You know, they say that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's wings can turn into gale force winds half-way around the world. That's why time travel agencies rigorously stipulate No Stomping on Butterflies before you're allowed passage. Some little girls haven't learned this lesson yet, so opening the Music Box of Life turns into an enigmatic story unfolding through the pages of a spot-the-difference puzzle series.
Through the magic of suspension-of-disbelief, a blithly thoughtless young lady learns that her behavior toward fluttery insects can result in either an unhappy pairing with the town bully or romantic picnics with a sensitive artist. Oh, but that's not the only difference you'll notice in these three games by FunBunGames—every scene in this pictoral narrative is presented in duplicate, side-by-side. Look closely at the artistically-rendered images for discrepancies between the two panels and you might even be stumped (no crossing your eyes now!) The differences aren't just mere ommissions; sometimes they're the more subtle reworkings of posture or style (better fitting the butterfly effect motif.) The scenes are generated randomly, so you can play again and again to uncover even more variances. The logic here's slightly inscrutable, the story wavers perversely between childishness and bitterly nightmarish drama, and still it entertains your curiosity while challenging your observational forte.
Well sure, some might make jokes about age or gender type-casting but by blending eery sci-fi, nerdy romanticism, charming graphics and immense replayability, the Music Box of Life series is brimming with appeal. As it turns out, chaos theory is actually quite fun!
Play Music Box of Life, Part 1
Lots of neat stuff here:
-very pretty artwork
-love how some things change position rather than just appearing/disappearing
-strange but interesting story
So...what I'm trying to figure out is--is this like the Gwyneth Paltrow movie sliding doors?
What I see is that in the universe in which she pins the butterfly, the boy is appalled by her, but thinks maybe he'll give her another shot and finds out she's just as spoiled and shallow as ever, while in the universe where she brings the live butterfly to show him, the blond guy ends up being the bully she never dates and they end up together from childhood.
Other thoughts?
how come i never ever make it in time to comment first!? I'm only 28 minutes late!
*sniffle* this is a beautifully made, adorable mushy little girly game. I loved every second of it. The puzzles were just the right level of difficulty, and the hint feature was much appreciated. I liked the abilty to decide whether the differences went or stayed in both pitires. I wished there had been a bit more explanation of
the girl leaving the blond dude
but it was still great and the storyline was easy to follow. I also really enjoyed it because
the girl looks like me and the brunette guy looks like my crush!
AAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWsies!!! loooved this game 5 shrooms
Both game #2 and #3 caused major crashes (as in blue screen of death) on my Windows XP virtual machine. Updating Flash had no effect.
[Hi Reka, I've never heard of how a specific game itself could cause an issue but maybe Jay knows if it has something to do with Flash or Java. Did you try using a different browser? ~elle]
Thanks for the feedback, everyone!
Meg,
I saw it as an alternative reality, kind of like The Family Man with Nick Cage or, better, more like the movie dsrtrosy mentioned, Sliding Doors. So...
I'm thinking the girl doesn't actually leave the blond bully so much as, in some alter ego, she simply was never with him.
Or, it seems to be vaguely suggested that the music box gave her a second choice, showed her how her life would be "If only..."
Hmmm... considering that it is called Music Box of Life, it's probably meant to be that second option which makes the music box more integral.
Are there other thoughts/interpretations?
Nice, simple, and refreshing. I loved the art, and the storyline was interesting. Definitely a relaxing little addition to a sometimes stressful genre.
Well, enjoyable and relaxing atmosphere, differences subtle yet noticeable enough so the game isn't frustrating.
Too bad the story is sappy and naive as a Meg Ryan movie. Judging by the premise, I was really looking forward to something more interesting and clever.
baba44713, I disagree. This game shows imagination and sensitivity. Not sappy or naive at all. I'd like to know if the creator has done anything else.
Update