TERMINAL/SHELL_
A downloadable visual novel for Windows, macOS, and Linux
"Thank you for downloading Polyco v0.94a [English edition]! Polyco is an ukagaka by sankaku-ru released in 2002 for the Windows 2000."
A short kinetic novel centring a conversation between an ukagaka and her programmer about a strange dream, advancements in AI and what it means to be human.
—Although, sometimes a conversation is just a conversation. It really has no inherent depth nor meaning.
~8k words, 30-45 minutes
Made for Robotic Romance Jam 2025
Credits
23noko: story, programming, ui
dumbslime: character design, sprites, cgs
Full list of credits for other assets can be found in the credits.txt file.
Content Warnings
This game is for adults only. While it does not contain explicit sex, it contains nudity and erotically written situations, as well as content which may be upsetting to some.
The full list of content warnings can be found in the dropdown menu below or in the WARNINGS.txt file with the game.
Both lists contain spoilers.
Furthermore, it contains visual effects which may cause eye strain or epilepsy in some.
Full list of content warnings
This game contains depictions of physical violence and abuse, body horror, mental degradation and murder.
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Comments
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Smiles. I opened this then checked the character count on the game page.. The computer started singing to me, and it made me smile. It's always my favorite thing about computers- that they can sing to you.
This made me sad. I always get kind of sad at the pushing of desktop pets beyond what they are meant to be so the ending hit me even harder.
The art is really delightful, beautiful. I was surprised by parts of it. The main character really does scream ukagaka and the art direction itself is very solid and beautiful. Kleisinky LOOKS FANTASTIC. Truly adore it every CG and sprite in this work.
Thank you for creating a work for Roro Jam! A VN on this subject was not on my list of possibilities so it really surprised me (pleasantly!)
Absolutely captivating. This hurt me good. I feel simultaneously pained for Polyco and attacked for anthropomorphizing her. The writing of that sequence later in the story was so beautiful… just wow. The art was also achingly adorable, the whole presentation was immaculate. This is really special, well done!!
really strong!! the story is really tight and well done, not to mention how stylish the aesthetics are. made my heart ache
I really enjoyed how this all played out. Very interesting way of looking at how people personify artificial things or what consciousness means to them. Very cool work!
This is amazing, in terms of good topics, the flow of plot is smooth, the show of personality was awesome and the deep dive of how things are the way they are is very interestingly intriguing yet true.
The life of a digital lifeform such as AI bot, Desktop Pet and the likes has been something to be look at in a better introspective detail lens and it always fascinates me on how one becomes more than what they are.
The art style is absolutely a vibe! The 2000s really hitting my old souls with the addition of the old window start up sounds as well. Just amazing all around!
The horror prospect blown my mind away of how I could feel my gut twist watching Polyco existence and the dynamic between Mama is well depicted.
All around, such an interesting thing and I love these kinds of subject. Makes you really think.
P.S. My heart hurts for Polyco. :((
~ ♥
Really like how this flows. The experience transforms very organically, through serious discussions about the humanity of artificial beings followed by a surreal depiction of intimacy for a digital lifeform. The presentation is fantastic, too… It’s also nice to see the idea of “directly simulating the physical processes of a human brain” as a form of artificial intelligence that contrasts genAI and LLMs. It’s perhaps through such a paradigm that we can imagine our creations as worthy of love. Also also, Polyco is cute.
thanks for reading! writing the two different sections felt very different, with the first half sort of trying to meditate between two different perspectives of ai, and the latter half sort of just being a stream of consciousness ramble. also yes, polyco is cute =w=
This was an absolutely adorable game. I loved the undertones of Polyco's desperation for love and Kleisinsky's indifference to her feelings. The growing unsettling feeling that felt like prickles and horror was also really well written.
The visual aesthetics reminded me of old series like Chobits (which I have been recently rewatching actually) and DigiCharat. It's a 2000s atmosphere through and through but also implements current affairs like the rise of AI and how its currently affect the average human.
I absolutely loved this, thank you for making it!
thanks for reading! the work definitely didn't start at as a horror piece but i think just... somehow ended up becoming one while i was writing, so i ended up trying to lean into that more ^^;
i was very happy to work with dumbslime, as she *really* specialises in that old 2000s anime aesthetic both in terms of art and character design!
I loved Kleisinsky typing to Polyco in thru the terminal window ^^ The vast sky background really gives off a creator/god speaking to their creation aura~ Kinda divine and nostalgic like early 2000s PC wallpapers (´⊙ω⊙`)！！！
Polyco feels so emotionally needy yet human-like, she’s adorable and full of life, while Kleisinsky stays serious and grounded. Their contrasting views on humanity were fascinating: that clash between her innocent, hopeful AI idealism (like how desktop companions might idolize or worship their owners) and harsh human realism.
It’s so real tho…
spoiler
Having Polyco as this naïve ukagaka who steps into the human world just to evolve beyond being a simple program that taps deeply into themes like AI sentience, digital transcendence, and wanting to break free from confinement.
And omg the way it turns to horror really got under my skin lolol. That psychological unease from sentient dependency and blurring the lines between code and consciousness hits hard!
This was an amazing read, so smart, emotional, and thought-provoking. Honestly, it will leave me thinking for days!!
I honestly screamed when I heard you two collaborated!! I love the nostalgic sprite work from dumbslime SM!! <3 Honestly thought this would be just a cute game cause I saw the thumbnail, but it went so far and beyond!! Peak media as always, 23noko！！！ Your writing is incredible. (⸝⸝⸝°꒳°⸝⸝⸝) <3
thank you so much for reading!! ^^ it was very fun working with slime and i was honored that she was willing to contribute her art! >:3
the contrast between polyco and klei was sort of reflective of my own conflicted feelings with my affinity to robot/robot-adjacent characters in media and the reality of how i would actually be skeptical of an intelligent ai. it was interesting trying to reason between those two aspects and im glad it made for an interesting read!
this is a really interesting piece that facilitates nostalgia to anyone who grew up in the early 2000s, and/or has experience with being an otaku using windows xp/98 of that time. you both really nailed the aesthetics of that era. despite the game being set in the (sort of?) distant future, it has a lot of commentary regarding the time period it was released in (the 2020s). i laughed when the stuff regarding genAI came up. very topical lol.
robot stories always like to touch on the subject of "what it means to be human", and terminal shell is no different. the way it handles this subject is nearly erotically unique, which had me grinning from ear to ear.
an all around enjoyable read, thank you very much for sharing :)
thank you for reading! tbh i feel like i kind of jumpscared people by advertising the game with 2000s visuals and having it be about current trends in ai lol. im also very glad you enjoyed the second act! it was the most fun section to write! >:3
human computer interaction and the exploration of existentialism alone had me glued the whole way through. this complimented with the amazing artwork that reminds me of the personification of software from the early 2000's was a match made in heaven and i urge everyone to experience it themselves ^-^
thanks for reading! im glad that the discussion in the first act wasn't too boring and complimented the visuals well
This is so good.
This is peak science fiction, a work that uses the lens of the future to talk about contemporary societal/technological issues just as much as it talks about bigger picture ideas such as the human condition.
And oh, does Terminal/Shell_ do a good job at that. The conversation between the two leads alternates between character study and "The Measure of a Man" debate about what qualifies as human. And once we get a view into the rather opaque feelings of the programmer...
The attention to detail with scripting is also very appreciated-- the back and forth between user and program in the first act really added to the charm just as much as Polyco's cute expressions.
thank you for reading! im happy that it holds up as a scifi work as i'm someone who's read a lot of classic scifi, but admittedly not a lot of of contemporary scifi! scripting was by far what i spent most of my time doing too, so i'm glad the detail in that is apparent too ^^