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Stories that left you disappointed for a reason

niro

Member
Member
i am here to vent about the vn-Paper Masks this time. i wish i never read or knew about this. this VN is the embodiment of ragebait for me. TRIGGER WARNINGS please the mc gives me second hand humiliation, i'm like, girl, stand up, please have some self respect but nooo. but that isn't even bad or the worst part of this vn. the "romance option", he's a monster in my eyes (I have sympathy for what he went through as a child but that doesn't mean it gives him a free pass to do what he had done to mc and still have that kind of attitude). i think i am just not the right audience for this type of story. for me, the LI abused mc. some might justify it by saying the mc said to do his worst or something like that but it reminds me of 50 shades of grey, which i consider sexualization/glorification of abuse in the name of BDSM but here, it's not even being sugarcoated as bdsm. the acknowledgement of THAT scene as what it was is lukewarm for me and i think some of the aftermaths especially some part of the conversation between mc and that di*khead, dare i say, is romanticized. his sorry text means sh*t to me, maybe because i am not the most forgiving person, but for me, it has the same energy as someone saying sorry after cheating/abusing/assaulting/r*ping. the saddest thing for me is mc is truly helpless and alone, not only she's poor but she is also doing a case of identity theft. if she wanted to ask for help, she can't without incriminating herself and also, the ro's family is influential rich and the ro himself is a lawyer or something like that...so there's really no help and my heart breaks for mc. i am still playing the game because i don't see it as a romance game, rather as a rescue mission, i am trying to save my girl/mc... i just hope the author allows some options where the mc doesn't end up with that horror of a man and hates him because the default mc still has feelings for that a*shole after everything (that scene is definitely the worst but he has done other worse things too.) i genuinely hate him. i don't care what happens to that man as long as he stays away from the mc
 

realman

Well-known member
Member
Like... in the IF version she cut existing scenes and choices that have concluded in the first 1-2 chapters to... finish quicker? E.g. there was a scene about you giving gifts to your parents after you come back home. Tell me how that small scene that makes your MC's relationship with parents feel a bit more meaningful is hindering the game ending? Will MC's father die if I don't gift him a bottle of his fav spirits? Make that make sense to me. It just looks like she tries to make the IF closer to the VN version and it doesn't do the IF any justice because suddenly instead of 4-7 meaningful choices you have 3 like in the VN, two being polar opposites and a middle wishy-washy one. I saw her answer to one of the anons on her tumblr that expressed disappointment to her switching to VN. She said that she feels like VN text is more punchy? And, imo, no, in her case it's not. Her VN version suffers from the plight of many English VNs: spewing one sentence at a time when those 2-5 sentences should've ideally been a part of a cohesive passage but got separated for the sake of fitting them into a tiny message box that is so tiny-tiny because you absolutely need to stare at a pointless huge background art without any character sprites 🙄 As a result, you have a text with a very broken rhythm and messy flow that is only enjoyable if you are TikTok-brained. Japanese VNs are actually so much better at it because oftentimes they don't shy away from shoving the whole paragraph into a message box as is.
I actually went and played it real quick its quite a downgrade to the IF. Might be the lenght but it probably took me like 1 hour or so of reading the IF, and the VN was like... 20 minutes long. It doesnt seem that bad to be honest but the same music over and over grinds my gears and theres a few visual bugs.

Otherwise, I didnt end up hating it. Its fine enough, but yeah removing the choices sucks
 

realman

Well-known member
Member
i am here to vent about the vn-Paper Masks this time.
Ive seen it asked a lot on the early access thread so decided to try it out myself and.... yeah, not my type of read.
It's quite entertaining, I'll give it that, but no. The author labels it as dubcon when its just r*pe. Fullstop r*pe. And I wouldnt mind it that much if it didnt get so sweeped under the rug, all we get so far is a "i ****ed up" text from the RO and they buy us a cream for bruises. like really. thats the best thing you could come up with? And you dont have the choice to refuse it either. I FELT INSULTED, no apology, no crying, no begging just have this cream so your bruises that I caused go away faster. I had to rub my temples. Not even going to mention how they basically said "well you wanted it anyways".


There was also a bug for me where i chose to be a woman.. but my gender got switched mid wet dream somehow. Real superpower that is. This game was a joke to me but im also sort of invested to see what happens in a weird way.
Edit: its also annoying as hell how despite everything, MC still loves them somehow and theres not even a path where *that* scene doesnt happpen. Or at least a path where you can romance no-one, but im probably just not the target audience
 
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Ireth313

Well-known member
Member
Otherwise, I didnt end up hating it. Its fine enough, but yeah removing the choices sucks
To me it would've been an okay VN (tho I still stand on my gripe whith rhythm; idk, somehow VN makers think they can just put the text into the box and call it a day and don't think about the flow and logic of it) if I had never played the 1st IF version. E.g. removing the reason MC and Nat broke up is one of big choices that seems like a downgrade to me. MC now doesn't have a choosable personality, e.g. charming\intellectual\I forgot what the 3rd one was. And, lemme be honest: I find M!Shae's appearance in the VN offputting. He is the only character I dislike visually, and, coincidentally, I was romancing him in one of my two playthroughs😑


Not related, a question to my fellow Wayfarer players (act 3 spoilers): Is there an option to pacify the shroud? I have gotten to the point where my MC could ask it 4 questions, but it just screamed 'betrayal, betrayal' at me, and then I had no choice but to off it.
 

niro

Member
Member
Ive seen it asked a lot on the early acess thread so decided to try it out myself and.... yeah, not my type of read.
It's quite entertaining, I'll give it that, but no. The author labels it as dubcon when its just r*pe. Fullstop r*pe. And I wouldnt mind it that much if it didnt get so sweeped under the rug, all we get so far is a "i ****ed up" text from the RO and they buy us a cream for bruises. like really. thats the best thing you could come up with? And you dont have the choice to refuse it either. I FELT INSULTED, no apology, no crying, no begging just have this cream so your bruises that I caused go away faster. I had to rub my temples. Not even going to mention how they basically said "well you wanted it anyways".


There was also a bug for me where i chose to be a woman.. but my gender got switched mid wet dream somehow. Real superpower that is. This game was a joke to me but im also sort of invested to see what happens in a weird way.
Edit: its also annoying as hell how despite everything, MC still loves them somehow and theres not even a path where *that* scene doesnt happpen. Or at least a path where you can romance no-one, but im probably just not the target audience
thank YOU for acknowledging it for what it was, which is r*pe. but the author... i would recommend choosing the 'not getting in the car/leave' option too if you don't mind me suggesting. this route is very tiny bit less infuriating (still i wanted to hurl reading his lines) but so heart-breaking. though it really cements what a disgusting piece of sh*t he is in both options. and yes, those 'you wanted it anyways' vibey lines... ahh classic r*pist one-liners. him and his ex nanny...i am genuinely confused about them sleeping together in the present time. and i hated how mentioning mc during them fu*king was supposed to be some sort of indirect romantic feeling revelation or gesture, just DISGUSTING and cheap
 

S3ffron

Member
Member
She was almost finished with the IF, but when she had like 1-2 chapters left till the finish, she decided to make it's a VN, and IF comes secondary whenever she has time 🙃 That's what she wrote with the update for the IF:
You might notice less of the branching scenes in earlier chapters, as I'm trying to prioritize making sure I'm able to finish the game (in a satisfactory manner) and tie up all the loose ends! In the end, I still might be able to go back and do a second-pass once the story is complete.


Like... in the IF version she cut existing scenes and choices that have concluded in the first 1-2 chapters to... finish quicker? E.g. there was a scene about you giving gifts to your parents after you come back home. Tell me how that small scene that makes your MC's relationship with parents feel a bit more meaningful is hindering the game ending? Will MC's father die if I don't gift him a bottle of his fav spirits? Make that make sense to me. It just looks like she tries to make the IF closer to the VN version and it doesn't do the IF any justice because suddenly instead of 4-7 meaningful choices you have 3 like in the VN, two being polar opposites and a middle wishy-washy one. I saw her answer to one of the anons on her tumblr that expressed disappointment to her switching to VN. She said that she feels like VN text is more punchy? And, imo, no, in her case it's not. Her VN version suffers from the plight of many English VNs: spewing one sentence at a time when those 2-5 sentences should've ideally been a part of a cohesive passage but got separated for the sake of fitting them into a tiny message box that is so tiny-tiny because you absolutely need to stare at a pointless huge background art without any character sprites 🙄 As a result, you have a text with a very broken rhythm and messy flow that is only enjoyable if you are TikTok-brained. Japanese VNs are actually so much better at it because oftentimes they don't shy away from shoving the whole paragraph into a message box as is.
It's a shame what happened Merry Crisis it was near the top of my list but I played both the VN and the new IF and they gutted everything that made me love the story
 

realman

Well-known member
Member
i would recommend choosing the 'not getting in the car/leave' option too if you don't mind me suggesting. this route is very tiny bit less infuriating (still i wanted to hurl reading his lines) but so heart-breaking.
I did choose that option first but I tought the implication that the guy mustve tailed MC's taxi was creepy as **** 😂

Loaded back to see what would happen otherwise and I sort of preferred that option. MC was slightly more in control and I liked that.
 

Ireth313

Well-known member
Member
they gutted everything that made me love the story
I liked the things the author expanded on, but some scenes, like Qiu going out of their way to contact MC if you avoid reunion, were my favourite, and now they are not even an option... My Qiu-romancing MC NEVER went to the class reunion because to me, it's more realistic to avoid the ex that makes you feel all sort of complicated things you don't really want to face. Now you are sort of strong-armed into going, eh meh.
 

mis07

Well-known member
Member
Yeah, it's a shame to hear that about Paper Masks. I have nothing against delving into topics like that but I doubt it will be written so well I'll actually be intrigued enough to see where it goes. I've been following her work since around 2013 but have yet to actually feel attached to any of her stories or the characters, except for Cursed Covenant. I don't know why I keep following her work but something compels me to try out everything she creates.
 

mis07

Well-known member
Member
This one had such disappointing endings.... What do you mean I can't be happy with my absolutely unhinged fae simp lover and good ending is turning them into an ordinary high-schooler\uni student?? (I am rebirth as happy ending trope hater)
I said I liked it, not the endings lol. Yeah I really don't like that in a lot of recent western fantasy games/media the good end is about accepting reality and going back to the real world. Do these authors hate the fantasy genre? Do they think it's a fresh take and that their ideas are revolutionary? I've played so many recently that end with that concept and really does feel like authors think it is so profound and unheard of. Have they never watched a cdrama? This has been done so many times before but at least in cdramas it never feels like they're telling the audience to grow up (I also am a rebirth ending hater but there was a recent drama that did it well...recent as in last year).
 

Ireth313

Well-known member
Member
I said I liked it, not the endings lol.
No, no, I meant 'what do you mean' as a figure of speech, I was not directing it at you 😂 My general take on Cursed Covenant is that I liked the game. but the endings.. Maaaaann.

ah I really don't like that in a lot of recent western fantasy games/media the good end is about accepting reality and going back to the real world. Do these authors hate the fantasy genre?
I really liked Heart no Kuni no Alice in that regard where Alice going back to real world was a bad ending heheh But yeah, you are right. To me romance games going 'so you and your morally questionable bae can only be happy if you die and get reborn' is the same as the horror games going 'yeah, all of it has been a dream lol'
 

Gone_Dead

Well-known member
Member
No, no, I meant 'what do you mean' as a figure of speech, I was not directing it at you 😂 My general take on Cursed Covenant is that I liked the game. but the endings.. Maaaaann.


I really liked Heart no Kuni no Alice in that regard where Alice going back to real world was a bad ending heheh But yeah, you are right. To me romance games going 'so you and your morally questionable bae can only be happy if you die and get reborn' is the same as the horror games going 'yeah, all of it has been a dream lol'
Idk if this is comparable but Muv Luv ends with something like this you'd be glad it did lmao. I dont really wanna spoil and if any of you like dark mecha sci fi apocalyptic and occasionally horror genre, Muv Luv is the best. The thing is the first game starts off and ends as a normal high school romance VN. But **** completely goes down in the second and third game. Its a complete genre shift. A completely different world literally. The best part is all the three are linked heavily and plot payoffs will blow your mind towards the third game. Its a slog to read tho. Very long and mostly linear except for RO scenes. Imo its the best VN ive ever read. I remember reading through the VN day and night without a break during COVID.
 
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