HOLEHOLE

Fun little walking simulator, where you explore an underground map with a colorful cast of characters. No, it's not Undertale. You really just look and interact with anything you deem interesting, before proceeding with the story day by day. It has some dark undertones, both from the story and the visuals, not to mention the sexualized look of most characters, but it's still a really chill game to just pick up and decompress, it takes around an hour to complete. 8/10 - More art than game, but still a good game

[h3][b]HOLEHOLE[/b][/h3] Enquanto jogava, me senti [b]imerso em algo[/b], [b]acompanhando conversas e acontecimentos[/b], mas [b]sem entender totalmente o que estava acontecendo[/b].Foi como [b]caminhar em um sonho[/b], mas [b]sem uma lógica clara[/b].[b]Simplesmente confuso, intrigante e pensativo[/b]. Uma [b]aventura curta com finais diferentes[/b], e como [b]não é difícil alternar entre eles[/b], [b]vale a pena tentar completar ambos[/b]. [b]Conseguir todas as conquistas exigirá um pouco de paciência[/b], além de um número alto de tentativas na parte da [b]caixa de correio[/b], já que [b]os controles são meio estranhos[/b]. Se você gosta de [b]jogos curtos[/b], com um [b]preço acessível[/b], com uma [b]carga emocional[/b], [b]labirintos intrigantes[/b] e uma [b]narrativa fragmentada[/b] que [b]deixa espaço para interpretações[/b], será uma [b]experiência que vale a pena[/b].

kinda confusing up until the end but once i realized what it all meant, it left a tear in my eye

Came for big tiddy furry women, and found a meh game. Story was pretty lame too, I only spent a dollar on ts but im still refunding it

Dang, was not expecting to get emotional.

👍 Yes

[b]Slight spoilers![/b] [h1]Short Review[/h1] HOLEHOLE is an unfinished game, but not in a bad way. It's a story about an unfinished life, one ended early, told through the eyes of someone left behind, and the game's rough, meaningless, repetitive loop of a gameplay experience actually complements that message rather than working against it. Lu isn't exactly known for riveting gameplay, and normally that's a knock against a game, but here it works in the story's favor. Just know going in that the gameplay itself is kind of a slog, but the payoff is worth it, and you don't need to talk to every single character to get there. [h1]Full Review[/h1] HOLEHOLE has you falling into a hole and freely exploring a small, looping world, collecting objects, chatting with residents, and generally poking around at your own pace. Going in, I expected the usual Lu formula of minimal gameplay wrapped around an atmospheric, slightly melancholic story, and that's mostly what I got, just with an interesting twist on how the gameplay itself ties into the message. [b]The gameplay.[/b] The gameplay is quite boring for a good chunk of the runtime. You've got meaningless features, a repetitive loop, and honestly not much purpose behind most of what you're doing day to day. Normally this would just be a straightforward complaint, but here it actually works in the game's favor. The unfinished, aimless nature of that loop mirrors the unfinished life the story is centered around, and I think that's intentional. It's a slog to get through in the moment, but knowing what the story is going for retroactively makes the tedium feel purposeful rather than lazy. [b]The story.[/b] The game is set within an unfinished story, one told from the perspective of someone left behind after a life ended early. Lu isn't known for riveting gameplay in any of their titles, but that weakness usually gets folded into something meaningful by the time the credits roll, and HOLEHOLE is a good example of that. The payoff at the end is genuinely nice, and it recontextualizes a lot of the wandering and repetition that came before it. [b]The user interface.[/b] Worth noting for anyone dreading a full completionist run: you don't need to talk to every single character to progress. Once you've exhausted most of the interesting dialogue with the other residents, or you just get sick of looping through the same repetitive world, you can head straight to the guard and drop into the hole to move things along. You only need to really talk to the other characters to give them items you get from the hole (this won't happen for a while). This helped cut down on some of the slog considerably. Overall, HOLEHOLE is a rough, unfinished experience by design, and once that clicks, the boring gameplay and repetitive loop stop feeling like flaws and start feeling like the point. It's a slog to get through at times, but the payoff makes it worth pushing past that. I'd recommend giving this one a try, just go in knowing you're not here for the gameplay. (P.S. Big boobas are why you bought this game but it's good to know it has more to offer than that) [code]If you liked this review, then feel free to check out my [url=https://www.youtube.com/@VinroyIsViral]YouTube Channel[/url] for more reviews. I also have a curator group called [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/43774503-The-Completionist-Crusaders/]"The Completionist Crusaders"[/url] that focuses more toward completionists. Thank you, and happy gaming![/code]

I feel sorry for the guard :<

The lore.

[h1]Ryan George Style Pitch Meeting: The Hole-In-One Cut[/h1] The setting has now devolved into pure visual madness. The looping 3D grid layout is completely surrounded by massive, 2D hand-drawn portraits of incredibly shapely, soft furry characters looking intensely cozy. The Snatcher is floating upside down, frantically signing contracts with a pink gel pen. The Conductor is using a megaphone to shout at a cloud about visual composition. Jackie Chan is uncomfortably balancing a decorative porcelain grandfather clock on his chin while doing a split between two floating platforms. Uncle is aggressively throwing handfuls of green mung beans at the Publisher's head. Hak Foo is hanging by his ankles from a neon sign, posing gracefully. Publisher: So, you have a very specific, hand-drawn, looping furry exploration project for me today, my aesthetic friend? Game Designer: Yes, I do, your grand excellence! It’s called HOLEHOLE, and it is going to make the internet absolutely drop to its knees! Publisher: Oh, really? What do you do in HOLEHOLE? Game Designer: Well, tis straightforward, you just keep going forwards but there are little secrets to find! You are essentially on a quest to explore every single nook, cranny, and... hole... this world has to offer! Publisher: ...What? Game Designer: What? Publisher: Well, okay then! Conductor: Look at the sheer scale of this character silhouette, it’s completely filling the frame and hogging all the visual real estate, you absolute peckneck! The Snatcher: Oh, I think it's exquisite! A game that completely traps you in a loop of unadulterated yearning? You walk into the void, you fall into a hole, and you like it! It’s foolproof! Publisher: Is it hard? Is there a giant learning curve with complex resource management, high anxiety, or inventory sorting? Game Designer: Super easy, barely an inconvenience! Publisher: Oh, really? Game Designer: Yeah, you just walk forward, look at magnificent things, and fall deeper and deeper into the atmospheric hole we’ve prepared for you at your own casual pace. There's zero stress, zero pressure, and absolutely nothing to distract you from the view! Publisher: Well, okay then! That works. Uncle: AIYA! One more thing! If the players are spending all their time staring at the glorious shapes of these rabbit holes, who is going to help Uncle research the ancient scrolls?! Game Designer: Well, the magic is entirely in the character sprites, Uncle. Uncle: (Squints closely at a nearby floating 2D art asset) ...Aiya! Okay, Uncle sees the vision now. Those proportions are definitely a supernatural phenomenon. Magic must defeat magic, but these designs are defeating Uncle’s ability to think clearly! Hak Foo: WHITE CRANE SPREADS ITS WINGS! The utter density of the extra thickness in this room has altered my center of gravity entirely! Game Designer: Hey, shut up! Hak Foo: ...Fair enough. (Immediately goes back to tracking an invisible laser pointer) Publisher: Now, you mentioned the narrative is completely abstract and presented through cryptic visual novel segments. Why would you make the plot so incredibly vague and hard to piece together? Game Designer: Because! Publisher: Fair enough! That’s what we’re going with! Game Designer: Exactly. Players are just going to dive headfirst right down the rabbit hole! Publisher: Oh, like Alice in Wonderland? Game Designer: Well, yes, except in our version, Alice is a remarkably curvy, highly aesthetic furry lady, and instead of a Mad Hatter, everyone is just Mad Thirsty! Publisher: Wow wow wow. Wow. Anthropomorphic fairy tales are tight! But wait, when you say "rabbit hole," are people going to think of that incredibly viral, hypnotic blue-haired pop-star anime animation that completely took over the internet with its looping, bouncy choreography? Game Designer: Oh, they are absolutely going to make that connection immediately, sir! The overlap between people who love looping rabbit holes and people who appreciate spectacular character animation is a complete circle! Publisher: Well, that sounds like a glorious setup. Game Designer: Oh, it’s a glorious hole indeed, sir! Publisher: ...What? Game Designer: What? Publisher: Well, okay then! (A glowing pink portal bursts open in the center of the room. Honest Trailer Voice Guy steps out, wearing a giant velvet tuxedo, holding a gold-plated microphone, speaking in a booming, chest-vibrating bass voice) Honest Trailer Voice: Get ready... to dive headfirst... into a world of pure... unmitigated... aesthetic longing. Experience the loop... embrace the cozy mystery... and stare directly into... BEEEEEWWWWWWBSSSS! Publisher: Wait, who is that? And what did he just say about the character designs? Game Designer: Ah! That brings me to our main selling point, sir! The art style features beautifully designed, highly expressive, incredibly curvy furry ladies! Publisher: Oh? Game Designer: Oh, yes. They are spectacularly stylized, exceptionally well-proportioned, and absolutely packed with visual personality. They have a very distinct, soft silhouette that keeps the player completely engaged! It’s a whole experience, sir! A whole lot of plot! (Aku from Samurai Jack suddenly rises from the floor, his massive shadowy form towering over the entire room, flaming eyebrows flickering with intense corporate approval) Aku: DID SOMEONE SAY... EXTRA THICCNESS?! EXCELLENT! HAHAHAHA! THE VISUAL DENSITY OF THESE CHARACTERS HAS CREATED A GRAVITATIONAL PULL THAT EVEN I, AKU, CANNOT ESCAPE! IT IS A HOLY EXPERIENCE! OR RATHER... A HOLE-Y EXPERIENCE! HAHAHAHA! Publisher: Wow wow wow. Wow. Curvy furry ladies are tight! Game Designer: They sure are! The community is going to focus on them a whole lot! Jackie Chan: I don't want any trouble! But honestly, traveling down this specific furry wonderland features remarkably clear, well-saturated art that is very easy on the eyes! Publisher: Now, what happens if the player gets stuck in the loop forever and can't find the secrets because the level layout keeps resetting? Game Designer: Whoops! Publisher: Whoopsie! Game Designer: Yeah, some players might find the repetition a little frustrating, but finding those hidden secrets is part of the charm! They'll just keep falling down the rabbit hole of our design! Publisher: Very considerate! So, to recap: it’s a casual, visually clear, highly artistic walking experience with zero pressure, a beautiful soundtrack, zero stress, and a massive emphasis on highly aesthetic, soft, shapely animal characters where you just keep going forward? Game Designer: That’s exactly what it is! Publisher: And there are absolutely no complicated combat setups or stressful layout designs to deal with? Game Designer: None at all, sir! It is completely designed for pure, unadulterated aesthetic appreciation. The Snatcher: Just let them run in circles forever staring at the fluffiness while I take their souls! Publisher: Well, that sounds incredibly relaxing. Game Designer: It really is! You just let the lovely, soft imagery wash completely over you. Aku: YES! LET THE EXQUISITE COZINESS AND MAJESTIC SHAPES CONSUME THE ENTIRE MARKETPLACE! Publisher: And the internet won't get mad that it's an abstract art piece instead of a traditional action game? Game Designer: Oh, some of them definitely will, but then they'll see the character art and completely forget why they were complaining! Publisher: Oh, the visual distraction strategy! That is an incredibly effective corporate move. Hak Foo: ANGRY EAGLE STRIKES THE WALLET! Visual distraction is the ultimate tactical maneuver! Game Designer: It works every single time, sir! Publisher: And what about the soundtrack? Is it going to stay completely cozy and atmospheric? Publisher: Well, I am completely on board. Let’s release it on Steam immediately! Game Designer: Wow wow wow. Wow.