Say It In Red

It's a beautiful day to go diving through the ocean. Come with me, embrace the salt air and the sea breeze before we plunge beneath the waves! Yes! Taste it... the thrill of adventure! The romance of the waves! The thrill of scraping an abalone free from the rocks with only a small knife and your bare hands! Experience the majesty and wonder of the pelagic world! Meet a specter in your ghostly image and experience the Memory of your own imminent death! Truly, this is the peak of summer.
This month, Sara and Runa discuss PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse (2026), released earlier this year in February as the follow-up to previous Say it in Red Subject, PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo. Like its predecessor, The Mermaid's Curse uses a 360 degree camera to great effect and nicely utilizes the three-dimensional space around the player as you explore its world. We begin this horror mystery visual novel with a diving mini-game, and a dangerously enjoyable one at that, as we meet our protagonist - Yuza Minakuchi. Yuza has returned to the fictional island of Kameshima, off the coast of Ise, after a long absence away on the mainland. Five years ago, his parents died and he nearly drowned in a terrible accident out at sea. He was saved, or at least so he claims, by a Mermaid, and now he's enlisted the help of his best friend Azami to find a Mermaid no matter what. Meanwhile, a pair of investigators working with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police in the Paranormal Affairs division arrives in the region to quell an ancient curse, right after they solve the mystery behind a string of mysterious skeletons that have washed up from the sea floor. At the same time, a fantasy author from abroad has enlisted the help of his distant relative, a young psychic, to search for clues about mermaids and the secrets of immortality on Kameshima. Their paths all tangle together around one strange girl, Sato, who arrived on Kameshima some months ago and seems to have an odd connection to Mermaids, the Curse of Raging Waves, and perhaps even the Tale of the Heike.
A warning for listeners: While you don't need to listen to our previous Paranormasight episode to follow along here, we will drop a few spoilers for the first game throughout our discussion. Please be advised and plan accordingly.
As always, if you enjoy our podcast please give us a rating and write a review wherever you listen, and if you'd like to hear even more Say it in Red, you can find our rich backlog of bonus episodes on patreon at patreon.com/sayitinred! Check it out now to hear our recent episode in which Sara tells Runa all about the lads of LADS (Love and Deepspace), or go back a bit further to hear Runa tell Sara about storytelling in trading card games like Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Magic the Gathering!

Oh Sweetie, did you have a nightmare?
Don't worry, your family is here for you. Now, just tell me everything that happened... everything you thought, everything you felt...
Hmmm, yes I see. I see...
Sweetheart, it seems that you're trapped in a time loop. Yes, I'm quite shocked as well but if you've been reliving the same day over and over, what other explanation is there? If you want to escape, you'll have to find out what's keeping you here. In fact, I've got an idea... Yes, I think this is exactly what will help you. It's time for you to grow out of this little homosexual phase of yours and think about contributing to the birth rate, darling.
This month, Sara and Runa read through Black Lily's Tale (2023), a yuri visual novel about putting gay teens through literal nightmare scenarios in order to "correct" their homosexual tendencies. It's at times horrifying and often salient in its political commentary, and though romance isn't its core focus Black Lily's Tale grounds itself in the real social forces of homophobia and compulsory heterosexuality that weigh on Japanese youth. Set in a near future timeline after a new pandemic devastated the younger generations of Japan, we quickly see the shadow of nationalist anxieties fall over our cast. In particular, the persistent fears of declining birth rates are already at critical mass in Black Lily's Tale and almost immediately, we find examples of all the new social programs aggressively promoting Marriage and Procreation.
We spend most of our time following Hana, a high school senior who is just weeks away from graduation, and her closest friends Itsuki and Aoi. While they've successfully completed their college entrance exams, Itsuki wants to make sure they all make the most out of their high school life. So, in between mandatory classes on the benefits of heterosexual marriage, the girls write out flash cards filled with things they want to do before they graduate – usually silly things like visiting pop-up shops or watching cheap shark horror movies. All of that changes when Itsuki falls into the street and gets killed by a speeding truck... and then Hana wakes up to find herself back in the previous day. Stuck in a seemingly endless loop, Hana struggles to figure out what could possibly save Itsuki from death and allow her to escape this endless nightmare. All the while, Hana's father and the nurse at her school are acting very strangely, and all of these dreams seem to suggest that Itsuki would be happier if she were dating a boy...
As always, if you enjoy our show please consider writing us a review on your podcast platform of choice! You can always support us directly on Patreon at patreon.com/sayitinred where you will get access to all of our bonus episodes past and present, including our most recent bonus episode in which Sara and Runa talk about their experience at Anime Conventions!

!WARNING! HEAT ADVISORY
The veil of summer has fallen across the Northern Hemisphere and with it, smothering warmth besieges us each day. With the sun casting its spectral disdain through our atmosphere, we can only caution you, dear listener, to seek shelter within the safety of indoor spaces during these sweltering days. Fortunately, the indoors have a great deal to offer us especially during Pride month and once again, we're here to tell you about Indie Visual Novels that you can, and should, play and enjoy while you sip a cool beverage and shelter yourself from the ultraviolent ultraviolets beaming down from space. 
In these Indie Game Compilation Track episodes we want to highlight some of the incredible indie VNs we've played recently and get people excited about the things happening in Indie Visual Novel development spaces. We want to not only showcase the amazing breadth of work coming from Indie developers but also talk about some of our favorite games, many of which touch on subjects, characters, and experiences we rarely get the chance to see in games from larger studios. You can find a list of each game we played below and we encourage you to play along with us, and go searching for other Indie visual novels as well!    
Most of these games are free and if not, fairly cheap (though please tip the creators if you are able), and you can read most of them inside of an hour or two. In fact, we want YOU, dear listener, to pick at least one of these games to play after you listen, and then tell us about it! You can also check our Patreon, where listeners and patrons can submit either a short audio clip or a few sentences telling us about an Indie VN you've played and enjoyed recently! We may even include your submission on our next Indie VN Compilation Track episode (only if you want, that is). We also mentioned the Power of Pride bundle in this episode, which contains a lot of the games we discuss here as well as dozens of other amazing indie games by queer creators! Check it out, grab some amazing indie games, support queer creators, and tell us about what you've played!
Indie games featured in this episode
Speak Easy [00:04:50]: http://captainturnip.itch.io/speakeasy by captainturnip 
Skate & Date [00:09:22]: https://gensuta.itch.io/skate-and-date by gensuta
Northanger Abbey Rewritten[00:14:40]: https://spiralatlas.itch.io/northanger-abbey-remastered Northanger by Spiral Atlas   
Crushed[00:22:56]: https://hummingbird-games.itch.io/crushed by Hummingbird Games
it sucks to be us[00:31:48]: https://tofurocks.itch.io/it-sucks-to-be-us it sucks to be us by tofurocks 
this game will end in 205 clicks[00:40:30]: https://insertdisc5.itch.io/this-game-will-end-in-205-clicks by insertdisc5
she danced in the wind like a holographic dream before the world died[00:44:55]: https://alienmelon.itch.io/flower by Nathalie Lawhead
Texting the Awkward Ace Guy You've Had a Crush on Since High School[00:51:23]: https://justacarrot.itch.io/texting-the-awkward-ace-guy-youve-had-a-crush-on-since-high-school by Carrot
My Vampire Boyfriend Smokes Lucky Strikes[00:57:03]: https://justacarrot.itch.io/my-vampire-boyfriend-smokes-lucky-strikes by Carrot
Bite the Hand[01:07:03]: https://superbiasedcat.itch.io/bite-the-hand by Cat
Olga Doesn't Die[01:20:15]: https://4noki.itch.io/olga-doesnt-die by Shino 
Full Service Shop[01:36:42]: https://alexisroyce.itch.io/full-service-shop
There Will Be Beauty[01:47:41]: https://voidblob-coop.itch.io/there-will-be-beauty by Void Blob Co-Op 
And a special mention of likely future main episode subject, National Park Girls [at 01:53:50] published by Studio Elan.

A warm summer breeze ruffles the papers on your desk and nearly scatters them to the floor. They remain, however, and you slouch in relief... if you had to reach out and stop your notes from flying through that open window, you might pass out from the effort. The humid air and the faint buzz of insects withers your strength, though not so much as your teacher's repeated explanations of geometric proofs. Suddenly the teacher stops, slams their chalk against the wall, and announces a pop quiz – 'Since you all seem so bored with this material, I assume you must be experts already!' What a cruel thing to say to a class full of overheated, weary teenagers. Your savior arrives, however, as the Westminster chimes sound off and signal the end of class, the end of the school day, and the end of this nightmare you've had each and every night since you graduated.
This month, Sara and Runa talk about both volumes of 07th Expansions Higanbana no Saku Yoru Ni (2011). As an anthology of school horror and ghost stories, Higanbana doesn't follow a single narrative arc throughout each volume so much as it introduces us to characters and concepts that the game explores through each of its chapters. School bullying, the physical and sexual abuse of students, suicidal ideation, stalking, animal cruelty, and grief are among Higanbana's main concerns and in general, all of these subjects are treated with a great deal of care and nuance. 
In a truly massive school filled with ghost stories, gossip, and legends, a group of powerful youkai hold court and hunt the souls of the humans who pass through their halls. The game begins with the story of Marie Moriya and follows the brutal abuse she suffers at the hands of a teacher, leading to her eventual death and then rebirth as the new youkai, mesomeso-san. She soon encounters Higanbana, the youkai of the school's infirmary, and throughout the rest of the game the two of them clash with other youkai (as well as one another) and witness the struggles of the students around them. Sometimes a comedic ghost story, sometimes an anti-bullying PSA, and sometimes a supernatural battle action series, Higanbana is, above all else, a story about the existential uncertainty and turmoil of being a Teen.
As always, if you enjoy our show please consider writing us a review on your podcast platform of choice! You can always support us directly on Patreon at patreon.com/sayitinred where you will get access to all of our bonus episodes past and present, including our most recent bonus episode in which Sara and Runa talk about the Gnosia anime adaptation!

OMG it's like, incredible to see you here! Who would have thought we'd be stuck on the same spaceship fleeing that catastrophic infestation LOL like I know I always say it but that's like. Literally? Literally a Cosmic coincidence? Astronomical even? Get it because, you know, like the stars lmao. Anyway, so, there's this 'Contamination Protocol' we're supposed to follow and I'm soooooo scared of everybody else here? They've been giving such rancid vibes, I'm really worried about what's gonna happen! But you've got my back, right? I can rely on you? Nice ^_^ That's such a relief. Hurry up and die for me, ok? <3
This month, Sara and Runa pursue knowledge and make non-binary besties in Gnosia(2019). Often called "Anime Among Us", Gnosia plunges the player headfirst into the tense atmosphere of a Werewolf game, pitting the human passengers of a starship against Gnosia infectees. You very quickly enter both the central time loop and a recurring, sometimes deadly discussion with your fellow passengers. Who is infected with Gnosia? Who can we trust? Who do we put into Cold Sleep? As you loop through the game alongside Setsu, another passenger whose fate is tightly bound to your own, you learn about the other people on board this ship and the nature of Gnosia itself. You'll die a lot, and probably get thrown in the fridge even more, but after each failure you'll grow stronger and wiser. That last part in particular is vital – Knowledge will save us, after all. 
As always, if you enjoy our show please consider writing us a review on your podcast platform of choice! You can always support us directly on Patreon at patreon.com/sayitinred where you will get access to all of our bonus episodes past and present, including our most recent bonus episode in which Sara and Runa revisit the subject of our very first episode, Eliza!
Fans of the show may also be interested in a recently released Victorian Murder Mystery Otome game, Crimson Waves on the Emerald Sea: Amaranthine Moon. Runa was the lead writer on the project, and you can find it now on Steam and itch.io!