Gameplay

***Love Shore*** is a cyberpunk noir visual novel developed and published by Perfect Garbage Studios. Set in the cyberpunk city of Love Shore, the game revolves around protagonists Sam and Farah, who attempt to navigate the monstrous underworld in hopes of uncovering the means to save their friends.

The game is scheduled for release on Xbox and Steam in 2023. *Love Shore* will be the debut title of developer, Perfect Garbage Studios.

## Setting

The game takes place in the fictional cyberpunk city of Love Shore, a future metropolis inhabited by both humans and old gods. When the city faces a fertility crisis, biotech firm Life S. Incorporated steps in, creating fully-formed human beings composed of cybernetic parts, save for their biological brains. These cyborgs are called S.Humans. But the firm’s profitability soon begins to suffer as the crisis passes. Life S. Inc manages to build 100 S.Humans before going bankrupt, leaving the remaining cyborgs to fend for themselves.

The city of Love Shore operates on a 24-hour system with a shift in UI, sprites and aesthetics as day turns to night and vice-versa.

## Characters

*Love Shore* has two playable characters, Farah and Sam, two artificially created humans made after an event drastically altered life in the futuristic city of Love Shore. Though the characters live separate lives, their storylines intertwine due to their origins. Both Farah and Sam have four romanceable character-locked companions available to interact with during their storylines.

### Playable Protagonists

* **Farah:** A S.Human veteran born and raised in Love Shore coping with life after prison and trying to re-adapt to civilian life.
* **Sam:** A S.Human and former criminal born of one of the wealthier families in Love Shore, now attempting to avoid any more trouble after being released from prison.

### Companions

* **Imani:** A beautiful and mysterious doctor and scientist who treated Farah in the past, and has recently disappeared. One of Farah’s potential companions.
* **Alyosha:** A handsome stranger who fell into Sam’s life through a series of odd situations, and is looking for answers. One of Sam’s potential companions.
* **Aziz:** Inanna’s right-hand man and Sam’s ex - a cocky, calculating schemer who knows how to manipulate others. One of Sam’s potential companions.
* **Conrad:** An enforcer for Inanna, friend of Sam’s and a regular participant in an underground fighting ring. One of Sam’s potential companions.
* **Viv:** Sam’s long time best friend who works as a hired get-away driver and owns a garage. One of Sam’s potential companions.
* **Talia:** Farah’s best and oldest friend, a well liked extrovert working as a liaison for Coatlique in the city. One of Farah’s potential companions.
* **Maya:** A friend of Farah’s and a bartender at Persephone’s who doubles as a spy with connections to the criminal underground. One of Farah’s potential companions.
* **Jo:** A resourceful and clever vendor who runs a bike / spyware shop and is a freelance investigator on the side. One of Farah’s potential companions.

The game also features a cast of gods and supernatural beings from a variety of cultures, including Aztec mythology, Maya Mythology, Yoruba mythology, Hinduism, and Greek mythology, among others.

## Gameplay

*Love Shore* is a visual novel that contains eight different story routes and romance options for its two main characters, over twenty-five endings depending on choices made throughout the game, and interweaving plot points.

The phone call choice towards the end of **Chapter 1** begins one of the eight companion routes that can be taken for the rest of the game. Each companion route has at least 3 endings. Imani and Alyosha’s routes are considered the “true” routes and run parallel to each other.

## Dating Features

Love Shore has dating features that players can choose to engage with during intimate encounters. Platonic, romantic and explicit sexual choices are indicated with symbols so players can choose to partake in them or not. Choices in these dating encounters do not impact the story or character approval, and the game can be played with entirely platonic relationships.