About the Game

Queer was a story idea I came up with when I was 16 years old. I planned on making it into a comic but once I found the visual novel genre, decided it might be better to make a game instead.

The only problem was I didn't have any access to game development software. The apps on my ipad weren't able to help create the type of game I wanted to make and the school computers didn't allow me to download any sort of software.

So I decided to make a visual novel with PowerPoint! Actually, I made several. Each of them is about this particular world of aliens and queer identities.

The Plot

Coal(yes like the mineral) is a recently out, socially awkward gay man looking for community, so he decides to join the Queer Club.

Unbeknownst to him, the Queer club in question is a gathering place for extraterrestrial beings from different solar systems, galaxies and even further beyond.

Being the socially awkward person he is, he decides it's too much of a hassle to opt out and becomes the club’s first human member to the delight of some and the disdain of others.

An Autopsy

While I have a lot of love for this story, I cringe a little everytime I read it. There are many tropes I'd stay away from, many designs I roll my eyes at and the analogy of Queer human people to aliens is a little heavy handed. Or was it about race? Or both? I don't know at this point.

Some of the dialogue also wreaks of that kind of Buzzfeed quippiness I hope I've grown out of.

But also, I see many positives. This was the beginning of my journey into diversity in regards to body size, race, sexuality, etc. Though the art isn't where I wanted it to be it was the foundation for a lot of the stuff I do now. And some parts still make me laugh, maybe out of sheer embarrassment but a laugh’s a laugh.

Overall, a good first try younger me. I might steal this idea and rework it into something I'm actually proud of one day.