Скорошни рецензии на avalinda

tl;dr version:

Pros:

• Cute to scary storyline
  
• Pretty retro graphics and cute MC
  
• Multiple endings

Cons:

• Can be glitchy
  
• Poor translation = awkward dialogue
  
• Very simple menu - no manual save points or restart options

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Long version:

A cute little anime game that transitions quickly to horror, like other games in the same genre, and doesn't mislead you for too long. Good graphics, slightly scary music, and mechanics that are pretty straightforward. I also really liked the settings in general - they were very well-designed and I like how the unsettling animations creep up slowly on you as you progress through the story.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to finish it because I kept getting stuck on the maze portion. I'd complete it, move on to the next scene with the phantom dude, he freaks out when he can't get where he's going... and then I'm back at the maze again. Did this 3 times before I finally gave up, since I couldn't reload to an earlier scene or anything like that. Worth noting that I uninstalled this game a while back to free up disk space, and finally re-downloaded it yesterday, so I'm not sure if anything got corrupted during the process. It's just a shame that I can't even start over to get any of the other endings/achievements.

My other big gripe was the translations. It's really hard to be scared by a horror game when everyone talks so awkwardly that it makes you want to laugh, especially when it comes to matters of life and death. I didn't think comedy was listed among the genres of this game, so that's all I can say about that.

Long story short, the cons kind of outweigh the pros on this one, and it feels like a knockoff version of what I've heard of Omori, so I'll probably give that one a shot instead. I'm normally one to stick it out just to get all the achievements, but since it's impossible here, I'm not even going to bother. Glad it was free anyway.

Really well-made game, just wish it was complete!! I love the medieval village setting where humans coexist with their companion fairies - the idyllic scenery here was just top-notch, and the characters themselves are extremely well-drawn though there aren't many of them. The background mystery was also well-done, and I enjoyed piecing together clues about Beatrice's missing friend Agnes, while conversing with everyone and learning snippets about Fayburrow's history from the fairy. All-around great worldbuilding + music to match.

The prologue-ish nature of the story and the mechanics were the only complaints I had - the game abruptly cuts off and leaves you hanging, and it doesn't seem like there's another installment coming out anytime soon. Also, the movements could have been done just a bit more smoothly. Beatrice unfortunately walks and "runs" like an old woman, which, granted, I also do after an extremely long work week lol. Just felt like I was constantly waiting on her to get from one place to another, because her running speed is only 0.01% faster than her walk speed. Anyways, it's just a shame this game hasn't been updated or finished, since it's clear a lot of love was put into it, but I'll still be on the lookout for any changes.

A simple game with a vibe that I can best describe as a "calm" sort of creepy. The main character appears to be the only one left, in his own apartment as well as in his own mind, and you follow him through the short meaningless routines of days that blend into each other. Lambshank the dog pops up about halfway through, though the role he played is unclear - I can't tell whether he really saved the MC or if he just wanted the two of them to stay together... forever.

Since the game's not really plot-heavy (and I played it in a sluggish, half-asleep state) it seemed I could feel the atmospheric nature of it that much more. The game does touch on the everyday aspects of mental illness - the invisible heaviness you have to fight just to get out of bed in the morning, the seeming pointlessness of maintaining your physical environment and your body, the constant undercurrent of having nothing to live for. The dream-world providing some comfort from harsh reality until the two begin to blend.

The ending was as I expected, and though the game was pretty short, I still found it worth experiencing. But if the developers decide to update this or create another in the same universe, I'd like to know more about what exactly took over the city, what happened to those who were "marked" and if anyone ever found a way out. Really loved the graphics as well - I think the retro pixel art format helped a lot to develop the atmosphere.

Probably the best VN I've stumbled across so far on Steam. I didn't think I'd like a story that took place after the main characters had faced down a terrifying parallel universe, but this was so well done. You play as a young man getting ready to leave the small town of Siren's Call for college, but saying goodbye is never easy, and perhaps there was never any option to leave in the first place...

So far these are my favorite aspects of the game, though I haven't completely finished it yet:

• Coming-of-age story - friendships, love, loss, and confronting your own flaws
  
• Meditation on morality (and the problems that arise from playing God)
  
• Hidden dark secrets - not even the people closest to you are as they seem
  
• Recovering hidden memories in the form of a journal
  
• Strange supernatural sequences haunting some of your waking moments
  
• (Possibly) Breaking the 4th wall

Will post a more complete review when I finish playing, but so far I'm addicted! A deceptively simple, but utterly amazing game.

Side Note: Having heard some comparisons to DDLC, which I've also played before, I think the resemblance is more structural/superficial than anything. They're both interactive with different outcomes/endings, both have a yandere-ish character who reveals herself partway into the story, and there's a bit of 4th-wall breaking in each, but I prefer Siren's Call a little more for the plot. I wasn't a huge fan of the dorky/cringy interactions between the MC and his girl squad in DDLC, though the ending was its redeeming quality. Siren's Call, however, is largely more platonic, which I don't see as much of in these types of games, and therefore found refreshing.

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50% progress note:

I simply have no words for how deeply this game has pulled at my heartstrings, and how it's broken my heart a few times. This is what I think I've been looking for all along when it comes to a visual novel - it doesn't have to be beautiful backstory, action-packed sequences or any of that. Just give me a time and place, and people dealing with real problems who put in real effort and say real things to each other. Friendship is such an underrated topic, I think, in many VNs, and it needs to be done more, because it's one of the main cornerstones of our lives. Over the years, I've started to lose my faith in humanity as a whole, but this story reminds me that life is hard for everyone; that everyone's going through some manner of sh*t; and that if we honestly reached out to each other every once in a while, we could get through it together. This is an absolute treasure for reminding me of that.

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100% progress note:

(spoilers below)

Wow, just wow. All I can say is, this ending, and the various artistic touches leading up to it, feels so much like "A Dream Within a Dream" by Edgar Allan Poe. It broke my heart to learn what actually happened to Violet, and that many of the dark things Oliver encountered in his dream were a reflection of his everyday battles. It now makes sense why no one could remember what a Siren actually looked like, why there was an Underworld in the first place, and why each of his friends left one by one, except for Judith. Unfortunately, Judith was the one character I couldn't warm up to by the end of the story - though I'm guessing she wasn't a creepy psychopath in real life, she was overwhelmingly so for so much of the dream-story that I wasn't ready to support her and Oliver being together. That, and learning abruptly that Violet had died, though retrospectively there were a lot of hints leading up to that point.

And I can't end without making further comments on the art and writing. Everything was so beautifully rendered, and hindsight being 20/20, the symbolism was top-notch.

(Major spoilers below)

• The watercolor paintings make up the majority of the dream world, vs the more photorealistic scenery of the waking world. I also felt like the watercolor aspect was a nod to Violet, and all the places she wanted to live in normally but never got the chance to.
  
  
• The journal and the little truths you uncover from the entries. The 2 different fonts attributed to Oliver's POV I felt were a reference to the two main sides of his personality - the "need" and the "want," constantly fighting. The journal also serves as Oliver's attempt to make sense of his pain, which I can truly relate to.
  
  
• Rockets and escape velocity - it was always heartrending hearing Oliver's take on how he's meant to help people take off and escape their fetters, while he's destined to be stuck on the ground. This was made worse by Violet's death during the rocket-viewing (the opening scene now carries so much more weight than it did before, in this respect).
  
  
• Hurricane symbolism - each chapter was named Category 1-5, which I thought might do with the danger that each friend posed to Oliver in the dream-world; as well as how turbulent things could get as he drew closer to the truth. And then, of course, there's the hurricane icon rotating at the end of each line, like an omen of its own.
  
  
• The Underworld as a metaphor for the collective unconscious, and the Sirens representing the various (mostly destructive) impulses governing this unconscious. The Siren battles, then, seemed to reflect Oliver working through his negativity - perhaps he initially believed he'd be happy again if he pushed everything negative out of his life. But in his dream Violet clearly warns him of the results of such actions, mentioning how everyone acted "lobotomized" after the Sirens were killed. And she'd be right: what's the good in being completely one-dimensional, with no darkness to help us appreciate the light by contrast? We lose our originality, our power, and our capacity for reflection, when every day is exactly the same and all our thoughts funnel in a single direction.
  
  
• Little questionnaires from Judith punctuating the dream-story. Never realized until the end that these were snippets from the waking world, and later learning the significance of the final question broke my heart. I love that the game bent our perceptions of dream and reality by keeping us in Oliver's mind for the duration of this journey.

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Will definitely replay this again just to catch all the little details I missed. I can't say I was 100% a fan of the ending, but I loved everything else the story had to offer too much for that to be a deal-breaker. This game pushes the boundaries of what I thought a VN could accomplish, and sheds some real light on the challenges that young people face, approaching each struggle with delicacy and grace. Utterly well done.

Cutesy dice game which can get surprisingly hard, since I started out playing against 3 AIs. It can suck when you finally get to a good place in any given game and then suddenly end up losing all your stars/HP because you rolled a bad number. However, it's strangely addictive. Only minor complaint is the super high-pitched anime girl voices which don't agree too well with my ears, lol.

Pros:

• Decent overarching plot and worldbuilding
  
• Cool settings
  
• Beautiful art
  
• Good piano compositions

Cons:

• Story appears to get cut off at the end
  
• Inconsistent pacing - flip-flops too much between lighthearted and dark
  
• Needs actual chapter titles
  
• Frequent and unclear POV switches
  
• Overly flowery dialogue
  
• Awkward/unrealistic interactions (on occasion)
  
• Repetitive (and sometimes annoying) soundtrack

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Perhaps I've been spoiled by the countless classic novels I've read over the years, which have made me extremely picky about writing style, but I feel the same rules should apply to any text that aims to tell a story. Don't get me wrong, the premise behind this game is wonderful. The concept of an endless dream world, juxtaposed with the real world which has endured countless horrors and still fights against the mysteries that surround it, is something I'm always willing to read about. However, the execution just felt flawed in places and hence I couldn't give this game the resoundingly positive review that it would otherwise have deserved. There were several key points that didn't quite work for me, which I'll break down below, along with the things I did like. I can get very long-winded when it comes to anything writing-related, so consider yourself warned.

WRITING:

• The author has an elegant writing style, which is both a blessing and a curse for this game. There were certain lines that I simply had to screenshot, because they were just that beautiful and powerful and told undeniable truths about humanity. These I can never get enough of. However, the game makes the mistake of using that same writing style with basic interactions between different characters, even very young ones, which makes their exchanges seem overly flowery and unrealistic. I wouldn't expect children/young teens from 10-15 years old to talk to each other like they're quoting from a book, unless a convincing explanation is provided, which it unfortunately wasn't. As a result these parts of the story became a chore to read and I found myself skimming through them at top speed.

PACING/PLOT:

• Again, some things are done right while others appear glaringly flawed to me. The overarching plot and the ideas behind it are original and strong - especially when it came to the darker parts of the story, which threw me for a loop at first, but I'd always rather read something depressing that reminds me to appreciate and think more deeply about life. But apart from that, the pacing just feels so disjointed, jumping back and forth between lighthearted and sad way too often, as well as switching POVs without warning which creates unnecessary confusion.
  
• For instance, starting out in the dream world with its endless loneliness gave me the early impression that this story could get dark, but then we skip to cheerful and pointless interactions between children who sometimes talk like well-read grad students. (And a lot of them talk the same, which doesn't really make them seem like distinct characters.) They do little kid things like pulling random pranks, tickling each other, and playing games at school, but because we suddenly jump to their depressing pasts, the happy stuff just feels like a cheap device to hit us with some contrast and shock value later on. And then, after some dark background has been covered, we switch right back to the kids doing random kid things. Perhaps a case can exist where this sort of plot device could be used skillfully, but because it's used so often, I simply couldn't warm up to it.
  
• The frequent POV switches also got off-putting after a point, since it would take me a minute to realize I was in one kid's flashback or other, or had jumped even further back in time to when their parents were younger. It might have helped if some consistent visual transition had been used, along with labeling new character names right off the bat. (All we get is an image of a random character against a black background before the switch, which doesn't help much.) Once again, not sure if this is an intentional plot device, but it simply doesn't work with the format of this game. Perhaps it would have been better suited for a novel, where chapters are clearly separated so that the switch doesn't feel so jarring.
  
• Finally, the revelations about each of the characters seems to be done in an arbitrary order. I had so many questions about the MC - mostly why she spent half her life in a dream world and why she doesn't behave like other children. But then for some reason every side character's past is covered before hers, and it's almost like MC has been forgotten for the time being, fading into the background like she herself is now unimportant. That was particularly annoying since the beginning made it seem like the entire story was framed through her POV, and that she had some special ability which would be crucial later on. Probably another thing that a novel would have done better.

MUSIC:

• Really loved most of the piano soundtracks, but the happy ones that played during the kids' cheerful everyday routines were so repetitive that they began to grate on my nerves. And then we had excessive goofy sound effects from when the kids engaged in tackling/tickling/cheek-pinching/you name it. It just detracted from the serious parts of the plot that were intended to send a real message, and so I ended up muting the sound partway through the game. This might also have been why I didn't enjoy those particular story sequences - music can make or break any story or game that intends to make you think and feel.

ART:

• No complaints here. I always love the anime art style, and the watercolor-esque depictions of the cities and countryside were beyond beautiful. Even the violent, dark, and depressing scenes were done very well, though they did refrain from showing a lot of actual gore. Included here is the formatting of the game - loved the font and the little borders used for the text boxes.

MECHANICS:

• The UI is appropriately user-friendly. I liked that there were options to speed up the text, which saved me from quitting this game cold-turkey when I was trying to skip through the boring and annoying sequences. Other than that, not much to say here, since it's a text-based game.

I guess, long story short once again, I wouldn't exactly recommend this game because it either rushes too much or drags on in points, which can be off-putting when you're there for a good story. However, it does have some redeeming qualities, so if you have the time and patience for the occasional gem it has to offer, you might still have a good time. As I'm a completionist when it comes to games, I'll still see this one through to the very end, and take away from it some life lessons as well as how best (and how not) to write a story.

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(with something resembling spoilers)

"Finished" this game about 10 min after my last save point, and I can't believe this is supposed to be an ending. Replayed from my save twice just to make sure I wasn't tripping - I was at the point where Callia had just made up with her father. Suddenly, skip to Evighet's Garden with an image of Tris just standing there, red marks all over his face reminiscent of his mother in her fits of madness. And then.... you just get taken back to the home page. No "The End," "To Be Continued," or anything. The story just stops there. No loose ends wrapped up. In what universe is this an effective conclusion?

Initially rated this at least 6/10 but with that "ending," dropping it down to a 4. Just one too many careless writing blunders for me; I'm no longer interested enough to even attempt a sequel.

Plays like a space-opera version of Skyrim, the running mechanics remind me a bit of WoW, and you can also endlessly shoot aliens on the side if you so desire. Character customization is pretty good and as a sucker for graphics, I of course loved those, down to the high-tech appearance of the maps and loading screens. I have yet to get very far through the storyline, but all around an awesome game.

A very bittersweet and nostalgic story about coping with loss, connecting with your predecessors and the love that can be expressed through something as simple as cooking. Beautiful graphics as well, and I loved the little details that reminded me of my heritage. Wonderful game.

Light anime horror game that's reminiscent of Misao, except as the main character you're trying to enter / make contact with a paranormal plane to find someone you've lost. The retro graphics are of course lovely, and I enjoy the bit of occult background and creepy POV of walking through abandoned hallways with strange creatures outside the windows. The game also appears to have multiple endings depending on how you play it, but as someone who saves religiously I would have liked a few more save points / save slots to avoid too many repetitive playthroughs.

Update: After getting through all the endings I was still left with some questions, which I hope will be answered in the upcoming installments! Especially with how the ritual came to be, if Kat will return in the next chapter, and if she ever finds who she set out to find. A very well-made little game!

Short and sweet little game with what looks like multiple possible endings. I love the retro graphics and the bittersweet depiction of life in Poland during the Communist period. The family problems and small friendships you strike up along the way were very relatable and reminded me that despite everyday hardships, life goes on.

EDIT 8.15: Completed all endings with some help from a walkthrough. I wouldn't say the game is super story-heavy, and I kind of wish it was, but the soundtrack is god-tier and nostalgic so I'd still give it a solid 7/10.