That tumblr poll made me remember I wanted to play split ficti•n so I started it with sister, we’re like a bit under halway through probably
1. for a game about writers that was presumably written by writers, both the writer characters really don’t feel like writers to me. the fact that there’s zero emphasis on the main characters of their various story ideas makes them feel more like game devs or illustrators, more scenario stuff and concept art rather than writing or prose stuff
2. at one point the sci-fi writer was like ‘no themes, only action’ and I know it was a joke(ish) and mio does do a lot of denial but I was like. that doesn’t work. for prose. there’s a reason why there are john wick movies and video games and comics but not a novelization. because prose and dialogue can’t carry continuous action sequences. also the story was about the sun exploding and people trying to stop it so like, to have the sci fi author treat a story ideas like that as only action is just. incongruous. again, that’d be a video game or movie way to treat it since those are visual mediums...
3. one of my friends said (neutrally) that the writing for the story-within-a-story felt a little barbie movie writing and I agree with that and I think it applies to the overall writing as well. Granted some of the story ideas are from when they were kids but not all of them
4. I prefer older characters but genuinely the way it’s written and how the characters are it feels like I’d take less issue if the main characters were high schoolers. every single one of zoe’s stories have some childhood memory related to her sister? When she’s mid to late 20s that gets immersion-breaking but if she was 15 I wouldn’t bat an eye. hell I wouldn’t even think much of mio’s ‘no themes only action’ comment.
5. but another way to make it more congruous with writers is if the focus was on concepts rather than stories yknow? ‘Yeah I just wanted to write an action scene’ or ‘I was vaguely thinking up a plot’ rather than This Is A Story I Made
6. It’s kind of like if quick transmigration had no characters
7. EACH SECTION AND BOSS FEELS SO LONG. LIKE RIDICULOUSLY LONG. WAY TOO LONG.
8. They shouldve pigeonholed themselves and made another divorce game. make them exes (even ex friends or ex acquaintances would be juicy). classmates that fell out ten years ago and haven’t been in touch since. Come on
9. Could be more yuriful. We got them sitting on a bench and mio saying ‘you’re the only one who knows this about me’ but the shallow writing interferes with hitting that heated drama and a deeper way they could be foils to each other.
I kind of have the same issue with kamen rider saber as in if you’re going to have a character that’s a writer, it needs to be incorporated more. Themes about themes. The process of writing. I still want to finish playing the game but I just think it’s not very well written or designed so far. Like not *bad* as in not bad enough for me to stop but not. good.
@aphantomdweeb replied to your post “That tumblr poll made me remember I wanted to play...”:
i felt the same wayyyyyy
another friend said the writing picks up more around the second half so I'm hoping it gets more juicy and/or it feels more like writer characters. I think I didn't get as fatigued by it takes two because each section was a little shorter... oh yeah
10. I think given the scenario, the deaths could've been diegetic rather than non-diegetic
I have to say this one for my friend Aaron because he played Split Fiction a while ago and wouldn't stop complaining about this for a whole week: 11. She said "eggtastic." That's the wrong egg pun, that's not correct
