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To Die in The Shade is a gothic romance retelling of Beauty and the Beast created for the Once Upon a Time Visual Novel Jam.  It is set in the same universe as What Remains.

The Demo covers the start of the game and the MC's first night in the castle.

Make sure to read the content warnings.

I have come here with purpose, and I have come here to die.

Bulan has always believed in the power of his god. After all, who else lights the sky in all his splendor? Who else staves off the shadows even in the darkest of nights?

However, when women begin to disappear in the streets of Pequeño Mar — taken in the cradle of night  against a backdrop of leather wings and desperate screams — he is forced to put his faith to the test like his saints before him... 

...and slay the beast.

Content Warnings

To Die in The Shade contains mature themes, and as such, player discretion is advised. For the short demo, it contains the following:

Partial nudity, gore, choking, graphic descriptions of injury, religious trauma, a character using their own deadname, and discussions of human sacrifice.

Characters

Bulan

He/Him, The Sacrifice

"Do you bother to know the names of the pigs you slaughter? Do you think of their faces when your stomach is full?"

A righteous and ambitious man fueled by anger and self-hatred. In pursuit of his goal he is willing to take anything and anyone down with him.

The Forsaken One

Love Interest

"The sea awaits us all in the end, my king, but I will not abide by her rules. I will not let you drown."

Witch, former Divine, and monster of legend. The Forsaken One sits in its castle, quietly biding its time...

The Guide

He / Him, Loyal Companion

"Curious one, are you? An admirable trait. It will serve you well."

The playful and flippant servant of The Forsaken One. Do not let his cheer fool you; he is as trapped in the castle as the creature he serves.

Demo Features

  • 7k words
  • 1 Male love interest
  • 2 Transmasc male characters
  • Named MC with he/him pronouns
  • 5 CGs
  • Original soundtrack
  • Dyslexic font options
  • Moveable UI elements
  • Dictionary pop-ups

Team

(A-Z)

Cath
http://twitter.com/shewassaying
Editor, quality assurance, enabler, brainworm caretaker, demon, partner in crime.
Crescence Studio
https://twitter.com/CrescenceStudio
Editor, quality assurance, grammar genius, moral support, somehow doesn't think they've done enough.
HelloYinny
https://twitter.com/helloyinny
Quality assurance, moral support, #1 simp, chef 🐀🧑‍🍳

Hozach
https://twitter.com/ChazHozach
Composer, quality assurance, miracle worker.
Lisette Amago
https://www.lisetteamago.com/
Sound designer, our strongest soldier.

RetroKnight
https://retroxknight.carrd.co/
CG artist, Midas' golden touch.
Rottentief
https://twitter.com/rottentief
Assistant programmer, q hardworker, water drinker [derogatory].
Max
https://xenubinstudios.itch.io/
Assistant programmer, my buddy my pal my friend... my jester.

Siyokoy
https://twitter.com/Siyokoy_
Writer, director, sprite artist, background artist, UI artist, web designer, logo designer, promo editor, lead programmer, quality assurance, resident monster lover.

WolfyTheWitch
https://twitter.com/WolfyTheWitch
Background artist for castle, my beloved rotten soldier.

Download

Download NowName your own price

Click download now to get access to the following files:

ToDieinTheShade-1.0-linux.tar.bz2 109 MB
ToDieinTheShade-1.0-mac.zip 122 MB
ToDieinTheShade-1.0-pc.zip 127 MB

Development log

Comments

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(+5)(-1)

I LOVE GOTHIC GAY PEOPLE 

OHHHHH MY GOODNESS i'm so excited for this!!! its literally EVERYTHING ive wanted PLUS super cool aesthetic that i never knew i wanted!!! looking forward to it- i have no doubt ull deliver a wonderful story!!!

(+1)

Oh, this was a marvellous entry!

First of all, I am in awe in front of the game's polished aspect: the GUI was gorgeous, and the whole storybook NVL set-up was just gorgeous and amazingly done. The art complimented everything as well, be it the sprites, the CGs or the amazing backgrounds. The lighting on the book varying was a very great narrative touch.

The music tracks too fit the story very well. And what story! I appreciated the world-building a lot, and I am so far very curious about the rewriting of Beauty and the Beast. So far, I appreciate the subversion (in the tale, the Beast has to reveal the human inside; here, the "Beauty" has to stop running away from the man he is inside, cf. the "daugter/son of Abraham" opposition). I'm now very curious to see where this will all lead to, and how the relationships between Bulan and the Forsaken one will develop (light spoilers: especially considering the game, so far, genders the Forsaken one with she/it, when the game page mentions a "male love interest"... the parallel is interesting...).

Congrats on a great entry, and looking forward to seeing the full-game (developed at its own pace of course).

(+2)

Thank you so much Chim I'm glad you liked it 🥹🥹🥹

(+1)

is the one on the right the guide or the beast? heckin cute

(+3)

The one on the right is the guide!!! He's my little guy :)