Kristi JimenezWelcome back to another edition of our weekly Twitch recap, where I give my thoughts on the game I played last week over on the VN Game Den Twitch channel. Last week, I played yet another game released for Otome Jam 2022. This time I played FableNovel’s Hummingbird’s Crown.
Hummingbird’s Crown
- Developer: FableNovel
- Genre: Amare, Comedy, Mystery, Otome, Romance
- Price: Free (Windows, Mac, and Linux on itch.io)
- Content Warnings: Acephobia (Lonan’s route), depictions of blood and death, shaking screen and light flashes (you can view more of the content warnings on the game page!)
The game’s story is about Wren, a young woman who gets invited to attend a gaming convention called Gamescon with her online friends Kanaria and Lonan. Taking advantage of the opportunity to meet her online friends IRL for the first time, Wren goes. However, what should be a nice relaxing day out with her friends turns into her last day on earth. The building where Gamescon is taking place collapses, killing everyone inside. However, instead of dying, Wren finds out she’s gone back in time and everything is repeating. Did she go back in time? And with a second chance at life, can Wren stop the events at Gamescon from happening and save herself and her friends?
One of the things that attracted me to play this game was that Wren as well as the love interests well are on the asexual spectrum. As someone who is asexual, I rarely ever see asexual representation in media hence why it’s often referred to as the invisible orientation. And when asexuality does get its chance in the spotlight, the character is either one-note or lacks any depth or human emotion. So, it’s a breath of fresh air to see FableNovel do such an excellent job with their characters and what it’s like to be asexual.
From what I was able to play on stream, I was only able to really dive into Wren’s experience of being on the ace spectrum. Early in the game, she gets a text from her Mom where she wants to set her daughter up with one of her friend’s nephews. This immediately makes Wren uncomfortable. This interaction gets brought up again later and induces a panic attack. I felt this. I felt what Wren was going through because I went through the same thing. Being set up on dates, and being forced to meet people others think I’ll like, it’s exhausting and makes me feel invalidated.
However, this isn’t all there is to Wren as well as the other characters. Wren is strong-willed and will do anything to save her friends. She’s also quirky, funny, and incredibly empathetic. Lonan, whose route I played through a bit on stream, is energetic and can be best described as that chaotic friend in your friend group. Although, behind that smile of his, he has his own struggles he’s facing like how he wants to start his own UTube channel but thinks no one will like him or his content.
During certain sections of the game, you’ll have to investigate anomalies in the area. This is where the game turns from a visual novel into a small point-and-click game. You have to find three items in the background that are out of place. Once you do, you’ll create a paradox. These segments were a neat way to break up the story segments.
Overall, I really loved what I played so far of Hummingbird’s Crown on stream! It’s a neat little time loop game with a mix of romance thrown in that’ll keep fans of both genres intrigued until the end. So, definitely check it out if you haven’t already!
Anna Mirabella
