Monospaced Lovers — Demo
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
Journey through an introspective, fantasy-filled land and unlock the secret encrypted on your phone before the world crumbles around you in this narrative adventure about closeness and distance.
This free demo contains the first hour of gameplay. If you enjoy it, please consider wishlisting the full game on Steam!
✨ Chat up the local Tanuki, learn how to translate Slimespeak, and explore every corner of your quaint home town until you've found all 60 collectibles. The game features non-linear, collectathon-style exploration mixed with RPG-style story quests.
✨ Dodge bullets! With 4+ bullet hell boss battles and a handful of challenge rooms, you'll have to learn how to platform in a whole new way.
✨ Experience a heartfelt story with a 100,000+ word count. Comedy! Drama! Social anxiety! Philosophy? We dropped the "silent protagonist" trope to create a heroine with her own personality and feelings — and she's always one step ahead of you.
✨ Work through old-school puzzles that will make you want to use the in-game hints. We aim to create a sense of wonder and adventure inspired by Fez, Majora's Mask, La Mulana, and much more.
Clara wakes up to a phone that isn't hers.
On it, she finds a perplexing message left by a hacker named the Gòd o͏f̴ B̴in͠a̸r̨y̧, who states that her time left in this world is short. Her only clue is a series of encrypted messages locked on the device — and a mysterious new friend who woke up to a phone that wasn't his.
What does this enigmatic hacker want? Why is he talking about the end of the world? And what does any of this have to do with Clara's quaint and peaceful life in Haven Heights?
All we know for sure is that if she doesn't embark on this quest... her friends will drag her into it anyway.
Are you ready to solve the mystery of the Ġ̸̱ŏ̵̲d̶̺̔ ̴̺́o̵̮̚f̴̹̆ ̷͍͝B̵̦̐i̶̤̾n̷̳̿a̵̘̓r̷͎͐y̴̛̜ and uncover the truth of this strange but comfy world?
Well... it doesn't really matter, does it?
There's no running from the truth — whether you're ready or not.
Follow us!
Love the game? Or hate it? Feel free to leave a comment — all feedback is helpful!
If you'd like to keep an eye on the game's development and/or receive a ping when it's finally launched, please give us a follow!
🎮 Discord: discord.gg/n6GQhXy
⭐ Steam: steam.pm/app/1164460/
⏯ YouTube: youtube.com/@scarlet_string
📧 Email: mailchi.mp/2edf102a8670/monospaced-lovers
Credits
Code and Story: eternal (@_eternal)
Art: sphenops (@sphenop_s)
Music: Michi (@ChillMichi)
Sound: effoharkay (@effoharkay)
VFX Animation: Xenophoss (@Xenophoss)
Minimum Specs
OS: Windows 7 or higher Processor: 2GHz CPU Memory: 4 GB RAM Graphics: Dedicated GPU DirectX: Version 11 Storage: 3 GB available space
Recommended Specs
Memory: 6 GB RAM Graphics: >2GB VRAM Additional Notes: Game can run up to 2160p 145 FPS.
Status | Released |
Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
Rating | Rated 4.2 out of 5 stars (13 total ratings) |
Author | Scarlet String Studios |
Genre | Platformer |
Made with | Unity, Clip Studio Paint |
Tags | 2D, Action-Adventure, Anime, Bullet Hell, Cute, Exploration, Female Protagonist, Narrative, Singleplayer, Unity |
Average session | About an hour |
Languages | English |
Inputs | Keyboard, Xbox controller, Gamepad (any), Playstation controller |
Links | Steam, Discord, Steam, Twitter/X, YouTube |
Download
Development log
- 《Monospaced Lovers》demo现已更新官方简中!Sep 21, 2023
- Nossa demo agora está disponível em Português!Sep 19, 2023
- Демо нашей игры теперь доступно на русском!Aug 02, 2023
- ¡Nuestra demo se encuentra disponible en Español!Jul 15, 2023
- Oyunumuzun demosu Türkçe olarak mevcut durumda!Jul 13, 2023
- デモ版が日本語でプレイ可能!Jul 12, 2023
- 2.1.3 — Last update before Steam Next Fest!Oct 03, 2022
- 2.1.0 — Lots of QA & BugfixingSep 12, 2022
Comments
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Any plans to release the full game on Itch.io?
Yeah, I suppose so! The old project page is still available here: https://scarletstring.itch.io/monospaced-lovers
There are no public builds right now, but I might as well ship the full game to itch alongside other storefronts.
Great! Looking forward to release.
i play on mac and when i download this it does not let me open it how do i fix that
It might be related to this problem: https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/408752/the-message-you-do-not-have-per...
By default, I think there's a security setting on macOS that prevents you from running programs downloaded from the internet, and you have to do a workaround like the one described in the link above.
That said, I think the warning won't show up on the Steam version, because it's distributed through Steam rather than as a standalone zip file. You can try that and see if it works.
HI there, would you like me to translate your game into Esperanto for free? I'm just looking to help the Esperanto community out by getting some more games into the language.
Hey,
Sure, I wouldn't mind. The full game is pretty long (around 100,000 words), and the demo is also pretty long, so it might take a while. The translation files aren't 100% ready yet, but you can join our Discord and DM me (eternal) if you want to talk.
Awesome thank you! I would love to when they are ready.
celeste but not celeste
Where is the cave? because i've been searching for 10 minutes and still can't find it? or am i maybe just blind
btw game looks really good!
Thanks! The entrance is over to the right on your way to the Bloodthirsty Slime, right after those two tall structures. I might rephrase the hint so that it points you in the correct direction (i.e. right and not left).
ohh umm excuse me how do u intract with npcs in this game? (i mean what u click on ur keyboard ofc) thanks!! (。﹏。*)
You can interact by pressing the "up" arrow - same as entering/exiting your house.
ohh gotit thanks!!
the mac version seems to have a glitched out background, is that part of the game?
Hm, probably not. Can you upload a screenshot?
Thanks. You're right, something is definitely wrong! I'll see what testing I can do on my end. I don't own a Mac, but I might be able to ask someone to check.
What's the model name/number of your computer? Or how much RAM and VRAM does it have?
its a 2018 macbook air with 8gb of ram with Intel UHD Graphics 617 1536 MB
Got it, thanks. I'll let you know if I figure out what's going on.
Late reply, but I finally got a Macbook to test on. I'm pretty sure the problem you experienced was just due to that particular build being corrupted. It should work correctly now (2.1.2). There were other graphical issues that have been fixed as well.
Keep in mind, the game might run slowly on the Intel UHD Graphics series and/or an i5 CPU. It works for me on a 2014 (?) Macbook Pro with an i7 and Intel Iris series integrated graphics. Either way, you can try it and see how it runs.
Incredibly beautiful and lovely. Absolute stellar.
Wish we could claim the demo, it's just a demo on i don't see a reason why we can't. Can't d/l now since I'm on my phone and by the time I'm able to access a pc, I'll most likely have forgotten about this
Sorry, what do you mean by claim? You can hit the follow button to recieve a ping next time we push an update, so that's good for reminders - I think it's on the bottom of the page on mobile.
OwO cant wait
Gensokyo?
The town is probably as lush as Gensokyo!
This game is beautiful!! It was running my laptop pretty hot to play, though. Also had some frame dips during play. Other than that, though, looks like a promising demo!
Thanks for checking it out! The current update (2.0.9) features some performance improvements, so that will help with the frame dips.
Do you have a list with recommended and minimum specs to play?
Ayo, so I downloaded your linux version and 1) the framerate drops like a brick and 2) are these supposed to be character talksprites?
Output of lscpu:
Hey, thanks for the comment. I saw your message on Discord & followed up, so we can troubleshoot there.
There definitely should be talk sprites; I'm surprised the game was able to boot up without the sprites loading fully, so I'll have to look into that.