Perhaps there should be another story where a Goldie that is nearing 30 and never has had a real job or dated anyone gets a Mari mannequin that tells her to omit her education and achievements, hide anything different or special about herself, not fly too close to the sun and apply to things other than her field, so we get a miraculous story where she moves out of her parents' house and is finally paying her own bills
A thought-provoking story about someone's "current" self VS their "ideal" self. An interesting read, and one that's growing on me the more I think about and reflect on it afterwards (however painful that might be, recognizing aspects of myself in the story 😰).
The scripting and ATL are super well done! 🎉 Really dynamic and expressive! And I appreciated the camera work and the custom screen transition(s) - those were cool.
There’s definitely an “aftertaste”Marigold’s Mannequin leaves people haha and it was wonderful working with the incredibly talented team to bring this experience to life!
Cygni’s premise is so fascinating and it was quite a unique experience to write (I self-reflected a lot too during the process haha)
It was very well-written, and I think you did a great job with the characters! Mari really is a very infuriating MC though, what with how incredibly stubborn she is. I did feel sorry for her, though, which is pretty impressive. You did a great job writing a character who's irritating, but also sympathetic. She felt very believable, too. She's giving big depressed vibes haha, she might be a bit too relatable...
Goldie is also such a sweetheart! I liked her a lot, she's such a fun character. I love her fashion sense (or should I say Mari's fashion sense?) too!
This was a really nice read, so thank you for creating it! I enjoyed my time with it a lot!
This was a great experience to play! I love the story concept.
(somewhat spoilery thoughts below)
Even though Goldie was a nice Doppelgänger, things still ended up going the way they usually do in these stories, which creates an eerie sense of inevitability. Mari might have remained stuck with her unsatisfying life otherwise, but being faced with an idealised version of yourself who is nothing but good and kind and only wishes the best for you didn't make it any better for her either. And it makes sense, because being confronted by who you could be without all the issues and ingrained self-manipulation and accumulated exhaustion from trying to get through life isn't something that'll feel good.
It's very easy to turn into Mari and become too tired and angry and resigned to have any energy to even want things to be better. Putting all that aside to open yourself up to a chance to improve things is hard. I can definitely relate to her. Even when you know it's not ill-intentioned, people being unflappably optimistic to the point that it feels like they don't see your pain and your difficulties can feel very frustrating.
I think it was a great choice to not have a "good" ending where suddenly everyone gets along and is happy following their dreams. I appreciated the look at the bleak way the situation turned out no matter the final choice rather than having a feelgood message,
The music was well-chosen and really brought across the underlying horror atmosphere. All the aspects of this VN came together very well for a coherent experience. Great job by everyone on the team!
This one was a real surprise! The tone is quite different compared to a lot of other entries in the jam, and I liked it a lot! Mari is such an interesting protagonist; she's someone I sympathize with, because work life definitely isn't easy, while getting beaten down and giving up comparatively is. Goldie is also a well realized character; much easier to like than Mari, but you could see why Mari would be frustrated with her; keeping a positive attitude in the face of difficult circumstances, and actually willing to fight for change, someone stuck in a rut like Mari is might easily take it as an attempt to outdo her.
It's painful, and frustrating to see Mari constantly refuse to try and improve her life when opportunities start to present themselves, and I was impressed with how well she was written. Lastly, I really wanna compliment the sprites and the sheer amount of expressions they have. Both Mari and Goldie are so expressive because of that, and it really helps get you engaged with the dialogue!
All in all, great work! I won't be forgetting the endings to this one any time soon.
(Copied from the Spooktober jam review page to help this game with Itch.io's algorithm!)
Wow, wow, wow - thank you for making this. The writing and the central thesis of this visual novel struck a chord with me.
Mari is painfully realistic. I've been in her position - especially when I was actively job-hunting right after graduating university. Her browsing r/antiwork, feeling jealous of her successful peers and failing her interview for her dream job by a hair's breadth struck a nerve with me. That said, Mari violently rejecting every genuine offer of help from her friends and especially Goldie really gave me goosebumps - you've really captured the existence of someone who hates her life, but doesn't want to do anything to help herself change it for the better.
And of course, I can't talk Mari without talking about Goldie - her direct counterpart. She's someone who's actively choosing to be kind and genuine about everything - from how she presents herself to maintaining her friendships. It sounds silly on paper, but I really will think about her and how she goes about life when I make decisions in the future. There really is something satisfying about going out and doing something to change your life, versus sitting around and complaining about it.
Again, thank you for making this work - I really enjoyed this. A hearty recommendation from me.
Thank you for the review and thoughtful comment! It’s super rewarding and meaningful to hear that you will take Goldie with you IRL! (Not silly at all haha, we all have a Mari and Goldie inside us. I find myself reflecting on this sometimes too!)
I’m so glad that the characters struck a chord, thank you so much for playing and for your recommendation 😭
I really loved playing Malviolence btw and can’t wait to try protoviolence, it’s hot at the top of my to play!
What an enjoyable story, I felt like I was playing an episode of Goosebumps or "Are you Afraid of the Dark?" I was expecting more horror since the was was for spooktober gamejam but this kind of frights are fine too, a little bit of fun, a little bit of mystery and a whole lot of character personality.
The music is nice, the character design and portraits as well as the animations elevate the experience a lot, my favorite part were definitely the endings, such a good closing for the story, very satisfying.
Another great aspect that was really REALLY well done was all the choices we make trough the game, even if they don't affect the ending they go a long way on making the player actually relate and feel the story and emotions of the character.
I personally related a lot to Mari(gold) and her views on life so I often clashed with the narrative of the game but that's more of a personal opinion than anything and it did not affect my enjoyment of the game at all.
My only "issue" is that maybe the story stretches a bit too long in some points, although is very nice to see the slow decent to madness of the protagonist and how everything slowly crumbles, regardless of who's fault it is; aside from a really nice spooky story it makes for a great self introspective cautionary tale.
Thank you so much for playing and the feedback! I’m glad you appreciated the choices and that the endings were your favourite part! Was there one spooky ending you liked best?
(Also happy to hear the choices felt relatable to the emotions of the characters! It was tricky writing them for a linear story with only branches at the end. Hehe I added them in pretty last minute from beta-reader feedback XD)
And I agree that this was definitely more a goosebumps/twilight zone vibe and a dark comedy rather than a full pee-your-pants kind of horror haha.
I am looking to experiment more with suspense and scary stories in the future (hopefully I don’t scare myself too much LOL)
Wow. What a story this was. I'm not sure I enjoyed my experience, honestly. It felt too real, too uncomfortable, too self-cringe-inducing, too depressingly relatable. While I can't say I had fun reading this, I can confidently say I felt this story on a deeply personal level.
it must take an incredibly skilled writer to get a reader to self-reflect to this extent. I couldn't help wondering as I was reading whether I, like Mari, have ever been stuck in the same sort of negative, nihilistic, and ultimately self-destructive patterns of thought and behavior. I'm pretty sure that, at certain points in my life, I would be dwelling on ideas and engaging in harmful habits like hers.
At the same time, I also felt good about myself when reading some parts of the story. Mari doesn't have a very effective filter, for better or for worse, so her bitterness slipped out in front of others so many times. I would then tell myself: well, at least I'm not that terrible to those around me! One example was when Mari thinks about commenting on someone's social media. That might be one of my favorite scenes because it felt so authentic. It was interesting being stuck in what possibly is similar to the mindset of many internet trolls. I'm sure a lot of them are deeply unhappy individuals who want to lash out in the only platform where they can do so invisibly and without consequence so that they can feel better about themselves, however briefly.
Goldie served as a flawless foil to Mari's character. Amidst Mari's spiral deeper and deeper into pessimism and hopelessness, Goldie acted as the perfect counterpoint for the reader's benefit -- she showed that a better path does exist, if only one dared to reach out and grab it. While nothing in life is easy, one will never get anywhere if they gave up and stopped trying to change for the better.
Overall, this is a story I won't soon forget! I am very grateful to the team for developing and releasing this thought-provoking and emotionally resonant visual novel. You're all amazing!
(Note: Copy-pasting this comment from the Spooktober VN Jam 2023 page.)
😭😭😭 Thank you so much again for this lovely comment and your level of attention to the writing! It means a lot to hear that this piece has sparked so much thought and reflection.
I’m really happy that you related to it and appreciate you sharing your experience! I actually found myself overthinking a while back and then I thought to myself I need to get on a Goldie train of thought XD
I had the opportunity to beta read for this, and it was such a pleasure seeing the project come to life with the visuals, animations, music, and sound effects! The sprite art is lovely, with lovely shading and really bold linework that stands out well against the backgrounds, which were photo alterations that were given a filter with a very painterly look. The sprites are incredibly expressive, and Mari and Goldie have such distinct and memorable designs. I loved the browns and slightly muted colors of the color palette - it felt very "autumny"/'Halloween-like." The music is very atmospheric. This game is FULL of animations, transitions, and the like, making it seem very dynamic and making good use of the sprites to produce a variety of shot compositions.
I really enjoyed this story - it's a little creepy, a little supernatural, but also really relatable.
==SPOILERS BELOW==
When I was first reading the premise, I thought that Goldie would surely turn out to be some wicked supernatural entity that steals away Mari's life. However, it turns out to be the opposite - Mari is responsible for everything that goes wrong in her life, while Goldie tries her best to help Mari improve. Mari's downward spiral is frustrating at times to read, but it is also incredibly relatable; I think that many people can relate to Mari's desire to stick with what's "safe," without taking risks to strive for what she really wants. And at the end she blames Goldie for everything that she's dissatisfied with, without taking responsibility for her own inaction. It's an incredibly clever use of "horror" - instead of the protagonist having to fend off some external force, the real "horror" comes from her own actions. I really loved how creepy and yet satisfying the endings were. My favorite was probably the one where Mari turns into a mannequin herself - although it's a pretty tragic ending, it felt oddly fitting for her character.
Wow, thank you so much for the detailed review and noticing all the little touches the team put in! I totally agree with the autumny feel and I’m so glad the story felt relatable, Cygni’s concept really resonated with me too!
Thank you for sharing your favourite ending too heheh, that was a favourite of mine too! I’m so happy I got the opportunity to add more endings to the original outline. It was loads of fun to explore the Mari Goldie dynamic further (I did my best to bring some wholesomeness into the story haha since Mari is such a downer, so she’s offset by Goldie’s energy!)
Hopefully it inspires folks to lean into their inner Goldie at times and keep a good balance when managing our Maris 😉
I really liked the story, felt like a very relatable thing, yet constantly making you wonder "who" was right, and "who" was being truthfull. Wether it was a scheme, or an actual helping hand in some way?
HAD to check all the endings, and I was hoping for the one option that was left out (to avoid spoilers) But I tottaly get the reasons behind said choice!
Also loved the art style, and the expressions and movements of the camera.
← Return to Doppelgänger
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Perhaps there should be another story where a Goldie that is nearing 30 and never has had a real job or dated anyone gets a Mari mannequin that tells her to omit her education and achievements, hide anything different or special about herself, not fly too close to the sun and apply to things other than her field, so we get a miraculous story where she moves out of her parents' house and is finally paying her own bills
are all your games blind accessible?
A thought-provoking story about someone's "current" self VS their "ideal" self. An interesting read, and one that's growing on me the more I think about and reflect on it afterwards (however painful that might be, recognizing aspects of myself in the story 😰).
The scripting and ATL are super well done! 🎉 Really dynamic and expressive! And I appreciated the camera work and the custom screen transition(s) - those were cool.
Thank you so much for playing!
There’s definitely an “aftertaste”Marigold’s Mannequin leaves people haha and it was wonderful working with the incredibly talented team to bring this experience to life!
Cygni’s premise is so fascinating and it was quite a unique experience to write (I self-reflected a lot too during the process haha)
I've never seen a game explain the concept of losing yourself so well, bravo!
this game is Goldie all the way down!
ahh thank you so much!! ❤️
Aaa this was a frustrating read haha...
It was very well-written, and I think you did a great job with the characters! Mari really is a very infuriating MC though, what with how incredibly stubborn she is. I did feel sorry for her, though, which is pretty impressive. You did a great job writing a character who's irritating, but also sympathetic. She felt very believable, too. She's giving big depressed vibes haha, she might be a bit too relatable...
Goldie is also such a sweetheart! I liked her a lot, she's such a fun character. I love her fashion sense (or should I say Mari's fashion sense?) too!
This was a really nice read, so thank you for creating it! I enjoyed my time with it a lot!
haha thank you, this is more of an all too real everyday horror. Life of a modern doomscrolling woman 😩
And yes, space bicycle jackets are the way to go! 😎 I love what Bish did with the fashion evolution of Goldie too
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
This was a great experience to play! I love the story concept.
(somewhat spoilery thoughts below)
Even though Goldie was a nice Doppelgänger, things still ended up going the way they usually do in these stories, which creates an eerie sense of inevitability. Mari might have remained stuck with her unsatisfying life otherwise, but being faced with an idealised version of yourself who is nothing but good and kind and only wishes the best for you didn't make it any better for her either. And it makes sense, because being confronted by who you could be without all the issues and ingrained self-manipulation and accumulated exhaustion from trying to get through life isn't something that'll feel good.
It's very easy to turn into Mari and become too tired and angry and resigned to have any energy to even want things to be better. Putting all that aside to open yourself up to a chance to improve things is hard. I can definitely relate to her. Even when you know it's not ill-intentioned, people being unflappably optimistic to the point that it feels like they don't see your pain and your difficulties can feel very frustrating.
I think it was a great choice to not have a "good" ending where suddenly everyone gets along and is happy following their dreams. I appreciated the look at the bleak way the situation turned out no matter the final choice rather than having a feelgood message,
The music was well-chosen and really brought across the underlying horror atmosphere. All the aspects of this VN came together very well for a coherent experience. Great job by everyone on the team!
This one was a real surprise! The tone is quite different compared to a lot of other entries in the jam, and I liked it a lot! Mari is such an interesting protagonist; she's someone I sympathize with, because work life definitely isn't easy, while getting beaten down and giving up comparatively is. Goldie is also a well realized character; much easier to like than Mari, but you could see why Mari would be frustrated with her; keeping a positive attitude in the face of difficult circumstances, and actually willing to fight for change, someone stuck in a rut like Mari is might easily take it as an attempt to outdo her.
It's painful, and frustrating to see Mari constantly refuse to try and improve her life when opportunities start to present themselves, and I was impressed with how well she was written. Lastly, I really wanna compliment the sprites and the sheer amount of expressions they have. Both Mari and Goldie are so expressive because of that, and it really helps get you engaged with the dialogue! All in all, great work! I won't be forgetting the endings to this one any time soon.
Bleak but brilliant--the story is tense and painful, and balanced so well by the spectacularly expressive character designs. Excellent work!
Thank you!! 🥹
(Copied from the Spooktober jam review page to help this game with Itch.io's algorithm!)
Wow, wow, wow - thank you for making this. The writing and the central thesis of this visual novel struck a chord with me.
Mari is painfully realistic. I've been in her position - especially when I was actively job-hunting right after graduating university. Her browsing r/antiwork, feeling jealous of her successful peers and failing her interview for her dream job by a hair's breadth struck a nerve with me. That said, Mari violently rejecting every genuine offer of help from her friends and especially Goldie really gave me goosebumps - you've really captured the existence of someone who hates her life, but doesn't want to do anything to help herself change it for the better.
And of course, I can't talk Mari without talking about Goldie - her direct counterpart. She's someone who's actively choosing to be kind and genuine about everything - from how she presents herself to maintaining her friendships. It sounds silly on paper, but I really will think about her and how she goes about life when I make decisions in the future. There really is something satisfying about going out and doing something to change your life, versus sitting around and complaining about it.
Again, thank you for making this work - I really enjoyed this. A hearty recommendation from me.
Thank you for the review and thoughtful comment! It’s super rewarding and meaningful to hear that you will take Goldie with you IRL! (Not silly at all haha, we all have a Mari and Goldie inside us. I find myself reflecting on this sometimes too!)
I’m so glad that the characters struck a chord, thank you so much for playing and for your recommendation 😭
I really loved playing Malviolence btw and can’t wait to try protoviolence, it’s hot at the top of my to play!
The music is nice, the character design and portraits as well as the animations elevate the experience a lot, my favorite part were definitely the endings, such a good closing for the story, very satisfying.
Another great aspect that was really REALLY well done was all the choices we make trough the game, even if they don't affect the ending they go a long way on making the player actually relate and feel the story and emotions of the character.
I personally related a lot to Mari(gold) and her views on life so I often clashed with the narrative of the game but that's more of a personal opinion than anything and it did not affect my enjoyment of the game at all.
My only "issue" is that maybe the story stretches a bit too long in some points, although is very nice to see the slow decent to madness of the protagonist and how everything slowly crumbles, regardless of who's fault it is; aside from a really nice spooky story it makes for a great self introspective cautionary tale.
Keep up the good work!
Thank you so much for playing and the feedback! I’m glad you appreciated the choices and that the endings were your favourite part! Was there one spooky ending you liked best?
(Also happy to hear the choices felt relatable to the emotions of the characters! It was tricky writing them for a linear story with only branches at the end. Hehe I added them in pretty last minute from beta-reader feedback XD)
And I agree that this was definitely more a goosebumps/twilight zone vibe and a dark comedy rather than a full pee-your-pants kind of horror haha. I am looking to experiment more with suspense and scary stories in the future (hopefully I don’t scare myself too much LOL)
Wow. What a story this was. I'm not sure I enjoyed my experience, honestly. It felt too real, too uncomfortable, too self-cringe-inducing, too depressingly relatable. While I can't say I had fun reading this, I can confidently say I felt this story on a deeply personal level.
it must take an incredibly skilled writer to get a reader to self-reflect to this extent. I couldn't help wondering as I was reading whether I, like Mari, have ever been stuck in the same sort of negative, nihilistic, and ultimately self-destructive patterns of thought and behavior. I'm pretty sure that, at certain points in my life, I would be dwelling on ideas and engaging in harmful habits like hers.
At the same time, I also felt good about myself when reading some parts of the story. Mari doesn't have a very effective filter, for better or for worse, so her bitterness slipped out in front of others so many times. I would then tell myself: well, at least I'm not that terrible to those around me! One example was when Mari thinks about commenting on someone's social media. That might be one of my favorite scenes because it felt so authentic. It was interesting being stuck in what possibly is similar to the mindset of many internet trolls. I'm sure a lot of them are deeply unhappy individuals who want to lash out in the only platform where they can do so invisibly and without consequence so that they can feel better about themselves, however briefly.
Goldie served as a flawless foil to Mari's character. Amidst Mari's spiral deeper and deeper into pessimism and hopelessness, Goldie acted as the perfect counterpoint for the reader's benefit -- she showed that a better path does exist, if only one dared to reach out and grab it. While nothing in life is easy, one will never get anywhere if they gave up and stopped trying to change for the better.
Overall, this is a story I won't soon forget! I am very grateful to the team for developing and releasing this thought-provoking and emotionally resonant visual novel. You're all amazing!
(Note: Copy-pasting this comment from the Spooktober VN Jam 2023 page.)
😭😭😭 Thank you so much again for this lovely comment and your level of attention to the writing! It means a lot to hear that this piece has sparked so much thought and reflection. I’m really happy that you related to it and appreciate you sharing your experience! I actually found myself overthinking a while back and then I thought to myself I need to get on a Goldie train of thought XD
I had the opportunity to beta read for this, and it was such a pleasure seeing the project come to life with the visuals, animations, music, and sound effects! The sprite art is lovely, with lovely shading and really bold linework that stands out well against the backgrounds, which were photo alterations that were given a filter with a very painterly look. The sprites are incredibly expressive, and Mari and Goldie have such distinct and memorable designs. I loved the browns and slightly muted colors of the color palette - it felt very "autumny"/'Halloween-like." The music is very atmospheric. This game is FULL of animations, transitions, and the like, making it seem very dynamic and making good use of the sprites to produce a variety of shot compositions.
I really enjoyed this story - it's a little creepy, a little supernatural, but also really relatable.
==SPOILERS BELOW==
When I was first reading the premise, I thought that Goldie would surely turn out to be some wicked supernatural entity that steals away Mari's life. However, it turns out to be the opposite - Mari is responsible for everything that goes wrong in her life, while Goldie tries her best to help Mari improve. Mari's downward spiral is frustrating at times to read, but it is also incredibly relatable; I think that many people can relate to Mari's desire to stick with what's "safe," without taking risks to strive for what she really wants. And at the end she blames Goldie for everything that she's dissatisfied with, without taking responsibility for her own inaction. It's an incredibly clever use of "horror" - instead of the protagonist having to fend off some external force, the real "horror" comes from her own actions. I really loved how creepy and yet satisfying the endings were. My favorite was probably the one where Mari turns into a mannequin herself - although it's a pretty tragic ending, it felt oddly fitting for her character.
Really fantastic job by the team!
Wow, thank you so much for the detailed review and noticing all the little touches the team put in! I totally agree with the autumny feel and I’m so glad the story felt relatable, Cygni’s concept really resonated with me too!
Thank you for sharing your favourite ending too heheh, that was a favourite of mine too! I’m so happy I got the opportunity to add more endings to the original outline. It was loads of fun to explore the Mari Goldie dynamic further (I did my best to bring some wholesomeness into the story haha since Mari is such a downer, so she’s offset by Goldie’s energy!)
Hopefully it inspires folks to lean into their inner Goldie at times and keep a good balance when managing our Maris 😉
I really liked the story, felt like a very relatable thing, yet constantly making you wonder "who" was right, and "who" was being truthfull. Wether it was a scheme, or an actual helping hand in some way?
HAD to check all the endings, and I was hoping for the one option that was left out (to avoid spoilers) But I tottaly get the reasons behind said choice!
Also loved the art style, and the expressions and movements of the camera.
Thank you!! I'm glad you enjoyed the game :)
Heheh I love getting players to question reality and what’s really going on in the story 😈 thank you for sharing your experience
I’m amazed by what the team accomplished on a relatively small scope project!!