Alright so I’m writing a review for a visual novel. Thus this game relies entirely on being able to convey a compelling narrative to keep players reading like a really good book. Upfront I can tell you that it has that in spades. It even has a unique gimmick that makes it a bit more unique than a standard visual novel. Before I get to that I need to somehow write up a synopsis to this 30 hour epic. Since the game does it why not split it into two.
Before: Natsuhiko Tenkawa is a high school boy who happens to have ESP powers that have now been scientifically explained in this world and given a new title BC. (Beyond Communication) Upon unlocking his potential the entire world around him starts to fall apart. After learning about a terrorist plot he and his friends decide to stop them on their own since of course none of the adults believe them. This doesn’t go so well and they are trapped in the underground laboratory they were trying to save. Yet something weird is going on after he meets someone that shouldn’t be there Yuuri a childhood friend that always stays indoors. Time starts to rewind and he relives the 6 days leading up to this moment.
After: Watase Kasasagi is a rescue squad captain that has come to LABO to save lives. To bad he seems to have hit his head and has become a amnesiac. Luckily his fellow squad mates of Sirius are nearby and try to keep him doing something drastic. Even though he has lost his memories he still has a strong urge to help anyone in danger. Possibly even at the cost of his own life. On top of that with no memories it soon becomes hard to know who he can trust. Will the malice in the hearts of humans destroy all or will they stand together to save everyone?
With two different perspectives you start to see the full picture of what is really going on in the halls of LABO. As the game keeps going they never stop with the reveals or dramatic moments that kept me wanting to see more. The developers also spent a good amount of time setting up backstories for the main cast. In a lot of ways everything feels very convenient. Plus I couldn’t say that it didn’t feel like they were padding out the run-time at certain points. Reviewing events from the game over again with newfound knowledge of a twist in the story did nothing other than make the hour count go up. Neither of these factors diminished the overall story too much but they are certainly a part of it.
Which means we now come to the one game play element. The Senses Sympathy System comes into play during certain parts of the narrative. A colored circle will pop up in the top right of the screen and after clicking on it will bring up characters that relate to the current scene. Depending on the color (blue,yellow,red) the more vital the choice. Plenty of bad ends await if you don’t choose the correct values. Which comes down to either trusting someone or deciding to be wary of them. In every way this relates to the general theme that is prevalent throughout the entire experience. Going into any more detail could lead to spoilers so instead I’ll just say that they do a excellent job of relating these player choice moments back into the narrative near the conclusion of the story.
Overall this was a worthwhile experience. Sure it has some cliche moments that you would expect to see from this style of game. Yet the attention to detail keeps it from getting bogged down with to many silly moments. I also just like the general theme it pushes about getting to know other people. Entirely unrealistic to our world but something I enjoyed seeing in a work of fiction. If any of this little review peaked your interest in what I’m talking about then I recommend you check out this game.