Just finished Narcissu 1st. I love it but I'm not sure I'm strong enough to get through the 2nd part right now.

Story starts with a bunch of statistics on suicide in Japan - there's no beating around the bush, just a straightforward information about what to expect. There are small specks of happiness shining throughout but the whole thing is underpinned by empty sadness constantly lurking in the background. You know where this is going and so do the characters, and yet, this didn't make the journey any less emotional. Tears were shed, to say the least.

The whole presentation is very minimalist. Background illustrations cover about a third of the screen, conversations are pretty limited and short, voice acting, what little there is, is really solid. I think all of it fits the atmosphere and headspace of the characters really well. It's a well put together package.

That's all I have in terms of first impressions. I need to collect myself and stew a bit on the whole thing before I can write anything more coherent. It's great but it also hurts.

Oh, yeah! If anyone wants to join in on the pain train the game is available for free on Steam.