Ritenuto
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android
Ritenuto: held back in tempo — used as a direction in music usually indicating an abrupt slowing down
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IMPORTANT: If you played the DEMO version of this game... DO NOT LOAD YOUR OLD SAVE FILES!
The game has changed so DRASTICALLY if you load an old save file from the DEMO it will for sure break the game.
So, just play it again from the start!!
(It's pretty different... also it's been more than a year so might as well, right?!?)
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Starring the idiot teachers from Dolce, this super self indulgent game features:
- an idiot bickering couple
- animated(?) sprites
- manga style cutscenes
- self-doubt!!!
- a UI that changes based on character POV
- aroace-coded conversations
- strangers to lovers, hurt/comfort, getting together, attempt at humor, i wrote this instead of sleeping, no beta we die like men
Statistics:
- 10 CGs
- 8 manga cutscenes
- 28k words
- About 2 hours of Game ReadingTM
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Original Music:
Everything Else:
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Resources Used:
- Sound Effects and Additional Music from Pixabay and BGM President
- Phone NVL System
- Renpy Auto Highlight
Content Warnings:
- One moment of Flashing Lights
- Thunder (Subtle)
- Alcohol/Drinking/Clubbing (Brief)
- Unhealthy Work Ethic...?
Bug Fixes:
- 1.1.3 = fixed some wording and also a mistake that made 3/4th of the game dark/gray (I forgot to hide a screen)
- 1.1.4 = typos
Added 1.1.4 mobile version!! But it's just the game itself roughly converted without any actual changes, so it's not super mobile friendly JLSKFGJSH
- During the map segments, you gotta tap and hold your fingers at a location in order to see the name. (This imitates hovering your cursor there.)
- I'll Maybe make a proper mobile version at a later date. :>
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If you spot any bugs or problems,
please leave a comment on the game page!!
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This game takes place before the events of Dolce. If you think these two look familiar, then you've probably played Dolce!
(Have you not played Dolce? Maybe you should do that... :eyes_emoiji: It was my first VN ever though, so it's a bit weaker than this one LOL)
Download
Click download now to get access to the following files:
Development log
- Ritenuto is Finally Complete!Jun 30, 2025
- Ritenuto PART 1 is COMPLETE and OUT!!Dec 31, 2024
Comments
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Hey, this was beautifully told and really resonated with me. Thanks for making this, I don't think I've related to a love story so much in a long time.
God, this was so sweet and I had so much fun with it! I of course enjoyed the romance (or aromance?) parts, but offsetting them against the struggles they were both having - and seeing how those internal thoughts threatened to derail things for them (personally and in their relationship) - made for a great contrast in the story and added some real depth to both of the leads.
I fell in love with Chip pretty much immediately, and the teasing and bickering between him and Viv was just a constant delight, I genuinely laughed out loud at them digging at each other. The supporting cast were a lot of fun too, and the writing flowed really smoothly and was well paced.
Also, I love the manga-style cut scenes and the umbrella twirl transitions!
In short, this was great, and I'm gonna have to go check out Dolce off the back of it~
Heads up that the zip files are not marked for the platform they are compatible with, which prevents either of them from installing through the itch app
On the other hand, it turns out that the PC version is also Linux compatible. I think that might be the way Ren'Py exports games by default? So yeah, you can just check the penguin next to that one, as well as the window.
Ohhhh yea. I think I forgot to check that when I updated the game files. )-)o Every time, man.
(And yes, the PC version also works with Linux.)
Thank you for letting me know! It should be good now.
Yep, works for me!
That was nice and cute!
I really love the pov change animations and the comic format. They are so good...
Thank you!! ;;7;;;
The POV swap and comics were a lot of extra effort lmao, but so worth it !!
This game is incredible and so cute!
But I can't find the way to find the two last scenes on extras >_<
Thank you!! <3
You can unlock the last two scenes (the epilogue) by doing all of the free time extra conversations! :>
I found it! Thank you! :)
Don't sleep on this one!
Here from Reddit, this was such an enjoyable experience to play through in the past hour! We seriously need more aro/aroace representation because I think this is the first love story I’ve ever seen that actually feels relatable to me. Thank you for making it!
Thank you again! :>>
Yeah, aro stories are hard to come by. (Especially in mainstream media) But at least among the indie community, we're writing it all LOL
A very cute yaoi !! I can't wait the next chapter...
Thank you!! :> (I also can't wait)
lovely game good skills renpy is a pain to work with keep on trucking
Loved the demo! I can't wait for the full game.
Thank you! I'll do my best :>
Doodle Doofus... I laughed so hard at that, and then forgot the umbrella at home... hahahahaha
Nice to see another one of your italian named series! It was really short but very fun and cozy to play! Hope to see what kind of crazy mechanic you come up with for this one lol
I have to add, I love your art! Nice to see more of your character deisngs!
Also, is Vivian Alroy's cousin? lol, I guess I'll have to eventually play Dolce to find out more about this one!
Thank you Mat!! I definitely have a lot planned for this one LMAO
Also, yeah! Vivian is Alroy's uncle. With the timeline... Ritenuto takes place like, 9 years before Sempre LMAO
Really cute so far and I love the artwork! Excited to see the rest of the story <3
Thank you!! I will do my best :> !!
this is cute!! it's really well made c:
Thank you!! I'm so glad you're enjoying it :>>>
This was super super cute so far!! I'm in love with how soft and cozy the whole thing feels (though if the hurt/comfort description is anything to go by it'll probably end up making me cry later lakdjfad) and all of the characters were so endearing and sweet! 😭💕
The art style is absolutely adorable, and the way you switched up between sprites, CGs, and the sketchy comic panels felt like it kept everything so engaging and immersive. It was almost like watching a moving from different types of angles and shots, which felt really cinematic. Add into that all the fun animation you used??? There was so much! From the sprites themselves and their talking and blinking animations, to your use of camerawork, to even little bits like on the title menu. Everything just felt like it was alive all the time, which really pulled me in and made me feel close to the story and chars. It was really well done!
The characters were so lovely and all had so much personality. The sweet way Viv and Chip met and their first real conversation on the way home made me smile so much. These two are so dorky but so cute and I love them already ahhhh 💕 The whole thing just left me with such a warm feeling in my chest and excitement to see more of where their story will go! Can't wait for updates!!
AHH Carrot! Thank you!!
This demo is so short, so I was feeling a bit embarrassed about it, haha. But I'm so glad that you enjoyed it!
I will do my best to finish this game!!