A few words...

This game has certainly been my hardest release so far. I feel my heart beating in my chest, in my ears even, and I don't really know what to say, so I hope you'll forgive me if I stumble upon my words, or if something isn't clear. I'm trying my best, but it's not easy to share.

This game is based, at first, on a very personal experience, which I'll spare the details of, but I guess if you ever wondered why characters overcoming their child abuse was such an important theme in my work, you have the beginning of an answer. Jace is the closest thing I have written to a self-insert - although he isn't completely, of course -, and I confronted him, in this short game, to a lot of questions I had. I don't know if I should explain my own symbolism - it always feels pretentious to analyse your own work -, but I know it was important to me. I also wanted Jace to be a determined protagonist, implacable in his will to put a stop to the situation Alois puts him in. I thought he would be more empowering and cathartic that way (since, in reality, victims don't really have dialogues with their groomer, like that, and we tend to keep for ourselves all the harsh truths they deserve to be told).

This game is also meant to be metaphorical: it's a dialogue between an allonormative society (represented by Alois) and an asexual individual, forced to subject themself to experiences they aren't truly willing to participate in, only to try to enter a mold never shaped for them in the first place. And I wanted this individual to confront all these expectations, refusing to yield and instead embracing themself.

Finally, I also wanted to share a message about the power of fiction and creation, both as a consumer and a creator. I'll let you draw your own conclusions, and I hope it wasn't too bold of me to reference my own work in this game: I just thought it would be a cute nod to those who've been following my work.

And that's it, thank you for reading me! I don't think it's my funniest devlog, but that's part of what I wanted to share. The rest of what I wanted to say is in the game. I'll just conclude by saying, to all those who might feel concerned: you are stronger than you think and if you feel you are lacking right now, know that you'll be strong enough someday.

P.-S.: I would like to make a wholesome friendship/romance game (depending on players' choices: you have to get the LI to fall in love with you, but at the same time, if he confesses, you have the possibility to just stay friends) for NaNoRenO, centred around an ace character because, well, asexuality can also be wholesome. I hope I can make it happen, we also need funny representations!