The Thorns of War

I enjoyed the first game and I look forward to playing this sequel!

I would like to ask if you plan to release this game on Steam once all the routes are complete. I bought "The Rose of Segunda" through Steam, and I prefer keeping all my games in one place when possible, so is it better to wait for that? Will you be giving a Steam key to people who purchased the current version on Itch.io? Or is "The Thorns of War" going to be a Itch.io release only?

Thank you!

hi! how are things going?

I've just finished all of the available routes (not all of the endings though, just one ending per each route as of yet, and i'm saving other outcomes for future replays ^^), and my goodness, what a ride!

The Rose was a delight, but the continuation... it's simply gorgeous.

I really like your writing, and I felt really invested in the plot and achieving the end goal in each one of the current routes. And the sheer size of them!! Just... wow.

I also came to adore every single character in this story... ESPECIALLY the MC - what a fox!! With Roguish + Cunning/Witty + Commanding traits chosen, at least. I'm yet to check how the other options play out, but these are my ideal setup for any game and I suspect I'm going to find letting go of them very hard in the future playthroughs, even for the sake of curiosity xD

Anyhow, honestly, it's a blessing to be able to play such a charismatic, likable and believable character (and don't even mention all the roleplay possibilities that arise as the story progresses - *chef's kiss*). I like how the MC feels strong and powerful, but still remains *a lady* to her very core and exerts her power in ways that never feel contadictory to her femininity, status, personality or the setting - somehow, that's exactly the experience I was missing from ALL the other VNs/otomes I'd played over the last years.

Aside from the MC and the main cast, I came to have a soft spot for Mariette - I keep thinking that if she ever was available as a romance option, she'd probably be one of my favorites. I understand that this is not to be, but I really am hoping to see more of her in the upcoming routes, and it was so cool to have a whole quest involving encounters with her in Sofia's!

As for the actual routes, I am in complete awe after Leopold's - that was everything I could ever have asked from a route and more T__T His every appearance in any other route makes me somehow sad i'm not playing his route currently. Although, to be fair, the same happens every time Frederique shows on the screen xD

Also, what a treat all those additional scenes have been T__T And, as for Frederique (again xD), after reading his in-between games scene, I can't help but wonder, what on Earth could have happened so MC and him end up leaving their safe haven. Is it abduction of either of them or both? blackmailing and threats??? one of Mother's endless machinations? duty??? i mean, i don't expect an answer to this question, but omg, it would be so interesting to find out one day!

Thank you for all this work and best of luck with developing the rest of the routes! I have no doubt that each and every one of them is going to be worth any wait :3

P.S. oooohhh!! i found my answers in the demo!! god bless the demo!!! OMG, so it IS duty... after a fashion xD i actually kind of suspected as much, hehe <3

Sooo... I hope you're not completely fed up with questions about progress on particular routes because I wanted to ask about Charlotte's ;-) 

Hello! I'm sorry for bothering you, but I'm really eager to know about Frederique's route. If I may ask, could you give an estimate on when (6 months/1 year/2 years/3 years...) his route is going to be released (or at least started)? I understand you are working on the "Loveless" route because you had trouble with Frederique's route (you weren't satisfied with it), so could you please give us an update on when the "Loveless" route is going to be finished (just so I know when to expect the start of Frederique's route)? I'm sorry If this sounds like I'm rushing you (I promise I'm not! I want Frederique's route fleshed out and well written, he deserves that, and I understand that takes time), I'm just really excited for it! I binged the other routes from "The Rose Of Segunda" yesterday, just to get to Frederique's route, so I'm desperate for updates ('m again really sorry for asking, I hope this doesn't come off as rude). Thank you and keep up the good work!

hi! sorry, can i ask if the game is going to be available on steam?

Sorry for another question - in Guillaume’s route is it possible to betray him and have affair with Leo? :D Asking for science.

I finished Leo's route in both of your games and let me say, I'm now depressed that there is no more content :D I seriously want to see my favorite power couple ruling or doing their thing. It was such nice experience really that I almost didn't notice the absence of steamy/bedroom scenes. There were tons of tender moments that made their relationship and married status believable.  Leopold is so deeply in love with his wife and at the same time doesn't lose his personality. This is honestly refreshing to see because usually in otome stories you are to "reform" the LI and make him abandon his evil plans or whatever. Leo however is dead set on his course, which I find wonderfully realistic.

Now... I should go and weep probably. I want more Q.Q

Hello! If I purchase the game now as it is in early acess, will I have to purchase it again and again with each new update? O.O

After Charlotte's route, will you folks start working on the two new characters route?

I really liked the 1st part... It's a pity that this part is so long in development (of course I understand everyone has their own circumstances), but it's pretty sad to see the game in development for 5 years with only 60 percent progress.

Hi do we have an eta on frederique yet

Omg! How did I miss this after playing the first game?! Onwards to Sofia's route again! 🤣 Thank you for making a sequel!! ✨

Just leaving a quick comment to say I hope you're doing well and that I still think about this game all the time. Thank you so much. ❤

Hello, I really enjoyed The Rose of Segunda and the routes that are currently out for The Thorns of War. I really like the MC and the character development that she can go through between those games and possibilities depending on the routes you choose to take. I don't mean to sound pushy, but can I ask how it's going for what you're working on right now? Thank you for making these games

Leo's route is so cute! I played his after Guill's, and there such a huge difference in the love, affection, and respect Leo shows MC throughout as compared to Guill.

Thanks for making these games, you are genius :) 

I love how the main character is so clever and self confident.

Thanks for the extra scenes, it was good to see what happened after the birthday celebration!

My favourite route is Leopold's (the good end, haven't played the bad ones)

I'm curious about the single route, Mathys will be interesting i think :)

+ My favourite part in the first game was when she was playing as the prince and did not follow the script :D she was so funny xD

Hello again :) how is progress with frederique coming along

Just want to show my appreciation for Frederique's route! I so appreciate this dynamic and can't wait to play his route when it's released!

I'm impatient for Frédérique's route! I've had a lot of fun playing the previous ones so far, especially Leopold's first as he is my favorite from the first game, and has been the first route I played on both games, but the other routes and options were fantastical to experience as well, this game is very complete with so many options to explore, especially if you're a bit of perfectionist, managing all our choices to get to our goals is made in an intuitive way that I think is just the right difficulty, and makes playing pretty pleasant, not to mention the character designs and sprites, and the impeccable writing.

With my summer break starting not too long ago, I think I should have had played the game now rather than right before my final exams, thankfully I still got satisfactory grades lol 

This chain of games has been a gem to me amongst other otome games for how indescribably good it is, so thank you, devs!

hello, are you guys doing well? :)

 I'm here for Frederique. Waiting for that route to drop. Seriously, you went there and I applaud the effort. 

I made this account specifically to leave a review for this game. I love The Rose of Segunda too, but this game is on another level. Already, it's one of my favourite VNs of all time.

It's honestly hard for me to decide what my favourite route is: they're all excellent. Ultimately, I think it might be Sofia's: I've always had a soft spot for her. Guillaume's was honestly painful to read at times, but in a good way where it's really stuck with me. I loved exploring the different outcomes on his route in particular. Overall, I'm really impressed by how smoothly you continue each of the stories from RoS.

Finally, I'd like to say your prose is excellent: wonderfully descriptive without ever feeling like too much. You imbue the characters with so much personality!

Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful work with us. All the best in the future.

SPOILERS FOR LEOPOLD & BASTIEN ROUTE

So far I've completed the game 3 times, and by the seasons of my body, you outdid yourselves, truly. Leopold's route is amazing. It's loving, it's heartbreaking at one point and it just feels so satisfying. MC really have power and impact. I probably won't be able to complete his other endings, apart from good, but it's ok. That one was enough for me. I'm also so glad that I got to know Pieto and LaFouch more - they truly were amazing friends to MC and at one point I was even wondering if Pieto will find love, for he deserves it.  :> So far I feel Leo's route is the most precious. 

I've started the game with Guillaume and Sofia, but lost interest at some point - I need to get back to them again, and get through the struggles. Especially with Sofia, because she's a lovely woman and was my first choice.

When it comes to Bastien's route I was heartbroken from the start. In the beginning I thought that surely Mother told Bastien that he can have MC for some time, and that she plots to marry her off to either Leo or the Prince. Then it came to me, that she possibly changed her target and made some propositions towards one precious old man, but I would NEVER guessed that sure, she did some things, but it was Bastien's father who was such a dick. FML, if MC could kill him again - she would. And again and again. 

Bastien's route was difficult, and in the end I splitted my saves and simultaneously completed it with both him and Pieto, because I couldn't bear just breaking Bastien's heart (the moment he hears that MC wants a divorce :'))))) ). I just wanted him to be happy, to treasure life and speak up for himself. I laughed soooo hard when he snapped back at Francesca. I wasn't his fan in the Rose of Segunda, but in this game his character got fuller and deeper.

Pieto, dear Pieto. He's a very well written character and he treats MC with kindness and respect. And not only in his route, I may add. He's caring and basically all that she needs at this difficult point in her life. He's also very different from her other possible love interests and I think that's what makes him stand out to me. Also I'm a sucker when it comes to characters (and people, lol) that speak languages resembling German or Dutch.

It's always a treat to come back to this game.

hi there how is progress going with frederique? :)

Hi! Is there a release date for Frederique and Charlotte's routes?

Waiting for Frederique before I buy it. He was my favourite in the original, and I'm really proud of the creators for having the guts to 'go there' and not cheap out.

i just want to come in here and say how much i am in love with chesaré and leopold clearly i have a thing for playful flirts

(ALSO I AM IN THE MIDDLE OF BASTIENS ROUTE AND HOLY SHIT I AM ACTUALLY TEARING UP guillaumes route was bad but i didnt really like him that much so it was nothing to me BUT BASTIEN JFC my heart is tearing itself apart and im using it as tissues)

I waited for Leopold's route to be released before playing the game and it was so worth it!

(SPOILERS BELOW FOR LEOPOLD'S ROUTE)

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For me, the difficulty level in terms of getting the best ending was just right. I had to backtrack at some parts, but the story and characters give enough hints at the theme of the choices you should be taking, e.g. Leopold telling Iolanthe to be discreet in the second half, or Iolanthe mentioning Francesca's easily wounded pride when dealing with her. (I do plan to use the guide to try and complete the endings though.)

The story! I like how the route follows up on Leopold's plans and the issues that would arise in his and Iolanthe's relationship considering that a significant part of his motivation is revenge. Reading about the political intrigue is fascinating, especially with how cunning Leopold is (and Iolanthe too, if she succeeds at the game's tasks). I love, love how the twist at the end of Act 1 was executed! The slow build up of dread, Leo's admission, Iolanthe's outburst! The raised stakes! And then you have to use your allies' help from Act 1 to succeed at the plot in the second half of the game, which is a really nice way of bringing everything together!

Next, Leopold and Iolanthe and their romance! I'll keep this short, otherwise I'll start quoting entire lines haha. Let me tell you, I was giggling and kicking my feet throughout the whole route. Their banter was so cute and sweet! (Lmao @ Duchess Parisi catching them flirting outside the ballroom.) And the way Leopold made sure to make it very clear to everyone that Iolanthe was his equal and was very much in on the plan as he was!!!!!!!! And he will not tolerate any disrespect to her!!!! I also love those snippets about their life in Tremaine, like them drawing and painting together awwwww. And there's Iolanthe. Iolanthe!!!! When she declared she would save Leopold and Segunda!! And then she did!! The best ending was so deserved. Co-rulers in name and deed!! Holding hands together on their twin thrones!! Being very much in love all over the place while advancing their plans for Segunda. *chef's kiss*

(Pardon my exclamation marks. Ahem.)

Also,the question posed repeatedly: how far would Leopold go for revenge? Luckily, Iolanthe saves him before he has to find out on his best ending. So I tried doing the others, and I felt like I had to peek through my fingers picking all the wrong choices hahaha. The answer: definitely far, but not without remorse.

Onwards to playing the rest of Leopold's endings!! Even if they will break my heart. Also looking forward to playing the other routes and the eventual TTOW LI POVs! Thank you for this story!

Thank you for the update! I loved the game! So much drama and politics! Really great to see that aside from the romance. I've only played Guillaume and Leopold. I got both of their good endings! First I played Guillaume and then Leopold.

(MINOR SPOILERS)

For Guillaume, he really annoyed me how loyal he was to his Father when he had complained so much on the previous game but because of their Father-son relationship I somewhat understood. What really grilled me was how he dared to snub her in front of his allies. (God, I almost chose to change tactics and divorce the fool after that instant but I calmed down) I didn't like how Frederique abandonded the MC especially when she mostly needed him as she had no true allies. I wished there had been a way to reconcile them but was not given the option. I was happy that Mariette was there for the MC as her brother had left her, she had no real relationship to her Mom and she was often at odds with Guillaume. Mariette was a great friend! Ehem, back to Guillaume, while playing his route, although frustrating at times with how stubborn and naive he was made me think of my real life relationships and how the game captures the feeling of being hurt but still loving the person. (Especially when they don't appreciate all the work one does for them) So although he was flawed, he felt like a real person and like a real person he admitted his mistakes and did his best to change for the MC which I appreciated. (I would have appreciated more if he would have gotten her, her own throne but alas he's no Leopold)

Now into Leopold! I was much more eager to play his route after seeing how much cunning and smarter he was than Guillaume. I was not disappointed as unlike Guillaume he realized that the peace talks were nothing but stalling for time after only a day or two of them. Leopold (unlike Guillaume) knew how important MC's job was from the start and admired and thanked her for it. He did keep a secret from her which put a dent into their relationship but he soon confessed and only became true parters in crime! I loved his romantic and mischievous personality, and how his high position in court did not detract from his affections to the MC. I also liked how there was a small scene where he calls Frederique his brother which I liked. (As Guillaume never had a scene like that with MC's brother.) Although not as flawed as Guillaume, he did make mistakes but never any so bad as to break MC's heart so for that I am thankful. I did think it was sad how bad Francesca's marriage to Guillaume was, (Much worse than MC's for a long shot) so although at first I disliked her, I was happy to help her later in the story. It did make me sad that in Leopold's route, Guillaume keeps being loyal to his Dad and has an unhappy marriage with Francesca, sticking with his Dad until the bitter end.  I wish Mariette and the MC could have been friends in this storyline but I understood as Mariette house was allied with the King. Thankfully, MC had her share of allies with  Count Pietro and Duchess La Fouch. I couldn't stand Franchelli but even that fool had his uses towards the end.

The writing was exceptional! Bravo to all the writers for being able to be able to write so beautifully and come up with such a captivating story! I have been playing nonstop! 

I want to keep playing but I'm not interested on the girls, and I don't want to play Bastien as I keep reading about how angsty and sad his route is. I may play Frederique, though first I have to play his route on Rose of Segunda and see how that can even happen, them being siblings and all. (But I'm guessing one of them is adopted or something of the sort.)

I'm one of the backers of the kickstarters and I have a question, is Sir Mathyl's route going to come out with the Single route the Dev is working on? I'm excited to play his route! Was happy to catch a glimpse of him on Leopold's route! Also what exactly is the loveless route?

Love the game! Can't wait for all your future games! You can be sure I'll buy them! I have already played all of your other games! Still waiting for the BFF game, will buy it the second it comes out!

Thanks for the update and the route is as interessent as other routes :-), That’s good, congratulation.

I see you have publish a guide : thanks. I really do recommend to **not **use this kind of guide for the 1st play as this is really doable to get a “good ending” without the guide, but once the 1st play is done it’s very nice to have.

I think somehow, it can help to have a list of the endings ( without ?????? once we have done a playthrough for a route with a name that allow to search what to do differently the get the ending without the guide. ( Thanks for the ending list guide, when missing some, it was hard to guess what to do.

A minor remark for the game, I think it will be better to have a page ending by route rather then global ( there is quite a lot of endings now :-) ).

And then I really think your game is not an early access but a finished game with new content still in progress. I don’t have any bug visible and lot of finished game have some. It’s just that new content are still in progress.

For example, The game “https://steamberry.itch.io/gildedshadows” (also on steam ) has been out with a set of initial routes and other routes are still in production. In this game, when selecting a “not yet available” route there is just a dialog that it will be available in an update. I don’t see complains about it in the comment and I’m happy ( and not at all disapointed )the same way when a new route is available in your game ( It’s just I think people may not buy the game because of the early access and that’s sad, it worth it )

Keep the good work, have fun ( I hope ) doing it !

Yay!!🤩 I've been looking forward to this day for a while now!☺ I'm going to play it now, thanks for your hard work!!!👏🏻👏🏻🥳

So excited for the new route! Will the guide for it be released tomorrow as well?

What timezone will the new release be dropped in? :3