Painting Werther Review: So I cry and I beg for you to love me love me

Lovelorn. Unrequited love. Limerence. Love sick. It may have many names, but the all-encompassing feeling of unbearably powerful attraction is singular in its ability to swallow the victim whole. An emotion that may be strangely foreign to some but sadly familiar to others, anyone can see that this unchecked obsession is truly terrifying. Yet, like many primally potent emotions, it not only strikes a nerve but stands the test of time, known instances going back as far as the creation of man’s first recorded passages. One such literary example of runaway limerence is Goethe’s 1774 novel The Sorrows of Young Werther, a story so popular and compelling that even Napoleon Bonaparte was said have read it at least seven times, a copy always with him on his person. Of course, this is the very same story that is notoriously banned in several countries, a slew of unfortunate copycat events taking place after the reader finished the woeful tale…

It’s this Goethe novel Mad Cream Games brings to life for a new generation of readers in Painting Werther, a visual novel where players must paint their way through young Werther’s sorrows as they unfold on-screen. Amusingly released on Valentine’s Day (February 14, 2023), Painting Werther is described on its Steam page as “a Paintable Visual Novel where all the visuals are living paintings and all the music are classics (with a twist).” With a launch price of $12.99 and a playtime of around 2 hours, Painting Werther proves that Goethe is highly regarded to this day for a reason, the gamified version of his work both an enchanting and abhorrent look into the mind of a limerent fool.

True to its roots, Painting Werther follows the story of a young man, Werther, writing to his friend Wilhelm. In his letters, he bares the entirety of his soul without pause or omission of any detail, no matter how inconsequential or personal Wilhelm (or the reader) may feel said details to be. Having moved to a small rural village to escape a messy love affair, Werther finds himself almost immediately sniped by Cupid’s arrow when he lays eyes on Charlotte, a beautiful young woman romantically involved with another. Although Werther and Charlotte enjoyed a brief will-they-won’t-they, it ended the moment her love, Albert, returned from overseas to be reunited with his dear companion. Although Werther recognized his dream of wooing Charlotte had come to an end, he soon found himself unable to pull away, his lovesickness developing from somewhat mild to ultimately terminal.

As Werther was an artist before stricken with his obsessive affliction, Painting Werther pays homage to his craft by allowing the player to interact with an entire library’s worth of classic works from famous artists such as Van Gogh, Renoir, Seurat, and many, many more. The paintings chosen depict Werther’s emotions and mental state as the words he pens to Wilhelm scratch across the screen, from gorgeous tributes to feminine beauty characterizing Charlotte to increasingly ill-defined renditions of a man as Werther loses his grip on his sanity. All of this, by the way, is perfectly paired with select classical music tracks, allowing players to immerse themselves in not only the unfolding story and art but Werther’s time period as well.

Having only a surface-level familiarity with the original Goethe work, Painting Werther does a fine job of making the piece accessible to those who haven’t read the 1774 classic. Although quite a bit of text was omitted, Painting Werther tells the story of Werther competently — in fact, it’s easy to get bowled over by the overwhelming onslaught of his powerful emotions. By the end of the game, I found myself in a somewhat agitated mood, shellshocked by the tsunami of words and abrupt conclusion. Painting Werther may only be about 2 hours, but I guarantee you that, by the game’s end, you’ll feel as if you’ve been playing for a lifetime.

I don’t have any real complaints when it comes to Painting Werther; everything the developers set out to do, they did it very well. I personally felt that the introduction was perhaps a bit too long, but that’s a qualm I have with Goethe’s pen and not the dev team’s per se. Additionally, I felt that there was an adequate amount of gameplay portions, although I think there could have been perhaps a few more to really give the game a true interactive feel. All of these comments are, naturally, purely subjective, and shouldn’t deter anyone even remotely interested from playing this fantastic title.

Painting Werther is a gorgeous deep dive on a classic novel depicting the dangerously obsessive emotion that is limerence. It stays true to Goethe’s message while enhancing the immersion with beautiful paintings and stunning music. Although it may be on the shorter side, the experience should not be measured in hours, but impact — and Painting Werther makes a powerful impact. If you’ve ever wanted to feel well-read while still getting your gaming in, Painting Werther compells you to show it some love.

Final Verdict: 4/5

Available on: PC (Reviewed); Publisher: Mad Cream Games; Developer: Mad Cream Games; Players: 1; Released: February 14, 2023; MSRP: $12.99

Full disclosure: This review is based on a copy of Painting Werther provided by the publisher.