Hanako's Story Changed Me

[Ikezawas]

Hi everyone.

Honestly I don't really know why I'm posting this up. Maybe it's just to see if anyone out there can relate.I know there's been a lot of memes out there about 'teh feeeeelz' or something. But really I don't care. The story in Katawa Shoujo helped me to realize I had a problem and helped me sort it. A game changed my life, and I'm OK with that.

Hanako was the second to last story I played through after finding the game about a month or two ago. At some point I realized I was nearly as shy as her character and it set me to thinking about all the things I've been missing. For years I've been missing out on life. I've been hiding away since high school, straight through university and for the last few years when I've been working. Ever since my play through a few months back I've been making some serious changes. I read through a bunch of articles and sites (like http://overshyness.com/ and http://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/shyness for anyone interested). I've changed my life in a positive way. I'm getting out more and got involved in a whole bunch of new activities. I'm planning a trip through Europe - traveling by myself and I just generally feel much better about myself.

Most of this change came from realizing there was a problem. I wasn't happy with where I was in life. But somehow that game was the wake up call which inspired me to make the change. Thank you Katawa Shoujo for changing my life.

You may now commence the flaming.

Cheers guys, thanks for reading.

[Brogurt]

Hanako got flamed once and it made her more shy so I don't know why you're inviting us to flame you

[ravenlord]

A lot of people of been there, done that, me included. You are in good company

Search the "Thank you" thread and do a forum search on Hanako topics. Yuo will see a lot of the same, and you will see that you are not alone. Welcome, enjoy your stay at the forums, and ignore any trolls that yuo see along the way

[Mint]

The assumption that your post would warrant negative responses from the community made me frown a bit.
Your suspicion that this community is full of immature little brats who have nothing better to do than berate each other for no plausible reason is a bit out of place and just a tad offensive, but I'll let that slide. I'm sure you meant well with what you said.

Now, onto the topic at hand.
Everything that you said you felt after playing through Katawa Shoujo was, for a lack of better term, the point. That is why this brilliant piece of art exists. To give us these "feels". Because emotions trigger actions. And Katawa Shoujo knows just how to trigger the emotions that trigger actions. It's a complex domino process that ends up in people realizing exactly what they want to change in their lives. That's the beauty of it.

I'm happy for you because you managed to change yourself for the better and I'm sure 4LS would also be happy to hear their work left a positive impact.

[mysterycycle]

The assumption that your post would warrant negative responses from the community made me frown a bit.

You say that as though it doesn't happen. Especially in Hanako-themed threads.

[yummines]

Hanako got flamed once and it made her more shy so I don't know why you're inviting us to flame you

Well played Brogurt. Well played.


As for me i came to that conclusion a while ago but seem not to have the will nor guts to change

[Oddball]

The assumption that your post would warrant negative responses from the community made me frown a bit.

You say that as though it doesn't happen. Especially in Hanako-themed threads.

You're going to find the occasional jerk wherever you go. Most people around here are pretty decent though.

[misterprinny]

The assumption that your post would warrant negative responses from the community made me frown a bit.

You say that as though it doesn't happen. Especially in Hanako-themed threads.

You're going to find the occasional jerk wherever you go. Most people around here are pretty decent though.

Yeah, the KS community is pretty tame compared to the rest of the Internet.

[Snow_Storm]

Hanako got flamed once and it made her more shy so I don't know why you're inviting us to flame you

lol that's fucked up.

You say that as though it doesn't happen. Especially in Hanako-themed threads.

Only because it's fun picking on the most overrated character in the game!

[Mint]

Only because it's fun picking on the most overrated character in the game!

Opinions are like a penis. You know how the rest of the joke goes.

And I agree with Oddball completely. The occasional asshat exists regardless of where you are. There is no such thing as a perfect community.
But the KS community is far friendlier and more accepting when compared with other internet communities. We still have the on again off again chode with nothing better to do but attempt to ruin people's fun, examples vary as you can plainly see, but overall there's a much friendlier atmosphere around.

[ravenlord]

You're going to find the occasional jerk wherever you go. Most people around here are pretty decent though.

And we have an ignore list, which I find weeds out most of those trolls. My list isn't even that long, but it is pretty effective. Plus most trolls get bored and move on eventually anyway.

[Pseudogenesis]

Hanako got flamed once and it made her more shy so I don't know why you're inviting us to flame you

*ba dum tss*

Everything that you said you felt after playing through Katawa Shoujo was, for a lack of better term, the point. That is why this brilliant piece of art exists. To give us these "feels". Because emotions trigger actions. And Katawa Shoujo knows just how to trigger the emotions that trigger actions. It's a complex domino process that ends up in people realizing exactly what they want to change in their lives. That's the beauty of it.

I doubt there's a better way to phrase how awesome KS is.

[mysterycycle]

Only because it's fun picking on the most overrated character in the game!

Opinions are like a penis. You know how the rest of the joke goes.

And I agree with Oddball completely. The occasional asshat exists regardless of where you are. There is no such thing as a perfect community.
But the KS community is far friendlier and more accepting when compared with other internet communities. We still have the on again off again chode with nothing better to do but attempt to ruin people's fun, examples vary as you can plainly see, but overall there's a much friendlier atmosphere around.

This is true. The KS community is one of the kindest ones I've found online.

[Surreal-mind]

The KS community is one of the kindest ones I've found online.

It's the ONLY kind community I've ever seen online

Everyone here is super cool and friendly.
Oh man .... I wish we could all become friends in real life.

[dwarduk]

The KS community is one of the kindest ones I've found online.

It's the ONLY kind community I've ever seen online

Everyone here is super cool and friendly.
Oh man .... I wish we could all become friends in real life.

There's a reason I've stuck around. I don't normally stay on a forum for very long. =]