Ren'Py Lessons in Love [v0.41.0] [Selebus]

[barglenarglezous]

Good theorizing, but why assume all three gods stem from Akira? Sure Hope says everything is about him and Akira believes it to justify his apathy, but other characters disagree and the latest Sara events seem to belie that notion entirely.

Because they're HIS gods. Not the gods of Kumon-mi.

Sara has her own gods. Nozomu is one of them because, like Akira, she has unresolved trauma regarding him. That's a common thread throughout many of the characters, though. That's why Nozomu, specifically, has power over them. It makes me genuinely wonder what role Nozomu had in Yasu's life prior to his death for her to turn out the way she did.

But that doesn't mean the God of Wires exists for Sara in any way. He only seems to exist for Yuki, Tsuneyo, and Akira in any direct sense, and Pareidolia only seems to exist for Akira at this point.

 

[Kawaiikaze]

My take on USER3 identity is the Concerned. My sole evidence is from Trinity Pt. III where towards the end Sensei seemed to be pulled out of USER1/HOPE's grip from "the bottom of everything" by USER3. USER3 also left a message "i was very concerned" (which is also written fully in lowercase, one of the assumed features of the Concerned).

As for USER4, this address is "reserved" according to There is Nothing, something I perceived as "this USER has not been created but will be created in the future". Since typing USER5 gives no special response, I also assume we would have a maximum amount of 4 divine beings in the end.
And who just recently transcended its own presence to something supernatural and unexplainable? Sekai
(Also, if associating all four seasons with all four gods is true, then the Concerned can be fall (need verification) and Sekai can undefeatedly be spring)

Makes sense, I've been stuck in early game hell for a while since I mostly play with my buddies nowadays, so pareidolia/Concerned became sort of weird blob of things I ocasionaly remembers.
I'm mostly on the idea that Sekai became an angel though, if there'll really be a 4th god associated with spring/love I would put my bet on Nao (the ami with weird eyes from the lottery event if I remember correctly).
Also, not gonna lie, the idea of having to sacrifice or confront ami or some shit kind of entices me, sorry for all the loving uncles out there

 

[k1n5l4y3r]

Nao being love kinda makes sense since Akira is probably afraid to love again, and Nao is fear.

 

[DeSkel15]

This makes me wonder why Pareidolia is the third god. The first two make sense. But how would the tendency to see a defined image in a random pattern become a god?

Until I saw this while I was googling Paeidolia:

View attachment 2629761

"Pareidolia is the tendency for perception to impose a meaningful interpretation on a nebulous stimulus, usually visual, so that one sees an object, pattern, or meaning where there is none."

I think Pareidolia is intended to be the god of perception, or meaning. The one who's helping Sensei actually survive the resets, and using him for some reason that it considers "good". The longer Sensei "lives" and finds reasons not to die, the more powerful it gets, and I think it is concerned because it needs others to perceive and find meaning or it has none.

 

[DeSkel15]

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Let's not forget that Sensei is technically a god as well. Ayane's god. (Probably Maya's, and Noriko's as well, tbh, and maybe Ami's?)

 

[barglenarglezous]

I think Pareidolia is intended to be the god of perception, or meaning. The one who's helping Sensei actually survive the resets, and using him for some reason that it considers "good". The longer Sensei "lives" and finds reasons not to die, the more powerful it gets, and I think it is concerned because it needs others to perceive and find meaning or it has none.

I think a young Akira, trying to cope with the fact that the woman he'd come to love was in the next room having sex with his brother, anthromorphised the power outlet he was staring at. He'd have conversations with it as a coping mechanism, and now, there's a god called Paredolia -- the word for finding images of things that aren't there -- an example being "seeing a face in a power outlet" checking in on him from time to time.

And HOPE -- which I suspect is his internalization of all of this trauma -- is perverting the smiiley face, in the way that unresolved trauma corrupts even the good memories.

 

[barglenarglezous]

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Let's not forget that Sensei is technically a god as well. Ayane's god. (Probably Maya's, and Noriko's as well, tbh, and maybe Ami's?)

Is he becoming their god or their world? And how thin is the line between the two?

And I think a major component of the narrative is that he's approaching the line with nearly all the other characters, though some (Chika, Ayane, Ami) are far more progressed than others.

 

[DeSkel15]

Is he becoming their god or their world? And how thin is the line between the two?

And I think a major component of the narrative is that he's approaching the line with nearly all the other characters, though some (Chika, Ayane, Ami) are far more progressed than others.

I think they all consider him their world, or simply very important to them, but only Noriko, Maya, and Ayane seem to see Sensei as their god, meaning he can do virtually whatever he wants, and they'd still worship him. Hence why Noriko, Maya, and Ayane accept that they aren't the only one for him. Something I can't see Ami simply accepting, at least not yet.

In other words: gods tend to do a bunch of horrible things in their mythology, but their believers still believe in them anyway. How many of the characters would accept Sensei as he actually is and still dedicate themselves to him?

 

[derekthered56]

I think they all consider him their world, or simply very important to them, but only Noriko, Maya, and Ayane seem to see Sensei as their god, meaning he can do virtually whatever he wants, and they'd still worship him. Hence why Noriko, Maya, and Ayane accept that they aren't the only one for him. Something I can't see Ami simply accepting, at least not yet.

In other words: gods tend to do a bunch of horrible things in their mythology, but their believers still believe in them anyway. How many of the characters would accept Sensei as he actually is and still dedicate themselves to him?

While Nodoka doesn't seem to actually see him that way, she did literally suggest Sensei become her god way back in The Man Who Would Be King. Maybe that was her hinting a bit at how gods work, and not just an attempt to get under his skin.

 

[KnowNoHope]

I think they all consider him their world, or simply very important to them, but only Noriko, Maya, and Ayane seem to see Sensei as their god, meaning he can do virtually whatever he wants, and they'd still worship him. Hence why Noriko, Maya, and Ayane accept that they aren't the only one for him. Something I can't see Ami simply accepting, at least not yet.

In other words: gods tend to do a bunch of horrible things in their mythology, but their believers still believe in them anyway. How many of the characters would accept Sensei as he actually is and still dedicate themselves to him?

what about ami... does she see sensei as her and her alone personal god, or does she see herself as his

 

[DeSkel15]

While Nodoka doesn't seem to actually see him that way, she did literally suggest Sensei become her god way back in The Man Who Would Be King. Maybe that was her hinting a bit at how gods work, and not just an attempt to get under his skin.

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I'm not sure she was suggesting he become her god. It was more like she was saying that if he does become one, it'd be beneficial for both of them if they were on each other's side. She did seem to imply she knows about Nozomu and the whole Fleshlight creation story, though, so I wouldn't be surprised if she does know far more than she lets on, and I highly doubt that it was all just to get under his skin, if that was the goal at all.

Honestly, it seemed more like Nodoka was trying to make a deal with Sensei, that would benefit/protect her and her friends in the long run. She just got ahead of herself and botched it.

 

[DeSkel15]

what about ami... does she see sensei as her and her alone personal god, or does she see herself as his

I definitely think it's more of a reversal. Ami takes care of Sensei 24/7, and sees herself as his personal guardian. However she's also playing the role of his niece, maid, student, and more or less mother, while trying to be like her mother, and wanting to be his lover. So, seeing herself as his goddess and wanting him to see her that way too, wouldn't surprise me. Also, Ami doesn't seem to put her faith in Sensei much, needing him to call her to check in and stuff. On the other hand, she seems to expect him to put his faith in her without question, which he usually does.

Mega Ami even seems to be what she'd call her goddess persona.

 

[Bingoogus]

The game is set in 2020, so Akira was born in 1989.

Why you gotta go and slap me with that bro? That was the year i was born...

 

[DeSkel15]

Just realized that if the game is set in 2020, that means most of the students were born in 2005, if not 2004 (since Chika is 16, and the oldest in class if I recall correctly.) Meaning 6 year old Noriko had a "crush" on 22 year old Sensei around 2011, and the car accident likely occured in 2012.

Which also made me just realize that the Maya would predict when the world would end, (which it was supposed to in 2012, etc). In other words, the world (Sekai) did end in 2012.

Maya may have even been inspired by the Mayans that are said to predict when the world will end, which is why Maya in this game can feel when the world is about to end, and has a fascination with stars, astrology being something the Mayans are known for. Not to mention her name is Maya.. Not sure why this hasn't crossed my mind before.

 

[KnowNoHope]

Just realized that if the game is set in 2020, that means most of the students were born in 2005, if not 2004 (since Chika is 16, and the oldest in class if I recall correctly.) Meaning 6 year old Noriko had a "crush" on 22 year old Sensei around 2011, and the car accident likely occured in 2012.

Which also made me just realize that the Maya would predict when the world would end, (which it was supposed to in 2012, etc). In other words, the world (Sekai) did end in 2012.

Maya may have even been inspired by the Mayans that are said to predict when the world will end, which is why Maya in this game can feel when the world is about to end, and has a fascination with stars, astrology being something the Mayans are known for. Not to mention her name is Maya.. Not sure why this hasn't crossed my mind before.

think you might be overreaching, dont want to piss on it, but i think you might be seeing parallels rather than intersecting points.
game is heavy on symbology and so is mayan culture... we have not seen any of that overlap that i am aware of other than tex mex tacos

 

[Bingoogus]

Just realized that if the game is set in 2020, that means most of the students were born in 2005, if not 2004 (since Chika is 16, and the oldest in class if I recall correctly.) Meaning 6 year old Noriko had a "crush" on 22 year old Sensei around 2011, and the car accident likely occured in 2012.

Which also made me just realize that the Maya would predict when the world would end, (which it was supposed to in 2012, etc). In other words, the world (Sekai) did end in 2012.

Maya may have even been inspired by the Mayans that are said to predict when the world will end, which is why Maya in this game can feel when the world is about to end, and has a fascination with stars, astrology being something the Mayans are known for. Not to mention her name is Maya.. Not sure why this hasn't crossed my mind before.

Id be curious if following this line of thinking might turn up other interesting insights...

 

[DeSkel15]

think you might be overreaching, dont want to piss on it, but i think you might be seeing parallels rather than intersecting points.

They are definitely not intersecting points, I'm merely theorizing on why Selebus chose the name Maya in particular for Maya, after seeing what the timeline could look like. More like meta theorizing.

 

[DeSkel15]

game is heavy on symbology and so is mayan culture... we have not seen any of that overlap that i am aware of other than tex mex tacos

Mayan culture did have priests and gods centered around astrology, and they had human sacrifices for thier gods. Maya tends to bring up astrology a lot, and has even noted that she'd sacrifice others to get where she wants to be. HOPE also seems to want Sensei to use his loved ones as human sacrifices to it.

The only thing that's really lacking is references to Maize or Corn, and feathered serpents in the game, or I've simply forgot if they were mentioned.

 

[Virgin Girl]

there is any whoring ? like public sex life

 

[KnowNoHope]

Mayan culture did have priests and gods centered around astrology, and they had human sacrifices for thier gods. Maya tends to bring up astrology a lot, and has even noted that she'd sacrifice others to get where she wants to be. HOPE also seems to want Sensei to use his loved ones as human sacrifices to it.

The only thing that's really lacking is references to Maize or Corn, and feathered serpents in the game, or I've simply forgot if they were mentioned.

the astrology maya brings up is western and eastern mytho's and not native american in origin. and human sacrifice can be linked to all cultures at some point in time not just meso-america.
which is why i say its a bit of a stretch because we have not gotten any mayan symbology or stories put into the game and why would there be... its japan.