The latest Merry Crisis chapter is LIVE for everyone! This is the one where things come to a head, and decisions have to be made... It also sets things up for the final chapter (before the extended epilogue).
Features:
Have one last day with Qiu, Shay, or Nat on Ubin, a little island a boat ride away from mainland Singapore.
Talk about what the future holds for the three of you, including remaining in New York or moving back to Singapore
Commit to them, or break up, or ... leave things open? (No spoilers~)
End on a cliffhanger (I'm sorry)
Author's Note:
You might notice less of the branching scenes in earlier chapters, as I'm trying to prioritize making sure I'm able to finish the game (in a satisfactory manner) and tie up all the loose ends! In the end, I still might be able to go back and do a second-pass once the story is complete :D
As always, I can't wait to hear what you guys think!
Modern/Slice-of-Life Winner 🏆 When Life Gives You Lemons
It was an incredible pleasure to interview @when-life-gives-you-lemons-if, author of the top-voted complete game in the modern/slice-of-life category for When Life Gives You Lemons—and an absolute gem and inspiration.
It's hard to find an IF that makes ordinary life feel as compelling as saving the world as the chosen one, but WLGYL does exactly that. It lets you live your best (or most chaotic) life as a single parent navigating the ups and downs of everyday life—and perhaps finding love again. Best of all, it has been submitted to Hosted Games and will hit shelves (well, digital shelves) once the publishing process is done!
See the full list of winners in this category here.
About the author
I’ve been writing IF since 2020. English is not my first language. I speak French, and a bit of Spanish. I have a sweet tooth.
About the game
Hot singles in your area, but also, you’re trying to care for your child/sibling.
Tell me more about your journey into interactive fiction or what you're working on now
Working on A Taste of Heat. It’s a chef-inspired story where the MC starts working at a Michelin-starred restaurant after a rather tumultuous breakup. Work-life balance is really at the core of this story: managing a staff while dealing with your own personal baggage, all while trying not to fall in love. I’ve been writing IFs since 2020, and so far I’ve really enjoyed the ride. I just want to keep writing fun, fluffy stories that readers can resonate with.
What was the inspiration for this game, and why did you want to write a story in this genre?
The inspiration for When Life Gives You Lemons mostly came from my need to write something fluffy, sweet, and very low-stakes. My previous project at the time was a horror/fantasy story, so I really needed something different. Something that would just make me giggle, kick my feet, and make all the ROs fall in love with the MC.
How has your identity, heritage/background, or personal experience influenced your storytelling?
My first game, The Midnight Saga, was heavily inspired by my background and where I'm from. The story itself is based on an old Haitian folklore about not staying outside after midnight—if you do, the Keeper of Midnight will eat you. I took that idea and built the characters around it.
I even managed to include some spells written in Haitian Creole. It was a lot of fun to write, and even though Book 2 is currently on hiatus, this story has a special place in my heart because it was my first game. The characters are a representation of my people and the struggles they’ve gone through. I’m really happy that it was my debut story.
What does your writing process look like (e.g. for worldbuilding, character, plot)? Any tips, tricks, routines or approaches that have worked very well for you?
My writing process is a mess. My brain gets pulled in so many directions. When I get an idea, I have to code it, shape it, and give it life—otherwise, it’s going to bug me forever. That’s why I end up with so many WIPs. I need to see them through, at least to a short demo, to see if they make sense.
My desk is also full of notes, and I basically write on anything—pieces of napkins, tissue boxes, whatever is nearby. One weird habit I have is that some of the best changes I’ve made to my games, those "spark" moments, happen when I’m in the shower. It’s weird and strange, but it works.
For folks who enjoyed your IF, what other book/music/movie should they check out with the same ‘vibe’, (whatever that means to you)?
That list of modern/slice-of-life IFs you guys put together is honestly such a nice place for readers to start. It has a little bit of everything, and they’ll definitely be busy for a while reading through all those amazing stories.
What're you excited to implement or work on next?
Laws of Passion is a legal drama-inspired story. I’ve been obsessed with some really interesting legal cases making headlines lately, so I can’t wait to dive in and give readers my own little version of what the legal world could be like. And of course, there’ll also be plenty of romance and drama.
Fun with the modern/slice-of-life genre
Personal fave profession: Being an assistant.
Personal fave modern setting: Small town, where everyone knows each other’s business.
If you were transported into the setting above, as the profession you selected, what would be the main current plot ‘struggle’ be: MC is on the run, trying to blend in and hide her real identity from the townsfolks.
At long last, the latest chapter is LIVE for ko-fi and patreon supporters! This is the one where things come to a head, and decisions have to be made... It also sets things up for the final chapter (before the extended epilogue).
Features:
Have one last day with Qiu, Shay, or Nat on Ubin, a little island a boat ride away from mainland Singapore.
Talk about what the future holds for the three of you, including remaining in New York or moving back to Singapore
Commit to them, or break up, or ... leave things open? (No spoilers~)
End on a cliffhanger (I'm sorry)
I've also made some overall edits to the earlier chapters (as I had to streamline it and wrangle it into shape for possibly ending the game properly!!
I'm so sorry that it took a while. As always, I can't wait to hear what you guys think!
Public drop:
Chapter 5 will likely go public in about a week, definitely before Christmas. I've updated the earlier chapters on the public demo link, so that your saves will match up with the new chapter when it drops!*
*Do note that old saves will likely not work due to the edits made!
Please let me know if you encounter any issues, I will be polishing and fixing bugs over the next 2-3 days :)
Join us for the 5th Annual Amare Games Festival in February 2026.
A Festival and Game Jam celebrating love and diversity in story-focused games!
Amare Games Festival 2026
Join us in February for the 5th Annual 2026 Amare Games Festival, a festival and game jam celebrating love and diversity in story-focused games!
For this festival we invite you to create or update a game that you believe falls under the Amare Genre tag!
Don't forget to Sign up for the Festival on the Amare Games Festival Itch Page.
A game jam from 2026-02-01 to 2026-03-15 hosted by Amare Games & Jeneara. Hello and Welcome to the 2026 Amare Games Festival <3 A celebratio
Guidelines
For this game festival, we invite you to create a new game or update an existing game that you believe falls under the Amare Genre Tag!
The festival runs for 6 weeks.
Why a festival?
Jams are an awesome way to get the creative juices flowing and challenge yourself to create a game in a short amount of time. However, there are already a lot of amazing projects in progress, so it's important to celebrate those and give people the opportunity to focus on setting and achieving goals with their existing projects as well.
Examples of Submissions
A new game.
A new demo or Vertical slice.
A new chapter update to an existing game.
Adding new features or content to an existing game.
The festival has fairly relaxed rules, but in general, we would like all participants to keep these in mind:
Rules:
You must Release or Update during the festival period. Work can commence before the start of the festival.
You must tag your game as 'Amare' - This will ensure people who are watching the tag instead of just the jam page will see your game.
Please clearly label demos or first episodes as such. - This is to help us organise the entries
Please clearly state the exact update or new content that was added during the festival.
Submissions can be Free or Commercial.
NSFW must be properly labelled, but is fine as long as it adheres to Itch.io's TOS
No hate speech, (i.e. speech that promotes hatred, violence or discrimination against groups of people based on ethnicity, religion, gender, age, disability or sexual orientation.) or content that is patently offensive or intended to shock or disgust viewers.
Content Warnings are needed (Here is a link to help you with those if you need it!)
We currently do not support AI generated games or games that make use of generative AI in any form, including writing and art. Until legislation is put in place to ensure ethical training models that respect artist and creator copyright and regulate transparency on the use of AI in creative content, we will not allow the submission of games that utilise generative AI.
Join the discord to find others who are looking for festival partners, and to talk with other Amare Devs!
You can find more games from previous festivals on our website Amaregames.com or under the Amare tag in Itch.io.
We also created a Special Edition Amare Games Festival Bulletin for 2025 and will be keeping up the new tradition in 2026
💬 0 🔁 35 ❤️ 150 · Special Edition - Amare Games Festival Issue Release (2025) · Hello everyone!
The Amare Games Festival Bulletin is out
You must become your own being, for you are no longer a part of your ''Creator.''
WARNING; THIS GAME IS RATED 18+ ADULTS ONLY. IT WILL HAVE NSFW THEMES SUCH AS SMUT, MURDER, GORE, RAPE, INCEST.
Indelible Godhood is a text-based romance, porn, world building, reverse/harem game. You play as a God who's been sealed away just right after being created.
Your mission and goal is to gather strength as a God, while also obtaining the soulstones of your siblings by two ways- forcing them by killing them/torturing them or adding them to your devotees. This world isn’t as it seems, and you’ll figure that out on your own way.
Everyone is awaiting you, they all have different thoughts of you. Many choices and consequences are to be made.
yo! a few days ago i made a short little choose-your-own-adventure game inspired by the likes of Stories Untold and Kitty Horrorshow's work! check it out if youre interested :P
This took like 5 months so. Since a year has passed since then, I'm finally feeling cool about it enough to share it with other human beings.
We, Still Here is a post-apocalyptic text-based care simulator. Which is to say, the gameplay involves receiving care from the hands of your fellow survivors in an undefined post-apocalyptic environment. There is no way you can fail, no wrong choices, and no bad endings.
Made in Twine, gameplay involves the player clicking links to drift through tangents and progress the story. There are two narrative branches, where the player character partakes in a meal or is washed clean, or both. Throughout these activities, the narrative features meditation on interdependence, care and community, and grief and loss.
Content warnings can be accessed by pressing 'game' on the landing page the file takes you to (which will also explain how to play the game for those unfamiliar with Twine), though it cannot account for all potentially upsetting content. Generally, the game explores trauma and surviving in the wake of it, grief, loss, and the complexity of being in relation when living with health (both physical and mental) difficulties. All these are explored through the lens of being safe and cared for in the present, but are applied both to the player character and other characters. Please take care of yourself when playing, and step away from the game as needed.
We, Still Here was made for a deadline, and has some coding errors, though nothing game-breaking as far as I'm aware. I thought I'd make it available for others to play in the hope that someone else might find it a source of joy and comfort, but it is far from perfect. This project will not be updated or edited.
Features Avrin and Vytra :) With Raelin + Zera as background characters. Has kissing as a potential event, but isn't treated as the right, true, or 'most intimate' action.
Please make sure to check the content warnings! Especially regarding food, touch, and illness <3
