All of these factors really make your final choice - the only choice that ACTUALLY matters - much more impactful, and I thought it was really great design!

In the point and click sections, there's only one option that is actually clickable at a time - only one choice (which added to the irony when the Guide then berates you for being predictable/cliche LOL).

The Guide insists on calling you the same nickname regardless of what name you choose for yourself. Each dialogue option leads to the same result.

I enjoyed how the mystery slowly unfolded over each of the different endings, as we learned more and more about 'our' past life (culminating in quite the electrifying climax.) The gameplay was also very cleverly set up, in my opinion! The entire game plays out linearly for the most part, where the player is given 'choices,' and yet none of those choices matter. It really sets such an oddly mundane, yet somewhat unsettling atmosphere for Purgatory! I also like how eerily empty the office looks, contributing to a sense of unease even though you're having a pretty casual conversation (with a very charming man - even if he is more than a bit condescending.) The Guide's faces were all so expressive (his threatening expression was FRIGHTENING, and his exasperated expression was a bit anger-inducing.) The art really is fantastic, I love the muted color palettes and the painterly style. I don't really see the use of mouth animations too much in VNs, but I thought it looked very good and added a lot to the dynamicism of the scene, especially when combined with the VA! This game is INCREDIBLY polished, from the excellent writing (so much character in each of the Guide's lines) to the gorgeous UI (really can't say enough about this, it's so beautiful and stylistic!) to the STELLAR VA (Jesse really brought the dialogue to LIFE). This was absolutely EXCELLENT! I'll start off with the POLISH.

Poetry in Purgatory by Tymedust Games Ezrebeth (A Holiday Mindfudge) by Tymedust Games

This game was made for the O2A2 VN Jam 2023, a micro Visual Novel jam with strict asset limitations and a 1000 word limit. <1,000 words (10-15 minutes of playtime)!ġ animated Guide + 1 interactive background! For the best possible experience we recommend downloading the game. Depending on your browser, the web version may feature graphical glitches and/or sound issues.

Dark darker yet darker undertale