you were going to get this before you even read the review.
+/- I don't know if this is a pro or a con, but I've seen raunchier content in even the tamest of games. Simply put, this doesn't deliver on the "hentai" in its title.

Cons:
- The core gameplay is rather thin, as is the overall presentation.
- Most players will easily complete the entire game in an hour or two, and there really isn't any reason to keep playing beyond that.
- Though I can't say with 100%, I do believe that this game uses AI art.
- Even though I think its pricing is a scheme to keep it always on sale, its current $19.99 price tag is just ridiculous.

A copy of this game was provided to us free-of-charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review. This did not affect our review in any way.

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And with this last piece... I'm done!

#RealHentai4