some of you have been asking what inspired me to make MORTAL COIL, a visual novel about a cyberpunk death game that Youtubers er Eidoloners are obsessed over.

i have a list!

1) social media, particularly Youtube and Twitch.

▼ i’m very interested in exploring how these are avenues for intense parasociality - and how that manifests in the creators and their audience.

△ reading this neat research article which argues that Twitch is the closest step towards reciprocated, two-way parasociality gave me a ton of ideas too.

2) the party game, Mafia.

(featured: me and my coven lynching the last neutral for our victory.)

▼ the set-up of the game (Townies, Mafia) and its focus on deduction, lying, trust and betrayal has influenced the set-up of Mortal Coil!

△ i’ve always been obsessed with this party game when i was but a tiny child… and i still love it now. which is why!

▼ town of salem, AKA the online version of Mafia, was also another inspo! can you blame me for enjoying the gaslight gatekeep girlboss it offers… inspiration :3

3) the novel and movie, The Hunger Games.

▼ a little Rose lore for you all today. when i was a child i was absolutely terrified of The Hunger Games. i was so convinced that it could be real…

△ the death game set-up and its criticism of its audience (the Capitol) gave me ideas on exploring “the audience” of the 21st century, an audience arguably far more insane than THG’s because… it is the internet.

4) the manga and anime, Kakegurui.

(featured: yumary. :3)

▼ it’s true! it’s a little out of place with all the death games, but gosh…

△ its obvious gayness aside, its characters, particularly the force-of-nature Yumeko Jabami, has inspired the cast of this game.

▼ Ikuyo may not be the gambling freak that Yumeko is, but she is a FPS gamer at heart, and y’know… what is Mortal Coil if not the ultimate game?

5) the visual novel and anime, Danganronpa.

(art by vhsghostricks)

▼ can you find the parallels between Ikuyo and Sonoko with Mukuro and Junko?

△ i was very inspired by the sisterly relationship these two had, and their dynamic influenced how i came to create Ikuyo and Sonoko’s characters.

▼ other than that, the confined nature of Danganronpa’s game and its detective set-up. plus, a death game at The End Of The World…

6) the tv show, Squid Game.

▼ uh yeah so aside from the crime of breaking my whole heart, Squid Game has the great honour of being one of Mortal Coil’s death game inspirations >:)

△ children’s games, death games… mafia party game, death game… can you see the similarities?

7) the ???

▼ see if you can guess this one! it was the primary inspiration for Ikuyo and Sonoko’s home. :3

△ tip: you can find a hint in the “Quietus” segment of Mortal Coil…

thanks for reading! c: