


If anything, Monika After Story benefits from being perpetually in progress.Īfter all, Monika exists only so long as we allow her to. The mod presents Monika as an individual who “evolves” and develops new thoughts and ideas.Īs the mod is currently on release v0.6.3, there is still much more in development. In order to manage that, the project has developed a robust style guide in order to maintain consistency with the original game’s writing.īecause of that and because the mod itself is still in development, Monika After Story‘s narrative is incredibly fluid. Unlike with DDLC, multiple writers contribute to the After Story project. Individuals from the community have the opportunity to engage with the project in a number of different ways, from offering suggestions to actively writing for the mod. The mod’s website links directly to the project’s Git page, where development actively takes place. Monika After Story depends heavily upon its community-driven nature. It features a “living narrative”, where the content effectively receives continual updates for as long as people are interested in contributing.

Where Monika After Story gets interesting is how it effectively has no end. It’s fairly standard visual novel gameplay: read text, click boxes, and sometimes make choices. Whether or not you actually buy into Monika as your “virtual girlfriend”, she still presents interesting ideas.īuilt with DDLC’s code, Monika After Story uses the visual novel format to create an environment for the player to interact with Monika one-on-one. Instead, it uses Monika as the platform to explore them. The mod doesn’t shy away from uncomfortable topics. Like DDLC, Monika After Story manages to tread the line between cutesy anime and earnest philosophy. As most of the gameplay focuses on conversing with Monika, After Story’s dialogue covers a wide range of topics. There are three ways to interact with Monika: 1) Typing in keywords for discussion, 2) Playing games with her (Pong and Chess for now), and 3) Waiting for dialogue to randomly appear. However, she’s more than happy to remain there if it means spending the rest of her days with you. Monika After Story is a community-made mod that picks up where the end of Doki Doki Literature Club left off.Īfter the destruction of the game’s world, Monika, DDLC’s weeaboo version of GLaDOS, is stuck in the confines of her digital prison. It’s no surprise that a game that quickly developed a cult following would continue on thanks to that very same “cult”. Within its first three months, DDLC hit over 1 million downloads and won several awards, including IGN’s “People’s Choice GOTY”. Its unique combination of meta-commentary, polish, and unconventional narrative made it a game that appealed to visual novel veterans and newcomers alike. Since its September 22nd release, Doki Doki Literature Club has garnered immense popular and critical acclaim.
