- Feb 5, 2020
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Yeah, I thought it was funny as hell. I mean if she kicked MC in the balls or punched him in the face then yeah we'd have a problem.
- Thread starter Crazygamer43
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- Mar 31, 2020
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Well shit, Maynard, then that's two things I missed, if you really did mean Kira rather than Robin?
(I had fun with Robin, never got an opportunity with Kira.)
- Jan 10, 2018
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Maybe not so much malicious intents, but hints of a darker side, besides just her depression. That last just is of course if her depression is not hinting at an underlying PTSD as her need to drink as well might suggest. It is together with drug use a not irregular way to cope with PTSD if an extremely bad one in the long run for yourself.
- Mar 25, 2018
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Definitely Kira. It goes a long way to setting up the poly relationship between the three of you.
- Feb 1, 2018
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- Sep 26, 2016
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No, there certainly are more options than these. I don't see why MC can't just have her as side piece where they get together and have a good fuck every once a while (like many exes do irl too). It's not like he is a desperate nolifer waiting for her call, he has like 50 hot chicks after him and he is living the life partying in private planes. "Unobtainable" is a curious word to use, as the night he met her she seemed really "obtainable"...
I get that some players want to play this strictly in husbando+waifu=love forever way, but if this game wants to be semi-realistic, it better have more options than that. Purely sexual relationships, friends with benefits or even platonic relationships exist.
I'd argue that it's difficult to have any opinion about her for the reasons you are describing, not just good. We just don't know enough. Yes, I'm seeing MC starts off depressed but I a) don't know how strong their relationship was in the first place and b) don't know why she left. All I've seen are some flashbacks of them having fun, it could have been a summer fling for all I know.
It's a pretty standard rule in movies too. If you want the viewer to empathize with the protag's emotional distress you have to show them how things came to this. Put them in the shoes of the protag and they will end up feeling the same distress.
So if I were to actually feel MC's betrayal from Steph, I'd have to be playing a couple chapters that were exclusively about their previous relationship. It would have to be full of lovey-dovey cringe but it would have established their relationship and why MC broke after she left him. Not a game I would find fun as vanila waifuing bores me but at least I 'd have a reason to hate on her.
- Jan 4, 2020
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I think the "malicious intents" language is your own. You should be careful of putting words into other people's mouths.
What I said was that she might have a mean streak. That's not really the same. What ninetofive said was that there were many red flags about Cece of which the pinky trick was only one and not even the most concerning one on his list. Neither of us suggested that Cece was consciously out to harm anybody, MC or otherwise. What I felt we were suggesting is she may be so broken that she can't help but hurt the people around her and MC should tread carefully.
Oh, and you guys are insane about the "pinky trick" being cute. That move is meant to be used to immobilize someone bigger and stronger than you. It is taught to women in self-defense classes for that exact purpose. It fucking hurts.. a lot, and she did it so casually knowing exactly what it feels like because she insisted he do it to her a few minutes before. (MC didn't want to and tried to talk her out of it.)
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I should have said "...on one of my playthroughs."
I have a jock playthrough where he fucks everyone and is unfriendly to Steph. I have a flirty playthrough where he flirts with everyone but is monogamous and is torn between Cece and Lexi (with Linda having an outside shot). And I have a romantic playthrough where the MC is curious about Steph's reasoning, still pines for her fjords but doesn't want to be hurt again.
But overall I am really looking forward to seeing the jock stomp on the sharts of Steph's heart.
- Jan 10, 2018
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Uhm they had a relation of a few years, so it was not a summer fling and her disappearance got him into a depression that took him 2 years to get over and he has still feelings for her, considering the dreams he has. That is not safe on the side fuck friends territory of a relation that was fun but died a natural death with friendship remaining.
MC first will need to build a life for his own, if wants to be able to deal with her normally.Well I agree he made a great start with those 5 and he might go fast.
- May 9, 2019
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Well I never meant to nick pick into language. And I thought I was clear with all the conditionals that I put: "could", "hint", "can have".
-The first could suggesting that is a potential
-The hint suggesting that is an interpretation
-the can have that is something she is able to, not that she does.
This is a quote from ninetofive
I think the 100% makes it more that what you claim, even when I think I was very subtle the way I write it.
But you are always my guest if you want more precision. I never meant to suggest more than what I think all those conditionals I thought meant. Forgive me on the account of me not being a native English speaker.
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- Jan 4, 2020
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I read that sentence to mean that that particular action was intentional. (ninetofive can clarify if need be!) She meant to hurt MC in that moment. That doesn't mean that she has malicious intent in general toward the MC which is what your phrasing implied.
As for the difficulties of communicating in a non-native language, I get it. I'm actually an ESL teacher so I have some experience dealing with issues like that.
You need to replay the game. Steph and the MC were a couple for almost 3 years, it is stated while the MC and Chris are in the fast food restaurant where they meet Kira. The MC even recites how long down to the days. It wasn't a summer fling. She was, supposedly, the love of his life. I believe that's been said before in the game.
But yeah, I really do wish we had a lot more backstory of the MC and Steph and Chris. I want to see the height of their relationship, the passion, the social circle they were in, I want to see the post break up aftermath and how Chris was the only one there for him. I want to see just how far he sank. Not only would it give us more reason to want to hear from Stephanie it would also strengthen our opinion of Chris as the best friend. There has been speculation that Chris knew more, if he didn't then showing us how Chris was there for the MC would help quell those suspicions.
I also want to know why the MC didn't think Steph was dead. Or if he did think she was dead why he didn't say that in their dialogue when he saw her at the club. She disappeared and left nothing for him to know why or where or if she was okay. Yet, at no point so far, are we told that the MC realized she was alive.
For me I look at it as the MC has no family (that we know of), all he has are his friends and his girlfriends. In his life he has had Chris, Linda (who had to leave in High School), and then Steph (who then disappears without a word to presumably never be seen again). It would be emotionally devastating if one of the very few people in your life up and vanished, supposedly willingly (since he didn't see the note until 2 years later).
And to add wild speculation about the note. What if she actually snuck in and put the note in that pocket more recently? (I know she didn't, we all saw the tearful flashback, just wild "tin foil hat" speculation).
- Sep 26, 2016
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We are being told he had a strong relationship for two years but we haven't actually seen that relationship to be able to empathize. That was my point with "summer fling".Uhm they had a relation of a few years, so it was not a summer fling and her disappearance got him into a depression that took him 2 years to get over and he has still feelings for her, considering the dreams he has. That is not safe on the side fuck friends territory of a relation that was fun but died a natural death with friendship remaining.
Well I agre he made a great start ith those 5 and he might go fast.
He starts off with what seems like slight depression but his actual feelings towards her will be up to us. Dev has been pretty clear about offering options on how to deal with her. In the same vain, each player should be deciding what's safe or not for the MC. We get a taste of this with the option to go with her or reject her that night.
I know it wasn't an actual summer fling
, it was a hyperbole to show those flashbacks of fun times at the beach just don't tell us enough.To me, dev is using her to slowly unveil more stuff about the MC too. Reading both the note and dev's comments, that's the impression I got. That note shows we have more to find out about the player character, which makes for good storytelling if done right.
I really want a lot of flashbacks of the MC before Steph (maybe him and Chris as young kids adventuring together), during their relationship (maybe the "meet cute"), the devastation of her loss (let us see how poorly he took her leaving). I need to see how much she meant to him because right now all I am seeing is the aftermath and it is ugly enough that I don't understand why the MC should even consider being near her again.We are being told he had a strong relationship for two years but we haven't actually seen that relationship to be able to empathize. That was my point with "summer fling".
He starts off with what seems like slight depression but his actual feelings towards her will be up to us. Dev has been pretty clear about offering options on how to deal with her. In the same vain, each player should be deciding what's safe or not for the MC. We get a taste of this with the option to go with her or reject her that night.
I know it wasn't an actual summer fling
To me, dev is using her to slowly unveil more stuff about the MC too. Reading both the note and dev's comments, that's the impression I got. That note shows we have more to find out about the player character, which makes for good storytelling if done right.
- Jan 13, 2020
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Because he still love her. But not in my main playthrough!!!!
- Mar 31, 2020
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OK, played that section again and somehow I had forgotten about going with Kira for some fun. My bad. By taking the other option I saw the pinky trick with Cece.
- Sep 17, 2019
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Then if we can choose, can you have an option at the concert where we are NOT forced to go with Stephanie, and instead have an option with the girls at concert or more interaction with Lexi?I wrote this on my Patreon, as the Stephanie discussion seems to be going everywhere, and it has been for roughly 4 months now. I thought I'd share it here.
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I think I'll expand a bit on the Stephanie situation.
She's ment to be a refreshing alternative to the same old, same old "the ex" in many VNs, where the writer introduces a 'flashback bad girlfriend' and has to write a new ending because 4 people really liked the look of the ex.
As a reader, it's completely up to you if want to include her in the story or not. I'm not picking sides or forcing you to do anything. I respect the opinions of both sides - and I suspect that most have their own opinion based on real life experience. But I want those who choose to end up with her to have an equally powerful emotional moment as those who ea. picked Cece from the start and eventually ends up with her - when they do. Or on the alternative side, you can reject her completely and she's gone from the story - except for a small moment very late in it.
The discussions about her being a manipulative bitch, that she somehow fooled him from the start, fucked 43 different men while being in a relationship with the mc, and probably killed cute squirrels on the way to school every day as a side hobby is all on me. I gave you the worst first impression of her that I possibly could have. If I didn't convince you that they had a good time together in ch3, then I never will.
She's a big part of the story - if you let her. But the game is yours to play as you like it. It wouldn't be a real choice based game if you didnt.
- Sep 26, 2016
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Because he is a jock fuckboi with the mindset of "tap that married booty now, ask questions later". At least that's how he is in my playthrough
That's the beauty of VNs that allow for some roleplaying.
I don't see that happening. We need the scene of Steph to set up the whole internal conflict of the MC (essentially we are the internal conflict). Doesn't mean you have to do anything else with her.
I have a playthrough with a Jock fuckboi who is a rude ass and wants nothing to do with her but I also have a Romantic playthrough where he is drawn to her yet is trying to resist since she hurt him before.Because he is a jock fuckboi with the mindset of "tap that married booty now, ask questions later". At least that's how he is in my playthrough
That's the beauty of VNs that allow for some roleplaying.
He's still Official Leader of the "Break Steph's Heart Into Itty Bits" Club, I think you're safe.
I think there's a fine line to how much of the backstory I can visually display and tell in detail before it derails the story itself. It's not really a story about him and Steph, equally as it's not a story about that girl he saved on the bridge that night. It's about a lot of people with some backstories (and luggage) getting together and how that one summer brought them together - in a chain of both good and bad events.
I'm already bringing in more backstory than I think is the norm for VN's, but there's still things lurking in the background.
I also saw you mentioning in another post that we need more outside people from the mc's day to day life. I would have to disagree on that, seeing as this is a different kind of story than ea. Last Call, which is another excellent (though different) story, where the action itself is about the people in that bar or even town. Where as in LoF, the MC is not really looking back, and more about being in the here and now.
That doesn't mean I won't bring in new people though, by all means. Or people which has already been mentioned, but not seen/or played a big part yet.
Anyway, I'm enjoying the discussion so far as always. Though mostly on the curious side. The story is already written.