Sometimes Always Monsters is an odd indie game that is essentially a JRPG with a distinctly Western tone. It's a bit unpleasant in the sorts of experiences and dealings you go through and has an 'adult' tone to it. The game is... interesting (despite some of the unpleasant experiences in it) in some ways reminded me of Actual Sunlight. The city environments feel a tad bit like the beginning of Earthbound (or maybe that's the Westernized aspect of it) There's no combat, and dialgoue is limited. You can make choices to a certain extent and a lot of them leave you feeling a bit 'guilty' i think it is for the most part linear or there are one or two unlockable routes to proceed with the main linear quest at the time you are on.

the collector indie game card easter eggs scattered throughout the world were actually really nice and fun idea. the setting and tone of the game is also really cool and different (i suppose it's considered 'black') and really reminds me of earthbound even. despite the freshness here, in general the game has this nasty icky grimey feeling that i can't quite shake off and just dont feel a need to return to. i think i'm done with this. i can't bring myself to finish it. loved and hated it at once. however tbh, as a JRPG it isnt that enging or 'fun' to play despite it's novelties. For one, there is no combat or leveling or any kind of chracter building. it's narrative driven and you can make a few decisions a day that supposedly influence the outcome or perhaps paths. This is actually more along the lines of stardew valley/harvest moon in your time allocation, but there is little gameplay. there is light puzzle solving and questing. the simplicity is nice in this sense (the questing is not confusing and you do not really get stuck) but it feels a bit nonengaging to me and almost borders a kind of very deadpan interactive fiction that unrolls itself at a slow pace. i'm maybe 15-25% into the game and so far the most engaging bit was the picture i posted of working at a meat packing plant. Joy. Actual Sunlight had a similiar kind of depressing tone and plays/unfolds in a similiar kind of way. curious as i am to hear how the story in ASM ends (it's actually somewhat interesting and mysterious in a strange way, and has enough characters to keep you on the ride) but i can't bring myself away from a game like TES Skyrim (which is truly engaging) to justify my curiosity.

If you liked Actual Sunlight you might enjoy this. AS was okay imo, and i felt neutral on it. It is at least, short. This isn't. it also has the guise of JRPG with some elements i dont like (like the absence of combat or stimulating game-like elemnts) and i feel the experience being in the guise of a JRPG ups the suffer factor, despite not really playing like one.

I've found four circles of hell in games: bad intrinsically flawed or designed games (bugs, etc) Hard for the sake of hard games (like DS) compettive multi games (like mobas, mmos or shooters) and the JRPG. :D