Leaving A Legacy

I have stewed over the story and ending of Afterlove EP for some time now. And that is even without the devastating news surrounding the creator, Mohammad Fahmi, who sadly passed away at the age of just 32 in 2022. Leaving behind a legacy of games such as Coffee Talk and What Comes After, the team at Pikselnesia committed to finishing Afterlove EP to complete Mohammads vision. What we get is an emotionally charged visual novel that left me with a lot of conflicting feelings.

The Story So Far

In Afterlove EP, you play as Rama, lead singer and songwriter for local Jakarta band, Sigmund Feud. The day after their biggest gig to date, Rama’s girlfriend, Cinta, unexpectedly passes away. Rama, in his grief, locks himself away from the rest of the world. When he decides to return to the world a year later, he expects everything to be just as he left it. But when he discovers his bandmates haven’t been sitting waiting for him, Rama has to quickly adjust to the changes or face being left behind.

There is also another tiny issue to deal with: He communicates with Cinta in his mind, who is in there almost like a separate conscious being. Acting like both the devil and angel on his shoulders, her advice is always there, whether it is welcome or not. 

Oh, and whenever he talks to her, it is out loud, usually confusing and aggravating his friends as Rama appears to drift off and listen to the voices in his head.

Afterlove EP is primarily a visual novel with rhythm action elements. Sigmund Feud have the month of September 2017 to prepare for a big gig at the end of the month that will see them supporting real-life Indonesian band L,Alphalpha. Who, incidentally, have also contributed to the soundtrack.

The World Keeps Turning

Rama’s bandmates obviously took the news of Cinta’s passing badly, but also managed to keep things going. To an extent. Tasya, the bassist, has had interest from other bands but doesn’t want to give up on Sigmund Feud. And Adit, the drummer, feels like his relationship with Regina is coming to an end.

The first few days mainly involve you getting to grips with Rama and Cinta’s internal analysis, before the game opens up and you can choose what to do with your time. Do you spend time with some new people you have met, and potentially become more than just friends? Or focus on practicing the new songs to show the band when you meet up for proper practice? Or even go to therapy and help Rama try and move on from his loss?

Conflicting Emotions and Difficult Choices

It was during these therapy sessions that things started feeling a bit off for me. Simply put, Rama is not a good person. And with added Cinta telling him during a session that therapy is a bad idea, it really toyed with my emotions. Did I, as someone that understands the benefits of therapy, want to continue playing this game with such an unlikeable character? Or, did I go out of my way to choose the worst options for Rama, and play it as I feel he would have made the choices without my input?

Reader, I of course chose the latter option. I chose the romance option that would cause the biggest headache to all involved, but annoyingly, this was only resolved in a post-credit scene. 

Afterlove EP has multiple endings that appear to be tied into who you choose to romance, but these only come as an epilogue. The game really does open up the longer you play with the choices you make, but this one scene ending as a resolution makes a lot of the decisions you make feel superficial.

A City of Contrasts

The problem with Rama is just that he expected everything to be as it was when he decided to rejoin Planet Earth, and when it wasn’t, he took that out on those that had moved on. Mainly his bandmates, whose gentle ribbing time and time again is misinterpreted by both Rama and Cinta as them having a go at Rama. I lost count of how many times the phrase “I’m only joking” or something similar was uttered. It felt a lot of times that Rama just didn’t want to move on, hence why he still heard Cinta in his head all the time. But it is an unhealthy version of Cinta present in his head. By that, I don’t mean ill, but rather one that seems to drag him down more than he already is.

And there is also the ongoing discourse around whether Cinta was actually in his head, or just an extension of his own conscience but this time with her voice. It actually had me flip-flopping between both answers during the 8-10 hour story too.

Adding Jakarta To My Travel List

But, as unlikeable as Rama is, Afterlove EP is a warming and emotional game. Testament to how well written a lot of the characters is that I had favourites and not-so-favourites. It presents the capital city of Indonesia, Jakarta, as a real microcosm of influences with a really vibrant atmosphere. That I managed to garner this feeling from hand-drawn visuals with very little in the way of actual animation is also testament to the work done by the artist, Soyatu.

A Moving and Memorable Visual Novel with Minor Flaws

Afterlove EP was always going to be an emotional game with the passing of Mohammad Fahmi surrounding it all. And it takes a while to get over the unlikability of Rama and Rama’s version of Cinta in his head, but the supporting cast all feel unique and very well fleshed out. The rhythm action sections don’t work quite as well, but these aren’t all that common and many can be missed out completely if you’d rather not perform at the local café or busk on the street. 

The choices in Afterlove EP are plentiful, but it does feel at times they are a bit too superficial, and don’t have much bearing on the way the overall story is progressing. But that story is still an interesting and engaging one, and that’s what makes Afterlove EP a great narrative.

Your Links

Love, loss, music – Afterlove EP is coming to PC and console this year – https://www.thexboxhub.com/love-loss-music-afterlove-ep-is-coming-to-pc-and-console-this-year/

Afterlove EP: A Tale of Music, Loss, and Life Launches on PC and Consoles – https://www.thexboxhub.com/afterlove-ep-a-tale-of-music-loss-and-life-launches-on-pc-and-consoles/

Buy Afterlove EP on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/afterlove-ep/9nzgw8q18s47