SPOILERS AHEAD FOR SAIHATE STATION!!
Holy fuck I just finished getting all of the endings for Saihate Station and was sobbing for like a good 15mins after the fact. Not to mention ugly crying while playing it. So beautiful, really well written and the artstyle is so cute, just like- I have no words even though I want to rant about how good it was, my words are all scrambled.
I feel like characters like Shion Tatsunami are often not seen as being deserving of love/the ending where they end up with the love interest/mc is the bad ending, not the like. Main ending. I admittedly don’t know a lot about this game since I just got into it today, so I don’t know about canonical endings or if there are any, but that felt like the canonical ending since we got more things answered whereas the ending I initially thought was the canonical ending still leaves both the player and Akinashi with unresolved questions and feelings.
It kinda just really got me (in a good way) that the Z Ending had them sticking together and both “choosing” each other. I feel like I never see that? I was honestly a little worried there’d be no happy ending where they end up together cause that’s pretty common with queer media :( so I’m really glad ending Z exists and they can be happy T^T
That beach scene I think was when the tears started, plus gifting the fake flower to Tatsunami and his line about fake flowers not dying and lasting forever which is clearly meant to be about their relationship- and this is me speculating/theorizing- and how before the basis for their relationship was built off of lies and (at least how Akinashi saw it) Tatsunami using him to feel better about himself (which is a notion Tatsunami fights against and I mean by how Z ending ends, it’s pretty clear that they’re rebuilding a new relationship that’s more stable and healthier than before.)
Also kinda unrelated but not really, I have this whole thing where this trope I’ve found where the main pairing in media end up with the option to be alone at the edge of the world never fails to make me sob. Except this time, rather than having them decide to go back to where they’d be separated again, they stuck together in the place they can be free. Together, forever.
From a gameplay perspective, I suck at gaming because of my chronic pain and I found it was an easy game that focused on narrative with a few cool puzzles and running sections.
Also, just something to add, I wasn’t expecting it to actually be scary, but it got a few little jumps out of me a few times which was fun.
I can’t wait for the DLC to be translated, I’m very excited to learn more about Tatsunami and his whole backstory.
Loved Saihate Station. This view of it is really cool and something I heavily agree with, especially with how characters like Shion are viewed. Obviously, he is not a good person, but I feel like people ignore a lot of the reasons as to why other than him being "crazy" or a "yandere" (not saying these terms can't fit, but it's more than that). Shion is a character that when I tried to explain him and his motivations to someone aloud, I stumbled over my words like crazy because there's so many layers. For context, I have not played the DLC, so I can't comment on the context there. Still, within the main game, it feels like Shion is a person who is unable to properly explain his own actions due to not wanting to acknowledge the root cause, which is why he insists him killing people was just for Haru, when it doesn't feel like just that. The manager was ableist. If she knew how Shion really was, she would have hated him, too. She was a reflector of his parents. The bullies targeted Haru presumably for his "abnormalities," which, within the games context, are likely his penchant for activities deemed feminine (like cooking). If Shion was more open about who he was, he'd be harassed and bullied as well, even if it's for somewhat different reasons. With Aoi, it's obviously not just Haru. It's everything with their family. Still, Shion believes so firmly in doing good that he convinces himself it's for Haru. Shion is defending himself, in a way, even if he doesn't realize it, and it's not the right way to go about it. Ending Z really encapsulated these feelings for me because it allows us to see a more honest Shion. One where his fascination with Haru is more than a desire for superiority, but a sense of genuine connection between them that Shion couldn't/refused to understand in the other endings. A connection in their shared "abnormalities". Their shared "weakness". In Ending Z, they are codependent, but we also see why. Haru isn't "normal" either, though in a different way from Shion. Haru is also a man with sadistic tendencies, and I feel like that's why he accepts Shion in such a way in Ending Z. They're mirrors the other doesn't want to see themselves in, but they do in Ending Z, even if they've abandoned everything else. It's a sad ending — bittersweet — but one that makes sense with the characters.
They can be together in their own world, a place of their creaion, a place where the pain of the world they once knew ends. A place where they're safe. Because the real world wasn't made for "people like them" to live in. The real world ostracizes those who are unwell and drives them to their limits. There is no need to fantasize about escaping through the form of a balcony. No need to crumble under responsibilities you never asked for. Just them, together, forever.
Loved this game so much. Thanks for posting about it, OP. Excuse my little ramble.