The Coffin of Andy and Leyley
#16
Time for some cleanup! A light adventure/VN game about a crapsack brother and sister in an arguably more crapsack world
The Good:
-Engaging characters, primarily our main two who are two different kinds of fucked up. The minor characters and how they interact with our leads all plays into the core tension with the two.
-The crapsack world: debatable whether our protagonists are reliable narrators, but everything in the world is a fucked up capitalist nihilistic hellscape. Our two leads start the game locked up in their apartments yet we quickly learn the lockdown is almost entirely bullshit (probably..?) and as we learn more and more about this place it just gets more interesting (and sad)
-Art style is solid - got an RPG maker feel for the overworld but everything is distinct and drab
-Good enough 'puzzles', they're just enough to make you think about what to do but very rarely annoying
The Bad:
-Choices and consequence are so far seemingly pretty minor? However the game isn't finished yet (Early access! UGHHH) so not 100% fair to say how much that'll change
-Some of the writing is pretty blah. Overall quite good but there's a few scenes that are ehh
The Meh:
-Could be a bit longer? Episode 1 felt very short which works great as a prologue but if the last chapter is only as long as 2 the game is only like 4 hours then?
-Definitely needs some more 'bespoke' animated scenes, maybe at the end of the episodes??
The Hmm
-The incest is laid on reeeeeeal thick, it's defended as "an option" but it seems very clear that's the way the author intends the story to go.
A strangely riveting tale of two people who are terrible for each other but ultimately in such a terrible place they've been put that you end up kinda rooting for them anyway? Obv the dev is going for extra pizzazz points by making the relationship incestuous if the player chooses but Layley has a legit point: it's hardly the most fucked up thing they've done or had happen to them! Genuinely engaging and fun
Final Grade: A-
#16
Time for some cleanup! A light adventure/VN game about a crapsack brother and sister in an arguably more crapsack world
The Good:
-Engaging characters, primarily our main two who are two different kinds of fucked up. The minor characters and how they interact with our leads all plays into the core tension with the two.
-The crapsack world: debatable whether our protagonists are reliable narrators, but everything in the world is a fucked up capitalist nihilistic hellscape. Our two leads start the game locked up in their apartments yet we quickly learn the lockdown is almost entirely bullshit (probably..?) and as we learn more and more about this place it just gets more interesting (and sad)
-Art style is solid - got an RPG maker feel for the overworld but everything is distinct and drab
-Good enough 'puzzles', they're just enough to make you think about what to do but very rarely annoying
The Bad:
-Choices and consequence are so far seemingly pretty minor? However the game isn't finished yet (Early access! UGHHH) so not 100% fair to say how much that'll change
-Some of the writing is pretty blah. Overall quite good but there's a few scenes that are ehh
The Meh:
-Could be a bit longer? Episode 1 felt very short which works great as a prologue but if the last chapter is only as long as 2 the game is only like 4 hours then?
-Definitely needs some more 'bespoke' animated scenes, maybe at the end of the episodes??
The Hmm
-The incest is laid on reeeeeeal thick, it's defended as "an option" but it seems very clear that's the way the author intends the story to go.
A strangely riveting tale of two people who are terrible for each other but ultimately in such a terrible place they've been put that you end up kinda rooting for them anyway? Obv the dev is going for extra pizzazz points by making the relationship incestuous if the player chooses but Layley has a legit point: it's hardly the most fucked up thing they've done or had happen to them! Genuinely engaging and fun
Final Grade: A-