her
How can you live not knowing why you feel this way?
How can you live being aware you can't change?
How can you live wanting to lie to yourself?
How can you live pleading everyone to love you?
How can you live not knowing who you are?
This game includes instances of flashing lights, swearing, self-deprecating language and suggestive language (not explicit).
Download
Install instructions
After extraction, get in the folder and open the file called "her".
Development log
- Added browser versionSep 21, 2024
Comments
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I tend not to like writing reviews unless I spot a bug or issue to report since I'm not that great at critiquing things but I replayed this game as I remember it sticking with me and just.... wow.
To be blunt, on many levels it is probably your worst game: default assets, sparsely populated and bloated mapping, no sound and there's very little gameplay elements. Compared to your newer stuff, one can see how immensely you've improved.
And yet... it's my favourite of your games (so far). The writing is really strong, or rather more accurately, whether strong or not, it just really struck a chord with me; deeply and, whether intentionally or not, I felt the aspects to be criticised added to the game's benefit. The lack of sound amplified the isolationist atmosphere of their ponderings. The choice to black out all characters except the protagonist adds to the self indulgent nature and focus on examining and re-examining their own life while also being a plot element itself. The long hallways with barely any items or gameplay leaves you to solely ponder what is said and plays into the word "ergonomic" and the principle of chaos ;). Maybe I'm just trying to distort a rationalisation why I like a game that has so many elements that would amount to criticism beyond just "I relate to it". I don't know.
I wish I could write an amazing and long review to really express just how much I appreciate and connect to the sentiments here but I don't have it in me and I feel a little embarrassed to go into detail too, hehe. The arrogant self pity and excuses yet minimising everything simultaneously to even small things like liking bathrooms for the same reasons or using a proxy for yourself in fantasy... I felt seen to an extreme degree.
I enjoy your games and I look forward to seeing what you'll do next :)
omg thank you so much!! this was wonderful to read! :D
i'll try not to talk too much about the thought process i had while making this game cuz i feel like the player coming to their own conclusions about it is an important part of the experience (and i also really like hearing people's interpretations of the themes hehe), but you hit the nail right on the head with a lot of it; self pity, heavy instrospection, isolation, self indulgence... it's things i wanted to portray in a way that i would find most compelling. which is, ironically, pretty self-indulgent haha, but i think first and foremost i wanted to make a game that felt a certain way that i haven't really felt anywhere else. that explored themes in a way i haven't seen in any other game. obviously i'm not saying i'm the best developer or storyteller ever when it comes to making a game like this lol. but i wanted to make something that felt truly personal, and hearing people say it struck a chord with them is the highest compliment i could ever recieve!! i'm really glad it's your favorite of mine so far, and thank you for taking the time to leave a review <3
if i'm being honest, i think i've strayed a bit away from this game's general vibe with my recent games... maybe i'll come back to it in the near future, who knows?
Here's full playthrough if someone's interested:
whenever i write a reply, i always try to make it more or less the same length as the original comment. here... i don't think i can. i'm speechless. your words have touched me in a way i don't think i can express. thank you for taking the time to write such a genuine review that doesn't sugarcoat your opinions, thank you for giving each part of this game such a unique interpretation, and thank you for playing. your words truly have a soul <3
(jk you used 'Her' instead of 'her' so your opinion is invalid >:D i'm kidding i'm kidding-)
also thanks for sharing this song, i really liked it :>
Hey- I can't believe this game has no comments. I just finished it, and I found it incredibly moving. I also could relate to nearly all (if not all) the things the main character talked about... That feeling of losing yourself when you go to college, and staying holed up in your room as everything around you feels like too much as you try to find yourself again. Of sinking into fantasies trying to escape reality, of trying to go back to simpler times, trying to remember how you did it to be happy back then. I feel this game encapsulates all those feelings much better than any other work I've ever seen. Thank you for releasing it into the world.
o_O omg this is one of the nicest things i've ever read! thank you so much!!
i'm kinda surprised you relate to a lot of the things the main character goes through, ngl i was a bit worried they were too specific haha. but i'm glad you enjoyed it! the main thing i wanted while i was making it was for people to get something good out of it, whether it was a little bit of solace, jokes that made them laugh, or something that affirmed life is worth living... so you thanking me for putting this out into the world means so much.
thank you for playing the game, and for your super nice comment!! :>