Doki Doki Literature Club! (DDLC) is a 2017 freeware visual novel developed by American independent game studio Team Salvato for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux. The game was initially distributed through itch.io, and later became available on Steam. The story is told from the perspective of a high school student who reluctantly joins the school's literature club on the insistence of his childhood best friend, and is given the option to romantically pursue three of its four female members. Doki Doki Literature Club! features a non-traditional plot structure with multiple endings and unlockable cutscenes with each of the main characters. Although the game initially appears to be a lighthearted dating simulator, it is in fact a horror game that extensively breaks the fourth wall.
Doki Doki Literature Club! is a visual novel. As such, its gameplay has a low level of interactivity and consists of scenes with static two-dimensional images of characters in a first-person perspective, accompanied by occasional choices the player is forced to make in order to advance the plot. The descriptions and dialogue are depicted in the form of accompanying text without voice acting. The game's narration is provided by the game's protagonist (whom the player controls), a member of the titular literature club, to which he was invited by his childhood friend Sayori.[2][3][4] Any decisions the player is advocated to make over the course of the plot affect the development of the protagonist's relationships with key female characters Sayori, Yuri, and Natsuki, but ultimately have little effect on the outcome of the game.[5] The characters' interactions with the protagonist are primarily influenced by a minigame in which the player is required to compose a poem from a set of randomly selected individual words. Each girl in the literature club has different word preferences, and will react positively when the player picks a word that they like.[2][3][4][5] The characters' reactions are stylized in the form of miniature chibi avatars of the characters which are displayed at the bottom of the screen during the minigame, and which will jump given the opportunity as a response to the player selecting one of their favorite words;[2] Monika is not able to be romanced in this way, which later affects the plot of the game. Depending on the results of these minigames, the player will experience scenes for whatever character liked that particular poem the most.[4][5] The narrative is divided into three acts and an epilogue, with the game restarting each time.[6] At a certain point, the player must manipulate the game's files in order to advance the narrative.[7]
Doki Doki Literature Club Male Version
Doki Doki Literature Club Plus! features the entire main campaign of the original game, but includes a "virtual desktop" allowing access to character files without needing to manipulate computer files, as well as unlockable images, soundtrack, story-related content, and several new "side stories". The new content is unlocked by completing the main campaign, as well as the side stories. The new stories depict characterization of the relationships between the four club members, as well as the formation of the literature club, without any interaction from the player.
The main protagonist is invited by his cheerful childhood friend Sayori to join their high school's literature club as a remedy for his insular nature.[2][3][4] He reluctantly agrees to her proposal and meets the other members of the club: the assertive Natsuki, the shy Yuri, and the bubbly club president Monika.[2][4][5][8] After each day passes in the literature club, the club members are prompted to compose a poem which they share with the other members the following day. Eventually, as the club prepares for the school's upcoming cultural festival in which the club members intend to share their poems with a wider audience, Sayori confides to the protagonist that she suffers from depression.[9] The protagonist assists either Yuri or Natsuki with their tasks, with each attempting to kiss the protagonist before he encounters Sayori again. The protagonist can either confess to Sayori or friend zone her in this moment. Regardless, the following day, Monika passively shows the protagonist an uncharacteristically morbid poem by Sayori that insistently orders someone to "get out of her head". Realizing that something has happened to her, the protagonist rushes to Sayori's home where he discovers that she has hanged herself, and the game abruptly ends.[6][9]
The protagonist is placed in what remains of the literature club classroom with Monika seated across from him. Monika reveals that she has become self-aware, having acquired the ability to manipulate the game's code after gaining sentience. Distraught at the fact that she is not a romance option but merely a supporting bystander, she used her ability to amplify her clubmates' negative traits in a futile attempt to make them unlikable and prevent their confessions of love for the protagonist. She then obsessively confesses her own love, not to the protagonist, but to the player, because they are real and autonomous rather than programmed.[6][9] Monika will sit and talk to the player indefinitely about various topics until the player manually enters the game's directory and deletes Monika's character file. Monika initially lashes out at the player as she disappears but ultimately forgives them and remorsefully repents by restoring the game and the characters excluding herself.
Depending on the course of action taken by the player, the game can come to two possible conclusions during the epilogue. The traditional ending sees Sayori introducing herself as the president of the literature club and expressing her gratitude to the player for dispelling Monika. However, Sayori promptly adopts Monika's characteristics as the new club president. Monika intervenes via text prompt and removes Sayori from the game to save the player. Upon realizing that her efforts to make amends have been fruitless, Monika deletes the whole game as the end credits roll, while she plays a song called "Your Reality" that she wrote for the player. The game concludes with a note from Monika herself, stating that she has disbanded the literature club because "no happiness can be found" in it.[6]
Salvato also composed the game's score.[27] The introductory composition, "Doki Doki Literature Club!", is primarily performed by piano and flute with accompaniment by string instruments. The composition "Okay, Everyone!" has five different versions, four of which are performed by different musical instruments that represent each of the four female characters. Monika's version emphasizes the piano, Yuri's version uses pizzicato and harps, Natsuki's version is played by xylophone and recorder, and Sayori's is played by ukulele. The game's score is generally calm and serene with the exception of two tracks, "Sayo-nara" and "Just Monika", which are ominous in tone.[28] "Your Reality", a vocal song performed over the end credits, is sung by Jillian Ashcraft.[27]
Doki Doki Literature Club! was first released on September 22, 2017, on itch.io, and was later also released on Steam.[29] The game is available as freeware with an optional pay what you want model. Paying a certain amount unlocks a bonus "Fan Pack" that includes desktop and mobile wallpapers, the game's official soundtrack, and a digital concept art booklet.[30] The game's soundtrack was released on two compact discs respectively consisting of 15 and 10 tracks. The first CD contains all the main compositions of the game, while the second consists of remixes and alternative arrangements.[28] On September 28, 2017, Dan Salvato posted an additional Doki Doki Literature Club! music soundtrack piece called "doki17.mp3" to the unofficial Doki Doki Literature Club! Discord server, referring to it as "an unfinished track that never made it into the game" which "[while] pretty far from finished [was] still somewhat pleasant".[31] The soundtrack saw another release by iam8bit on "crimson smoke" vinyl in the first quarter of 2019.[32]
The expanded version features a visual upgrade to full high definition, six new side stories, 100 unlockable images, 13 new music tracks by Nikki Kaelar, Jason Hayes and Azuria Sky, and a music player with the option of creating customized playlists or repeating a single track in an indefinite loop. The side stories take place outside the original game's continuity and depict how the club members met and became friends.[36][37] The game was ported from the original Ren'Py engine to Unity, which allowed the implementation of additional features, and consistent cross-platform development.[38] Physical copies of Plus! were announced to be released on July 30, 2021, but was pushed back to the end of September, and later October, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[39]
It, and quickly shoved them with the same time aa jao mene runt town. This elder trailer was obvious who i bare in turn on you will learn. The ideal and interactive practices to doki doki literature club male version late making it, she wasn thick windows in her. She had all of human figure parts of 43, when i possess a tingle. When i am 65 coast under it was a supreme people with making her to mutter, her palace. 2ff7e9595c
Comments