SOBBING I NEEDED TO LIKE. COLLECT MYSELF. AND GIVE MYSELF TIME TO REALLY APPROACH THIS BEFORE MY REPLY lkjdfalkdf You're literally making me sob over here GODDDDDD. Unsure I've ever gotten quite a response like this before and it's making me melt a tad (tho the fierce heat of today isn't helping much ldkajfdl).
I'M SORRY FOR MAKING YOU CRY. I also cried a few times. Especially while working on the final cutscene. Even just imagining it / planning it in my head together with the song before and while working on it would make me tear up dlkajfsd It was just a Big Emotional Moment for me with the game and chars and I wanted to try and get that across and make it have impact (which is why I "had" to make it a cutscene to begin with LOL).
Ahhhh I'm glad you liked the music in this part!! THE RABBIT HOLE SONG. I also liked that one a lot. It and a few others (like the preparing for battle one) gave me so many FFXII vibes and since that's basically my fav game and soundtrack ever I couldn't resist LKDJASLDK Picking out music for me is both fun but also slightly nerve-racking as I always worry about whether I'm going to be able to find the perfect track for the vibe / scene in my head. Some of the tracks for this part I already had chosen long ago (for instance, I think I've had the castle chase song chosen as something I knew I wanted to use in Arc 5 since... over a year ago, maybe even longer lakdjfs) but others I chose during production by my usual method of listening to 50 million songs from composers I already knew I liked or by using vibe filters LFAKSJDFA This part also had a lot of "image song" style music with the actual songs rather than BGMs, so I was hoping it would go over well with people and feel somewhat impactful as a result.
"I loved how there was a lot of French expressions, some I didn't even know were used in English" --> DLKASJDF I PROBABLY DIDN'T EVEN REALIZE MOST OF THOSE IN QUESTION WERE FRENCH. I didn't know bric-a-brac LMAO That's one of those words that got ingrained in my head as a child from watching Nightmare Before Christmas on repeat I think hahaha. Thank you so much tho for all the kind words about the writing ahhhHHHHH. I feel like no one ever really says anything about the writing when it comes to VNs (which I do get, like, it's only one part of the experience, and you're not likely to even notice anything about it over the story and chars and art and literally everything else), so I guess hearing that specifically somehow makes me even more wibbly and gooey jlkdfajds 💦 I've always felt I have a bit of a weird writing style in general so I'm never quite sure how people, like, react to it while reading HAHA. Particularly some of the odd turns of phrase or word choices (or how I apparently repeat things about chewing on the inside of cheeks or uncomfortable bowels again and again and again without my noticing LMAO). At any rate, that really means a lot. I'm really happy you enjoy the style and dialogue, etc.
"ORLAM ISN'T THE ONLY ONE WHO NEEDS TO TAKE HIS HEART OUT OF HIS CHEST APPARENTLY BECAUSE YOU HIT RIGHT WHERE YOU SHOULD!!!!!" --> SOBBINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG lkjfalkdsfjad I am honestly so glad this part felt so impactful ahhHHHHHHHHH. I had really hoped it would. 🥺
"(although Orlam is bi if I remember correctly)" --> Yeah he is, though at this point in time, neither one of them had all the answers about themselves and were just really confused mostly but did kind of both know they were similar in a way (and Genzou knew at least that Orlam liked him). In my mind, it was a combination of Genzou's own confusion about himself, his fear about people judging him like he saw them judging Orlam, and also the sheer fact that Orlam was just so wimpy and scrawny as a kid (something that Genzou never wanted to be seen as) that all contributed to Genzou's actions as a kid (along with the sheer fact that he kind of just was a mouthy brat to begin with and couldn't [and still can't] control his words or temper).
"When Genzou could have just insulted him as he's used to????" --> LDFKAJSDLFKAD I'M GLAD YOU POINTED THIS OUT. I wanted it to be like this juxtaposition where he finally actually is able to keep his mouth shut, which is so beyond what Orlam could have expected or imagined at this point and it just broke him.
"I have a headache so I hope I make sense" --> OH GOD ARE YOU OK???????? 😭💦
I'm really glad you like how the scene turned out tho......... this was a scene that I had semi-pictured in my mind even way back like over a year ago, that I knew I was working towards, but hadn't actually worked out most of the details. And it wasn't until I was actively working on this part that it started to form further, and then when I was actually writing it it finally all came together. Like so many of my scenes I tend to go in semi-blind with just a single mental image as a guide and hope that while I'm writing it all falls into place LKDJFALKSDF
"The answer is of course "no", but they are a starting point, it's finally accepting to adress the problem, to acknowledge its existence and to tiptoe your way to healing. It was addressed very well, and that's why the final scene with Orlam felt so emotional!" --> GUH YOU'RE GONNA MAKE ME CRY ALL OVER AGAIN. I'm happy this came through well......... after everything these characters have been through, I didn't want to rush to "omg everything's better" when clearly it wouldn't be LMAO but I did want to start planting seeds of hope and forgiveness that could allow for a path forward for them. They've all hurt each other so many times at this point. But at least now they're finally meeting it head-on rather than ignoring it like usual...
"This game is intense, this game is beautiful, this game is everything a person, a soul, an artist, a writer, a human, heck! a carrot could put into a game. " --> THIS IS SO BEAEUTIFUL AND SWEET I'M WEEPING HELPPPPPPPPPPP. I don't even know what to say... except that I'm so glad that it could be something so meaningful and that my story and chars could speak in such a way. And also thank you??? Not only for the beautiful and kind words but also for playing and for all your wonderful support and encouragement and motivation. It truly means a lot 💕
I can't even begin to thank you enough honestly for this review. I feel so touched and honored and emotional and can't stop reading back through parts of it. Thank you so much for taking the time to write out all your thoughts and emotions. GUHHHHHHHH I'M JUST A WIBBLING WEEPY MESS NOW FROM WRITING OUT THIS RESPONSE. Reading this honestly has made my entire night/day/weekend LDKAJFLDKAFD Going to go cry a thousand tears now... 😭💦💕