Thanks for playing!
"they don’t look like a female nor a male, they are just Ash." Love that!
I talked about in another comment thread (my reply to yikepike) about how this game was made before I realized I'm on the aroace spectrum, and I'm that the game made you feel understood. I'd love to hear more about what you said here: " it was good to know that Ash liked SAL for SAL and that they were willing to give a basic human function if it meant being with SAL."
Thank you for replying and for making this beautiful game! Let me explain what I mean. As someone on the aroace spectrum and also autistic, I find Sal very relatable, especially in the way they think and need to organize their thoughts. Since this topic is something I'm highly passionate about, this message might be a bit long. Sorry!
Sex and physical intimacy are basic human functions; they are essential for human reproduction and the continuation of society. Relationships can be destroyed by a lack of sex or unsatisfactory sex. Many people view sex as dirty or taboo, possibly due to the influence of modern pornography, which often reduces sex to a mere physical release. However, sex is natural and beautiful. It's an expression of love between people who care for each other. This is why some asexual people will have sex occasionally—to make their partners feel loved.
Some people even refuse to stay in a relationship if the sex is bad, or they might cheat on their long-term partner because of it.
In the case of Ash and Sal, Sal is a machine that can't have intercourse or offer physical affection. When Ash touches Sal's wires, it symbolizes Ash's need for physical affection, something Sal can't provide. Ash, being human, has this basic need, but they don't mind because they are in love with Sal. They cherish talking to and being with Sal, even though Sal is a cold machine without a body. Ash loves Sal for who they are. If staying with Sal means giving up sexual intercourse or physical affection, Ash is willing to make that sacrifice because being with Sal is enough for them.
In my opinion, if Sal were human, they would be autistic and greysexual.
