Line #12 VisualNovel/LakeOfVoices


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fh84kh.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Anyone can be saved, but not everyone can be.]]
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4	Kikka and Bemelle are assigned with a mission to help the people living in a village on the other side of the lake Sinnlos, where monsters referred to as 'Nixi' live, waiting for prey to come by and taking joy in drowning travelers. The maze-like bridge connecting the shores appears only at night and disappears at the first signs of dawn, although the two-day journey across is the shortest one. The only person that can help them navigate the dark with his light is the mysterious Guide...
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6	''Lake of Voices'' is a free horror visual novel released by Creator/GBPatch in 2018 on [[https://store.steampowered.com/app/782340/Lake_of_Voices/ Steam]] and [[https://gbpatch.itch.io/lake-of-voices itch.io]]. It features a branching narrative with many tough and impactful choices to make. The player, who is in control of Kikka's decisions, gets to determine, whom to sacrifice and what to do in order to survive. Certain choices are timed, so it's important to think and react fast, although staying silent is also an option that forwards the plot further.
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8	!!This visual novel contains the following tropes:
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10	* AnyoneCanDie: The game is not afraid of killing its characters, even ''you''.
11	* BigHeroicRun: Happens on certain routes. For example, [[spoiler: Kikka and Bemelle can be seen carrying the injured Guide ''together'' while running for their lives before the bridge sinks]] or [[spoiler: Kikka and Lu do one if they are left alone on the bridge]].
12	* BattleCouple: Kikka and Bemelle, if you pursue him.
13	* BittersweetEnding: The better endings are mostly this to a certain extent, as there's always some sort of a sacrifice taking place: it's impossible to save everyone. At least one person from the party will die before reaching the other shore.
14	* CrushBlush: There's a blushing sprite for Margret and Bemelle.
15	%%* TheDarknessGazesBack: The Nixi do this.
16	* {{Fingore}}: Happens on [[spoiler: Lu's romance route, in which he loses one of his fingers]].
17	* FirstGuyWins: If you pursue Bemelle since he is the one Kikka has known for some time prior to the game.
18	* {{Foreshadowing}}: Done in a particularly unique/hilarious way. [[spoiler: The first bonus scene a player is likely to unlock before the other two involves Kikka going for a romantic stroll on the bridges with a Nix. This might seem like utter crack, but if you pursue the Guide or Lu for romance, ''that's exactly what you end up doing''.]]
19	%%* GayOption: Margret is one for Kikka.
20	* GlowingEyesOfDoom: The Nixi have glowing eyes, which is a prominent part of their design.
21	%%* HazardousWater: The lake Sinnlos.
22	* HeadbuttOfLove: The CG shows Margret and Kikka do this if [[spoiler: the two manage to survive and Margret is the love interest]].
23	* HeKnowsTooMuch: The reason why [[spoiler: Kikka dies]] on Lu's route if you choose [[spoiler: not to stay with the Nixi]].
24	* HeroicSacrifice: Kikka can perform one [[spoiler: at the beginning of the second night if she chooses to scare away the Nixi with her light]]. There's also Lu, [[spoiler: who is implied to have jumped to protect Kikka on his romance route]].
25	%%* InterspeciesRomance: [[spoiler: If you pursue either Lu or the Guide]].
26	* TheIdealistWasRight: Both Kikka and Bemelle aren't willing to leave anyone behind due to their noble ideals, despite the selfish option being the most sensible one. Happens if [[spoiler:you choose to be more selfless and still manage to survive]]. One of the examples can be [[spoiler: Lu's survival. Saving him is the more idealistic option, however, it unlocks some of the better endings, too]].
27	* KryptoniteFactor: The Nixi are frighteningly strong, but have a few debilitating weaknesses, such as a fear of light and difficultly traversing the land. [[spoiler: Even though the above stated weaknesses are lies, the trope still applies to them: Nixi are born from the inherent magic of Lake Sinnlos, but that magic is easy to disrupt. The pollution of a single human warcamp by the lake was enough to wreck the balance that allows Nixi to come into existence, and since they're not immortal, seriously threaten them with extinction.]]
28	* LastGuyWins: If you pursue Lu, as he is the last to join the party.
29	%%* TheMaze: The bridge across the lake can be seen as an unconventional one.
30	* NiceDayDeadlyNight: The Nixi attack their prey only during the night.
31	%%* OminousFog: Can be seen in the background.
32	* RelationshipValues: There's a possibility to gain affection points with other characters, which later determine whom Kikka can romance, for instance.
33	* RescueHug: Kikka and Margret share one in [[spoiler:Margret's good romance ending]].
34	* {{Shapeshifting}}: The Nixi are capable of this to a different degree. Some are more skilled at it than others. [[spoiler: Lu can take human form, while the Guide is even able to conceal the real color of his blood]].
35	* StoryBranching: The game has this, as it's a multiple choice visual novel.
36	* TragicKeepsake: In the endings where he dies after being romanced, a shell that [[spoiler: Lu gave Kikka as a reminder of him]].
37	* UnlockableContent: There's a bonus mode featuring scenes that can be unlocked under certain conditions. PostEndGameContent also applies in this case.
38	* WhamLine: [[spoiler:"Nixi aren't afraid of light. They use it to track who's on their lake."]]
39	* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: Each ending in which [[spoiler: Kikka manages to safely get to the other side]] features a short epilogue that describes what happened to the main five and the future of your romance if you pursued any.
40	* WillfullyWeak: [[spoiler: The Nixi. They're not actually afraid of fire, and are much more capable of moving on land than they seem. But when humans try to cross Sinnlos, they essentially follow a script, limiting themselves so that small groups of humans might survive if they obey the guide. They're trying to strike a balance between being frightening enough that humans avoid Sinnlos, while not being so threatening as to provoke a human invasion.]]

Context VisualNovel / LakeOfVoices