![PAIRS [RELEASED]](https://img.itch.zone/aW1hZ2UvMTI0MTMwLzYwNjQyNi5wbmc=/original/kba12P.png)
PAIRS [RELEASED]
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
DISCLAIMER. THIS PROJECT WAS CREATED IN 30 DAYS FOR A GAME JAM IN 2017. Although it is flawed, it is complete and each volunteer of the project has moved on.
An alien with sketchy morals craves a human's heart.
A young man schemes to get his parents back from death.
A mutant tries to figure out where her heart lies with her childhood friend.
An illusionist struggles with his motivations for becoming a hero.
Four stories. Four people. A chance to understand them all.
Genre.
Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Drama, Romance
Features.
- Eight unique endings
- 70k in words
- 4 Main Characters
- Original Soundtrack
Download
Install instructions
DISCLAIMER. THIS PROJECT WAS CREATED IN 30 DAYS FOR A GAME JAM IN 2017. Although it is flawed, it is complete and each volunteer of the project has moved on.
Development log
- Singles: A PAIRS Story Demo Released!Apr 03, 2018
- Pairs 2, you say?! Where?!Feb 23, 2018
- NOVEMBER 20TH IS HERE!!Nov 20, 2017
- Pairs + Coming to Steam & Itch November 20th!Nov 04, 2017
- Pairs Steam Edition vs. NaNoRenO EditionOct 08, 2017
- 100% Funded! We're going to Steam /o/Oct 04, 2017
- Still $80USD away from Steam Direct!Sep 22, 2017
- Bad News/Good News. Mostly Good News!Sep 14, 2017
Comments
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( warning, some spoilers?) For now played only Kitten's and James's route and just have to say that I love it! The dynamics between them, this reversal of usual process of courting, their personalities - just can't help but be charmed by an alien warrior princess persistently courting this sarcastic and pragmatic, reserved young man, the way he can't help but start to worry about her - loovely!
I just wonder what happened with sequel Singles?
Ah, thank you very much for playing PAIRS! James and KP's dynamic is ever evolving and I personally love pairing where there's an almost comedy duo-esque relationship. It's my hope that they made you laugh!
As for Singles, I removed it because the reviews of the unfinished demo were pretty discouraging and never touched it again. ^^:; That said, I did put it in my queue for this year so I would definitely love to finish it. :^)
I played this a while back and have replayed it a couple of times but never left a review and it's time I rectify that! I've actually only read Carmelita and Ricardo's routes (Ricardo's once, but Carmelita's maybe three or four times) because they're both SO good and so I want to leave myself something (i.e. KP and James's routes) that I know is going to be excellent for a rainy day.
Anyway: I LOVE Carmelita and Ricardo's story. I think it tackles an interesting part of a relationship that no other stories really do, and it's super realistic, and I felt very seen. The romance is *chef's kiss* and I adored Carmelita. Really, she's perfect. Also, I've played games that are more high stakes in terms of life v death, but the choices I made here actually made me sweat because I did NOT need them to break up. And thankfully they didn't :)
I think the supernatural/superhero elements worked really well, not only in terms of just adding another interesting element of the plot, but because figuring out priorities re work + relationships and how to compromise and when to not – those are all things that matter in "normal" life, but had we had just a "normal" setting then I don't think it would have been as interesting to read about. I think this really drove home for me how fantasy settings can really help describe ordinary things, if that makes sense. Tl;dr I just really loved the plot and you are insanely creative to have thought of it, so *bows down*.
Can't wait to eventually read more of your stuff. I'm just going through it SUPER slowly to savour it fully and completely.
First of all, I want to thank you for leaving such a long and sweet comment. I truly re-read it multiple times because it was just so... so THRILLING to see my work thoroughly appreciated like that. ( ; w ;) I love that you love Carmelita and Ricardo since I often feel they get outshined by the sheer... um... Extra-ness that is Kitten Pink and James' chaotic relationship. I hope you enjoy those routes when you get to them.
Thank you for that. I wanted relationship types to be the focus and Carmelita/Ricardo's dynamic is so carefully constructed. Mainly, it's because I think that going from friends to lovers can be scary and I wanted to express that with Carmelita's route. Ricardo is much more forward with his affections (likely because he's felt them longer) whereas Carmelita is more like a recent awakening wherein she discovers that she DOES want Ricardo in that way... she just is too shy to express it and fully take the leap.
One of the main reasons PAIRS is a NaNoRenO project is because I was TERRIFIED of reception since it's not a conventional otome. I was scared to spend my own money to make it, haha. All that to say that to hear that you like the setting and more or less get why I chose it is incredibly gratifying. Thank you SO much, really. I hope you enjoy my other work and I'd love to hear your thoughts if you don't mind sharing them. :^)
For the sequel, Singles, are KP and James together?
They are, yes! (They're engaged to be married by human custom, to KP's begrudging acceptance of bizarre human customs and Mei's chagrin.)
:D Yay! I'm so excited!
Can I romance a girl if my character is also a girl?
You cannot technically choose who you romance. KP can only be with James (and not Ricardo or Carmelita) and vice versa. On the other hand, Ricardo can only be with Carmelita (and not James or KP.) This game is about two pre-established romances that have already begun before the story.
I love the design of Kitten Pink ♥ and her personality, and her name, and her "originality". She is great. She is my favourite here.
Dragon is interesting persona, too. Definitely a strong and independent type. But Even she can't life alone.
And artstyle of this game is great, too. Sprties, BGs, music everything is nice.
Wow, thanks so much for loving KP's design! I had a lot of thoughts in mind when it came to how I wanted her to come across and Shida did an amazing job! ^^ I'm glad you like so many things about her!
I'm also glad to hear you sing the praises of Dragon. :^) She's got a personality that I think is quite relatable (definitely more relatable then KP's anyway, haha.)
Thanks so much for enjoying the game! :D I hope you stick around for Singles, too! ^^
I did Kitten and James... it was so cute. So cute. And the fact that it started with a Star Trek quote? You had my heart from the first line, friend. I'll be going back to do the other routes but I had to come and say great job, especially for NaNo!
^^ Oh, you did both Kitten and James routes, huh? :D I'm glad you enjoyed them and found them cute! And thank you for catching the Star Trek reference! Actually, no one's mentioned it before >w>;; I thought it was too subtle, so I'm glad you recognized it, haha. Thanks a lot for playing and I hope you enjoy the other couple!
I think Ricardo and Carmelita's relationship is certainly more normal than KP and James' is, but hopefully enjoyable for you all the same. Thanks so much for playing! >///<
This game was shorter than I expected, but so sweet! I loved the universe you've constructed and I liked that we got to see it from a variety of perspectives. KP in particular is just adorable.
Sorry that it was short! It was an entry for NaNoRenO so the entire project was completed in one month. Thank you very much for your input :'D I'm glad that you liked the game and its concept /o/ and that you find KP adorable.
I'm sure she'd be pleased to find a human with such good tastes. :^P
Just started, but already loving it. Started with Carmelita. Just with my recording programme would work. That is, if you didn't mind recording it. Can't wait to continue.
Awesome! I'm glad that you're loving it so much. (^: We don't mind if you record at all. Feel free! I think you would be the first so I definitely look forward to it!
I've tried, unfortunately I am having trouble with OBS. It doesn't want to capture right. I can take a screenshot so you can see what happens.
Aw, it's okay! Either way, it's nice of you to even *want* to do something for our game. We really appreciate it!
This is what usually happens. Not sure it's somethig y'all can fix, though.
Aw, too bad. Well, let us know if you ever find a solution. :^)
Played as Dragon, James and Kitten so far, kudos for these gripping stories! Seeing both sides really gives each pair a lot of depth. It's well written and the characters are believable - thanks for sharing this :)
Thanks so much for enjoying it! I hope that Ricardo's viewpoint is just as gripping. I don't have many characters like him, so I did enjoy writing his route immensely. (^: I'm also glad you enjoyed the writing and characters! I hope you enjoy future projects just as much!
Just got through all the routes, and I just gotta say...
THIS IS SO GOOD!! Not only is the art beautiful and gorgeous to look at, but the well written characters and their personalities make the game such a treat to enjoy. I find their relationships cute and love the fact we can see both sides of the relationship!
You've not only fleshed out the characters so well into believable people, the world itself is so interesting, the intricacies of it felt so natural to read!
You and your team did an amazing job in creating a well-contained game that felt whole and professional. Well done you guys!
I'm really enjoying this game! I just finished my play through with James, and it was so cute and sweet. I'm going to play as Dragon next, I think. The art is beautiful, and the story is well written. Although, I did come across some typos and errors I wanted to share with you--if that is okay. Is there an email I could send a document to? :)
I'm glad you liked it! And yay, played James first? He's such a cute, haha. I hope you enjoy Dragon's story, too! I would LOVE to correct any errors haha. You can send them to me for now-- [email redacted].
Lovely art! I'll play and then come back to leave my feedback. In the meantime, can I ask what program did you use to draw? Thank you :)
Awesome! If you can, please re-download since by accident, I messed up one of the codes to get James' bad ending. Haha... orz;;
Anyway, I asked the artist and I'll let you know! I believe it's SAI but I'm not certain.edit: Shida used SAI. (^:
Thank you very much :) for now, I only played James' root: at the beginning and at first impact I kind of hated Kitten's "bossy" personality -but hey, princess be princess XD so you did a great job portraying that - but luckily after a while she kinda grew on me. So, the root was really enjoyable ;)
For some reason i can't get James' ending other than the happy one, no matter how hard I tried. Any help guys?
Sorry, that's an error! I've updated the game so you should be able to get his bad ending with KP. I'm sorry for the delay!
I just finished my first playthrough of this game and it really lives up to the features. Everything about it is really high quality, especially for a free NaNoRenO project! The writing and world building was really well done and the characters are fun to interact with. I'm definitely going to try and get the seven other endings! :D :D
Wow, thank you so much! We're so glad you commented because we were getting nervous about the lack of feedback! ^^Thank you so much and I'm glad you're enjoying the characters! I have to say, I'm super curious as to who you played as first! ^^ Have fun getting off the endings! I hope you like them and I hope you like Pairs as much as we enjoyed creating it! (^:
I played Dragon/Carmelita first. :)
And I'm really enjoying Pairs. Seeing things from the other character's perspective is really cool and probably one of my favourite parts of the game :)