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Hey, kids! You like Steins;Gate? Want more Steins;Gate? Well looky what we got here for you! OK, it isn't EXACTLY Steins;Gate, but it's got an epic sci-fi story based on plausible sounding technology! Lovable characters you'll grow to care about! Plenty of plot twists and turns! Sounds great, doesn't it?
That's pretty much the sales pitch for Our World is Ended, the new visual novel from Red Entertainment, developer of the Sakura Wars series of tactical combat/romance simulator games. Clearly the developers at Red are big fans of 5pb and Nitroplus' Science Adventure series of VNs, which (on the PS4) consists of Steins;Gate Elite, Steins;Gate 0 and Chaos;Child. Our World is Ended is not as good as those games, but it's not a bad game, either. Red essentially tossed 5pb's three best games into a blender along with some original ideas, and this game is the sci-fi smoothie they created.
One thing Our World is Ended absolutely nails is the characters. You will end up caring about these people. To me, that is essential to holding my interest in a VN, and this game passes the test with flying colors. You will like and sympathize with the player's stand-in, the painfully average but tactful and likable college student Reiji Gozen. Reiji is a part-timer at a small video game development studio in Tokyo that is working on a new Augmented Reality program coded by the studio's perverted genius lead director Sekai Owari. Most of the game's main characters are Reiji's co-workers at the studio, a seven-member team known as Judgement 7. All have quirky traits as expected for a Japanese VN, and I grew to like and care about each of them.
Another element of the game is more subjective: its humor. Personally I think the game is hilarious. There's one character named Iruka No. 2, whose ridiculously bad pronunciations of English words made me crack up almost every single time. This VN does have a TON of juvenile sexual humor, but it is presented in such a silly and over-the-top manner that I found it funny and inoffensive. Looking at the other reviews, that clearly is not an opinion shared by all. It really comes down to your own personal tastes and tolerance level for this type of humor. (If you don't like boob jokes, stay far, far away.)
Another great strength of Our World is Ended is its pacing. The Science Adventure VNs, as epic and gut-wrenching as they are, tend to contain a few long and tedious sections where the plot is sort of treading water and not a whole lot is going on. That's not the case here. The plot of this game is briskly paced, and it never drags on for too long without introducing a new and interesting story twist.
The other thing this game nails is its presentation. The art style is one of the best I've ever seen in a VN. I absolutely love the character portraits. They're wonderfully expressive and have unique look all their own. The music is also excellent, as is the game's overall visual design. The presentation here is better than any 5pb VN except for the stellar Steins;Gate Elite, which is essentially a 50-hour interactive anime.
OK, so what's the "glaring issue" I mentioned in the headline? It's the horribly sloppy English text translation. It is beyond bad. Nearly every line of text contains a typo, grammatical error or missing word. It's truly that bad. PQube, the company that published Our World is Ended in the west, must have localized this game on the cheap and didn't bother to hire a copy editor. It's not bad enough that you won't understand what's going on, but it is very annoying and detracts from the overall experience to an extent that it may put some people off. So shame on you, PQube. Hire a copy editor next time.
So that's it in a nutshell. As someone who is obsessed with the Science Adventure series, I welcome any studio that tries to emulate those brilliant VNs, and Red did a pretty stand-up job with this one. It's no Steins;Gate, but it's a solid effort nonetheless and hopefully not the last attempt from these devs.
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Our World is Ended Day 1 Edition
Controversial Visual Novel that blurs the lines between fantasy and reality, as AR game developers, Judgement 7, see their creations break into the real world and threaten to destroy Tokyo. It certainly raised a few eyebrows on release, but few can argue with the quality of its rich story-telling.
Our World is Ended follows Judgement 7, a team of young developers working on a brand new game engine called the W.O.R.L.D program. When wearing an Augmented Reality headset, this revolutionary program changes the landscape in real time. When Reiji, the game part-time director, tries the program in the streets of Asakusa, he catches a glimpse of an unsettling cityscape. Could this be a glitch or is there more to it than meets the eye? His doubts are soon to be confirmed as the members of Judgement 7 will find themselves trapped between fiction and the real world. Characters and creatures from their previous games have breached into the world and now risk of becoming reality. The city is on the verge of being overwritten. Judgement 7’s battle to bring the world back is about to begin!
Features:
A world between reality and fiction:
Explore a faithful recreation of Asakusa, one of Tokyo’s most iconic districts as elements from the game world will slowly manifest themselves.
Splendid Artwork and Outstanding Visuals:
Enjoy stunning visuals and gorgeous CGs drawn in a distinctive and vibrant art style. The detailed environments bring Asakusa to life with a unique atmosphere.
The Selection Of Soul system:
Whenever Reiji gets flustered, the S.O.S (Selection Of Soul) system will be triggered. His emotions will flow onto the screen before vanishing. Quickly react to see how your choice will affect the dialogues.
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Most helpful customer reviews on Amazon.com
Amazon.com:
9 reviews
RetroMainer
A mostly solid Steins;Gatelike with one glaring issue
8 December 2019 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
Anime Lover
The world is ending. an unusual Visual Novel
10 June 2019 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
B.Martin
Innuendo throughout
6 November 2019 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
Joseph Bright
video game
22 May 2021 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
tara
Cool plot, bad game.
5 July 2019 -
Published on Amazon.com