The Indie Informer

Burn this phrase into your skull because it is as brilliant as the game that spawned it: “Put the ‘love’ in ‘Lovecraftian horror!” Sucker for Love: Date to Die For is gloriously twisted, compassionate, and made me rush to end the world over and over. This wasn’t on my bingo card for one of the year’s top games, but it has earned a spot.

Each layer of Date to Die For is as perception-confronting as the last, so it’s difficult for me to give a solid overview that encompasses everything that makes it so compelling. But I’ll start by saying that it’s mostly a visual novel — except in a few places. And it’s wildly nostalgic for anyone that grew up loving ’90s anime.

Even the very beginning of the game plays around with this, framing the start menu as a kind of shelf with worn VHS tapes. In my possession are series 1, 2, 999, and, well, the last title is completely scribbled out. Playing the game, I immediately noticed a watermark in the corner and english subtitles which pulled me back to my youth watching poorly translated videos rented from my local Blockbuster. The mood is fantastic, but also practical. From the get-go, I exist as both the player — who is watching the series — and the protagonist trying to find a way out of the cosmic nightmare she’s found herself in.

See what I mean about those layers? It only gets more complex from here, though I won’t spoil anything more. Most of the gameplay has me in first-person with my mouse cursor taking the form of a hand with painted nails. One of my first observations was that I needed to use the hand to open doors by physically dragging my mouse across my desk. I don’t typically like tactile interaction for its own sake, but, like the nostalgia, this element also has its own pragmatic purpose.

Mainly, it’s to freak me out. While I wouldn’t call Date To Die For particularly scary, there’s no shortage of that good ol’ Lovecraftian unsettledness. Many chapters of the game ratchet up the tension by necessitating I navigate a decrepit house while dangers lurk within. By having total control over how fast I open a door, I can effectively peek into the adjacent room to be sure it’s clear of anything unsavory. There were absolutely some moments when I carefully and slowly slid a door open just to yell out loud when a looming figure came into view. This is another brilliant case of putting me, the player, in the action.

The narrative, which blends Eldritch horror and romance in a kind of reverse Doki Doki Literature Club, focuses on Stardust. For various reasons, she finds herself back in her hometown, Sacramen-Cho attempting to solve an abominable mystery. She quickly falls in league with The Black Goat of the Woods: Rhok’zan, who helps the hero through a series of black rituals that will, hopefully, save the day. But whether all ends well is up to me.

For anyone a little unsure on sexualized or overly violent content, the developer made a fun in-game choice. Namely, a spray bottle. This mighty spritzer acts as a “skip” button that can glide players past the more… unsavory sections without letting them miss anything vital. Though that doesn’t solve everything. There are still disturbing moments and I encountered a few technical hiccups — like not having an item I’d picked up and really needed — for players to watch for. But neither problem kept me from enjoying the experience.

The narrative branches throughout each series depending on my choices. When finishing one chunk, I can go back through the game’s convenient narrative map to drop back into a chapter where I see a split. All of this is in service of finding each series’ “true endings.” Uncovering the first two of these will unlock the second half of the game, where everything is turned on its head and suddenly makes a lot of sense. I’ve never been so happy to see a brain-melding beast of nightmares.

Sucker for Love: Date to Die For, from concept to execution, is darkly spellbinding. Forces beyond my control kept me climbing back into its narrative branches to find every last fruit — whether sweet or acidic. I wish so much that I could say more about some of its twists and turns, but you’ll have to pick this one up for yourself to unlock its secrets.