NIKI MEDIA RECOMMENDATIONS!

GITCL is fucking masterpiece. Full stop.
I dont think I can properly convey just how amazing its writing is. It manages to simultaneously funny, thought provoking, and most of all, something deeply genuine. And that's to say nothing about how STUNNING its presentation is. Everything from the JAMS that make up EVERY SONG in its soundtrack to the care put into EVERY animation. It's all polished to a mirror sheen. The Road Stories are an amazing vehicle for tons of amazing world building and nice contained short stories. And while its gameplay can sometimes leave alot to be desired (Go read my steam review for a much more in depth look at how I feel about this game that changed my life.), it still ends up being incredibly fun and satisfying. At least fun enough to keep me coming back for multiple playthroughs. I cannot recommend it enough. Go play it. Go on a lesbian roadtrip to punch nazis and experience a new kind of emotion when the story punches you directly in the gut. You won't regret it.

OMORI is another one of those games that I truly wish I could experience for the first time again. Its atmosphere is unique in a way I cant quite describe but that I ADORE. I love it for it's BEAUTIFUL story, yes, but I also love it just for the feeling that playing it gives me? It's a very hard thing to describe. While its combat is mostly typical turn-based RPG fare, its twists on that formula REALLY make it stand out despite the combat clearly not being the focus here. It is yet another great example of the true power of RPG Maker when in the right hands. An amazing story that really takes advantage of the fact that its a game.

Hypnospace Outlaw is a simultaneously a FASCINATING satire and a truly heartfelt love letter to internet history and culture. It feels weird to say about a game about looking around and being a cop on an alternate history internet, but I have never played a game that is THIS intrinsically fun to explore. It’s so easy to get completely lost in its wonderful little world in a way few other games are. This game made me care about it on a deeply personal and REAL level just to rip my goddamn heart out and go at it with a chainsaw. Genuinely an awe-ispiring work of fiction. I cannot recommend it enough.

PSYCHOLONIALS is a phenominal read. It’s the first work by Andrew Hussie post-homestuck and good fucking LORD did it knock me on my ass. I truly hope that we see more from her in the future because good GOD she has not lost her touch. If you are a fan of anything she’s done previously you owe it to yourself to give it a shot. Obviously I of all people would say that but I’m so serious. You should go into this knowing as little as possible. I didnt even watch the trailer. Failing that though, if a commentary on the way social media treats “celebrity” figures and how cults of personality form and damage everyone involved told with clowns and horses through GORGEOUS art and music sounds interesting to you. GO GIVE IT A SHOT!!! I know I’m biased because I’m predisposed to enjoying this shit but it seriously blew my expectations out of the water. It’s short and free just go read it.

After playing GITCL I decided to go a decade back and try Digital: A Love Story, which was made by Christine Love back in 2010. It, once again, blew my fucking MIND!!! Digital is a freeware alternate internet game (think something like Hypnospace Outlaw or Secret Little Haven) with some truly POWERFUL writing that left me full sobbing by the end. Once again I am reluctant to say too much about it because you really should just go play it but oh my GOD!! It’s a fucking love story told through bbs’s and dialup internet bullshit and totally-not-an-amiga. It’s amazing. Its follow-up, “don't take it personally, babe, it just ain't your story”, has aged less well in my opinion but was still VERY GOOD, at least story-wise. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it to everyone who enjoyed Digital because it’s very much a different kind of story that plays with some of the same themes as its predecessor but personally I still GREATLY enjoyed it. It’s a very fun and compelling meditation on the concept of privacy in the modern era. Go try Digital and if you enjoyed that i’d say give dont take it personally a try and go into it with an open mind.

COMING SOON EVENTUALLY! SERIAL EXPERIMENTS LAIN, HELLO MELANCHOLIC, PUELLA MAGI MADOKA MAGICA. NEEDLESS TO SAY, YOU SHOULD GIVE THEM A SHOT!