March 21st
Today's challenge is: Depressing Game.
Today's challenge is a fun one, despite the theme. While it could be interpreted as a depressing gaming experience, in an unintended way, I prefer to think of it as a game that emphasizes a “lower” mood overall. And while I'm more of someone who likes high octane stimulation, I can definitely appreciate a game that tries to pull me into a state of vulnerability, if it's done right, and that's what I'll be focusing on today.
The game I picked for this theme is
A Rose in the Twilight. It's a 2D puzzle platformer, and one of the games in a series of “cute horror games” that give similar vibes, courtesy of Nippon Ichi Software. The other games in that series that I'm familiar with are the two Yomawari games, htoL#NiQ and void tRrLM();. I however consider A Rose in the Twilight to be the greater one. You play as a little girl with a rose tied around her waist, which has the power to either draw or give the color red from and to various objects. Removing the red color from an object freezes it in place, even if it's falling mid air, and giving it back allows it to behave normally. There's also an egg shaped Giant that can help you progress, either by acting as a platform, tossing items or tossing the little girl herself. You have to progress by using those mechanics. There are also a few sections where the only way to progress is to commit suicide, and you'll usually find a device to help her do so (in the most brutal of ways, so that her spilling red blood can activate a mechanism). The little girl is immortal, but is not without fear or pain, so these segments do a great job of conveying strong emotions.
You might be wondering how horror and cuteness work together, and honestly I can't exactly explain it. So many opposing themes occur at the same time in these games, and it's really something you have to experience yourself to understand. All I can say is this formula needs to be explored a lot more. If you've played Undertale, you can kiiiiiinda get a similar vibe, although in my opinion it only conveys a tiny fraction of what it can feel like.
The story is told through blood memories that you collect through the game, and it's honestly very hard to make anything out of it until you've collected all of them. The soundtrack that plays through those is absolutely gorgeous, and has an organic feel that you don't find all that often in gaming anymore. I'll take the liberty of linking one of my favorite pieces from the game after this paragraph (really love how clearly you can hear the piano's hammer in this one). Style wise, since colors are so important to the main mechanics, the entire game is black, white, shades of grey and red, and it further supports the depressing mood this way. It doesn't look nearly as good as htoL#NiQ did, but I feel like it was intentional.
I played this one shortly after its release in 2017 (pretty much the best year in gaming in my opinion) since I had been very impressed with it's predecessor. I absolutely ate it up, and I give it a solid 9 out of 10 at the absolute lowest, despite how simple and short it is. Get yourself a nice blanket, and give this gem a shot if you're interested. Also, try to find all the small Easter eggs. I personally loved killing the friendly giant in the only way possible.
The game is out on PS Vita and PC. It's also one of the rare games in this list that I do not own a copy of, and instead only have the digital version. It did come out physically however, so you can be sure that I'll get it sooner than later.