Ten Metre Tide
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
"One day in mid-December, I returned to the shores of Fort Colwyn to the curious realization that the town had been wholly evacuated."
A mixed media story about stories, storytelling, intertextuality, and canon building.
The era of border setting between the nation of Camden and its neighboring Maitland is long past. After nearly two centuries, just a single land dispute remains: Fort Colwyn, an insignificant island in the shared Bay of Fundy.
So insignificant, in fact, that neither country ever cared to seriously stake its claim.
But when a Maitlandish industry titan receives permission to use the island as an off-shore facility, a chain of events is set off which culminates in Fort Colwyn's final year of human settlement.
A third-generation Colwynite struggles to envision life outside the only home she’s ever known.
The ferryman’s daughter becomes an adult as the world of her childhood falls out of existence.
A Maitlandish oil heiress attempts to reconcile her past with her past and with her future.
Love, blame, memory, history. :: No love, no blame, no memory, no history.
Information:
- Ten Metre Tide is a kinetic novel presented as two interlocking cycles of vignettes.
- Features an original story, art, photography, embroidery, collage, and music by kazehai + ppilotco.
- While this program contains no explicit content, the story touches on mature themes and should be read with discretion by adults only.
- 20k words; about 1.5 hours runtime.
Team:
- kazehai: direction, story, photography, graphics, music, programming
- ppilotco: art direction, character design, illustration, embroidery, collage, programming asst.
Made in June/July 2025 for the Toxic Yuri VN Jam.
Thank you to Jane and Jakob for your early feedback.
Download
Install instructions
If you are running macOS and are unable to open the game, see Apple's instructions on opening Mac apps from unknown developers.
Comments
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i deeply enjoyed this. the way all the stories and accounts tie together immersed me in a way most vn's i've read haven't really achieved...i felt emotionally connected to every character but especially erica, as someone that also feels very outclassed by the way people speak around me haha. the ending sequence with all 3 of the girls was very striking, as well the sort of 1-way accounts. wonderful!
Haven't finished this VN yet (it's very charming though, I'm enjoying it a lot!), but I got jumpscared by one of the songs being an instrumental version of this old British folk song haha:
I did not expect to hear this song in here, it took me by surprise haha
Update: I absolutely loved this, what a beautifully written story. The writing style is so soft and pretty, the story unfolds slowly but not too slowly, it feels sombre but not too sombre, and the ending felt almost uplifting despite how much the girls go through. Loved the ending sequence with the three main heroines on the unedited backgrounds, and how it contrasts the contrast between the more whimsical collage backgrounds used earlier. I wonder if that's meant to show the characters have to move on, that their old lives have gone for good?
It felt dense with symbolism and the art direction is gorgeous, every single scene in this VN is so well-framed and beautiful. I liked it a lot, thank you so much for making it!
LITERALLY SO GOOD.... IT'S HONESTLY HARD TO EVEN PUT IT INTO WORDS... one of my favorites for sure!!!!!