Ellixir's Dream

Ellixir's Dream is an otome visual novel set in the World War II era, exploring mysticism, philosophy and psychology from Eastern and Western perspectives. You follow Ellixir, an alchemist raised in seclusion with her father and elder brother, Kunsheng. When Kunsheng returns home, the siblings set sail on a long journey with their father's permission.

The voyage

Along the way, Ellixir meets Heiwei Renxuan, Aibai, Cyrus and Rudolf, forming memories with them. They come for alchemy and ultimately leave because of it. Angered, Ellixir searches for the truth and questions what they lost. She and Kunsheng are both burdened by sin, with their fates intertwined from the start; though he promised her freedom, the Elysian feels more like a prison.

The story raises questions about identity and emotion through the paradox of Theseus' ship: whether Ellixir is real, whether her feelings are real and who she truly is. The truth eventually emerges from dreams into reality. The narrative is told mainly from Ellixir's perspective, with occasional insights from other characters and third-person viewpoints.

Choices and endings

Your choices shape the characters' fates and Ellixir's. The game has five romanceable male leads and 12 endings: 10 main endings and two extra endings. There are 67 CGs, and a full playthrough takes about 6–8 hours. The demo contains one main route and one ending, and takes about an hour.

There are no definitively good or bad endings; each route is open to interpretation. All love interests are older than Ellixir, though some endings reveal them in childhood. Ellixir begins as rational and naive, then grows into a strong and emotionally intelligent character, while the other characters' personalities also evolve over time.

Themes

The story includes Eastern and Western mysticism and philosophy, Jungian psychology, dark themes, confinement, suicide and resurrection. Some scenes depict wounds, blood and infants, and the game explores psychological distress and morally complex behavior. Its interpretations of mysticism and psychology are the author's own.