Red Embrace: Hollywood

Eh... if I wanted to be in an emotionally abusive relationship, I'd stop playing dating sims and download tinder. I honestly think this needed to be edgier. Instead, it was just a bunch of abrupt and terrible endings.

由于打隐藏线一直在闪退于是先把目前的评价写了。The simplified English version of the machine translation is at the end of the text. [b] 整体 [/b]：很好，作者的文笔真的很好，整个故事的内核感觉其实是很Z世代的，一些年轻人的虚无主义之类。如果我在十六岁的时候玩这个游戏可能会一边弹高山流水一边以头抢地，但是现在我可能只是能够明白主创想表达什么但是我已经不在这个人生阶段了。常见的评价是过于放大了虚无主义，我觉得自我同一性的混乱也过于放大了。这个在游戏内就表现为了人性和吸血鬼习性的冲突。但我还真就觉得这种表现形式挺好的。游戏内选项很多，代入感很好，但是双刃剑般地，过多的选择机会让收全cg的流程变得很折磨，尤其是真结局的开启条件。由于是[spoiler] meta[/spoiler] 所以能理解为什么触发这么严格，但是真的好累啊！不过第一次过的时候真的蛮惊艳的，我其实一直是使用翻译派但是这个的遣词造句对于非母语者并不难。大概高考英语水平吧？不过Markus一说话我基本就得去查一下单词了，感觉是我自己的问题…… [b] LI评价： [/b] [b]Markus： [/b] 很多人说他讲话难懂，但是我觉得他说话其实很清晰很有趣，我比较喜欢有隐喻的对话，在现实生活中有人说我懂的很多我真的会很烦，会觉得他们是不是在含沙射影地觉得我在装，让我不要这样说话了，但是M的这种说话方式就不会让我产生这样的压力。而且他其实本来说话就是字面意思吧，比如那句[spoiler] 我们会arm-in-arm直到命运把我们分开 [/spoiler]，[spoiler] 最后也确实和他手挽手一起爬楼梯了（。） [/spoiler] [spoiler] 然后他觉得爱是保持距离然后看着 [/spoiler]，[spoiler] 三结局 [/spoiler]他也确实这样做了。 但是关于这个角色我有多喜欢就让我多难受，事先声明我对 [spoiler]有性恋无性恋异性恋同性恋双性恋等等所有人的性取向 [/spoiler]了解都非常浅，甚至我自己也很多年处在一个questioning的阶段，我真的没办法非常纯粹地认同任何一个。Markus很明确地表示了[spoiler] 他对女主的感情是love而不是friendship [/spoiler]，但是[spoiler] 没有性欲的love该如何分辨是不是友谊 [/spoiler]呢？我并不很能理解[spoiler] 无性恋 [/spoiler]所以我总认为他的感情[spoiler] 只是友谊而已 [/spoiler]，而且在他询问女主是否 [spoiler]把相约当成date [/spoiler]时，如果女主 [spoiler]回答不是 [/spoiler]，他好像 [spoiler]也没有很失落 [/spoiler]，和Randal与Heath截然不同。但是如果 [spoiler]爱是排他的 [/spoiler]，为什么他的 [spoiler]三结局是选择远离女主和其他人离开 [/spoiler]？这让我百思不得其解。我认为 [spoiler]真正的爱是不离开 [/spoiler]。我就觉得很气愤，这和你表现得 [spoiler]情深似海的样子 [/spoiler]完全不一样吧？但是客观层面他确实在 [spoiler]被追杀 [/spoiler]，如果 [spoiler]不离开可能还会影响人身安全 [/spoiler]。我就有一种拳头打在棉花上的无力感。 很多人喜欢他在锁线那个结局时说的话，整个游戏我最喜欢的就是他的那句 [spoiler]”The last and only riddle worth solving……Become what you are.” [/spoiler]已严肃写在我的日程本上的扉页……love love…… [b]Heath： [/b] 我有点难以描述他，但是意识到他只是存在就被其他的两个Li以 [spoiler]恨铁不成钢的感情轻微讨厌 [/spoiler]我就觉得很好笑，这个棉花糖兔就这样和和气气地 [spoiler]惹了所有人 [/spoiler]……但是我对他的态度其实还是有点 [spoiler]不认同 [/spoiler]的，可是我又觉得我应该尊重他人命运。我这样的 [spoiler]不认同 [/spoiler]让我很愧疚，这是否是我很刻板印象里Asian toxic的表现呢？三个LI都有或多或少的心理问题，但是Heath感觉是最明显的那一个。我觉得心理问题不光是一种病理，其实和社会关系也有关系，但是病人的生活的旋涡中心终究还是他们自己，没人真正能把他们解救出来……如果那么轻松就能救赎这世界还需要心理医生干嘛？ 后面我想起Saorise其实也 [spoiler]对他寄予厚望 [/spoiler]就觉得Heath的故事线其实一直是一个 [spoiler]找妈妈 [/spoiler]的过程，但是他终究得学会自己照顾自己的，祝你在故事外幸福。 [b]Randal： [/b] 在三个人中最阳间的感情，虽然我不太认同他的理念吧但是也能理解为什么Randal周围的人都像小鸡崽围着老母鸡一样跟着他，cg里只能看见他的纹身 [spoiler]看不见他的画 [/spoiler]有点遗憾。有评价说他的外形在 [spoiler]neta耶稣 [/spoiler]，如果说是他的 [spoiler]掌心 [/spoiler]那个的话那确实，但是我自己在过剧情的时候是没有这个感觉的。我个人审美是喜欢那种 [spoiler]比较阴 [/spoiler]的感情，虽然他实际上的结局也没有 [spoiler]阳间 [/spoiler]哪里去，但是并不在我的审美上就不多评价了。 [b]一些场外内容： [/b] 原价买我也感觉挺值的，文本量很大。有人说这是反乙女游戏我不这样认为，我也不认为这个剧情有多dark，可能是我阈值比较高？如果真的想看点暗黑的感觉可以直接去看G向文学。更何况乙女游戏也有比较黑深残的剧情和g向的，说的就是你 [spoiler]女王蜂和蝶毒 [/spoiler]。不过硬要讲的话这些所谓的darkness放在2019年的出版时间也有点古典了。 作者对于目标客户的一些看法有争议，我不好说。不过常见的差评比如没有传统意义好结局和主角的行为没什么作用这种都是客观存在的事实。不过我觉得不走感情线光是当一个视觉小说玩也是挺不错的。 --- [b]Overall[/b]: Very good. Strong writing, distinctly Gen-Z in spirit — the nihilism, the identity drift. If I'd played this at sixteen I might have felt like I'd found a soulmate while banging my head against the wall. I'm past that stage now, but I can appreciate what the creators were going for. The nihilism and identity confusion are both somewhat overplayed, though the vampire-vs-humanity framing works well as a vehicle for that. Lots of choices make for strong immersion, but collecting all CGs is a slog — the secret ending unlock conditions especially. First playthrough was genuinely striking. Prose is accessible for non-native readers, roughly college-entrance-exam level — except when Markus speaks, at which point I needed a dictionary. Probably a me problem. [b]Markus:[/b] Many find him hard to follow; I find him clear and enjoyable. I like metaphor-layered dialogue, and unlike in real life, his way of speaking never made me feel accused of showing off. He also tends to be surprisingly literal — [spoiler]"arm-in-arm until fate separates us"[/spoiler] and [spoiler]sure enough, they literally walk arm-in-arm up the stairs at the end (lol)[/spoiler]. [spoiler]He believes love means watching from a distance, and Ending III proves it.[/spoiler] The more I like him, the more it hurts. I'll be honest: I have limited understanding of [spoiler]sexuality across the board — asexual, heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, all of it[/spoiler], and I've spent years [spoiler]questioning[/spoiler] without landing anywhere. Markus explicitly says [spoiler]what he feels is love, not friendship[/spoiler] — but [spoiler]without desire, how do you tell them apart?[/spoiler] I can't fully grasp [spoiler]asexuality[/spoiler], so I keep reading him as [spoiler]just a friend[/spoiler]. When he asks if their time together counts as [spoiler]a date[/spoiler] and she says no, he doesn't seem [spoiler]hurt at all[/spoiler] — so unlike Randal or Heath. And if [spoiler]love is exclusive[/spoiler], why does [spoiler]Ending III have him walk away from everyone[/spoiler]? I believe [spoiler]real love means staying[/spoiler]. The frustration is real — it contradicts everything about how [spoiler]deeply he seemed to feel[/spoiler]. Objectively, he [spoiler]is being hunted[/spoiler], but that doesn't make it land any softer. My favorite line in the entire game: [spoiler]"The last and only riddle worth solving…… Become what you are."[/spoiler] Written on my planner's flyleaf. Love, love. [b]Heath:[/b] Hard to articulate, but the fact that [spoiler]the other two LIs can't help mildly resenting him[/spoiler] is quietly hilarious — this little marshmallow bunny [spoiler]irritates everyone just by existing[/spoiler]. I do feel a certain [spoiler]disapproval[/spoiler] toward him, which makes me wonder if that's internalized Asian toxic thinking on my part. His psychological struggles are the most visible of the three. Mental illness isn't purely clinical — it's social too — but no one can rescue someone from the center of their own storm. Remembering that [spoiler]Saorise had such hopes for him[/spoiler], I realized his whole arc is essentially [spoiler]searching for a mother[/spoiler]. He'll have to learn to mother himself. Wishing you well beyond the story. [b]Randal:[/b] The most emotionally uncomplicated route. I don't share his philosophy but I understand why [spoiler]everyone orbits him like chicks around a hen[/spoiler]. Shame the CGs only show tattoos and [spoiler]never his paintings[/spoiler]. The [spoiler]Jesus references[/spoiler] others mention — if it's the [spoiler]stigmata[/spoiler], sure, I see it in retrospect. Doesn't fit my aesthetic for [spoiler]darker dynamics[/spoiler], so I'll stop there. [b]General:[/b] Worth full price for the text volume alone. I don't consider this anti-otome, nor particularly dark — my threshold may just be high. If you want genuinely disturbing content, go find some grotesque fan fiction. Otome has always had its dark corners anyway — [spoiler]Butterfly's Poison; Flower's Cage and Queen Bee's Royal Chamber[/spoiler] say hello. The darkness here feels dated for 2019. Creator's views on their audience are controversial; I'll leave that alone. The common criticisms — no happy endings, choices feeling inconsequential — are fair. But it works as a pure visual novel experience too, romance aside.

I can see why this visual novel “triggers” and “bReAks” (eye rolling wearily) a certain kind of players; they don’t wanna swallow the bitter pill about life this game offers. Which contains four points: 1) escapism and addictions are not your friends 2) you will make everything worse if you try to help someone who doesn’t want nor ask for your help 3) your love cannot magically fix damaged people 4) the world is not spinning around you [strike](likely more than four, these are just most obvious ones)[/strike] So, pretty likely, when some players pick this visual novel they hope it would be like “any other otome game with just a few dark turns but you still can fix all the husbands uwu”. And it is NOT. [strike]This is not for you.[/strike] This visual novel is not one of tools to escape the real world, it is a lesson disguised as a product of entertainment. Will you embrace and learn from it or will you give it the power to hurt you is your own choice. Even as I state it [strike]just bcs i can[/strike], I do agree this visual novel is kinda ♥♥♥♥♥♥ up- but I accept this. — Sincerely, a Markus' simp.

Okay, Let's get something straight right away. *Do not play this game if you're sensitive to subjects like gore, existential crises, depression, etc. If you're sensitive to certain subjects or susceptible to getting upset with rejection and terrible occurrences in games, don't touch this one.* That said... I see a lot of people upset about this game. At the same time, they have to praise it. Because this game is a masterpiece. It's artwork, truly it is. I think, despite the fact that this game is rarely if at all happy, it's definitely worth playing. Those into the visual novel and otome genre who aren't just here to have fun and be happy whilst playing will enjoy it. If you're into the depressing vampire genre or the 90's goth aesthetic, I 100% recommend this game. Truly it's beautiful, and I don't regret the time I've spent on it. I've only unlocked one ending and there isn't any ending guide I could find to unlock the others, so I'm gonna settle with my one ending. But I just wanted to write this review to recommend this to those interested in the gothic/vampire genres, as this is a beautiful and underrated addition to them.

No happy endings. Just the way I like it.

Markus is the most gorgeous man I've ever seen and he still looked great through the tears in my eyes during his route. No fairy-tale happy endings for these vampires but maybe you too can enjoy the catharsis like I did!

Yes and No....Love this game overall but... Besides the fact that thought the writing was good, the characters are great, and I love the art the lack of a single happy ending ruins it for me. There are five? five unhappy or highly depressing endings. That is all well and good even makes the game more interesting even. In my opinion the fact that we can't even work up to finding a single happy end for the main characters makes it feel almost not worth any of the time put into it. Hell I would pay for an additional endings with that chance dlc. Just feeling dissapointed.

[h2]生死已是定局[/h2] 生和死是摆在我们面前的一道谜题。你向来比我更加通透，我想你也许早已解开了这个谜，相反是我，我堕落，坠入谜中，徘徊，逡巡，踯躅，像是一直在看着一首韵律诡谲的、愈渐模糊和疯狂的诗。提起死，我的两只眼睛就那么对着那片浓彻的黑暗，夜空没有点灯，月亮是金黄的，蓝色从中涌出。一切那么清澈、平静，犹如幻觉，那么沉默、瘦弱，摇摇欲坠。 短短半个月，我已经几次接触“死”了，我以前一直以为，我对活看得很通透，对死也了然，而经历了一切苦难，才明白这是多么幼稚和可笑。人总是对自己不曾经历过的东西，抱以极大的幻想，而当那些未知的事物真正穿透自己时，才停止下来，开始冷静地思考。在这个世上，死是一件需要极大勇气的事。可是活需要更大的勇气，和承受痛苦的能力，我诚然知道自己很勇敢，但是我也很年轻。我的勇敢都花在爱上，花在美、热爱上，而没有花在“生”上。好像“生”是很自然而然的事。知道一切都坍塌了之后，我才意识到“死”需要极大的勇气，而“生”又要承受极大的痛楚。 现在仔细想来，其实什么不是痛楚的呢？爱是痛楚的，追求欲望是痛楚的，纵然其中又有很多是欢愉的，是享受的。生命中痛楚总是占了大多数，不幸的触感总是大于欢乐。因此我们总是热爱月亮。月亮是嘶哑的歌唱，是太阳的背面。人们都是痛苦的，纵然人类的痛苦并不相通，但是人类的痛觉是多么相似。 [h2]再放好大的火，燃尽此世悲欢[/h2] 我的整个生命布满了伤痕，这些伤痕并不是因为我比别的人承受了更多的痛苦，而是因为我的灵魂没有习得“忘记”这项技能，它像是拓印或者雕刻一般，清晰而透明地容纳着那些疮疤，无论再过多少年，再过多少光阴，它就那样在那里。沉默地，隽永地，不变地，在这里。像暗面的月光，流淌着幽深的影。 它不会痊愈，因为我时常会去抚摸那些纹路的质地，甚至拆开线，看看缝合得是否规整精密，如果不够好，我就拆了重缝，哪怕流出鲜血。 它们就这样成为了遗迹，直到投入火中，被以正确的方式，焚烧到永恒。

My feelings on this game are, for lack of a better word, complicated. I played the original Red Embrace on my phone a very long time ago. I rarely play through more than one route with Otome games. I usually pick the most visually appealing for my tastes and that's that. However, I played through the original game through every route. Loved it. Still love it. Wish I could go back and experience fresh all over again. Let me start out by saying that I am a very sad, depressed, and anxiety ridden individual. I am very lonely, not a lot of friends and haven't dated for a very long time. I don't trust people, which is part of the problem. We aren't here for my problems though. A lot of games I play have romance or companionship mechanics in them. Otome games are a crucial part in scratching that human itch for companionship. The fact his game has near 0 happy endings is a problem for me. I have enough problems and unhappiness in my life. I need a little pick me up now and then. When I first picked up this game, I expected it to be similar to the original. Like every other Otome game I've played. I was excited. After my first play through, I started digging around to see if there were any guides for the happy endings. Because that is how desperate I am to feel any kind of loving attention, even through a computer screen from a bunch of lines and pixels. Again, I am a sad and depressing person. Imagine my disappointment to find out that there are none. I bought this game almost the second it dropped in steam. I was so excited. More hot vampire guys to love me. Nope. I have played this game once and only once. I don't hate it mind you, its visually stunning and if your into that kinda depressing gothic vampire vibe, have at it. Personally, I can't take that kinda depressing BS. Not the games fault my life as a human is one misery after another. The subject matter is not the problem, let me be clear. It can be a depressing story just let me go off and be happy with my hot vampire boyfriend in the dumpster fire. I recommend it because it's great for what it is. I'm sure a lot of people love that its different from the usual otome game. Just be prepared, if you're looking for a happy ending this isn't it.

It really hurts me to say but I do NOT recommend this game. I loved the game, I hated the endings, and I understand that the story is MEANT to be sad. Due to the theme and tone of the game I was expecting a bittersweet ending, instead it wasn't bittersweet or beautifully sad, it was just straight up disappointing and truly depressing. For an ending to be well written it needs to make sense, regardless of it being happy or sad. The endings didn't make sense to me. It just felt sad for the sake of it being sad. The biggest problem with this game is the setting of wrong expectations: - When you start the game it strongly hints that your political play is going to be very important. Your reputation and your connections will be VERY important --> Yeah so... any choices seems to make only minor changes and in the end it always results in a sad ending. Why would you give me the impression I can influence the politics if the end events are completely out of my control? - The game is very flirty, and it strongly hints that you, as the main character are very desirable and attractive. --> NONE of the love interests actually want to sleep with you. Why add so many sexual elements to a game where people don't want to have sex? I could completely see this work with an interesting character arc, or something where the love interests guides you to explore love in other ways. Sadly, it wasn't like that. I think it would have been more suitable if the endings were sad, but in a way that made sense at least. And so leaving room for a sort of satisfying feeling, even if it hurts. Anyway, thank you for reading. I'm now going to return to lie in a hole and cry about my junkie vampire boyfriend.