Pale Cachexia

Pale Cachexia

Argent Games · 2021 · Visual Novel, Gothic, Dark Fantasy, Dark, Casual

PC
Positive97% · 36
Best price
$5.99
lowest tracked $2.99
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Standard Edition · Steam
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About Pale Cachexia


In this Gothic story of deep bonds and chilling mystery, a young girl named Esther ventures deep within a forgotten forest.

There, she seeks out a potential cure for her mysterious illness: a life-leeching plague known as the Pale Cachexia.

But when Esther meets Seina, who lives all alone in a towering manor, the two girls are drawn to each other in a tale of friendship, sorrow, and bitter loneliness.

Their story is shadowed by the dark secrets of the manor and its graveyard, which haunts Esther even in her deepest dreams.

Genres: Kinetic novel, Gothic fantasy, drama, horror
Rating: PG-13 (language/mild horror)
Story Type: Linear/kinetic
Length: 48,000 words (4-5 hours playtime)

Accessibility Features: Sound/Music closed captions, OpenDyslexic font option, disable bright flashes option

Writing/Design/Programming: Dovah
Management/Programming: Gamma
Sprite Art: NicCo
CG Art/Key Visual: NumiRen
Background Art: Malthus Wolf
Music: Ray Kim, Murcielo, scarless arms

What Steam players say

Recent verbatim reviews from Steam — separate from playze.io community reviews below.

Recommended Jan 21, 2025
[b] The intersection of perspectives, loneliness, and friendship. An important lesson about how our minds can sabotage us. [/b] As many visual novels demonstrate, our subconscious thoughts have a significant influence on the reality we create for ourselves. Despite the entire context of loneliness and melancholy, it is evident how a positive influence can transform our lives. [u] It's all about the perspective we adopt.[/u] The illustrations are beautiful and highlight the melancholy present throughout history. Esther and Seina brought to light an aspect that had been on my mind for a while: the beauty of sharing different realities and ways of living while enjoying each other. Esther and Isaiah's changes in narratives reinforce their similarities, and demonstrate how the sensitivity of our hearts can affect the course of our stories. My mind has dispersed at certain points in history. It's a slow reading pace, but not in a negative way. Though the playstyle is aimed at a specific audience, some inconsistencies may bother more discerning readers. Overall, I'm grateful to the developers for this beautifully sad piece of fiction. To sum it up, I am a hopeless romantic.
4 found this helpful
Recommended Mar 20, 2026
Pale Cachexia is a meditative story of friendship, loneliness, and illness. It follows Esther, a young adult girl who travels into a forest in search of a manor in search of the last lead she has about a cure for her treatable, but seemingly incurable illness, Pale Cachexia. There is supposed to be an apothecary there, but instead, she meets his daughter Seina, who lives in and takes care of the manor all alone since her father passed away, also from the Pale. Seina agrees to let Esther stay and research her father's documents for mention of his cure. Pale Cachexia has a slow meditative pace—in its first act, it details every intricate step in Seina and Esther's routine of taking care of the manor—that definitely won't work for everyone. Such a slow pace often wouldn't work for me. Sometimes, it does feel a bit repetitive, or takes a while to move on to the next plot point. But everything about Pale Cachexia, from its blurry, watercolor-esque backgrounds to its somber, sparse soundtrack, makes that pace work. At first, its almost calming to read Pale Cachexia. But slowly, that tranquility gives way to drama as the deadline for Esther to find a cure nears closer, and Seina's emot…
1 found this helpful
Recommended Dec 21, 2025
despite some parts of the story being predictable, it was a great story nevertheless. The Music, Art and everything about the idea was wonderful. I am a big fan of the vibe the game is giving. Spoilers ahead!! There have been some plot twists here and there that left me shook, like thinking that Esther's dream about Seina not liking her being actually real. After it was revealed that it was a dream, Esther kept making comments about her fear becoming reality. That never happened though, which made me really relieved. I could not have thought of a way how this game could have ended other than in hatred and horror if Seina did actually hate Esther. Isaiah was such a great character, probably my favorite of all. Despite having hateful thoughts and struggling to find a meaning in life other than accomplishing something in his research, he started to feel more and think less about what feelings are valid and what feelings are pointless. He started to enjoy the little things and live in the moment, as well as truly bonding with the daugher who once reminded him of his hatred. Great Game worth the Money and the Time!
1 found this helpful
Recommended Mar 17, 2025
Masterpiece
1 found this helpful
Recommended Jan 3, 2025
A beautiful, atmospheric and heart breaking story of the bonds between two friends. The backgrounds are gorgeous, the details on their clothes exquisite, and the music atmospheric. A touching read, though a bittersweet ending that leaves you daydreaming about their future.
1 found this helpful
Recommended Jul 25, 2026
The graphics/artwork in this game is exceptionally beautiful. The music mirrors the artwork with gracefulness and elegance that truly brings this masterpiece of a game/story together. I truly loved playing this game. Masterfully crafted, depicted and presented for those who wish to have a gaming experience that is truly wonderful. Thank you to the devs for all the work that went into this game. I greatly appreciate all of it and you!

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