notproudofbeinghere

New Member
Jun 1, 2022
8
16
you are correct in your analysis of the scene, but imo you should not overlook that this was a deeply disturbing event and we're dealing with people's first reactions to it. Even if someone posted a wildly emotional response to it, that wasn't well thought out, I wouldn't be surprised about it or judge them for it.

secondly, I think the two of you are talking about different things. As you are talking about how Io and Akira are viewing that situation in the present, he's talking about the narrative ramifications of his choice in the future. If Io somehow gets better through reliving her trauma in such a bizarre way, well, that would be questionable storytelling at best. And I agree that anyone that questions where Selebus is going with this has reason to do so in many levels.

As it is, we can only question it, we'll know in a few months.
The thing is this, I think the whole point of the choice is to somehow show both the struggle of a twisted man who talks and bonds with sexual contact only find it's way to share that love with it's total opposite (Which by it's own is an extremely interesting subject), and to show that same men trying to show those feelings in a way that both parties can't even understand, that's the reason Io is so weirded out when Sensei leaves the room, she literally thought there was no other way, and we will now see how much Sensei will be able to handle a relationship like this, which is why I also think this is not a closure point for Io's route, both rather an alternative approach, both options sound fucking wild and I this whole thing is probably one of the most brilliant choices Sel has done in the last updates regarding branching narrative (This last thing is actually referenced in this very update, even joking with the fact that Sel doesn't want things to get out of hand).
 
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Pedro4545454

Active Member
Nov 23, 2023
646
1,079
I've never seen anyone lose the point of an scene this bad before. The whole fucking scene has this puke inducing atmosphere all tied to it, you literally see a man showing love through the only way he knows thanks to his broken state of mind, constantly trying to make another broken person to enjoy it as well because he literally doesn't fucking knows another way, he is confused the whole time, he can't even understand the situation he is in, all fucking points to the fact that You. Fucking. Can't. Deal with this shit trough sex in such a tragic spot, and you still find your way to say Sel thinks you can cure SA trauma with happy lovey dovey sex.

It's literally to sides of the same spectrum colliding, one that sees sex as the only coping mechanism and the only way to show affection, and other that is totally adverse to the idea, yet indulges because in it's rotten mind, it's the way things are, she literally tells him that "that's why she is there".

And it's even crazier to me when this whole fucking update constantsly reminds the reader how Sensei views sex and what does it mean for him in relationships with the ones he loves. I'm really sorry if I sound like I'm making a big deal about it but seriously what the fuck?
Relax man, that message of mine was more of an outburst of what I was feeling at the time because of the event with Io, I understand how Akira's Mind works for Sex, but what I was also trying to say in that outburst of mine is that in My opinion is that if Io starts to improve through sex it won't make sense to me, it might make sense to other people, but for me it doesn't and I'm worried about how Selly will make her improve now with this having happened without it seeming forced.
 
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Moonflare

Active Member
Aug 23, 2023
644
1,734
The thing is this, I think the whole point of the choice is to somehow show both the struggle of a twisted man who talks and bonds with sexual contact only find it's way to share that love with it's total opposite (Which by it's own is an extremely interesting subject), and to show that same men trying to show those feelings in a way that both parties can't even understand, that's the reason Io is so weirded out when Sensei leaves the room, she literally thought there was no other way, and we will now see how much Sensei will be able to handle a relationship like this, which is why I also think this is not a closure point for Io's route, both rather an alternative approach, both options sound fucking wild and I this whole thing is probably one of the most brilliant choices Sel has done in the last updates regarding branching narrative (This last thing is actually referenced in this very update, even joking with the fact that Sel doesn't want things to get out of hand).
I don't think anyone disputes the idea of a choice in theory, but rather its history of being applied in this game. Don't get me wrong, I do hope it turns out to be brilliant this time because, in my opinion, so far, every time he presented a choice, what followed ranged between mediocre and awful.

When comparing both paths of the Nodoka's blackmail, if Yumi stormed out then the following events barely make sense. If Kirin didn't blackmail Ayane, you lose Ayane fighting back and Kirin actually being human trash instead of just talking about it. If Akira was a bad homie, then the game just forcefully brings it into a stalemate between the two of them anyway, after you miss a bunch of stuff.

And it's always about missing. I have stated this before, you cannot make a good branching narrative on a game where branches only ever go one way. Io's third event is supposed to happen - and if one chooses to "miss" it then her eventual development will either not make as much sense as it should have, or there will barely be any development either way in order to maintain narrative cohesion.

That's the point I think most people are making. It's a worry about where this will go from here, rather than what happened right now.
 

Pedro4545454

Active Member
Nov 23, 2023
646
1,079
I don't think anyone disputes the idea of a choice in theory, but rather its history of being applied in this game. Don't get me wrong, I do hope it turns out to be brilliant this time because, in my opinion, so far, every time he presented a choice, what followed ranged between mediocre and awful.

When comparing both paths of the Nodoka's blackmail, if Yumi stormed out then the following events barely make sense. If Kirin didn't blackmail Ayane, you lose Ayane fighting back and Kirin actually being human trash instead of just talking about it. If Akira was a bad homie, then the game just forcefully brings it into a stalemate between the two of them anyway, after you miss a bunch of stuff.

And it's always about missing. I have stated this before, you cannot make a good branching narrative on a game where branches only ever go one way. Io's third event is supposed to happen - and if one chooses to "miss" it then her eventual development will either not make as much sense as it should have, or there will barely be any development either way in order to maintain narrative cohesion.

That's the point I think most people are making. It's a worry about where this will go from here, rather than what happened right now.
I'm glad you understand exactly what I'm trying to say.
 
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ElaineZol

Newbie
Sep 28, 2022
56
106
The thing is this, I think the whole point of the choice is to somehow show both the struggle of a twisted man who talks and bonds with sexual contact only find it's way to share that love with it's total opposite (Which by it's own is an extremely interesting subject), and to show that same men trying to show those feelings in a way that both parties can't even understand, that's the reason Io is so weirded out when Sensei leaves the room, she literally thought there was no other way, and we will now see how much Sensei will be able to handle a relationship like this, which is why I also think this is not a closure point for Io's route, both rather an alternative approach, both options sound fucking wild and I this whole thing is probably one of the most brilliant choices Sel has done in the last updates regarding branching narrative (This last thing is actually referenced in this very update, even joking with the fact that Sel doesn't want things to get out of hand).
I just finished the whole thing after like 6 hours, I feel like the initial impact is mostly gone as well. Initially I came here right after I saw the Io event because I sincerely was not expecting it, at least not this update, even though quite a few people in here literally called it before when we saw what her events were called.

Now in hindsight, and again having the initial impact mostly gone, I completely agree with you regarding the significance of the scene and how it all comes down to the 2 sides of the coin; I mean Io herself literally said it, there's 2 possible outcomes. In retrospect, that was a very good event and I'm honestly glad Sel is not afraid to bring up these kind of subjects and instead is capable of creating these scenarios that can create such an impact on us that we are still going on about it, even if some might find it annoying. I think this is part of the beauty of coming across such an interesting story and proof of how invested we are, even if Sel himself comes across as an asshole sometimes or we get the occasional "filler/empty" update, he is pretty damn good.

I still believe in what I said earlier and do wonder how will the story develop after that, but there is really not much we can do but wait till her next event by the end of the year.

That all being said, this was a pretty damn good update IMO.
 

ElaineZol

Newbie
Sep 28, 2022
56
106
I don't think anyone disputes the idea of a choice in theory, but rather its history of being applied in this game. Don't get me wrong, I do hope it turns out to be brilliant this time because, in my opinion, so far, every time he presented a choice, what followed ranged between mediocre and awful.

When comparing both paths of the Nodoka's blackmail, if Yumi stormed out then the following events barely make sense. If Kirin didn't blackmail Ayane, you lose Ayane fighting back and Kirin actually being human trash instead of just talking about it. If Akira was a bad homie, then the game just forcefully brings it into a stalemate between the two of them anyway, after you miss a bunch of stuff.

And it's always about missing. I have stated this before, you cannot make a good branching narrative on a game where branches only ever go one way. Io's third event is supposed to happen - and if one chooses to "miss" it then her eventual development will either not make as much sense as it should have, or there will barely be any development either way in order to maintain narrative cohesion.

That's the point I think most people are making. It's a worry about where this will go from here, rather than what happened right now.
That is indeed a very good way to summarize it. The choices have mostly come down to "do you want to miss some of the next few events or not?" without a way to have the missing context presented in a different way, it's just not there.
 

gatto

New Member
Mar 15, 2017
9
12
Here is my hottake, Sex can help sexual abuse victims.

Well i still couldn"t destroy Io ... my heart says it wrong.
 

aramaug

Newbie
Jun 28, 2019
69
281
I think the purpose of Io's scene (at which it was quite successful) was to cause a reaction of visceral disgust in the player (and hopefully Akira) in regards to the way Akira uses sex. Akira resorts to sexual contact both as a defense mechanism and as a crutch to avoid connecting on a more emotional level. On some intellectual level he knows this is a morally wrong, but up until now he's never had a reason to actually believe that it's wrong. Every time he starts a sexual relationship with a girl, it does successfully lead to them growing closer and even to an emotional connection that he doesn't have to work for. Even his most heinous actions (with Ayane/Kirin, Nodoka/Yumi, Molly, Ami/Noriko) involve him being a more passive participant, and have generally just led to him growing even closer to his victims in the long term.

I think Selebus is trying to beat us over the head with just how destructive Akira's mindset is. As such, I will be absolutely shocked if this leads to things improving for Io, even in the long run, since that would undermine the scene's narrative purpose. I expect this is the first step on Io's path to becoming absolutely broken, if she isn't there already. I'm expecting to see an Io with "wishing well eyes" sometime soon.

I do have concerns as well for what Sel's aversion to branching narrative means for the future, but not as much for Io's story. I think he can handle that with a bunch of missed events until the point where the branches are brought together again when she is inevitably reset. I'm sure it will lead to a less cohesive narrative if you decided to leave, but for me that's fine. Sel is telling a linear story, but the fact that choices exist in the first place is integral to his narrative method.

What does concern me is how Sensei's character development and the overall plot can progress if he decides to leave. I think he needs to break someone with "consensual" sex in order to move forward. And with all of SekaiDolia's talk of breaking people in order to fix them, it seems like Sensei needs to observe someone being broken and reset as the first step towards what I'm assuming the dark path is going to be. So I just don't see how the plot can move forward after leaving, even with missed events and a lack of narrative cohesion.


How are people interpreting Ami's scene with Uta? At first I thought that Ami was probably acting in order to deflect having to talk about Sensei and Uta's picture, but then Uta leaves the room and it seems like Ami did actually want something to happen. I guess it makes character sense for her to be secretly bi, she wouldn't have wanted to admit the possibility that she could ever be sexually interested in anyone other than Sensei.


I need to mull over the supernatural stuff in the update more before I post about it, but I want to say one thing for now: I've seen some people commenting on Yasu telling Sensei that he needs to swim, but I'm like 99% sure that's actually SekaiDolia speaking. I'm not sure if Yasu and Touka are even physically present in "The Art of Drowning" with the way that they dissappear, it might all be in Sensei's head. If they are there, Sekai is talking directly through Yasu the same way she does through Kaori (which was probably enabled by Yasu touching Kaori at the end of the previous event).
 
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