To The Wayside

Is the price of freedom worth it? Elm has but a few months to find out... unless a human wouldn't mind sharing a monster's magical burden. Earn the locals' trust or die trying. Can Elm win them over without scaring them away? Or will their monstrous origins prove too much of a hindrance?

To The Wayside is a queer retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid in a visual novel format.

In this version of the tale, our protagonist is Elm, a leech-inspired monster wishing to explore the world outside of the swamp they grew up in. They find their opportunity through the aid of a witch, who allows them to take on a relatively human form in order to blend in amongst others.

Yet, the consequences are dire. Even as they seemingly have their wish granted, they face the difficulties of never being able to tell the truth about themself. While struggling to connect with the one they believe will grant them their happily ever after, they must desperately try to endure the effects of the enchantment. In the end, we’re left with this romantic tragedy, and it is up to the player to make the tough choices that could save Elm’s life.

Read through 21k words of story contentPlay as a gender apathetic MCOvercome a slowly approaching affliction and an unrequited love triangleExplore 3 potential endings with a CG to accompany eachEnjoy an original soundtrack

Please be aware To The Wayside includes subject matters unsuitable for certain audiences. We advise playing at your discretion if you are sensitive to the topics of death and violence.

Narrative Design: The Horizons System / 

Scriptwriting:

Editing:

Art Direction:

Sprites:

Illustrations:

Backgrounds:

GUI:

Programming:

Music Composition:

Sound Design:  /  /  /

Twitter:

Tumblr:

Instagram:

YouTube:

TikTok:

The game by Sparkling Horizon Studios is provided for you by members of xplay.me and is available for free download. The total size of this game is 0 MB. Try to play other fairy tale and fantasy games to find the best. Check out provided screenshots of this to get familiar with the style, genre and gameplay. Leave your opinion to allow others to discover it. Find more NSFW games like this using search by tags or by category.