Not everyone has the same trauma or reacts to it similarly but that doesn't make their emotions any less valid. In some ways it even ends up resonating with people and becomes mirrors for their past or current self.

This is one of those games that need to be more experienced than verbally discussed in order to get a feel for it but this was definitely something I need in my life right now and it's hard not the detach myself with the vulnerability Taylor was willing to put out with this work. Trauma looping is an endless cycle and no matter how long it takes, sometimes the losses you face are what you need to accept yourself and move forward.

"I wanted to be clean again."

In this game I think I came across one of the most interesting and powerful ways to portray trauma through a personal and autobiographical lens using video game language.
There is something so overwhelming and deeply moving about finding one's agency intertwined with a personal story that I think is impossible to replicate in other mediums, and this game I think makes masterful work of it.
It's a sharp, difficult and painful story told with great courage, sincerity and insight, and I think it's really something precious.
One thing that particularly struck me is that this game was supported with funds dedicated specifically to work that deals with queer themes: I always feel really admired by how video games are becoming a safe space for transgender people and other marginalized categories because it makes me think about how important it is today to use interactivity to bring forward issues of identity, and I think it's very healthy and important to be able to have these complex experiences of engaging with other subjectivities.