This is based on opinion. Please don't list it on a work's trope example list.
For a game that starts off with you chasing the principal's dog around the school, it has some pretty sad moments:
High School Life
- Due to Deborah's manipulation, Candy becomes a target of the rest of her classmates during Episode 16. Not only does Castiel tell her that he never wants to talk to her again, but the whole school- including her closest friends- are ignoring her for something she didn't do. Even Nathaniel, who knows she's innocent, refuses to help her, thanks to what happened last time he tried to tell everyone about Deborah.
- Even if you don't care for Nathaniel as a love interest, his home life (as fully revealed in Episode 23) will bring tears to your eyes. Nathaniel's dad is physically and emotionally abusive, venting his frustrations with his work situation out on his son. Nathaniel's mother is aware of the abuse, but prefers to look the other way. Amber doesn't know what's going on, which means Nathaniel is isolated within his own home. And when Candy finds out about all this, Nathaniel rejects her attempts to help him, telling her that he will never forgive her if she goes through with calling the police.
- Episode 31 shows the aftermath of the car accident: Lysander has lost his memory of all the times he's spent with your Candy, which has the side effect of letting him remember his former crush on Rosalya. He's also forgotten about his father's recent health troubles, and since no one wants to stress him out and potentially make his condition worse, Candy is forced to play along with everyone.
- If you're on Nathaniel's route during Episode 32, he'll open to Candy regarding his feelings about his mother's role in the abuse, namely that he wishes she would try to help and emotionally support him.
- Alexy and Armin's fight during Episode 36 is pretty upsetting to watch, considering how close they are. Both are convinced they were right, Armin just wants the truth about their biological parents, while Alexy is incredibly upset and feels like Armin is betraying their family. It's easy to see where both of them are coming from.
- In Episode 37, Kentin screams at your Candy when she tries to stop his self-destructive rebellion. Considering he's never raised his voice at her like this until now, it makes her realize that much as she wants to help him out, she's helpless in this case. It's even more upsetting if you're on his route.
- Episode 38 expands upon Kentin's life at military school and Evan's backstory:
- Kentin can't keep up with everyone else due to being out of shape. Coupled with his nerdy appearance, this leads his peers to ostracize him to the point of tears. When he calls his father, Giles simply hangs up on him. And all of this is just a sample of what he went through; he hints that there are worse things that was done to him that he can't bring himself to tell Candy, not even if she's his girlfriend.
- Evan lost his whole family at the age of ten, and was sent to a harsh military school, where he was bullied severely and even raped. He developed his reckless and inconsiderate behavior as a way to cope with all of this trauma.
University Life
- Depending on your choices during the tutorial, Candy will mention that she and her high school boyfriend broke up during the time she was away from the city. The next episode expands on this: due to a combination of poor communication and too much distance, she lost contact not only with her beau, but with her other high school friends as well. It's a sad reflection of how long distances can kill even the strongest bonds in real life.
- When Candy meets up with Alexy again, he tells her that Armin is working far away for some IT company and barely remembers to show up for family reunions. If your Candy previously dated him, she'll note that it's very sad to see Armin distance himself, not only from her, but from his own brother too.
- If you're on Priya's route during Episode 13, Candy worries about potential homophobic harassment before their official first date. And unfortunately, her worries prove to be justified; while waiting in line, Candy slips her hand into Priya's, and pretty much right after, some jerkass shouts a lewd question at them. Priya takes care of the situation, but the incident spooks both her and Candy. They still watch the movie, but Candy thinks to herself that there may not really be a place for them together.
