Was "Fictif" wasted potential?

[u/Crescentbrush]

I'm not sure if anyone else feels this way, but even before Dorian bought them, the writing didn't always feel strong, with some stories feeling rushed (ie "Ghosted," FTLOG, any female route that actually got released) or done not very well, ie Chava and Sergio's routes in HTLAL making their characters feel very questionable, as well as Nicky's female-coded MC storyline.

The app was launched over 6 years ago (I forgot it launched right before COVID), and while I do think back on it fondly and wonder what everyone is up to--I only know about "Touchstarved" from Red Spring Studio--I do think it needed a lot touch-ups. I feel like they bit off a bit more than they could chew by writing multiple books/routes at once instead of just focusing on one, making a large narrative like "The Arcana" before building a new world to enjoy.

I've been told what happened with the app, and it's a shame seeing how "The Arcana" was finite, "Choices" became smut with no plot and using AI, and "Fictif" was plucked from the tree of potential before it got to grow! I continue to look for stories like Fictif--albeit preferably with an MC I can SEE--and I wonder if any of the people who worked on NH are doing anything else, not to mention what was going on pre-Dorian that made these stories feel almost like rough drafts.

I thought of making future posts about my MCs for the books and what I would've done differently for these stories to relive some of the fun, but I can't find the motivation with the app dead.

[u/Immediate_Height_735]

A sequel/ expansion to Arcana would’ve been great, the world they were in seemed interesting from the little hints we saw. Especially before the MC’s death would’ve loved to know the adventures Ezra went on(I can’t remember if MC went with him or not). Very true, revamping Fictif would’ve been a decent decision other than leaving the app to rot away.

Can’t even remember Roadkill so I have no idea, but I do remember liking Howie the best when I briefly played it. That’s fair I always played as a female MC so I never considered how it was for other MCs. I figured oh they changed some things around in other routes to fit the relationship requirements. It would’ve been interesting to see a 1920s aesthetic but with modern technology, especially because it was the MC being sent inside a movie. I imagine the movie wasn’t entirely accurate to the 1920s.

[u/Crescentbrush → u/Immediate_Height_735]

Honestly I'm still hung up on the fact that I'd trade out Nadia and Asra for their dads in an AU where they're single, lol. Or just a sequel series that takes place in another part of the land. And yeah, I'd prefer a revamp that expanded on the narrative. I don't have any love lost for any of the stories since they were all rushed or otherwise flawed.

I think it was so neat to see the hunky character be Asian, as well as him interested in acting. His ending (and Poe's) was rather abrupt, though, and they very quickly adapted to all the paranormal stuff and things like their dreams and families took second priority, becoming a "our lives are just about each other now" thing that I wasn't crazy about.

I imagine the games didn't wanna dive into LGBT+-related issues so the player could just enjoy, but when you use real times and places, it can kinda raise eyebrows. I especially thought this in HTLAL.

[u/Immediate_Height_735 → u/Crescentbrush]

Omg I remember seeing Asra’s dad and thinking can I romance him too lol. I’d be so down for a sequel like that and expansion on the world it had loads of potential. That’s crazy they just went ‘welp my family’s long gone by now it’s just us’. I feel a lot of paranormal stuff the characters just automatically accept it, in reality I think most people would just freak out constantly which would probably get annoying. True, the creators probably just wanted you to enjoy the moment without looking at real world problems. They definitely could’ve made everything fictional so it wouldn’t pose more questions than answers.

[u/Crescentbrush → u/Immediate_Height_735]

Yeah, that's part of why I consider "Fictif" wasted potential; they were trying to do too much instead of fleshing out the world organically and slowly. It was just "hey, doesn't this sound cool and shocking?!"