Growth
CW's: ableism; ableist slurs including the r-slur; abuse; implied child sexual abuse, dysphoria, transphobia.
You never fit in.
You were never allowed too.
You learned, far too soon, that people like you weren't allowed to be small, unless you were also unseen.
Growing too fast makes your bones and soul ache.
But one day, you will be able to grow at your own pace.
Growth is, fundamentally a game about hope. It's also a game about abuse, and recovery from it. It's a game about being autistic and queer in a less than stellar environment.
Development log
- Growth quality of life update.Sep 24, 2019
Comments
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I'm coping with getting older after getting out myself. This made me cry. Thank you /gen
well my therapist will be hearing about this thanks for the reminder i keep forgeting to talk about those traumas
This one hurt. Hurt a lot but.. in a good way? Rough for us out here, wish it wasn't. I still can't cook.
This game makes me want to learn how. Thank you for making it.
It's been a long time since i made this
i don't exactly know how long
but it remains one of the things im proudest of in my body of work
every single one of you who has said that it has helped them, that it made you feel seen
thank you for sharing that
it grounds me too
everything is so much all the time
but we're still here
we can grow around anything in our paths given time, and care
nobody is free until everyone is free and one day we will have a world where this kind of story is something to remember and watch out for happening again
but it doesn't happen to us anymore
i believe that
i do
15 year old trans-masc here, I was diagnosed with autism when I was nine. Thank you for making this novel, I can relate to it a lot. Sometimes I wish I didn't, sometimes I wish I didn't experience what I experienced, but I can't change my past, I can only hope my future is better. Thank you for making something that I can relate to ever if it hurts, there's a part of me that feels I needed to reflect.
i am so, so glad this could be of help to you. i hope it can be if you ever need it in the future.
you can grow and you can thrive.
<3
It hurt how much this related to me as a person. Not only the transgender part, but also just the age you mentioned. I'm 22. Everything in this relates to my experiences growing up, even to the part mentioning not being able to tell time. Thank you for this.
it is brave to comment on anything but especially things like this
i am in solidarity with you and everyone we all deserve
better than that
we can have better than that
This is so autobiographical to my own life that i feel like i will not internalize this art until i play it for the 5th time, which i plan to. thank you.
<3. Solidarity with you, and wishing you space to grow now and in the future
thank you for this
<3
this is beautiful and devastating and true and beautiful
you have powerful words, I'm grateful that you shared them
SO im def not crying as im typing this , never left a review before but this kinda broke me with how real it is.
i am glad the experience has been of comfort to people at this time, i read all of the comments even when i dont know what to say. solidarity with all of you, and all of us who are no longer here to tell our stories. a better world is possible if we demand it.
I wouldn't categorize this as a game, it's more like a relatively simple story told with interesting presentation. When I think about it, that description also describes a poem.
Actually, the more I think about it, the more I think that description fits perfectly considering its focus on words and meanings.
This is interactive poetry.
This was such a relatable story, almost every line cut really deep into my memories of growing up (in a good way). This game made me feel a little less alone in my experiences, thank you!!
I started crying not even half way through. Thank you for making this.
Really lovely game. It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize I needed to click on the words.
Thank you for this!
I cried almost every choice- thankyou for making this. I love your words.
"You grew up too fast but you were always too slow" hit me like a freight train. This is a wonderful, touching work of art!
Took so much effort not to cry with this. I'm a trans man, and I have ADHD and autism. I have never related to something so much in my life. Also, i want that lasagna recipe, please.
God. Autistic trans guy here (diagnosed in 5th grade, and I only ever encountered one school staff member that knew me specifically because of my autism that didn't talk to me like a newborn animal, what's up with that) and man. Yeah. This checks out. This is really well made.
It's like you wrote this about me.
i nearly started crying. i can relate to almost all of this. thank you for making this.
I love this, thank you for making it.
im literally in tears. we were the same age. thank you for reminding me that i am good and loved and worth loving, sometimes i forget, because all the bad words being thrown at me hide the good ones. i appreciate you.
Hey, I'm sorry that I missed this.
Solidarity with you, and I hope you are safe now.
Oh, wow. I love this game with everything I have; it's so heartfelt and raw yet so well-written. As someone with Asperger's Syndrome I can relate; the eyes part is what really hammered it in. This game is great. Please keep writing!
<3. I'm autistic and very tired, I'm glad to hear this.
I click submit with tears still dripping from my eyes. Bittersweet game that I really connected with. Thank you for writing it!
<3 Thank you. I'm behind on itch notifications, I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it.
A very simple game and yet very touching. I guess you used Twine to make it?
I did! And thank you, so much.
This was really sweet and really connected with me, it made me feel better while I'm going through a rough time. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing that, I'm really glad I was able to make something that helped a bit and hope you feel better soon!
Thank you. This was beautiful!
I'm so glad to hear you liked it!
ya it was great
Thanks so much! I'm glad you liked it.