Hungrily devoured every byte (ha, ha) and looking forward to more. However, comma, I agree with Silken-- getting rid of our gobo bro is a pretty darned hard sell. I'm sure the other options will have all sorts of scheningans involved with his absence (and will thus extend the gameplay as folks check out other paths) but I feel he brings too much fun to the table to be easily dismissed. Another potential character being dropped into our lap literally overnight or a shiny weapon (when we have already lost our inventory as quickly as blinking) aren't even in the same category as awesome.
Roompah.. I'm almost getting whiplash from her moodswings. Yes, she got a few heart strings pulled with the "you can't tell me who to love" bit as she looks after your wellbeing and potential return (second only to Weijit, the rest of the team self destructed).. and immediately tanks those said affections gained with the whole "I know better than you what you want and feel" rant. I'm sure it'll be an amazing path for folks that enjoy the Sub material, but for me it was a hard pass. Pretty sure Sparkle isn't the only one that needs to intensive self reflection..
Regarding that, there is one thing that irks me, objectively. If you stand back for a moment and take in the chain-of-events as Roompah hurled at you, there is one important bit missing--how fast this merry band leapt to hall on their own (potentially phallic) swords. Sparkle was introduced to the team for one night and some change, follows along a singular dungeon run, bad things happen, she saves lives and vanishes in the process.. and then they all succumb to this or that trauma. I get that she is the MC/catalyst, but sheesh.
By his own admission Kayden has been leading things with his fucked up perspective for quite some time. This team obviously has been at the adventurer grind for enough encounters to be familiar with one another-- so what is with the blame game being centered squarely on Sparkle's shoulders? True, she has a spectacular pair of breasts, but they have at least three sets (and a trap) of their own to get distracted with. As a wise man sayeth: Check thyself before ye wreckest thyself.
Last little bit in the self awareness angle: If Sparkle thinks creatively and gets rid of some hang ups, there is no reason she couldn't use her sexytime magic as a contraceptive spell. Or possibly other unique functions. Really, she just needs a couple days (and willing subjects) to experiment with and see what she is actually capable of.
That nonsense aside, stuff I well and truly dug: Our hero(ine) finally got some quality time with a friend! Seriously, all this dark and heavy heavy heavy atmosphere needed a bit of hot heroes getting it on happily. More importantly, Sparkle finally got to confide to somebody that she cannot help the shift, and is concerned when it will happen again. Said friend replied that they will wait unter the understanding that Sparkle will do her utmost to return. This bit is the most important, and is something Spark should roundabout explaining to her potential allies.
Even though Weijit is loyal, he does not know how it (presumably) works. Yes, she can't say "I'm playing a game" or whatnot (that is rapidly becoming NOT a game) but there is no reason she couldn't have creative licensing with her backstory and just say her magic is so potent she is being pulled between realms in a tug of war-- something she is adventuring to fix. Boom.
But even that is a temporary fix. Ultimately, where does it go from here? That world is obviously doing our protagonist a world of good in terms of growth and self exploration--but in the end he is just a visitor, not a resident. In a way, it's a good thing the MC is so self centered with his world view and narrow focus for now, because there is a crapload of "what ifs" everywhere else, were he to look at them.
What if he decides he wants to stay, and cannot? What if somebody falls for his avatar so hard they can't live without their fleeting existance? What if our hero loses the job, or his power is cut, or a shitty hacker steals his id and login? What if living in two worlds was culling his life exectancy in half? On the other hand, what if the fantasy setting and biology extended his age expectancy ala an elf? What if the gal crashing on the couch was spectating everything after her logged in? What if our hero's bodily changes are so complete in RL he has to find an additional source of income to survive? How does he afford the wardrobe change? What if he becomes a fully functional hermaphrodite in the 'real world'? (Is such a thing common, or even possible? Does he play it low, become a spectacle, a lab rat, or just a saucy cam girl?) What if Sparkle just started delivering hand jobs, fast fingers, and oral goodness as a reward for adventuring tasks well done? (Guaranteed to boost productivity AND morale!)
TLDNR: Anyway. Love the game, love the writing. Love the fact the mind can wander and dump out pages of thoughts and ideas based around a pron game. It's pretty grand stuff, and I absolutely am looking forward to seeing more. Keep it up, Dev!
