A short game about the GDAnote from Tumblr, Illusionary Trauma has four anthropomorphic desserts — Giga Pudding, Lemon Pie, Hershey, and Pizza — explore an abandoned mansion. There are rumours about the mansion, such as a mirror that can trap you for all eternity. The four split up and you're given an option to choose which dessert to play as, so long as Hershey is last.
Tropes appearing in Illusionary Trauma include:
- All There in the Manual: The GDA and what it consists of is explained in the room that appears after the credits.
- Anthropomorphic Personification: The cast is desserts in human form.
- Artifact of Doom: Mentioned in the post-credits book as the final god item.
- Break the Cutie: Succeeds on three desserts, but defied by Hershey.
- Break Them by Talking: With a little help from the mansion.
- But Thou Must!: Giga cannot make chicken noodle soup no matter how many times you try.
- Dark World The inverse world.
- Fatal Flaw: Each route shows one for each dessert and how it affects them.
- Guide Dang It!: There are quite a few moments where even save scumming won't help solve something.
- Informed Attribute: Inverted Pizza is said to be "a horndog that can't keep it in his pants." This is not shown in-game.
- Let's Split Up, Gang!
- Multiple Endings: There are two true endings alongside the many bad ends.
- Narcissist: Lemon Pie.
- Nintendo Hard: Invoked. Especially in Pizza's route, which was designed to be frustrating.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: All the desserts that appear are called their nicknames by the other desserts. Justified, because they're friends.
- Pamphlet Shelf: A bunch of them appear in the library in Giga's route.
- The Pollyanna: Hershey.
- Rage Against the Heavens: Averted. There was no "god" for Pizza to take down with the pawns.
- Save Scumming: Encouraged in the opening.
- The Sociopath: Inverted Hershey.
- Take That, Audience!: The "currency" in the pause menu is girlfriends. It starts at zero and cannot be increased.
- Tomato in the Mirror: Giga Pudding is fake and her inverted self is the "real" pudding.
- Transparent Closet: Pizza is gay for Oreo Cheesecake, but he refuses to admit it.
- Your Mind Makes It Real: Most of what happens in the mansion didn't actually exist, as shown by Hershey's route. The hallway with a suit of armour is just a closet, the room with the pawns and king is just a room with a lot of tables, and the bakery is just a dining room.