Thanks for playing this game, Welonz - it's refreshingly unique and hits surprisingly hard considering the goofy style and mechanics! It was really interesting watching such an inherently flawed protagonist and how you weighed messy Jala choices with her starting to heal her relationships and work towards being better. As always, it was lovely to watch you interact with the game's story and characters with such respect and care 🥰
38:07 my sister and I were super close as little kids (I was the younger one), but it fell apart in middle school and then burnt to the ground in high school. Wasn't until college that things started to mend, and then as adults we became super close again (did have a bit of a nasty fight where emotions were finally laid bare and we were crying and hugging at the end lol). So I guess we fit in that stereotype aha~
Its been an amazing trip, what a game, so special, unique, and hits really close even if you arent an immigrant because the whole family business, thanks for bringing it, loved it!
These types of games are usually not my cup of tea but I loved your playthrough. It gave me a new perspective of what women go through on their side of the relationships, especially when you sprinkled some tidbits from your personal experiences, and also about the difficulties the immigrant families face - again with your explanations. I feel so lucky to come across your channel to be able to enjoy the videos of such a culturally well-versed and amazing person!
Just wanted to say thank you for playing this game Welonz! It's really rare to see Tamil charcters in media, nevermind lgbt Tamil characters, so this game means a lot to me. It's not a perfect game by any means, but I'll never /not/ hold a place in my heart for games that try to represent me. Part of the reason why I started watching your channel was because it introduced us to narrative based games that might not necessarily be "popular", but it's been the reason why I've found games with characters that I connect with
This is one of my favorite games I've played in the past 12 months, so glad you got to experience it, i hope you've inspired others to play it as well.
A family story that I only learned a few years ago was that when my dad's mother graduated highschool she was offered a full ride scholarship for some variety of chemical science degree but couldn't go because going to college required her father's permission and he refused to give it. I sometimes wonder what she thought about my grandfather turning down a chance to go to medical school because he wouldn't take money from his stepfather. Sadly she died before I was born, much less had the opportunity to ask something like that.
This was a lot of fun and very stylish. The writing in particular, and voice acting, were really super smart and funny, loved it. The relationships depiction felt pretty accurate and at some point or another quite relatable too, even if you're from a different background than the one represented. Really cool game :) thanks for the playthrough!
ooh damn, I felt the callout lol. My parents were korean immigrants and they did try to teach me to speak Korean, but yeah it just didn't catch on (TRAGIC). Currently I can only read and write! work in progress..
to be fair i don't think kids get to control this situation much!! e.g. if your parents speak english you are far less likely to be forced to speak their native language at home, and then everything just snowballs from there 🥲
I really liked the story of this game. Because Jala was the "villain", but they characterized her so well, with in my eyes, seeking some sort of redemption. Only wished they could've expanded on why Jala was so "horrible" to Tyler. Like, she says in one line... it's because she feels she doesn't deserves someone as good as Tyler, so she sabotages their relationship. But she also loves Tyler so when she miss her, she comes back to her. This could've been more developed, because I don't think it's that clear. And also it would be good to hear what Tyler thought of that confession, and maybe see Tyler reassuring her despite all her flaws... she isn't horrible, and she needs to let go of that part. Which she kinda does telling her to let go of Mind Aruni. But it would be nice to see all coming together. ______________ Also... I was convinced that Aruni was the Mayor. Because Aruni and the Mayor were the only people we hadn't seen. And the reason why the "Bear" (don't remember his name) wanted to recruit Jala.
I really enjoyed this . Even for someone who doesn't come from a minority it is nice seeing different cultures and perspectives and I wish it was shown more in mainstream media and games .
Action, drama, cooking, voice acting, ambience - every major aspect of the game is made with attention and spice. The only obvious letdown are "Gift/Grift" encounters (low variety, of course), otherwise it's a damn good game, especially for a barely known and non-specialized developer. Fun, most of all. Extra appreciation goes for the way the game deals with touchy subjects (not just sex-related ones); the popular approach is to raise the banner before establishing who or what it's related to, and come across as completely tone-deaf. This game obviously verges into fantasy land with quite many things it does, but it works well to frame the image, and the resulting picture seems whole - like a meal with ingredients' taste working in balance.
Man that end was abit too triggering and really reminds me of older Indian relatives, Again the ending is abit too idealistic but I think it’s what we want family to be in the end. Maybe I’m too close to it and it makes me a cynic.
I personally didn't care much for the Soundie/teens storyline that much at all cause it felt so disconnected from the rest of the story about Jala's personal relationships with both her family and her past relationships. It felt like they threw it in the game just to have something extra going on and it felt like that even more so when you couldn't really help out the teens so there was no resolution to that but like you said, maybe it's because they ran out of budget or something. Otherwise this was a really great game and I'm glad it focused on a queer POC rather than just another white queer person!
probably not, i think it's the game's job to give some kind of a resolution no matter what choices are made, and i'm not even sure where the decision points were to begin with
Gift or Grift? It's a gift! Thanks so much for taking the time to check this out. Loved it!
Thanks for playing this game, Welonz - it's refreshingly unique and hits surprisingly hard considering the goofy style and mechanics! It was really interesting watching such an inherently flawed protagonist and how you weighed messy Jala choices with her starting to heal her relationships and work towards being better. As always, it was lovely to watch you interact with the game's story and characters with such respect and care 🥰
38:07 my sister and I were super close as little kids (I was the younger one), but it fell apart in middle school and then burnt to the ground in high school. Wasn't until college that things started to mend, and then as adults we became super close again (did have a bit of a nasty fight where emotions were finally laid bare and we were crying and hugging at the end lol). So I guess we fit in that stereotype aha~
Its been an amazing trip, what a game, so special, unique, and hits really close even if you arent an immigrant because the whole family business, thanks for bringing it, loved it!
These types of games are usually not my cup of tea but I loved your playthrough. It gave me a new perspective of what women go through on their side of the relationships, especially when you sprinkled some tidbits from your personal experiences, and also about the difficulties the immigrant families face - again with your explanations. I feel so lucky to come across your channel to be able to enjoy the videos of such a culturally well-versed and amazing person!
Oh God I had just taken a drink of water when Auntie Chandra rolled over the top of the chair. I'm dead now.
Just wanted to say thank you for playing this game Welonz! It's really rare to see Tamil charcters in media, nevermind lgbt Tamil characters, so this game means a lot to me. It's not a perfect game by any means, but I'll never /not/ hold a place in my heart for games that try to represent me. Part of the reason why I started watching your channel was because it introduced us to narrative based games that might not necessarily be "popular", but it's been the reason why I've found games with characters that I connect with
This is one of my favorite games I've played in the past 12 months, so glad you got to experience it, i hope you've inspired others to play it as well.
Great playthrough, Welonz! 😊
A family story that I only learned a few years ago was that when my dad's mother graduated highschool she was offered a full ride scholarship for some variety of chemical science degree but couldn't go because going to college required her father's permission and he refused to give it.
I sometimes wonder what she thought about my grandfather turning down a chance to go to medical school because he wouldn't take money from his stepfather. Sadly she died before I was born, much less had the opportunity to ask something like that.
This was a lot of fun and very stylish. The writing in particular, and voice acting, were really super smart and funny, loved it.
The relationships depiction felt pretty accurate and at some point or another quite relatable too, even if you're from a different background than the one represented. Really cool game :) thanks for the playthrough!
ooh damn, I felt the callout lol. My parents were korean immigrants and they did try to teach me to speak Korean, but yeah it just didn't catch on (TRAGIC). Currently I can only read and write! work in progress..
to be fair i don't think kids get to control this situation much!! e.g. if your parents speak english you are far less likely to be forced to speak their native language at home, and then everything just snowballs from there 🥲
I really liked the story of this game. Because Jala was the "villain", but they characterized her so well, with in my eyes, seeking some sort of redemption. Only wished they could've expanded on why Jala was so "horrible" to Tyler. Like, she says in one line... it's because she feels she doesn't deserves someone as good as Tyler, so she sabotages their relationship. But she also loves Tyler so when she miss her, she comes back to her.
This could've been more developed, because I don't think it's that clear. And also it would be good to hear what Tyler thought of that confession, and maybe see Tyler reassuring her despite all her flaws... she isn't horrible, and she needs to let go of that part.
Which she kinda does telling her to let go of Mind Aruni. But it would be nice to see all coming together.
______________
Also... I was convinced that Aruni was the Mayor. Because Aruni and the Mayor were the only people we hadn't seen. And the reason why the "Bear" (don't remember his name) wanted to recruit Jala.
Another great playthrough. Really enjoyed it.
I’m so glad to finish this series, and the soundtrack and voice acting is amazing
I really enjoyed this . Even for someone who doesn't come from a minority it is nice seeing different cultures and perspectives and I wish it was shown more in mainstream media and games .
loved watching this one!! ty welonz
The dad did the thumbs up gif 🤣👍🏾
What a cool game, I love the originality and love the theme surrounding their background embraced in such creative and fun way.
brb learning my mother tongue so I'm not a diappointment to Welonz 😭
it's okay i still love you (probably)
@@Welonz 🥺
:/ Capitulating to Paati felt absolutely excrutiating.
Hah, Paati's "Parry this" attack is literally EVO moment 37
I'm dying for Woolie to pick this up again just to see that.
Great playthrough. Interaction length comment!
Action, drama, cooking, voice acting, ambience - every major aspect of the game is made with attention and spice. The only obvious letdown are "Gift/Grift" encounters (low variety, of course), otherwise it's a damn good game, especially for a barely known and non-specialized developer. Fun, most of all. Extra appreciation goes for the way the game deals with touchy subjects (not just sex-related ones); the popular approach is to raise the banner before establishing who or what it's related to, and come across as completely tone-deaf. This game obviously verges into fantasy land with quite many things it does, but it works well to frame the image, and the resulting picture seems whole - like a meal with ingredients' taste working in balance.
Chapter 9 triggered me HARD even though my family dynamics are way milder.
That feel when your grandma is your thirstiest suitor…
34:30 not WHOLE planes thankfully. Only doors...
Man that end was abit too triggering and really reminds me of older Indian relatives, Again the ending is abit too idealistic but I think it’s what we want family to be in the end. Maybe I’m too close to it and it makes me a cynic.
I personally didn't care much for the Soundie/teens storyline that much at all cause it felt so disconnected from the rest of the story about Jala's personal relationships with both her family and her past relationships. It felt like they threw it in the game just to have something extra going on and it felt like that even more so when you couldn't really help out the teens so there was no resolution to that but like you said, maybe it's because they ran out of budget or something. Otherwise this was a really great game and I'm glad it focused on a queer POC rather than just another white queer person!
There is resolution for the Soundie plot, if you didn't make mistakes in the battles... Welonz didn't make the right decisions when battling Cici
Welonz, will you revisit the Soundie battles? Sounds like there's a resolution you missed.
probably not, i think it's the game's job to give some kind of a resolution no matter what choices are made, and i'm not even sure where the decision points were to begin with
very triggerfull game hahahaha 🤪 it was fun tho
I hate when we reach the ending of these cool games…🥲