Love in an Enchanted Realm
Nine years have passed since the day that curse befell me. Today, for the first time, I return to the ruins of the house where I once lived with my parents.
Merry Crisis: A Romance Story About Love, Loss, And Belonging
Merry Crisis is an intimate, character-driven romance visual novel currently in development by indie studio Monsoon Games. The free demo, available for Windows and macOS, invites players into a poignant holiday story filled with meaningful choices, branching narratives, and beautifully hand-drawn art.
We were lucky enough to get an exclusive interview with Allie, the lead writer, programmer, and the founder of Monsoon Games. We’ve extracted a few questions to grab your interest, but you’ll have to watch the full interview to hear us talk in much more detail.
Listen to the FULL Episode :
Table of Contents
The link to reality
Otome.com
Was any of the story or the characters inspired by things in real life?
Allie:
“I guess the short answer is that yeah. I would say Merry Crisis is about maybe 60% based on my own life and the love interests and maybe a little bit the narrative arcs as well, a little bit based on my actual life. “
Meet the Love Interests
Otome.com
Is there anything more specific you could share about Nat’s personality?
Allie:
“Yeah, so Nat is very nerdy, very kind, quite funny, I guess. And they are very much, I guess they represent this completely very unexpected romance that you didn’t think that you would have. Similarly to New York, they’re almost a metaphor for New York in some ways, because you didn’t really expect to build a home in New York, but you did. I guess capturing the theme of unexpected homes that you can build in people, in places and I think also because Nat comes right after Qiu in the chronological order of your exes.”
Otome.com
When you go back to Singapore you end up meeting Shay. Could you tell us a bit about them?
Allie:
“Yeah, so I had a couple of people play the demo and I think Shay is definitely an acquired taste.”
“Yeah, but I think Shay is very much a flirty, outdoorsy person and I think in my brain, I guess narratively, they sort of represent an alternate life in Singapore and the possibility of, you know, actually finding happiness in a country that maybe you might have given up on in some ways and tried to build your life elsewhere, but then you come back to Singapore and you sort of get a glimpse of possible happiness through Shay.”
Otome.com
Tell us a bit more about Qiu? They felt like a more mysterious type of character.
Allie:
“So in the flashback in the demo, you sort of meet him at this party that you’re having in high school and I think you immediately sort of hit it off. Qiu is a very intelligent person. They are really good at holding a conversation and I think the first thing that really draws you to Qiu is that intellectual connection. In the full game, I think you will have a little bit more options in terms of”
Otome.com
So which character was the most difficult to write?
Allie:
“I think in general, a lot of the characters also play on certain tropes that are really popular. So you know, I think Shay is really like Golden Retriever energy, but also a little bit more bold. And Nat is a little bit more cozy, you know, hot chocolate kind of vibes. And Qiu is a lot more of the black cat kind of slowly softens up to you. And then that really gives lots of readers a payoff as you get to soften up this really hard character like you said. And in terms of who was the most difficult to write. This is a really cop out answer but I think they were all really fun and difficult to write for different reasons…”
The Art
Otome.com
The backgrounds truly felt like real places. Were they inspired by somewhere in particular?
Allie:
“Yeah, so most of them are based on real places. The park, for example, that we might show later is somewhere that I went really often with my family growing up and still do. So it really has a special place in my heart. Yeah, I think there’s also another, yeah, a lot of locations in Merry Crisis are real. And if you’re Singaporean, I think you’ll probably recognize them. Mostly because I really wanted the game to be a love letter to Singapore and I think you don’t really see that much Singaporean representation in media.”
Otome.com
Is there anything more you could share about the art style in general?
Allie:
“Yeah, exactly. So actually I managed to, convey some of the questions to my artists and maybe if, would it be cool if I read some of their answers?“
Allie:
“Cool, okay so Crows who does the characters, this is on the art process. So he says that the main thing that he does in terms of process is really learn to name his layers and the process is pretty normal, just sketch approved, line art approved and then colors and he says that he really appreciates the challenges that help him test out different things, for example new poses or the background that he did.”
Allie:
“So a side note is he’s saying that because he mostly does the characters, and the background that he did was really amazing. And I think it’s something that he doesn’t usually do. So it’s the beach scene that I’m sure we’ll talk about a bit later.“
Allie:
“And now this answers from Maria, who does the backgrounds. So regarding the art style and the process, this is just, I’m just gonna read out: Personally, I’m someone who can adapt to the style that each project requires and in this case, I try to maintain the cleanest style possible and try to research the best atmosphere. I like to research and look for various references and once I’ve decided on the angle or point of view, I start sketching. I try to make the sketches clear and precise as possible before doing the line art and then move on to color. This is the part that I enjoy most. I love combining colors to create unique atmospheres. And regarding the inspiration question. I get my inspiration from almost anything. I’m a very visual person and I find lot of inspiration from small moments going for a walk and seeing how the light works in certain environments, a building with interesting architecture, how colours work in different climates, etc. And I also love playing video games. I think it really helps me refresh my mind and find inspiration. Studio Valley and Animal Crossing are some I usually play.”
Exclusive Content
Otome.com
You shared with us a few lovely exclusive pieces of art. Let’s first take a look at Nat in a floral shirt.
Allie:
“Yeah and Yeah, Nat gets really hot in Singapore so gotta undo those buttons.”
Allie:
“So she is going to come to Singapore and it depends on your choices earlier on in the game. Yeah, and you get to spend some quality time with Nat in Singapore as well.”
Otome.com
Next we have some art of a beach with a sketch of Nat and a reference photo. So can you talk a bit more about this place?
Allie:
“Yeah, so the place is called Labrador Park and it’s really close to my house and my parents used to bring us there as kids. We would, you know, get takeaway pizza and sit by the coast. And I also skipped class once to go there with my, I guess, high school partner and that scene will be in the full game. I just think it’s a really amazing, quite romantic place.“
Otome.com
Lastly we have male Shay at what looks like a punk show.
Allie:
“Yeah, so Shay invites you in the demo to his Christmas performance and you can dance with Shay and really start to meet his, people that are important to him in his life or her. Yeah, so you get to meet their band mates and I think it’s generally trying to capture that idea or that feeling of falling in love really quickly or maybe just not falling in love but having a very strong attraction or friendship feeling with this person that you connect to and find it very easy to hang out with. That scene will eventually flow into a potential night after scene as well with Shay in their bedroom if you want.”
In Closing
Playing Merry Crisis was a treat, but getting to talk with Allie was even better. She was sweet enough to share so much with us and talk so openly about the characters, story, environments, backgrounds and inspirations of the game. As well as share some truly special behind the scenes stories and never before seen pieces of art from the creative process and the full game. We can’t thank her enough for being our guest just like we can’t recommend you enough to support her and her team. They all sound like very passionate and talented people.
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