The END had been out for a long time, and even the staff credits had finished playing, when Furukawa Hirozawa finally came back to his senses.
It was over.
The final scene was truly a work of art.
Because in this altered memory, John and River flew to the moon in a rocket, interspersed with beeping sounds that perfectly merged with Old John's gradually stopping heartbeat in reality.
It made you unable to distinguish between illusion and reality for a moment.
And when it was all over, when you looked back, you realized you had already experienced two lives.
"That's great. It's a happy ending after all."
Furukawa Hirozawa murmured.
A smile also appeared on his lips.
He reached out and touched his cheek; the tears on it were already cold.
Ishino Mika was indeed the most conscientious Producer at Pokeni, not only having a benevolent side, but even providing a happy ending in this game.
Old John not only realized his dream to the moon, but he also did it with River.
Recalling it now, Furukawa Hirozawa even felt guilty for having misunderstood Dr. Rosaleen.
He had originally thought that Dr. Rosaleen was a bad person, but it turned out that moving River out of John's memory was to save everyone.
Finally, John's twin brother, Joey, was also saved, and River kept her promise to John, both getting into NASA and boarding the rocket to the moon.
It was truly beautiful.
Thank you, Pokeni, for providing such a wonderful and touching story.
Thank you, Ishino Mika.
Thank you.
The game was shorter than the galgames he had played before, because the entire game took place in such a limited space, but it brought a huge impact to his heart.
This impact was no less than that of CL.
What he never expected was that Pokeni used such a reverse degree person narrative technique to tell a moving love story.
"Alright, I can finally get a good night's sleep."
Furukawa Hirozawa stood up and washed his face in the bathroom.
Looking in the mirror, the person inside had red eyes from crying.
Damn it.
Pokeni's galgames really have a strong lingering effect.
Sometimes, when you play to this point, you don't even realize that your eyes are already red from crying.
Tears have a mind of their own.
After washing his face, Furukawa Hirozawa lay on the bed, his hands clasped over his chest.
A happy smile still adorned his lips.
With such a good, happy ending, he should be able to sleep soundly.
However, as Furukawa Hirozawa's emotions calmed down and he became clear-headed, he suddenly realized that something seemed off.
He suddenly opened his eyes and exclaimed,
"My goodness, I was tricked by Ishino Mika!"
In stark contrast to LL—
In the game, LIFE-LINE, the ending seemed incomplete, leaving people with a sense of unresolved regret.
In reality, however, it was a form of healing.
Because although Miyazaki lost his daughter, and his daughter seemingly lost her father, they both had each other in their respective memories, and their wishes were fulfilled and realized in each other's hearts.
And all of this changed Miyazaki's life, making him dare to pursue love and complete a sweet final journey with his wife and child before his death.
And what about "to the moon"?
It seemed that at the end of the game, the two Doctors fulfilled John's wish, not only letting him go to the moon.
Moreover, in this altered memory, John's twin brother was still alive, and he also got together with River.
The unfulfilled promise was realized.
On the surface, it was a perfect ending, and very touching.
But in reality?
This beauty was only for Old John alone.
It was a fantasy he had before his death; Old John passed away without regret after his memory was altered.
But what about River?
River in reality was not saved.
As soon as he thought of this, Furukawa Hirozawa's heart inexplicably tightened.
Damn it!
He had originally been so glad that Ishino Mika was so kind, giving a reunion ending.
But he never expected it to be so cruel.
It's over, it's over.
He wouldn't be able to sleep well tonight!
After "to the moon" was released, within a few days, the number of posts in the relevant sections of the Pokeni forum exploded.
"Wuwuwu, 'to the moon' is truly a very touching game.
I deeply apologize for my previous inappropriate comments, saying that this game was mediocre.
The game not only has beautiful, dreamy graphics and moving music, but also a heartwarming plot that makes your scalp tingle like a bomb.
Believe me, you will absolutely not regret buying 'to the moon'."
"'to the moon' is definitely a game worth experiencing.
Because you can experience life in this game.
Hahaha, that sentence seems a bit redundant.
Pokeni's galgames all seem to let you experience life, and 'to the moon' will bring you a different feeling."
"How should I put it, the game 'to the moon' was very bland at first, because the whole process was constantly looking for clues, jumping to the past to solve puzzles.
Even more mysteries would emerge as you solved them.
You would even question life halfway through.
This game really made people confused.
You don't even know why problems keep piling up, eventually becoming unmanageable.
But, when all the clues and all the puzzles are collected, and the real key appears, you will find that all the puzzles and details accumulated before, they are all there for this moment.
A bomb.
A tearjerker, formed within the puzzles.
And once it's unlocked, your tear ducts will be shattered by this sudden bomb.
When I played to the end and uncovered the truth, my tears really flowed like a burst dam."
"I'd spend my whole life helping you remember our promise under the moon - River.
—[What if you forget or get lost?]
—[We'll always meet on the moon, silly!]
—"to the moon"
Even now, when I think of these lines, I still feel like crying.
It's really too touching."
"I've played the game too, and I was deeply moved, but my view is a bit different from yours. I think the ending of this game is actually very cruel.
Old John's dream was realized, and after his memory was modified, he successfully went to the moon with River.
However, all of this was just his own. A dying fantasy.
It was a false, non-existent memory.
What about in reality?
River in reality tried her whole life to make John remember their past promise, but she never succeeded, and she passed away with that regret.
Isn't that too cruel for River?
Ishino Mika is an amazing Producer, and I also like her works, from Quilt Man to last year's CL and LL.
However, CL and LL were not produced by her.
But this time, I really can't bring myself to like it.
I was moved, yes.
But it was achieved at the cost of another person's entire life in reality.
If it weren't for River's persistence and dedication, perhaps we wouldn't have been moved by that line—
"We'll always meet on the moon, silly!"
"Agreed, don't be fooled by the game's appearance. It looks like a perfect ending, but this ending is false.
The true reality is that River died with regret, unable to fulfill her wish.
John's twin brother also didn't survive.
His mother was still mentally ill.
Actually, when I was playing this game, I had a strange sense of déjà vu; I felt that in terms of the reverse degree person method, 'to the moon' was actually similar to 'reverse degree person'.
But after the game ended, I deeply felt that the memory alteration setting in 'to the moon' was far inferior to the time reversal in 'reverse degree person'.
The biggest difference between them is—
One is false, a tampered memory, something that doesn't exist and hasn't been experienced.
And the other is a real, existing, altered timeline.
Even if the male protagonist and female protagonist in 'reverse degree person' didn't end up with that unique he/she, I can still accept it.
Because without time reversal, the male protagonist and female protagonist wouldn't have met, and there would have been no wonderful fate.
That love, supporting each other to the past to realize dreams, never abandoning each other, with only you by my side in this world, is truly unforgettable.
And 'to the moon' is the opposite, because its perfection is not real, and in reality, it was River who gave her whole life for John.
This is the most infuriating point.
Even if it were to tamper with the timeline instead of the memory line, I would still think this game is worthwhile.
But now, I'm really sad.
I can't say whether it's worth it or not.
Having had such a game experience, I actually regret it a lot.
However, if I hadn't bought this game, I might have regretted that too."
"I don't quite agree with the previous comment.
To River, to the moon, even though the childhood memories were blurry, Old John still carried that promise throughout his life.
John never recalled their initial encounter before River passed away, but at least they stayed together for life. Regret formed their imperfect but complete life together.
Just like the game says: [Is the ending necessarily more important than the process?]
Two people supporting each other, growing old together, isn't that the greatest gain and value of their love?"
"Agreed.
What John wanted to go to was never the moon.
But a place with River.
Two people stayed together for a lifetime for a promise.
Even if John forgot his past promise with River, and didn't know why he had to go to the moon, he just felt he had to go.
In the first half of the game, you wouldn't feel there was anything special about this content.
But when everything is revealed, you will find that the emotions hidden in the details are truly touching.
What moved me the most was River's persistence and love for John.
She was an autistic person, but even in that situation, she was willing to open her heart to John.
And John, even if he didn't remember, still wanted to fulfill the past promise.
Because deep down, he loved River."
"Although some people question why Old John's wish was fulfilled and he had a happy ending, while River in reality had to leave the world with regret.
However, what I want to say is—
Why did River have to make John remember that promise?
Even without that memory, John still loved her.
Even if she was autistic, John still liked her and wanted to be with her.
And he also spent his life cherishing River, whether it was the lighthouse she wanted, or the house built around the lighthouse…
Isn't all of this proof of John's love for her?
So after the game ended, I thought with some sadness—
If River hadn't been so persistent, and had been able to shift her gaze from the past to the present, to look at the man in front of her.
Then she would have been much happier.
And there would have been no regrets."
"Yes, I also think, why cling to the past instead of the future.
Just like in Tagore's poem:
if you shed tears when you miss the sun, you also miss the stars.
I think this is what this work brings us.
Cherish the present, cherish those who love you and whom you love.
This is the true meaning of 'to the moon', isn't it?
No need to blame Pokeni, blame Ishino Mika.
The game itself is meaningful, the key is how you see it."
"Hmm… With that explanation, I suddenly felt relieved.
I was originally feeling terrible and wanted to send Ishino Mika razor blades.
So there's such a profound meaning.
Cherish the present, Ishino Mika wants to tell us this truth, right?"
Online, there was a lot of controversy about "to the moon", the key point of contention being whether it was River's fault or John's fault.
This later extended to what Ishino Mika's original intention was in making the game.
Did she hope everyone would cherish the present?
Or was it to tell everyone that love should be unwavering and keep promises? To have River's persistence and steadfastness?
Or both?
Later, the guesses in the comments became even more outrageous.
There were even many conspiracy theories, leading to chilling speculations.
For example, some people thought that this was neither John's memory nor the life of John and River.
But the dying memories of Dr. Rosaleen:
"According to the game's gameplay, it is known that the male protagonist and female protagonist company's instrument, which can enter brainwaves and correct memories, will show a red and blurry screen when the patient is critically ill.
So, a definite overall situation is that at the end, the player is still in a patient's brainwave memory, and this patient's condition is not optimistic.
Going back to the beginning of the game, we can see that the male protagonist and female protagonist crashed their car into a tree, running over a squirrel.
And it is possible that this car accident has already caused Dr. Rosaleen, who was in the car, to be seriously injured, and because of this accident, the work they were going to do for the patient was not completed, becoming a great regret for Rosaleen.
Finally, Dr. Watts, the male protagonist, entered the brainwaves of the dying Rosaleen through the brainwave correction device, assisting her in completing the work that was not completed due to the accident, fulfilling her wish."
Others also said it was the male protagonist who was dying, and the basic story was similar to Dr. Rosaleen's version, only reversed, with the male protagonist being the one dying.
Dr. Rosaleen was there to help him fulfill his wish to complete the mission.
All of this was a fantasized memory.
When Ishino Mika saw the players' comments online, her heart was a mix of emotions.
You guys are so imaginative, even plots we hadn't thought of have been created by the players.
However, she felt very fortunate that—
The comments weren't one-sided; there were quite a few people defending her.
Otherwise, she really couldn't imagine how many razor blades she would receive.
"So scary."
Ishino Mika covered her face.
She would never dare to take the President's jobs again!
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