I'm Puzzled (Spoilers for first few hours of game)

[Angry Rope]

I'm a few hours into this game and I'm really enjoying but the way it's written is starting to confuse me and it's now starting to get frustrating. I was wondering if someone could shed some light on a few things without going into spoilers... I assume someone must know what's going on.

1. So far every spirit I've met is someone who knew Stella in life. Is there a reason that's the case? Of all the people who have ever died, it seems wild the first people you encounter are folks you know.
2. If this is the Afterlife, why are there land-marks and places significant to the spirits? Why is Gwen's house here? Surely that's in the living world.
3. Gwen contemplated suicide at said house, but... isn't she already dead? What happens if a spirit commits suicide? Is she trying to say she was contemplating suicide in her actual life, and she's slipping back into some sort of routine?
4. What differentiates the spirits who resemble animals and the normal ones who are just sorta going about their business? A lot of them have jobs and families. Do they just live here in Limbo? How come some of them, like the shipwright or the shop raccoons have animal forms but seem to have no interest in their unfinished business.
5. Are these people animals in the real world or are they humans who have come to resemble animals in this spirity place. (This one doesn't frustrate me as much as I'm just curious about it).

I really want to like this game and normally I can switch off questions like this, but the game is so detailed in the exploration of its characters that it's forcing me to ask them. My first instinct was to think this was all Stella's afterlife, that this journey is somehow her finding her own peace.. I mean I guess that'd make sense since the people she's meeting are people she knows and.. I dunno.

If anyone can help me understand it then I will be super grateful.

[Sonic Titan]

I'd answer in more detail, but I really think you just need to progress the narrative more - this will all make more sense/eventually be answered (mostly, anyway), give the game time to tell you.

I'd encourage you to stick with it, though - it's an amazing game.

[rmsgrey]

The game answers most of those questions eventually.

One thing: while everyone who boards the ship has some connection to Stella, you have already encountered named spirits in the world who don't have any known connection - for instance, Albert doesn't seem to be connected to Stella in any way. And, of course, the many background shades who never take on animal form.

Enjoy the game, and let the answers come in due course :)

[Angry Rope]

Alrighty I'll keep going. I will say I just finished Summer's story and that resonated with me a lot more. Pretty sure I know what her dragon really was.

[roymaster45]

Originally posted by Angry Rope:

2. If this is the Afterlife, why are there land-marks and places significant to the spirits? Why is Gwen's house here? Surely that's in the living world.

If I remember correctly, I think Gwen's family's villa is pretty much the only case of that happening. As for why... maybe the fact that it was where she almost committed suicide caused it to "bleed through" from the real world to the afterlife (or more accurately the Limbo between the real world and the afterlife)? IDK. While the game does gradually peel back the story on Stella and the rest of the spirits as you continue, ultimately, there are still a number of world-building elements like this that are just left to speculation.

Originally posted by Angry Rope:

Alrighty I'll keep going. I will say I just finished Summer's story and that resonated with me a lot more. Pretty sure I know what her dragon really was.

Yep. I'm almost certain the developers chose a dragon for her story as a reference to That Dragon, Cancer.

[Sonic Titan]

Originally posted by Angry Rope:

Alrighty I'll keep going. I will say I just finished Summer's story and that resonated with me a lot more. Pretty sure I know what her dragon really was.

Good to hear! I'm glad it's starting to click; it's been a while since I've become as emotionally invested in a game and its characters like I am in Spiritfarer.

[rmsgrey]

Originally posted by roymaster45:

Originally posted by Angry Rope:

2. If this is the Afterlife, why are there land-marks and places significant to the spirits? Why is Gwen's house here? Surely that's in the living world.

If I remember correctly, I think Gwen's family's villa is pretty much the only case of that happening.

As a specific identifiable landmark, it's the only location that's confirmed to be from the real world, though there is another strong candidate - Overbrook.

On the other hand, while Villa Maggiore (and possibly that other place) is the only entire location copied wholesale, the various islands are clearly drawn from real world locations and cultures.