The emotions in Sally Face

[lerner2001]

I'm a college student and I'm doing a research paper on video games and emotional state. Given I just recently played this game (and it did make me cry) I decided to come here and ask if/how it affected you guys? basically
1. Did it affect you emotionally?
2. How? In what ways? Why?
3. How did it affect you in the immediate time? Did it affect you in the short term?
I'm asking this bc I get fixated on things for a time and for me I would think about it like a
few days later or see a sad tik tok or something and then be sad, does this happen to
other people or just me?
4. Does it affect you in the long term? This doesn't have to be emotionally it could just be maybe you have a different outlook or mindset on a specific topic or on like life or whatever idk

my last question would be if you guys have any suggestions on games I should look into or ask these questions in the discussion sections for. I'm thinking about Presentable Liberty for it's isolation and the way you can get so attached to anything whether it's real or not (aka the bug in your cell and the people who write to you) when you're in that kind of situation, but any other suggestions (or comments if you think that's a terrible idea) would help.
Any help would be so so appreciated guys, thank you!!

[Val]

Hey !
1. I still havent 100% percent finished it yet but it did impacted me greatly emotionally.

2. Larry's death made me cry because it was brought with realism, from him being more distant, Sally panicking over the phone, his last messages + the letter with sentences such as "Don't blame yourself", this behaviour is common from ppl attempting/ committing suicide and as someone who knows ppl who attempted, the despair Sally felt at this very moment is very real and relatable. Also, the whole trial made me go through all types of emotions : sadness for the verdict, anger for the fact that Ashley wasnt heard and Sally just accepted his fate but at the same time, a feeling of acceptance since that verdict is the most fair for ppl who never experienced what Sally went through.

3. I would say that Larry's death affected me for at least a couple weeks (still feel bad about it), when it was said he died i shut off the game (it was in August) and never opened it again until today lol. Plus for the following weeks, each time i came across a Sally Face fanart/tik tok i had this sadness coming back thinking about the whole atsmosphere of the game. So you're definitely not alone, don't worry. I tend to get very emotional about characters i get attached to in fiction, especially since (paranormal stuff aside) the characters are easy to relate to.

4. All the works I've watched/played to still stick up with me in a way even after i've finished them long ago. The same goes with Sally Face, it makes me want to learn more about cults, religions and their influence on people.

You should definitely consider asking those on the discussion of the game Omori ! Must be one of my fav game ever for how guilt and trauma are depicted in realistic ways. You basically follow a young boy who isolated himself in his room for 4 years after an incident that caused him huge trauma. He spends all his time in his head daydreaming to escape reality. At one point, you get to go outside and see how the different characters reacted to the incident and how they coped with it. It's really interesting and left me with such a big impact ! That's a bonus but the soundtracks are beautiful too and when you know to what some are linked to, you can easily get emotional (ex : Final Duet). Good luck with your work !

[higgs' 10 inch strap-on]

This game actually did a huge number on me the first time I played it myself, I had seen a youtuber waaay back in the day play it as the episodes were released, but the initial emotions for the game didn't actually hit me until I played it for myself. Overall, I think the biggest things that stuck are just the themes of depression and mystery -- I have a very deep love for horror and stories that keep you on your toes at every corner. To me, this game seemed to do that. You didn't know what would happen as things went on, and some of the smallest choices for the game could completely alter what would happen in the future -- so I really think my decision making and caution made me take a long while just exploring and doing certain actions.

Larry's death honestly had a huge number on me, because it was something I did not expect. His last text to Sal really did me in, because more than once I have dealt with something of this nature. It sucks, and it never gets easier and even when told not to blame yourself, you can't help but think if there was something more you could have done to help them or keep them from committing suicide. The theme of this game is dark, honestly the story and how things are handled made me feel like this was one of the darkest games I have ever played theme wise.

The cult itself was super interesting to me, because I have a deep fascination and love for learning about cults and religions (I formally wanted to have a minor degree in religious studies), so seeing this implemented in a game like this was super cool. It was one of those things that makes you think on how much a religion or cult might actually have influence somewhere, especially since the cult in the game quite literally was able to replace just about anyone they wanted so that things would always go their way.

I get extremely attached to things easily, as I do also hyperfixiate on things at different times. It has been months since I stopped actively looking for content or just hyperfocusing on the game itself, but if I happen to come across something Sally Face related, I instantly light up and get all excited, especially because I feel like not a lot of people around me know about the game!

Honestly, when it comes to having a different outlook on things, I would say not exactly. I have always been an outcast or someone who didn't quite fit in, but some of the biggest things I think got me thinking were just the amount of potential theories that can be introduced with the game. Some say Sanity Falls had bigger parts to the story than people realize, and some say they actually predicted the future. Being able to rethink things is one of my absolute favorite parts about any video game or series -- making theories and trying to put pieces together to solve a puzzle are one of the joys I get in life, so this game really did give me a lot of feelings and love for it.

Games I would absolutely consider asking this question on are Nier: Replicant or Nier: Automata. These games are absolutely phenomenal and the creator is a genius. The games have secret and multiple endings, just as Sally Face does. It gave me different perspectives on life and the meaning of things, and personally I grew extremely attached to the characters and their stories. In Replicant, Kaine quite literally grew to be one of the biggest support systems on me being more confident in myself and not letting anyone take control of who I am or will be. The games are not for everyone, especially mechanic wise, but I do recommend looking into these games -- and if you enjoy them, researching the Drakengard stories because they happen to tie into Nier and why things are the way they are. The stories for these are just masterpieces and I will say, the soundtrack itself has actually impacted me severely.

[lerner2001]

Originally posted by Val:

Hey !
1. I still havent 100% percent finished it yet but it did impacted me greatly emotionally.

2. Larry's death made me cry because it was brought with realism, from him being more distant, Sally panicking over the phone, his last messages + the letter with sentences such as "Don't blame yourself", this behaviour is common from ppl attempting/ committing suicide and as someone who knows ppl who attempted, the despair Sally felt at this very moment is very real and relatable. Also, the whole trial made me go through all types of emotions : sadness for the verdict, anger for the fact that Ashley wasnt heard and Sally just accepted his fate but at the same time, a feeling of acceptance since that verdict is the most fair for ppl who never experienced what Sally went through.

3. I would say that Larry's death affected me for at least a couple weeks (still feel bad about it), when it was said he died i shut off the game (it was in August) and never opened it again until today lol. Plus for the following weeks, each time i came across a Sally Face fanart/tik tok i had this sadness coming back thinking about the whole atsmosphere of the game. So you're definitely not alone, don't worry. I tend to get very emotional about characters i get attached to in fiction, especially since (paranormal stuff aside) the characters are easy to relate to.

4. All the works I've watched/played to still stick up with me in a way even after i've finished them long ago. The same goes with Sally Face, it makes me want to learn more about cults, religions and their influence on people.

You should definitely consider asking those on the discussion of the game Omori the soundtracks are beautiful too and when you know to what some are linked to, you can easily get emotional (ex : Final Duet). Good luck with your work ! :SillySally:

2-THAT I like still tear up every time I think about the whole scenario it was genuinely so so heartbreaking like i legit was going through my likes on tik tok the other day to find something and i started crying a little bc of one of them. I have such a history with depression in myself and my friends that the scene hit me really really hard.
3-I'm SO glad you brought up the feeling you still get when you come across content because I totally get the overall atmosphere of the game coming back so that feeling of sadness and dread for whats to come always comes back to me. It was such a well done game that I just cant get rid of it. I get so easily attached to characters and stories that I feel for them forever, I'm still remembering my feelings from To The Moon (which I never even played but I watched Markiplier play back in the day)
4-YES I totally get it i love when a game gets me interested in things like that and the feelings and interests that come with it are long lasting, it's honestly great
THANK YOUUU and yes I just started playing Omori the other day so definitely will get there hopefully sooner than later. Thank you for all the input, I can come

[lerner2001]

Originally posted by HEX: Leon's Cumslug:

This game actually did a huge number on me the first time I played it myself, I had seen a youtuber waaay back in the day play it as the episodes were released, but the initial emotions for the game didn't actually hit me until I played it for myself. Overall, I think the biggest things that stuck are just the themes of depression and mystery -- I have a very deep love for horror and stories that keep you on your toes at every corner.

Larry's death honestly had a huge number on me, because it was something I did not expect. His last text to Sal really did me in,
you can't help but think if there was something more you could have done to help them or keep them from committing suicide. The theme of this game is dark, honestly the story and how things are handled made me feel like this was one of the darkest games I have ever played theme wise.

The cult itself was super interesting to me, because I have a deep fascination and love for learning about cults and religions (I formally wanted to have a minor degree in religious studies), so seeing this implemented in a game like this was super cool. It was one of those things that makes you think on how much a religion or cult might actually have influence somewhere, especially since the cult in the game quite literally was able to replace just about anyone they wanted so that things would always go their way.

I get extremely attached to things easily, as I do also hyperfixiate on things at different times. It has been months since I stopped actively looking for content or just hyperfocusing on the game itself, but if I happen to come across something Sally Face related, I instantly light up and get all excited, especially because I feel like not a lot of people around me know about the game!

some of the biggest things I think got me thinking were just the amount of potential theories that can be introduced with the game. Some say Sanity Falls had bigger parts to the story than people realize, and some say they actually predicted the future. Being able to rethink things is one of my absolute favorite parts about any video game or series -- making theories and trying to put pieces together to solve a puzzle are one of the joys I get in life, so this game really did give me a lot of feelings and love for it.

Games I would absolutely consider asking this question on are Nier: Replicant or Nier: Automata. The games are not for everyone, especially mechanic wise, but I do recommend looking into these games -- and if you enjoy them, researching the Drakengard stories because they happen to tie into Nier and why things are the way they are. The stories for these are just masterpieces and I will say, the soundtrack itself has actually impacted me severely.

That's fair I didn't watch it being played after episode one because I was immediately interested and I knew I wanted to play it in the future, but even the arrest of Charlie didn't hit as hard as when I was doing it myself, so I could imagine how the rest of the game wouldn't hit as hard as when you're making all of the decisions and acting out the game yourself. Definitely the feelings of depression and dread are what stuck for me, the dread of knowing there is something bigger than we know like the cult and how that develops throughout the game.

I totally agree that was one of the things that hit me hardest, along with the part where we had to kill people. The last people we had to kill hit me the hardest but it was all extremely hard for me. I've always feared having to deal with something like that and also feared doing it myself, it's never expected and I'm sorry you had to deal with that in the past.

THE WAY THE CULT DEVELOPED WAS SO INTERESTING and finding out that it had a much wider influence than we ever thought was a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ for sure. The whole town being part of it really gave that feeling of loneliness and having very few people to trust. Did that background (even if it was small) help understand any of the cult for you? did it change any perspective or understanding you would have/not have had otherwise?

YESYESYES thats all I have to say thank you

Thank you for the suggestions idk if I'll have time to look into all of them but I jotted them down and I'll definitely keep it in mind, even if I don't have time to play it I might to research!

[higgs' 10 inch strap-on]

Originally posted by lerner2001:

Originally posted by HEX: Leon's Cumslug:

This game actually did a huge number on me the first time I played it myself, I had seen a youtuber waaay back in the day play it as the episodes were released, but the initial emotions for the game didn't actually hit me until I played it for myself. Overall, I think the biggest things that stuck are just the themes of depression and mystery -- I have a very deep love for horror and stories that keep you on your toes at every corner.

Larry's death honestly had a huge number on me, because it was something I did not expect. His last text to Sal really did me in,
you can't help but think if there was something more you could have done to help them or keep them from committing suicide. The theme of this game is dark, honestly the story and how things are handled made me feel like this was one of the darkest games I have ever played theme wise.

The cult itself was super interesting to me, because I have a deep fascination and love for learning about cults and religions (I formally wanted to have a minor degree in religious studies), so seeing this implemented in a game like this was super cool. It was one of those things that makes you think on how much a religion or cult might actually have influence somewhere, especially since the cult in the game quite literally was able to replace just about anyone they wanted so that things would always go their way.

I get extremely attached to things easily, as I do also hyperfixiate on things at different times. It has been months since I stopped actively looking for content or just hyperfocusing on the game itself, but if I happen to come across something Sally Face related, I instantly light up and get all excited, especially because I feel like not a lot of people around me know about the game!

some of the biggest things I think got me thinking were just the amount of potential theories that can be introduced with the game. Some say Sanity Falls had bigger parts to the story than people realize, and some say they actually predicted the future. Being able to rethink things is one of my absolute favorite parts about any video game or series -- making theories and trying to put pieces together to solve a puzzle are one of the joys I get in life, so this game really did give me a lot of feelings and love for it.

Games I would absolutely consider asking this question on are Nier: Replicant or Nier: Automata. The games are not for everyone, especially mechanic wise, but I do recommend looking into these games -- and if you enjoy them, researching the Drakengard stories because they happen to tie into Nier and why things are the way they are. The stories for these are just masterpieces and I will say, the soundtrack itself has actually impacted me severely.

That's fair I didn't watch it being played after episode one because I was immediately interested and I knew I wanted to play it in the future, but even the arrest of Charlie didn't hit as hard as when I was doing it myself, so I could imagine how the rest of the game wouldn't hit as hard as when you're making all of the decisions and acting out the game yourself. Definitely the feelings of depression and dread are what stuck for me, the dread of knowing there is something bigger than we know like the cult and how that develops throughout the game.

I totally agree that was one of the things that hit me hardest, along with the part where we had to kill people. The last people we had to kill hit me the hardest but it was all extremely hard for me. I've always feared having to deal with something like that and also feared doing it myself, it's never expected and I'm sorry you had to deal with that in the past.

THE WAY THE CULT DEVELOPED WAS SO INTERESTING and finding out that it had a much wider influence than we ever thought was a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ for sure. The whole town being part of it really gave that feeling of loneliness and having very few people to trust. Did that background (even if it was small) help understand any of the cult for you? did it change any perspective or understanding you would have/not have had otherwise?

YESYESYES thats all I have to say thank you

Thank you for the suggestions idk if I'll have time to look into all of them but I jotted them down and I'll definitely keep it in mind, even if I don't have time to play it I might to research!

Yes, absolutely! The entire plot of the cult was an absolute ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ and it really did help me understand a lot more of the story to the game itself. I really did love the different aspects of it, and knowing that Sal was the center of it all -- to help save them, that is. It was really interesting to learn about the history of it, and if we get a second game I really do hope and pray we can touch further on the concepts of the cult and how far their actual influence does go.

[doot]

SPOILERS

I havent 100%d the gmae yet but ive completed a full playthrough.

This game fd me up :( a lot of the parts were extremely depressing (cough cough larry) while others made me feel genuine discmofrt (for example sals massacre). Seeing Gizmo curled up on Sal;s bed for the whole duration of the game after Sal was gone made me BAWL MY EYES OUT (I got too attached to Gizmo lol), and the storyline, plot and progression had me at the edge of my seat the whole time. This game super peeked my interest in terms of story and it provoked all sorts of feelings, be it awe and happiness (finding out larry and sal are siblings, interacting with gizmo, meeting ash for the first time after years etc), fear (such as thinking we were caught in ms packertons room), complete sadness (scenes mentioned above) or just straight up doom. But imo, the best games are the ones that provoke emotion :) so this was definitely an awesome game, worth it all the way.
in short, it impacted me greatly, emotional storm all the way....

excuse my english lol, im not a native english speaker