Relationships in Pages of Tomorrow. Why no romance?
[p]Social relationships are inherent to the human experience. Whether one wants it or not, true lone wolves do not exist – from the day we are born, we are all shaped by other people. At first, familial relations are most important (as well as most influential for our development). But as we grow, parents are replaced by peers, who we begin to excitedly call our friends. Friendships, massively important as they are, tend to be put aside in visual novels, replaced by romance. Pages of Tomorrow questions that.
In the game, the player has three characters to choose from. The companion of their choice is not meant to be seduced, but befriended. Many would call this decision strange when viewed in context with what visual novels often are. And while romance-focused titles certainly do not deserve the eye rolls they often get, for Pages of Tomorrow, I wanted to do something different and highlight the importance of purely platonic relationships.
Romance comes and goes. It is not unusual for partners to break up, no matter how perfect for each other they may initially seem. And although not all friendships stand the test of time, their nature is inherently more steady, allowing friends to lean on each other in difficult times. There's beauty to friendship that's found only in the most successful romantic relationships.
So to conclude, while I am not opposed to romance or romance in visual novels in the slightest, Pages of Tomorrow felt like a game that would work best without a dating mechanic. Instead, I intend for it to explore the complexities and beauty of platonic connections, despite it being way less fortunate marketing-wise.
Thank you for reading. As always, I invite you to wishlist Pages of Tomorrow and play the demo, which allows for the player to get to know the characters and the unique setting.
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In the game, the player has three characters to choose from. The companion of their choice is not meant to be seduced, but befriended. Many would call this decision strange when viewed in context with what visual novels often are. And while romance-focused titles certainly do not deserve the eye rolls they often get, for Pages of Tomorrow, I wanted to do something different and highlight the importance of purely platonic relationships.
Romance comes and goes. It is not unusual for partners to break up, no matter how perfect for each other they may initially seem. And although not all friendships stand the test of time, their nature is inherently more steady, allowing friends to lean on each other in difficult times. There's beauty to friendship that's found only in the most successful romantic relationships.
So to conclude, while I am not opposed to romance or romance in visual novels in the slightest, Pages of Tomorrow felt like a game that would work best without a dating mechanic. Instead, I intend for it to explore the complexities and beauty of platonic connections, despite it being way less fortunate marketing-wise.
Thank you for reading. As always, I invite you to wishlist Pages of Tomorrow and play the demo, which allows for the player to get to know the characters and the unique setting.
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