Destiny Fails Us: A New Life
A downloadable otome game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
Available Now
The story of Destiny Fails Us takes place in the Pacific Northwest, in the fictional town of Moirai. It follows the life of Idril Ar'Feinel, a girl who spends most of her time playing video games instead of doing her homework.
Destiny Fails Us: A New Life has 135,000+ words,
7 different endings, 50+ event CGs,
and ~200 choice menus.
The game also includes two different interface options (Pink & Grayscale), as well as the ability to choose between the standard font or OpenDyslexic.
Choose a location via the map to visit different areas around Moirai. Which location you pick will decide whether Idril spends time doing an activity, or getting to know someone.
The City of Moirai has a lot of interesting people.
You can take the time to get to know them and make choices to affect your relationships with them.
Participate in texting conversations with the different people you have relationships with. Replying with different choices can change how the conversation goes.
Check out other games that take place in the same world as Destiny Fails Us!
Content Warning:
This game features several scenes with actions of violence (i.e. a slap, a punch, etc.) near the start of the game. They show no blood on the screen, and the violence in the scenes are brief. There is a scene in the Prologue where the main character expresses thoughts of running away after an argument with a parental figure. This game also contains swearing that can be censored via an option located in the in-game Options menu.
This game was previously rated T for Teen by the IARC
Purchase
In order to download this otome game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $10 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Download demo
Development log
- Destiny Fails Us: A New Price | Price ChangeFeb 19, 2018
Comments
Log in with itch.io to leave a comment.
Idril's mother is horrifying. Has no respect for privacy or boundaries and is outright abusive.
Hey Amelia! Long time! I've got a students that's a pretty decent digital artist wanting to make a Visual Novel and was hoping I could connect them to you? Maybe even get you to come in and have them pick your brain? Or connect via Discord video chat?
Quick question before I make any decision about whether to download/play: Is this game aro/ace friendly? I really like the concept of visual novels, but I can almost never play them because they all require you to be romantic and/or sexual with other characters and it just makes me really uncomfortable. Can I get through this whole game with only platonic relationships?
There is a good friends ending!! ^^
Also the main character, Idril, and the love interest, Samson, are both asexual as well, and the farthest their route goes is a kiss on the cheek.
Hello! Unfortunately I didn't get far into the game
(spoilers in case anyone is reading this)
but I had to stop because the part with conflict with the mother was super triggering, yanno flashbacks and a panic attack and whatnot. While I'm sure it's a great game I apologize the trauma was just too much I can't interact anymore. May I suggest some content warnings somewhere warning folks about it? I don't want anyone else to go through that.
Apologies in advance, it simply hit really close to home.
Are there any mature scenes within the game as I am currently streaming it so don't want to get in trouble?
I know I already replied to this on twitter, but I'm going to reply here as well in case anyone else has a similar question ^^
Nope! There's some swearing (which can be turned off in the settings menu), mild violence (nothing graphic), and a missable scene where a character smokes, but that's it.
hi hi i played this game a while back and i wanted to say that its been a while since i actually enjoyed a visual novel but this one rly had me immersed rly well done i enjoyed playing it!!
This is going to be a very long, spoiler-y comment, as I've got lots of thoughts about all the game's routes.
The 3d modelling is very unique for a dating sim and very charming. The music is beautiful and does an excellent job of carrying the game's scenes. The texting system is impressive and adds unique characterization to various characters. I'm impressed with how the texts take great care to reflect the story and narration. Nathan's phone profile changes to reflect Idril learning his name at the end of his route, you can only reply to Alaska's midnight texts around midnight, to fit with Atali yelling at you guys to stop texting at the late hour, among other examples.
I have to admit, I don't really understand the stat-raising mechanic, despite having played the game several times over? I know that raising Idril's GPA lets her attend the dance and knowledge is related to her GPA. I also know that confidence lets you pass speech class. However, I don't know what creativity, intuition, or fitness affect, if they affect anything at all, nor do I know if confidence has any effect if you don't take speech class.
My thoughts on each route:
Samson - Samson's route is really well-written! They're both socially awkward shy people with an interest in art and they get along really well. His scenes were cute and I loved that Idril helped him stand up to Brian and pursue his interest in art. Then he returns the favour by supporting her when she's worried about upsetting Lily. I liked all the recurring things in his route, like him and Idril holding doors open for each other, them saying 'I'd love to' when the other invites them out, and them complimenting each other in varying degrees of awkwardness. They're adorable.
Vincent - Idril starts off the game liking Vincent, and Vincent likes her back. They have an accidental kiss in the first few minutes of the game. Then Idril's mom bans her from talking to Vincent and Vincent ends what they have before it even starts, leading to Vincent's route being about him and Idril recovering from that. There's just one issue? I don't really know how Idril and Vincent... interact? I'm told several times that Idril and Vincent are close friends and have liked each other for years, but I barely have any idea what their relationship is like when there isn't this massive awkwardness between them? When I got Vincent's ending and he said 'we can never just be friends, we have too much history between us,' I got confused because I didn't actually know anything about their history aside from the time they first met and the fact that they skipped school together once?
I didn't even realize Vincent and Idril were supposed to be friends my first few playthroughs because, well, you don't actually have to interact with him more than two times after the prologue on any route that isn't his. It is incredibly awkward when Lily says 'oooh, you're sitting with Vincent~!' or when Alex tells me 'Vincent talks about you a lot, Idril, you're obviously super close' or when James spends most of his route talking about Idril and Vincent or when Idril namedrops him in the epilogue, when I haven't actually spoken to him in over a week?
James - The second time you meet James, he stabs Vincent in the arm with a fork for accidentally kissing Idril. Idril notes how creepy and possessive James sounds during the scene itself, since he's screaming things about how she belongs to him and such. James apologizes the day after, though, and spends a lot of time talking about how guilty he feels about the incident during his route. However... despite talking about how he regrets acting that way towards Idril and Vincent, neither Idril nor James address how creepy and entitled he acted towards her for the entire rest of the route? They spend a lot of time on small talk and 'I feel bad about stabbing Vincent, neither of you should have forgiven me when I haven't forgiven myself,' but they don't talk about how James felt like he owned her. The route ends with James forcing a kiss on Idril and Idril having a bad feeling about him for two lines. I was really shocked by the game ending there, since it felt like addressing James' entitlement would be a pretty major part of his route, considering how important the incident caused by said entitlement is.
Brian - Brian is a bully who is dating Idril's friend Atali at the start of the game. One of the first events you can get in the game is Brian badmouthing Atali to his friend, and if Idril confronts him, he threatens her with violence and tries to hit her. The game is clearly aware of Brian being a bully, as Idril can call him out for mistreating Atali, being violent and controlling, pushing Samson around, etc. However, Idril still has the option to go to the dance with him out of pity. But, if you go to the dance with him... Idril seems to lose the ability to call him out on his actions? Even if Idril pushes him away when he forces a kiss on her, he convinces her to go back into the dance and dance with him, with Idril thinking on several occasions that he might be different from his bullying exterior. It's really worrying that Idril seems to be swayed by a guy whose route is full of red flags? Why can Idril reject Nathan but not James or Brian after they both force kisses on her?
Alexander - I really didn't want to do Alex's route, because he's in college while Idril is 16, he has a girlfriend he seems to get along well with, and he's Idril's tutor. However, I found out as I went through his route that, a) Idril had the option to choose whether or not she had a crush on Alex and b) Alex's interactions with her weren't super romantic. He calls her 'shorty,' ruffles her hair a lot, and generally treats her like a new little sister. When I got to his ending, he explicitly said he didn't realize Idril had a crush on him, said he thought they were going together as friends, and specifically mentioned their age difference and that he was getting over heather. I thought everything was leading up to Alex letting her down gently?
And then Alex kissed her back and said 'let's see where this takes us'?
That was kind of the exact opposite of where Alex's entire route seemed to be leading up to, and it raises one major question: why did Alex agree to go out with a high school girl about 4-ish years younger than him that he's known for less than a month?
Nathan - I'll admit, I went in expecting Nathan to be a meme character added for a few laughs, but then he turned out to be really self-aware, mature, anxious, kind, and considerate! From the way he and Idril bantered it really seemed like he could be a great friend of Idril's if they talked a bit more, considering how easily he was able to come up with a witty retort to 'a princess cannot sully her hands with physical labour' and how they both had fun talking about Dig Dug. His scenes are very funny and they all added something fun to his character, like his pacing when he's anxious, his trying to help the arcade, his bad jokes, and so on.
But, well, returning to Vincent comments for a moment... it's kind of awkward when Idril interacts with the guy she's supposed to barely know more than guy she's supposed to be 'childhood-friends-who-have-liked-each-other-for-years' with on every route but Vincent's....
I really liked this game's friendship moments and a lot of Idril's interactions with her father. The game's pacing was really good and I was impressed with the game's features! But I'm kind of conflicted about the romance routes themselves...
Thank you for the effort put into this game. I hope to see more from you!
Oh, and sometimes the game crashes with these errors. The former happens if I try to roll back before a choice, while the latter seems to happen at random when I try to start a new game. I played the game on a Mac, if that helps.
I haven't gotten these errors before from anyone, so thank you for posting these. I will have to take a look and see what's going on.
Thank you so much for taking the time to write this! I'm so happy that you enjoyed the game as much as you did.
I just wanted to answer a few things you brought up about the stats and the routes. For anyone else that might be reading this comment, this might get spoilery as well.
There are actually going to be direct sequels to this game at some point, and some of those stats that didn't have much of an effect on this current game are planned to carry over to the sequels and effect things there.
The overall story for DFU 2 picks up the following week, and the end of DFU 3 is a 4th of July weekend, so the stats are going to have a lot of opportunities to shine. It's just an unfortunate planning part on my end that they just don't affect very much in this first game.
And the same kinda goes for some of the route stuff you mentioned. While the sequels are still quite aways away, I already have quite a few scenes written that delve heavily into James' entitlement, Alexander's difference of life experience with Idril - as well as him getting over his ex and having confusing feelings about their situation after Idril kisses him, and... a lot of Brian's issues. Brian is... Well, he's a jerk, in the politest of terms, and his route isn't going to forget that.
I have definitely been trying to acknowledge their issues in the sequels where the story has more room to explore them.
I see what you mean with Vincent. That is probably due to some inexperience on my end when a lot of his stuff was worked on. I've already improved my skills a lot since DFU 1 came out, but I'll keep stuff like that in mind and make sure to keep improving for the next one to fix things like that. ^^
I'm really happy that you liked the Samson and OHWB routes. They're some of my favorite characters I've worked on, and I don't see a lot of people go for them nearly as much.
I'm also glad you liked the 3d modeling! That's not something I really hear much of ^^; That's another thing I've been working on improving in between the games, and I'm quite excited about how things are looking for the sequels.
Once again, thank you so much for taking the time to write this comment. I really truly appreciate you passing the game that much and I'm happy to get your feedback on it. Even though it won't be for a while still, I do hope that you'll give the sequels a chance when they come out. ^^
I'm glad to hear there's more to the series! James and Vincent could definitely use some more time to show off their relationship with Idril, and I'm always happy to hear there's going to be more Nathan and Samson content!
It kinda sounds like the games are super interconnected? Like, instead of being sequels to each other, it seems like it's the same story, split into different episodes or chapters, if that makes sense.
I'll be looking forward to what you do next, though!
I really had a fun time playing through this game. Had a buddy of mine to do voices with and record some videos for YT. It was really fun considering how we both don't usually get into visual novels. I wish we could have found out more about the mystery, though. Can't wait for the sequel.
Thanks so much for playing DFU!!
I actually found your YouTube videos sometime last weekend when I was googling something, and watched the three that were currently up. I really enjoyed watching them and I subscribed to the channel. :) I'm currently watching part 5 now.
Thank you for giving my game a shot! It means a lot to me!
Yeah, It was really fun playing through all of it. Thanks for giving us a watch!
Hello, I'm just curious because in the beginning of the game, in the tutorials, it says something about there being a second game and at the end of the game it leaves you confused and with something that obviously would be explained further in the second game. I have searched everywhere and there doesn't seem to be any explanation as to if you will be making a second game. So, because I enjoyed this game so much I would really like to know if you will be making one? Thank you.
There is a plan to make more games in this series! ^^ However there isn't a set release date for that as of yet. I'm also currently involved in a different project series that will most likely release before the next DFU installment comes out.
Thank you so much for taking the time to play through this game and enjoying it! ^^ I really appreciate that!
Does this game have any female romance options? I got it from the racial equality bundle but I'm not into men.
I'm sorry, while the character has friendship options with female characters - there aren't any female romance options in this game.
If you're looking for female romance options in the racial equality bundle, I did a search using the RandomBundleGame website that might be useful to you. ^^
thanks! I am sure this is a wonderful game, just not my cup of tea. Good luck!
I totally understand!! No worries! ^^
This is the first VN I've played in a few years and a really I had a lot of fun going through the different routes. I didn't quite find every achievement or CG in the end but I really enjoyed my time playing thanks!
I'm really glad that you enjoyed your time playing through DFU! Thank you so much for taking the time to play through it and letting me know about it!! ^^
It was my time to play this game for "it's NAP time" a little thing my community is doing as a way to give back to the developers, spreading the word about their games.
I'm not a huge fan of Visual Novels, but I can definitely tell this is one of the higher quality ones.
Thank you for playing it and sharing this with me! ^^ I totally understand that Visual Novels and Otome Games aren't for everyone, but I'm really honored that you and the other members in your community have taken time out of their day to do videos likes these!
I just wanted to say I also got this as part of the Racial Justice bundle and I'm glad I played it! I had a lot of fun getting to know these characters and I will be waiting excitedly for future installments and future projects from you!
Thank you! I'm really happy that you feel that way about the game and the characters!! ^^ I look forward to releasing more future installments and projects and i hope that you enjoy them as well! :D
I don't play many visual novels so I'm probably not the best person to give my thoughts on it but there was obviously a lot of hard work that went into making this and despite my making jokes, I actually quite enjoyed playing it!
Great work! :D
Thank you so much for sharing this with me! ^^ I really appreciate it and I enjoyed watching this video!!
You're very welcome! Well done for creating a very nice little game! :)
Hi there! I picked up this game as part of the Racial Justice bundle and had a really nice time playing it! I'm def going to check out the Harvey and Jordan spin off too. I did have a question about DFU though: is there a sort of 'true end' to the game that explains the, er, mysterious happenings of Moirai, or is it something you are hoping to cover later in the series? Just curious as I've completed the seven endings of the game but still have some unanswered questions. Thanks!
I'm really happy that you took the time to play through and get the seven endings! Thank you so much and I'm glad that you had a nice time playing it ^^
Those mysterious happenings will be addressed later in the series, however there isn't a set release date for that as of yet. I'm also currently involved in a different project series that will most likely release before the next DFU installment comes out.
I hope you enjoy Make It Last as well! I really had a lot of fun working on that short spin off for a game jam.
Thank you again! ^^
Hi your game is really cute! I just want to say I'm glad you included the black and white reading option even though it's a little gloomier than the nice pink my eyes just can't adjust to that color so I'm really thankful :)
You're welcome!! ^^ I personally used the black and white option back while I was developing the game, and I'm really glad to know that it helps others too!
Thanks for playing the game!!! I hope you enjoy it ^^
Hello…
Will there be an Android version in future…?Nevermind, you have it as a seprate product. I got this when a loved one gifted me the BLM hyper bundle…
I didn't even know you were on itch.
Unfortunately, it doesn't look like anything in the hyper bundle is Android compatible… So until I get a functioning PC, I'll have to play it in tiny bursts when I have access to some PC.
That's not totally true! I haven't found many yet, but look for A Normal Lost Phone! That one and it's sequel Another Lost Phone at least, are Android compatible.
Really?
I'll look into that. Thank you.
Still, there's 700(?)+ other games not Android compatible. I'm not too surprised, though, with PC being one of the four biggest gaming platforms.
Yeah it kinda sucks, I was hoping for more too. I just wish you could sort the games in the bundle by platform even, it's hard to know if there are more or not, that's just the only one I found on a quick search.
I've been seeing people use https://randombundlegame.com/browse to browse all of the games from the bundle. You can sort through the games with filters or even have it pick a random game out of the bundle. It seems that you can filter the list down to any games that include an Android platform too! https://randombundlegame.com/browse?categories=Game&platforms=Android
hi, i've been playing this and it's been a lot of fun! thank you for having it in the racial justice bundle.
i keep running into an error when trying to play HOH for a 2nd, 3rd or 4th time in a playthrough when i haven't joined the HOH team. here is the traceback for your reference. thank you!
File "script.rpyc", line 242, in script call
File "script.rpyc", line 261, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1.rpyc", line 66, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb7.rpyc", line 25, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb8.rpyc", line 23, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb9.rpyc", line 18, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb10.rpyc", line 13, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb11.rpyc", line 31, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb12.rpyc", line 13, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb13.rpyc", line 12, in script call
File "script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb13.rpyc", line 354, in script call
File "evt_activities.rpyc", line 265, in script call
File "evt_activities.rpyc", line 339, in script call
File "evt_activities.rpyc", line 354, in script call
File "evt_HoardOfHeroes.rpyc", line 15, in script
File "D:\Documents\Games\Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality\Destiny Fails Us A New Life\DFUANL-1.0.3-pc\renpy\execution.py", line 58, in check_infinite_loop
raise Exception("Possible infinite loop.")
Exception: Possible infinite loop.
While running game code:
Exception: Possible infinite loop.
Thanks for letting me know how you got the error! I don't currently have the game files on my current computer setup, but next time I hook up my external hard drive I'll look into it! ^^
This game is amazing! Its so hard to stop playing, its super addicting. I think the protagonist is a little ugly with her hair up, but other than that I have no complaints! I'm looking forward to finishing this game!
Hellllooooo my lovely cousin, I know you'll figure out which one I am 😘
I need to buy this game next week, and then I can get through it and impatiently wait for the next one 😆
I am so proud of you! I'll post another comment when I download it and then tell you how great it is!
On a serious note, I'm so excited to play it, you have been working on this for so long, ah, I just want to support all the work you've put into this!
Hi! I've just started playing, and I wanted to let you know I think you should add trigger warnings for parental abuse and suicidal thoughts to the game info page, as well as warnings for anything else that touches on that subject. I was able to take it in stride tonight, but I know people, myself included, who on worse nights would have adversely affected by those scenes without a warning. Anyway, thanks for your time!
Thank you for taking the time to write a comment. That's a great suggestion, and something that we should definitely do. I will update the page to reflect that soon.
I've had a wonderful time playing DFU and I'm certainly looking forward to whenever the next part will be coming out!
Aww, thank you so much for playing DFU! That made my day ^^
I was wondering if there was a CG guide, like the achievement list. I'm missing two of Vincent's (the bottom one on the left row and the and the third one on the right row) and it'd be nice to have a complete set :>
I went ahead and wrote up a quick CG guide for you! It's divided into sections just like the CG gallery is in game, and it has a description on how to unlock every CG.
Each description also links to a picture of the CG used for the preview in the CG gallery. This is just in case you need to visually compare the CGs in your gallery that you have/haven't unlocked with the descriptions in the guide. If you haven't unlocked the CG in the game yet, clicking the link for it in the guide will show you the CG.
You should've been able to unlock the bottom one on the left row (#7 on the CG guide for Vincent), if you unlocked the one right above it, the 3rd one on the left row (#5 on the CG guide for Vincent). I just did a fresh play through of Vincent's route going for the bottom left (#7) CG, as well as checking the code for unlocking that CG, and it unlocked in my copy. If you have trouble unlocking that CG after reading the guide and playing DFU again, let me know.Edit: I was looking at an older version by accident. The CGs for #5 & #6 have switched places since that version. I'm sorry!I hope this CG guide helps! Have fun with completing your set!^^
Oh wow, thank you so much for that! It really helps ^^. I'll definitely be able to get them now.
I just wanted to let you know that I made a mistake with the CG guide that I wrote up for you, and it has to do with the two CGs that you were missing. I was accidentally referencing an older version of DFU without realizing it when I wrote up the guide, and since that version, I had made an update where the left & right CGs on the 3rd row (#5 & #6) switched places. I'm a little embarrassed that I didn't realize it sooner, and I'm so sorry if I inconvenienced you at all. I just fixed the guide and wanted to let you know as soon as I could.
HI! I keep getting an error when trying to play HoH.
While running game code:
File "game/script.rpy", line 242, in script call
File "game/script.rpy", line 261, in script call
File "game/script/act1/evt_act1.rpy", line 63, in script call
File "game/script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb8.rpy", line 23, in script call
File "game/script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb9.rpy", line 18, in script call
File "game/script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb10.rpy", line 13, in script call
File "game/script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb11.rpy", line 31, in script call
File "game/script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb12.rpy", line 13, in script call
File "game/script/act1/evt_act1_date_feb13.rpy", line 11, in script call
File "game/evt_manager.rpy", line 226, in script call
File "game/evt_manager.rpy", line 411, in script call
File "game/evt_act1_spec_HomeEarly.rpy", line 169, in script call
File "game/evt_act1_spec_HomeEarly.rpy", line 184, in script call
File "game/evt_activities.rpy", line 339, in script call
File "game/evt_activities.rpy", line 354, in script call
File "game/evt_HoardOfHeroes.rpy", line 37, in script
Exception: Possible infinite loop.
Thanks for letting me know, I'll look into what's causing the error as soon as I can. ^^
Is this really a demo? Because i've seen that you have been working on this game for awhile and i would buy this if its completed
The game released a little earlier this year. ^^
Is it a full game? or the demo? Because if it is a full game can you send me the link to buy it
You can purchase the full game here or you can use the widget on the website here. After that, you'll be able to download the game for windows, mac, and linux. :)
Great! Thanks~ I bought it :D Also are you making a second game? Because on the tutorial it said skills are more important in the second game also can you send me a walkthrough? Also whats this about updating? Because it says error. Thanks for answering all my questions, you're great! :D
I hope you enjoy it! ^^ To make things easier to read, I'm going to break up my answers to your questions with a "---"
---
Yes, we are going to make a second game in the series. We're planning on making 3 games in the DFU series.
When you finish the first game, it will ask you to make a completion save file. This save file can be transferred into future games to affect how the story continues in the series. If you do not have a completion save file, you will be able to start the next game by making some quick choices that determine what happened in a previous game.
Each DFU game will have their own contained storyline, as well as some arcs that will continue throughout all three games. Kinda like if you reading a trilogy of novels.
---
I do not have a detailed walkthrough completed at this time, but I have a general tips page on my tumblr that will give you a basic idea on how to end up on a character's route. You can find that here.
If you are looking for help with achievements, there's a page here that has each achievement listed and how you unlock it. If you haven't completed the game yet, there will be possible spoilers on that page.
If you need specific help, feel free to email me at destinyfailsus @ gmail.com (remove the spaces) or messaging me on twitter @DestinyFailsUs. I'll reply as soon as I can ^^
---
When the game was released, I made some updates to fix things in the game. The version you downloaded should've been 1.0.2, which is the latest version of the game. That's why there's an error, there's nothing to update at the moment. :D
If I do fix anything else, you will be able to update it and play it via the Update button on the title screen. At the moment, I do not have any specific plans for an update.
If you were curious and wanted to see what was fixed in a previous update, or if I do update the game in the future, I post about what was changed in the game here.
---
Hopefully this answered some of your questions. :D
I hope you have an awesome weekend! ^^ Have fun playing Destiny Fails Us: A New Life ~ ^^