I'd really love to know the author's thought process on this. As someone who's struggled with suicidal thoughts and existential dread for pretty much my entire life, I really related with a lot of this, from both Lera and Nika's perspectives. But it just feels so... vague? I got the happy end and I'm just not really sure what happened at the end. I suppose that's kind of the entire point, but I'm curious what it all led to.
**SPOILERS**
Like for example, did Lera actually *die* (from our viewpoint anyways) or did he become like Nika? Lera was treating Nika as if she *was* the building at some points, how true is that? What was the buildings intention when letting Lera find gasoline and leave and then just not actually following through on that? And what was Nika's "I thought you'd be angry with me..." comment at the very end about?
But yeah, I really like this game. It makes me feel at peace.
hi! first of all, i'm glad that you liked it. i'm sorry for how vague my answers will be, but i hope they provide some sort of closure.
it is intentionally vague, but i realize that's an unfulfilling answer. originally, it was intended to be fairly clear-cut that lera died at the end, but some things happened in my personal life, my viewpoint shifted, and i decided that i didn't want to release such a hopeless story into the world. i'm much happier having it be up to the player, and i hope that there is ample evidence for the view that she survived and was amalgamated into the building to lead a happier life, fully loved and part of something. i don't want her descent into the pit to be read as a suicide, at the very least.
i've always refered to nika as the "child" of the buildings-- she is a part of that family, and thus, as synecdoche, the building itself. yet, she still has independent thoughts and a seemingly human form-- she is not quite a puppet, but she's a mediator of sorts between lera and the family.
the gasoline is just a trap. the real answer to this is extremely boring, which is that i needed some sort of justification to lead lera into the building and have her stay there, and there is no deeper signifigance.
i guess the "i thought you'd be angry with me" comment doesn't make much sense in the context of the happy ending-- i wrote it after writing the true ending, to be honest. i can understand why it would be a bit confusing after the other ending.
I really appreciate you taking the time to reply/explain. Going through the game, it was really clear that it was made by someone who *got it*. It's not often I come across a piece of media that holds my same view/relationship with existentialism/mental illnesses, ya know? So hearing some extra clarification means a lot to me. And tbh I never even considered that Lera didn't become a part of the building! I like to think Nika can distinguish the parts of Lera in the building and they still interact in a sense ^^
Hey. Just to let you know I really love your game, it made me cry with the true ending, and that damn beautiful soundtrack. I'm really happy that i got to know your game.
Such a phenomenal game with great atmosphere, interesting chararacters and spooky elements that I was glad to explore and take my time appreciating all the little details put into it! I really look forward to seeing what games you make in the future
超级棒的游戏！虽然剧情非常简短但是美术风格和对白深深地打动了我的心，非常感谢您能带来这么好的艺术品，我真的很喜欢这样带有一些怪异元素与怀旧元素的美术风格。很抱歉我的英文不太好，这是使用翻译器写下的评论。额外还想向您请教这款游戏是使用了什么软件进行开发的呢？Great game! Although the plot is very brief but the art style and the contrast deeply touched my heart, thank you very much for bringing such a good art, I really like this with some weird elements and nostalgic elements of the art style. I'm sorry my English is not very good, this is a comment written using the translator. What software was used to develop this game?
Very very neat game! I got stuck partway through playing on browser, during the gingerbread cookie conversation a 'failed to load cry.png' error started popping up, and prevented me from doing through doors or opening the menu. At first I thought it was intended, starting to think it might not be lol. Also tried on the desktop app but it was suuper slow. Its so cool though I'm gonna try downloading the .zip and playing it from there
huh, that's very odd! thank you for letting me know. i wasn't able to reproduce the error on my own-- what choices did you make in the conversation?
by desktop app, you mean the .exe file? i'm sorry that it was slow, rpgmaker is poor with optimization from the start but i will try to improve it in that regard
I just checked and I'm...also not able to reproduce it? Even though I had a save directly before triggering the conversation. There aren't any choices there, she just gives you a gingerbread cookie, and I guess the error came up whenever it tried to load the image of Nika crying. No clue why it started working today :P
And I meant, installing and launching it from the itch.io desktop app made it run very slow for me. I think rpgmaker games are generally wonky on the app though. If I just download the .zip file in my browser and extract it myself, it runs just fine!
oops, it slipped my mind that i'd included two conversations regarding gingerbread cookies; the second one doesn't have choices, you're right!
i'm not sure what could cause that error-- i've had issues in the past with mistyping file names, which causes that error, but then you'd expect it to happen for everyone. regardless, thank you for letting me know; i'm very sorry for the trouble, and i'll take a second look at the code and make sure that there aren't any typos!
oh, i see! i should probably read a bit about the itchio desktop app, i don't know much about it at all...
The app is wonky for a lot of other games too, including RPGmaker ones. Definitely not an issue specific to this game. The browser error IS weird though, sorry for crying wolf I guess! i really did ADORE this game <3
i'm incredibly honored by your offer to translate; my discord is io#2305 and my twitter is onisarashi, you can message me on whichever is easier and i'll send you the game files!
My English is not good, but I still hope to make you feel my love for the game! Thank you for your to develop it! But I have some questions, after the true ending, Lera survived? I hope he can survive and live positively, and it doesn't matter that if this is not the case. I feel the magic from the your work, it let me have the courage to face the difficulty! Thank you again!：D
😢This game reminds me of my past girlfriend，I loved her so much that I often fancied she was still alive and we can hold each other，melt into eternity.
really grateful i got the chance to beta this!! just replayed it and it really is fantastic, the art is beautiful too. genuinely i think this is one of the best rpgmaker horror experiences out there. the atmosphere is like nothing else ive played recently. thanks for sharing this little world you made with all of us!
i don't know if i got the message it was sending correct...but either way, that was heart wrenching and beautiful. i relate to it in a way i can't describe. such a wonderful story told in a poetic way. i hope this gets more attention.
i don't think my 'intended message' is any more valid than the messages that players take from it, so don't worry, your reading is as correct as mine! :-D
Thank you for giving me such Impressive gaming experience... My mindset changes just like Lera's. From the initial incomprehension and fear, to familiar memories gradually aroused, torn between whether to stay or not, until I saw the dilapidated car, I knew I would never leave. All the pain and sorrows faded in the homely warmth. Guess there is no other route for Lera, just because staying here seems deadly attractive. Hope that Lera could live a happy life from now on. Again, thank you for creating such a incredible game.
Hey I really like the way you organized the symbols and built the atmosphere. I just want to say this one is an absolute masterpiece even if this is your first time making a game. With sincere appreciation, I prefer to feel the emotions of the story rather than find origins for each element that appears within the game, but you did use some very interesting factors like Башня Татлина. your design is excellent and I'm looking forward to your next work. If you are willing to construct a story line of more than five hours, it will surpass 99% of episodic games. Again, thank you for this game!!
btw the bgm on the rooftop was really great, reassuring but a bit sad. If I am Lera and Nika say something to me at this point, I would be absolutely happy to be her family
I cried so hard while playing it, thank you. I thought I know how the author feel and what they want to tell, when I went throuth all item description carefully, before the happy end. I feel lera, love nika, want to be part of it too, no wonder so many people made the same choice before. A beautiful mixture of mystery, sorrowness, mutual old memory, mutual broken life fragments. Incredible playing experiment.
first of all, WOAH LOL. this game managed to make me feel unnerved, then sad. but i just wanna ask, how did you manage to think of this? and how the frick are you so talented? excellent job on this one.
thank you so much! i'm overjoyed that you liked it. i took inspiration from a lot of things that i read and watched and then i let it all marinate in my brain for a few years :-D
hi, i love this game- the writing, art and music are all excellent, it has such a good atmosphere, and i love the artifacts... im interested in translating your game into german- im at discord crataegus#7372
this game was incredibly thought-provoking! for something so short, it made me react to a lot of things, and i found myself feeling a lot for both lera and nika. this is something definitely unique! i adored every aspect of the game from all the visuals, to the music, and to the interaction between the characters. thank you for this astounding game!
thank you very much! my apologies for the extremely late response; someone reached out to me last month about translating it into Spanish, but i'm incredibly grateful for the offer!
i cried a lot. it questioned many things i think about in my life, i can´t tell if its confforting or scary but i sure do love it very much. thank you fot the bealtiful game. it made me want to live again <3
I'm quite impressed by your game. And I'm willing to translate it into SimplifiedChinese. If you like, contact me via email 2931394635@qq.com ( or any other way )
Hello! I'm very honored by your offer. If you're still interested, all of the game files are here. Let me know if you have any questions, and thank you very much!
I don't think i understood all the meaning behind this game, but as someone who grew up in Russia - this game hits hard. Atmosphere is genuenly one of the best that I have ever seen. The ending is a little too abrupt, but otherwise it is a 10/10 game (though i didn't get a true ending, so this might be a reason why it felt that way). Looking forward to author's other works. This one is simply brilliant.
To get the True Ending, do the same thing up until the point where Nika asks if you're scared. Then instead of "No" select "Yes". After she says she's going to wait for you, *do not* go over to the ladder. Doing this will also trigger the Happy End. Instead was over to where she is. Doing this will trigger new dialogue that leads into the True End.
there's also a true ending! it diverges in the final room (the one with the pit), so i wouldn't replay it just to get that ending because a lot is the same :,-)
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I'd really love to know the author's thought process on this. As someone who's struggled with suicidal thoughts and existential dread for pretty much my entire life, I really related with a lot of this, from both Lera and Nika's perspectives. But it just feels so... vague? I got the happy end and I'm just not really sure what happened at the end. I suppose that's kind of the entire point, but I'm curious what it all led to.
**SPOILERS**
Like for example, did Lera actually *die* (from our viewpoint anyways) or did he become like Nika? Lera was treating Nika as if she *was* the building at some points, how true is that? What was the buildings intention when letting Lera find gasoline and leave and then just not actually following through on that? And what was Nika's "I thought you'd be angry with me..." comment at the very end about?
But yeah, I really like this game. It makes me feel at peace.
hi! first of all, i'm glad that you liked it. i'm sorry for how vague my answers will be, but i hope they provide some sort of closure.
it is intentionally vague, but i realize that's an unfulfilling answer. originally, it was intended to be fairly clear-cut that lera died at the end, but some things happened in my personal life, my viewpoint shifted, and i decided that i didn't want to release such a hopeless story into the world. i'm much happier having it be up to the player, and i hope that there is ample evidence for the view that she survived and was amalgamated into the building to lead a happier life, fully loved and part of something. i don't want her descent into the pit to be read as a suicide, at the very least.
i've always refered to nika as the "child" of the buildings-- she is a part of that family, and thus, as synecdoche, the building itself. yet, she still has independent thoughts and a seemingly human form-- she is not quite a puppet, but she's a mediator of sorts between lera and the family.
the gasoline is just a trap. the real answer to this is extremely boring, which is that i needed some sort of justification to lead lera into the building and have her stay there, and there is no deeper signifigance.
i guess the "i thought you'd be angry with me" comment doesn't make much sense in the context of the happy ending-- i wrote it after writing the true ending, to be honest. i can understand why it would be a bit confusing after the other ending.
I really appreciate you taking the time to reply/explain. Going through the game, it was really clear that it was made by someone who *got it*. It's not often I come across a piece of media that holds my same view/relationship with existentialism/mental illnesses, ya know? So hearing some extra clarification means a lot to me. And tbh I never even considered that Lera didn't become a part of the building! I like to think Nika can distinguish the parts of Lera in the building and they still interact in a sense ^^
Hey. Just to let you know I really love your game, it made me cry with the true ending, and that damn beautiful soundtrack. I'm really happy that i got to know your game.
wish to play it on Android
You did well, used the assets pretty much as it should be, it's a fun time to play this. I got the happy ending btw.
Such a phenomenal game with great atmosphere, interesting chararacters and spooky elements that I was glad to explore and take my time appreciating all the little details put into it! I really look forward to seeing what games you make in the future
I love this game.I don't use the window, but I enjoyed playing with the browser!!
i got happy ending!! the characters were well made & as someone who likes gory horror, i loved that the parents were just huge organs hehe
Anyone know who composed the music or where its from?
pretty sure you can see that in the credits!
This game was great, really thoughtful and well made
超级棒的游戏！虽然剧情非常简短但是美术风格和对白深深地打动了我的心，非常感谢您能带来这么好的艺术品，我真的很喜欢这样带有一些怪异元素与怀旧元素的美术风格。很抱歉我的英文不太好，这是使用翻译器写下的评论。额外还想向您请教这款游戏是使用了什么软件进行开发的呢？Great game! Although the plot is very brief but the art style and the contrast deeply touched my heart, thank you very much for bringing such a good art, I really like this with some weird elements and nostalgic elements of the art style. I'm sorry my English is not very good, this is a comment written using the translator. What software was used to develop this game?
Very very neat game! I got stuck partway through playing on browser, during the gingerbread cookie conversation a 'failed to load cry.png' error started popping up, and prevented me from doing through doors or opening the menu. At first I thought it was intended, starting to think it might not be lol. Also tried on the desktop app but it was suuper slow. Its so cool though I'm gonna try downloading the .zip and playing it from there
huh, that's very odd! thank you for letting me know. i wasn't able to reproduce the error on my own-- what choices did you make in the conversation?
by desktop app, you mean the .exe file? i'm sorry that it was slow, rpgmaker is poor with optimization from the start but i will try to improve it in that regard
I just checked and I'm...also not able to reproduce it? Even though I had a save directly before triggering the conversation. There aren't any choices there, she just gives you a gingerbread cookie, and I guess the error came up whenever it tried to load the image of Nika crying. No clue why it started working today :P
And I meant, installing and launching it from the itch.io desktop app made it run very slow for me. I think rpgmaker games are generally wonky on the app though. If I just download the .zip file in my browser and extract it myself, it runs just fine!
oops, it slipped my mind that i'd included two conversations regarding gingerbread cookies; the second one doesn't have choices, you're right!
i'm not sure what could cause that error-- i've had issues in the past with mistyping file names, which causes that error, but then you'd expect it to happen for everyone. regardless, thank you for letting me know; i'm very sorry for the trouble, and i'll take a second look at the code and make sure that there aren't any typos!
oh, i see! i should probably read a bit about the itchio desktop app, i don't know much about it at all...
The app is wonky for a lot of other games too, including RPGmaker ones. Definitely not an issue specific to this game. The browser error IS weird though, sorry for crying wolf I guess! i really did ADORE this game <3
there's no need to apologize for anything, don't worry! i do sincerely appreciate you telling me, and i'm happy that you enjoyed the game ^^
this game is so so so amazing especially the artwork i love the atmosphere and everything
also, i could possibly translate this into lithuanian if you're still open or somethin ^^
hi, thank you so much!
i'm incredibly honored by your offer to translate; my discord is io#2305 and my twitter is onisarashi, you can message me on whichever is easier and i'll send you the game files!
HI just saw this my discord is blair#8905!! i'll add you ^^ glad i can do this
Thank you for creating this game :) It`s a warm hug in winter for me . Thank you.
i'm very happy to hear that!
My English is not good, but I still hope to make you feel my love for the game! Thank you for your to develop it! But I have some questions, after the true ending, Lera survived? I hope he can survive and live positively, and it doesn't matter that if this is not the case. I feel the magic from the your work, it let me have the courage to face the difficulty! Thank you again!：D
thank you so much, i'm so happy that you liked my game!! it means the world to me, i'm very grateful!
there is no concrete answer regarding the ending, but i wish that lera survived, too ^^
snow tracks les go
😢This game reminds me of my past girlfriend，I loved her so much that I often fancied she was still alive and we can hold each other，melt into eternity.
this is a gorgeous game. i love the feeling, so melancholy. it’s really well written. you did an amazing job.
happy ending yay and nay
really grateful i got the chance to beta this!! just replayed it and it really is fantastic, the art is beautiful too. genuinely i think this is one of the best rpgmaker horror experiences out there. the atmosphere is like nothing else ive played recently. thanks for sharing this little world you made with all of us!
i don't know if i got the message it was sending correct...but either way, that was heart wrenching and beautiful. i relate to it in a way i can't describe. such a wonderful story told in a poetic way. i hope this gets more attention.
i'm really happy that you enjoyed it!
i don't think my 'intended message' is any more valid than the messages that players take from it, so don't worry, your reading is as correct as mine! :-D
I'm scared, impressed, and disgusted in a good way O.o
Thank you for giving me such Impressive gaming experience... My mindset changes just like Lera's. From the initial incomprehension and fear, to familiar memories gradually aroused, torn between whether to stay or not, until I saw the dilapidated car, I knew I would never leave. All the pain and sorrows faded in the homely warmth. Guess there is no other route for Lera, just because staying here seems deadly attractive. Hope that Lera could live a happy life from now on. Again, thank you for creating such a incredible game.
Hey I really like the way you organized the symbols and built the atmosphere. I just want to say this one is an absolute masterpiece even if this is your first time making a game. With sincere appreciation, I prefer to feel the emotions of the story rather than find origins for each element that appears within the game, but you did use some very interesting factors like Башня Татлина. your design is excellent and I'm looking forward to your next work. If you are willing to construct a story line of more than five hours, it will surpass 99% of episodic games. Again, thank you for this game!!
btw the bgm on the rooftop was really great, reassuring but a bit sad. If I am Lera and Nika say something to me at this point, I would be absolutely happy to be her family
I cried so hard while playing it, thank you. I thought I know how the author feel and what they want to tell, when I went throuth all item description carefully, before the happy end. I feel lera, love nika, want to be part of it too, no wonder so many people made the same choice before. A beautiful mixture of mystery, sorrowness, mutual old memory, mutual broken life fragments. Incredible playing experiment.
your words truly mean the world to me! i'm overjoyed that you connected with my work, thank you so much for playing my game.
Really impressed, I know it from social media.English poor, so I can only say thank you for developing this game, really nice work!
thank you for playing it! i'm really happy!
Really impressed by your game. The happy end reminds me of The Song of Saya and EVA. It just gives me a sense of warmth and comfort. Thank you.
thank you so much! both of those were unconscious inspirations in creating it, so i'm flattered that my work could remind you of them ^^
first of all, WOAH LOL. this game managed to make me feel unnerved, then sad. but i just wanna ask, how did you manage to think of this? and how the frick are you so talented? excellent job on this one.
thank you so much! i'm overjoyed that you liked it. i took inspiration from a lot of things that i read and watched and then i let it all marinate in my brain for a few years :-D
no problem
hi, i love this game- the writing, art and music are all excellent, it has such a good atmosphere, and i love the artifacts... im interested in translating your game into german- im at discord crataegus#7372
thank you so much for your interest, i'm extremely flattered! i sent you a request on discord ^^
this game was incredibly thought-provoking! for something so short, it made me react to a lot of things, and i found myself feeling a lot for both lera and nika. this is something definitely unique! i adored every aspect of the game from all the visuals, to the music, and to the interaction between the characters. thank you for this astounding game!
thank you so much for playing it, i'm incredibly happy that you enjoyed it! ^^ it means a ton to me, truly!
thank you very much! my apologies for the extremely late response; someone reached out to me last month about translating it into Spanish, but i'm incredibly grateful for the offer!
I didn't really understand what this game was supposed to mean but it was beautiful nevertheless. :)
thank you very much!! i think the 'true meaning' is however it makes you feel, though that may simply be 'confused' haha
This was very comforting. Thank you.
and thank you for playing it! i appreciate it incredibly!
is that norilsk?
i cried a lot. it questioned many things i think about in my life, i can´t tell if its confforting or scary but i sure do love it very much. thank you fot the bealtiful game. it made me want to live again <3
I'm quite impressed by your game. And I'm willing to translate it into SimplifiedChinese. If you like, contact me via email 2931394635@qq.com ( or any other way )
:D
Hello! I'm very honored by your offer. If you're still interested, all of the game files are here. Let me know if you have any questions, and thank you very much!
Hi! I've nearly finished the translation of the \data file, and found a suitable free Chinese font.
But I don't know where to translate the floating words in the stairwell like "second floor".
As for details, please email me or tell me how to contact you. Thank you again.<3
I want to know the meaning of the body at the beginning?
I don't think i understood all the meaning behind this game, but as someone who grew up in Russia - this game hits hard. Atmosphere is genuenly one of the best that I have ever seen. The ending is a little too abrupt, but otherwise it is a 10/10 game (though i didn't get a true ending, so this might be a reason why it felt that way). Looking forward to author's other works. This one is simply brilliant.
To get the True Ending, do the same thing up until the point where Nika asks if you're scared. Then instead of "No" select "Yes". After she says she's going to wait for you, *do not* go over to the ladder. Doing this will also trigger the Happy End. Instead was over to where she is. Doing this will trigger new dialogue that leads into the True End.
Atmosphere of "hrushovka v spalnom rayone" is really unexpected in english-speaking game))
im stuck I cant figure out what to do
I got the gasoline and I thought I could just leave through the ground floor but I dont know what im doing now
im stuck
Have you visited every floor, including the rooftop?
Where is the gasoline?
What sublime and loving meat. Thank you for the wonderful game - I love Nika so much!
ahhhhhhh, this game is soooooo good:D
holy crap that was a great game i got the happy end are there others??
there's also a true ending! it diverges in the final room (the one with the pit), so i wouldn't replay it just to get that ending because a lot is the same :,-)
oh ok i really enjoyed it tho!