Playing The House in Fata Morgana: Am I Weak-Willed?

I’m currently on Door 3 of the visual novel, The House in Fata Morgana. It’s a chilling game full of tragedies. Each door presents a different story, and I’m on the third story. The game’s writing is superb – it has some of the best stories I’ve read. I’ve read that the stories become even better later on in the story. I also appreciate the game’s music a lot.

The stories are gut-wrenching and dark. Door 1 and Door 2 were fine, but it was getting a bit painful to complete Door 3. I know that I will complete it eventually, but I had to stop for a break because I was already crying while playing the game and I just didn’t know if there would be a happy ending. I still don’t know – I haven’t gone back to the story yet. But I’m not confident that it will be a happy story. Then I thought, Am I weak-willed? Why is this difficult for me? Part of me wants a spoiler so that I can mentally prepare myself. I would feel relieved if I see something positive; if not, then at least it wouldn’t be a great shock.

Don’t get me wrong – I like books, games, and shows that can evoke great emotions out of you. Something that will make me cry, make my heart pound, or give me the chills. I’d say that House in Fata Morgana ticks off those boxes. If this sounds like your type of thing, I definitely recommend buying this game.

Still, I feel a little uneasy about returning to the game. But that’s a sign of good writing, I guess.

Review: Ripples Visual Novel

Ripples is a visual novel I enjoyed in 2014. I recently revisited it. It’s really short (around 10 minutes) and sweet.

Story: Koda is a pessimist who photographs nature as a hobby. He meets a girl at the park and finds himself visiting the park every day.

Writing: The writing is the best part. The dialogue is realistic and shows us the personalities of the two characters. I loved one quote in particular:

Even if my life is just a single drop, every drop of water leaves ripples.”

Art: The art is really cute. For its short length, I don’t mind the static backgrounds or that Kuu wears the same clothes each day.

Music: The music is fitting to the story. It enhances the story because it gives it a relaxing atmosphere.

Vocals: The English dubbing is great. I only watch anime in Japanese, but I found the English vocals refreshing to listen to.

Since it’s so short, I recommend everyone to play it or watch it on YouTube. I like the message a lot and even after all these years, I still think about Ripples time to time.