The Coffin of Andy and Leyley, an indie sensation that dominated Twitter last fall, isn’t your typical horror game with jump scares. It’s psychologically disturbing, unnerving, and occasionally quirky.
Nevertheless, its controversial content sparked heated debates online, drawing both detractors and fans into discussions about taboo themes in art.
So, what has rattled everyone?
The Coffin of Andy and Leyley, created by Nemlei with Kit9 Studio, is a visual novel-like game. The game features an incestuous relationship born out of an unhealthy codependency between the titular siblings- Andrew and Ashley Graves. This has sparked online backlash as people have accused the creator of fetishizing incest. Allegedly, Nemlei has retreated from all online spaces due to the harassment.
What Is The Coffin of Andy and Leyley?
The Coffin of Andy and Leyley, a self-described ‘walk-n-talk’ adventure game, blends visual novel elements with puzzle gameplay.
Created by artist and writer Nemlei, with production assistance from Kit9 Studio, the game revolves around the survival of siblings Andrew and Ashley Graves in their quarantined apartment.
Desperation drives them into a harrowing journey marked by paranormal encounters, cannibalism, and murder.
Ashley’s assertiveness often leads to dire consequences, as her selfishness, insecurity, violent tendencies, and indifference to others become evident.
Amidst the chaos, the game delves into the complex dynamics of their relationship, marred by trauma and codependency.
Why Is The Coffin of Andy and Leyley Controversial?
One specific scene, or rather a dream scene, has caused this Andy and Leyley game to go viral.
In the game, after the brother-sister duo sacrifice the souls of their mom and dad to a multi-eyed monster. Then, Ashley solves a vision puzzle and gets a prophetic dream about her brother Andy.
It’s revealed that Ashley has always felt unhappy about her life. So, from a young age, she replaced everything and everyone with the one person she loved and could depend on- Andy.
This leads to her getting another vision where the future is shown. We see the siblings in bed after sexual intercourse. Andy feels mortified after sleeping with his sister, while Ashley implies otherwise.
After this vision or dream, Ashley is disturbed by the implication of it while Andy blushes. When the players choose Ashley as their character, they have two options.
One is to tell Andy they would never sleep together, and the other is that Andy should “never say never.” As in, the option can’t be discarded. If you choose the second option, Ashley says: “I honestly figured it would happen eventually.”
The Backlash Against The Game
The dream segment in the game is unsettling yet oddly arousing. Some players embraced it as an artistic exploration of the complex psychosexual dynamics among obsessive siblings and family’s impact.
However, it occasionally blurs the line between artistic appreciation and fetishism within the fandom. Many people have said that the r/CoffinOfAndyAndLeyley subreddit is mostly incest porn.
User cyberseed-ops said:
“Sadly, its all the game’s gonna be known for, though most of the fandom probably came from hearing about that, so its either it stays niche forever despite having great writing, or be known as a game for weirdos and losers yet have a decently sized fanbase.”
But, irrespective of how the fandom has interpreted the game, the original intent seems to be to explore the issue of incest without sexualizing it. The vision even shows how unhealthily co-dependent Ashley and Andy’s relationship is.
So, the siblings’ relationship veers into one of sexual partnership because they only have one another to lean on. Also, these two sacrificed and ate their parents. Suffice it to say, they aren’t mentally well.
As such, incest as the next step seems logical in this effed-up relationship. But, the backlash against the game has been severe.
Unfortunately, as per Kit9, creator Nemlei left every online space in November, presumably due to the negative attention directed towards them. Kit9 wrote (via Steam):
“The best way to show your support is by focusing your discussions towards the game, and not the developer. There will be no communications or information forwarded to the developer from this point onward. They are choosing to remain completely in the dark, and to continue their work happily offline.”
You can play The Coffin of Andy and Leyley by purchasing the game on Steam for $9.99.
What do you think of the game? Do you believe the controversies surrounding it are valid? Is the game itself fetishizing incestuous relationships?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Steam
