The Smitten *UNMARKED SPOILERS*

[MrTherandomguy42]

When I played the vanilla game, the Smitten was probably my least favorite out of all the Voices. I mostly found him insufferably annoying with the whole ‘knight in shining armor’ shindig. But…after seeing the “Happily Ever After” route…particularly the scene the precedes that chapter…he kinda scares me now. I kinda love it though to be honest.

[Mockingdragon]

Agreed, I gasped when I learned it was the Smitten back there. He went from being a goofy lovesick Shakespearean fool (who I actually liked in that incarnation too) to a crueler jailer than the narrator ever could have been. I already really liked Happily Ever After but that just sealed it as my new favorite.

[Dice_24K]

I literally typed up an essay on this in another discussion, namely, Mockingdragon's. Speaking of which, I do like how you put it here, "crueler jailer than the narrator ever could have been."

If you just walk in, kill the princess, and opt to take the "Happy Ending" -> it is a situation comparable to what the Smitten did in the "Happily Ever After" route.

Even counting the voices in your head, the fake Happy Ending for killing the princess in Act 1 and just stopping there -> results in you, Voice of the Hero and the Narrator. You're alone in an empty cabin and nothing outside of it. There is nothing to do. Period.

Meanwhile, the Smitten is forcing you to be stuck to a table, but he is more than happy to immediately grant any requests for activities you and the princess can do. Wanna eat? Wanna play a game?
No? Well, at least you have someone to talk to. In your head, at the very least, you have voices talking to you - more than just Hero and Narrator but also one more voice (Opportunist or Paranoid, if I recall correctly).

I thought about it some more: Shame, the Smitten couldn't throw the knife away (outside the cabin) and open a bit of the ceiling up. Maybe spawn up some different rooms to make a home? It wouldn't have worked for forever... but it is something compared to the narrator's nothing.

If you're stuck in a room with infinite time on your hands, what is better?
Nothing?
or Something?

Alone with voices in your head?
Or someone else with you (also the voices)?

The goal of "peaceful bliss?"
or the goal of "be happy?"

I started typing this comment agreeing with you that Smitten is worse than the Narrator but... I seem to have landed on the opposite side of the conclusion as I thought about it and typed this out. Both are bad and pretty miserable, but I think the Narrator is worse.

[lilalur]

He is the aspect obsessed with the princess and on its own its terrifying. He is one of the strongest aspect of you, when he is acting he can just wave away anything thrown at him by the narrator. Also if he is the one can drive you to make moves toward the princess, kiss her when the moment is right...etc. At the Demsel's ending if you pressure him too much and he get authority on the situation he leave you and take away the princess and the happy ever after ending actually a scary experience as the never ending obsession sucks the life out of the princess.