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Mix. posted:I meant to mention this when I posted the updates but got distracted (whoops), but while it's going to be a couple weeks before I start the next LP there is, believe it or not, a vote we have to do before the LP's even started - and this is one that's going to set the tone for the LP as a whole. "There are no happy endings, for nothing ever ends." No.
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Jun 2, 2023 21:29
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| # ? May 3, 2024 18:39 |
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There are No happy endings, because I have depression
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Jun 2, 2023 21:52
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A trifling victory… but a victory nonetheless. (happy)
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Jun 2, 2023 21:56
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Mix. posted:
I've been on vacation for a while so I'm well behind on the thread and slowly catching up but I just wanted to complain slightly that the use of 'they' here really threw me off because it follows right after "those two" and therefore sounds like "they" is referring to two people, not Monkey, who was "she" in the previous line! I guess the author (lol, I almost typed 'they' here) did not want to code multiple variations for the menu based on who you'd selected as your murderer but if I were playing this I would have been hopelessly confused about what the question was asking and certainly would not have selected "they're the mastermind". Anyway this has been an entirely pointless comment and I now return to catching up.
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Jun 2, 2023 21:57
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Do you want to know the reason why she killed those two? It's simple.
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Happy is subjective, so I doubt everyone will be happy. I am satisfied with how this game went, however. My fave Rooster survived and grew from the experience, and we got to see the complexity behind each character.
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Jun 2, 2023 22:08
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Thanks for the ride, Mix. Also, I choose to believe the next game will end happily.
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Jun 2, 2023 22:19
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Mix. posted:I meant to mention this when I posted the updates but got distracted (whoops), but while it's going to be a couple weeks before I start the next LP there is, believe it or not, a vote we have to do before the LP's even started - and this is one that's going to set the tone for the LP as a whole.  (once again, have played so I'll just be lurking)
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Jun 2, 2023 22:30
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I've read this LP all the way through while lurking, and this game was satisfying to read through. Thanks for LPing it! I think the next game will have a happy ending.
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Jun 2, 2023 22:33
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Also with the game finished, just gonna post my general most to least favourite with the cast: Fun characters, never minded them: Dog, Rooster, Dragon Good presence, served their role: Snake, Monkey Not a fan personally, but they had good parts in the plot: Pig, Bunny Eh, they exist: Tiger, Mouse Could have been so much better: Horse PUNK ROCK: Sheep Dull: Ox
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Jun 2, 2023 22:39
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Thank you for the LP. It's been fun, I liked the steady piecing together of everything across all of the routes, and while not all of the characters were great there weren't any I particularly disliked. It also remained reasonably grounded, for the genre, throughout most of the run. I do feel like the solution to the murder, and why Dragon/Snake were targets, could have been written a little less contrived, but it isn't a huge deal as the motive and high-level means still fit well enough. As to the next game, let's hope for happy ending.
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Jun 2, 2023 22:48
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Congratulation on finishing this LP! (and thanks for the previous one too, Quantum Suicide was a real stinker but the others were neat) It was a really fun ride, I ended up buying the two games around the reunion so I won't be voting 
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Jun 2, 2023 22:56
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That question with no context is mighty suspicious. Let’s use the ol’ reverse psychology and say that we don’t want a happy end
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Jun 2, 2023 23:43
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Mix. posted:Do you think the next game's ending will be a happy ending? Yes! We can make it if we try! E: Also I think my favorites were Rooster and Ox tbh. Rooster seems like he has hidden depths but no, he's just Like That the entire time really. Also Ox was understated but I vibed with his low-key exasperation the whole time. Mix. posted:
Dalris Othaine fucked around with this message at 01:43 on Jun 3, 2023 |
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Jun 3, 2023 01:38
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This was a perfectly good investigation. It was fine. What happened?
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Gimme a happy ending with this. Also thank you for showing us these VN games. Haven’t heard of any of them before you showed them and they’ve been a lot of fun
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Jun 3, 2023 01:51
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Thanks so much for this LP! I wouldn't have heard about the game otherwise, or even if I had I definitely wouldn't have had time to play through all the different routes. For the next game, I think it'll have a happy ending. Dalris Othaine posted:Also Ox was understated but I vibed with his low-key exasperation the whole time. Also want to +1 this, Ox wasn't one of my top faves but I did appreciate this about him too.
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Jun 3, 2023 02:02
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Coming out of lurking to say I've enjoyed all the VNs you've LP'ed recently, Mix! I wanna believe in a happy ending, so I will!
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Jun 3, 2023 02:10
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Uh, a happy ending for who would be my question.
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Jun 3, 2023 02:22
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I believe it'll have a happy ending, yes! Thank you for the LP, Mix.! This thread specifically is what got me to bite the bullet and buy this game—binged it in a few days and lurked the thread over the following months. Each LP of yours's been banger after banger, and I'm excited to get to follow the next one! Dalris Othaine posted:Also Ox was understated but I vibed with his low-key exasperation the whole time. Yeah, agreed. This along with his habit of overlooking really basic details followed by them immediately blowing up in his face puts him pretty high up for me.
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Jun 3, 2023 06:34
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Thank you for the LP! It feels like a trap, but whats the harm in wishing for a happy ending. For the fun of it, here's how I'd rank the characters with some thoughts on each: Snake - What a great character. He starts off seeming like a total parody of a smart person but over the game he's revealed to be brave, empathetic, witty and supportive. But he still has his fatal flaw of overestimating his intelligence and talking too much. His route was one of the stronger ones too. Rooster - Rooster is an amazingly well-written character. He's actually pretty well hidden as a secret villain, he's so goofy that it's easy to dismiss him and it's only because the thread could analyse his actions so closely that he stands out I think. His story has a lot of pathos and he's the character that develops the most in the real plot. Also he's the funniest character, that bit where he tries to give a speech absolutely killed me. Dog - What a turnaround for Dog. The guy started off as completely detestable but him turning the game on its head in the real version was one of the best moments of the game. He's also quite funny and well-written in general. His route is contrivated as balls but it's what got me so invested in the game so I suppose it was a winning gamble. Mouse - Mouse was a very good main character. I liked how it was consistent that she can't win physical confrontations so she's forced to be sneaky. She's fairly smart for the main character of a visual novel too. I thought her comments on the justice system were really interesting as well. Ox - I mostly like Ox because of how consistent it is that everything he says seems smart and practical but is always wrong or a waste of time. I seriously think he only says a right thing once or twice in the whole game, it's amazing. It's perfect characterisation for a bull-headed Ox and the blind tool of the conspiracy to convict Morris. He also gets some good lines here and there. Tiger - Tiger was a positive force throughout the game which I think was needed. She was very likable and her backstory was good. I wish the loose ends about her testimony had been tied up though. Pig - Pig turning around and redeeming herself was great. Her route was good and her charactisation was good. She's definitely one of the worst people in the game but she's so pathetic that you can't really hate her. Dragon - Ultimately a very straightforward character, but she's quite fun and active in most of the routes. Bunny - Bunny's not bad at all, he's actually very solidly written but I just didn't like him. I didn't think his route was especially interesting either. He has some cool moments though. Sheep - Sheep is a good character. Her backstory is tragic as hell and her route is good but she's a bit too overshadowed by the others and timid to rank higher. Monkey - The big one and I'm afraid she's a miss for me. I thought she was charming and well-written as a victim throughout the game but I just didn't really enjoy her as the villain I'm afraid. I really didn't like her reason essentially being that she's neurodivergent. I also just didn't think she had the bombast to carry the reveal as much as she could have and her motivations weren't very interesting. Horse - Ultimately Horse is just kind of there. He's pretty boring, his route is ridiculous and he just doesn't contribute to the plot. Nephthys fucked around with this message at 10:15 on Jun 3, 2023 |
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Jun 3, 2023 10:09
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The thing is that monkey isn't doing it because she's a sociopath. Thats a lie she tells even herself and doesnt really figure it out until the end of her interview from the grave. She's doing it because she's a greedy gently caress and perfectly fine killing and blackmailing her way to a life of luxury. As she figured out at the very end:oh, oops posted:Truth is, there are tons of aneurotypical people in the world. 99.99999% of them live well-adjusted, decent lives. This is not an issue of how my brain works.
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Jun 4, 2023 03:24
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Another vote for a happy ending here! Thanks so much for the LP OP, it was most excellent!
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Jun 4, 2023 04:14
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I was really impressed by most of this game, but I feel like it definitely dropped the ball at the very end and now I kind of want a break from it and to check out that murder mystery you were talking about. You are all underrating Pig and her extremely honest, unsuspiciously sweaty face. Also, I can now officially say that "members of the jury, is this your card" stayed funny for the full run of the LP, a solid nine months of giving me a solid, sensible chuckle every time.
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Jun 4, 2023 04:15
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Explosions posted:check out that murder mystery you were talking about. that LP's definitely happening eventually, but I don't mind putting it off for a while - honestly my only worry is if someone snipes it in the meantime, but it's incredibly under the radar so the odds of that arent THAT high
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Jun 4, 2023 05:22
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I'll be honest, after we finished that first awful route, I wasn't expecting much from the rest of the game. I ended up being pleasantly surprised! I think we're going to have an unhappy ending next game though.
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Jun 4, 2023 06:08
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The next game will obviously have an unhappy ending, in order to set up the inevitable 3rd game which will ultimately have a happy ending.
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Jun 4, 2023 08:35
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All endings are happy endings from someone's perspective.
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Jun 4, 2023 08:44
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I'm surprised people are so down on Dog's route. It dragged on a little but it did do a good job of not just showcasing its titular character, but also a decent chunk of the cast - Horse, Dragon, Snake, Tiger, Bunny, Ox and Mouse obviously, but even Monkey and Rooster had their moments. The only people that got really left out of the route were Pig and Sheep. Plus I got to learn about cribbage and Liar's Dice.
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Jun 4, 2023 09:40
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If it was a later route, it may have come off better, but as the first route we went down it did a poor job of representing the game. It throws the Zodiac Trial itself out the window and has pretty much the entire cast acting like complete idiots and just letting Dog kill people off one by one.
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Jun 4, 2023 15:26
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it showed how much of a dumbass monkey was in retrospect, so that was cool shame that wasn't obvious from the start but it redeemed itself
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Jun 4, 2023 16:38
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Vandar posted:If it was a later route, it may have come off better, but as the first route we went down it did a poor job of representing the game. It throws the Zodiac Trial itself out the window and has pretty much the entire cast acting like complete idiots and just letting Dog kill people off one by one. Dog wasn't giving them much time to react, and by the time he got two or so, it was getting harder to block him as he essentially had bodyguards, to be fair.
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Jun 4, 2023 17:21
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This story will not have a happy ending. I've said it in bold, so you know it's true. (I think it will secretly be a prequel based on that case Dog mentioned, and with him dead, well...Otherwise, I'm going to claim "any ending with Dog dead is a bad END, therefore I win".)
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Jun 4, 2023 18:14
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Kind of hard to say, but I'm going to assume it's an unhappy ending.
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Jun 5, 2023 14:47
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The thing with dogs route is that as the first route it felt like dog kinda stole the show away from everything else in the story rather than the story in the collection that dog got to drive.
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Jun 6, 2023 00:01
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when i first played dog's route was my first route; i like it as an early route because it sets up the knife as a thing pretty strongly but in a way that you could write it off as just a dog specific thing but then it starts showing up in other routes in other people's hands 
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Jun 6, 2023 02:02
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Let me say it in bold: This story will not have a happy ending. Ahaha.
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Jun 6, 2023 17:57
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Happy endings for everyone!
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Jun 6, 2023 18:10
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So, there's a reason why we know so many of Themis's thoughts on the various routes as seen in the recap. In the "Pig" interview, there's an option that lets you enable developer commentary, and compiled comments scattered throughout is how Mix got all of that. The one thing I wanted to mention is that Themis mentions that Monkey's route was actually kinda tricky to thread the needle on (re: "giving enough info that foreshadows that she's the mastermind without giving the whole thing away").
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Jun 28, 2023 01:11
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| # ? May 3, 2024 18:39 |
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 It's time 
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Jul 7, 2023 15:53
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