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A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux

Buy Now$9.99 USD or more
In this chaotic world, you must adapt - either to forgive or survive. 

Dead Wishes embarks on a journey of humanity and horrific romance. We build each other up. We tear each other down. Give and take. How much will you endure? 

STORY

Stricken with long-term depression over the death of your parents, you are on the verge of eviction and bankruptcy. Without any prospects for the future, you're desperate, so much so that you might even...

  • ... join the mafia and uncover a heated love affair gone terribly wrong.
  • ... become a criminal allied with a team of murderers.
  • ... suck it up and make an honest person of yourself.
  • ... serve as the caretaker for two dysfunctional sisters.
  • ... end up destitute on the streets.
  • ... join the church and repent your sin.

But mostly, you're either going to find love and happiness or die a terrible death.

Dead Wishes features various subplots that are woven between character routes. In order to experience all of what the game has to offer, the player should read through every route and piece the stories together. 

FEATURES

  • 12 character routes: 6 men and 6 women
  • 250,000+ words of in-game text
  • Partial character voicing
  • They/them player pronouns
  • 350+ Choices and 35+ Endings
Dead Wishes is marked as NSFW for depictions of violence, sexual themes, and psychological horror. It does not contain graphic sexual content.

CAST














StatusReleased
PlatformsWindows, macOS, Linux
Release date Dec 27, 2018
Rating
Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars
(96 total ratings)
AuthorVIOLET
GenreVisual Novel
TagsAnime, Dating Sim, Horror, LGBT, non-binary-protagonist, Romance, Text based
Average sessionA few hours
LanguagesEnglish
LinksHomepage, Steam, Kickstarter, Soundtrack, Twitter

Purchase

Buy Now$9.99 USD or more

In order to download this game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $9.99 USD. Your purchase comes with a Steam key. You will get access to the following files:

DeadWishes-2.21-mac.zip 622 MB
DeadWishes-2.21-pc.zip 640 MB

Download demo

Download
Dead Wishes Strategy Guide.pdf 23 MB

Development log

Comments

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Wow, okay... This game really moved me, I'm a bit slow after all English isn't my mother tongue so I spent 3 days focused on this game, and I don't regret it one bit. I felt so many sensations playing Dead Wishes, sometimes I even wanted to cry (some triggers in the route of our dear Festus) But really, this game is incredible, how the characters have a connection, how the story connects exactly like a spider's web, everything makes sense!!! 

(spoilers!)

I kept thinking at certain points on Festus' route, the children were obviously the same children that Mateo looked after, besides there was a drawing on the wall that Anise had red eyes (others that she had blue eyes) MY BRAIN EXPLODED cuz to me it means that the children knew who she really was, just as I think Festus did too. All I know is that I finished the game feeling smarter for having understood the whole story and the purpose of "Anise", it was simply incredible. 

The worst thing was getting attached to the characters and seeing that they all suffered in life and also suffer in death, with no respite. Especially with Festus and Clement, they're my golden boys <3 But I also feel very bad for Mateo and Lucien, Mateo was obviously being controlled and used, while Luci wanted power, to control and use people because of everything he'd been through, it was so disgusting that it gave me agony, it makes sense that he's so fucked up, poor thing.

BUT I loved this game, good job really! I can't wait for future games from you.

kazue's ending 2 and ending 3 won't trigger followed the walkthrough all the way through.

(1 edit) (-1)

Can someone tell how to meteos rout?

By now you've probably already figured it out, but in case others have the some issue (I know I had):

SPOILERS:

In order to access Mateo's route, you need to get onto Sergio's. 

Sergio's route-Ignore the Door, Peek Through The Peephole.

When you do this, Mateo will soon come as a repo-man. In order to branch from Sergio's route to Mateo's, you must be kind to Mateo and agree with him. Specifically, you must choose "Greet" for option 6, "It's home" for option 7,  "Introduce" for option 8, "He's Scary" for option 9, and "Leave" for option 13.

Do keep in mind that the developers recommend waiting until you've completed every route other than Anise's before playing his route, as playing his route too early will spoil some of the mystery in other routes. His route ties a lot of other routes together, so it's really meant to wrap things up before the finale.  

(+1)

istg i just bought the game because mateo seemed super cute and stuff just for him to turn out almost the most insane character ToT

(+1)

Hello, I just wanted to pop in here and say that I'm starting a club with the sole purpouse of punting Vincent into the sun. If you would like to join, please let me know. 🙃

I've played a couple routes of this game so far and LOVE it!!! I've been trying to get Clement's route, and I scoured the walkthrough, I'm not sure if I'm missing something, but when I follow the first directions for Clement's route (answer the door, say you're looking for a job, stay silent) the landlady seems to point me towards Nanako's route? I'm not sure if I need specific answers to the beginning questions about the player's character for Clement's route? I could be totally missing how to get his route, in which case I'm sorry for wasting your time, but I'd really love to know how to get his route. Again, this game is so good!

Never mind, I figured it out. I'm excited to play Clement's route!

(+5)

LOVE THIS GAME,  did Clement's rout and lowkey forgot what kind of game I bought lol

(+3)(-1)

Will there be a Android version in the future?

Deleted post

Is a demo available? Thank you.

(4 edits)

Wow that was really surprising me a lot  .... i can't speak anymore

( Eden is a sweet girl and i feel bad for her )

Each routes was kinda scary ( except Clement which kinda cute and sweet )  but Mateo route is the most fuck up one 

Sergio deserve better boy, Lucien can't see the real best boy was Sergio all along  >:/  at least  Allegra and Ophelia are canon lesbian 

But after i already finished everyone ending and Anise one 

I know each of them has their own sad past ( their desire ) makes them want to live again ( oh boy Mateo past was sad cuz he was still young )

Wish we can see more of them cux oh boy i miss all of them so much and i kinda wanna know more about hem cuz their past story still short to me 

Keep up the good work VIOLET it was amazing games

Btw i really want to talk more about all the characters and Eira cuz i love her but .... I keep my mouth shut for now

Question ( Mateo's personality still confuses me cuz in the past he looks like sweet kind boy who love his family .  Does he actually already act like that in the past or when Anise take him with her that he changes ?? he still remember his past after being taken by Anise or not ? )

Thank you so much for all the kind words! We're really glad that you enjoyed the game!! 

As for your question concerning Mateo --

SPOILERS

It's because of Anise's influence. 

You're welcome can't wait for more games for you all

i wish there's more of them or spin off cuz i miss them all ( and i kinda want to see all of them happy lmao or maybe more of their life story )

well that was F**k up that Anise do that to Mateo , i mean Mateo act like that really interesting to me but at the same time scary. when i see his past i kinda want to see his old self more

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) i kinda want to make fanfiction  of Mateo with a boy who can wake him up from that psycho personality lmao ( like beat the sh*t out of him and then doki doki *lol what the hell * )

thank you for answering my question 

well i wanna ask more but anyway i hope you having a good day

Oh, we would love to see fan fiction! It is such an honor that you enjoyed our characters so much to feel inspired! 

(1 edit)

All the characters are so good that i love them so much 😢 i can't wait for more game, keep up the good work Violet  😊 wish there are sequel lmao 

(+1)

This game is great! I have to ask - is there special content depending on what name you choose for MC? I got Ophelia's bad end where she sang 'Mary, Mary Quite Contrary'...and my MC's name was Mary! I was thrilled. Coincidence or no?

Thank you for the kind words!

No special ending - just a happy coincidence! (Or... unhappy, since it was a bad end.)

Hey, how do you unlock those once upon a time buttons? What am I missing >~<

Hi there! You need to play Anise's End 1 in order to unlock those chapters. : )

Played a couple of the routes and absolutely love it. The new sprites are beautiful! I'm going to be really sad when I complete this game 100% :'D

We're glad that you enjoy it!! 

(+1)

Played the demo, and Vincents route totally terryfied me! Can't wait to shit my pants playing the full game 

10/10 havin a good time thx

Glad you enjoyed it! 

I really really enjoyed playing this game thoroughly. All these characters and getting that backstory on them was a beautiful touch. Thanks for creating this. 

Thank you so much! We're glad you enjoyed it!! ❤

Where might I find the walkthrough?

(+1)

Hi there! You can download the walkthrough on here or through our website!

http://violetstudiogames.com/dead-wishes/

[Scroll to the bottom of the page!]

Thank you !

I enjoyed the game immensely, thank you for such a hard work!My only question about CGs, i unlocked 2 for each character but there seems to be 3 per character? Or are they not in the game yet?

My favorites are Sergio, Eira(Gosh i loved this character), Clement(I was so paranoid during his route though) and Ophelia. Mateo fucked me up, not gonna replay his route, no thanks. xD

Thank you for all the kind words!! 

Because of all the support we received for the game on our Kickstarter, we will be adding new content sometime in May! (12 new CGs, 24 new chapters, and 5 new sprites)

Was it added yet?

All of the assets are complete, and I am now double-checking for errors!

You got me fucked up when I finished the game! lol! Can you tell I loved this game? I felt some type of way when you're confronted by all the characters at the end of a certain route. (i don't wanna put spoilers cause the game is just that good) Sergio is my precious baby and no one can say otherwise. He is best boy! Him and Clement! I got Clement's endings first and I was like "oh I thought this was horror" and then I continued playing and was like 0_0 for the rest of the game! Also...Mateo...that precious crazy SOB. I also love the girls! Kazue is best girl! Can't wait for the update! I loved your explanations for all the characters too! Keep up the great work!

Thank you so much!! We're glad to hear you enjoyed the game, and please keep an eye out for our future work!

(+1)(-1)

I purchased this on steam a while ago. I can't really pass judgement yet since I've only finished 2 routes. I like how different the characters seem though.

But I do have one complaint: the game doesn't seem fully committed to having a nonbinary protagonist , it seems to be more to cut down the work of changing pronouns or descriptions than anything. This isn't set in a world where gender and sex don't exist;the MC assumes just based on appearance all the female appearing people they meet are women etc. But people don't really do the same to the MC, somehow percieving them as genderless without any previous discussion despite this apparently being a world where the MC judges everyone else's gender based on their presentation and/or sex. Vincent refers to the MC as their wife and, and talks about them baring his children the only problem the MC thinks about that is that they didn't agree to it, not you know, they aren't a woman and/or  are male, which makes it kinda clear the MC is supposed to be female and not very adamant about not being a woman. Which is fine just I was hoping to be able to choose somehow or even if the game didn't allude to the MC's sex or gender, play all the romances as gay and lesbian or at least neutral. But with Vincent's route, (and possibly some of the others I haven't done yet) this isn't really possible. It's not a big deal I was just expecting non binary protagonist to mean non binary gender and getting to choose the MC's assigned sex or with their sex not mentioned. Rather than either being female or appearing enough so people assume and not preturbed by being called female or capable of giving birth. It feels a bit lazy since it would have been easy to put an option to say something don't you mean husbandor what you're asking me is impossible i don't have the parts required to bear you children you crazy, hell even if the MC is female just have think about being upset or annoyed he's calling them their wife or wev.

this is a super minor complaint i'm sure most people didn't notice, esp if theyre women and projecting their gender onto the mc, so i hope this doesn't sound too harsh. just was a little weird to have the mc not bat an eyelid at being called wife after not referring to themself as anything gendered.

(+2)(-1)

Hi, thanks for your comment! 

DW isn't supposed to be set in a world where gender/sex don't exist - we simply wanted the MC to be a character who can be absolutely anyone. I agree that it isn't a perfect system, but it's a choice we made and stuck with throughout development. It's possible that I will have time before the spring update to add more pronouns, but that depends on workload and many other factors.

As for Vincent's route, it's very much intentional that he uses the word "wife" for the MC. Built into Vincent's character is an emphasis on conservative family values and family structure, and thus he uses the word "wife" because that is the role he wants to force MC into. Yes, he may very well be forcing the MC into an impossible situation if the player imagines an MC that isn't physically capable of making a child with him, but Vincent doesn't care. It isn't about the actual act, it's the sentiment behind it.

And, yes, MC is a bit nonchalant about this, but they are also in a very strange, dangerous situation, and I imagine being called the proper spousal term is the least of their worries.

We talk about Vincent's values more in-depth in the walkthrough, so if you want more information on the rationale behind this decision, you should read Vincent's character information (especially the detailed essay portion). You can download it here on itch, but if you got the game on Steam, you can get the walkthrough on our website for free.

(-1)

Thanks for your response.

Your decision to have Vincent call the MC wife makes perfect sense to me esp wrt your explanation; what he wants of the MC is a very specific very gendered role. hope I didn't come off as too harsh, you did do a great job of having the MC possibly being anyone, which isn't easy an easy task at all. I'll have a look at the walkthrough.

(-1)

Not at all! I'm glad that the game is making people think about the world around it because that means that it's engaging! We hope you enjoy the rest of the routes! 

(1 edit)

Anissa route -- When you say "You have to unlock all of the other End 1's !", do you mean at least 1 end of all the routes? Or all 3 endings?

Hi! You have to get the first ending for all the other characters, aka the "good ending." Hope that makes sense!

I understand . I'm only reading the good endings so it's great. 

I've read Ophelia, Allegra, Sergio & Eria(?). I'm currently playing Nanako's route. 

The game is amazing and the characters too. 

Thank you very much! 

By the way, all Ends 1 are the good endings, right? Including Anisa Route?

Yep, that's right!

(+1)

Gosh this looks great.  I couldn't quite tell from the screenshots, can I ask if the game has a text auto-advance function?  (Asking for the sake of my carpal tunnel...)

(1 edit) (+1)

Hi! So I literally just realized that there isn't a keyboard shortcut for autoforward, and it has to be placed as a button in-game. There's a slider in the preferences that says "auto-forward," but it doesn't work without the button. This is my mistake, sorry! 

Apart from using your mouse, you can also press the spacebar to advance text - if that will help. 

Thank you for all the kind words! We worked hard, and it is nice to see that it paid off. :)

Hello! I loved  every single aspect of this game, i can see a lot of hard work was put into this and honestly i can only recommend this game.  11/10 would let this game to give me the chills again. I've played through all the routes (some of them really did shock me haha)  and i got all the three endings for each character. I've been wondering about those "happily ever after" buttons (or however should i call them) in the memories section though and there's also those spots for more CGs in the gallery.....;3; May i ask how can i gain them? Also i'm sorry if you've already answered this somewhere before. 

(+2)

Hello! 

We're very happy to hear you enjoyed Dead Wishes!

The extra buttons and CG spots will have content added in a spring update, so there's more to look forward to! The update will be up around May 1, so keep your eyes peeled.

Ohhh I see! I'm so looking forward to it! Thank you for your reply

I hate to ask but is it possible to get a few more hints on getting Eira and Festus instead of Sergio and Allegra? I'm really enjoying the game but I've tried answering in ways I think the characters would find appealing in a few different ways, answering the opposite in case it's "opposites attract", answering at random, and now I'm systematically trying to go through the possible responses until I get the right combination. I always always always get Sergio or Allegra, though.  Guess they just really like me :P

Hi! Festus' prologue answers match Allegra, but he requires a different personality.  For Eira, repeat the same conditions as Vincent, but with a different personality.

Ah, yes, I meant is it possible to get any hints on what personality it wants? I've spent over an hour just redoing the personality test portion to see if I can get anyone but Sergio and Allegra.  Is there just one specific combination that I have to get to see these characters? Even choosing VASTLY different personalities (like choosing the exact opposite answers) I always end up with Sergio and Allegra,

Sergio's route isn't affected by the questionnaire, so you'll get him every time if you keep choosing the same prologue choices. Only Vincent, Eira, Festus, and Allegra are affected by the questionnaire. Try writing your choices down the next time you do it, because if you flip to the opposite answers, you'll get a different character.

Could you give out another hint? I've tried out a bunch of different options on the questionnaire which leads to vincent, then i chose the opposite options which again just leads to vincent, here's the ones i could be bothered writing down

(1 = the top options, like agression, talk, copetitive. 2 = the bottom options)

112121122
222122112
221212211
111211221
122212122
211121211
111111112

Hello! Do you have the latest version of the walkthrough? You can download it here on itch or from our website: violetstudiogames.com

It has specific instructions on how to get routes that are tied to the questionnaire!

One thing to keep in mind is that Eira's prologue starts off the same way as Vincent - you'll still go to the bank and meet him, but he won't like you as much as he does on his own route. ;)

Devs can i post this to my youtube account?

Sure!

(+2)(-1)

Hi! I have been obsessively playing your game since I bought it a few days ago. I LOVE how different it is from a regular otome. Vincent sure caught me by surprise. I also enjoy the detailed overview you have on each character. It really helps me understand more of the character.

I do have one question: I am helplessly lost trying to get on Festus' route. I don't understand what I have to do. I've tried changing my personality answers to no avail!

(1 edit)

Hello! You are not alone in the confusion, so here is a little hint: Festus' prologue choices are the same as Allegra, but he requires a different personality. Hope that helps!

Thank you for all the kind words, and I hope you continue enjoying the game!

Deleted 1 year ago

You have to unlock all of the other End 1's ! 

(+4)

Wowwww ive finally gotten through a large portion of this game and figured though not 100% complete i can finally give some feedback looking at the game as a whole.

First up, im a huuuge fan of messed up/villain routes in otomes so i knew for a long while before release i would enjoy this game, but i was still very pleasantly suprised.

The stories themselves are very immersive, to the point of it being very uncomfortable at times, leaving me awkwardly staring at the screen for long moments trying to pluck up the fortitude to continue, i really must commend your writing skills to evoke such primal responses from someone as jaded as me lol 

The characters are so well rounded, deep multi faceted flaws are complemented by relatable and even endearing traits serve to humanise them and on some instinctual level remind the reader that more often than not the scariest monsters are people themselves, and even those monsters arent completely without redeemable qualities.

Really, This is just fantastic work a thrilling roller coaster of anxiety, revulsion, desperation and a peppering of fluff and im so glad i got to experience it, also i cant recall if it was here in the comments or the dev log etc i read it about the feedback but i just wanted to let you know my favourite was absolutely Lucien as it seems his sad, desperate, manipulative charm was not as well received as was hoped.

I could honestly go on and on but this is already getting a tad long for a comment ha, none the less, thankyou, i look forward to seeing the prologues and epilogues and will definitely be looking for your works in the future!

(+1)

Thank you so much for all the kind words! I'm very, very pleased to hear that the characters and their stories were immersive and emotional! A lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into the development, so it's really rewarding to see comments like this :''))

Look forward to our future work because we definitely will be working on more projects (soon!!). 

Fantastic game, each individual character arc is so well written! Looking forward to the optional game guide, I'm stuck just trying to find some of the good endings lol.

Thank you very much! If things go according to plan, it should be finished by the weekend.

How do you access Eira's route? I can't find it AT ALL and I'm running out of ideas of where to look...

Try changing up your answers in the personality test.

Vincent : Eira :: Festus : Allegra

Oh ok, that makes sense! Thanks!

Does the game have jumpscares?

(+1)

Nope!

(+1)(-1)

I LOVE this game so much! I was super excited for it to come out, and I'm not disappointed! only thing is I'm stuck on Nanako's route. I've gotten "seeking equilibrium" and "alone again" but I don't have "my big sister". and I'd also like to know one thing before I try again; judging from the placement of the "good" endings from the demo, it looks like "seeking equilibrium" is the good ending for Nanako, but I still never end up dating her.  If that is the good ending, I don't know if I'm going to try and find the other.

(+2)

"My Big Sister" is the bad ending for Nanako. I would still encourage you to try for it, because it contains a CG! Yes, "Seeking Equilibrium" is her good ending.

that's a little disappointing, at least there are still 11 other characters to romance. Going for Sergio next, he's a cutie! <3

Loving the game so far and thank you for the patch!  Any small tips for Mateo's "Wait for Me" and "Comfort" ends?  I feel like maybe the key is in the timed responses but no luck.

(+2)

Try different combinations with those timed responses, and remember that NOT choosing anything with the timer still counts as a choice.

(+1)

Super excited that this is out so quickly! I started playing it and have been enjoying it a ton! Quick question though, but could you explain how the choice feedback system works? I've been trying to get Clement's "Moving to the Future" ending and am extremely lost as to what I'm doing wrong. I don't think you guys are a big fan of guides, so I'm hoping for some tips!

(+1)

Of course! 

The diamond that displays after most choices shows the player how their choice has affected a certain character's level of affection. The color of the diamond corresponds to a certain character. (It is mostly easy to guess based on the characters in the scene).

If the arrow moves away from the diamond, you have improved your relationship with the character. If it moves towards it from further out, then affection has decreased. Some choices do not affect your level of affection at all, and in some (rare) instances, you won't be able to tell which way the arrow is moving. 

Now - the arrow gives you a general guideline, but it doesn't tell you everything, namely how significant the choice is in the route. Some choices will increase affection immensely, while others may increase it a small amount (and the same can be said for decreases).

The hints for Clement are that his route most closely aligns with a traditional dating simulator, and also, he favors a person that is hard-working, honest, and also can call him out on his silly attempts at flirting. ;) Good luck!

I think I came across one of those rare instances where you can't tell in a Vincent playthrough! I thought it was unintentional, but now I see that it was there for a reason! 

Thanks for the help! What I've played of the game so far has been really fantastic (and uhhh oh boy Vincent was a whirlwind), and I can't wait to keep going through it!

(+1)

Not sure if you saw our tweet, but we just updated the game because there were a few others who contacted us about the black BGs. We figured it was best to adjust the game, since several people mentioned it. Anyway, we hope you're enjoying the story!

Ok this game is amazing so far! I am in LOVE with Sergio right now (because I can't stop laughing) and I can't wait to explore this game fully and meet all the other characters. Great job on this!

Thank you so much, we're glad you're enjoying it!

Sergio is indeed a precious one. :) 

Congrats on the release! \o/ This was one of the fastest KS projects I've seen completed, I believe. 
Will you be making the game available on Steam, too?

Thank you very much! 

We are planning to release to Steam as well, but we have some paperwork to go through and also have to set up a store. 

Will itch.io buyers get Steam keys?

(+2)

Yes! You guys don't have to buy the game twice.

Around when can I expect to get my download key for the game? (I backed on KS on the game key tier.)

(+1)

Hello! We have the emails ready to send out, but we have to gain admin approval from itch before they go out. We've emailed/tweeted them, so hopefully we'll hear back soon!

Hello VIOLET, any there any restrictions of people being able to perform a let's play/playthrough of Dead Wishes? ^o^

(1 edit)

Hi! We don't mind let's plays of the game! We welcome your reactions :)

The only thing we have reservations about are straight walkthroughs of the game (showing players all the right answers). We'd rather that people didn't give away all the fun. ; )

(1 edit) (+1)

Hello! Will the mc be customizable? Can I create female mc?

(+1)

Hi! Right now the player character's pronouns are they/them, but we are trying to add pick-your-pronouns as a feature. There are not sprites for the player character. Hope that answers your question!