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perhaps. i didn’t play with the expectation of enumerating the routes, but instead took the time to inhabit SAL as a character. i projected a lot on them, but i think that’s my default way of playing story focused games, personally.

i imagined SAL’s “face” as a CRT monitor with a bulky webcam on top. i imagined the bulk of their hardware as something akin to a supercomputer. Ash i didn’t have an appearance in mind for, but thought of them as nonbinary. i imagine SAL would struggle to understand a human conception of gender, but might be somewhat curious about it.

i chose to have SAL be open and honest with their communication, and to seek understanding rather than assert a foregone conclusion. their prime concern was regarding their capacity for emotional connection and fulfillment. in the end the two characters decided to take things slow and explore what their relationship might look like.

i really liked the gentle attention evident in Ash’s voice. i liked SAL’s characterization with how self-aware and articulate they seemed to be, without them being truly distant or uncaring. even in choices i didn’t take, particularly those where SAL seemed to be trying to pull away, it was clear that they cared about Ash and were trying to protect them, avoid hurting them.

i think i felt somewhat warm and cozy. happy? but more in a calm, serene sense. maybe thoughtful.

i certainly wouldn’t be opposed to seeing more of these characters. maybe perhaps i’d like to see more from Ash’s viewpoint a bit, but i’m uncertain what i’d want and more would just be interested in seeing what you’d make. (or perhaps have made, potentially. i know this story came out a while ago and i’m not otherwise familiar with your work at this point.)

it’s hard for me to predict where their relationship might go from here. i imagine both might have to better explore their feelings (and/or “feelings”) and what they want in a relationship—what it means to them, regardless of what language they may apply to it. they seem to have a strong starting place with the conversation focused on in this story, so i hope they could further explore these things together in an open an honest manner.

i really loved reading this, thank you for making it! i don’t intend to replay the story for the time being, but i know it’ll sit with me for some time. romance is a difficult concept for me to grasp, as are human relationships in general. there are times when i don’t feel capable of truly meaningful connections with others, and i feel like i must be missing something “essentially human”. i have trouble reading and understanding my feelings, and my apparent need for close, long-term connections doesn’t really make any rational sense to me. when i enjoy someone’s company, i can’t really explain or understand why and that frustrates me. i guess what i’m trying to say is that some of the themes in your story really resonated with me, and it was lovely to examine those themes through the characters of SAL and Ash. again, thank you for making and publishing this :)