peak

Grief is a universal melody, one with a hook that follows you everywhere. It is persistent and haunting, and demands to be felt until the very last note. Afterlove EP explores this to the fullest extent as you play as Rama, who attempts to carve a path through the enormity of his grief in the span of thirty in-game days.

While most narratives prefer to capture the drama of the big tragedy, Afterlove EP takes a more grounded approach to grief that many will find relatable. I found Cinta to be the most realistic part of this experience, as she is both a constant and inconsistent presence. Sometimes she’s our biggest cheerleader, other times she plays the devil’s advocate. This flickering of her personality in his mind is painfully realistic, albeit it making her a hit or miss with a lot of players.

In terms of gameplay, the lite dating sim meets life simulation was enjoyable and immersive. I did encounter a game-breaking bug that ended up overriding the ending of the game, but thankfully it was nothing that couldn’t be fixed by loading an old save file, although I would love to see the game add a more efficient “skip dialogue” feature in future updates.

Having followed Fahmi’s career from Coffee Talk to What Comes After, it is no exaggeration to say that his spirit lives on in the bones of Afterlove EP; from his early creative choices to collaborate with Indonesian artists Soyatu and L’Alphalpha, to his persistent exploration of themes surrounding the meaning of community, life and death. It seemed like cosmic poetry that his final tale would be one about endings and new beginnings.

My heartfelt congratulations to Pikselnesia for this launch, and looking forward to the next story they plan to tell.