sasazuka said:
Are there any good hypnosis visual novels... period?
[...]I'd really only be interested in actually playing these games if the games used the concept of hypnosis creatively and not just as an excuse to make girls undress.
I know that this is off topic, but I feel this question warrants an answer. Let's see...
Warning: If you go into an exhentai link, expect to find loli.
<<
g.e-hentai.org/g/635371/8479df36fc/|Saimin Enbu>> and <<
exhentai.org/g/536846/59a5e6d161/|Saimin Yuugi>> by Staffing
<<
g.e-hentai.org/g/634698/d395baed6d/|Niji no Kanata ni>> by #Define (I warn you, this one's story will break your heart. It's too sad!)
Pretty much anything by <<
exhentai.org/tag/group:studio+jaren|Studio Jaren>>/<<
exhentai.org/tag/group:studio+charen|Studio Charen>>
(Loli-free: <<
g.e-hentai.org/tag/group:studio+jaren|Studio Jaren>>/<<
g.e-hentai.org/tag/group:studio+charen|Studio Charen>>)
<<
g.e-hentai.org/g/548337/a4feff786b/|Saimin Fantasia -Opulent Mating F*ckfall from Saint to Hellslut!!->> ('dat title, lol) by Dieselmine has a very good, albeit cliche, plot (it almost doesn't seem like porn until the nudity and sex ensues). Guy wakes up in another world and is attacked by beast-like monsters. He's saved by a party of adventurers who just happen to be after the Demon Lord (the purple-haired female). He tags along with them. He happens to gain a magical rune on his hand that allows him to use an ancient runic spell of Mind Control. Most of the game is him trying to learn to use it better, having his fun with the party, and being subtly manipulated by the Demon Lord. There's even a story path where he defects and joins the demon lord and her underlings for a while.
<<
exhentai.org/g/373387/b55f288ce5/|Fukushuu Saimin ~Tsuki no Himegimi wa Fukujuu no Yume wo Miru ka?~>> by C:drive/F has a really deep plot. Been a while, but iirc, the main character (a prince, I think) is exiled from his country (and thought dead) due to a betrayal and framing. Well, he's not dead, and he wants revenge. He meets an ancient (and loli) witch who grants him the Eye of Obedience or somesuch, which is essentially a weaker version of Lelouch's Geass from Code Geass. :P I'll leave the rest to those who actually play it.
Honorable MentionsThe entire <<
g.e-hentai.org/?f_doujins...&f_apply=Apply+Filter|Temptation series>> (<<
exhentai.org/?f_doujinshi...&f_apply=Apply+Filter|loli-free>>) by Parthenon is very hot. However, I feel it's exactly what you're saying you're NOT interested in. The plot is hardly existent other than to set the setting and the hypnosis is used to subjugate the women and get 'em nude. The entire series is essentially an MC slave training game.
<<
g.e-hentai.org/g/474969/2458e423e6/|Jokuaku Saimin 180-byou ~ Me ga Sametara Hishojo ni Natteita ~>> gets an honorable mention for having the occasional sexy scene and being the only VN I've ever played that actually had the entrancement as an interactive minigame via. pendulum swinging. I felt the story was too two-dimensionally angry to be any good, though. It's all about humiliation and revenge over bullying.
Anywho, I could go on, but you get the point. Yes, there are good MC VNs with good plots where the hypnosis is used in clever ways.