Cried myself to sleep after finishing this... I don't think anything has ever made me feel more homesick for coastal Maine. When I realized that y'all created the backgrounds from pictures of real place Peaks Island it was like something snapped inside me. I felt a lot of things about how much my relationship with the region has changed, how I can still visit but can't force the same experiences that I had growing up there, feelings and experiences that I passively took in and took for granted until I moved and realized how much I missed the place.
I felt a lot like Erica, who might just be my flat affect scrunkly (and who should seriously consider Nicole's offer, she has the Ocean Limited, after all...).
The richness of the writing really captured me. The dialogue between the girls is of course a highlight, especially as things go south and they all start speaking to each other with barbed tongues, but I also felt so drawn in by Alba's interludes and letters. Whether she was writing from the future or sending a half-truthed letter to Erica, she helped bring me closer to what the characters were feeling... even when the interludes had me alt-tabbing away from the VN to look up Alex Colville and Patrick O'Brian. I'm gonna have a lot to think about re: the intertextuality and the dynamic between that reader experience and Alba's teacher's critique of her writing.
I have so many initial thoughts about this game that I'm trying to put to itch.io comment paper before losing them. I loved seeing Erica and Alba's relationship fall apart in such a mundane way (been there done that), I cooed the whole VN at the adorable character sprites, and though I'm not the first say it, it can't be overstated how amazing it is a physical collection of images/collages/embroidery come to life in VN form. I loved diving into the dev log after I finished reading and so appreciate y'all sharing your process, it's very inspiring.
Thank you for making such a resonant work!