OK, you didn’t lie, this was incredible and crushing in so many regards, I’m a complete utter wreck here….
Thank you for making this VN, your writing here was indeed just stellar, I’m floored.
You brought so much realism and nuance to both Chloé and Matthieu’s “relationship”. It felt very, very real and entirely believable all throughout, it’s incredible how well you pulled it off.
All the classic lit references elevated the story so much for me. So many layers to them!
The fact that it starts as a very genuine bond regarding literature —it got off-track very fast, there were many flashing, orange, then red lights along the path, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t understand Chloé’s initial drive to connect with someone you admire through books. It hurts all the more to see the dark path it would take (not by her own fault, of course, Matthieu’s failure to stop at every additional step remains the most critical failure, Chloé was in such a vulnerable position to begin with).
Then the fact that Matthieu both romanticised some of these literary discussions, but at the end of the day, couldn’t do the adult thing and face what Lolita really said about him. So infuriating! He kept knowing what he was really doing while being unable, or unwilling to stop himself at each juncture. That was so sadly realistic, and such an honest portrayal of what abuse can be like.
You really, really nailed the staging and sound design too, from Matthieu’s emotional breakdown expressions, to the sense of horror/excitement/denial during the intimate scenes with Chloé. It was chilling, intense, incredibly immersive.
I’ve been reading some of your Waterlily on the Froth devlogs, and they were really interesting as well, especially the ones where you compare the setups of both stories, and the psychology of their respective characters, so thanks for them as well! Waterlily sounds like it will be such a special project again, can’t wait for it!
There’s lots more I’d love to say and have to think about, but yeah, thank you, I’ll be thinking about this story a lot.
(Also don’t feel like you have to respond quickly or at all if you’re doing O2A2 again this year lol, enjoy the game jam)