'Wolf of White Waters' is an evocative fable that uses it's minimalism of assets to it's advantage to let the prose do all the painting. It's quite the mysterious tale, one that leads the reader on a journey. It feels grounded in a world, but then become ethereal and dreamlike. It doesn't seem interested in spinning a moral, but rather, leaves it up to the reader to interpret if there's hidden symbolism and metaphors within it's simple plot. The imagery is striking, and the writing is well crafted, and it's just mysterious enough to allow for many types of interpretation of the text.
I love the way that effects are used in this visual novel. It's super simple, but super effective. The audio was just enough to get immersed in the story. The presentation in the UI and title screen was really polished. It feels inappropriate to try and critique or review the story itself, since it doesn't aim to be a character driven narrative. The wolf and the prince seem to have a few defining characteristics that are alluded to from their actions, but whether this tale is meant to be taken literally or figuratively, that's part of the interpretation of the reader.
If I were to interpret this figuratively, the prince's demeanor sounds as though he's trapped on this island of 'black walls' and 'in the dark'. Perhaps, bound by duty and expectations? Of royal lineage, we find out later that he's to be married off to the King and Queen to make a dynasty, so is this representative of a class system or male gender norms? If so, what does the white wolf represent? Much like the theme, 'a light in the dark', it sounds as if the white wolf is a force to take him away from that expectation. The wolf is the one that tells him stories of the outside world, so maybe the white wolf represents literally stories and ideas, that he wouldn't have been able to know about since the prince seems to be under lock and key, a sheltered existence.
It becomes a bit more explicit what the allegory is when the Prince casts away his black nightgown and follows the white wolf naked up the glowing steps to the moon. The prince giving up his position and duty to pursue more colorful and different destinations. One area is a bustling market that goes out of its way to describe all the different colors and fruits. One is a quaint village with a lumber mill. One is a city of ruins that was his kingdom, I think. And then the great city of the moon, which is described a bit like a heavenly place. In a way, that kind of also paints a tragic picture for the prince who's night gown was found on the rocks in the shore. An existence so sheltered and dark that to dive out into the ocean and take his own life was preferable.
From that kind of interpretation, it does make me take notice that this tale takes a lot of time to describe the settings of these far off fantastical places, but not as much information about what the prince thinks about seeing and learning about these places. Is he curious if they exist? Excited to visit them? Or sad for never getting to visit them? Perhaps, the reader is meant to put themselves in the prince's shoes and think about if they were kept in a dark tower, which places would appeal to them? I feel the story may have indulged the prose a little too hard in some places, when it could use a bit more grounding. Giving the wolf something more to do, than just sitting there, or the prince a bit more lines to say, since the wolf did get a few lines. Overall, this story is really profound and mysterious, even if it does make you wonder what the heck that wolf was supposed to be.