Review SuperEffective 2/5 · Jun 1, 2018
I got this game as part of the Humble Bundle's narrative collection, which I have been enjoying for shorter, but interesting stories using a mix of FMV and gaming interactivity. However, I'm not totally sold on this game.
About a young girl experiencing her first love through an online game, you watch as she chats with friends (both real and …
I got this game as part of the Humble Bundle's narrative collection, which I have been enjoying for shorter, but interesting stories using a mix of FMV and gaming interactivity. However, I'm not totally sold on this game.
About a young girl experiencing her first love through an online game, you watch as she chats with friends (both real and online), navigate her desktop, move the game character around, and watching FMV scenes. Cibele, however, leaned strongly towards the "visual novel" style, where you spend more time watching and reading the conversations. You do not get options on what to say, you just do the prompting to make the game go forward. The only real action, the focus of the story, is playing Valtameri by moving the character and clicking on the enemies (just click on them once).
Because it is about first love, based on a true story, and shows real people, playing this game does get real awkward and feels quite invasive at times. Beyond the angst poetry and blog posts, you also get to look at Nina's photos from different points of her teenage and college years. Things can get uncomfortable at certain points, as the game is rated for mature audiences, if that is not quite your thing in games.
On the flip side, it is relatable and you can absolutely understand Nina's feelings as she talks with friends and tries to get closer to Ichi. You see her struggling to put her feelings into words, and even when she does, she finds that connecting with Ichi on a deeper level is another challenge. While just glimpses, you also get to read about Nina's friends and what sort of things happen with both college and online friends.
I believe this game will appeal to a very specific type of audience and I found that I did not fit that mold. Due to the short length, I also do not think this game is worth paying more than $5.00 - I would see if Humble Bundle offers it again with other more appealing games before buying it alone on Steam. I saw the positives of this game and find that the creator certainly has potential - this game was not the one to highlight.
