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Unpolished Fun: A Hand in the Darkness

A Hand in the Darkness by Ertal Games is a BL Otome.  For those of you who were going to open a new window to look that up, let me save you a click: it's a visual romance novel but with boys kissing boys.  The game is available on Steam and from the developer's itch.io site.  The developer (a solo project, props and respect) writes in both English and Spanish, and while you might expect my major complaint to be about the translation quality, it's not.

The game features three different love interests to pursue (and of course, get Steam achievements).  There's Damian, the rich rake who is unexpectedly mature; Rick, the smart one whose path I haven't finished yet; and Monty.  My problem with the game - which I enjoyed in all other respects - is Monty.  The stalker.  The controlling boyfriend who has no redeeming properties and causes a bizarre switch in the main character's behavior that I found both baffling and unpleasant.  Never have I rushed through a character's story arc so quickly.  I just wanted Monty off my screen so I could get my achievement and start working on something else.  Monty annoys me because he is so obviously the default love interest.  He's terrible.  He's a terrible human being, and every ending with him should have been a bad one.

But enough about that.  The rest of A Hand in the Darkness is very good.  The music is good, the artwork style is clever and attractive, the writing (ignoring grammatical errors from a non-Native English speaker and the few rare spelling errors) is very good.  The main character and all the love interests are decently fleshed out, and the interaction with other NPCs is very good.  There are some scenes in the kitchen that feature characters you will never see again in a normal playthrough, and every servant that appears has a name and a distinct personality.  The teachers are memorable, and the protagonist's mother who only appears in the opening is amusing and will probably remind you of your first day at college.  The story doesn't drag on, and like all otome, you are expected to play every route to get the whole story so watching things unfold helps maintain your interest in the game.  Ertal Games does this very well, dropping hints here and there that will help you understand the whole story at the end.  It's not a rare thriller or anything, but it is well worth the price (especially if it is on sale).  If you're looking for a new and different style of otome, A Hand in the Darkness is a good choice.
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