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Hydrangea screenshot: Yua, with purple hair and red bows, in a dim hospital room among wilted hydrangeas, blood at her lip, saying You're making me like this

Horror visual novelsPsychological horrorHorrorAnime horrorShort horror

Hydrangea

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You stayed with your sweetheart when they fell ill. Now you are closer than ever. Too close.

Platforms
PC, Mac, Linux, Android
Stores
Steam, itch.io
Price
Free
Rated
Very Positive on Steam (91% of 144 reviews); 4.7 out of 5 on itch.io (361 ratings)
Length
about 1 hour
Players
1
Controls
Mouse, keyboard or gamepad to read and choose
Made by
Meiri Games
Released
2024
Get it on Steam itch.ioAndroid APK (itch.io)

What frightens Your sweetheart falls ill with a disease that makes them cough up flower petals, and you stay instead of breaking up; at their hospital bedside their affection turns into an obsession that gaslights, guilts and will not let you go.

Content: psychological and verbal abuse, child abuse, gaslighting, self-harm, suicide, substance use.

Hydrangea is a free romance and psychological horror visual novel by Meiri Games, made for the 2024 Yandere Game Jam. Your sweetheart falls ill with a disease that makes them cough up petals, and as you stay by their side their affection turns into an obsession that suffocates, across four endings.

About Hydrangea

Hydrangea is written and led by Meiri, a Brazilian maker of free horror visual novels, with a team of volunteer artists, a composer and voice actors. It began as an entry to the 2024 Yandere Game Jam and came to Steam in September 2024, free in both places.

You were about to break up with your sweetheart. Then they fell ill with a mysterious illness, the kind in the Hanahaki trope, in which a person coughs up flower petals from love that is not returned, and you changed your mind. You visit them in a hospital room filled with hydrangeas while doctors run test after test. The closer you are, the more the romance curdles: questions about who you were three months ago, blame, a smile with blood on its lip, a voice saying you are making them like this.

You choose your own name, and your sweetheart's name, pronouns and look. The story runs about 20,000 words, around an hour to read, with four endings: see the first three to unlock the true one. The later builds add voice acting and French and Brazilian Portuguese translations.

The maker lists content warnings for psychological and verbal abuse, child abuse, gaslighting, self-harm, suicide and substance use. It suits players of yandere visual novels who want the horror in the relationship itself.

How to play Hydrangea

  1. Download Hydrangea free from Steam or itch.io, where there is also an Android build.
  2. Choose your name and your sweetheart's name, pronouns and appearance.
  3. Read the story and make your choices during your visits to the hospital.
  4. Reach the first three endings to unlock the true ending.
  5. Look at the CG gallery and replay for the secrets the maker hints at.

Screenshots

Hydrangea screenshot: Yua sits in a bright hospital bed surrounded by blue and pink hydrangeas, complaining of endless tests
Hydrangea screenshot: Yuu, in a school blazer with arms crossed, in a flower-filled hospital corridor
Hydrangea screenshot: the choice of how your sweetheart looks, Yua or Yuu, side by side in school uniform
Hydrangea title art: the purple-haired sweetheart glancing aside under a striped awning, above the ornate title and hydrangea flowers

Tips

  • Ending 3 is not unlocked from the start, so play the others first.
  • Highlighted words in the text can be clicked.
  • Read the content warnings before you start.

Questions

Is Hydrangea free?

Yes, on both Steam and itch.io.

How many endings does Hydrangea have?

Four. Seeing the first three unlocks the true end.

How long is Hydrangea?

About an hour, with a story of around 20,000 words.

  • visual novel
  • ren'py
  • yandere
  • hanahaki
  • hospital
  • customisable love interest
  • voice acting
  • jam game

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Guides with Hydrangea

Hydrangea is played on store.steampowered.com and its makers' stores; this page links to them and is not part of it. Pictures are from the game's own pages and remain its owner's. Terms and pictures.

Sources: meiri.itch.io, store.steampowered.com, store.steampowered.com, store.steampowered.com