what a gorgeous feeling to explore in your sequel to a charming and comedic adventure game. Pamplemousse 2 is a confused title, from start to finish. a work four years removed from the original where every 3D clay figure is reused from it while every new element is a mess of 2D collages. it's all presented like an exploration of canonicity, using the previous game's two endings as a jumping-off point to clone Dominique at every choice they make. but it never really wants to answer that question, nor does it feel the need to further Dominique's (very fun) character or personality.

a lot of what made the first game charming remains here. even the off-key singing sounds better! what i love about it are the moments where every voice suddenly clicks and goes in tune before going out again, and that feeling is way more common in 2. but it also is used more deliberately. instead of breaking into song randomly, characters do it to either emphasize the comedy or burst out their more intense feelings.

and those feelings are so disjointed. this is a work personal enough for its creator to physically appear to confront the poor cloned protagonist. it doesn't even feel like a self-absorbed choice either, just another way to deliberate on a particular moment in the dev's life. Dominique didn't get a conclusive ending in their first adventure, nor will they get one here.

the feelings explored in each setpiece while the two Dominiques try to get a satisfying ending are very focused. they mostly deal with gender expectations, sex, art, choice, and regret. each gets its own (in)conclusive ending. in a way, it's way more laborious than the first game, even if this time it's a visual novel instead of an adventure game.

Pamplemousse 2 is ashamed of itself enough that starts with a very on-the-nose quiz about your expectations about it; if you had prior experience with Squinky's works, if you're a bigot, and so on. it's so remarkably insecure. i was at a similar place the last time i chose to make a game, and it's probably one of the worst places to be to create something personal. but i still wanted to make something. to do anything, even if it didn't amount to anything meaningful. a war with yourself where every part of you loses.

the songs this time around can be beautiful. especially the last few sung by Dominique... but they only get to be fun for a little while. the final song can only further the only message it can. it's sorry. it's thankful. it's still heartwarming, even though it feels like it can't be.