Hi Seyun, I've written to you before about console deployment, but I wanted to follow up and let you know that I finally got a Windows PC and finished Love, Sam.
I must say I am really impressed by the narrative sleight of hand in the story, and how it was woven into the gameplay - Love, Sam shows how gaming medium can elevate the concept of an unreliable narrator in ways that books or movies simply can't.
The story itself is also subtle and profound. There have been many discussions around Sam and Kyle, but the character makes rethink the most is Brian. While some players might see Brian as indifferent and never took Sam for serious. I do think, or perhaps just want to believe, that his connection with Sam was geniune (sharing private space and common interests are not small things for Brian, even though he looks outgoing and popular). From his perspective, he may just have been overwhelmed by confusion or unsure of how to reconnect with Sam. All these tragedies combined with his own childhood trauma made him want to escape and leave everything behind. I might be wrong - but in any case I'd love to hear what was going through your mind when you were designing Brian as a character.
The game is really very well made, and some of the mechanics, e.g. camera, are genius and fits the horror atmosphere perfectly. If I were to offer one piece of constructive feedback, it would be regarding the reasoning/hints of the puzzles - the toilet one, for example. It could benefit from clearer enviromental guidance to help the player follow the logic of the hints to escape, rather than trying randomly in the darkness (there is chance that a player just escaped because of luck, or they get stuck for long) - but again, that's just my personal preference for puzzle games.
I will play Letters of Bernard Thorne when I have time, and looking forward to more of your new works in the future!
Keqi
Hello, Keqi! It has been a while :)
Congrats on your new PC! I am honored that you remembered to play my game on your new computer. I am also relieved that it was up to your expectation even after waiting to play it for a long time.
Your interpretation of Brian is spot on! Although I failed to portray it fully on Love, Sam, Brian is his own character with his own complicated emotions; not just with Sam, but with Kyle as well. Because of his trauma, Brian is in constant search for a place to belong, which ironically puts distance with those who are close to him. And because of this, all the drama unfold.
In a way, Love, Sam is a story about belonging, and I wanted Brian to be a perfect catalyst in this story. That is why I wrote him to be an opposite parallel to Sam; two teenagers headed toward different directions in search of a place to belong. While this causes Sam to feel a connection to Brian, it also triggers Kyle's jealousy. Despite knowing that he can't truly be with Brian, all Kyle wanted was to stay in the small circle called Rosen Peek together. But seeing how Sam was able to at least briefly get close to Brian, which is more than he could ever dream of, he quickly loses his control.
This is why the story of Sam and Kyle cannot be complete without telling Brian's story. I've always wanted to do this since the launch of Love, Sam. I've been expanding on Brian's character even when I was developing Letters of Bernard Thorne in the hope of one day completing the story of Rosen Peek. And thanks to your own insight on Brian, I can't wait to finally shape it into another game.
I hope you will enjoy Letters of Bernard Throne as well. Although it doesn't have the most user friendly controls, I promise it is one of the story-telling aspects and won't disappoint :)
Thank you so much for your support.
Seyun