So, really great renders, an MC that acts like an actual person. Lisa is great. Slow burn that focuses on story.
So far, so good. Not done with it yet, either (at scene where mom is finally telling you what's up)
I do have a few gripes though. Gonna list them for feedback purposes.
1) Story needs some internal consistency. Examples: dad throws mom out but says not to take you guys. So, why did he not call us, or her? Where does he think we are? Another example with dad is that in mom's backstory she's telling us how their relationship was already falling apart, but we see in the argument in the beginning that he is upset over the drinking and feels like he never sees her/spends time with her anymore, which is a complaint that makes no sense if they were already growing distant.
After that, more minor things, like going from "mom is a great cook," to jokes about how mom can't cook at all, to Hazel being surprised when mom cooked a meal and mom begrudgingly stating she can cook if she has to. Or auntie telling us she has a fridge full of microwave meals, only to see the next day the fridge is empty. And I know there are others I noticed I'm just not thinking of.
They're all fairly minor, but when you notice them, they're mildly jarring.
2) Character behavior. It is OK to be angry. Mom tells us we're seeing our aunt for a few days. In the car and half way there she drops the bomb that we aren't going back home and will be with Hazel for months. Lisa tells her that night she didn't bring a lot of clothes because she was told a few days, and mom starts screaming.
And we are lead to believe her screaming has been a constant Lisa dn MC have been dealing with.
So, knowing we were forced to leave our home and everything we have, because of mom's immense drinking problem, and then seeing her brutally yell at Lisa when Lisa did nothing wrong, the MC hits back with a few snide comments. Biting, sure, but restrained.
And then his aunt gently chides him for that anyhow, and asks him to be "the bigger man" essentially.
Sorry, even if mom has a legitimate reason, and deserves to be forgiven, the MC seems to let her behavior wash over him too easily. He's only 20, he's been dealing with this for months. He is seeing his sister being screamed at and verbally abused. And his mother's lies to him and Lisa have them not only dragged out to Hazel's for the summer, but potentially unable to return home... and the only reason he knows, at this time, for this is his mother's drinking, which has destroyed her marriage and seen her thrown out of her home, MC and sis dragged along as an afterthought.
It is OK to be angry. It is OK for the MC to have responded more vehemently or hurtfully. It is OK for him to not just be angry in situations, but at his mother in general. Sure, doing it wrong makes the healing that comes later harder to pull off, but doing it right adds the proper level of strife and drama that makes the situation more realistic, without taking it so far that her truth can't come out later and lead to a healing between them.
To a lesser degree, this goes for Lisa too. I understand that she hates hearing the fighting, but the way mom targeted her with her words, and seemed to, from their first interaction in game, lose her temper with Lisa the easiest, it's hard to picture Lisa as taking it all so calmly, reading a book to get over it, and other wise being so... happy.
She's a sweet girl. I like seeing her happy. But between a father she's worried has no time for her, and a mother who rides her constantly, she seems to content with everything going on.
And last is Dad. Why hasn't he called us? Or, hell, talk to us on his way out the door after the fight in the beginning? It's been days, does he know we're gone? He threw mom out because of how her drinking was hurting the family. He made it clear to her to not involve MC or Lisa in this because this was a problem he had with her substance abuse, not with the kids. So, when the very first thing she does is pack up her adult kids and leave with them... does he think nothing of it?
3) You don't need a token sex-scene in a slow burn game. The dream seemed pointless. Now, maybe the teacher character will matter later. But right now, it seemed like a shoe-horned in lewd scene that exists solely to appease people who would rate the game 1 star because they can't fap to it yet.
4) Meta narrative. If you want to show scenes that don't involve the MC, cutting the scenes just to leave us hanging and not knowing what is going on is frustrating as all hell. Bad enough that I'd rather not get the scene to begin with, as it's entire point seems to be to rub salt in the wound of the fact that "you don't know what's happening yet and we won't tell you, yet."
The flip side of that, however, is also a concern. That we, the player, will learn plot details in scenes without the MC, and use what we know to make choices for the MC, despite the fact that HE doesn't know. "Meta-gaming" can ruin a story telling experience, so it's something I'm cautious of.
So, that's my far-to-goddamned-wordy feedback ATM. I still think the game is worth 4 out of 5 starts, probably. I look forward to finishing what's available now, and playing future updates.
