ChrisGoesOver The World

Chapter I – “Here we go again…”

New Chat Request… 

Veteran players of these mobile games are well-acquainted with that phrase. For those unfamiliar, let me introduce you to this boring, cookie cutter greeting.

We’re immediately notified that an unknown person is attempting to text our phone. While some might immediately read it, I prefer to take a moment to browse through the various options and settings before starting. This way, I can customize the game to my preferences before diving in. 

The first thing I’m looking for is an option to speed up the text message output for a quicker experience with Moonvale. Being that I’ve already played Duskwood, I was surprised to see this option missing. This will make for Eyeroll-And-Sigh #1. 

Eyeroll-And-Sigh #1:  Every single game by Everybyte that I’ve played, consistently sacrifices convenience to exploit the parents of children they market towards. It’s a recurring pattern, and it’s enough to make you quit playing before you finish episode one.

I’ll delve into my concerns about this business model in a separate entry to this series. For now, I hope Everbyte’s unethical restrictions won’t interfere with our enjoyment of this mystery. However, given Duskwood’s track record, I’m not optimistic. The fact that this has been outright removed, implies that the criticism Duskwood received has gone unheeded, and Everbyte has actually doubled down on their practices to keep their apps on screens for as long as possible.

*Sigh*…. I’ve already mentally checked out of this game and haven’t even opened the annoying message from this guy yet. Everbyte’s game takes a hit when they make decisions like these, which seriously undermines their own creative work.

***Spoilers Ahead*** 

And here’s our welcoming party. Upon opening the message, we’re greeted with a simple “Hey” followed by a smile. I wouldn’t usually respond to such a random text, but without me doing so, the plot wouldn’t progress. This is only my second time playing an Everbyte game, and it’s evident that they either lack the creative skills to begin a story without immediately disrupting our immersion or they simply don’t care enough to take the time to develop it. I’m inclined to believe the latter, as it’s evident that these games prioritize profits and gains over creative choices. 

So, as with Duskwood, Moonvale is a game that relies heavily on your immersion. However, it immediately undermines this immersion by breaking it. This is the first instance of Everbyte consistently treading on their own feet. Their objective is to get you invested and immersed in the game, but the first thing they do is make that goal a lot more challenging to achieve. Has anyone involved in this studio ever attended business school?

Now this stranger, informs me that they owe me their thanks for picking up someone named “Adam”. I respond by giving him an emoji that’s looking at him like he has cat turds coming out of his mouth. (🤨)

Continuing the conversation we are informed that our person of interest is named Adam Dover. Great, let’s jot that down. This mysterious stranger finds it to be “weird” that I don’t know an Adam Dover, and I find it to be “weird” that he thinks I should. We appear to be stuck in a stalemate. He informs me that Adam Dover’s car broke down, and Adam requested that he come and pick him up. However, upon his arrival, Mr. Dover is nowhere to be found. He tells us that Adam was just online a few moments ago, but instead of explaining what happened he simply just sent this person my phone number (or excuse me, he sent my “contact” not my number. So there you go, that’s the full extent of how much effort they put into correcting that plot hole from Duskwood. They decided to call it “contact” this time because it’s a lot easier to believe than some random person, halfway across the world knowing your phone number. It’s not much easier to believe, but that’s the extent that Everbryte gives a shit, so whatever.)

Eyeroll-And-Sigh #2 This is exactly same way we were brought into the story in Duskwood. You can’t be more lazy than that, especially considering you never answered how they got our number in the first game. Clearly, they don’t care cause their target audience are teenagers. 

This very introduction has already left a sour taste in my mouth regarding this sequel, not to mention the AI-generated characters. It appears to be a blatant cash grab, relying heavily on reused assets. So far, it doesn’t look promising. I find myself writing this about it just to motivate myself to play through it, which is never a positive sign. 

I inform him I’m unable to help and wish him luck with his search for his friend. It’s at this point, I receive an immediate FaceTime call from someone who looks like Christopher Kattan.

Upon answering the call with all the conviction of being held at gunpoint, we are treated to an audio clip that conveniently cuts out at certain points. However, if you enable subtitles, you will notice that they will be displayed at the bottom of the screen for this call. 

The caller proceeds to say he won’t be able to make it to Greenside. I don’t know where the hell that is, and I’ve yet to start caring. The caller apologizes before abruptly hanging up in our face like an asshole. The FaceTime screen minimizes and we’re back to the first asshole who’s apologizing for disturbing us. At this point, I’d be blocking numbers. 

Unfortunately, we feel the need to get involved for some reason and decide to tell the first dipshit all about his meth head friend who just called us up while lost somewhere in the woods. 

He claims to continue checking the parking lot, and then clumsily asks me to “stay with him”. This is getting ridiculous if you ask me. But of course, this is where we get Eyeroll-And-Sigh #3!

Eyeroll-And-Sigh #3 Here we have the incredibly cringeworthy tactics of Everbyte to lure in social outcasts and social media fangirl engagement by already trying to force a romance arc out of the gate. And then undoubtedly hiding any progression in that arc behind micro transactions. 

We continue talking and he wonders if this is all a prank by Adam, and I’m wondering if my life is all a prank by God. As we continue chatting along and I continue to tell him I don’t care, I receive a new chat request, from, guess who? ….

That’s right, Chris Kattan has apparently blasted off on a fresh pipe, and is now even more lost in the woods. 

And then the FaceTime rings again.

He claims he can’t continue, and now it’s up to me. I suppose Everbyte has checked off this one from their list. They’ve created a “mystery” by having an unknown person speak nonsensical gibberish that we don’t comprehend. They leave it unexplained, and this is the same Busch league writing tactics they employed in Duskwood. I’m quite certain they genuinely believe that’s called a “gripping story” or something that will captivate the audience. However, it’s not. You haven’t provided us with any reason to care about Adam, so we don’t care about this man and his nonsense. 

All you’ve done is introduce some random characters and have them talk gibberish. What a captivating mystery! 

Returning to Asshole #1, he continues to blow our phone up with one-sentence messages, a common problem with the residents of Duskwood as well. 

He then starts panicking and asks if we’re still here or not – and I’m wondering the same thing. When we finally respond, we are able to inform him that our phone is some futuristic, advanced form of unheard of alien technology, and has the unbelievable magical capability of recording video calls.

…And just like that, our phone is the most developed character in the story so far!

Asshole #1 informs us that Asshole #2’s name is Adam. Wow, what a plot twist!!!…

Asshole #1 now inquires about the poor quality of Adam’s video, and we promptly remind him that it’s not our state-of-the-art video call recording phone causing the issue. He persistently claims that Adam was clearly here to meet me at Greenside. Oh, great, another barrage of abuse to my suspension of disbelief. Remember when I mentioned Everbyte’s consistent stepping on their own dicks within their games? This is a recurring problem for their creative and artistic integrity, but we haven’t even reached the first mini-game yet, and it’s already evident that they prioritize micro-transactions above all.

Color me shocked. 

And, unamused. 

Returning to the story, we are abruptly asked if he can simply “get back to us in a bit.” I understand that this is their intended transition into the first minigames tutorial, but come on, man! This supposedly dire situation with your missing friend is going to pause because he needs to “brb”? This genuinely made me “lol” at the absurdity. There are many more creative ways to incorporate a break from contact with him, such as the reception going out (which they just used as a plot device for Adam’s video, so I mean, it’s already established that reception is an issue in their location. However, they simply don’t care enough to think about it thoroughly, and that’s my issue with all of their work I’ve seen. It lacks any artistic pride or integrity, and the developers clearly don’t believe that’s important. 

He says his goodbyes, and I just wave back. Then he says “Talk to ya soon” and I wish I could have had the option to tell him to take all the time he needs. He then goes offline, and it’s to prepare for those damned minigames. I have not even begun to critique this game until I start discussing these bullshit minigames. So get ready. 

Oh, fuck. Apparently Asshole #1 is back online, and says “I forgot something.” You know what? The mini-games aren’t all that bad, I take it back. Just get this assclown out of my messages.

I choose not to say anything, so as to properly convey my disappointment in his quick return. And now he wants to stop everything, “brb” “no wait before I brb, let’s halt the search for my missing friend even further by allowing me to introduce myself and tell you all about my favorite color and of days back in the school yard.” This writer has to be trolling at this point. I’m dead 💀.

I’m even more convinced it’s a troll by the writer when I notice that my response options include telling him, “This isn’t the time for that nonsense.” That’s a point for self-awareness about how absurd this entire situation is. Oh wait, that’s right—this is one of those paywall romance arc things. Now everything makes sense: plot, immersion, atmosphere, and suspension of disbelief be damned, it’s time to sell affection to lonely individuals! 

I GO TO THE STYLES

We begin our journey through the eyes of Captain Hastings, who is introducing us to our first character, John Cavendish. Cavendish is 15 years older than Hastings, but Hastings fondly remembers his stays at John’s mother’s place in Essex — known as, The Styles.

Cavendish suggests that Hastings make a return to the Styles, as his mother (actually, stepmother) would love to see him. Hastings informs the reader of a little bit of background here, as he explains that the brothers were so young when their father remarried that they consider her as their real mother. It’s obvious already that this family is not normally structured.

It is here we get our first instance of possible motives for resentment, as Hastings says that all of their late father’s fortune was left to the stepmother, instead of his two sons. Nonetheless, she takes very good care of them. Interesting to note though, she has recently remarried after the death of their father.

Hastings proceeds to tell us the Tale of Two Sons:  Lawerence and John.

Lawrence, the younger sibling, initially pursued a career in medicine but abandoned it, as he found no passion for the field. He now resides at home, occasionally attempting literary work, though with little success.

John had recently married and moved his wife to The Styles. He would like a larger allowance from his stepmother but has not received one. Furthermore, John doesn’t seem very fond of his stepmother’s new spouse, Albert. 

He continues on, and we meet our third character, named Evie. An older woman not noted for her beauty but for her practical nature and sharp tongue. Apparently, Albert was introduced to Emily by a friend, and while she openly acknowledges their marriage, the rest of the household seems far less enthusiastic about it. According to John, the entire family was shocked to hear that their stepmother would be marrying Albert! The man is 20 years younger than her and is being accused of blatant “fortune-hunting” by John.

Three days later, Hastings is making his way to The Styles. Picking him up is none other than our old friend John Cavendish. John mentions Cynthia, a child of an old family friend who’s been with them for two years now, and works as a Voluntary Aid Detachment nurse at a dispensary in Red Cross Hospital, 7 miles away. Arriving there, they are greeted by Evie, who is busy working and is told to take a rest and join them.

We are then introduced to Mary Cavendish, the wife of Jack Hastings. Hastings takes a brief moment to romanticize his first sight of Mary. Shortly after, we meet Alfred, and it’s time for the juicy drama!

The conversation quickly steers towards crime and murder— how convenient. Mary Cavendish proclaims that she would immediately be able to tell who a murderer was. I have a feeling we will be putting that to the test. Mary uses the term “he” when talking about a murderer. She asserts that murder is typically perpetrated by men. Hastings counters that not all murders are violent, such as when someone kills another with poison.

Enter Cynthia Murdoch, a young and beautiful woman with the V. A. D. Her and Hastings share a nice, cute little moment together when Emily Inglethorp calls out to Cynthia to “jot some notes for her.” It’s apparent that she uses Cynthia for small tasks like this. This particular task has to do with some documents, and that’s all we’re told.

Hastings makes it to his room in the upstairs left wing of the building, overlooking the park below. Hastings notices Lawrence Cavendish’s approach across the lot. Hastings refrains from interfering and notes that he had a dream later that night of “the enigmatic” Mary Cavendish. Must be an extraordinary woman!

The next day, Hastings and Mary spend a day in the woods together, only to arrive back at The Styles to find John waiting. He tells them to come inside, and it’s apparent to Hastings that something is very wrong.

It appears as though Evelyn has given Emily a piece of her mind regarding her marriage and her husband’s intentions. Mrs. Howard has packed her bags and enters the room, explaining what she has just said to Mrs. Inglethorp. She intends to leave The Styles, but not before delivering a chilling warning to Hastings: Now that she is gone, he will soon see for himself exactly what she meant about the people in this house.

After the drama concludes, Hastings notices Mary leaving to meet a large, bearded man. We learn that his name is Dr. Bauerstein, and he’s here for a rest cure after being overworked lately. To make matters worse, we discover that Dr. Bauerstein is an expert in the field of poison. How convenient! Were we not just discussing such matters with this very woman?

John guides Hastings away, where he discusses that The Styles should be his, but because of the way The Styles is structured, everything went to Emily instead. He then seems to attempt to bum money from Hastings. At this moment, the absence of Evelyn Howard is truly felt by Hastings. As if her mere presence, created a shield of security around the family. It’s almost as if her absence has unleashed the worst impulses in everyone’s personalities. Hastings observes the immediate effect her departure had on John, who immediately resorted to begging him for money. The chapter concludes with Hastings expressing his ominous sense of impending doom. 

End of Chapter 1

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