itch.io

Over one month ago (August 18), both my games were deindexed from the site. I quickly emailed support, but I still have yet to receive any response outside a confirmation ticket, and my games remain unsearchable.
I have looked over the new TOS and found that neither of my games break any rules, as they do not contain sexual or adult content. I have also looked into the unofficial FAQ, which is why I've decided to make this post after a month of waiting and promoting on social media.

My ticket ID is 303573

My deindexed games are:
To My Darling
To My Darling: Rewritten

Thank you for your time.

Thank you so much for enjoying!!! Coming up with player name easter eggs was fun, but unfortunately I didn't have time to add additional dialogue for them outside of the blurbs at the start >->" It's a little too late to change the script now, but I'd love to play with naming easter eggs again in future projects that have nameable player characters.

I'm so happy to hear you liked it though!!! It seriously means so much to me!! Thank you for playing 💛💛💛💛

(And if it means anything, I did at one point plan for a Mimiko/Kin ending..... but alas, it never came to be X-X)

Thanks so much for the kind words. I'm delighted to hear that my game changed your opinions on visual novels. There are some seriously phenomenal games and stories told through this genre, and to know that my game made someone realize that is seriously mindblowing! I hope you can continue to enjoy what this genre has to offer. There's something out there for everyone.

I really do appreciate all the kind words. I love all these characters dearly, so to know other people feel strongly for them as well simply warms my heart :')

Thank you so much for playing! It truly does mean the world to me 💝

I really appreciate the sentiment, and I'm delighted to hear you enjoyed it ;w;
This game was purely a passion project, so I feel no need to charge people money to experience it. Simply seeing their reactions is enough for me 💙

Thank you for such a lengthy comment!! I always find them a joy to read and this is no exception :'D

I'm going to ramble a bit myself. Please forgive me if it's a lot 🙇‍♂️

I'm happy to hear that Kin resonated with you. It was a lot of fun to write from her perspective and exploring her character/mental health further throughout the various endings (even if she... does end up worse in most of them). She's meant to be a huge mess. She's meant to be a bit annoying and even unlikeable at times. But in the end, she is still just a kid who's struggling in ways she doesn't fully understand herself. Being 14 years old is kinda just... like that. Sometimes the littlest things feel like the end of the world, even when that might be far from the truth.
I could seriously go on and on about how I feel and what I wanted to convey when writing her... But I think leaving some things up to the audience's imagination is more fun than outright saying it ^-^
Kin is my little sunshine princess. I'm glad that other people like her just as I do, messiness and all ☀️

When it comes to Aoi, I sadly didn't have much time to get into his backstory outside the incident in their first year. I tried leaving breadcrumbs where I could — usually relating to his father and family in general. The extra stories + bonus room might also provide a bit more insight into his character. Again, leaving things up to audience interpretation is more fun in my eyes, so I'll refrain from saying more.
What I will say though is that I don't plan for this to be his (or anyone's) conclusion to their story... So hopefully there will be opportunities to learn more in the (probably distant) future. For now, feel free to bully the little nepo baby.

As for Kira's gender, their identity is also a little messy. They are transfem and go by they/she pronouns, (or in Japanese, 私 (わたし), which can be gender-neutral or feminine depending on context,) but in universe, they don't have an explicit label outside of “not a boy”. Language surrounding queer identities/issues is a little different in Japan, and Kira herself is still young, so they haven't found the words to properly describe their gender identity.

Kira calling herself a “prince” is meant to pay homage to all those princely women characters (bifauxnen) seen in anime/manga. But in this case, it also adds to that messiness that can be one's gender identity. Sometimes labels are conflicting or complicated, speaking as a trans person myself.
And like I said in Aoi's segment, I do have plans for future installments in this series. I'll most likely end up expanding Kira's gender identity/expression further when the time comes.

Apologies for such a long comment. I had to hold back from saying more lolol. But I appreciate your words very dearly. It truly does give me motivation to continue working :') When it comes to future projects, I'd let to get something out before 2026, so please look forward to it. (It's still in the very early stages of development though, so I can't offer much in terms of information at the moment... ;-;)

PS: I wasn't aware of that! I didn't usually playtest with keyboard, so I'll look into it. Thank you for alerting me! :D 

And thank you from the bottom of my heart for playing “To My Darling: Rewritten”! 🫶

Happy to hear you've enjoyed (and dreaded?) it!!! Doomed yuri my beloved...

Unfortunately, I never thought to make an endings guide for the game, since I felt they weren't complicated to achieve. Looking back on it, I definitely should've made one for the sake of player convenience. 

I've fixed this by editing an old devlog to include a walkthrough for each ending if you're still looking for it! Thank you so much for playing :'D

That is incredibly sweet of you and I appreciate it so much!!!! My only ask is that you clarify somewhere in the description that it is not an official subreddit. I'm not active on reddit and unfortunately wouldn't have time to run/monitor something like that X(

 But other than that, I appreciate the rules/warnings you set -- and the fact that you made something like this for my game in the first place. Thanks so much for your support!! 🫶

I can understand finding Kin to be annoying/disastrous. I wanted to capture the experience/feelings of being an undiagnosed mentally ill teenage girl with this story, so of course she ends up being really messy and even unlikeable at times. (And this isn't exclusive to Kin — every character really has something messy going on with them :'D)

As for Mimiko and Kyouko, this won't be the last you'll see of them. Their story is far from being over, but right now, things are going well for them 🫶

I think I can understand that! While Aoi does get karma in the true end, and Kyouko/Mimiko do get a happy outcome as well, it isn't outright shown, so it may not be as impactful there...

Unhappy End is honestly one of my favorite endings from a literary standpoint, even if there is still that element of unknown tragedy surrounding Kin/Kira's outcome. 

Getting to write all the characters interacting in such a tense situation was a treat. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed reading it :D

AAAA that means soooo much to hear!! I'm glad you've enjoyed what you've played. Kin is such a fun protag to write, so I think that's part of the reason this game ended up being around 3x greater than the length of the original X9 I'm glad that despite all her flaws, people have come to love Kin just as I do :D

I really appreciate all your kind words ;w; It gives me great motivation to continue writing stories and making art <3

AHH SERIOUSLY THANK YOU SO MUCH SYLVAN (nvm the fact that I'm over a month late to replying FSHFJD)!!!!!

I probably wouldn't have been able to make it without everyone's support and love for the first installment. I'm eternally grateful that you were willing to help with the production of this game ;w; (And for pressuring me into adding another ending last minute LMAOOO it ended up being one of my favorites <3) 

Let's both keep working hard on our future endeavors!! :D

Thank you so much! I'm happy to hear you enjoyed it. Your words mean a lot to me <3

Thank you so much for playing and recommending it to others. That seriously means so much to hear ;w; 🫶

Please don't connect my game surrounding middle schoolers with a hentai genre, especially when nothing explicit happens in it. The aftermath of ending 2 is purposefully not shown so that the reader may come to their own conclusion. 

If you are unsatisfied with that ending, there are 3 others you can get instead.

aafdshsjkhfdj it means so much to hear that you suggested this game to others, seriously ;w; I don't entirely mind if this series doesn't gain much traction, but I also would be lying if I said attention doesn't make me happy LOL

And regarding shipping, I generally don't mind! I actually like the idea of a lot of other ships outside Mimiko/Kyouko. (Even the idea of them being paired with others is intriguing. Hell, I originally planned for there to be a Mimiko/Kin ending in the first game.) I took great consideration into various character dynamics when writing this installment, so I think it'd be silly if I were opposed to people shipping outside what's canon. I think the only ones I'm iffy on are romantic pairings involving Kira, since I wrote them to be aro/ace.

AHH THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Your comment means so much, seriously :'D

Fun fact! Both the new characters existed during the development of the original game, but I simply couldn't find a way to fit them into Mimiko's story. (Probably for the best — I wanted to keep that game around 10k words. Adding any more characters would've made things difficult and waaay too complicated.) HOWEVER! Nikki does actually make a cameo in the first game! Her design is a liiiittle different there, though, so it might be hard to tell. But she is there!

Aoi's character as a whole ended up being really fun for me to write, especially when it came to the endings and bonus content. Since Kin for the most part sees Aoi in a much... kinder light than Mimiko does, I wanted to convey more of his struggles/personality than seen in the original. (Even if he's still far from being a good or redeemable person.)

I seriously, seriously appreciate this comment (and the others you left on the first game <3) with all my heart. Knowing that this little passion project of mine resonated with anyone else at all truly brings me joy. Thank you for supporting me and my game. It truly means the world and gives me great motivation to continue working on future projects. 🫶

P.s. I'm a liiiittle overwhelmed juggling some TLs for the first game at the moment, so I'll hold off on that offer for now. I'll let you know when I'm open to TLs for this game, though ;3 I appreciate the offer so much!

This was such a cute demo!!! I seriously ADORE your art style and character designs <3 I'm super excited for the full release to see where this goes!! All the content warnings have me so intrigued...!!

Also Paris... Paris is perfect. 

I'll be sure to check out your other stuff :D Even if this demo was short, it brought a smile to my face.

Thanks so much for all the kind words :'D I wrote it with the intent of people theorizing and leaving things vague, so I'm really happy that reached even one person hehe ^-^ Feel free to share your thoughts wherever! And whether they're true or not... maybe you'll find out in Rewritten?

Stay tuned!!! Progress is going smoothly, and I'm excited to share the story with everyone!!! Your support has been a huge motivator for me to continue working <3 <3 <3

Happy to hear that!! Actually, I was considering contacting you on Twitter to ask about translating certain lines into French, since Kin says a couple lines in the game ^-^ You'd be given a spot in the credit as thanks if you do help me! If you're okay with it, let me know and I'll shoot you a message! :)

Hello! Unfortunately, the only way this story could be translated into Chinese Mandarin is if someone comes forward and offers to translate it. I have no means of translating it on my own. I'm very sorry 😢

But thank you for being interested!

您好！很不幸地，這個故事要翻譯成中文普通話的唯一方法，就是有其他人願意出面翻譯。我沒有辦法自己翻譯。非常抱歉😢。

但是謝謝您的興趣。

(我用的是機器翻譯）

Hello, Zogar!

I actually already have a Russian translation in the works, but nothing for Ukrainian. I would love to work with you! If you wish to continue discussing this, please contact me at Squeeziek@gmail.com and we can negotiate things further!

Thank you so much for playing and leaving a review!! I'm really happy you enjoyed it :D

THANK YOU SO SO MUCH!!!! I'm really happy to hear all of that ;;w;; It means so much!!! I'll continue to work hard and do my best ❤❤❤

!!!!!! Of course it's okay to share here!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please don't apologize for the messiness, this is seriously adorable ;w; It honestly is making me tear up... I'm so glad you loved her enough to make fanart. It seriously means the world to me <3 <3 <3

Your art is sooooo cute!!! I really love the style!!!! The way you draw everything is so soft and welcoming!!! Aaaaaaa it's perfect hahfishdkslakldj ;;w;; <3 <3 <3 Thank you SO so much!!! This absolutely made my day!!!!!!

Thank you so so much for this comment!!! It really does mean a lot to hear all that ;w; It makes me incredibly happy... I'm so glad you enjoyed all the additional artwork too! :'D I love drawing these characters and am so glad other people have come to like them, too.

As for the sprites, I'm actually not sure how to make them available in the games files D: I would have the accessible for everyone if I knew how. I sincerely apologize for that. I suppose I could upload them all to a Google drive or something, though my hands are currently full at the moment working on other stuff X( If I ever get around to doing that, I'll be sure to let you know! (And if you ever do make any sort of edits, I'd love to see them!)

Until then, I once again want to say I appreciate your words and support deeply. Thank you so much for playing To My Darling!!

OF COURSEEEE!!!!! as long as you dont mind looking at poorly done placeholder assets LOL. JUST LMK WHEN YOU GET YOUR LAPTOP BACK!!!! <3 <3 <3

THANK YOU SOOO MUCH!!!!!! tbh if your laptop wasn't broken i would ask if you wanted to proofread the current build... but alas, the universe said no....

Thank YOU so so much ;w; your comment and review just absolutely made my day. I'm so happy to hear that you enjoyed it 🫶

DDLC was somewhat of an inspiration for this, so I'd say there are some similarities.

Thank you so much for playing!! Your video was an absolute joy to watch. All the silly voices made me laugh a ton, namely Aoi's (Or AO, as you call him XD). I'd love to see you play the other endings, but I'm pretty biased in saying that, LOL.

Once again, thank you so much for playing. Your words really do mean a lot. I appreciate it so much 🫶

Hi! Without spoiling too much, the male character's crush on a female character is important to the plot, but the main pairing is between two girls. The girl that the male character crushes on does not reciprocate his feelings. Hope that clears things up!

I didn’t read the warnings before downloading, so you can imagine how the end was a complete flashbang, lmao :’D

Real talk, though, I adore the presentation of this game. While playing it I loved how professional it just all felt. This feels like a product that should cost money, even if it is incredibly short. Wonderful art, horrifying writing and storytelling, and intriguing characters I just want to learn more about. I love this story and seriously wish for more of these characters. (But I also understand you can only do so much for a gamejam lmao.)

10/10 would feel the overwhelming dread and fear from this story and characters again 👍 And I’m sorry to Evan for not trusting him to start.

This is a bit late, but Kyouko says thank you ^^

🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶 THANK YOU SM 🫶 happy to see aoi hate going strong. For real though, I’m very glad you played and enjoyed it. It means a lot to me ❤️

I think about this comment a lot. I haven’t been able to find words for a response, which is why this has taken me so long. Thank you so much for enjoying my game. I really cannot explain how much this means to me. 🫶

I’ve been thinking about this comment so much. It really does mean a lot to hear that ;; I’m incredibly thankful for your comment ❤️❤️❤️

I’m only on chapter 3 but good lord I need you to know how invested I already am in this and how much I adore the characters. I need Aran so bad bro i’m crying shaking throwing up

edit: got all the endings. holy shit. this was a beautiful experience that went so many directions i didn’t see coming. i seriously cannot put my thoughts into words. this was just… wow.

Thank you so much for playing!!! I appreciate it a lot!! 💚🧡 Probably for the best that you only got the first ending if you’d rather avoid the upsetting ones lol

Thank you sm!!!!!!!! 💞 It means a lot to hear that :’D 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙

I appreciate the suggestion! I think I’ll keep things as is, though. Narratively I really prefer this being Mimiko’s story rather than her serving as a self-insert mc of sorts. I just think it makes the most sense ^-^

But I’ll make a game with a nameable mc one day <3 That’s a promise.