When it comes to video games which try to replicate internet speak as of the current time it came out, Need Streamer is the best I've seen. Everything from Ame's speaking patterns to the random comments that show up on streams, or the mock /vt/ board all sound just like stuff I read on a daily basis. Its clear that whoever wrote and/or translated the game has actually been a part of or at least seen the communities they are writing in a way "hello fellow kids" suits and other meme chasing indies. This genuine tone allows the story to actually deal with psychology in a very real and gross way. Ame is not a romantic, introspective figure. She is stupid, willingly childish, and just uncomfortable to be around.
Minus the slight embellishments and plot set up, I've been around people who act just like this. I've seen these exact dynamics of dual wielding open sexuality and child like behavior to create utterly toxic systems of decency. If there is a blind spot it is that the games pseudo princess maker gameplay deprives the story of its other half. The other in the relationship is played by the player themselves who the game is mostly unwilling to comment on directly. This is to some degree admirable as the player is forced into introspective by what is actually presented and how they slowly see more sides of Ame, while also avoiding the hand wringing of direct player call outs. Ultimately though this one sidedness to the relationship leads to a sense of incompleteness where it seems the player has to mentally invest a lot of their own logic to make the relationship make sense and seem emotionally resonate.
The other big issue with this story is that all of the endings are bad. They range from overly brief to creepypasta bullshit. There are some good ideas in some like degenerate response to Ame vomiting on stream but these never really go for more then shock value. The true ending unlocked after beating the game is exceptionally trite and stupid. I guess that is the difficulty about making a story about a very specific point in the present is that it isn't over yet, so any ending would be generally unsatisfying.
At one point after activating the streaming option Ame comments that she loves old commercials as they show people being happy without the internet. This is
a type dragged from the muck and made naked and bear. Does this seem right to you? I hate Ame. I am immersed in Ames. I am afraid of becoming Ame. I am Ame. Does this seem right to you?
Minus the slight embellishments and plot set up, I've been around people who act just like this. I've seen these exact dynamics of dual wielding open sexuality and child like behavior to create utterly toxic systems of decency. If there is a blind spot it is that the games pseudo princess maker gameplay deprives the story of its other half. The other in the relationship is played by the player themselves who the game is mostly unwilling to comment on directly. This is to some degree admirable as the player is forced into introspective by what is actually presented and how they slowly see more sides of Ame, while also avoiding the hand wringing of direct player call outs. Ultimately though this one sidedness to the relationship leads to a sense of incompleteness where it seems the player has to mentally invest a lot of their own logic to make the relationship make sense and seem emotionally resonate.
The other big issue with this story is that all of the endings are bad. They range from overly brief to creepypasta bullshit. There are some good ideas in some like degenerate response to Ame vomiting on stream but these never really go for more then shock value. The true ending unlocked after beating the game is exceptionally trite and stupid. I guess that is the difficulty about making a story about a very specific point in the present is that it isn't over yet, so any ending would be generally unsatisfying.
At one point after activating the streaming option Ame comments that she loves old commercials as they show people being happy without the internet. This is
a type dragged from the muck and made naked and bear. Does this seem right to you? I hate Ame. I am immersed in Ames. I am afraid of becoming Ame. I am Ame. Does this seem right to you?