DRIFT: To Sink or Swim

DRIFT: To Sink or Swim

What do you become when you stop pretending to be who you were? How much would you risk to save someone who’s already given up?

DRIFT is a story-driven visual novel about identity, change, and the quiet weight of the choices we make when no option feels clean.

You play as Noah, a middle-aged cat stuck in an unfulfilling office job, drifting through routine until a reckless night out pulls him into the depths of a sealed marine research facility. There, he encounters Shark, a mysterious aquatic test subject who should not exist, and who understands the ocean far better than the world above it.

What begins as a chance encounter becomes something harder to define: a bond formed under pressure, a growing pull toward the unknown, and a series of choices that force Noah to confront who he is, what he owes to others, and how much of himself he’s willing to risk for connection.

This playable demo covers the first two acts of a planned five-act story, introducing the core cast, tone, and branching choice system. Expect introspective narration, emotionally grounded dialogue, moral ambiguity, and one very stressed-out protagonist trying to hold everything together.

DRIFT is not about fighting an evil corporation or uncovering a grand conspiracy. There is no romance subplot or world-ending disaster. Instead, it’s a grounded, character-focused story about a few complicated people caught in an unusual situation, each pulling in a different direction.

Transformation is a central theme, but not in the way you might expect. This isn’t about what the body becomes. It’s about how perspective reshapes the world around you.

The story doesn’t just ask “What will Noah become?” It asks: “What kind of story does Noah choose to be in?”

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What’s Included in the Act 2.1 Demo

• A 90-120 minute playable segment introducing the main characters and premise.
• Branching dialogue that affects character tone and trust.
• An original soundtrack by Hungarian music producer Robert Schneider.
• Three different endings, as well as two secret bonus scenes hidden behind a particular sequence of choices. You’ll know it if you find it. Trust me

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Feedback Encouraged!

This is a solo project and my first real attempt at writing a fictional story as well as building a visual novel. I'm using it to grow as both a writer and a developer, and I'm learning as I go. If you play the current demo, I’d genuinely love to hear what you think: what resonated, what didn’t, and what you'd like to see more (or less) of.

Feel free to leave comments here on Itch.io or contact me directly on Telegram. There's a QR code near the end of the demo that links to my personal Telegram account.

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Synthetic Content Disclosure

The current playable build incorporates some AI-generated artwork, which is being used strictly as temporary assets to test story pacing, layout, and overall functionality of the game engine.

I am currently in discussions with several artists, and their work will replace these placeholder assets in a future update. Until then, this project will retain itch.io’s AI generation disclosure until the offending content has been removed.

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Thanks again for taking the time to check out DRIFT. Even if it looks a little rough around the edges right now, I hope something in this world sticks with you.