Ballad of an Evening Butterfly

Download it here.

Butterfly-users. Androgynous teenagers. A "guy" with no memory.

It's a weird story--the kind that I like, a twisted sort of tale with no happy ending in sight. Towards the end of the game, Sera will be given one choice: To ask or Not to Ask Yoru about the butterfly mark, "he" has on his neck. There's a mini story that might or might not have occurred after the bad ending.

Story:

Having lost his memory, Sera Kaoru stops in the forest and visits a strange Western-style house. Guided by the house's owner, the boy in clothes of black, he descends the long spiral staircase to the basement. There sits a pure white maiden. Crimson eyes and white skin—a breathtakingly beautiful "girl." Sera's job is to distract her from her boredom. He reads a fairytale to her, and upon completing the peaceful job, the boy in black clothes informs him. She is the "ChouTsuki," and Sera was invited to the mansion to be the ChouTsuki's "sacrifice."

I played this while in class (I was sitting waaay in the back) so the music was turned off. I'm gonna play this again over the weekend.

This Cheap and Sacred Thing

Download it here

"What does it mean to be a robot? A human?"

Only one person has ever told Autumn Godfrey "I love you." And that person wasn't even human—but Autumn's android playmate and babysitter, Elly. Mysteriously, Autumn hasn't seen Elly since Autumn was seven, but now, with the help of Jude—an android prostitute with attitude—she might just find out what happened all those years ago.

Characters:

• Autumn Godfrey
• Nadiya, Rick and Zoe (Autumn's friends--humans)
• Cheryl Godfrey
• Elly, Mary and Jude (robots)

Favorite quotes:

Autumn: I'm the one who's hardwired. I'm hardwired to feel happy from hearing something lie to me. I'm such a machine. This is so so cheap.

***

Ripples

Download it here.

"Even if my life is just a single drop. Every drop of water leaves ripples."

It took me awhile to play this one. I always seem to put it off for one reason or another, but this weekend I had time so I played it.

And I like it, it's short and sweet but more importantly, there's a lesson there.

Koda is a cynical photographer with no interest in other people, but when he meets a cheerful girl in the park one day, he finds that his outlook in life is about to be shaken.

Characters:

• Koda - the cynical photographer who doesn't like people that believe they can change the world.
• Kuu - the cheerful girl who believes she can change the world with just cookies and smiles.

Favorite Moments:

Koda: Cheering people up is pointless. They'll just get depressed again anyway. And then they die.

* * *

Koda: Why are you trying so hard to get me to smile?

Kuu: You don't look like a happy person.

Her honesty is like an arrow in my heart.

* * *