
Emily is Away
USA 201527.09 – 02.10, 12.00 – 22.00 @Katowice City of Gardens: 5 gallery
DEVELOPED BY: Kyle Seeley
PUBLISHED BY: Kyle Seeley
“Emily is Away” is a painful return to those first attempts at building quasi-romantic relationships on the Internet. Kyle Seeley’s visual novel simulates the AOL Instant Messenger – a prototype of ICQ, the Polish Gadu-Gadu and other early messengers. Using it, we try to get to know the titular Emily and keep the relationship alive, notwithstanding parting ways after high school. Despite the game’s minimalistic design and aesthetics, the author managed to capture the details and atmosphere of a bygone era. As a result, we can once again experience those unsettling butterflies in the stomach – regardless of the player’s identity.

Kyle Seeley
Video game designer and developer, interested in interactive media and multimedia experiences. Loves bright colors. Associated with the Boston indie game studio zapdot.