Butterfly//Circuit

Just finished the game. Really enjoyed it. Gonna list cons first before the pros. [list] [*]Felt that a lot of parts of act 1 were kinda boring, I sorta get that it's intentional, or at least I think it's intentional? But still, after finishing act 1, I immideatly thought to myself: "Wow, this could have been better with another draft". [*]Some mistakes in text, like a word repeating or a letter missing for example. Nothing excessive, as in it happens rarely. But still, it does sometimes take me out of it, when I'm reading. [*]Some sentences are way too long, and it kinda takes me out when I need to break down a sentence bit by bit to actually understand what's being said. Again doesn't happen often, but still. [*]The music volume is inconsistent. I felt like I needed to go into options and adjust music volume quite a lot, just to hear my own thoughts. [*]There was one point in the game that felt so insanely contrived it kinda irritated me a lot. [spoiler]The way Amelia gets a book relies on some insane coincedences and I don't think Amelia's momentary insanity was justified through text. Reasons were given for why she decided to climb out of the window to dip, but they made roll my eyes more than anything.[/spoiler] [/list] [list] [*]As for the pros, this story is pretty weird, but like in a good way, I guess? The ending of the game went over my head completely, and I'm still trying to figure out what it meant, thought I'm not sure I will. I'm not very good with metaphors or themes or whatever. [*]I like that the plot is grounded or at least doesn't COMPLETELY go into power fantasy nonsense, makes it unique, I feel. [*]I like the soundtrack a lot, good vibes all around. [*]Act 2 and Act 3 were definitely highlights of the game for me. Always felt like it teetered between taking Amelia seriously and outright confirming that her concerns are valid, but she's still a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ insane person. [spoiler]I was actually kinda scared that Amelia's conclusions would be proven right, and she would somehow defeat the big bad or whatever and everything would be sunshine and rainbows.[/spoiler] [/list] Yeah, I'd recommend this game, it's pretty cool.

This is by far the best visual novel I have ever played. Despite following its development since the demo, I still find it hard to believe one person was able to make such a complete and captivating experience.

ggodmdammit

[h1]Amazing game, which overflows with quality in every aspect (art, music and plot) just play it [Eng and Pt-Br review][/h1] I must say that I didn't know anything about Butterfly//Circuit, I simply love searching for interesting games and when I saw the art and description of this game, I simply bought it right away without thinking twice because it's simply the kind of thing I love. After playing, in less than 5 minutes I knew I would love this game. The art is really good! Everything is very brown and dark and the art is very reminiscent of 90's culture, it's something nostalgic, full of charisma that I sincerely wish people would value more. This game runs away of the classic in every aspect and I really value things like that. Even the backgrounds are really good. But I must say that what caught my attention first was the music. It's simply perfect! Just play the demo and listen to the first track. It explores several genres without ever losing quality. If I have twice as many hours as other people in the game, it's because I spent half of my time just enjoying the music, especially when it's something post-rock, which is a genre I love so much. Even the details like the static, city and engine noises in the background are wonderful details! But of course, all of this wouldn't be enough to make me love this game. So, then we have the plot. The plot is wonderful! Even though it has few characters, this game never gets boring and always theres something that makes you want to know what will happen next. Amelia is an incredible protagonist, I simply adore her, all her rudeness, complaints, her social fear, her anxieties, etc. she is a character that never seems to stop fascinating you. The world built is also very interesting, it's a kind of distorted industrial reality but extremely real to the point that you accept everything super naturally. I must also congratulate the developer for trying something so bold. It's rare for OEVNs to use such dark themes like this and in such a good way. Usually, many games just break the fourth wall or become a form of meme, but no, Butterfly//Circuit explores boredom, grief and madness in such a real way that the reader doubts their own sanity! The writing is also very good, I feel like I could read any theme that this developer writes, because I love their writing. The game simply reinvents itself with each chapter, it reminds me a lot of movies where the genre seems to change just like a roulette, you never know which way it will go. Butterfly//Circuit is like that, each chapter explores a theme, its genre kind of changes and it never gets boring, the details, even the chapter titles convey so much information! It's a huge dedication that can be seen in every sentence. [b][u]When I finished the game, I stood there for hours thinking, I even cried a lot, it's rare for games to do that to me. Thank you very much for making this game, I'll never forget it![/u][/b] [hr][/hr] https://youtu.be/TaL5b_FVxnI?si=j230n-f6Pk7knu2v [hr][/hr] [h1]Jogo incrível, que transborda qualidade em todos os aspectos (arte, música e enredo) apenas jogue [Pt-Br and Eng review][/h1] Devo dizer que eu não sabia nada sobre Butterfly//Circuit, simplesmente adoro procurar jogos interessantes e quando vi a arte e descrição desse jogo, simplesmente comprei na mesma hora sem nem pensar duas vezes pois é simplesmente o tipo de coisa que eu amo. Ao jogar, em menos de 5 minutos eu sabia que iria amar esse jogo. A arte é muito boa! Tudo é muito marrom e escuro e a arte lembra muito a cultura dos anos 90, é algo nostálgico, cheio de carisma que eu sinceramente gostaria que as pessoas valorizassem mais. Esse jogo foge do comum e eu valorizo demais coisas assim. Mesmo os backgrounds são muito bons. Mas devo dizer que o que me prendeu primeiro foi a música. É simplesmente perfeita! Explora vários gêneros sem nunca perder a qualidade, Se eu possuo o dobro de horas das outras pessoas no jogo, é porque metade do meu tempo eu passei apenas curtindo as músicas, principalmente quando é algo post-rock é um gênero que amo demais, mesmo os detalhes como a estática e barulhos de motores ao fundo é um detalhe maravilhoso! Mas é claro, tudo isso não seria o suficiente para me fazer amar esse jogo. Nesse ponto temos o enredo. O enredo é maravilhoso! Mesmo possuindo poucos personagens esse jogo nunca fica monótono e sempre levante algo que faz querer o que vai acontecer depois. Amelia é uma protagonista incrível, simplesmente adoro ela, toda a sua rudeza, reclamação, seu temor social, suas angústias etc é um char que não parece parar de fascinar você. O mundo construído também é muito interessante, é uma espécie de realidade industrial distorcida mas extremamente real a ponto de você aceitar tudo super naturalmente. Também devo parabenizar o developer por tentar algo tão ousado. É raro OEVNs que usam temas tão obscuros como esse e de forma tão boa. Geralmente muitos jogos quebram a quarta parede ou viram uma forma de meme, mas não, Butterfly//Circuit explora o tédio e loucura de uma forma tão real que o leitor duvida da própria sanidade! A escrita também é muito boa, eu sinto que poderia ler qualquer tema que esse developer escrever porque amo sua escrita. O jogo simplesmente se reinventa a cada capítulo, me lembra muito uns filmes onde o gênero parece mudar como uma roleta russa, você nunca sabe o rumo que vai tomar. Butterfly//Circuit é como isso, cada capítulo explora um tema, seu gênero meio que muda e nunca fica cansativo, os detalhes, até mesmo os títulos dos capítulos passam tanta informação! É uma dedicação enorme que pode ser verificada a cada frase. [b][u]Quando terminei o jogo, fiquei umas horas parado pensando, até chorei bastante, são raros os jogos que fazem isso comigo. Muito obrigado por ter feito esse jogo, nunca esquecerei![/u][/b]

A deeply limbic portrait of grief

i love everything about this game, please make more visual novels

This captures something that is becoming increasingly important to me not just in games, but everything creative, and that is it being deeply human. Messy, bizarre and emotional, with all the flaws and contrivances, there is overwhelming life to Butterfly//Circuit. As pointed out in other reviews, there are typos and some of the story is overly long, but I’m glad this was allowed to exist, to be what it is, because there are things that usually get cut out in the process of (over)refinement that I appreciate are still intact here. The entire novel is a huge achievement, especially for a single creator, and well worth people’s time. It all feels so cohesive, filled with an abundance of intriguing ideas and moments that I just wish more people would get the chance to experience. Also, mundane cyberpunk slice of life is a genre I didn’t know I needed to exist, but here we are.