So I'm ready to make donations now (please see my previous post a1s for my sign ups). For the
27th I will be offering
Zero Ranger and
The Coffin of Andy and Leyley.
Zero Ranger is a game I offered last year.
I wrote a pretty passionate pitch for it, but let me give you a short version. It's a shoot-em-up/bullet hell where you play as a spaceship trying to repel an alien invasion. Pretty standard as far as these games go, but what makes it stand out is the sheer level of polish put into it. From story, to gameplay, to spectacle, every single facet of this game goes the extra mile making it a great entry for veterans as well as people who have never tried a game in the shoot-em-up genre.
I consider it a must-play for any gamer who is a fan of fast-paced action.
If you're curious, there's a demo you can try.
So the new game I'm offering this year is
The Coffin of Andy and Leyley. It's an RPG Maker game which basically means its a cross between a walking sim and a point'n'click adventure game. Perhaps you may have already heard about the game with the cannibal sister, but what I bet you haven't heard is that it's actually a really well written story about codependency. Seriously, I was expecting trash but I found art instead. Frankly, it makes me hate the way this thing was marketed cause it almost scared me away from it.
What separates it from the typical shocking trash RPG Maker horror games are known for is that Coffin treats its dark subject matter with care and thought, while injecting enough liveliness to prevent the story from becoming dreary.
As wacky as the cannibalism premise is, the author puts in a lot of effort crafting a world and characters so that it can be believable. Plot events flow very naturally from one to the next and the two main characters are fleshed out and likeable despite the awful things they end up doing. Hell, you start the game empathizing with BOTH of them and asking yourself what you would do if faced with their dilemma. Though the story is fantastical, it somehow also manages to feel odly real.
Despite my grim description the game is actually a dark comedy, but it never lets hilarious jokes get in the way of telling a mature and serious story. One I dare not spoil.
The game itself is episodic, with 2 episodes currently released with 2 more still under development. I think the first episode is a masterpiece that most people can enjoy, but the second one dials up the darkness in a way that a few people will find offputting. Still, episode 1 is worth the price of admission alone and you can decide at the end of it if you want to see what happens next. Owning one episode means you own them all.
I do have to repeat though, this is a story about cannibalism and other horrible things. Though there are a lot of good jokes, ultimately it's meant to make you uncomfortable. If you aren't looking for that, then you shouldn't be playing this (Sadly, too many people don't seem to realize this). But if you're looking for a dark story that's more than just cheap shock, then you'll find a real gem.
PS: If you find any of the above interesting, just be careful about looking this game up on the internet. People are very passionate about posting spoilers out of context and they will ruin your experience. Though a few of them mean well and want to warn sensitive viewers, it has given a lot of people a grossly distorted impression of this game and has created a rather toxic discourse around it. Frankly, looking at any of it is going to make you lose a few brain cells. I can't stop you, but I'll just warn you that these are the same kinds of people who managed to ruin UNDERTALE.
Author
Topic: XMAS 2023 GIVEAWAY (Read 16257 times)