The literary and game inspirations behind Pages of Tomorrow – short a list

[p]Every work of art (and I think of games as works of art) has its inspirations. Obviously, I do not mean outright imitation, as that can kill creative processes before they even begin. Instead, to me, inspiration is like a work you have in the back of your mind while creating, one you maybe use as a reference, and even one that made you think you could make something better than that.[/p][p]I do not intend to tear fellow creators down, so I will not be using any sources of the last type of inspiration as my examples. Instead, enjoy a list of literary and game works that I deeply admire and – loosely speaking – use in my creative process, in various ways.[/p][p]Milk Inside A Bag Of Milk Inside A Bag Of Milk as well as its sequel, Milk Outside a Bag of Milk Outside a Bag of Milk, are what I consider some of the best representations of mental illness this world has to offer, even outside of games and, more specifically, visual novels. As those of you familiar with it may notice, I take a wildly different approach for Pages of Tomorrow than these games, crafting a more down-to-earth story. Still, I often find myself studying what worked for Milk and modifying it to my needs.[/p][p]The Mighty Angel by Jerzy Pilch is a Polish autobiographical novel about an alcoholic who keeps coming back to rehab. This is probably the most direct inspiration you will find in Pages of Tomorrow, as that is what I was reading during my stay in the hospital that inspired the game. In it, the author describes the main character's encounters with various patients and his confrontations with his illness. A very well-known book in Poland, it is sadly not as successful abroad (it should be!).[/p][p]Needy Streamer Overload, AKA Needy Girl Overdose, is another game about mental illness, specifically relating to internet culture. You won't find much of it in Pages, really, but it had a major impact on me overall. Its cutesy aesthetic mixed with absolutely heartbreaking themes of descent into what we colloquially know as "madness" make it an absolute classic for anyone interested in how games portray things of similar nature.[/p][p]Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka is a story that many people all over the world have read, but nobody can be sure they truly understood. There are as many interpretations of this work as there are readers who engage with it, but I will stand my ground as a believer in theories placing the "becoming vermin" metaphor somewhere in the realm of illness or disability-related ones. It perfectly explores how useless to society a person inflicted by debilitating illness feels (whether it's physical or mental), and how said society treats them. A timeless classic by a timeless author.[/p][p]Pathologic, a series of games lately blessed by a third entry, doesn't have that much to do with mental illness, as opposed to many (if not all) of the other items on this list. Still, it would feel unfair to skip it for this reason. It is a story about plague hitting a small town in an area inspired by the Russian steppe, and the doctors who have to deal with it. The writing in these games is spectacular in its quality, and the way it uses symbolism remains a great inspiration for all of my literary and game endeavors.[/p][p]This list is in no way comprehensive. I believe we all carry huge banks of inspiration in our heads, and listing them all is impossible – even briefly mentioning the most important ones made me produce a post twice the size of the others. Still, I believe it is good to talk about works we love and that had an impact on us in a world that focuses so much on talking about things we hate.[/p][p]Thank you so much for reading. As always, I invite you to wishlist Pages of Tomorrow as well as play the free demo, in which you can see for yourself the way I use all of these inspirations.[/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p][p][/p]