Wuwuwu...
It's so touching.
Furukawa Hirozawa expressed, I'm literally crying.
***
The plot continues to develop, and Comforter and Hedgehog rented a new small place to start a new life.
Everything had changed, yet everything seemed to have remained the same.
But as long as the other was there, they felt at ease.
They lived this plain life for a few days, and just when Furukawa Hirozawa was wondering "Hasn't this game been cleared yet?", the plot changed again.
Just as he was heading home after his shift at the convenience store, he saw a crowd of people gathered at the intersection, pointing and whispering, wondering what they were talking about.
Walking closer, he only heard:
"Fire!"
"There's a fire!"
Shun Uesugi looked up and caught a glimpse of black smoke billowing from a residential building in the distance.
The thickest smoke was coming from the 6th floor.
That was where he and Minami Hyuga lived.
In that instant, it felt as if an invisible giant hand had seized his heart.
Shun Uesugi couldn't care about anything else and started running as fast as he could.
"Hedgehog!"
Risking danger, Uesugi Shunichi climbed the stairs back to his home.
Sure enough, the hedgehog was still there.
He quickly took the hedgehog with him, ready to flee.
But they had only gone down one floor when the hallway was already filled with black smoke, making it impossible to breathe.
The temperature all around was rising sharply, and tongues of fire spread up from the floor below, licking at the windows.
Boom...
The floor above collapsed.
Flames raged, blocking the way downstairs.
They would either have to go back up or choose a spot to jump from a window.
"It's over, it's over, we're going to die here," said Minami Hyuga.
"We won't," Shun Uesugi said firmly.
"That's right, I have my comforter."
At that moment, he suddenly remembered some emergency escape tips.
The two rushed into a bathroom first, and Shun Uesugi soaked the comforter completely with water.
"There's oxygen in the water; covering your nose and mouth with it can prevent you from inhaling toxic gas."
At the same time, once the comforter was wet, it could offer a little protection.
Perhaps it was minimal, but it was all he could do.
***
Inside the burning building, Shun Uesugi wrapped Hedgehog in his blanket and moved toward an outer room on the floor.
Tongues of fire immediately leapt out.
Due to the intense heat, the water on Shun Uesugi's blanket instantly evaporated into steam, and he let out a wail of pain.
"Blanket... are you okay?"
Seeing him drenched in sweat, teeth gritted in agony, Minami Hyuga felt a pang of heartache.
"I'm fine. Everything will be okay."
Shun Uesugi gritted his teeth and pushed on. He charged forward with Hedgehog in his arms.
The flames licked his blanket, immediately tearing a large hole through it.
The pain nearly made Uesugi faint.
Watching this, Hirozawa Furukawa's heart tightened.
Thinking of Blanket Man's ability—his blanket is like skin attached to his body, it bleeds, it feels pain, it senses everything around it...
Then, as it was being consumed by the flames, it must have been excruciatingly painful.
Surely not?
They had made it this far; they wouldn't hit them with a tragic twist now, would they?
But he could already see the light of hope, the end.
Beyond the fourth-floor window, the sky was already visible.
Crash...
Uesugi held Hinata as they smashed through the window and leaped from the floor.
A flash of white light.
***
Blanket Man had finally realized his value for once.
In this expanse of white light, the protagonist thought:
It's a good thing I'm Blanket Man.
Not a superhero.
But, someone's exclusive hero.
That is enough.
Facing the sunlight, Shun Uesugi smiled, and the whole world turned white.
Perhaps this is the happiest time I've ever been Blanket Man.
When he woke up again, Uesugi was already in the hospital.
His whole body ached, the pain making him grimace.
"By the way, Hedgehog, how is she?"
Shun Uesugi struggled to sit up, ready to go find Minami Hyuga.
But just as he sat up, he saw a girl appear at the door.
Minami Hyuga was leaning on crutches, hopping toward him.
"Great, it's great that you're alright." Shun Uesugi smiled happily.
Hedgehog rolled her eyes at him, "Don't even mention it. Jumping from the 4th floor—it's fortunate there was a blanket to cushion the fall; it's quite good that you only broke your leg."
Hmm.
Shun Uesugi nodded. It was truly great that Hedgehog was alright.
"By the way, Hedgehog..." He suddenly remembered something, looked up, and said eagerly, "Hedgehog, what I wanted to tell you was—
Although I don't have a turtle's shell, I have my blanket.
It's soft, reliable, and can completely envelop you, accept you..."
Shun Uesugi said the confession that Hedgehog hadn't been able to hear that day, but just as he was about to say the three words "I love you," he was abruptly interrupted by Minami Hyuga.
"The blanket!"
"Hmm?"
Her pupils widened, and she raised a hand, pointing at Shun Uesugi in disbelief, "Your blanket!"
"Eh?"
***
And that was it, the game came to an abrupt end.
The entire screen went black.
The BGM started playing.
Immediately after, snippets of memories appeared on the left, and the staff credits began to scroll on the right:
[Producer: Mika Ishino]
[Scenario Design: Jun Maeda]
[Music: Atsushi Shirakawa & Jun Maeda]
Huh?!
Hirozawa Furukawa didn't react in time.
It's over?!
This final part was presented entirely from the male protagonist's first-person perspective, so even Hirozawa Furukawa didn't get to see what Shun Uesugi ultimately turned into.
But that final line from the Hedgehog Girl, "Your comforter," was just too intriguing.
Damn it!
What kind of ending is this?
Why not explain it clearly?
Argh!
This is so frustrating!
As a Virgo, Hirozawa Furukawa found it unbearable; he couldn't accept an open ending.
Although it wasn't even that open—there wasn't much room for speculation at the end—how he wished he could have seen with his own eyes that both of them had turned back into normal people and were living a happy, fulfilling life.
That would have been the perfect, fairytale ending.
What was this supposed to be?
***
Hmm...
Must have turned back into a normal person, right?
After thinking for a long time, even rolling around on the floor, tossing and turning unable to sleep, Hirozawa Furukawa finally made peace with himself, made peace with Pokeni, and used this imagined ending to comfort himself.
The total playtime of the game isn't very long; as a galgame, a 4-hour experience is actually quite good.
Of course, that's just the main storyline. If you want to collect all the side storylines and game items, you'd probably need to play through it two or three more times.
At least so far, Hirozawa Furukawa is quite satisfied with this new work, "Blanket Man".
It was half-tragic.
Not completely tragic.
And whether it's Angel or Kohi, although it wasn't explained in the main storyline, it's probably not a happy ending.
Leaving enough room for the players' imagination can be said to be quite kind.
Mika Ishino is truly too gentle.
***
In addition to Ishino Mika, Furukawa Hirozawa also remembered another name—the scriptwriter, Maeda Jun.
Was he a new author?
But this new author was far too impressive, wasn't he?
Just from playing the game, Furukawa Hirozawa could clearly feel that the style of "Blanket Man" was truly unique.
Although it tells the story of a group of mutants who have lost their human identity.
Yet, throughout the entire game, there are no cliché battles, no plots about saving the world, and no excessive dwelling on sadness or despair; on the contrary, most of the game is about the warmth and happiness they share while living together.
Such everyday, ordinary moments, through P Corporation's unique presentation and Maeda Jun's delicate touch, are slowly unraveled, filling the player with a constant sense of happiness.
Fresh, natural, and moving—much like Shirakawa's music.
It could be said that in terms of art style, script, and music, "Blanket Man" has reached a level of natural, seamless integration.
The several emotional outbursts triggered along the way also possess a distinctive personal flair; they are foreshadowed, but not in a way that feels forced. Yet, they always manage to strike your weak point in an instant, causing your tear ducts to open.
In terms of style, there's a huge difference from Old Xu.
Old Xu belongs to that type who sets up dark suspense, letting you peel back the layers yourself, and in the process, every clue you discover makes your heart shake more, and every layer you peel back reveals something even darker underneath.
Until, in the end, he deals you a vicious blow.
It's incredibly dark, arguably cruel.
That is Old Xu's style.
As for Jun Maeda, it's—
Making you laugh.
Making you cry.
Making you laugh, making you laugh while crying, making you cry while laughing...
Honestly, if the ending had been to kill off both the male and female leads, Hirozawa Furukawa really wouldn't have been able to tell who was crueler: Jun Maeda or Gen Urobuchi.
Is it more heart-wrenching to be dark from beginning to end and then get stabbed in the last moment?
Or is it more maddening to be pushed back and forth, and have a tearjerker dropped on you just when you're at your happiest?
Fortunately, the final ending was good.
By giving a Happy Ending (HE), the producer Mika Ishino and the scriptwriter Jun Maeda were really too kind to the players.
Thank goodness it was a Happy Ending, otherwise, Hirozawa Furukawa thought, he would probably be on his way to mail them razor blades right now.
Mm-hmm.
In that case, let's give Mika Ishino a little compliment.
***
"Ah~ that's great."
In the Studio Ghibli office, having played through to the end, Hayao Miyazaki finally let out a sigh of relief as the credits rolled.
While Toshio Suzuki wasn't looking, Miyazaki Hamster secretly wiped the corner of his eye.
"That scared me to death..."
Miyazaki Hamster cleaned his lenses with a glasses cloth, his voice trembling slightly with tears, "It's a good thing both of them survived."
"Yeah. It's a good thing they did."
Toshio Suzuki nodded.
The two had been sitting there playing the game for several hours, both having gained the same experience.
But...
Why did Miyazaki Hamster make me do the controlling again?
A galgame doesn't even require any skill or reflexes, does it?
Precisely because Miyazaki Hamster was right there beside him, Toshio Suzuki felt he couldn't bring himself to cry, even at the most moving parts of the game.
"An open ending, huh." Miyazaki put his glasses back on, carefully recalling the game's plot, "Pokeni really knows how to build suspense in their games."
"It leaves you wanting more."
"Well, even though it's an open ending, you can probably guess more or less what happened from Hedgehog Girl's reaction, right?" Toshio Suzuki said. "Blanket Man has probably turned back into a normal person. Maybe his blanket was burnt to a crisp in the fire, and from then on, he wasn't Blanket Man anymore. Otherwise, just think about it, why would Hedgehog Girl's reaction be so intense?"
"Hmm... not necessarily," Hayao Miyazaki smiled slyly. "What isn't confirmed by the camera is an unknown ending. You could also interpret it as Blanket Man's blanket being burnt to shreds, but it's still a blanket, right?"
"Hmm... that's a possibility, but not a very likely one," Toshio Suzuki maintained his opinion.
"Anyway, it's a pretty good game," Hayao Miyazaki said, sipping his Yakult while sitting in his chair, deep in thought.
"A group of mutants who lost their qualification to be human came together. Although they possess special abilities, these abilities hardly have any use other than causing them psychological trauma. This kind of setting is really interesting."
In Hayao Miyazaki's works, most protagonists are ordinary people, though there are exceptions like Porco Rosso, who has an unusual appearance but average physical abilities.
As for the upcoming "Princess Mononoke," both the male and female leads possess great strength.
It seems there has never been a work that truly focuses on such a near-realistic, ordinary life.
This is because in Miyazaki's previous creative philosophy, imagination was an incredibly important component.
This imagination is not only reflected in the characters but must also be embodied in the entire worldview, and even the grand historical setting must be filled with imagination.
But now, a new element has been integrated into Miyazaki's concepts—
Even ordinary, insignificant people can live wonderful lives.
No, perhaps it is precisely because these sad, seemingly useless little people can still possess an optimistic, positive, and upward-looking spirit in a real environment, living warm and natural lives, that this is what truly possesses power and touches people's hearts.
If "Blanket Man" had been made into an action-packed, hot-blooded game from the start, it probably wouldn't have been so deeply moving.
Whether it is the heartwarming little moments of daily life, the mutual redemption and sacrifice for the sake of love, or the rebellion against societal norms and family to uphold one's own beliefs...
These are all things that can easily move Miyazaki.
"The game's art style is also quite remarkable," Miyazaki said. "Using such a dreamy, fairy-tale style to interpret some difficult and profound themes softens some of the more hard-to-accept scenes in the game, and instead, brings more emotion and anticipation.
Pokeni has created a remarkable work."
Hmm.
Toshio Suzuki nodded in agreement.
At first glance, the game's plot seems quite simple, but that simplicity lies only on the surface. If you delve deeper, you will find that Pokeni uses this fairy-tale narrative style to reveal many social issues:
For example, loneliness.
In modern society, people are alienated from one another.
And rebellion.
The hedgehog's rebellion against her mother also symbolizes the resistance against conventional societal beliefs.
Suzuki didn't delve too deeply, just thought about it roughly; perhaps if the game were explored further, the insights gained would be far more profound than what he could currently imagine.
***
Hayao Miyazaki wore a smile, seemingly very satisfied with P Corp, especially Aoki Haruhi.
"But is there a possibility?"
"Hmm?" Toshio Suzuki looked at him in puzzlement.
"That Blanket Man and Hedgehog Girl dying would be better for the work itself?"
Nani?
Toshio Suzuki rolled his eyes at him.
Miyazaki Hamster, please try to be a decent human being.
Must not let him have such thoughts, otherwise, if the future animated films from Ghibli all have tear-jerker endings, it would be a disaster.
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