The Proteus Effect
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
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The Proteus Effect is a game for adults that combines lighthearted comedy, engaging characters and story, lively dialogue, and gripping challenges with distinctive, vivid art and alluring erotic scenes to create a fun, sexy, and ultimately unique experience.
You take on the role of Alex, a lovable but dimwitted young man who barely graduated college and is now desperately searching for a job. Just in the nick of time, he stumbles into the job of his dreams as a video game tester for a virtual reality startup, but all isn’t as it seems. After being introduced to his eccentric coworkers, he soon finds himself not only trapped in the virtual world, but also stuck in the body of a nubile young woman.
All Alex wants is to return home to his own body, but he winds up reluctantly embarking on an adventure through a series of fantasy worlds, including the company’s game world, another world that’s suspiciously similar to a popular MMO, and an assortment of others.
He isn’t alone, though - shortly into the journey he is joined by his co-worker Ana, a tough, slightly abrasive, yet kindhearted young woman. Alex isn’t the only one who’s changed in the virtual world; it looks like Ana ended up with a little something… extra?
Eventually, Alex is joined by other quirky companions, and together they try to uncover what’s behind the system’s strange malfunctions. How does he keep getting sent to these bizarre places? What connects them all? Can he ever manage to find his way back home?
This is a game for adults, so there’s plenty of erotic content. This isn’t just mindless porn, however - the scenes are sometimes titillatingly erotic, sometimes hilarious, but always interesting and fun. The game currently has content for futanari fans, and there will be plenty of scenes for people who like ‘group activities’, monsters, tentacles, vanilla (gasp!), and many other fetishes. The erotic scenes are completely optional - you can avoid any scenes you don’t like, and if you just want to experience the game’s entertainment without any of the porn, you can do that too!
If you’re looking for a fun, entertaining, and sexy game with likable characters, laughs, and distinctive art, The Proteus Effect might just be your game. So go ahead, give the public version a try! It’s only one major release behind the patron version, and it’s free! And if you really enjoy the game - and I think you will - please consider supporting the project by becoming a patron.
Public Version: 10.1.1
Download
Install instructions
Just unzip and run the game!
Note for macOS users: save files are stored in your user library:
~/Library/Application Support/KADOKAWA/Proteus Effect/
All other OSes: saves are stored in the game directory's save folder (as usual with RPG Maker games)
Development log
- The Proteus Effect 10.1.1 Public ReleaseDec 21, 2023
- The Proteus Effect 10.0.4 Public ReleaseNov 25, 2022
- TPE Version 10.1 Released For SupportersOct 01, 2022
- The Proteus Effect 0.9.8 Public ReleaseJun 15, 2022
- The Proteus Effect 0.8 Public ReleaseNov 16, 2020
- The Proteus Effect 0.7.2 is Now Available!Jul 20, 2019
- The Proteus Effect 0.6.4 is Released!Jan 24, 2019
- The Proteus Effect 0.5.2 is Now Available!Aug 25, 2018
Comments
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How much futa is there will it be one of the main fetishes?\
That's the end of main story content. The Commercial District will be opening in 10.4, the next supporter release. I believe you get a message to that effect when you get the quest (at the end of The Hell's quest) but it can be easy to miss.
Ahhh crap I did blow past a pop up message right when I got the quest. Could not find a way to see what it was though I should have guessed. Thanks for taking the time to respond!
Keeble quest is bugged, It's just fucking annoying, it never ends even After cleaning all the waves
Will look into it, thanks for the report.
Whoo, author, I have translated your game with translator++, and the result is that it cannot be used. I thought it was translated to the code at first, and then I guided it in without translating and exporting it. What's going on here? Mainly can not understand there is no Chinese version. I will go and play by myself.thanks author
I have to ask, is there any bondage content in the game at all? If so awesome! If not, heartbreaking, but overall, good job on the game!
Very little. A couple of scenes involve characters getting tied up or magically restrained, but it's not a particularly big or recurring theme.
Thanks for replying! Kinda sucks to hear, but completely understandable. While bondage is fun I imagine it's not very high up on the list of kinks for the game.
Woot New update! Can't wait to try it out.
Hey, just started the game, and up to it, i really like it. The humor is fun, the characters are pretty, yep, i like it a lot. thx!
i need help where can i get magic water in the town where the spiders are at
Magic water is mana potion. You probably got some by adventuring; you might be able to buy some somewhere, I don't recall.
I did a mistake during the Oracle visit I moved to Stone in a stuck location now the Stone is unmovable and I cannot continue the quest hens cannot continue the game and now I am stuck in a level and mistakenly saved after all that mess I am stuck good
You can pull blocks. Just hold the action key and move backward. If you got into a bad situation pull should be able to get you out.
hey proxxie do you have a discord ?
Sorry for the delay! Yes, I do - it's: https://discord.gg/gXxRWf4
It's not terribly active most of the time, but feel free to stop by.
Alrighty thanks !
I don't know what to do in the Rock King's dungeon. At the beginning I run past the rock dudes throwing bombs then I'm stuck in the next room. I pull the lever to show the bomb but nothing I click on does anything and I've clicked on every tile in that room.
The clicking is probably the problem. Try pushing the bomb using your keyboard, and detonating it with the action key.
The game is designed to be played with a keyboard; you can play *most* of it with mouse clicks, but for some things - particularly puzzles - you need a keyboard.
That works, thank you very much
is there a game guide? I'm having trouble finding the 4 winds, love the game it's absolutely amazing! this could be 100% without H scenes and I would still love it
Glad you like it! There aren't any guides, I'm afraid. Only 2 of the winds are in game as of 10.0 - the first one is in Cape Hope and the second is in Plains End.
thank you kindly!
Bug Report: At the Oracle, there are pushing block puzzles that let you hold Accept to move something backwards. If you are using a controller, the game doesn't seem to "get" it and I thought I was in a softlock since I couldn't move, but if I moved over to keyboard it would let me move again. Playing 10.0.4.
Thanks for the report! Controllers aren't officially supported, but I'll probably try to add controller support in the future. It's still not intended behavior - I'll look into it!
You're welcome! I assumed controllers weren't supported since some minigames use specific keys on the keyboard (the block pushing puzzles use "r", for instance), but I still prefer using a controller as long as the game mostly works with it. Also, a really, really tiny bug;
That spot where Alex is standing is a warp spot to the other Shoreline map. If I come to this map from the cave, for some reason it doesn't work, but the one below it does. If I enter the map from another location, both exit tiles work. This doesn't hamper the game in any way (just push down to get to the next map), but I thought you'd want to know.
Thank you!
I lost all my progress in the version 0.8. Is there a way that I can only play the new content?
Please tell me there are plans to allow for combat animations and such to be speed up. I enjoy the game and the fact that abilities and stats are tied to story elements not monsters killed but I still feel like I'm spending a lot of time just waiting for animations to play for the 100th time and think it would be a nice QOL improvement to be able to speed that up like you can with dialogue.
It's on my to-do list, but it's a complicated problem. None of the off-the-shelf plugins that do that work for my game, probably because I have so much custom code in abilities, states and such. Figuring out how to make that happen will probably be a big project. It's one I plan to get to eventually, but I don't know when it'll happen. It's not a huge priority right now since combat is a relatively small part of the game.
I really REALLY hope that later on in the story there is an option to at least get a small chance to change your avatar only to be tricked and end up with your real world sized twig-and-giggleberries (tiny member), and all that it implies about you as the man you once were. haha
While some of the H-scenes occasionally play around with humiliation as a theme, on the whole this game is pretty much the opposite of "dark." You're not going to see any scenes where Alex (or anyone else) are seriously and in an un-fun way humiliated/degraded/etc.
I do like some of the darker TFGS-type games, but The Proteus Effect is definitely not one of those kind of games.
For the record, the PC isn't necessarily poorly endowed IRL. You set that in one of the early H-scenes, and while "tiny" is one of the options, it certainly isn't the only one.
Maybe one of the scenes will see Alex temporarily become a futa, though. Could be interesting.
On my knees in the middle of a Walmart parking lot begging this gets updated
Please remove the VR tag its not a VR game
Hello there! I love the premise of the game, however I can't get it to launch on my VR headset. I've launched steam VR and even used it to launch it, but it just loads up on my monitor not in my VR headset. Any idea why it wont launch?
It's not an actual VR game, so you can't play it on an oculus or whatever. It's about VR, which is why I tagged it that way a long time ago. I should probably change that.
That would explain alot lol. I'll still play it for sure. Thanks for letting me know :)
I am playing version 8.0 (the public one) but i am facing issues with the bomb challenge.
But then when i see a gameplay video on how to solve it, they are showing an extra pair of bombs
So do i have a bug? if not, how to solve it?
I don’t think you have a bug. The two extra bombs are in “normal mode”, and you are apparently playing on “hard mode”. You can switch the dungeon’s mode using the torch at the end of Kobold Town.
It’s still possible without those two extra bombs, btw.
doing it in hard mode is just an extra challenge then and i don't get better spoils or anything???
As of now, no. I may add certain special benefits later for players who complete all dungeons on the most difficult setting available (the other dungeons thus far have easy-normal modes, The Dark Pits has normal-hard modes.)
hey also, i have been searching for a walkthrough and i found something till version 6.1. It says that before leaving to kill the stone overseer, if you drink coffee then you wake up at night for some extra scenes with Val. it also mentioned a paper "while going towards the registration office" which shows a slime at the hole near the dragon's cave. How exactly can i access that?
Drinking coffee and then going to sleep is one way to access nighttime guild hall scenes (assuming you have the other prerequisite H-scenes) - an alarm clock one of the kobolds gives you after beating The Dark Pits is another.
The Slimy Note is no longer in game. It was basically there to test out some combat-related stuff I was working on at the time.
Is there a reason why I'm not gaining XP? I'm searching for the orb of illusion and Still lvl 1 and have zero XP....
XP and levels isn't actually a mechanic I use in the game; you grow in power by completing quests and story events or by getting equipment (that comes through quest and story events.) I didn't use XP because I didn't want to incentivize or require repetitive, boring combat (grinding.)
I removed the level indicator in 0.9 to help eliminate confusion about this, but it's not publicly released yet.
Cool Thanks. I do have to say that I'm really digging the game! And Thank you for adding in the name change option!!! The story is a hilarious twist from normal RPG games. I think you have done a great job. The imagery is fantastic, but have you thought about making those scenes animated?
Glad you're enjoying it! I may do animation at some point in the future when I move the art over to Blender, but I haven't decided.
Is it possible to skip the start of the story yet? I really like this game, but I got a new (C:) drive for my pc and I don't want to start from the beginning again. Could you add a skip to the first day in the office?
That feature did exist in much older versions of the game, back when that beginning part was a large chunk of the total playtime, but I think I removed it in 0.4.
There's not much point in it these days. That's 15 minutes out of a 20+ hour game.
Huge fan of the game. Easily top 5 on android. Just wondering, Is there a updated guide available?
Thanks. But I’ve never made a version for Android, and I’ve never made a guide.
Hey can u tell me how can I update the game after downloading it or do I have to redownload it ??
Yes, you have to redownload it after every update, I'm afraid.
Also when I press on quest journal, when I click on quest details it becomes a black page on the right as the attached photo. Therefore, I can't see the quest details and I'm stuck don'know how to active the bomb or move it to the rocks? Please help, I've been trying for 3 days without any success.
I've seen some scattered reports of black screens; I'm not entirely sure what's causing it. My present theory is that it's something to do with wonky WebGL support on your device. You may be able to edit the package.json file (in the same folder as the rest of the game data) to fix it. Inside the empty quotes beside "chromium-args" try adding: --disable-webgl
This will force the game to play in canvas mode, which may give worse performance overall, but I think it may help the issue you're describing.
Ohh my, ok then I'll try modify it and I'll let you know if it works
If you're starting over on Windows, I'd wait to see if you have the same problem on Windows before doing it. Good luck!
hey can u tell me how to save the game in the windows. It will be a huge help
You're not able to use the save menu? It should be an option when you enter the main menu by pressing either esc or x while playing.
please help as I'm using android system and game version 0.8
I can't event exit from the dungeon:(
Please see the attached screenshot for more clarification
Please help
I don't actually make an Android version of the game, so you've gotten it from an unauthorized source. Problems like you're describing is one reason Android isn't a supported platform. It sounds like the version you're using isn't correctly parsing the scripts I wrote, probably because whoever made it didn't give it ES6 support. There's nothing I can do other than to tell you to play the Windows or Mac version.
Noted with many thanks, so I have to play it from the beginning in windows edition. Ok I'll do that, and I'll report to you when I reached kobold quest, thank you again for your swift reply.
Best regards
Yea it doesn't work on PC either if you just click on it, you have to move the bomb by pressing the arrow keys/WASD.
Hey, sorry for the question, but, do you have any plans to make an android version? This is a great game and the story is really cool
Glad you like it! No plans for an Android version, I'm afraid. Many parts of the game require a keyboard to play, which I'm assuming most Android users won't have.
I'm sorry but I've got a little problem with the game. You see I downloaded the 9.02 version on my mac and I noticed I could not save and neither access the options without the game crashing. I read the comments and found out that another user had the same problem so I did exactly as you replied to him but the problem is still there. I know this is probably something stupid but I'm not an expert, so please help me, I love this game.
0.9 is the patron version, no? Why would you not ask on Patreon or Subscribestar?
Because I downloaded the version when I made a one-time donation to your patreon page since right now I can't afford a monthly subscribe. And because of that I can't access to the page anymore. Sorry!
No need to apologize, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't providing tech support to pirates. Aside from not wanting to encourage piracy, people getting the game from folks who may or may not have done something to it adds a layer of stuff that could go wrong that has nothing to do with me.
This may be easier in Discord. I need to know exactly which version you're running. It looks like it's attempting to create a save directory in the game folder, which is an error I might expect to see in 0.9, but not 0.9.1 or 0.9.2. If you're playing one of the latter two versions, something very odd has happened. Also, are you playing on an Intel Mac or an M1?
Oh yeah discord...Didn't think about that. Anyway I'm playing on the 0.9.2, I have an Intel Mac and already moved the plugins.js for the lightning problem.
My first guess is that you haven't created/don't have a save directory. There are instructions for doing that further down the page here, as well as in the FAQ that should have been included with 0.9.2. If that does not solve your problem, please come to Discord.
Hey I've got to the part where I need to get buddies for the Guild. I assume the weird elf with ginger hair is who I need but he just says "wood wood yes they'll never think of that" what do I do
That's not the guy. You need a different one.
Can you help me?
You appear to be playing 0.9 rather than 0.8. Regardless, you seem to have a CPU or GPU that is incompatible with a lighting plugin I started using in that release. 0.9.1 contains a fix for this problem, look in the’lighting problems fix’ folder in 0.9.1 and follow the instructions there.
ooook, thanks
I not sure but maybe i can speack about a spoiler for that watch out if you'll read it.
Hi, i've just a little problem. I have completed the quest of glow frogs catch, but after i catched 4 frogs and watch the dialogue scene the game not go ahead. If i return at the HQ of guild the guild leader tell me about the quest as if i not completed it. It is a game bug or i'm just a noob?
Sounds like a bug, I'll look into it. Thank you for the report!
I love the game's story, and the character interactions. But given the description here, I thought 6+ hours in I'd have more than 4 H scenes, most involving little no no sexual content.
This is more 'a game, with porn' than 'a porn game.'
I love this game, a normal guy being put in a virtual reality simulator is a dream come true. Wish we can actually do that in real life as well...sadly only in anime or video games but still good job!
Thank you! ^^
Release Navidad!
How do i play this game on Linux? lol
Not a Linux person, so I really don't know :/ I know a lot of Linux folks do manage to play it, but what they do to get it going I have no idea. I suspect it's a little different depending on which distro you're running.
Proxie is correct: the exact steps depends on the distribution and probably desktop environment that you are running. When you ask for such help you should provide the information on which of these you are using. There is also generally more than one way to do anything on a Linux desktop or laptop. The following should work on most Ubuntu distributions and possibly others.
The first thing is to download the game (Linux version of course) and extract the files. How to do this depends on the browser and desktop environment that you are running. Open the folder in a terminal (or navigate to it). Type the command "chmod +x ./Game" . This registers the binary file as an executable. Now to run the game, open the folder in a terminal and type "./Game" These commands are case sensitive.
If you are having difficulty then, please, ask about it. When you do try to include information about your distro (Ubuntu, Fedora, etc.), your desktop environment (Gnome, KDE, etx.), and your browser (Chrome, Firefox, etc.) if appropriate. Also, if you could specifically include what step you are having an issue with, what you have tired, and what any error messages say.
If you are not familiar with how to use the terminal in Linux, it is essential that you learn some basic tasks with it even in the most user friendly set ups. There are numerous tutorials and guides for beginners to introduce this. You can use Goggle to find one that works for you.
Thank you, hopefully others will find this useful!
I love the game but there is an apparent bug in the Linux version. The game looks for a file "./img/faces/g_Bunnies_Jovi_Portrait1.png". There is a file of the same name at that location but with a capital "G" Copping the files and renaming them with the lowercase "g" works. I'm sorry if you are already aware of this but I though I would inform you just in case you're not.
Thanks for the report!
Me quede atascado en la misión de los kobolds xq no se donde se obtenga el shinestone según se lo da el rey pero no logro obtenerlo o es lo que mi inglés da a enteder si pueden ayudarme con sus tips estaré muy agradecido
No hablo espanol, but if I understand your problem right, you can't complete Keeble and Greeble's quest once you've beaten the Stone King. You have to complete it before you fight him.
hey um first thing is that i cant save my game so yeah and secondthing is that when i go into settings it comes up with and error and i have to restart the game but because i cant save i have to restart i play on mac by the way also if you could tell me what im doing wrong that would be great because i really like this game.
You'll probably have to manually create the save folder. This is in your USER library, not the system one:
~/Library/Application Support/KADOKAWA/Proteus Effect/
how do i get to that folder / create it
Been a while since I used a Mac, but this may help. I think your user library is normally hidden, so you'll have to get there a slightly different way. This page tells you how to get to a specific destination on your mac:
https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/go-directly-to-a-specific-folder-on-mac...
You'll be doing the bottom option, "Go to a folder by entering its path name."
~/Library/Application Support
yeah it worked