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Thank you! I just finished playing the game, I was really impressed by the atmosphere and the art! 🖤

Could you please mark the downloadable build with the OSes it runs on? 🙏 (the checkboxes next to "Executable" on the edit game page, for a Ren'Py market build it should have Windows/Mac/Linux checked) Right now, trying to play it through the itch app will have it download the browser build instead.

The game looks really cool!

I'd prefer not to give out the solution outright in the comments, but as a hint, the ingredient you're missing isn't a plant. 😃

Hey, I'm the writer for the game! I can confirm that it's definitely possible to make the last potion correctly.

Keep in mind that plants aren't the only things that come from the ground. 😄

This game is so good! I loved the visual aesthetic and the story made me cry (in a good way). The whole concept of being the last person alive on the planet for years and years and then finally getting the chance to interact with someone...it really hit hard.

Just as a heads up, there are a few places in the script where it seems like the variable for Nox's pronouns isn't set up correctly--I picked she/her for Nox but sometimes the game would refer to Nox with "he" or "them" instead.

Hey, it took me a little bit, but I've fixed the save-related bugs! No more unexpected followers :)

Really cool concept! Even though there were a few bugs, I'm really impressed by how you got an OS sim like this working in 10 days. The story itself was really cool too, although some stuff was kind of hard to follow (I recognized enough to know that at least some of the lingo was cribbed from FF14 but not enough to actually understand what was being said when characters were talking gameplay). I felt for the MC feeling stuck in such a toxic group--where you know that something's off about how people treat each other, but you don't know if you'll ever be able to find a truly supportive place in your interests, and you do have good memories of the people, so you might as well just stay.

Could you please mark the downloads with the OS they're compatible with? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on the edit game page) Without it it's impossible to download/play the game using the itch app :)

Could you please mark the downloads with the OS they're compatible with? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on the edit game page) Without it it's impossible to download/play the game using the itch app :)

ETA: I see you've done it now, thank you 😄

Coming home to a bunch of surprise strangers in my house is basically my worst nightmare so I really feel for Molly here lol. The story was really unnerving, in a good way.

I was really impressed by how much voice acting there was in this game! That's a whole lot of VA to get done in 10 days, wow. The character designs are really cute too! I liked how none of the endings were portrayed as "wrong"; with a dilemma like that, all the options have their upsides and downsides, and it really comes down to one's own assessment.

Also, as a heads up, there's a line from Nyx near the end of the first ending where the wrong voice file plays (it's really obvious when you get to it because the text is really short and the voice line is long).

GREAT aesthetic, and the ambient sound effect usage is really cool! The writing captures the initial awkwardness of the reunion and the underlying (and eventually overt) anger between them. Pairing NVL presentation with a dialogue-only narrative was an interesting choice that works really well for characterizing the relationship between the MC and Liv.

Thanks!

Hi, could you please mark the download builds with the OSes they're compatible with? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on the edit game page, you should be able to do this even during the jam voting) It's impossible to download them via the itch app otherwise :)

Vampire BL, the pixel art, the PC-98 style GUI, the color scheme...this game feels like it was created in a lab for me LMAO

I loved the aesthetic style and the conflict between neither of them actually wanting to separate but August feeling like he has no other choice. The good ending was really satisfying!

Just as a heads up, there are a couple places in the script with missing or incorrect name tags--lines that show up as narration when it's clear that Michael is saying them out loud ("What were your intentions with me?" and "Some things?"), and one line that has Augustus' name tag but in context seems like it's probably being said by Michael (beginning with "I'm a grown ass man").

You did a really great job of setting up the atmosphere! The tension between what Pierce "knows" to be true vs what he's currently seeing shines through in how unsettling it is. And (trying to avoid spoilers as much as I can) it's really interesting how the family dynamic isn't repaired--that no matter what the intentions were, trauma can't easily be washed away. The POV language in the narration really helps cement how much Pierce was affected.

Awesome, just sent you a Discord friend request :)

Are you still available for QA?

Thank you!

Hi, could you please mark the downloads with the OS they're compatible with? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on the edit game page) Without it, it's currently impossible to download the games on the itch app.

Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the game! I had a lot of fun writing the script, so it's nice to know it comes through!

I'll see if I can get that bug fixed, definitely nobody is supposed to be invisible or following you around in the lobby... 😅

I used the Top Down Followers plugin! The page says it's for GBS 3.2 but I was able to upgrade to 4.0 without issue :)

Glad you liked the game!

And here it is: https://natashaluna.itch.io/bonded-in-darkness/devlog/694591/ending-guidewalkthr...

I'll try to put up a walkthrough later today!

Bonded in Darkness is a visual novel I (and several other collaborators!) made for the Queer Vampire Game Jam. It's an enemies-to-lovers m/m romance about a vampire and the hunter trying to kill him.

Arnaud just wants to be left alone.

Turned into a vampire against his will long ago, he's nonetheless managed to carve out a largely peaceful existence in an abandoned manor—a peaceful existence routinely interrupted by the vampire hunter Julien, seeking blood for blood.

Over the years, animosity has morphed into a strange sort of respect, and on one stormy night, Arnaud is greeted with a sight he never expected: his mortal enemy Julien, gravely injured on his doorstep.

Will Arnaud take him in, or will he use this opportunity to grasp the peace he's been seeking for years?

Download and play here: https://natashaluna.itch.io/bonded-in-darkness

It's available as a downloadable for Windows/Mac/Linux and as a browser-playable version, but I highly recommend playing the downloadable version if you can!

The game has four possible endings, and at ~9.4k words long takes about an hour to read all of them.

Cute :3

Hi, could you please mark the files with the OS they're compatible with? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on the Edit Project page) It's impossible to download/play the game with the itch app otherwise :)

The art here looks so cute!

Hi! Could you please mark the downloads with the OS they're for? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on the Edit Project page) It's impossible to download the game via the itch app otherwise, and the game won't appear in searches for games compatible with Windows/Mac/Linux :)

I'd like to ask again if you could please tick the OS checkboxes on the edit project page? It will only take you a second, and without them it's impossible for me (and others who rely on the itch app) to play the game. I have an intermittently unstable internet connection and downloads through the browser often instantly fail for me. It'll also improve your own visibility, since right now the game won't appear in any OS-specific searches.

Hi! Could you please mark the downloads with the OSes they're compatible with? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on each file on the "Edit project" page) Without it, it's currently impossible to download the game via the itch app.

Thank you!

Although just so you know, you have "PGC-1.2.1-mac.zip" marked as an Android file instead of a Mac executable :)

Hi! Could you please mark the downloads with the OS they're compatible with? (the checkmarks next to "Executable" on the "edit project" page) Not having the boxes checked means it's impossible to download the game via the itch app & people won't be able to find it if they're filtering by OS.

Good to know, thanks for responding :)

I noticed that Alvarez's VA isn't credited in the game or on the game page, is that intentional?

🥹 I love him 💖

Hi! The game makes use of optional image captions for the in-game illustrations, which can be used alongside the built-in text-to-speech (enabled by pressing V on the keyboard). Along with the toggle in the settings menu, the player is given the option to enable image captions on first startup and the game is fully playable with the keyboard. For the most part, the game is playable with a controller (although the controls can't be natively remapped), but the text-to-speech function itself cannot be activated on a controller without using a third-party tool to remap a button to V.

That said, I'd also like to point out that while text-to-speech is available in both downloadable builds of the game as it's built into the engine I used, the image captions themselves are only in the 1.1 version.

Thanks for reaching out! 😄 I'll add the information on how to enable text-to-speech to the game page; it's a native Ren'Py feature, but it slipped my mind that most people aren't familiar with all of that engine's commands/keyboard shortcuts.

Hey, just want to give you a heads up that you forgot to check the OS boxes next to each download, so right now it's impossible for players to download the demo via the itch app :)

https://natashaluna.itch.io/a-bit-tied-up

Hi! Could you please mark the download with the OS(es) it's compatible with? (The checkmarks next to "Executable" on the edit project page) It's currently impossible to download and play the game through the itch app since it's not marked.