Pale Cachexia

Developer: Argent Games | Publisher: Argent Games | Release Date: 2021 | Genre: Casual / Visual Novel | Website: Official Website | Purchase: Steam

Pale Cachexia opens with a young girl named Esther setting off into a foreboding forest alone. It soon becomes apparent that it was desperation that drove her to such a dangerous place. Esther suffers from a life-leeching plague called the Pale Cachexia, for which there is no cure. Instead, the illness leaves those afflicted with it in a constantly lethargic state, and without medication to keep it under control, the end result is pretty horrifying. Esther has heard rumors of an apothecary living in the forest, and she ventures into the unknown, hoping that he might have a cure.

Much to her surprise, Esther discovers a large manor deep in the forest, but instead of an apothecary, the occupant is a young girl named Seina. It turns out that Seina has been living in the manor all alone ever since her father passed away six years ago, but she welcomes Esther in with open arms. Seina’s father suffered from the Pale Cachexia, too, and Esther hopes that by going through his extensive research, she might find some clues about a cure. It’s a long shot, but she doesn’t have a lot of other options.

As the 48,000 word kinetic novel unfolds, the friendship between Esther and Seina deepens, revealing their personal struggles and demons. Despite their contrasting circumstances, the story beautifully portrays the evolution of their bond. However, beneath Seina’s optimistic facade, Esther senses a lurking darkness in the manor and nearby cemetery, adding a layer of suspense to the narrative.

Pale Cachexia only takes about five hours to complete, so we don’t want to reveal more about the story, but despite its length, it never feels rushed. It is also great that the developers did not shoehorn a romance into the game and instead focused on the friendship between the two girls. Pale Cachexia is not just the story of Esther and Seina, though, as a third character also gets his turn to shine. However, his scenes are set in the past and crop up occasionally to flesh out Seina’s backstory a little more. Overall, the writing for Pale Cachexia is very good, and the Gothic atmosphere of the game is relatively rare in the genre. The story also incorporated elements of fantasy, drama, and a bit of horror to keep things compelling.

The game is the work of a very small team, but they did a remarkable job with the presentation, and Pale Cachexia looks and feels very polished. Along with the usual text speed and audio volume options, it also features some accessibility options, such as the OpenDyslexic font, audio cue subtitles, and the ability to disable bright flashes. A CG gallery and music player also round out the package nicely.

Visually, Pale Cachexia puts a lot of big-budget visual novels to shame with the beautiful character sprites and detailed backgrounds. The story is mainly confined to a few rooms inside the manor and surrounding woods, but the limited locations add to the game’s intimate feel. The character sprites are not just well-drawn and shaded but are also expressive enough to convey the emotional turmoil that they are going through. Finally, the handful of CGs for some of the key scenes in the story also looks great.

Unfortunately, Pale Cachexia doesn’t feature any type of voice acting but makes up for it with a beautiful and haunting soundtrack. There are 12 tracks in total, so there’s plenty of variety, and each one sounds great. Even the most upbeat tracks have a melancholy feel but fit in nicely with the story’s tone. The game has no shortage of sound effects either to add a bit more atmosphere to the scenes. The controls are straightforward, and since this is a kinetic novel, there are no choices to make or branches in the storyline.

Pale Cachexia doesn’t exactly feature the most cheerful setting or story, but the characters are genuinely interesting, which makes the overall experience very compelling. The fact that there are only three characters also allows the story to take its time and flesh things out without feeling rushed or contrived. Players looking for something humorous and carefree might find Pale Cachexia a little too bleak, but the characters do share the occasional moments of joy and happiness. If all you want is another goofy visual novel filled with gags and fan service, then Pale Cachexia is definitely not for you. However, if you are looking for a story that can pull on your heartstrings and feature memorable characters, this game is highly recommended.