i got this game on recommendation and holy smokes. long story short, this is easily my favorite visual novel i have played to date. it's funny, it's adorable, it's heart-wrenching, it's personal, it's vulnerable, and it's, well, it's just beautiful. the whole thing radiates love and understanding.
i paid extra close attention to the presentation, the story, the prose and the characters and even took notes as part of a little Visual Novel study project i'm doing. my SUMMARIZED notes for this game are 6 pages and quickly go from gushing about the presentation to gushing about every little plot detail and character interaction! there is so much to learn from this game about how to do a VN right.
i usually struggle to come back to VNs even when i love them bc i like to multitask, but this game was so easy to return to and get immersed in.
the characters are gorgeous and the body diversity was so freaking refreshing. seriously, i adore the presentation and musical choices! the sound design was so charming and non-intrusive, and always brought a smile to my face.
it's very rare to find a story like this that is so blunt with its messaging and its content without feeling hand-holdy. it doesn't leave much up to metaphor, and the metaphors that we see are obvious in a really great way AND creative as heck!
the content warnings are freaking GENIUS. i've been thinking of how to do this exact thing, worrying it would be an annoyance, but this game freaking NAILS its content warnings by giving everyone the choice to engage with them but not making it a mandatory thing. i'll be remembering that for my own projects...
i've found it's really hard to find erotic visual novels from a female perspective that actually feel like they were written for and by said perspective, and Love & Dehumanization is ABSOLUTELY gay as hell - FRICK YES. the erotic scenes didn't feel voyeuristic in an alienating way, and balanced its sexual and emotional content beautifully. there was something so matter-of-fact about them that i deeply loved.
all in all, Love & Dehumanization is absolutely worth your time whether or not you can personally relate to the game's core themes. i could gush for hours about how it presents its themes, how it shows that Melody isn't alone (in so many beautiful ways, literal or otherwise), but i'll leave it at: this game is all Heart. every second of it was a pleasure. if you're reading this comment and haven't played it for yourself, i genuinely recommend it if it even interests you a little.