[Developer Talk]Response to some Controversies

Response to some controversies following the release of the English version of the game

I'm really happy that so many people have played the fan game I made! I'm also very grateful for all the praise and support my work has received.

That said, there have also been some voices of doubt. I'd like to respond to some of the misunderstandings and rumors here. Though this may be lengthy, I hope that when encountering partial misinformation, you might take a moment to read the following before forming judgments.

To state clearly: I am not a brilliantly gifted creator, and this story does contain elements that may feel illogical or imperfect.

I respect everyone's right to express their opinions, and I welcome non-malicious constructive criticism — when I uploaded this game to the platform, I was fully prepared to receive negative feedback.

However, I firmly oppose any malicious speculation about the creators' intentions or spreading unfounded rumors.

1. Till is straight？He doesn't like Ivan the way Ivan like him？

A：In this game, I kept the setting that Till once had feelings for Mizi, and that he believes he doesn't like men. This is to make the tragic dynamic between Ivan and Till logically consistent, and also to allow the story and conflicts in my game to unfold. In the work, he only has emotional entanglements with the two Ivans.

Although I don't want to spoil too much, in the storyline I originally planned for the future, there would also be Till's confusion and struggle about the fact that—even though he has never liked men—his feelings toward Ivan are completely different. So for me, this setup is necessary. But that does not mean Till is straight!

2. Why does Till look so small? Is this some kind of pedophilia?

A：I'm sorry, but I think this is due to my art style. If you look through my media, you'll see that I've always been a yuri fan, and before Ivantill I usually drew girls more. Because of that, I wasn't very skilled at handling male body proportions. After I finished all of Till's sprites and moved on to drawing Ivan, I started adjusting the body types of male characters.

However, I have absolutely no interest in pedophilia, and when creating the game I never intended for Till to appear a little kid or something. If his body type makes you uncomfortable, you're completely free to stop playing.

Once again, I sincerely apologize for my lack of artistic skill. I will refine my artistic skills going forward to prevent such misunderstandings from recurring.

3. Regarding the controversy over Ivan's characterization.

A： Cure is my favorite chapter of ALNST, and I also really like what director VIVINOS mentioned on Patreon—that in the former script (2nd script), Ivan was supposed to show a more extreme side of himself, full of control and possessiveness. (in the 2nd script, he even used his own death to trap Till intentionally).

And in the commentary on the Cure scenes in the artbook, VIVINOS wrote that childhood Ivan hitting Till stemmed from what he perceived as a positive action—because only when facing Till could he fully release all the negative emotions he had been hiding! In his eyes, Till is the only person who can accept all of his feelings, whether positive or negative, which makes Till extremely precious to him.

Honestly, I like this kind of twisted trait., so the Ivan I portray in my game is designed to focus on this aspect.（a little dark and self-centered）

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