I am looking forward to the differences in how the MC, Bella and Amber interact the week following the Bella kiss/no kiss decision.
I think project work at Amber and Bella's house as well as the therapy sessions will have some interesting differences depending on the Bella kiss choice.
For those more interested in the Amber path, is Bella the gateway and the MC is ultimately forced to decide on choosing Bella or Amber (Bella kiss = yes)
Or
Does the MC have to reject Bella romantically (Bella kiss = no) for Amber to start exploring what kind of woman the MC wants since he decided not to pursue Bella?
Ocean mentioned on Discord at one point that if you have anything romantic with Bella going on, then it hurts a potential romantic relationship with Amber, but it's good to stay on friendly terms with Bella - Amber cares about her a lot so you don't want her to be an arch nemesis. So in my playthrough, I try to be as nice to Bella as I can (up to a point at least - I never let her or anyone walk all over me - no simping allowed, lol) without allowing anything physical to occur with her.
I was actually a little disappointed during the therapy session with Amber where she asks you how you feel about Bella - I would have liked a choice where I could have said something along the lines of - "I like Bella and I feel like we're bonding, but I'm not looking to date her" or thereabouts. In my playthrough, even with being nice to Bella, my MC would auto-reply to Amber's question on how do you feel about Bella with something like "Neutral. Just...neutral" and Amber seems disappointed - she clearly wanted the MC to get really close with Bella, likely as a method to help her heal and I definitely wanted it to be communicated that I genuinely like Bella, just not "like that".
Are there repressed memories that someone out there does not want the MC to recover?
If so, how closely is he being watched and does this trip put the MC and Amber at risk or does the risk extend to their families?
The cabin trip feels like it will be one of the biggest events in Summers Gone, at least up until that point in time.
It will be like the hub of a wheel with many possibilities spreading out like spokes from that hub, leading to deeper relationships (Amber and Bella, others?) as well as potentially identify some men/women who were involved but well hidden by the trauma of that event... and now revealed.
What a great story with So many possibilities!!
Cheers!
Good questions - I've opined in past posts some similar questions and I've expressed that I think in terms of Amber + MC, that the long drive they are going to take (what was it, like 6-8 hours each direction or something?) to the cabin will include a ton of dialogue, which is good. One of the things I really like about the MC is he is very direct; I'm very much like that, myself, so it's a trait I really like and identify with him on and because of that, I could very easily see him either automatically asking as part of the dialogue or Ocean giving the player the option to ask Amber questions about Bella's dad and furthermore expressing interest in Amber's life, from general things such as hobbies / interests to things more personal like "I know this might be a sensitive question, but I'm curious why I never see Bella's dad around when I come over?"
This type of dialogue can really bond people together when they open up about deeply personal situations and topics that have a very limited knowing audience in their respective lives.
Then on to the cabin trip itself...obviously none of us really knows what's going to happen, but I can't help but wonder if Bella's sister maybe disappeared under similar circumstances as Summer and maybe there will be a link of some kind there that furthers a bond based on similar tragedy between MC & Amber (and for those on the Bella route, the same link would apply as well) that would add more emotional bonding & attachment into the equation.
I've considered the roleplaying possibility you mentioned, and while I think it can be a hot idea, the only angle that gives me pause, likely because I'm a dude and a woman's past behavior and body count are always a thing that matters, my first thought would be "I sure hope you don't do this type of thing with your other male patients"
- if MC is a special case for whatever reason then I'd be set at ease, but I think a number of male players are going to wonder about that angle if it's not explicitly explained in the story to not be something she does with everyone, hah; such behavior would make Amber a lot less attractive to me and others I think, so praying nothing like that is in her past. I'm hopeful Claire is right about her and she's more of a prude that needs MC to open her up sexually to more things.
And I agree with you completely on the impact of the cabin trip - I am not sure if Ocean has said which chapter it will be? Wouldn't shock me if it's the chapter he ends Season 1 on because of potential revelations at the end of such a trip which will leave the player with a hugely impactful scene of narrative development, more questions, and a likely cliffhanger.
