…what do you mean some words aren’t meant for me, Myrddin???
It’s a crazy thing to see myself in there, though. Thank you for the jumpscare, ToMyself. Crazy honor. I’m a little curious about Sharpestcookie, though. Wonder what theirs will be like?
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WILL BE UPDATED OVER TIME [CHAPTER 3 SPOILERS]
I need to gather my thoughts, at least I'm a little right about Myrddin, but what the hell. That's uhh, hmm. Theorising, despite chapter 3 being so close, may have been a mistake.
Now that it's released, everything I noted and theorised has been flipped on its head. Oh my gods, To Myself, thank you for the feast. Your hard work has paid off. Please take your well-deserved rest & praise! I'm so stoked about the chapter's build-up and conclusion. I never even thought of the story heading in such a direction. Though I've been having a hard time loading my saves. Is it my PC tweaking out, or is it a bug?
You honestly don't know how happy I was when I saw him bleed! At least we know that he... or more so, it is an organic being. As of right now, I'm only going to dump my current ideas exclusive to chapter 3, I have not yet gotten into the game files, BUT- I have gotten into deciphering The Song of the Depths. Is that the full entry in Myrddin's "old book"? Maybe, probably. It might even be the other person's doing.
By other person, I'm calling them the Hat Man, based on how there's only one other character illustrated (in the interactive story segment), the weird ahh mentions of silhouette, the mentions of another singular entity watching over Myrddin, the whispers, and the cold. The weird spike in mentions of the ocean, the cold, dark ocean. Especially the weird box-shaped hole the Hat Man presented to the "protagonist of the story" (Myrddin projecting alert Myrddin projecting alert). Haha, isn't it soooo weird that it's gotten so cold in the box that Myrddin is in, right?? It's like the box is in the deep ocean... or even one of the lakes, haha, so weird.
Anyhow, enough rambling, here's what I managed after going back and forth with base 64 and base 85. Figuring the ciphers out without guides is such a gratifying feeling, I can never get sick of it as a normie gamer. PLEASE skip the cipher sections of this comment if you want to figure it out yourself!
Original Cipher:
Once, the depths were steeped in harmony and peace.
The Five Rulers reigned over their sacred domains.
;-,Vj8OlBh@Vo.ZA4L9F>$"1.@7*A,A64"l@qe8T>$+NR>$"R6=]7Y.=]]]]9LD-`@9?]L8OuTi=YiZd>!kV4=]eR<@r>"RA4L<HA4&\/>$"mK>$"HQ>$"R6A4L<L8OkXOA4TaH>#Rb2>%p;W@7O=1@PTfW8P!B1@X1:cA64"l>!kVi=`$/S>#RaA@7O@?9P6LO
;HH>&@7*A&=]]]]8P!B*@sLCS8OkLY@W#4g>$!R88Oua&8OmSN@sLCV@PTZO@95:.
;HH>&@7*A)@Vo+X=]7Y.@9?]P@VoUf@TRAk@r45O8OkdX8OmSN@sLCdA64"l@qdb_
Until one day, he appeared.
A lone silhouette stood far above.
As though the depths were beneath his notice, he floated there with eerie calm.
With quiet mockery, he gazed upon the Fourth Domain.
The people of the land looked up and noticed the stranger high above them.
And within moments, they understood what he was.
SGlzIGV5ZXMu
SGlzIG5vc2Uu
883,fD/XQ=BJ'
SGUgd2FzIG5vdCBhbiBFYnlzLg==
But by then, it was already too late.
He raised his hand before them.
And the people of the depths witnessed something no soul had ever seen before.
The falling of rain.
Crimson rain.
;)3B0>!kVq@VJ/E>$"aK8P!$(@PW1EA4&[s@r3rD@qg."A4L<L8OuTm@W#(_@Vo.e@sLCT>$#6J@VJ._@7O@;@qe8O=]e:2@7*@8@P_P.@r5(UA4L<L8Okd`>#Rb$=`$/S>#R7@
<_$h>@9?*6@P_22@96<=@7O@>@TQSa@sLBpA6;HH>$"R6@kr-`A26W">!kVi@sLBp@7O?U8Ol6cA8OeY=Ya#n8P!B2A4L<VA6;]A>&@;R@qdb_
;/TDg8Ou`t>$#Nc8OlO!A6;H;=u')j@TQTD@W#%U@Vn+Z@7P-V>'Vqf
<_$h>8OuHi>!kW%=]]E^8Ou0e>$+C3>$"R6A4L<Y@P_&&@7*@8@7O@?8Ol6r8Ou`t@P_&&@7*@8@7O@;@qe8C@r3rD@qe7c=]eC2@Vn);@l%#.@PTfY>$+@/A4L<H@VJ/G@RjIF@7)k7
<&-=I8OlB18Okd`>#TWXA4L<LAQ(p4>$#ri9P6LO
And before him, the Fourth Domain erupted into chaos, shattered by the storm of scarlet.
Its land trembled and broke beneath the crimson downpour.
Its ruler fell.
Its people perished with him.
<_$h>8P!B*A4K[G@sLBp@7Nd@8Okd`=Y`ui@r57`@RjI6A4K[98OmH5@sLCd>$#NX@VJ.b>$+C58OuT1=]]E^>$"R6@r57^9P6LO
;-,Vj8Ou`t@P^bq8P!B1@X1:dA6;GZ@9?]L>!kVk=]e:A@96KF8Ou`t>#RaA=]]ia8OlBhAQLm7>!kV1@7O=1@r>=d@W"n_
VGhleSBzcG9rZSBvZiB0aGUgb25lIGZyb20gYWJvdmUu
VGhlIG9uZSB3aXRoIHRoZSBmYWNlIG9mIGFub3RoZXIgd29ybGQu
VGhlIGNoaWxkIG9mIGJvdGggd29ybGRzLg==
And just as suddenly as he had appeared, he vanished.
Leaving the remaining domains consumed by terror, forever dreading the day he might return.
N1YtIktCbDdRK0ZELDUuQTc5YStGRCw2MitFcWFIQ2grWXRBS1lyN0RKPTAqQVJsb3FEZlF0QkJPdG11K0VNNzdGIlI=
N1ZSJFcrRUx0JEViL2MoR0A+VClFY1dARkJPUSEqQk9QRW9EZjAmcitFTVhDRGUndSlEQk5WJEVjI2A0R3AkTzVBMD5pJkA6Tmsk
N1dORWErRVY6KkY8R0Y9RC5SVSwrRSktSytFVjouR3AlPEJFYi1BKkRmVEU0QVRBbzdAcHNDdUFSbUM=
O2UnNlZFYi9jKEBYMCk8Qk90bXUrRURVQEFURGlF
O2UnNlZFYi9jKEBYMCk8Qk90bXUrRTFuMUUsOSk8
NiNMM1VGKDhYIUViL2MoQFgwKTxCT3I8J0FTbEArR3AlJDsrRVY6LitDZkcrRDAnVzUrRUNuKURDdA==
</details>
After Base 85:
Once, the depths were steeped in harmony and peace.
The Five Rulers reigned over their sacred domains.
QW5kIGJlbmVhdGggZWFjaCBydWxlciByZXN0ZWQgYSBsYWtlLCBmaXZlIHNhY3JlZCB3YXRlcnMgdGhhdCByZWZsZWN0ZWQgdGhlIG5hdHVyZSBvZiB0aGUgb25lIHdobyBydWxlZCBhYm92ZSB0aGVtLg==
RWFjaCBsYWtlIHdhcyBhIG1vbnVtZW50IHRvIGl0cyBkb21haW4u
RWFjaCBvbmUgYSBsaXZpbmcgbWlycm9yIG9mIGl0cyBydWxlci4=
Until one day, he appeared.
A lone silhouette stood far above.
As though the depths were beneath his notice, he floated there with eerie calm.
With quiet mockery, he gazed upon the Fourth Domain.
The people of the land looked up and noticed the stranger high above them.
And within moments, they understood what he was.
SGlzIGV5ZXMu
SGlzIG5vc2Uu
His mouth.
SGUgd2FzIG5vdCBhbiBFYnlzLg==
But by then, it was already too late.
He raised his hand before them.
And the people of the depths witnessed something no soul had ever seen before.
The falling of rain.
Crimson rain.
Q2xhZCBpbiBkZWVwIHZpb2xldCBhcm1vciwgdGhlIHNlbnRpbmVscyBiZWdhbiB0aGVpciBtYXJjaCB0b3dhcmQgdGhlIG9uZSBhYm92ZS4=
VGhlaXIgb3ZvaWQgaGVsbWV0cyB0dXJuZWQgc2t5d2FyZCBhcyB0aGV5IGFkdmFuY2VkIHdpdGhvdXQgZmVhci4=
QnV0IHRoZWlyIGNvdXJhZ2UgbWVhbnQgbm90aGluZy4=
VGhlIHJlZCByYWluIHBpZXJjZWQgdGhyb3VnaCB0aGVtIGFzIHRob3VnaCB0aGVpciBhcm1vciB3YXMgbm8gc3Ryb25nZXIgdGhhbiBmbGVzaC4=
T25lIGJ5IG9uZSwgdGhleSBmZWxsLg==
And before him, the Fourth Domain erupted into chaos, shattered by the storm of scarlet.
Its land trembled and broke beneath the crimson downpour.
Its ruler fell.
Its people perished with him.
VGhlIHdhdGVycyB0aGF0IG9uY2UgcmVmbGVjdGVkIGhpcyByZWlnbiB3ZXJlIHN0YWluZWQgcmVkLg==
QW5kIHRob3NlIHdobyBzdXJ2aXZlZCBjYXJyaWVkIHRoZSB0YWxlIGJleW9uZCB0aGUgcnVpbnMu
VGhleSBzcG9rZSBvZiB0aGUgb25lIGZyb20gYWJvdmUu
VGhlIG9uZSB3aXRoIHRoZSBmYWNlIG9mIGFub3RoZXIgd29ybGQu
VGhlIGNoaWxkIG9mIGJvdGggd29ybGRzLg==
And just as suddenly as he had appeared, he vanished.
Leaving the remaining domains consumed by terror, forever dreading the day he might return.
N1YtIktCbDdRK0ZELDUuQTc5YStGRCw2MitFcWFIQ2grWXRBS1lyN0RKPTAqQVJsb3FEZlF0QkJPdG11K0VNNzdGIlI=
N1ZSJFcrRUx0JEViL2MoR0A+VClFY1dARkJPUSEqQk9QRW9EZjAmcitFTVhDRGUndSlEQk5WJEVjI2A0R3AkTzVBMD5pJkA6Tmsk
N1dORWErRVY6KkY8R0Y9RC5SVSwrRSktSytFVjouR3AlPEJFYi1BKkRmVEU0QVRBbzdAcHNDdUFSbUM=
O2UnNlZFYi9jKEBYMCk8Qk90bXUrRURVQEFURGlF
O2UnNlZFYi9jKEBYMCk8Qk90bXUrRTFuMUUsOSk8
NiNMM1VGKDhYIUViL2MoQFgwKTxCT3I8J0FTbEArR3AlJDsrRVY6LitDZkcrRDAnVzUrRUNuKURDdA==
After Base 64 + 85 going back & forth:
Once, the depths were steeped in harmony and peace.
The Five Rulers reigned over their sacred domains.
And beneath each ruler rested a lake, five sacred waters that reflected the nature of the one who ruled above them.
Each lake was a monument to its domain.
Each one a living mirror of its ruler.
Until one day, he appeared.
A lone silhouette stood far above.
As though the depths were beneath his notice, he floated there with eerie calm.
With quiet mockery, he gazed upon the Fourth Domain.
The people of the land looked up and noticed the stranger high above them.
And within moments, they understood what he was.
His eyes.
His nose.
His mouth.
He was not an Ebys.
But by then, it was already too late.
He raised his hand before them.
And the people of the depths witnessed something no soul had ever seen before.
The falling of rain.
Crimson rain.
Clad in deep violet armour, the sentinels began their march toward the one above.
Their ovoid helmets turned skyward as they advanced without fear.
But their courage meant nothing.
The red rain pierced through them as though their armour was no stronger than flesh.
One by one, they fell.
And before him, the Fourth Domain erupted into chaos, shattered by the storm of scarlet.
Its land trembled and broke beneath the crimson downpour.
Its ruler fell.
Its people perished with him.
The waters that once reflected his reign were stained red.
And those who survived carried the tale beyond the ruins.
They spoke of the one from above.
The one with the face of another world.
The child of both worlds.
And just as suddenly as he had appeared, he vanished.
Leaving the remaining domains consumed by terror, forever dreading the day he might return.
Fearing the day they would be punished for their sins.
Five sacred waters that had once stood in harmony and peace.
From that moment on, they were forever scarred.
Scarred by their rulers.
Scarred by their people.
And scarred by the memory of the crimson rain.
________________________________________________________
I was trying to open the GW file "The Song in the Depths", but I just couldn't since I barely understand how to read code and understand the syntax errors I was getting. While I AM in the process of figuring out GeneWeb, I hope someone out there with any know-how of this program can help us out and reveal what exactly is in the GeneWeb version of the GW file, as opposed to the notepad plain text I have. Since I have no Idea what an Ebys is, I'm assuming that it's an error on my end. Sorry.
The Sillouhette's (or who I assume to be Myrddin in some way) crimson rain, apparently pierced the sentinels' armor, killed them, and killed the Fourth Domain's king as well as their people. Crazy. What's up with the weird mention of facial features???
Another thing, Mechan hit it right on the nail with their theory! So the world, or more so the universe that Myrddin is in, is more likely to be an independent universe that JUST so happens to have a connection to us players, as opposed to the theory where Myrddin and his world are man-made and created by people of OUR world. So he's not a line of code in-lore, got it. Or maybe??? Maybe not??
But, the Hat Man or whoever the third entity is- they said that Myrddin is kind of a failed project or prototype for an unknown purpose, made by something that should never be touched. Maybe it has something to do with the person who poured down crimson rain? Also, I'm getting the feeling that a "better" or more complete version of Myrddin was created after him, or is in the process of being created. Does this have something to do with the onomastics of Myrddin's origin? From what I remember of Mechan's comments, something to do with Myrddin Wyllt having a sister?
Uwarghh, I just needed to gush out my passing thoughts here before they're forgotten. Thank you for this banger chapter, ToMyself! You've been working hard, improving the game and the experience for us players. I just want to remind you that we appreciate you, not just your work! Thank you for letting us in on such a story! The game menu was amazingly done, and the animation was cute to look at! Totally didn't look at it for a while, searching for clues. All of the aesthetic changes made the game have a more polished look. I'm loving it more every update!
I have to admit, the first time the interactive segment happened, I was nearing 120bpm and clutching the desk with all lights- lamp included- on. I'm a person who cannot handle horror, let alone ambient + psychological horror, so that was an experience! I'm looking forward to more terrifying scenes and dialogue too, lolol. The spike in horror was amazing. I didn't know ToMyself would actually code something like that. Haha.
Chibi Myrddin is suspicious, too. What do you mean you feel exposed/vulnerable in that state and therefore dislike it? Hmmm, is that all there is to it, or is it THAT deep? Why did Myrddin express his dislike for that form in THAT way? That weird topic about blinking too. I'm going back to my recording and see if I missed anything during that scene. Honestly, after Hat Man was introduced, I was half-expecting them to pop out in the room physically or do some kind of jumpscare.
Hat man, were you one of the scarred survivors of the fourth domain? Did you want to use Myrddin to get revenge on that silhouette by piercing Myrddin with your rods just as that silhouette used their crimson? rain to pierce you and your people?
Anyhow, those are just my surface thoughts that formed right after the conclusion of chapter three, and I'm looking forward to how the game will develop in the future, as well as everyone else's theories, too!
LAST thing, the cube on this page, it wasn't glowing red before, I swear. It had no glow, the same thing in the game menu, in the animated background, the cube was emitting some type of glow while pulling particles in. Is it a piece of lore? Is it for aesthetic purposes? I'm not sure. Arghhhh.
Glad to be right about Myrddin to some extent, but I don't want to be on the Hat Man's side either. I KNOW Myrddin is just using the player and will most likely harm us in some way in the future, but the Hat Man has GOTTA be exaggerating. Is it because of their vendetta against Myrddin's origins? Is Myrddin's humanity TRULY artificial?? Why is there a key in the first place if you want it stuck in the box? What deal did you make? Is there a bet or a clause regarding Myrddin escaping successfully? It can't be THIS obvious, right?? No way that confirmation of Myrddin's true self can be obtained that easily. There's GOTTA be more to this, right? Idk, idk.
(During Myrddin's crucifixion scene, reading the Hat Man's book, I was kinda comparing Myrddin to a wild animal being whipped or tortured by someone in fear of the animal realising its power and ending up mauling the torturer. You know, like how Hat Man or whatever 3rd entity there is keeps violating Myrddin for every thought or attempt at freedom? Idk, idk. Because why'd they even do that if they know Myrddin's nature cannot be changed despite the torture, as they've said in the book.)
Yeahhhh, that's enough rambling, I'm going to the game files.
Update 1:
"The one with the face of another world.
The child of both worlds.
And just as suddenly as he had appeared, he vanished.
Leaving the remaining domains consumed by terror, forever dreading the day he might return.
Fearing the day they would be punished for their sins."
Limbus company Sinclaire reference is real 100%, but on a serious note, what do you mean by " child of both worlds?? Which worlds?? Is our world involved??? Also, fym sins. What'd you guys do??
Update 2:
Sharpest cookie living up to their name. Oh my gods, thank you for your theory!! Eating it up so hard, and it's such a solidly convincing theory too!! I love reading deep lore and theories, but I hate making them since I don't have the mental capacity or analytical mind to do so! I'm glad that this game is starting to blow up with an amazing influx of theorists and lore-keepers. Reading all of these theories has been a fun read, and I'm looking forward to how they'll develop with the upcoming chapters. Their theory about the Advice option, oh my gods. Advice brings up a hell of a lot of emotions, so it's a verrryyy good source of power. I only thought there were a lot of options since ToMyself wanted to get our guard down with Myrddin and be more vulnerable to him. Sharpest cookie, uwarghh, you're amazing.
Making solid theories and analysing games, especially game files, is mortifyingly hard as a normie. I have a newfound appreciation for theorists and lore keepers now, uwarghh, keep up the good work and thank you for your service!
WOAGHHHH uhh uhh THANK UYO for replying and actually understanding my ramblings. I didn't get a notification. Sorry that I only saw this now. BUT I am thrilled, looking forward to seeing chapter three! Uwaghahh, thank you for your amiable words!!!
For the past few days, I've been trying to form, build upon, and read theories from this itch page. If you're interested, you can check my replies to Me chan's comment with a single scroll!
I'm glad to see that there are 2 videos of it each on YouTube and TikTok!! Baby steps!
Anyhow, I've been having a blast reading the game files [lmaooo nonoarea.png]. I spilt snippets of it though, under my replies to Me Chan, if you'd like me to stop for the sake of privacy, or if you're not comfortable with us data mining, I'll be more than willing to take them down!
First off, no need to apologize for the lack of fan content!! We, the fans, should worry about that!!! I'm sure more will pop up over time.
If a person can clearly define a character the way you intended, that's how you know you wrote and executed your character well. You've been doing a great job after another; it's actually kind of crazy how this game is free. Thank you again for blessing us! Although I'm worried that you may overwork yourself in the future, please be sure to enjoy yourself too!
Also, I finally fully decoded those three ciphers in the intro of the game. Last time, it errored out because I stupidly fat-fingered the backspace when I was typing the first cipher in, so in full:
The lock hums my name in the dark. I swallow the hours like rust. Somewhere, a door dreams of opening.
I have a feeling that the lock part is actually "clock", it may have been another fat-fingering mistake of mine, since in the .ogg files, there was a weird c-lock.ogg file that, when played, sounded like a man humming. (I think you mentioned this in the 0.3 devlog). There's no known "lock" in the room so far, so it was kinda suspicious. There's more to this, but I don't wanna waste your time reading!
Uwaghhhh, this "scrutinizing" approach I've been doing has been giving so much reach takes, but I guess it's what makes theory crafting fun. Please don't laugh if you actually read through some of my mini theories. What I fully stand on, however, is that Myrddin is about to break a lot of hearts [ahem ahem vocaloidsarecool] with whatever plan he's cooking up. I am NOT trusting that guy, but I WILL give him a 20% coupon from my local therapist. Also, idk, I feel like The Outers aren't really the player's allies either, like both of them are kind of using the player for their own interests.
As for not trusting the false messiah, it's still a little cloudy for me, but I have a feeling that it has something to do with the etymology of Myrddin's name... That, or we're about to deal with the bible.
One last thing, I may have discovered gold in your game files. To prevent any other players from getting spoiled, a hint I can give is that: Gold for me is more hidden info of a character, and hooooly crap did I find a lot of it.
I think you were going to use those uhhh "lines" for a new update, so I'm sorry if you didn't want us to see that.
Your love for the game is clear through your devlogs. Thank you for thinking about the players, even going so far as to reply to most comments and coding little treats in the game for certain players. Have a wonderful week as well.
Warm regards,
Player
(Please... I hope you don't get a stroke trying to read this, and I hope I'm not violating any Itch etiquette lol)
!!TW: MENTIONS OF SH AND UNALIVING ONESELF!!
3.) Idk if it's a common theory among every player here, but I think that aside from his episodes with The Outer, Myrddin's high pain tolerance may also be a result of self-harm and attempting suicide. He's mentioned failing acrobatics (universally painful experience), getting concussed, and that one time where he glitched out during his philosophical questions.
"If the past is already gone, and the future feels locked in place..."
"If there is nothing left to return to, and nothing ahead that can still be changed..."
"What does a person like that do?"
"..."
"Do they just kill-"
4.) Speaking of his philosophical question segment, istg he's projecting or something. He's like, trying to sus us out. It was like, he was checking whether or not the player is someone he can use or trust or something, like he's about to do or is planning something he's afraid that the player won't like/agree with, so he's checking if it's okay to go or re-plan a few things.
Idk, I don't really have proof for it, but I AM working on it trusttttt. There's so much more, but this comment is getting too long eoghh, uhh, I'll come back with more once I have more progress with my theories! I'd really appreciate 2nd opinions and am interested in your thoughts on this too, because most of these can be interpreted differently or are reaches. Your knowledge of Arthurian Legends can surely build on or bring new perspectives to things I've brought up.
Thank you and warm regards,
Player
2.) Also, there's something pretty sus with Myrddin's name. Or more specifically, what he says about names:
"Does it feel like it belongs to you?"
"Or does it feel like something that got handed to you and you just... kept it?"
"It's identity, but it's also a tag someone can grab."
"And they're not random, usually."
He speaks his name like he's trying to figure something out about it.
"Myrddin.... Myr..... M.."
I think you're right about his name being important, but so far, I have nothing concrete aside from Myrddin not being his true name or that there's more to his name than JUST Myrddin.
It's also odd how ToMyself went through the effort of coding Myrddin to be weird about his introduction. Either that or it's because he hasn't had much of a reason to speak his name until now. Kinda strange that there's a pause at the end, which can also be chalked up to him being awkward, but it's still... kinda sus. (Maybe ToMyself just likes adding pauses in dialogue idk).
"Let me introduce myself properly."
show m m at m_pos with m_dis
"My name is..."
"It's Myrddin."
"You can just call me Myrddin."
"Simple. Easy. Elegant!"
"..."
1. Do you think it's too much of a stretch to say that the KEY that Myrddin is referring to is the InteractWithMe! game file? It's just that I find it peculiar that Myrddin says that we, the human, perceive things differently, either because we live in 3d or "reality".
We can technically see his world from a bird's eye view undeterred, since we're not the ones confined in the jail that is Myrddin's room. Also, isn't it kinda sus that this game's Itch banner is Myrddin cradling an object that weirdly fits Myrddin's description of the key? (Sorry, I can't upload images. PLEASE LOOK AT UR GAME'S ICON!!)
"I do know of a key."
"A real one."
"Something that could open whatever is keeping me in here."
"I even know what it looks like."
"A small cube
"Ha."
"As if this place needed one more way to mock me."
"The key to my freedom shaped like the very thing that cages me."
"..."
"But I can't find it."
"Not anywhere."
"And no, it's not just lying around where I somehow failed to notice it."
"This room is far too small for that."
"If it were sitting in plain sight, I would have found it long ago."
"So it has to be hidden."
"Somewhere."
"In some way I still don't understand."
"At least..."
"Not yet."
"You're human."
"Maybe that means you perceive things differently than I do."
"Maybe you notice what I can't."
"Maybe your eyes would catch something mine keep missing."
So perhaps..."
"Perhaps you really could find that key somehow."
"Or at least help me in another way."
!!SPOILERS FOR THE GAME IN ALL REPLIES!!
AHHH, sorry, I never got a notification for both yours and ToMyself's replies. Just saw your theory thread too! That actually opened my eyes to a new possibility of the story leaning more towards a fantastical story, rather than having the entire world confined in a computer. I'd love to see more of your insight in future updates. As of right now, I'm working on multiple theories, building upon them and finding sooooomewhat good evidence to back them up.
I'm planning on releasing a video about it in the near future, but I really can't bear keeping my mouth shut anymore. So I just wanna spill some mini theories in no particular order. I'm sorry in advance if the following starts to sound stupid or incoherent. Please be warned that most of them are shallow suspicions since I don't have complete theories eoghhhh. They're all a part of the bigger theories (possible endings) I'm trying to construct, though, and I'd like to see other people's opinions about them.
Also, I have to upload my entire comment in parts since I keep getting an error message, something about verification, sorry.
Phenomenal in my very biased opinion, absolutely underrated. How come there's barely any fan content for it? Ao3, tumblr, TikTok, there isn't even any video covering this on YouTube!! This is so peak that I had to create an Itch account just to leave this review.
Long review short: the game is well-paced, and Myrddin is realistically written, like you're talking to a "real person". You don't feel the cringe from the game trying to be a real experience, the creator tackled that problem decently well, but I'm not telling how since that'd be stepping into spoiler territory. Myrddin is a natural charmer with a unique and aware personality.
Imagine a well-meaning, knowledgeable, and reliable big-brother type character. That's what I see him as ||at least at first||. He also has a lot of childish moments, properly sprinkled throughout the game, which I find pretty cute, it makes him more 3-dimensional and less shallow.
I recommend you invest in this VN; it's not monstrously perfect, a cream-of-the-crop masterpiece, or a work from the second coming of William Shakespeare, but it's a fun and engaging story that leaves you with a lot to think about. This VN will be in your mind for at least a few months with the amount of interesting content to solve, backtrack, and reflect on once the full game is released.
WARNING!!! SPOILERS BELOW!!! NONESENSICAL RAMBLES!!
I'm the type of person who prefers playing games blind, so I didn't even spare a glance at the main page to avoid getting spoiled, immediately scrolling to the download page. ||So imagine my surprise when I first opened the game and was immediately flash-banged by 3 ciphers. I'm just a casual player, so I pasted the codes on Google, nada, got nothing, so I was forced to solve them manually.
After fumbling with decoder websites, 2-3 hours later, I finally got some readable English, albeit incomplete. I got "The lock hums my name in thel£ÇJvWt...swallow the hours like rust. Somewhere, a door dreams of opening." after connecting all three ciphers at the start of the game. I plan to fully translate this when I have more time.
My experience throughout the game reminded me so much of my naïve days playing DDLC blind. That neck snap particularly gave me trauma flashbacks to Natsuki lmao. Myrddin is such a creature, I can never form a solid opinion of you.
His charming "haha I'm an awkward genius anime boy with a mysteriously sad and cryptic backstory" exterior is fr so deeply ingrained in my mind that despite all the creepy and cryptic events pointing to him not to be trusted, I just can't help but lower my guard whenever he talks. Are you good or bad? Are we going to a more grey route? Are The Outers the enemies, or is it Myrddin? Are you an Eldritch being or something? What are you, and why is the player being prevented from seeing your face? Why is there a "physical" manifestation of "water" whenever Myrddin uses his abilities? Did he make it that way? Was it originally that way?
Being a casual player sucks because I'm sure there's so much more to this, and I'm interpreting things all wrong, but I'm too inexperienced and stupid to pinpoint those details. I have so many theories on how the game will progress, too.
Anyhow, I'm otw to fumbling with game files and doing a few re-plays to see if there's any hidden lore that needs to be decoded.
(Also, I just found out there's another cipher on the game's Itch page, which was echoed at the end of the game's latest update: Do not Trust the False Messiah." What's up with the weird capitalisation on "not"? Can it also be read as "Do Trust the Messiah"? Ughhhh I can't form a solid opinion. This is so peak. Is Myrddin the Messiah? In what way is he a messiah? Is the Messiah The Outer?? The implication of a messiah is weird itself, is the phrase more of a metaphor??)
Finally, ToMyself, your work is loved, and thank you for letting us have this experience!!! We look forward to more of your work and beautifully crafted art that really fits the VN genre. Please don't rush yourself. I hope your passion for this game never fades!
Much love, player.
(You can tell this is my first time commenting on something with how hard it was to read all this. Sorry.)