Wispii's Blog - Goodbye Volcano high
Goodbye Volcano High made me Goodbye Volcano Cry
I'll be upfront about this now; most of this review will be mostly based on my vibes, because to some extent GVH isn't really a game and more of a visual novel. It definetly has game-y elements (mainly in the form of Dance Dance Revolution style rythmn mini-game for the musical sections), but most of the game is designed to be more about the story, so if you're expecting a deep dive in game mechanics than I won't be saying anything about that. What I can say though is that, out of all the games i've played in recent years, this easily is at top, or at the very least the uppper echelons of that ladder, alongside games i've been waiting years for and games that I adore
I was going to write this in a proper structure, but IMHO due to how this game is, I would rather just tell people what I liked about the game (which is a lot of it), and what I don't like about the game (which is like a very few things). With this game, it is also heavily a case of "If you identify and relate to the characters, you will get a lot more out of the game"; Most of the characters, especially the title character Fang are some form of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum; Fang themselves is Non-Binary, Sage is Trans-Masc and (revealed quite later on) Rosa is Trans-Femme. And even Trish and Reed are Intersex and Gay respectively. And honestly none of it feels forced, None of these characters feel like they were made to be LGBT to fufill a quota or to tick off checkboxes, because they feel like people.
The story, if it had come out back in 2021 when it was originally planned, would have been extremely on the mark as a lot of the themes of the game focus on sticking with your friends when times are tough (in this case, quite literally as the world ends), as well as working out what you would do if the end comes. I've heard some say that it has a doomer ending, which is honestly not true; Yes, they all afaik perish when the meteor hits, but before that they celebrate their lives, Fang, Trish and Reed do one final show and (if you select to), Fang goes on a date with Naomi right before it ends. The looming end is a presence that is felt through the game, but even so they still make the most of it before they all go out.
As someone who got royally fucked over during Covid-19 with a house fire, being stuck at home in a house that wasn't my own for a good portion of it and then having to deal with the fallout of a really shitty university course and a messy home life that almost pushed me to taking my own life (with thoughts of taking my own life weighing heavily in my mind), my friends were the only thing keeping me sane through it all, which is why this game resonates with me so much; Because i've been through the feelings that all my plans for the future have been uprooted, i've had days where I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. This game reminds me so much of those times, and with Fang sticking by their friends even when the world goes to shit, it resonates strongly with me.
I also resonate with some of the feelings Fang, Rosa and Sage have about being Trans. As a Trans-Woman who's for the longest time been in the closet about my identity, it's great to see a character that isn't just "I am trans, the world accepts I am trans undeniably", because all three have hardships due to being trans, one moment where Rosa mentions having family that would never want to see her as a woman, it resonates with me because I have only been in the closet for so long due to my fears of being austricised by my family if I was to come out as Transgender to them. It's nice to see that the same hardship I deal with are not just my own.
I will say that the Legends and Lore segments do last a bit too long, but they ultimately function (for the most part) as a good breakaway from the gloom and despair of the later chapters. It's a nice change of pace, even if they overstay their welcome a bit. I will also say that I wished there was a way to select the chapters seperately to see alternate outcomes (or if the save gets corrupted and stuff). Also during my playthrough I did encounter some audio issues (mainly at the L&L sections). One thing I will say though is that I played a good chunk of it on the Steam Deck with no problems, then again this is a visual novel so it not working on the Steam Deck would be really odd.
I feel like making a review of this game would not be complete without mentioning... Snoot Game.
I've probably stated this on social media, but I will make it clear here; Unless I am doing it for charity, or someone has paid me to do it, I will not be touching that game.
I already know the extent of that "fan-game", how it was made by devs who fundamentally despise people like me, and purposely took a heavily queer-centric game and bastardized it into an anti-trans game (that they openly admitted to it being). I also fundamentally refuse to play I Wani Hug That Gator for the same reason, as I wish not to support the developers.
I have no ill will to people who are fans of both Snoot Game or Wani, who haven't known about the developer's bigotry, but if you do know and still chose to endorse them, then I wish you a good day, but also to not associate with me.
Ever.
Also they literally made a dinosaur version of the N-word for Trish, the only character I would say is black coded. Eww.
In conclusion, Goodbye Volcano high is a game that has fundamentally changed me as a person, has spoken to me on a personal level as both a Trans-woman, and as someone who still hasn't sorted out their life yet, and has made me genuinely cry and made me smile all the same. I still haven't worked out an apt grading system that's dinosaur themed, but this game is one I will always recommend. I do apologize if you were expecting a far more objective and formally laid out review, maybe someday i'll actually do that, but I would rather judge things on how I feel, rather than a stiff review structure.
Also I refuse to believe they died because we don't see the aftermath, I'm not coping YOU ARE ;W;