Doki Doki Literature Club! Review (Faudraline)
"A hole of infinite choices.
I realize now, that I wasn't looking in.
I was looking out.
And he, on the other side, was looking in." - from Monika's Hole in Wall
DISCLAIMER! THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS, EVEN THOUGH I TRIED MY VERY BEST TO BE VAGUE ABOUT THEM!
If you are even remotely interested in the visual novel genre, I know you have heard of this game at least once. So, what is so special, or interesting about it? Before telling anything about it, I must warn that this review will contain spoilers. So, if you haven't played the game, go ahead and do so. It is completely free and will take 3-4 hours out of your life to complete it blind. Oh, and be warned: even though, it seems cheerful and innocent, the game bears meta-horror elements. Played it at least once? Please keep on reading, so we can talk about the depth of a spectacularly eerie work.
Doki Doki Literature Club! is Dan Salvato's only game so far, and it is one of those games that you can benefit from most if you play without knowing anything about it. As you give it a start, it seems like an ordinary dating game: we have four girls, a high school setting, a reason that brings people together... and romance emerges, right? Well... you are both right, and completely wrong. You sure take on the role of a teenager male student, who's been attending a high school with four girls: Sayori is your cheerful childhood friend, Natsuki is a classic tsundere, Yuri is the sophisticated literature nerd, and Monika is the level-headed, patient and knowledgeable president of the Literature Club. As Sayori drags you to the meeting of the club, you meet all the rest; and after a heartfelt pity-pitch, you join the club. From there on, you will attend meetings and write poems to the girl that you are interested in to win her heart. Depending on the girl you wish to romance, you have to pick words befitting her character to use in your poem. If you have done it right, you'll be rewarded with a new experience with the girl you like. This is practically it.
Nope, it isn't. It all goes generic, and even boringly peaceful until the Club Festival event. As the event approaches, things start to change for the darker and eerier. People fight more, and a certain someone gets depressed out of nowhere. At the end of the said event - no, even though I'm writing this as a spoiler, I won't spoil everything: you gotta play this on your own! - there comes a point of no return; and after that... that's when everything you have previously experienced as a cute little slice of life, becomes psychotically dark, uncanny and disturbing. As you keep playing, narrative, characters, environment, timeline... they all begin to get corrupted in one way or the other. If you persist in playing, you will soon discover that this game has a villain. A villain you have to deal with if you wish the save others. Oh, and as Monika recommends: save frequently!
No, I won’t speak of jump scares, easter eggs and fan theories. What I would particularly like to draw attention to in this game is: a)the quality and content of the poetry written by girls; and b)the kind of skill that was put into portray an AI which is aware of and responding to the player beyond the avatar. It is all fascinatingly creepy. Poems coming from our girls during the first chapter bear deeper meanings and even foreshadowing for the remainder of the game. Especially Monika and Yuri's poems are spectacular readings for that. When you eventually reach the end of chapter 2, and get stuck with Monika, the amount of monologue she may share with you, and the depth of various topics that she chooses are downright spooky. Also, you'll need to tamper with the game files if you wish to continue properly, as someone has been doing so far. As you can see, this is not a common visual novel. It is an interactive horror game that questions the content and nature of sentience.
Well, there is no need to speak about it more, since I cannot keep writing about it without giving direct spoilers - as if I haven't been doing so far! Please stop reading and go ahead for your first run. If you can bear the first 2 hours or so - which is kind of boring - you'll be pleasantly and creepily surprised.
Please also check out Lady Storyteller's Curator page here - follow for regular updates on reviews for other games!