Night in the Woods is a pensive reminder of what it means to be in your late teens or early 20s. As someone who struggles with [spoiler]delusions, thankfully lucid[/spoiler] myself, Mae's character really stuck with me. In many ways, she's who I might become in a few years. She echoes many of the things I fear, and she carries many of my flaws, too.
I feel like the highlight is that NITW is very refreshing for a story-driven RPG that is ultimately about psychological dread and suffering. I appreciate it for not being gimmicky or too stuck on a particular emotion and how it captures an incredibly wide range of feeling, turning from hilarious to riveting to existential at a snap of a finger. It is very light (so, light-stomached people, you'll be fine!), the format is novel, the artstyle delivers, and the lore leaves not much left to be desired.
I will be honest, the transition between these different emotions can be awkward at times (simply due to how the friendship quest system works). If you are a psychological horror fan who wants to feel absolutely terrible and nothing else, then this game won't be for you. Why? The game's ultimate ambition is to paint a nuanced picture of college-era life, both in the good, the bad, and the ugly. As a result, I left the game not so much misanthropic or hopeless about the future as I was appreciative of it. The writing is childish, but I'm pretty sure it's completely intentional, and all things considered, it's pretty impressive that the developers have managed to convey such heavy topics through such a whimsical cast.
NITW is such an adorable yet deceivingly light-hearted game. It is not perfect, and it takes some concessions on the player's part to fully appreciate, but it is without a doubt one of the champions of its time. I left my first playthrough with a Mae-shaped hole in my heart :)
[spoiler][i]
I am going to tell you something, little creature:
you are swimming further and further out to sea
and beyond are things blind and terrible,
so I am climbing back into the air they knocked away
and I am closing the sky.
[/i][/spoiler]
- The Sky Cat, Pt. 3 Day 2
