A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux

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If our lives were meant to be,
If the future's ours to see,
Shall we walk down this path hand-in-hand?

---

Story

La Vie en Rose is a sweet tale of the relationship between two young men; from the start of their romance, their daily lives, to the conflicts they experience.

In their beautiful rose-coloured world, which path will their love lead to?

About

Hello from Team Abyss and friends! We're the devs that made the demos of Abyss (April 2019) and Hellevator (April 2020). For the Yaoi Game Jam 2020 and Summer Novel Festival 2020, we bring to you a heartfelt story of love and <redacted for spoilers>.

Thank you for playing, and we hope you enjoy the game!

Features

Around 4 hours of content to experience.
Dynamic GUI.
Multiple endings.
A colourful and quirky cast of characters to fall in love with...!
16+ music tracks to lull you and immerse you in the story.
9 CGs to make moments more impactful!

Warning

The game deals with triggering themes and non-explicit depictions of sexual behaviour, including partial nudity.
For more details on these topics, check the bottom of the page - there will be spoilers!

Development Team

Brahmi - Bartender & God

---
Adhylia - CG Artist & Sprite Artist (Line Art)
Ahwy  - CG Artist & Sprite Artist (Colouring)
Huebear - Background Artist (Colouring)
JensterCreations  - Background Artist (Line Art)
Maria_Prism - Background Artist (Line Art & Colouring)
Josh Choong (aka Shad) -  Game Designer, Scripter & QA Tester
Yacine Aggoune - Game Designer, Lead Writer
Kowara - Game Designer, Composer & UI Designer
YoruUta - Game Designer, Assistant Writer & Scripter

Background credits

Many of the backgrounds used throughout the game belong to artists with no involvement with the team or project, and are used under the CC-BY 4.0  license.
These artists are: Uncle Mugen, Konett and Kimagure After


<SPOILER>
Triggering themes: toxic relationships, rape, domestic abuse and suicide.
<SPOILER>

StatusReleased
PlatformsWindows, macOS, Linux
Rating
Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars
(45 total ratings)
AuthorAbyss Team
GenreVisual Novel, Interactive Fiction
Made withRen'Py
Tags2D, drama, psychological, Romance, Singleplayer, Yaoi
Average sessionA few hours
LanguagesEnglish
InputsKeyboard, Mouse
LinksTwitter

Download

Download NowName your own price

Click download now to get access to the following files:

LVER-1.0-pc.zip 460 MB
LVER-1.0-mac.zip 442 MB
LVER-1.0-linux.tar.bz2 446 MB

Development log

Comments

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(+2)

Talk about an absolute emotional rollercoaster and the way the backgrounds/gui (including the game title and even taskbar icon) change had is SO cool. I can tell a lot of thought and care was put into this game so huge kudos to the team, I have so many feelings that idek how to articulate but seriously great work!!

We're very happy that the game had an impact on you.
And thank you for your kind words.

(1 edit) (+2)

AGHHHH I JUST FINISHED THE REVIVAL ENDING I HONESTLY WAS SO SHOCKED!1WEFDOGDHSONDOV i cant wait to do the other ending!!!!!!! i love this i rlly thought it was gonna be a normal slice of life but boy was that unexpected because i didn't read any spoilers and stuff 😭😭 thank you i now have a new favorite game


slight spoilers below






EDIT: I FINISHED THE CHANGE OF HEART ENDING  and what can i say omg???? ITS JUST SO GOOD IT HURT ME SEEING ISSAC SO ABUSIVE/ and my heart skipped a beat when elijah tried to commit i thought he was gon die!!!!!!!! this really is my favorite visual novel I've played on itch hghgh

(+1)

this game really knew how to string along my emotions...

i got the four branch routes at the bottom, but no matter what I did, I couldn't find any way to achieve the top branches... i checked out the reddit thread in the comments below, but I couldn't find those choices in the game... would appreciate some help here :d

(2 edits) (+1)

Hello silverwater!

Thank you for playing. Hopefully the remainder of the story won't disappoint.

As for your request:





(Spoilers)


If you pick the following choices, you should be able to access the top branch:

* "Put the bag on the floor";

* "We’ll find an...arrangement.";

* "Woke him up.";

* "...him to be mine.";

* "Now that you mentioned the roller coaster...";

* "I know but I still want to treat you.";

* "I’ll scream if you don’t cooperate!";

* "I agree.";

* "...to keep him at my side.";

* "I have to beat you.";

* "It’s not whatever!";

* "I don’t know what to say...";

* "I wanted you to know.";

After picking the last choice, when the scene ends, you should be on the top branch. Do note that the choices above have Isaac be somewhat rude, controlling, and intolerant towards Elijah.
This is important for understanding the events on this branch.

(1 edit) (+1)

alright i'll try that, thank you :>

edit: ook that was indeed a bit extreme... i think I'll stop at this change of heart route haha ^^

(+3)

Woah, this was a very deep game... I'd also advise new players to not take any of the game's warnings lightly!

This game involved some very serious and real topics, but I appreciated all of the serenity given to it. Amazing artwork, music, and storytelling. When I got the ending where Isaac escapes and is free after a few plays, it felt all the more personal and earned. The first game that made me bite back tears, it was a true emotional rollercoaster of a game. Well done, team!

Thank you very much for your compliments! :D

(+2)

After starting I was charmed how sweet and lovely this is, but the further I went with the story...

Wish I could check other endings, but can't force myself to replay it after certain scene, guess I should have check the tags.

Its a lovely game, but touched a pretty dangerous parts of my sanity... just when I hoped it will remain sweet and charming till the end.

(+7)

This game had me mesmerized from beginning to end. Every detail was so well thought out, from the GUI and general color palette changing according to the route to the soundtrack mimicking exactly how I felt. The art was incredible and cohesive. The writing was realistic yet stylistic as well. I don't know how you did it but this game had everything figured out. I am not ashamed to say I played through every single ending in one sitting. I was hooked, I wanted to fix things, to make things better. And despite not getting what I wanted so many times, no route was unsatisfying. Nothing was really left hanging. There was simply such an air of completion and it was extremely satisfying. I am in awe and in disbelief that this is free. I would pay to experience that emotional roller-coaster again.

Thank you very much for your comment!
You've made our day a bright and sweeter one! :D

(+3)

This is an amazing game. I was so shook. I was so enthralled. I loved the story and when I went back through for more of the endings I was again amazed at finding the different branch and the outcomes for it. For real real, absolutely wonderful game.

Thank you very much for playing and streaming LVER!

We loved watching you play through the game and were a bit sad we couldn't see your reactions to the other route. :(
Nevertheless, we hope you enjoyed the roller-coaster ride!

If you have any feedback or suggestion on how we could improve the game, please let us know!

(1 edit) (+1)

I like the bgm. the game is good too. I had a question tho. how many ending is available?

(4 edits)

Thank you so much for playing through LVER!

As for your question:






(Spoilers)

LVER has 9 endings - with the 9th only being attainable after having seen all the 8 other endings. You can make use of the "Route" screen, accessible through the title screen, to get an idea of how you can get them!

(1 edit) (+3)

Love this, I'm very into the variable UI. I can't see how to get all endings though.

(2 edits) (+1)

Hello fishoni. Thank you for playing and for the UI compliment!

As for getting all the endings, we recommend you take a look at this reddit thread (expect some spoilers): https://www.reddit.com/r/BLgame/comments/jo87in/la_vie_en_rose_is_now_released_a...
Do also check the other users' comments, as some of them have asked for help on getting specific endings.

If you still can't get one (or more) ending(s) , let us know. We'll give you a push in the right direction.

(+1)

Haha I love your icon. I'll try, thanks Brahmi!

(+5)

So my review for this game would be as close as I'm feeling after finishing 8 routes.

Spoiler alert! Like really spoiler!









 At the beginning I was having red flags all over because of the development of their relationship, fast, intense, passionate, but childish and two broken people with issues that needed healing. Very possessive from both sides.

I ended up on the victim route first and I have to say it hit me hard, but there was hope that at some point Isaac could get away from it, Hopes for a happy ending but then again, that wouldn't be realistic given how the relationship started.

It broke my heart basically, then on the abuser side of the routes.

I couldn't bear myself to be like that, which i ended up skipping a lot of it on repetitive paths because it felt wrong, which is amazing because the fact that both scenarios could make me feel different things so opposite to each other was a shock.

Every ending was a constant twist and turn but made it through.

My favorite ending is definitely the special one, the only one where we get to see la vie en rose, get to see the first step that both characters should take to have a healthy relationship in the maybe, in the future, mature and ready to support each other, not caging each other.

If I could describe this game would be "art" 

Because it makes you feel, wonder about situations and relationships in general.

I wouldn't say I wanna play it again because it is a one time feeling to actually savour what was intended to show.

It leaves me with a bittersweet feeling and I couldn't ask for more, amazing writing and execution.

Thank you for providing a sensory overload! 

(+1)

Thank you very much for your review and comment.

You made our day! :D

(+3)

No problem, I'm glad I played the game in one go. 

Looking forward to more projects that will mess up with my heart, and provide different perspectives, loved it!!! 

❤️❤️

Deleted post

Thank you so much for your comment and for playing LVER!

If you have the opportunity and time, we'd like to suggest trying to get some of the other endings.

(+5)

Thank you very much,for this game. I played this game for hours and enjoyed it. It was so beautiful and at the same time so full of grief. But I got one result from your game that,no matter what happens,love is not only about happiness,but lies,sadness,grief and pain. Love is neither sweet nor the sour. Love is between of those bittersweet feelings. I played so many games about love,happiness and etch. But wanna say,this one was the REAL one. 'Cause life is full of surprises and love's riddle for us to solve. It is very sad to admit,but truth is always bitter and I wanna say,love is not only happy endings and sunny holidays. 

So dear readers,sorry if my words demotivated,stressed or even made you sad,but you all must know that,your choices affect every little thing in your life. You can love for years,and lost it in a minute. But no matter what,be strong willed,stay true to your heart and make your days colorful. 

My dear Developers,I again wanna thank you for creating such a beautiful yet so fragile love story. I am very impressed and touched. Wish you good luck on your next blossoming projects. 

Sincerely, Neman Agazada. 

(+3)

I must say...this is a masterpiece. It is shocking, even when I haven't finished one single route yet...(probably because I read some spoilers). This game is so different than everything I played before,definitely not just a simple love story. I love the idea and how it's expressed in the game, like *MAYBE SPOILER* how the title turns from "La vie en rose" to "La vie sans rose" and the door of the cage was locked, not to mention the colour change.

But well, it's different from what I was looking for, a simple love story I mentioned above, to reduce stress from a busy life. I'm always one who's easily affected, and the content is certainly worth reading but a bit depressing...so I can't play this game for now, or stop after getting one ending. I'll come back when I have enough time to throughly digest it though (hopefully when I have vacation) ! Goodbye for now!

(+2)

Aaaaaand here I am, already gotten 6 endings in a day...(why can't I stop myself from playing this???)

SPOILERS?

 

 



 

 

 

I don't think I have the courage to finish the 2 left, which are the ones which Issac gets abusive and doesn't change or try to be good...but I noticed there's also a "special" ending you mentioned, so may I ask what does this ending tell and do I need to finish all routes to get it?

(1 edit)

Hello lenfrey!

Glad to know you persisted and continued playing!

As for your questions:

------------Spoilers ------------





Correct. To get this "secret" ending you need to get all the endings. The route map should clue you where the change will take place (but we guess you already figured that out).

As for what this event entails...well... you'll get to see a funny and quirky exchange between Isaac and Elijah, and then a promise of the brighter future - or just a sweet lie.

(+3)

Thank you for answering! I've finished the whole game now.

-SPOILERS-







...And that was painful. Especially “lovely couple" which was the last ending I got, simular to "in the spider's web", different results but same tragedy. It actually depressed me while trying multiple times to get it, and I switched many times to "behind bars" or "change of heart" which both(yeah even Issac in prison) seemed better compared to this one! Elijah's last words just stabbed me in the heart.(I'm gonna need something sweet and simple to heal this...)

As for the "special" ending, let's just say...I don't believe in fate, anything could happen. After all it's pretty sad if you're chasing something that doesn't exist, isn't it?

All in all, still thank you for making this astonishing game. It's a not-so-enjoyable but very meaningful experience.

(+4)

this game messed with me

(+2)

thank you so much, the designs are beautiful

(+3)

Wow that was not what I expected at all but so, so well done.  The sudden transition/"reveal" in the second part was jaw-dropping to me but also an extraordinarily accurate representation, definitely did not see it coming (true to life).  At that point it was interesting how my perspective of the earlier scenes changed and I also realised the library/philosophy scene actually subtly foreshadowed what was to come in a few different ways.  Fortunately I managed to get the very bottom ending which is a relief (kind of afraid of what the others might be tbh).  Thank you for making this, it was an important experience.

Thank you very much for your comment!

We hope that you give the other endings a try and let us know how much that shaped your experience!

(+2)

I loved the game! It's about a difficult topic but was explored very well, and the fact that we could experience two different sides of a similar complex conundrum was intriguing while at the same time being heartbreaking. I also loved the fact that there was so many various outcomes. The story was very well done, but the art, as well as the user interface and the small animations deserve praise as well :D A lot of love and care seems to have been put into it! Thank you so much for your work, I look forward to any future projects! <3

-Spoiler (?)-

I couldn't get 2 of the endings no matter how hard I try :( . the ending next to -praying mantis- and the ending between -change of heart- and -behind bars-. If anyone knows how to get them please help me lolol I'm desperate.

(1 edit)

Heya!

Thank you very much for playing LVER!

------------Spoilers ------------







If we understood correctly, you're missing the "In The Spider's Web" (rose to the right of "Praying Mantis") and "Lovely Couple" endings.

For help on getting these two, check this reddit post: https://www.reddit.com/r/BLgame/comments/jo87in/la_vie_en_rose_is_now_released_a...

User "Waewoowee" explains exactly how to get these two very same endings.

If you still having trouble, let us now!

(+2)

Thank you very much for answering! I managed to get the endings because of you :D

(+3)

Oh my goodness I love this story. I got the best ending possible and Im so happy. I loved the story even though the topics were... Uncomfortable. I loved Brahmi, Hussain, and Louise (sorry if I misspelled it).


I really hope to see more things uwu

Have wonderful days, Glittering Peanuts!!

(+1)

If you don't mind me asking, what software did you use to make it?

(+1)

Heya!

We used RenPy (https://www.renpy.org/) to develop LVER!

Oh thank you!! I've been using Ren'Py to make a visual novel game as well, maybe I underestimated Ren'Py

(+1)(-1)

How many different endings are there? So far I've only seen 3. 

Hello Amy, thanks for playing!

---- Spoiler warning ----









There are 8 endings, plus a "special" one. To find out which endings you got and which ones you're missing, check the route screen - which you can access via the Title Screen.

(+3)

So, I'm not really sure if I can put this here, but it's worth a shot. I really like this game and I've almost gotten all the endings, but I'm stuck on one. It's the one below the revival ending on the route page. I can't seem to find it no matter what I do, so any help would be appreciated. Thank you

(2 edits) (+1)

Heya!

---- Spoiler warning ----








The ending you're missing is "Breaking Free". To get this one you need to be sweet and kind to Elijah until you get the scene where Isaac's high school friends invite him out and Elijah doesn't want him to go.
After that, you need to pick choices that are unpleasant towards Elijah: don't let him manipulate Isaac and rebel against him any chance you get.

If this tip still feels obtuse, feel free to follow the choices below:
* "Ask him to put a bag on his knees"
* "It's on me"
* "Caress his hair"
* "...to be his"
* "You <3"
* "You don't own me anything."
* "Come on, you deserve a break"
* "That's kind of sad!"
* "...to show him my love"
* "I have to match you."
* "It's not whatever"
* "Calm down, Don Juan!"
* "I know I can trust you."
* "Are you asking me to cancel?"
* "That's not what I said."
* "That's not the point."
* "That's not love"
* "Or you could quit yours"
* "No way!"
* "Elijah and I are quite busy"
* "Watch out for the quite ones"
* "Hussain?"
* "You could have told me if you didn't enjoy it."
* "A bit awkward, right?"
* "It's awkward"
* "You'll eat it raw next time."
* "I'm upset"
* "I'm not falling for that one."
* "Elijah asked me to"
* "No"
* "I shouldn't, should I?"
* "You raped me"
* "You know what you did"
* "Yeah."
* "Like cyanide"
* "Why won't he mind his own business?"
* "It was traumatic"
* "It's not about you"
* "You asked me to stop working."
* "What's his problem"
* "No"
* "Because that's what I deserve."

(+1)

Oh my gosh, thank you!

(+4)

I'm in love with this VN. The two routes were fantastically presented and made me think about my own perception of relationships. Great job!

(+6)

I've never actually written a review on a game before, but this one moved me so much I just had to express how this game made me feel.

SPOILERS








I played the demo a few months back and was shocked at the realism that La Vie en Rose offered. Fortunately, I've never had to experience a toxic relationship, but based on all the PSAs and things that school guidance counselors talked about time and time again, the abuse in this game is super freaking realistic. And that wowed me.

This game dared to talk about subjects that are so often ignored by society, as if abusive relationships are a taboo that are never to be mentioned. We only ever talk about happily ever afters. This game, however, showed just how scary an unhappy relationship can be.

I think one of the best aspects of this game is being able to play as the abused or the abuser. In trying to get every possible ending, it emotionally pained me to make the abusive choices. I was getting upset over fictional characters, worrying about hurting them.

The full game has just been released and I'm super glad I had the opportunity to see how all the choices I had made in the demo would play out. I've got to say, my favorite ending is when Issac recognizes he's a toxic person and he and Elijah both get help. It proves that people, no matter what they've done, can change their heart and mindset if they are willing to acknowledge their bad sides.

I'm super glad I got to experience this game. I found myself gritting my teeth and feeling the pain that the characters felt in the moment. I felt like I was there. I love this game, not because it's necessarily fun, but because it's important. There are thousands of visual novels out there, but very few have actually gotten me this invested.

So thank you, Abyss Team. You've created nothing short of a masterpiece. Sorry for the entire essay of a review, but you guys deserve it.

(+1)

Thank you very much for your comment, Ninjaneko, it made our day! :D

(+3)

Hey, not a problem. Keep up the amazing work, guys!!!

(3 edits) (+3)

Wow, I gotta say. (In my opinion...) here I go...

SPOILER ALERT:






This is one the best games you guys made. The story, the programming such as timing the statics onto each BGs, changing the textbox's color, and so much more!

I love how you put your own mascot on the game and it works so well to be Issac's therapist? (Tell me if I'm wrong DX)

Even the part when Issac and his friends were having dinner. Elijah just criticize him for no reason. In my head, it was screaming "This isn't right!!!! This isn't right at all!"

The suspense! Ahhhh!! Can't wait for the full game!

Thank you very much for playing! We're glad you enjoyed it a lot! :D

You're not wrong about Brahmi, maybe not a therapist but definitely someone who makes Isaac think about his current situation.

Stay tuned for the full game!

PS: Looking forward to November 16th! :P

(+1)

Thank you~

(+2)

I want to ask, are there more routes aside from the two in this demo? (SPOILERS)

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

  • Isaac becomes the abuser
  • Elijah becomes the abuser

I did a second playthrough and noticed the path change, and I'm wondering if there is more to this demo!

(4 edits) (+1)

No, there are no other planned routes, demo or otherwise, as of this time.

Also, congratulations on finding both routes! We started calling one of them a secret route as nobody seemed to run into it!

(+3)

I just want to say that the demo has gotten me hooked! I wanna know what happens when the full version is out!

(+1)

Thank you very much for playing! :D
We're working hard on the next update, hopefully it won't take too long!

(+1)

Hi, you should probably know that the v0.6 build is unfortunately unplayable--I just get this error where the title screen is supposed to be.

I'm sorry, but an uncaught exception occurred.
While running game code:
  File "game/code/ScreenTitleLogo.rpy", line 20, in <module>
  File "game/code/ScreenTitleLogo.rpy", line 5, in setProperTitleLogoForWindow
AttributeError: 'NoneType' object has no attribute 'isRosePhase' -- Full Traceback ------------------------------------------------------------ Full traceback:
  File "code/ScreenTitleLogo.rpyc", line 1, in script
  File "C:\Users\Natasha\Downloads\LVER-0.6_Public-pc\LVER-0.6_Public-pc\renpy\ast.py", line 896, in execute
    renpy.python.py_exec_bytecode(self.code.bytecode, self.hide, store=self.store)
  File "C:\Users\Natasha\Downloads\LVER-0.6_Public-pc\LVER-0.6_Public-pc\renpy\python.py", line 1929, in py_exec_bytecode
    exec bytecode in globals, locals
  File "game/code/ScreenTitleLogo.rpy", line 20, in <module>
  File "game/code/ScreenTitleLogo.rpy", line 5, in setProperTitleLogoForWindow
AttributeError: 'NoneType' object has no attribute 'isRosePhase' Windows-8-6.2.9200
Ren'Py 7.2.1.457
La Vie en Rose 0.6_Public
Thu Sep 17 16:03:29 2020

Lunaterra / Natasha, thank you very much for reporting the pesky bug! :D

We're happy to report that the problem is solved and a new build is available!