I played this game for 125 hours and I don't know what the hell to say about it. Maybe it's easiest to say something meaningful about it by way of comparison to the title it took so much inspiration from, by calling it a successor to Rance 10 or whatever.
But it's so much more than that, isn't it? NonStories doesn't merely take inspiration from existing works -- indeed all fiction does that -- but actively seeks to build something new using them. It interrogates narratives not so it can thumb its nose at them in derision, but because it is genuinely invested in finding new paths forward.
NonStories is a journey, an undertaking. It is committed to its vision in ways that will astound and excite and frustrate you. And it is this commitment which makes it genuine.
But it's so much more than that, isn't it? NonStories doesn't merely take inspiration from existing works -- indeed all fiction does that -- but actively seeks to build something new using them. It interrogates narratives not so it can thumb its nose at them in derision, but because it is genuinely invested in finding new paths forward.
NonStories is a journey, an undertaking. It is committed to its vision in ways that will astound and excite and frustrate you. And it is this commitment which makes it genuine.