At first, thank you, the author,
Key', for creating the game and thank you, the administration of F95zone, for providing opportunity to play it.
As this game like any other — piece of visual art, I can’t help but share my view to this matter, plot in particular. I wanted to post it in the section “Reviews”, but I didn't manage to find an appropriate way to do so (insufficient permission, I suppose)
Time to put my hand to the plough! After playing till the first moment when the heroine is stirred into doing lewd act (with her first “boyfriend”), I found myself at a crossroads — either to play the game or close it immediately. And that’s not because of some awkward part of the plot or unsatisfactory sex scene, or whatever. It was the point where I lost the pleasure of directing the main character through the path of corruption (some slight form of motivational anhedonia), which is common for me due to my way of playing porn games (virginity way). Supposedly, it happens to minor part of players who unintentionally size up the in-game situation as “gone too far”.
And that’s where the plot strikes the chord. I should disagree with some forumites who blame the game for banal storyline. Yes, the plot is not unique, but it has a solid addition — narration, which is presented in a quite curious way. And this combination works miracles. The key points are: the title, the family, the personality of Isabella, and the therapist.
We have a tragic life story from the outset. Title proves it very well. The peculiarity lies in the lack of decision on a player’s side. I think it’s
necessary at least at the beginning of the story, there must be the breaking point of her youth. Afterwards, it is better to give the player a will to choose out of different options (the worst — bad — less bad). Unfortunately, it is very unlikely that she will have many bright remnants of her
broken youth. Here we have a life case with an unamendable past but still with hope for the present and the future. Just for an example: imagine Commander Shepard (from Mass Effect franchise) who is already a renegade at the beginning of ME1; we still have ME2 and ME3 to make him\her a paragon if we want. Rough, but still.
Isabella’s family and personality are interconnected. Perhaps it is done in order to establish a motive in the story. The problem of parent’s upbringing of children is obvious here: a single parent, abandoned child, lack of attention, etc. And a mother who sets a bad example for her daughter, which only aggravates the overall situation. Everything looks like a background for the story, but actually I see it from a different perspective that I’ll share in the end.
The therapist. I’d bet money that this is clue to understanding the whole concept of the game. Interesting observation: the role of a therapist in this game is similar to the role of a therapist in Until Dawn, where it is Dr. Hill. To compare: chapter after chapter the mental health of a patient is getting worse and worse, making you contemplate about the decisions you made and how you react during the game. He is a benevolent force that is always reminding you that something in the life is completely out of the way. The thing is we don’t need a professional expertise, as the doctor’s exploration of Isabella’s case must give ordinary players an opportunity to mull over it, not to see just the conclusion and the instant cure. The story happens to be about personality and its changing. The process is primal — the result is additional in this sense. That partially explains why the rising action of the plot is fleeting.
And here is where all above-mentioned factors coincide into one mould. As a porn game, it is completely fappable, but as a socially important pornography game, it is a product with great potential. Bizarre naming, I know. Anyway, it makes sense when we look at the core element: in most games tagged “female protagonist” (I played lots of them), we are personally taking part in character’s fate, in other words, we are undergoing a whore test. Prosaic thing, but it usually winds up becoming either a complete prostitute or a pure lass (if there are such routes). Open-ended story based on hedonic motivation, nothing more. In “Broken Youth”, we will hopefully have an answer to the question “What comes after?”. A reasonable one. We are witnesses of how such kind of life distorts the common sense of being a wholesome human and engenders manifold destructive effect, pervading every corner of life. It is also about awful parenting, lack of responsibility for children and yourself. About dangers of society and different strata.
All these aspects are actively covered only with the help of narration. We have the conclusion of such “lifestyle” — appointment with a therapist, indicating issues with mental health: disorder, crisis, depression. “Shitty life” as Isabella says, refers to her disappointment, low quality of life, and lack of happiness. That’s the price. The author is illustrating the virtual world, but it is closely connected with a real life. And it will be a perfect climax in the plot if we decide a new path of the heroine. Choose the same way — and your life remains as shitty as it was; choose a new way — then struggle to become
truly happy for the rest of your life (finding genuine love for Isabella). In such a way, the author will be able to play with players and make them determine who
they are.
To conclude, I would like to quote Dr. Hill (from Until Dawn), whose words are brilliantly suitable and can be used as the example by the therapist from “Broken Youth”: “Sometimes these things can be a little scary... even terrifying... but I am here to make sure that no matter how upsetting things may get, you will always find a way to work through it."
P.S. My review is all about plot, plot and
plot. Other not less important parts of the game have been being discussed very heatedly, so I don’t see the reason to write about it. Thank you for reading me!
