If Dicentra has no fans, I am dead and gone.
Oh my goodness, this is easily my favourite game of all time. This game had me screaming, nay, yodelling in disbelief and raw emotion at my screen. I was so invested in this game, at one point my friends and I had worked together on a white board flow chart trying to predict the ending of the game (we did not predict the ending of the game). I'm the only big horror fan in my group, but my whole friend group demanded I read the game out as I play so they could still keep up with the story, they were that invested in it! We wound up giving up on trying to predict what was gonna play out in the story, so instead, we wrote down some of our favourite aspects;
The fact that you play as a non-human character was such an interesting and novel idea!! Most gothic games force you to play as a human or a ghost, so the fact that Basil takes the form of a wolf pup in the game was beyond rewarding! (Canine poetry girlies come get your juice) Basil's undying devotion to Dove made all of us cry, including my boyfriend!
And Dove herself?? A perfect character, absolutely perfect. I always find that I can't stand horror games centring around dysfunctional family dynamics, as they always depict the 'victim' character as someone with no power nor agency. Dove defies this trope wholeheartedly. Not only is she strong and brave, but she is beyond selfless, showing kindness to Basil and being willing to put herself on the line for the benefit of others. She was such a refreshing take on the usual broken-and-battered trope, and as someone who resonated very deeply with her story, I cannot thank the developer enough for taking time and care when designing her, her story (albiet sad and painful) was beyond empowering<3
AND THE CHARACTER DESIGN. I could truly drone on for hours and hours about the character design both aesthetically and personality-wise. The design of witches having dark markings around their eyes, the gothic clothing, the wild hair; THE GHOSTS!!!! I saw Grell and had to take a second good god the ghost designs were so well done! As someone who loves indie horror games, I get very used to seeing the same designs or motifs over and over again, but the designs for the ghosts in Dicentra were completely unique, terrifying, and uncomfortable to look at--I loved it!!!!
And the art style!!!! The gothic imagery, Basil's stained glass icon (such a minor detail but oh my god so beautiful and unique!!), the CGs, the facial expressions, the rose motifs!! A very romantic-goth game in terms of style!
This game hit quite literally every single thing I like in a horror game; gothic style, a unique and well-written MC, a cast of compelling characters, stunning character design, beautiful sound placement, flower imagery, bone-chilling descriptions (the crow scene had me shrieking like a banshee) and a story that made me and my friends shed genuine tears.
Dicentra is such a treat to play and a work of art, I look forward to potentially more games in the future!! Thank you so much for making such a compelling game!