At the Poison's Edge
Playing the download version of the game is highly recommended.
You and Vincent were lovers. Now you are at death's door with his hand-mixed poison flowing through your veins.
Having used his diary to track him down for a confrontation, this is your last chance to end things once and for all. What will you do with this opportunity?
At the Poison's Edge is a gothic horror micro visual novel created in 10 days for Only One of Any Asset Jam 2023 (which limits games to <1000 words, 1 sprite, 1 background, 1 music track, and 1 sound effect) and Single Choice Jam (which limits games to a single choice).
Content warning: Death; attempted murder by a romantic partner; attempted death by suicide. Recommended 16+
Features:
- 992 words
- 1 sprite
- 1 background
- 1 music track
- 1 choice, leading to 4 possible endings
- A(n ex-)boyfriend who tried to kill you, but maybe he's not all bad? (Or maybe he is.)
- A gender-neutral protagonist
- Font selection (Crimson Text, Sylexiad Serif, Atkinson Hyperlegible)
- Toggle for image captions (can be used with Ren'Py's built-in TTS by pressing V on the keyboard) and sound captions
Credits
- Writing & programming: Natasha Luna [itch.io | Twitter]
- Sprite & key art: A Jen Bird [Instagram | Tumblr | itch.io]
- Background art: Meagan Trott [Website | itch.io]
- GUI art & logo: Jujube (Jooby) [Twitter | Tumblr | itch.io]
- Music: Eric Jeffrey Tan [Twitter | Website | Bio Site]
If you enjoyed this game, feel free to check out my other free visual novels:
Status | Released |
Platforms | HTML5, Windows, macOS, Linux |
Rating | Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars (54 total ratings) |
Author | Natasha Luna |
Genre | Visual Novel |
Made with | Ren'Py |
Tags | Dark, Dark Fantasy, Gothic, Horror, josei, Multiple Endings, Narrative, Short, suspense, Thriller |
Average session | A few minutes |
Languages | English |
Inputs | Keyboard, Mouse, Gamepad (any), Touchscreen, Smartphone |
Accessibility | Color-blind friendly, Subtitles, Blind friendly |
Download
Install instructions
- Unzip AtThePoisonsEdge zip file
- Launch AtThePoisonsEdge executable within the AtThePoisonsEdge folder
Comments
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I didn't expect to find myself so invested in less than 1k words!!
I loved going through all the endings, and getting my sweet revenge!
I don't want to die by a British looking bitch
edit: got his ass twice
edit 2: Do people ever truly love each other, are people simply too diverse for the love we see in movies? Movies are sets, their words are thought out and sanitized, they simply aren't really real. Is that what love should look like, why is it mattering to another person so amazing to us or are we really that selfish it's that rare to see. What is love but the same obsession we have for ourselves given to the person who stays closest to us.
This game SINGLEHANDEDLY saved my perception of visual novels
There's so much story behind this, especially with Vincent's motive to MC. One of the things I noted was that no matter what, in some way MC still survives which I question if Vincent's true intentions were to kill MC at all. Below would be spoilers of the multiple endings you'd get because of the choices so beware as I theorize and speculate.
The one thing that makes me believe that Vincent doesn't want MC to die (or at least, by their hands) is the ending where you point your pistol at yourself making him panic and risk his own life for MC. Not only that but in the ending where you point your pistol at Vincent, he doesn't fight back, as if he knows this is his punishment for attempting to kill his own lover.
And then the ending where you profess your love, he must have noticed his antidote missing, and yet he doesn't come back to MC to finish the job, especially during such a vulnerable time when they were passed out, and yet he didn't. Not only that, but he looked genuinely heartbroken and remorseful when MC, in his perceived notion was in their last few minutes of life, asked for a kiss from their own traitorous lover.
Though, the ending where you ask why he did it and he shows a multitude of possibilities, I wonder if he wants MC to figure out what's happening and that's why he willingly hands the antidote and promises (or threatens) to come back to MC. I think he might have borrowed money to fund his poetry work (but at the same time he did say poetry was never his passion) and he was forced and contracted to kill MC who "might have a secret inheritance". I'm not sure, there's so much possibilities yet not enough context or cluessss.
Just a really mess up breakup...
Beautiful, enigmatic, and clearly well put together. The art is superb, and the music adds an extra quality that I often find music doesn’t.
I found myself somewhat unsatisfied at the end, though. Maybe it’s because so much is unexplained? Maybe it’s because the end is so sudden (the last click just suddenly takes you back to the loading screen)? Maybe it’s because what I sort of hoped would be most revelatory choice (that you love him) turned out to be a trick on your part?
Maybe I just wanted more.
I loved this, the atmosphere was really good, and I didn’t expect the story to turn out the way it did from the premise!
I liked the lack of definitive answer too, it was unsettling and heightened a bit the stakes, the pain, and the ~mystery~!
I'm utterly in love with this...the art, the music, the setting, Vincent himself...all of it!
There's so much potential for further exploration, despite this already feeling so complete!
I almost wish there was more, but just as MC must do in the aftermath of Vincent and his sweet poison, I shall have to be content with this spellbinding glimpse. ;)
Beautiful job and thanks for sharing! ^-^
Its interesting to see different decisions even if its the same outcome
THIS WAS GREAT! I loved seeing what the four options did because even though it would ultimately lead to the same outcome, the variation in scenes allowed you to see the different sides of Vincent. They helped turned what would normally be your standard lover turned villain into someone more complex, more complicated. Without spoiling it, my favorite option was the second one. ;)
I really enjoyed the music as well. The tragic track really captured the heartbreak the MC was going through up until the very end of each playthrough.
Great job to you and the rest of the team for putting together such a fascinating game! :D