History VisualNovel / VA11HALLA

* DevelopersForesight: You can't check messages in your apartment during Day 6, since you don't go into Jill's apartment. Should you somehow end up there anyway (most likely by cheating), [[BreakingTheFourthWall there's a series of messages from the developers which will taunt you]].

* WhamEpisode: The last customer on December 21 makes the story take a much different direction. [[spoiler:The customer is Gaby, the sister of Jill's ex-girlfriend Lenore. After a little bit of awkward small talk, Gaby informs Jill that Lenore is dead. As a result, Jill NeverGotToSayGoodbye after they broke up, with Gaby really not helping by saying that [[TheyDiedBecauseOfYou Jill breaking up with Lenore probably sped up Lenore's death]]. This sends Jill into a HeroicBSOD, and she spends the rest of the game trying to deal with her very conflicted emotional state.]]

* NeverGotToSayGoodbye: [[spoiler:Jill has been putting off closure for her explosive fight with Lenore for years. She learns the hardest way possible that she'll never get the chance to when Lenore's sister Gaby tells Jill that Lenore is dead, and it almost destroys her.]]

* PlayfulHacker: Alice_Rabbit, a parallel to Anonymous who vandalizes government pages and releases government files in the name of fighting corruption. Alma has some shades of this but mainly treats it as a job, and even rants early in the game about how Alice_Rabbit endeared the PlayfulHacker trope in the youth and made them want to hack to stick it to the man, when doing such a thing is not only very difficult but also incredibly dangerous. [[spoiler:It's subtly implied that Alma is associated with Alice_Rabbit in some way.]]

* ThePowerOfFriendship: Reconstructed. Jill's friends and confidants can't solve her problems for her, but when a DramaBomb goes off in Jill's life, they do all they can to try and make it a little easier for her to deal with it. Even with all of this effort, Jill has to take the initiative to recover on her own, though Jill's friends being there for her really helps her out. It ties into the CentralTheme of people looking out for each other in hard times.

* RidiculouslyHumanRobot: The Lilim, who are sentient, have human emotions and have skin that at least mimics organic skin well. The newer models are even stated to be completely anatomically correct.

** Gil and his "John" face which confuses him a lot, especially when brand new customers call him John unprompted.

* SelfDeprecation: While this future has Sukeban Games upgrade into Sukeban Soft, a prominent first-party developer of specialized gaming computers, the only franchises people know them for are Monster Girl RPG, Monster Girlfriend, Monster Companion, and Monstergirl Puzzle. During an interview, art designer-turned-janitor Kiririn 51 summarizes the company's current business plan is all too similar to how ''VA-11 HALL-A'' itself was marketed.

* ShooOutTheClowns: Jill notes at a certain point that the bar is being hit by a number of depressing stories and hopes Dorothy is the next customer that arrives. [[spoiler:Dorothy isn't the ''next'' customer that arrives, but she is responsible for giving a significant morale boost shortly afterward, making this only temporary]].

* SliceOfLife: The story does not focus on any major conflict in regards to the {{cyberpunk}} dystopian setting -- the closest we get is Sei having to deal with some of those problems as a member of the White Knights. Rather, the world is examined peripherally through the characters and their everyday interactions with each other at Valhalla, along with their reactions to major events in-universe.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: It leans towards the idealistic side, certainly more than a lot of other {{cyberpunk}} works. While the story doesn't shy away from the darker aspects of living in a dystopian cyberpunk setting like the one it's in, it's mostly played for BlackComedy. Instead, the CentralTheme is that most people -- even in a hellscape of corporate corruption, greed, and oppression like Glitch City -- are decent and kind once you get to know them. The story argues that people will look out for each other if given the chance, and focuses less on the setting at large and more on the characters involved in order to paint this picture.

* ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet: Inverted. One series of threads in an online forum Jill frequents features a bunch of rabid female *Kira* Miki fans dogpiling another user who claimed to be male.
* TheyDiedBecauseOfYou: Discussed. [[spoiler:When Gaby shows up in Chapter 2, she tells Jill that Lenore died because of a nanomachine rejection disease that gave Lenore a heart attack. While Gaby doesn't outright accuse Jill of murder, the fact that Jill broke up with Lenore just a few days before she died means that Gaby believes that Lenore and Jill's break-up contributed to her death. However, Jill staunchly refuses that she had anything to do with Lenore dying, saying that only now did she even learn that Lenore was sick. Either way, Gaby calls Jill an idiot and leaves, prompting Jill to go into a HeroicBSOD because she NeverGotToSayGoodbye.]]

* TruthInTelevision: Alma insists she's not a hacker, [[InsistentTerminology she's a "security consultant" who just happens to know how to hack into stuff]]. Such hackers really do exist, and are referred to as "white hats" in hacking communities, so named after the fact that the good guys in Wild West shows always wore white hats to signify them as such. White hats will be paid by companies to hack into their systems and/or find blind spots in their cybersecurity. That way, the company can patch the leaks or otherwise improve their security systems. The way that Alma describes finding these hypothetical blind spots is even [[ShownTheirWork accurate to real-life hacking]], albeit [[AndSomeOtherStuff with the more explicit details intentionally left out so the player can't try it]].
* WhamLine: When Gaby comes into the bar, [[DramaBomb the story begins taking a drastic turn]]. [[spoiler:When Jill asks how Lenore is doing, Gaby responds with "She's dead." Cue a very bitter conversation between Jill and Gaby that really messes with Jill's psyche and makes the story take a much more personal turn. Up until this point, Jill had largely been an impersonal vector through which the player could experience the world; after learning of her ex-girlfriend's death, Jill gets much more focus as a character.]]

You are Jill, a woman trying to make ends meet in this dystopia by working as a bartender at the VA-11 building's Hall-A, more commonly known as "Valhalla". It may be a seedy dive bar in a bad neighborhood, but despite that, it manages to draw the most interesting patrons. Or perhaps, because of that. Quench their thirst the way they want, and you can hear their stories, make new friends and most importantly, pay your rent for the month.

* CastFullOfGay: The main character is bi, with Jill having had at least one boyfriend and at least one girlfriend in the past. It's possible to get MultipleEndings, which might involve spending a lot of time with either men or women. A sex worker mentions that she works with multiple genders, and there's some very obvious same-sex flirting that can happen depending on drinks made and dialogue choices. [[spoiler:As learned in the gameplay, Jill's former lover was another woman named Lenore, who becomes TheLostLenore once Jill finds out that Lenore died after they broke up. The RelationshipUpgrade in the GoldenEnding is also between two women, if you played your cards right.]] Generally speaking, there's a lot of LGBT characters in this game, and Glitch City in general seems very accepting of gay relationships. Even the characters who aren't gay treat homosexuality as completely normal.

* CentralTheme: Forging connections, and the ways in which people try to look out for each other.

* DevelopersForesight: You don't check messages in your apartment during Day 6. Should you somehow end up there anyway (most likely by cheating), [[BreakingTheFourthWall there's a series of messages from the developers which will taunt you]].

* EvenEvilHasStandards: The Zaibatsu Corporation isn't evil, just greedy. They're only interested in becoming rich and continuing their profitable experiments, [[PragmaticVillainy and have no interest in causing mass suffering and death for its own sake]]. Thus, the corpos are horrified when they learn about [[spoiler:the White Knights' rampant corruption and their ties to various crime groups. After the White Knights' crimes are exposed to the public, the Knights attempt to take over Glitch City in response. When they do, the Zaibatsu Corporation activates the kill switch in the White Knights' power armor to prevent the incoming catastrophe, which paralyzes every White Knight in their power armor]].

* ExtinctInTheFuture: Dorothy is programmed to be phobic of chinchillas even though they're extinct.
* FantasticArousal: Dorothy notes that if someone recorded a detailed account of realistic hacking in a sexy voice, the Lilim would make them a millionaire. When Alma talks about hacking into a server, Dorothy gets so horny that she starts screaming about how hot it is in the middle of the bar.

* TruthInTelevision: Alma insists she's not a hacker, [[InsistentTerminology she's a "security consultant" who just happens to know how to hack into stuff]]. Such hackers really do exist, and referred to as "white hats" in hacking communities, so named after the fact that the good guys in Wild West shows always wore white hats to signify them as such. White hats will be paid by companies to hack into their systems and/or find blind spots in their cybersecurity. That way, the company can patch the leaks or otherwise improve their security systems. The way that Alma describes finding these hypothetical blind spots is even [[ShownTheirWork accurate to real-life hacking]], albeit [[AndSomeOtherStuff with the more explicit details intentionally left out so the player can't try it]].

* BenevolentBoss: Dana is this in spades, having rescued Gillian from whatever trouble he was in and giving him a home and a job, and generally making sure to look after her employees while being nothing but understanding. Dana even says that she considers Jill more of a friend than a coworker. [[spoiler:It's no wonder why Jill has a huge crush on her boss.]]
** Brian, the BTC Regional Manager, is this to Dana and by extension the rest of the staff. He has a good working relationship with Dana herself and goes out of his way to fight to keep the bar open for as long as possible as it is one of the only ones in his jurisdiction that doesn't give him any major headaches. Likewise, he is either accepting or at least looks the other way for Gillian's sordid past and tries to ensure that Jill and Dana will both have good employment after the bar closes.

* OhMyGods: Zigzagged. Whatever religions are going on in Glitch City, at least one of them has more than one deity. Various customers say "Oh gods!" or "Gods only know..." from time to time. The specifics of the religion beyond that are vague. Other characters also refer to "God" in singular, so it's likely different faiths.

* TruthInTelevision: Alma insists she's not a hacker, [[InsistentTerminology she's a "security consultant" who just happens to know how to hack into stuff]]. Such hackers really do exist, and referred to as "white hats" in hacking communities, so named after the fact that the good guys in Wild West shows always wore white hats to signify them as such. White hats will be paid by companies to hack into their systems and/or find blind spots in their cybersecurity. That way, the company can patch the leaks or otherwise improve their security systems. The way that Alma describes finding these hypothetical blind spots is even [[ShownTheirWork accurate to real-life hacking]], albeit with [[AndSomeOtherStuff with the more explicit details intentionally left out]].

* AntiFrustrationFeatures:

* AttentionDeficitOohShiny: Done as a gameplay element. Occasionally, when a new day begins, Jill will have something on her mind that she's fixated on. Buying a specific object on a shopping trip before work (such as a poster for her wall) will get rid of this feeling, keeping Jill focused. If the player doesn't buy the object or can't afford it, Jill might get distracted at work, which will negatively affect her performance as a bartender.

* CallForward: The game makes a number of references to Panama, where ''[=N1RV Ann-A=]'' will take place, and even mentions the bar itself.

* CentralTheme: How people will look after each other, if given the chance.

** Any drink with optional Karmotrine can allow you to fill the drink with as little or as much alcoholic content as you please and filling drinks to the brim with it will turn it into one and get your patrons smashed.

* AlanSmithee: [[invoked]]Most of the articles in The Augmented Eye are written under the pseudonym “Lana Smithee”.

* AlanSmithee: Most of the articles in The Augmented Eye are written under the pseudonym “Lana Smithee”.

* LoserProtagonist: Jill traded a fulfilling life, a steady girlfriend, and good future prospects for "freedom". For Jill, this translated to three years of living alone in a shitty apartment, within which she kills time drinking beer, browsing imageboards, mulling on her [[ChristmasCake sexual]] [[TheOneThatGotAway frustrations]], and holding conversations with her cat. In general, she has very little in the way of a social life beyond her work. Also, despite the {{cyberpunk}} setting, Jill is ultimately of no consequence to any of it. She's not some revolutionary, she's not a merc, and she's not looking to take down the MegaCorp that runs Glitch City. [[HeroOfAnotherStory She's just a woman trying to live her own life]].

* CentralTheme: Even in a dystopia, most ordinary people are decent individuals worthy of the time you need to get to know them. And such people will look after each other, if given the chance.

* AbsurdPhobia: The Lilim have their fears programmed completely at random. Dorothy, in particular, has a fear of dogs and chinchillas. The latter is especially notable as Jill and Dorothy both note that chinchillas are ''extinct'' in their time.

** With many recurring clients, you have two options: serving them what they asked for, and serving them something they frequently order based on their drinking habits. Doing either one will get you a Flawless Service bonus at the end of the day if you've been paying attention.

* CrapsackWorld: Glitch City, obviously. While corporations are given carte blanche to use the population as guinea pigs and the tyrannical Mayor QUINCY causes suffering with his every whim, food shortages are commonplace, hyperinflation has drastically increased commodities' prices ([[UsefulNotes/RamenAsDehydratedNoodles cup ramen]] is about $60 and the cheapest drink at the bar, a Gut Punch, is $80), many university graduates moving to other places that marked its brain drain, and the streets are home to large amounts of violence, either from thugs and gangs or the corrupt White Knights. Although Glitch City is stated to be especially bad, Dana states that Panama is in an even worse state. (The developers are from Venezuela, a country where things like food riots and street violence have become commonplace ever since the nation's economy collapsed, and drew much of their inspiration from their surroundings.)

* FutureFoodIsArtificial: Many alcoholic drinks, especially Beer, are cocktails of edible chemicals that can get you drunk rather than actual alcohol brewed from grains and/or fruits. Some off-hand mentions about actual food also show that the grocery shortages are severe, with things like chicken meat being a luxury item and people being allergic to shrimp being equal to risking starvation.

** The Zen Star, which is composed of four of every ingredient mixed together. It's considered absolutely revolting as a drink. This seems to be the case with any "Manly" drink.

* HandWave: It's mentioned that people get injected with nanomachines when they're born, but some babies undergo nanomachine rejection that could be fatal if not treated. The cure for this problem is to make them a Cat Boomer, essentially turning that person into a CatGirl. How does being turned into a human-cat hybrid fix the problem of nanomachine rejection? No explanation; it just does.

* HollywoodHacking: Averted, as explained by Alma. The way Alma goes about her explanation is a very realistic explanation as to how a hacker might gain access to a system. [[spoiler:The explanation left Dorothy a steaming, aroused pile of bolts, though.]]

* SliceOfLife: The story does not focus on any major conflict in regards to the {{cyberpunk}} dystopian setting -- the closest we get is Sei having to deal with some of those problems as a member of teh White Knights. Rather, the world is examined peripherally through the characters and their everyday interactions with each other at Valhalla, along with their reactions to major events in-universe.

* TheCameo: The game throws several references at ''VideoGame/ReadOnlyMemories'' (ads for Hassy Cola, a regional office of the Augmented Eye news agency, at least one off-handed mention of Neo San Francisco), but a series of cameos from [[spoiler: TOMCAT, Jess, and Lexi]] confirm that the games either take place in the same setting, or at least one is canon to the other, besides Dana's cameo in ''ROM''. Going beyond that, in said cameo, Dana tells the player of a drink that can be served in this game. Serving the Flaming Moai to [[spoiler: Alma, Stella and any other customer]] will make the aforementioned show up.
** [[spoiler: Lexi comes over to catch up with Dana, revealing she is now retired from the Neo-SF PD and giving a bit more backstory for Dana]].
** [[spoiler: TOMCAT is following the trail of Alice_Rabbit]].
** [[spoiler: Jess discusses the difference between hybrids and cat boomers with Jill]].
** You can also buy a toy version of Turing at one point.

* DevelopersForesight: You don't come back to your apartment during Day 6. Should you somehow end up there anyway (most likely by cheating), [[BreakingTheFourthWall there's a series of messages from the developers which will taunt you]].

* EvenEvilHasStandards: The Zaibatsu Corporation isn't evil, just greedy. They're only interested in becoming rich and continuing their profitable experiments, [[PragmaticVillainy and have no interest in causing mass suffering and death for its own sake]]. Thus, the corpos are horrified when they learn about [[spoiler:the White Knights' rampant corruption and their ties to various crime groups. After the White Knights' crimes are exposed to the public, the Knights attempt to take over Glitch City in response. When they do, the Zaibatsu Corporation activates the kill switch in the White Knights' power armor to prevent the incoming catastrophe, saving countless lives]].

* InterfaceScrew: Whenever Streaming-Chan appears, there are waves of Website/NicoNicoDouga text going across her face. Her theme song also overrides any jukebox music you've chosen for its duration. [[spoiler: You can summon them whenever you want by pushing j, k, l, i or p on your keyboard, and this is required for an achievement.]]
** [[spoiler: [[HauntedTechnology Anna Graem]] changes the textures for the bartending interface when she says she claims to interact with the environment.]]

* HeroOfAnotherStory: In many ways, ''VA-11 HALL-A'' is a story about a traditional Cyberpunk setting told through the lens of somebody who's of no consequence to ''any of it''. As the bartender of the local GoodGuyBar in one block of a mega-city, your clientele includes the PlayfulHacker Alma, the augmented HitmanWithAHeart Jamie, the White Knights resident TokenGoodTeammate Sei, and the DefectorFromDecadence [[spoiler:Virgilio]]. Your boss is the in-universe MemeticBadass Dana Zane, and your coworker is Gil, who has a MysteriousPast that implies he's actually rather dangerous. Most of the game is incidentally learning about these people as they come in for a drink, before they leave to go back to their story.

* LoserProtagonist: Downplayed with Jill. She traded a fulfilling life, a steady girlfriend, and good future prospects for "freedom". For Jill, this translated to three years of living alone in a shitty apartment, within which she kills time drinking beer, browsing imageboards, mulling on her [[ChristmasCake sexual]] [[TheOneThatGotAway frustrations]], and holding conversations with her cat. In general, she has very little in the way of a social life beyond her work. [[spoiler:Her boss and some of her clients-turned-friends help her get better over the course of the game.]]

* ThePowerOfFriendship: Reconstructed. Jill's friends and confidants can't solve her problems for her, but when a DramaBomb goes off in Jill's life, they do all they can to try and make it a little easier for her to deal with it. Even with all of this effort, Jill has to take the initiative to recover on her own, though her friends being there for her really helps her out. It ties into the CentralTheme of people looking out for each other in hard times.
* RidiculousFutureInflation: A Beer in Valhalla will run you $200 (keep in mind that's not even a ''real'' beer) and in various TV Advertisements in the background, you'll often see $60 Ramen Cups, [[JustifiedTrope although the economy is stated to be in the shitter, not unlike the developer's home country of Venezuela.]]

** Every time Jill ends up talking with someone outside the bar, she asks if they want a cigarette. ''Every single person she does this with'' will say something to the effect of "No, I don't smoke, but I won't stop you if you want to."

** Jill trying to hold in a snicker every time a customer orders a Bad Touch.

* SliceOfLife: The story does not focus on any major conflict in regards to the {{cyberpunk}} dystopian setting -- the closest we get is Jill coming to terms with some of her past mistakes. Rather, the world is examined peripherally through the characters and their everyday interactions with each other at Valhalla, along with their reactions to major events in-universe.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: It leans towards the idealistic side, certainly more than a lot of other {{cyberpunk}} works would. While the story doesn't shy away from the darker aspects of living in a dystopian cyberpunk setting like the one it's in, it's mostly played for BlackComedy. Instead, the CentralTheme is that most people -- even in a hellscape of corporate corruption, greed, and oppression like Glitch City -- are decent and kind once you get to know them. The story argues that people will look out for each other if given the chance, and focuses less on the setting at large and more on the characters involved in order to paint this picture.

* TheBartender: Obviously the main premise of the game is being this to the colorful cast of people that stream in and out. Expanded upon when it turns out that Jill has some serious issues of her own, to the point where Alma even makes the two of them switch roles to listen to Jill's own problems.

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Stella reveals that the Zaibatsu Corporation isn't evil, just greedy since they're only interested in becoming rich and continuing their profitable experiments. Thus they are horrified [[spoiler:when they learn about the White Knights' rampant corruption and their ties to various crime groups. After the White Knights' crimes are exposed to the public and the Knights attempt to take over the city in response, the Zaibatsu Corporation activates the kill switch in the White Knights' power armor to prevent the incoming catastrophe]].
* EveryoneIsBi: It may be a cyberpunk dystopia, but the general public at least seems a lot more accepting of homosexuality. Many characters in this game spend time openly flirting or crushing on people of the same sex. Jill herself is bisexual, having had boyfriends and at least one girlfriend, and currently has an obvious crush on her female boss. Depending on player choice, Jill can outright admit to either Dana or Anna that she'd have sex with Alma if given the chance. Homosexuality still has a stigma attached to it by older people however, as it's said Lenore was disowned by her mother for being gay simply because her high-society friends didn't agree with the thought of it. Also, while apparently being accepted, being transgender seems to be still quite unique, as Alma struggles a bit with having a trans brother.

* HandWave: It's mentioned that people get injected with nanomachines when they're born, but some babies undergo nanomachine rejection that could be fatal if not treated. The cure for this problem is to make them a Cat Boomer, essentially turning that person into a CatGirl. How does this fix the problem of nanomachine rejection? No explanation; it just does.
* HeroicBSOD: Jill goes into one in Chapter 2 after [[spoiler:learning that her ex-girlfriend Lenore is dead]]. It really doesn't help that Jill blew up at a customer during the same shift after being accused of [[TheyDiedBecauseOfYou getting someone killed]].

* HollywoodHacking: Averted, as explained by Alma. [[spoiler:The explanation left Dorothy a steaming, aroused pile of bolts, though.]]

* OhMyGods: Whatever religion is going on in Glitch City, it has mroe than one deity. Various customers say "Oh gods!" or "Gods only know..." from time to time. The specifics of the religion beyond that are vague.
* OutOfFocus: The game starts with a small plot point where VA-11 HALL-A is being considered for part of a blanket downsize by its parent company BTC in an effort to curb alleged money laundering. Outside of a handful of conversations referring towards it, [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse the issue is never resolved]].

* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: It leans towards the idealistic side, certainly more than a lot of other {{cyberpunk}} works would. While the story doesn't shy away from the darker aspects of living in a dystopian cyberpunk setting like the one it's in, it's mostly played for BlackComedy. Instead, the CentralTheme is that most people -- even in a hellscape of corporate corruption, greed, and oppression like Glitch City -- are decent and kind once you get to know them. The story argues that people will look out for each other if given the chance, and focuses less on the setting and large and more on the characters involved in order to paint this picture.

* TechnicianVersusPerformer: {{Discussed}}: some patrons ask why Jill doesn't [[FlairBartending add theatrics to her serving drinks, like tossing and catching her mixer]]. She explains that it wouldn't really improve the quality of the drink and it would also take more time than simply making and serving them. She also mentions a NoodleIncident where someone got injured from it.
* ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet: Inverted: one series of threads in an online forum Jill frequents features a bunch of rabid female *Kira* Miki fans dogpiling another user who claimed to be male.

* WhamLine: When Gaby comes into the bar, the story begins taking a drastic turn. [[spoiler:When Jill asks how Lenore is doing, Gaby responds with "She's dead." Cue a very hard, very bitter conversation between Jill and Gaby that really messes with Jill's psyche and makes the story take a much more personal turn.]]

* BenevolentBoss: Dana is this in spades, having rescued Gillian from whatever trouble he was in and giving him a home and a job, and generally making sure to look after her employees while being nothing but understanding. It's no wonder why Jill has a huge crush on her.

** Averted in one told story where Jill reveals she had talked to a Lilim before the cloud who was on his last moments and terribly scared about it due to not leaving anything behind.

* ChekhovsGun: On the third day, Stella will mention undergoing a procedure that turned her into a CatGirl because of Nanomachine Rejection. Had Stella not gone through it, she would have died. [[spoiler:Later on, Jill finds out that nanomachine rejection is what killed Lenore due to a heart attack.]]

** Bad Ending: Obtained by failing to pay your rent. [[spoiler:Jill is evicted from her apartment and moves in with Alma, who cuddles her to sleep every night. The achievement received for it is titled [[MarshmallowHell Cozy Hell]]]]

* NewGamePlus: Unlocked by getting an ending. You carry over all money and unlockables from previous playthroughs, which means that you're likely not going to worry about paying off debts or Jill getting distracted.

* NoPeriodsPeriod: Double subverted. Dorothy will once ask for a Bleeding Jane to celebrate "that time of the month". Jill asks if she really means what the phrase implies (since Dorothy is a Lilim, not a human), but the answer is no.
-->'''Jill:''' Then what time of month is it?
-->'''Dorothy:''' [[NonAnswer The time when I feel like drinking a Bleeding Jane.]]

* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: Twice in a row on Day 10. [[spoiler:Virgilio's Bad Touch order, which usually cracks Jill up, doesn't even get a chuckle out of her. This is because Jill is still going through a HeroicBSOD after finding out about Lenore's sudden death. Clearly realizing that something is wrong, Armandio drops his usual pseudo-philosophical attitude and calmly tells Jill that she needs to be prepared to forgive herself, or it will leave a hole in her that will never heal.]]

* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: It leans towards the idealistic side, certainly more than a lot of other {{cyberpunk}} works would. While the story doesn't shy away from the darker aspects of living in a dystopian cyberpunk setting like the one it's in, it's mostly played for BlackComedy. Instead, the CentralTheme is that most people -- even in a hellscape of corporate corruption, greed, and oppression like Glitch City -- are decent and kind once you get to know them, and that they'll look out for each other if given the chance.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: It's mentioned at the beginning of the game that Valhalla is close to having its doors close for good. The player is never shown the fate of the bar by the end of the game, leaving it ambiguous whether or not the bar escaped closure.

* YouMeanXMas: Christmas is now Mega Christmas in this universe. Festivus is also celebrated and it's no different from how it is in ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}''.

* BittersweetEnding: The GoldenEnding, obtained by paying Jill's rent on time every time. [[spoiler:Jill and Dana undergo a RelationshipUpgrade and take a vacation to Panama. Lenore is still dead, but Jill is MovingBeyondBereavement and reconciling with Lenore's sister Gabriella. While Jill still isn't completely over it and speculates that she probably never will be, there's the implication that things are going to get better.]]

* GoldenEnding: You get the good ending of the game by paying Jill's rent on time, every time. [[spoiler:Jill and Dana (who are now dating) go on a vacation to Panama, Gaby and Jill reconcile about Lenore's death, and it's implied that the hole in Jill's heart is beginning to heal.]]

** Good Ending: Obtained by paying your rent on time, every time it's due. [[spoiler:Jill and Dana (who are now dating) go on a vacation to Panama.]]