Doki Doki Literature Club. 8 visual novel games with the best story
Table of Contents
- For whom: for those looking for something unusual
- Year of publication: 2017
- Publisher: Team Salvato
- Platforms: PC PS4, PS5, XOne, XSX / S, Switch
This game has acquired the status of a pop-culture phenomenon. This is the only such successful visual novel that's not of Japanese production. This seemingly peachy story created by Dan Salvato is available for free in the basic version (the extended Doki Doki Literature Club Plus is payable, also released in on consoles) and is intended as a "response" to the typical visual novel that it criticizes.
At first glance, the game seems to use a typical formula – the protagonist is surrounded by a team girls interested in him. We join a literature school club, we meet four heroines who also frequent it – and this is where the traditional idyll should begin. DDLC is surprising, however, because idyll doesn't come and the atmosphere is only getting thicker. The game doesn't shy away from excessive drama, deliberate use of visual-novel stereotypes, and also from the grotesque. The most interesting thing, however, is the way it breaks the fourth wall, which is completely original and seamlessly integrated into the game, and also hard to desribe if you haven't seen it.
Doki Doki Literature Club, which consists of scrolling and selecting dialogues, introduces a mini-game between individual parts of the story. This simple idea, designed to imitate writing poetry that fits the theme of the game, allows you to enter specific paths, leading to particular endings. Completing them (without necessarily experiencing everything the game has to offer) shouldn't take more than one evening, and it will surely be remembered for a long time.
