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Overview
The concept for this game emerged from reflecting on In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado, where the author explores the complexity of an abusive queer relationship through immersive, often second-person storytelling. I was inspired to create an interactive fiction that tells a similar story through a gender-neutral lens, moving away from traditional, gendered narratives of abuse.
In this story, the player takes on the role of a hopeless romantic, captivated by the idea of being an artist’s muse for Alex, their enigmatic and demanding partner. The protagonist’s life is confined to the apartment, with glimpses of the outside world presented only through flashbacks, reinforcing their isolation. As the story unfolds, the initial illusion of choice gives way to a structured experience, with choices increasingly leading to similar outcomes—a design meant to mirror the character’s growing entrapment and self-doubt. In the first act, the player has some autonomy in how they respond to Alex. However, as the protagonist’s mindset shifts, so does the nature of their choices, reflecting their evolving inability to escape Alex’s influence.
History
Ideation and Character Development In the initial ideation phase, testing focused on the map and narrative structure. The absence of characters besides the unnamed Alex and the main character created a sense of isolation, leading to the decision to introduce companions to enhance emotional depth. The addition of a cat and a friend was considered crucial for creating a more dynamic environment and to illustrate the main character’s emotional journey. A linear structure with manipulation loops was proposed to allow for engaging interactions while maintaining narrative momentum
First playtests on twine, act I (2 x 23F):
In the first two playtests, participants noted that the looping narrative was confusing, as the passages didn’t change between loops. Suggestions were made to add text changes to indicate the passing of time, such as indicating it was the next day. Players expressed discomfort in the relationship dynamic, feeling trapped and uncertain about their character’s personality. Observations noted that some players perceived a lack of clear stakes beyond romance. Players felt isolated due to the lack of characters besides Alex and the main character, leading to the idea of incorporating companions like a cat and a friend. The importance of building rapport in the early stages of the game was emphasized to enhance player engagement and emotional connection.
Act I, with cat and friend(2 x F)
Changes made: Make several versions of a passage to account for the times visited. Increase the length of the day by adding other goals, like studying, interacting with the cat, and calling a friend.
Feedback highlighted the gradual build-up of suspicion towards Alex, with participants acknowledging his manipulative tendencies. Players noted that Alex’s red flags might be too jarring to start. Players noted that while the option to apologize or be complacent was strong, the best friend character felt underutilized. Suggestions included adding mid-day activities to make the protagonist’s life more vibrant and believable, as well as backstories. The introduction of small, incremental signs of unease in the relationship dynamics was encouraged to reflect how subtle abuse can manifest. Players appreciated the use of “they” as Alex’s pronouns.
Act I + II (22 M, 21F)
Changes made: Varied passage more between interactions. To utilize friend more, included a shortcut to bypass a loop by calling a friend, who would suggest the player to ask Alex to help with unpacking. Allowed for more action interaction with the cat rather than a passive passage (now could click to pet the cat). Broke up passage using delays. Toned down the initial backstory passages to make meeting Alex seem more romantic.
Players focused on unpacking boxes and studying rather than the friend, expressing a desire for more interactions with the cat. The game effectively portrayed Alex’s increasing toxicity with the blacked-out painting, with player feeling frustrated by the repetitiveness of the unpacking mechanic. Requests for more flashbacks related to unpacking and a clearer indication of how many boxes had been unpacked were common. Participants found themselves more motivated to continue playing due to the interactions with the cat, highlighting the importance of actively engaging characters in maintaining player interest.
Players felt overwhelmed during delayed text scenes, as they would show up before the player finished reading the previous revealed text. Player suggested using the reveal links instead as was used in act II. Players were also eager for more character interactions, particularly with the cat, and desired clearer indications of time and emotional states.
At this stage, I decided to remove the unwritten scene with the parents visiting, as time constraints made it unfeasible, and I didn’t believe it would align with the narrative.
Act I + II + III (21F)
Changes made: Wrote act III to twine. Use exclusively reveal links for pacing. Indication of boxes remaining (to unlock the baking side quest). Unpacking would reveal hidden items alongside backstories.
The player enjoyed the interactions with the cat, noting that the loss of the cat was devastating and highlighting the believable progression of Alex’s character towards the end. However, they felt that the best friend character was somewhat forgotten in the narrative (link was broken, so understandable). Overall, the player appreciated that the loops didn’t feel tiring, observing that Alex’s deterioration was effectively conveyed, but they felt the ending lacked clarity and requested a revision of the final passage to provide a more satisfying conclusion.
Intro + Act I + II + III (22M, in a relationship)
Changes made: Rewrote the ending passage to be more uneasy, fixed bugs, added introduction so that players could choose pronouns for their partner.
Player noted the increasing tension with Alex as the acts continued. While they resonated with the character’s struggles, they expressed frustration with unpacking as intended. Additionally, the player suggested adding more visual elements to the game, particularly color. Unlike other playtesters, they did not blame Alex by the end of the game but instead themselves (“I don’t even blame Alex at the point because I’m so useless at unpacking”). However, player also bypassed some of the backstory which led to confusion later on. This player was the only one currently in a relationship, which led them to direct much of the blame for the unsuccessful dynamics onto themselves, particularly in Act III, where they had options to stand up for themselves but found them ineffective.
Intro + Act I + II + III (22F, 22M)
Changes made: Made passages slowly fade to a blueish-gray between acts, and a pink-gray gradient during the mini-climaxes of each act. Fixed all pronoun bugs. Made some backstories unskippable.
In the final playtest, players expressed satisfaction with the pacing of the game, particularly regarding the choices available to them. After multiple playthroughs, they noted that while passages could be shortened or broken up for better pacing, the current flow read well and effectively conveyed emotional depth. They appreciated the subtlety of the story’s beginning, which allowed for a gradual understanding of the characters. Additionally, they mentioned that the use of gray tones added a spooky atmosphere during key moments, highlighting their enjoyment of how the color scheme evolved as the story progressed.
Reflection
I learned how to use Twine and CSS stylesheets to create an interactive fiction piece that took a unique approach by limiting meaningful choices for the player and focusing on a more linear story. If I had more time, I’d definitely want to add some multimedia elements, like an ASCII cat animation or some music and sound effects, to really enhance the emotional vibe. I tried chapbook initially but switched to Harlowe because I wanted to experiment with the forced text input. If I was to do another IF on Twine, I’d like to explore the other story formats as I liked some of the features in Chapbook more.
