Breathless Winds
A downloadable game
Breathless Winds is an LGBT Visual Novel about a trans woman discovering her gender, as well as true love, in an island-fantasy setting!
Dorman, a closeted trans woman, has just finished recovering from a sailing incident that left her bedridden when her grandmother encourages her to start a new career. All the while, she struggles with the expectations her parents left behind - of her as a sailor and as a man.
As she begins to settle back into her life, she finds that Two Elk Island isn’t as tranquil as she remembers; a group of poachers has begun to disturb the balance between humans and spirits.
Four Routes. Four Journeys of Self-Discovery
- The resident witch, Rue, seeks her help preventing calamity from befalling the island.
- The local healer, Lantana, can’t keep up with the influx of new patients caused by the worsening storms.
- A prince from faraway Castle Island, Valerian, offers to pay any price for the treasure he seeks.
- Dorman’s childhood friend, Gallardia, suggests she return to sailing, fulfilling her family legacy.
In addition to saving Two Elk Island and getting closer to a chosen partner, Dorman realizes she can no longer ignore her gender dysphoria. After reflecting on her past and what she wants for her future, Dorman comes out as Poppy, now using ‘she’ and ‘her’ pronouns.
Breathless Winds is a visual novel about gender, learning how to love yourself, and finding your place in the world. When the storms roll in, the person by your side will be more important than ever.
- 200,000+ words by an LGBT team
- 4 full romantic routes with 2 male and 2 female love interests
- A gorgeous painted style with retro pixel art backgrounds
- No bad endings, no lose conditions - choices are only for fun
- Multiple authentic LGBT characters alongside the protagonist, including two of the love interests also being tran
Gallardia is our heroine's childhood friend, a proud big brother to three younger siblings, and a beloved sailor of Two Elk Island. His 'boy next door' charm and hardworking demeanor have made him popular on Two Elk Island - by contrast, Poppy feels almost invisible. But, thanks to his warm attitude, she never feels left behind.
The pair first met when their parents, also close friends, introduced them. They became inseparable when Gallardia rescued Poppy from a certain bully, and grew up aiming to work as sailors together. As sailors in training, Gallardia was excited about documenting the changing islands and helping people in need, while Poppy was anxious about living up to her family's legacy.
When a sudden incident left Poppy bedridden, Gallardia was forced to continue working without her - and soon the two began to drift. As one of the primary caretaker of his younger siblings as well as the primary breadwinner, Gallardia is busier than ever; is he too busy to spend time with Poppy, and could they ever become more than just friends?
Lantana used to bully Poppy when they were kids, landing Poppy with the nickname 'mudshoes' after an infamous incident. Poppy was relieved at first when Lantana stopped showing up to school, but then grew worried for her as her absence continued. Search parties combed every part of the island, but came up with nothing - it was as if she vanished into thin air. So when Lantana returned without explanation years later, a changed person and the village's new healer, Poppy found herself drawn to her despite initial hesitation.
As the island's healer, Lantana creates potions and uses healing magic to tend to the injured - and she's been quite busy, as the storms continue to grow worse. She faces challenges head-on with a big smile and a little bit of stubbornness. Despite having turned over a new leaf, Lantana still likes to tease Poppy on occasion.
Even though she's integrated herself back into island life without incident, she's spoken barely a word about where she disappeared to and why. Will Poppy be able to clear the air between them and start their relationship anew?
Valerian is a household name - everyone knows the prince of the illustrious Castle Island, the "crown jewel of the sea." Despite his renown, however, he's been unable to find the help he needs to complete his critical quest to save the king's life. When he meets Poppy, he promises her great wealth if she assists him: countless jewels, priceless relics, and most importantly, the privilege of working by his side.
Valerian is arrogant and rude, and he claims he's had to set aside all weakness to become the heir to his throne. But Poppy learns that there's more to his passion than a desire for power, and she senses a heart of gold beneath his chilly exterior.
When Valerian's seemingly saccharine brother competes with him to complete his quest, the throne - and the fate of the sea - is in the air. Will Poppy and Valerian be able to save Castle Island before it succumbs to a terrible curse, and will he come to see her as more than just another servant in the process?
Rue appeared one day in the Forest of Crows - "raised from the dead", rumors said - and established herself as the island's resident witch. Delving deep into a forgotten dark magic, she allegedly uses her powers for the good of Two Elk Island, keeping its spirits in harmony and protecting nature against the growing storms.
Poppy's only experience with her was a chance encounter when Rue saved her from a rampaging spirit which had been angered by a group of poachers. Since then, Rue claimed she felt a unique power within Poppy and asked for her help preventing a great calamity from befalling Two Elk Island.
Rue is cold, mystifying, and rude, but she and Poppy nonethless form an instant emotional connection. Will Poppy be able to get through to her softer side and win her heart, or will the danger of their work be too much to handle?
Poppy is our heroine. As a transgender woman, she starts out not knowing she's trans, but realizes and comes out partway through the story. She appears in the demo using her birth name, 'Dorman', and he/him pronouns.
Poppy's parents were both legendary sailors who disappeared one day years ago, never to be seen again. Hoping to fulfill their legacy, Poppy became a sailor, herself, until an incident left her bedridden.
After a long recovery, Poppy finds that Two Elk Island has changed in her absence. She finds herself at a crossroads when Gallardia, Lantana, Rue, and Prince Valerian all ask for her assistance. Along the way, Poppy will discover her true gender, find love, and maybe even save her home.
About Us
Breathless Winds is being developed by ForeverFuture Games, a two-person studio made up by an artist and a writer. We're both great fans of visual novels and excited to be working on this game together. You can contact us directly at breathlesswinds@outlook.com
Status | Released |
Rating | Rated 4.2 out of 5 stars (39 total ratings) |
Author | breathlesswinds |
Genre | Visual Novel |
Made with | Ren'Py |
Tags | Amare, amaregame, Dating Sim, Fantasy, LGBT, Otome, Queer, Romance, Transgender, Yuri |
Average session | About a half-hour |
Languages | English |
Inputs | Keyboard |
Purchase
In order to download this game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $12 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Download demo
Development log
- Breathless Winds Is Out Now!May 31, 2024
- Breathless Winds Demo Changes, New Sprites + Progress UpdateMay 12, 2023
- Progress Update 2022/9/29Sep 29, 2022
Comments
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I want to leave a long, detailed, heartfelt comment that would sell a million people onto this game as it deserves, but for now I'll settle for something quick.
Poppy is a phenomenal heroine; I relate so deeply to her thoughts and feelings, and find that I'm always on her side no matter what. She's easy to empathize with and her moments of euphoria are truly contagious. Lantana and Valerian (the routes I've completed so far) both offered magical adventures that swept me off my feet. I deeply look forward to seeing what Gally and Rue have to offer. Every single character feels like a fleshed out person - even antagonists, who have their own motives and ways of seeing themselves as being in the right (though they're not, of course). And the way so many NPCs have their own gorgeous and diverse sprite art???? So much love and hard work has gone into Breathless Winds that it's palpable and bursting at the seams. It's a game that's truly worth the purchase price and more.
PS you can name a small creature anything you want and hear a character's customized feedback to your ideas
-------except 'Tuss' and 'Pentas', which lead to renpy error pages so maybe that'll be patched in due time --(update: it's fixed!) still, ANYTHING YOU WANT. Anyone who's played my previous work knows that's THE BEST thing you can put in a game, 10/10, game of the yearThank you so much for your kind words! We're so glad you're enjoying Breathless Winds. We will work on a patch for the naming bug -- we're grateful you brought it to our attention!
Wanted to let everyone reading know that the Tuss/Pentas naming bug is indeed fixed!!! Never been happier to have Valerian annoyed at me 😁😁😁😁
Commenting (again) for the algo, and also because y'all brought me to tears and will be billed for my emotional troubles expeditiously!!! 🤣On a more serious and grateful note, this is truly my favorite game of the year and I can't believe I almost missed out on this gem. Y'all did such a wonderful job and Poppy and the gang hold a special place in my heart.
We're so glad you enjoyed the game! Thank you for the kind comments!
finding out that patricia taxxon worked on this makes so much sense LMAO
We didn't work with Patricia at all, actually! We're fortunate that she allows others to make use of her music.
Oh of course she does, damn commie
i am so glad i trusted my gut on this game! one of my new favorites - changed my opinion on an entire genre
Thank you for playing our game! And we appreciate your review - Rue's route was something we poured a lot of our own feelings into, and we wanted to manifest a story we didn't see much in romance media. We're glad you enjoyed it!
Tumblr brought this lovely game to my attention and I just finished the demo not too long ago. I am super excited for the full game and I can't wait to get to know Rue and Gallardia better!
Thank you for the kind comment, we hope you enjoy the full game!
I happened across this game on twitter and it's beautiful! I love the painterly art style and pacing of the story. All of the characters have interesting dilemmas and I'm totally in love with Rue!! She has bewitched my body and soul...I appreciate the trans representation as well. I'm always happy to see characters with explicitly queer narratives and I'm excited to see Poppy's growth as a character. I'm looking forward to future development!
Thank you for trying Breathless Winds and leaving this kind comment! We're glad that you enjoy Rue- we had a lot of fun with her story and her design. Telling authentic queer narratives is a major motivation for us. We hope that you enjoy the full game upon its release!
I absolutely loved this demo! Every character feels so fully realized, and I am super excited to experience more of their stories. The world/culture seem wonderfully rich as well.
My only complaint is that the curtsey/bobble characters do when they start speaking can be a little distracting imo, but this is seriously a teeny, tiny complaint for a game I already love.
Thank you for the kind comment, we're happy you like the story so far!
The feedback on the animation is appreciated - in the future, we'll make sure there is an option to disable these things.
https://youtu.be/8bbn4so8ywQ
PLEASEEEE!! THIS WAS SO GOOD!!! when the Demo ended, I SCREAMED internally.
Every single character is fabulous, and I love all of them!!! The story-line is so intriguing, and I can't wait to see what you all do next!
We're happy you like our characters! Thanks for playing our demo!
aaaa i played the demo and it was so good! sad it ended so suddenly ksdjnfkjsdf i wanna see more of it!! excited for the final game!!
We're happy you enjoyed it! Thanks for playing!