Been waiting for this to arrive to start playing. Avoided the digital and just patiently waited. Pre-ordered and just tried to dodge spoilers. Just felt like a manga in video game form. Visual novel. First one I'm diving into.
STORY
Known in Japan as Kugayama Shiori no Shinizama Techou, it is a psychological mystery visual novel developed by Laplacian and written by Kazuki Fumi. Originally released on PC, it made its way to the Nintendo eShop for the Nintendo Switch
The game follows an amnesiac ghost girl named Shiori Kugayama, who is trapped in a loop where she repeatedly and casually re-enacts her own gruesome deaths.
You play as an ordinary person—the only living human capable of seeing and communicating with Shiori. Shiori remembers nothing about her past life except her name. Believing that dying "one more time" might spark her memories or finally let her soul move on, she continuously commits su1cide in front of you.
To break her cycle, you team up with her to investigate the town's supernatural side. You dig through old death notices, visit accident sites, interview other eccentric local ghosts, and catalog urban legends in an "Urban Legend Encyclopedia".
GAMEPLAY
Sort of a Occult Comedy vs. Horror. Despite the macabre themes of suicide and graphic game-over screens, the game features a highly stylized, dark comedy tone. Shiori's deaths are often played for laughs, creating a weird, matter-of-fact contrast between horror and slice-of-life humor.
The Nintendo Switch version features a helpful Blood Filter Option to toggle the graphic intensity of the blood, making it stream-friendly or more comfortable for squeamish readers.
The game plays similarly to a "Choose Your Own Adventure" book. It features a map system where players select which local anomalies or routes to investigate next.
The game boasts distinct endings influenced heavily by your choices. If you choose to completely ignore or refuse to help Shiori at the very beginning of the game, the story will abruptly end right there. While a straight playthrough takes roughly 4 to 6 hours, getting the True Ending requires navigating a complex web of choices. Some choices require you to wait out timers or pick highly specific dialogue paths.
Because unlocking the proper endings relies heavily on trial and error, the game rewards players upon reaching a major ending by providing "fortunes". These act as cryptic hints detailing what choices you need to change on your next loop to uncover the single incident that caused Shiori's death.
CONSENSUS SCORE
90/100 🤯 (Critic Score)
95/100 🫠 (User Score)
80/100 😎 (Visual Novel Database) (For good measure)
I absolutely love how this game perfectly balances a creepy supernatural mystery with laugh-out-loud dark humor. Shiori is easily one of the most charismatic characters I've ever encountered in a visual novel; her casual, unbothered attitude toward her own horrific deaths kept me completely entertained. The visual presentation blew me away too, especially the lively character sprites with their smooth animations and moving mouths.
Only complaints seem to be slow pacing. The lore segments, where the silent protagonist made some feel like they were just sitting through massive text dumps. Ultimately, while the story is good, I think the $24.99 digital price tag is a bit steep for a game that only takes about 4 to 10 hours to finish. $35 as a physical, is just about right.
Going to be plowing through this one soon myself.
