Post by AliceRiddle in OBSCURA comments

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AliceRiddle2 years ago (3 edits) (+9)(-1)

If you are targeting my comment specifically, then I have to insist that Cirrus IS CARING, because he follows an aftercare session. Something that lacks in 99.9% of all indie or japanese visual novels that feature rough, jerk, yandere or disturbing love interests that constantly dominate over the mc and harm them physically, emotionally or mentally. No one bats an eye at the stuff some of them do to the mc, yet it takes a self-proclaimed dark romance game, with shady love interests to finally have an aftercare session after an intense bdsm scene.

It's fine if it's not your kink, lol. I do not see myself as a submissive either, but I liked Cirrus' scenes, as someone who is dom-leaning myself. I find them to be well done for the reasons I suggested above.

Is Cirrus a good person? No, he's shady as hell; the game doesn't excuse him. This game has trigger warnings: it's a dark romance visual novel. But he's a well written dominant love interest 🤷

Maybe next time you comment, maybe try whining less about what other players like, and spend more time commenting on what you liked or want to improve about the game, instead.

Carl18432 years ago (11 edits) (+3)

oh, no i wasn't targeting your comment directly, sorry if you thought that way! and while i DO understand as you said, most games hold yanderes worse than cirrus, i still think he's a little iffy specifically because of the MC's inner dialogue at the end of his good route! the MC is unsure and feels something is wrong, and personally im not too okay with it. and the aftercare session was sweet, but it doesn't last long, or change the fast either he stabs us or we stab ourselves AND he gives us this sus ass drink that makes us feel like dog shit hurled up in a ball and then thrown around a few times until being tossed in some dumpster fire.

while i DO know i did start off my comment with throwing cirrus at the bad end, it doesn't really change my enjoyment and excitement for further development lol. i didn't talk about how to improve the game because i for one thought it was perfect as is! no glitches to report, nothing unexpected, and an overall smooth gaming experience with good visuals and sound effects.

as i said, i read the warnings and loved the game, so i just want to let you know im not mad at the dark themes because it was 100% expected! im just saying how i felt lmao, not really anymore than that. and i know i was a bit of a rant and nag, but im fine with other players who enjoyed his route and the dark romance genre is always SUPER interesting! i'm not whining- i don't think? i didn't really see myself like that, at least. but sorry if i was. 〒▽〒

maybe i should've thrown some emotes there to sound friendlier, which i guess i will in a few minutes to prevent further misunderstandings- but i wasn't like batshit angry or anything don't get me wrong. i was just high on adrenaline after finishing the game. ಥ_ಥ

Tebnet1 year ago(+1)

I totally get what you mean, and it made me a bit uncomfy as well. Yes, Cirrus did the aftercare and depending on your choices the MC can be totally into it. But the fact is just saying "no" and walking away isn't presented as an option in those scenes. The MC is in a situation where "no" means death in this situation. At no point does Cirrus give them a safe word and no sort of discussion about kinks and boundaries is had beforehand. None of this is okay in safe, responsible, and consensual BDSM. Plus it's all attached to a religion that the MC hasn't necessarily joined. And that's okay because this is just a game and not every relationship is sunshine and rainbows. But the consent in this situation is dubious at best, and Cirrus is by no standard a caring and responsible dom.

sabrieal1 year ago(-2)

he kinda coerced her into sw n in one of the endings he kills her for not being intrested in him. Also he sa's her for stopping him so idk about him being caring hes just manipulative

Tebnet1 year ago (1 edit)

There needs to be more than just aftercare in responsible BDSM. The fact that we get a safe word and the MC doesn't shows the developers are well aware of that. They're being coerced, and I don't think the game excuses it. It's okay to enjoy relationships like this in fiction - especially when it's so engaging and well-written like it is here. But if Cirrus is being billed as a caring dom he needs to discuss things BEFORE a session and give the MC an option to say no without consequences. The consent between them was dubious at best, forced at worst depending on the choices made.

AliceRiddle1 year ago (1 edit) (+1)(-1)

I wish I stopped getting notifications to this comment because I am sick of people reminding me of what I already know. Yes, I am well aware, but as you might know, this is a dark game with love interest that are not good people ( I mean, have you seen Cirrus' bad ending? it involves human trafficking). Expecting healthy, and realistic depictions of relationship dynamics is absurd. Of course Cirrus is manipulative, that's obviously his whole thing as a character. It's made clear, by how your interactions with him are, mc's constantly 'persuaded' or 'nudged' towards him to the point of no longer being able to reject him.. Of course such an early bdsm scene would have always been dubious at best and forced at worst on the principle that their power dynamic has been unbalanced as hell FROM THE START. All I'm saying is that COMPARED TO OTHER LIS FROM OTHER DARK ROMANCE GAMES OR EVEN COMPARED TO DARK ROMANCE NOVELS, Cirrus' scenes are better written, gentler and more caring due to the integration of the aftercare session. That is all I mean.

Tebnet1 year ago (1 edit)

I did say that it's okay to have "unhealthy" relationships in fiction. There's a growing purity culture that shames any media that isn't positive - especially when it comes to LGBT relationships. I just believe it's also important to have conversations like this, especially around BDSM which I think is often misunderstood. How caring he's being I think is up to interpretation since it's established he's manipulative and has ulterior motives, but I do appreciate he's making somewhat of an effort to comfort the MC, rather than just leaving them. If we're comparing this to another depiction of BDSM like 50 Shades of Grey, Cirrus is much better. The aftercare session is why I'm putting closer scrutiny towards him, since I can't just dismiss him as a total bastard if he appears to have some idea of what constitutes healthy BDSM but is still raising all the red flags. I hpe in the future these are the types of conversations he and the MC have as they grow closer together.

AliceRiddle1 year ago(+1)

We seem to agree more than we disagree on these matters, so I will apologize for the angry wording I had to my previous comment since it came from misunderstanding the intent behind your original comment. Conversations definitely need to be had on how lgbt relationships are written; but also on how bdsm dynamics are more than often frequently used as complementary violence for abusive relationships (talking about dark romances books that are filled with terribly pseudo-'bdsm' initiated sex scenes, when it's just violence and abuse...).

It's just frustrating for me, since this is the first time I get to witness a dominant ( speaking outside of bdsm terms) character written in the way Cirrus is. Typically they are physically forceful in a brutish way and very demeaning and smug-ish towards the main character. I've grown to hate the characters that are portrayed in such manner from the various romance inclined media that I consume. There's an abundance of them from novels, vns and games; So Cirrus was a breath of fresh air, for me at least. I guess that's why I feel a tiny bit protective over him, even thought I'm well aware he's a trash fictional 'husband' material (lol). He did better than most male leads I've had the displeasure of reading about :). Not perfect, not even close, but better. The bar is really that low when we have no other better portrayals.

Finally, I do heavily agree with your last statement. I am hoping for the relationship to develop into something closer to the green zone, at least when it comes to intimate sessions that involves trust and consent. I'm expecting some emotional development between Cirrus and the mc to occur eventually as the devs did promised us each lis will have their own happy love ending with no 'gatcha!' moment.

Tebnet1 year ago(+1)

I'm glad we understand each other. Too often posts on the internet devolve into just sniping at each other, so I tend to avoid them (which just shows how much I enjoyed this game). This interaction was actually quite refreshing :)

itch.io

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