Sometimes Always Monsters

Importé mi final "malo" de Always Sometimes Monsters para sacar un final "malo" en este también, 10/10 muy satisfecho, espero rejugarlos pronto y quizás, quizás hacer las cosas mejor esta vez, pero no prometo nada ;)

[h2]SAM improves on a lot of ASM's weaknesses while bolstering its strengths[/h2] I felt ambivalent toward this game's predecessor, [i]Always Sometimes Monsters[/i]. Despite its weaknesses, I still thought the series had a lot of potential and wanted to give the sequel, [i]Sometimes Always Monsters[/i], a try. I'm glad I made this decision because I really enjoyed this game. [h3]The passion for this game is clear.[/h3] You can tell that the developers put a lot of love and attention into this game. You could see it with ASM, but it seems even more apparent in this one. There are so many different mini arcs to explore throughout the game that I was eager with each in-game day to see what new stories to bring. And you get rewarded simply with interacting with the world around you. One very simple and minor thing that impressed me, for instance, were movie theatres, I didn't expect each movie to have their own full-fledged cutscenes for you to view! I thought the game would simply flash forward to my character finishing the movie after I entered the theatre, but the devs went the extra mile and actually incorporated scenes from the movie, which I thought was pretty cool. [h3]Loved the writing and visuals![/h3] SAM improves on a lot of ASM's weaknesses while bolstering its strengths. Among its most notable key features is a lot more potential for non-linearity. While, like its predecessor, it follows a central plot line [spoiler](unless you decide not to go on tour)[/spoiler], there are much more stories and arcs to explore. The game, for instance offers a plethora of writers you work with, each with their own personality. I ended up going with [spoiler]Ruth, Pablo, Alexa, and Sheena[/spoiler] in my first playthrough. Each of them were very distinct, memorable characters and I loved watching not just my interactions with them, but even their interactions with each other during the tour. And the endings in this game felt much more dynamic too. Spoilers ahead, [spoiler]but WOW were they tense, I was on the edge of my seat and my hands were sweating during that warehouse scene, I don't remember the last time I felt that way about a game's writing. [/spoiler] In addition to writing, the game just looks better as well. I liked the cute, chibi sprites of ASM, but the character portraits in this game look amazing! I was blown away seeing the new portraits of my character and spouse in this game for the first time, I really like how much better their portraits look in this game as they have so much more character. [h3]A few minor complaints...[/h3] I will say that I found the game to be buggier than ASM for me. I'm not sure if it was due to me playing on a Steam Deck, but there were times when it would crash and sometimes mess up the timing of events in a city, and there were times when the game would freeze after certain scenes for me, such as using the chest press machine at the gym. These weren't too much of an issue since the game does have an autosave feature and multiple save files available, but just something to keep in mind. I will also note that the developers are active on the Vagabond Dog Discord and are very responsive to any bug you may face in the game. I'll also add that aside from these bugs, the game ran very well on my Steam Deck and I highly recommend playing it there if you have one. In addition to the problem with bugs, I was hoping [spoiler]the spouse would play a bigger role in the story. I was excited to see their role in this game after spending my entire time in ASM to win them back, but they play a mostly a supporting role in this game.[/spoiler] There is one event during the game where [spoiler]you go on a dinner date with them. I'd love to have more events like that, or potentially the ability to control them more during certain parts of the game. [/spoiler] [h3]Final thoughts[/h3] Overall though, I had a phenomenal time! Again, it builds on a lot of ASM's stengths while improving on its weaknesses. I'm excited to play this again as there are so many opportunities to explore. I look forward to meeting the other writers, [spoiler]but I'm gonna miss Pablo, Sheena, Alexa, and Ruth. I'm excited to play the game multiple times in the future but I'll always remember them as my first, core group of writers and friends. ✌🏼 https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3045392021 [/spoiler]

Not a fan of losing my MC because I decided against ruining someone's marriage for selfish reasons.

SAM is a pretty chill, free flowing game. I would say it isn't as over the top/urgent as ASM but that isn't a bad thing. It feels more grounded and real, like you have to make your own goals for each day as well as take care of yourself (just like in real life!). Sure there are tedious bits that come at that cost of "real"ness (watching your hygene, having to eat, etc. etc.) that are more extensive than ASM's bits, but I liked it. It's different mechanics for a different story. Story wise, it wasn't super dramatic in my opinion but I didn't think that was necessary given the set up. We're always going to be comparing the two unfortunately, but my thought is that ASM had too much heavy handedness. And not getting ragged on for making which ever choice I made was a welcome change. Again, it aids to the realism. I can give money to every person who asks for it and there's really no consequence to it other than my interaction with the person/their feelings. I really liked that, not every choice matters to the overall plot like I felt it did in ASM. [spoiler] The ending (as well as MOST of the rival related points, which seem to drop off after the second city at least in my playthrough) could've been a bit more substantial, I guess. I would've liked to see the "final showdown" being built up more, but it is what it is. I did like the ability to choose the ending by writing. Honestly I wanna go back to my save I made before I stepped off the bus and try a whole bunch of different words to see what happens. [/spoiler] If you're going into this expecting the same thing as ASM you're probably going to be a bit disappointed. But that doesn't mean SAM is a bad experience, or even a bad sequel! It feels like an evolution of ASM, not just more of the same. It's incredibly detailed, the art is nice, the music is fantastic as always, and the little side stories you can be apart of are thoughtful, funny, and really speak to me on the questions of morality and humanity, what it means to make a creative work and put it out there in the world for other people to see. It feels very personal in that way. Also, I really think the characters are written very well and are three dimensional in a way that makes me feel like I could know them in real life. Give this game a play, it's worth it.

Always Sometimes Monster was one of those games that captivated me when i was young adult, made me so excited i remmeber inviting my friend over so we can solve especially difficult situation. I liked how sometimes descisions you've made woul'd return to bite you in the bottocks. I never expected this game to have sequel and when i saw it in the store i was mindblown! Wow! One of my favorite games is having a sequel! Wow! I can transfer my safe file! I even replayed entirety of ASM to make sure i get best ending and put my new values into it. That was my mistake. I set expectations too high. I don't want to hurt artists who made sequel with harsh words. And i don't want to spoil this game for anyone who's willing to give it a try. So all i can say is that very little of what you do during SAM affects your story. To a devastating degree. I spent hours trying to get best outcome or weighting my choices. Only to don't recive any feedback from the story. The adventure itself feels just like collection of stories. Nothing to influence, nothing to change really. Just sit down and watch. Protagonist have a phone but rarely anyone calls them. Not to mention you can never call your BFF or manager, with the only guy you are able to call freely having one single repeatable dialogue. They implemented whole meachanic of complex cooking but your character only eats one meal in 2-4 days. And game quests only ask you to took 1-2 times. It's a waste. Ending was dissapointing and a bit messy. Interesting idea implemented a bit poorly. But it's unique. Overall this game left me dissapointed. Maybe because my expectation were so high, or maybe because this game doesn't live up to the level of modern story-based games. It's better to have fewer choices but see them bear fruit, then have 10000 and see no result. Sorry. Maybe this game would've been better if it was about completely new characters. Me transferig my safe file barely did anything to make this story more interesting. P.S. Also this game have vegan cat food propaganda. It's so enraging, i have no words. Sad to see young people buying into those lies.

Probably one of the most memorable games. I played ASM on PS4 and I fell in love with the down-to-earth, slice-of-life mixed with chaotic elements theme that went on. I was unable to import my save file but i was very surprised to see a continuity questionnaire that helped big time. I love the endless possibilities and little easter eggs scattered throughout, i can tell a great amount of love was put into this game. Great continuation of story.

I think it's pretty clear to say if you liked ASM you're going to like this too. The pace is a little slower and less action packed but I think that is well chosen path. The game lets you explore the cities and the characters while also making you think and worry about the planning, schedule and the future in the back of your head. There are some continuity errors here and there but considering the amount of paths that can be chosen as well as the choices that is transferred from ASM to the new game I found it very easy to overlook. Something I really liked about this game is that it made me connect and actually like and care about my protagonist unlike most games. Even in choice and story driven games I find this trait very rarely. Also on another note, I actually cared more about the relationship during this game than I had during the previous. Personally I had my doubts about the sincerity and the durability of the relationship with the SO but the small dialogues, phone calls and dates actually made me feel like these two characters are together because they want to be rather than "they are together because that is the good ending path" Overall very enjoyable game, it's apparent that it was made with love and care and I wish it had gotten the spotlight and recognition ASM did.

Gostei muito da Historia do Primeiro jogo que nem pensei em jogar o segundo. porem esse segundo jogo é muito pior em questão de historia do que o primeiro. serve mais como um "GRANDE EPILOGO" para o final do primeiro jogo. Gostei de ver como o meu protagonista estava depois do primeiro jogo com a esposa e tal foi interessante. porem esse negocio de viajar entre 5 cidades sendo interessantes somente a primeira e a ultima por questões da historia mesmo as outras 3 são muito ruins que não agregarão em quase nada para historia. o final é no minimo diferente oque algumas pessoas podem achar bom ou ruim. a gameplay ficou melhor comparado com o primeiro com algumas funcionalidades a mais. gráficos em questão de cenário estão bem melhore, gráfico dos personagens em gameplay estão melhores não são pixelados porem os retratos prefiro ainda o estilo desenho do primeiro e não essa mistura de realístico com desenho. gostei das interações do bigdeal com a tisha pura comedia^^ recomendo com ressalvas para quem gostou do primeiro. se quiser ter um epilogo extra para o protagonista do primeiro jogo mas esteja ciente que o jogo é muito devagar e repetitivo

If your a fan of visual novels but want something with more interactive experience then this is it!

Choices actually matter across two games