This is an absolutely fascinating VN. To be honest, I had no idea what to expect going in, especially when looking at the unorthodox visual direction without context; but I was blown away by the poignant and heartfelt story, not to mention very impressed by how meaningful the disjointed imagery turned out to be~
Indeed, I think the visual style captures the profound alienation of I Am perfectly, just as much as her peculiar speech does: The other people in her life, caricatures though they may appear to be, are nevertheless all "real" people living in the "real" world, a "reality" into which I Am does not fit and in which she has no place. Even among her closest friends, among those who make an active effort to understand her and meet her at her level, that feeling of not truly belonging persists.
Similarly, no matter how earnestly she tries to communicate with others, her meaning never quite reaches them—and yet more painfully, even when she clearly states exactly what she means, more often than not it STILL falls on deaf ears and is brushed aside.
In a way, the VN as a whole can be viewed through the same lens: Will you dismiss it as pretentious gibberish, as most of the story's "sensible" characters do with I Am's cryptic words; or will you look deeper, seeking out the true meaning and underlying feelings of it all like The Carpenter does?
A really lovely little game. I can feel the love that was put into it, and it really makes the most of its time. The section with The Carpenter was especially touching.
anyone glancing down at the comments wondering if they should hit download or not, i highly recommend doing so. especially doing so without reading any further than this just to have your own experience first.
big spoilers below............
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i dont know if its my own reaction or if it was exactly the intended point, but the presentation of the game really put a pause on me. its not uncommon for people to upload projects with bizarre presentations and it is natural to want to put your time where you assume it will be well spent. theres an overwhelming amount of things to do in life and only so much time. thats not really the fault of anyone i think.
still starting from teh first menu choice i had no intent to understand waht the protagonist was truly saying. maybe its the autism but i am not the kind of person to understand metaphors so my first instinct is to just immediately give up. i prefer stories that are literal just the same way i want my friends to say what they mean directly to me
it was the blocked out choices, and the menu options that were actually the honest sincere truth yet were misinterpreted by the shrink as more metaphors that forced me to slow down. around the time of the therapist scene this really clicked with me, instead of seeing her as the odd one, and as an extension the whole game and its unusual presentation, as i continued reading more it further established my understanding of the protagonist and my read on the story.
she is struggling to fit into this world and facing unreasonable expectations. the bold collage art decisions and flashing animated backgrounds are recontextualized to be her point of view. the world is a scary jumbled mess of mismatched parts and she stands out and does not fit in.
especially as someone who is often the one the world feels judgemental towards, especially as someone who considers herself an understanding person, and especially as someone who goes out of her way to seek out wanting to see the good in indie visual novels made by new faces,i dont want to be judgemental. if that was the point, well done. it really was effective on me.
even without me starting this story with this hostile view, the dialogue is sincere and real, and the metaphors painfully appropriate. it is a story that feels impactful and relatable.
we would all be better off if we were more like the carpenter. thanks for sharing this
I love this game from what I've played til now but honestly I have no idea how to unlock the greyed out dialogue options, the only method seems like trial and error, some hints'd be great
Oh, so there's only one ending huh, I hoped to be able to escape with the lover but ig this is just another part of the message, I've replayed it several times now and I how good the writing is (also sorry for the late reply)
For her, escape is just as possible as death. I chose to end the story how I did to encourage the reader to decide on their own what meaning I Am's story has to them.
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This game wrought havoc on my emotions for the brief time I was playing it. I Am deserved better. She deserved better. She
This is an absolutely fascinating VN. To be honest, I had no idea what to expect going in, especially when looking at the unorthodox visual direction without context; but I was blown away by the poignant and heartfelt story, not to mention very impressed by how meaningful the disjointed imagery turned out to be~
Indeed, I think the visual style captures the profound alienation of I Am perfectly, just as much as her peculiar speech does: The other people in her life, caricatures though they may appear to be, are nevertheless all "real" people living in the "real" world, a "reality" into which I Am does not fit and in which she has no place. Even among her closest friends, among those who make an active effort to understand her and meet her at her level, that feeling of not truly belonging persists.
Similarly, no matter how earnestly she tries to communicate with others, her meaning never quite reaches them—and yet more painfully, even when she clearly states exactly what she means, more often than not it STILL falls on deaf ears and is brushed aside.
In a way, the VN as a whole can be viewed through the same lens: Will you dismiss it as pretentious gibberish, as most of the story's "sensible" characters do with I Am's cryptic words; or will you look deeper, seeking out the true meaning and underlying feelings of it all like The Carpenter does?
Excellent work, well and truly~
Really fantastic. Moved my heart and 6 minutes after reading, I am starting to cry.
A really lovely little game. I can feel the love that was put into it, and it really makes the most of its time. The section with The Carpenter was especially touching.
this sent me back to some of my favorite twine games
I am's method of communication feels so earnest and evocative and having almost everyone around her refuse to engage with her is brutal
the presentation in general is just really stellar, i wasnt sure what to make with the screenshots but the second i actually started i was hooked
i really hope you publish something here again, this was fantastic
anyone glancing down at the comments wondering if they should hit download or not, i highly recommend doing so. especially doing so without reading any further than this just to have your own experience first.
big spoilers below............
.............................................
..........................
...
i dont know if its my own reaction or if it was exactly the intended point, but the presentation of the game really put a pause on me. its not uncommon for people to upload projects with bizarre presentations and it is natural to want to put your time where you assume it will be well spent. theres an overwhelming amount of things to do in life and only so much time. thats not really the fault of anyone i think.
still starting from teh first menu choice i had no intent to understand waht the protagonist was truly saying. maybe its the autism but i am not the kind of person to understand metaphors so my first instinct is to just immediately give up. i prefer stories that are literal just the same way i want my friends to say what they mean directly to me
it was the blocked out choices, and the menu options that were actually the honest sincere truth yet were misinterpreted by the shrink as more metaphors that forced me to slow down. around the time of the therapist scene this really clicked with me, instead of seeing her as the odd one, and as an extension the whole game and its unusual presentation, as i continued reading more it further established my understanding of the protagonist and my read on the story.
she is struggling to fit into this world and facing unreasonable expectations. the bold collage art decisions and flashing animated backgrounds are recontextualized to be her point of view. the world is a scary jumbled mess of mismatched parts and she stands out and does not fit in.
especially as someone who is often the one the world feels judgemental towards, especially as someone who considers herself an understanding person, and especially as someone who goes out of her way to seek out wanting to see the good in indie visual novels made by new faces,i dont want to be judgemental. if that was the point, well done. it really was effective on me.
even without me starting this story with this hostile view, the dialogue is sincere and real, and the metaphors painfully appropriate. it is a story that feels impactful and relatable.
we would all be better off if we were more like the carpenter. thanks for sharing this
Thank you so much for the review. It's good to feel understood.
I love this game from what I've played til now but honestly I have no idea how to unlock the greyed out dialogue options, the only method seems like trial and error, some hints'd be great
Those options are intentionally not unlockable.
Oh, so there's only one ending huh, I hoped to be able to escape with the lover but ig this is just another part of the message, I've replayed it several times now and I how good the writing is (also sorry for the late reply)
For her, escape is just as possible as death. I chose to end the story how I did to encourage the reader to decide on their own what meaning I Am's story has to them.
I am an echo in an empty theater (this is my favorite entry in the menhera jam).