Twofold
- October 27, 2023
- Salty Salty Studios
Get on Steam"Twofold" is a casual, single-player game with an intriguing story, good graphics, and pleasant music. As Olive, a student in a dire academic situation, you'll rely on the help of two club leaders, who happen to be close friends with a complicated relationship. This story-driven game explores themes of love, family, and connection, challenging you to navigate and understand the tensions threatening to tear this close-knit group apart. Olive's perspective as an outsider will offer unique insights as you strive to preserve these fragile bonds.
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Reviews
- Twofold features stunning artwork and a beautiful soundtrack that enhance the overall experience.
- The characters are well-written and relatable, with a heartfelt story that explores themes of love, family, and personal growth.
- The voice acting is exceptional, bringing the characters to life and adding depth to the emotional moments in the narrative.
- The game has limited choices, making it feel more like a linear novel rather than an interactive experience.
- Some players may find the pacing uneven, particularly with time skips that can disrupt immersion.
- The overarching narrative may leave some feeling unsatisfied, as it doesn't fully explore the complexities of the characters' conflicts.
- story117 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The story of "Twofold" is praised for its emotional depth and engaging narrative, exploring themes of love, family, and grief through the perspectives of its main characters, Caprice and Millie, with Olive serving as a relatable point of view. While the game features compelling character arcs and well-crafted dialogue, some players noted gaps in the overarching narrative and felt that certain story elements could have been better integrated. Overall, the visual novel is celebrated for its beautiful presentation, strong voice acting, and the ability to evoke genuine emotional responses from players.
“This is a wonderful visual novel that lives by its presentation and in-the-moment writing, making an enjoyable story that draws you in with comedy, with the intention of heel-turning into serious emotions just often enough.”
“Twofold is an excellent story about family, love, and grief, beautifully complemented by stunning artwork and scenery, funny, charming, and relatable characters.”
“The story hits right in the emotion, with a balance of real-life relatability, and the way the characters resolve and develop through the story is smooth and amazing.”
“While Twofold does a great job with scene-by-scene and character points, I've walked away from it each time feeling a bit let down by its larger story and seeing gaps in its narrative.”
“The perfect circle stuff should've been incorporated into the main story rather than as an extra to enhance the emotional impact because I didn't really feel anything during the family drama stuff in the main story.”
“But so far I just see an extremely boring story between really annoying people.”
- emotional25 mentions
- 96 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highly praised, with players describing it as cozy, heartfelt, and inspiring, often leading to tears due to its relatable characters and well-crafted storylines. The narrative effectively captures a range of emotions, from joy to heart-wrenching moments, enhanced by beautiful artwork and music. While some players found certain elements less impactful, the overall consensus is that the game delivers a deeply moving experience that resonates long after playing.
“Beautiful artwork and scenery, funny, charming, and relatable characters, and an emotional, well-written story as you join Olive Penn in their last bid to avoid being thrown out from college, meeting new people along the way and being thrown deeper into a tumultuous conflict between two close friends.”
“This story had me very on the verge of tears at both its endings and straight up bawling at its final chapter, which is something no game has done since I was 10 years old. It's just that striking and emotional, but at the same time heartwarming and hopeful.”
“The story and characters are handled with so much care that it'll give you a fair degree of emotional catharsis throughout.”
“But so far, I just see an extremely boring story between really annoying people.”
- music24 mentions
- 54 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its variety and ability to enhance the overall ambiance, seamlessly complementing the stunning visuals and voice acting. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as soothing and thematically appropriate, effectively punctuating emotional moments and contributing to the game's immersive experience. Overall, the music is considered a standout element that elevates the storytelling and emotional engagement throughout the visual novel.
“Twofold's breathtaking visual design is matched by its serene music and excellent voice acting to provide a feast for the eyes and ears.”
“The music helps to punctuate these scenes too, moving from the often cozy vibes of certain parts of the story to bringing out the emotional hard hitters when needed.”
“The music is soothing, thematically appropriate, and – most interestingly – plentiful.”
“The way the narrative engages you is entirely elevated by the stellar voice cast and the atmosphere set by the visual design and music.”
- graphics16 mentions
- 63 % positive mentions
- 19 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The graphics of the visual novel are widely praised for their superb art style, featuring charming character sprites that resemble paper cutouts against beautifully painted backgrounds. Reviewers highlight the emotional impact of the visuals, enhanced by smart directing and effective use of color, which contribute significantly to the overall storytelling experience. The combination of excellent artwork, voice acting, and music creates a visually appealing and immersive atmosphere that elevates the narrative.
“The art style is visually appealing, the character sprites all pop with color while being outlined by a layer of paper, as if they've been cut out and glued to the backgrounds, each of which beautifully fade in like a watercolor painting each time a scene changes.”
“I really love the sprite work, too: the sprites themselves are all super cute and compelling, and there are a lot of touches (foreground objects obscuring the sprites, eye variations that let the sprites 'glance' around the stage, etc.) that make the visuals even in non-CG scenes very evocative.”
“A wonderful visual novel with a focused, tight story - boasting strong writing, pleasing visuals, and great voice acting performances across the board.”
“Honestly, this would've been a pretty mediocre visual novel if it weren't for the visuals.”
“Scenes are often a couple of hours long (in story, not in playtime) and then you'll receive a graphic that reads 'two weeks later...' and you're now in a new scene, with something else happening entirely.”
“The overall art style carries over from the first game, with character sprites rendered like paper cutouts on backgrounds that appear like paintings on canvas.”
- optimization6 mentions
- 83 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The optimization of the visual novel is highly praised, with reviewers highlighting its stunning art direction, beautiful soundtrack, and exceptional voice performances that enhance the storytelling. The strong writing and focused narrative contribute to an engaging experience, making it a standout piece of media. Overall, the optimization effectively supports the emotional depth and character development within the game.
“A wonderful visual novel with a focused, tight story - boasting strong writing, pleasing visuals, and great voice acting performances across the board.”
“Voice acting performances are superb and really bring the characters to life.”
“In particular, the performances of Lisa Reimold as Caprice and Jill Harris as Millie carry a great deal of the emotional core of the narrative.”
- humor6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as cozy, hilarious, and heartfelt, effectively enhancing the emotional depth of the story. Players appreciate the witty character interactions and charming dialogue, which create a warm atmosphere amidst the drama. Overall, the humor is consistent and relatable, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.
“Something I had noticed but not fully appreciated in my first readthrough is how outright funny the writing is, particularly with character interactions.”
“It's the way the game humorously tries to guilt trip you if you enable the rollback feature.”
“They give off this warm atmosphere, which I feel like the developers were going for (but there is a fair amount of drama and a bit of humor, too).”
- gameplay6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay is praised for its attention to detail, incorporating quality-of-life features commonly found in visual novels, and offering a compelling central mechanic that allows players to experience the same events from different perspectives. The choices presented throughout the story enhance the overall experience, making it engaging and well-paced.
“I just want to say that, aside from being an emotional story that I certainly cried over, the game as a whole nailed all of the little details for both style and mechanics.”
“Furthermore, all of my favorite quality-of-life features and mechanics from many visual novels I've read and played made it in here one way or another.”
“The writing is excellent, very polished and well-paced, and the central mechanic of seeing the same events play out in different routes from two very different perspectives was way more compelling than I first expected.”
“As for the gameplay, twofold has plenty of choices presented throughout the story.”
“Now that I've gone over the story and gameplay, I'll move onto my critique.”
“Note: I helped to test the game, so gameplay is not indicative of my total playtime.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -150 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is enhanced by a stellar voice cast, captivating visual design, and evocative music, creating a warm and engaging environment that balances drama and humor effectively.
“The way the narrative engages you is entirely elevated by the stellar voice cast and the atmosphere set by the visual design and music.”
“They give off this warm atmosphere, which I feel like the developers were going for (but there is a fair amount of drama and a bit of humor, too).”
“The atmosphere feels inconsistent, lacking the immersive quality that I expected from the game.”
“Despite some interesting visuals, the overall atmosphere is flat and fails to engage the player.”
“The game tries to create a dark atmosphere, but it often comes off as forced and unconvincing.”
