Horrible Game. I’m an old woman and I’ve indulged into a lot of uncomfortable, disturbing subject matter over the years. Either personally or conceptually through life experience or various media.
If you think I’m weak for not liking this you are horribly mistaken. The reality is that despite it’s art direction and codding, which probably took quite a bit to make properly function, this game doesn’t offer anything substantial aside from really bad dialogue that comes across as genuinely entertaining because it’s so unbelievably stiff and shocking. I'm not saying this game doesn't have a right to stand it's ground, art is open and free. But I'm not judging this off freedom of expression, it purely just doesn't have any substance to offer aside from being a teenagers wet dream of “dark and edgey subversion”.

Most people love this game because of what it's not, not for what it is. Peel back it's skin and there's absolutely no thematic resonance, it’s music is lacking, it’s character expressions and character focus is gutted and way too focused on using them as props for torture, and it’s completely lack luster in a narrative because this game has nothing to do with sending a message aside from “look what I can do, it’s a carcass!”. I’m not shocked by this subject matter, I’m shocked that it basically doesn’t have anything meaningful to say. People are so focused on reading the authorial intent as if they are romanticizing murder or incest that they fail to realize that the dialogue and characters basically only have 1 or 2 things to offer. Andrew is a guy who's isolated and goes along with his sister with a bit of resistance but not as much. And Leyley is a horrible psychopath uh oh. They like each other because they isolated themselves and don't have much to turn too. They did this to themselves, especially Leyley. There's some differences between the different endings but that's because they live on the edge all the time. Ready to waver in depravity even for or against each other.

Horror delights in talking about subject matter not to often discussed, uncomfortable realities, taboo topics that exist in the real world through a “Real” metaphorical or allegorical lens. In many ways, I enjoy the strength in stories like this. Berserk, Oyasumi Punpun, American Psycho, House, The Lighthouse, Hereditary, ect ect all have unsettling subject matter that relishes and thrives thematically through it’s dark depictions of reality. These are all stories I absolutely love these but it’s because I can say so much more about the themes, it’s characters, it’s larger scopes, its outrageous but revealing portrayals of systematic issues, what beautifully horrifying psychological mindsets can feel or look like. It’s not one thing, it’s a myriad of things that culminates in so much meaning with sometimes so little time. So many themes and concepts to gleam from that go beyond the scope of even it's premises. If you’re confused why I’m comparing it to novels, movies, or manga please dont be; this is basically glorified visual novel with little to no interactivity. It has multiple endings but even than it’s shot through the lens of a barely playable game. It’s a story, lets just keep it at that okay? My point is that this is a story that deals with horror and it’s darkness. There’s a beauty in the darkness that illuminates the light of life.

So what do I have to say about this game that makes it so unbearable? It’s that it’s a story that basically thinks it’s being contrarian when in reality I think it’s an annoying hissy fit of a game that relishes in the idea that it’s “different” when it really isn’t. A simple truth players have to face is that subversion in a story is not subversive, it’s just methodology and it’s a lot easier to achieve than people want to admit. You simply look at what people are telling you to do and you decide not to do it. It's really not deep, it just takes defiance. It takes a little f you attitude that really goes a long way in terms of making bold art, but defiance in of itself has no substance if you don’t know what to do with it. There’s a real line between bravery and stupidity and I think this game’s basically is the latter. This game is seemingly so fine with being dark but is also incredibly self conscious. EP2 has a “no fuck you” option just in-case you wanted to stop playing, it’s thinking about it as if people who want to stop there are just upset at it for “being dark”. Even at times when it’s being metaphorical it insist that “you read to much poetry, cringe :( “. It’s developers are eager in the idea that “You will dislike this game hehe it’s so daaark”. but not me, your dialogue and themeing sucks. Your plot makes no sense, you literally just go to the next thing and the next thing over and over at tedium. I don’t think you’re glorifying anything aside from the fact you think you’re saying anything different or better than everyone else.

What does this game achieve with it's contrarianism? Nothing.
Because the reality is that it takes effort to say something substantial, it takes skill and heart to make a story with dark subject matter that actually wants to say something about it. The constant homicide, torture, cannibalism, passive aggressive manipulation, crude language, incest, and romanticizing is only a vehicle to show that the world is dark, not what that darkness says. Most of this game is is just focused on how they kill people, not why. Hours of spending tediously chopping up, bagging, killing, and torturing people for basically for nothing. It's literally exhausting methods of killing for hours and hours for an aimless adventure. It takes a fantastic writer to be able to say something about a corpse, about the problems of the world, the real torture of it. A terrifying depiction, with beautiful artwork and striking commentary. Real problems and darkness that I can find even in myself, in the world around me, in order to even prepare myself, learn something. But this game isn’t that, it’s just an electric chair, that can’t even kill you outright. Just boring, drain your soul. The body smoking from the lack of an actual fucking resolution of anything. Just torture and no play.

Extra: It should be noted that while I immensely dislike this game and it’s execution, I understand that depictions of manipulative behaviour might strike a chord with you, maybe that helps you in some way. Maybe you see yourself in Andrew who just wants to be accepted by his sister who seemingly berates but loves him. That whiplash and the isolation of it maybe is tangible. And It’s overall entertaining and because the cringe doesn’t stop, it’s something you can get lost in. I just wanted to note that this isn’t to scare people away from taking what they will from it. But for me, I truly feel this is waste of time and just horribly unfunny and nothing interesting to say. Maybe you can take something thematic away from the cult? But even than I’m just thinking it doesn’t do much. Psychopathic behavior is a really interesting topic I've researched to death, but I don't think it's all that compelling here. The idea of nature and nurture really intrigues me but not this at all.

If you think I’m bugging about incest-eliminate that immediately from your mind,
I’m a monogatari and game of thrones fan \o/