Xiri’s game HITME explores what it means to feel real love
The Queer Games Bundle is a collection of nearly 600 items by LGBTQ+ creators and teams, nearly 400 of which are independent video games, all sold for just $60. I’m talking with creators from the bundle about their games and their making habits. Visit the bundle and consider buying it.
In the visual novel HITME, Xiri follows a young man who responds to suicidal feelings by walking around and looking for a fight instead. He meets Astra and Dei over terremotos and proceeds to have a beautiful, funny, dark, and dreamlike respite with them. It’s an astonishing piece of work. I could easily have asked ten or twenty more questions.
How long have you been making games?
This August will make three years. That’s when the first version of HITME was released.
What tools do you like to use?
I’ve been using Ren’py as it’s really easy to use. With just images, music and few words you can do so much. Recently I’ve been learning Unity with the support of the Queer Games Bundle. Not just financially but also mentally. It’s really helpful watching other people share their progress with their games.
What themes or genres do you like to explore?
I have this thing where when something really moves me, I start crying nonstop. Not in a sad way, it’s just a reaction to something that’s beyond me. I remember this happening from watching Tekkonkinkreet, the first movie I saw from Shuji Terayama, or the video art from Diego Barrera. When I think what kind of story I want to make I try following this pattern and when an idea turns this switch on (the sobbing) that’s where I go.
What are your favorite and least favorite aspects of making games?
I like that you only need yourself to make a game. Just like writing a novel. There’s so much to do but the possibility is there. You could say the same for music, animation or even cinema, but I like that video games are a meeting point. I don’t like programming but that’s just because I’m stupid. I prefer the thinking part or fine-tuning the things that are already working.
“I would love to spend more time with Astra and Dei. They are a fantasy, a mix of qualities from the people I love.”
Is there a game that has affected you recently?
Recently, something that moved me in the way I talked before has been Soda Drinker Pro. It’s a first person soda drinker simulation. As the title suggests in each level you sip soda and wander around. Sometimes you’re in Space, at the beach or on a human butt. Each stage has their own music and your character keep talking about how much they love soda and they always find new ways to express their love. It’s pure joy.
HITME has changed over time. What is like updating and expanding your work?
I like what director Nobuhiko Obayashi said about change: “Both the world and I have changed a lot in a year. The work I make should express that change. If you do that, last year’s work can become next year’s work. If it doesn’t lead to tomorrow, there’s no use in discussing the past or in working on something today.” That’s what I tried to do, like going from the first demos from Malice Mizer to their third studio album Merveilles.
The art is inspired by manga, right? What is that work and how did it inspire you for this game?
Most of the character’s art is based on Maki Kusumoto, especially her work The Funeral Procession of K. The pacing and art is incredible. So please, if you enjoyed the art of HITME check her work as it’s the source of it all. You need to tiptoe your way to the sublime and she does it.
How did you decide to set the story on a vacation? It’s interesting how un-fun Nam’s vacation is before he meets Astra and Dei.
That was my experience getting to know Chile. A friend invited me there and I stayed for more than 6 years. Also a vacation is an easy way to put the player in to start the journey together as a newcomer.
“I like that you only need yourself to make a game. Just like writing a novel. There’s so much to do but the possibility is there.”
The two couples — Astra and Dei, and Nam’s mother and her boyfriend — are so, so different. What was it like making the domestic violence scenes?
I thought about Nam and how he came to feel the way he did in the beginning of the game. That unhealthy and toxic relationship with his mother was the first answer. It’s by meeting Astra and Dei that he starts to learn how to love and take care of others.
Astra and Dei (and Nam!) are wonderful. How did you conceive them? Do you think you’ll revisit them in the future?
I would love to spend more time with Astra and Dei. They are a fantasy, a mix of qualities from the people I love. Of course I would love to! At this moment my heart is broken between Colombia, Chile and Spain because that’s where my friends are at, so it’s always comforting to have a place I can feel at home. I also would like to add a cat to the story! And a new character who burned half of his face by deep-frying sushi. There’s so much to explore.
