i made an account on here just because i wanted the fact that i think this game is an absolutely incredible, one-of-a-kind experience to be out there. there is so much i could say about it, but then this review would probably turn into more of a disorganized ramble than it already is. please just know that it delights me so much this remaster exists, and the fact that it was locked to japan only on the ps2 for over a decade is unfair to the rest of the world. this astonishing debut title of grasshopper manufacture brims with so much style that i feel calling the entirety of it a giant art piece is completely deserved. it has some of the most humanely written characters i've ever seen in a video game, with kusabi being the shining star of the show and easily shooting to the top as one of, if not my absolute, favorite video game characters ever. and while its story is definitely A Lot to take in and try to understand, it presents its major beats with grandeur, and the more complex details are very fun to ruminate on

despite all this, i will say that it's not the kind of game for everyone, though that's kind of a given for visual novels anyway, and especially one as unconventional as this. but that doesn't at all dissuade me from considering it a work of art, and if you can get over the controls and how convoluted the story can get, i highly recommend it; an absolute must play for anyone that enjoys narrative-heavy games

also, the fact that there are two more games directly related to this one that i get to experience is crazy to me. i'm going at my suda journey in a specific order but good god i cannot wait to get to fsr and 25th ward

não tão surrealista quanto Killer7, mas tão experimental quanto, se não mais. Estaria mentindo se dissesse que estive super entretido 100% do tempo de gameplay, em alguns momentos me peguei me perguntando "tá chato ou é conceito?", a gameplay é praticamente nula, algumas escolhas de design são ruins, mas mesmo assim minha curiosidade em relação a tudo que estava vendo na tela nunca deixou de existir. Esteticamente lindo, ótima trilha sonora, excelentes diálogos e uma história que vou me lembrar e pensar sobre por muito tempo. Meu segundo jogo do Suda51, mais uma mitada

ENG:

The stars know everything. I remember
a song like that. But the fact that they
know everything is a sad thing. There are
more things in this world that it’s
better not to know.

The Silver Case is a visual novel. One of those that barely has any gameplay. It’s hard to say it even has mechanics, even for the few puzzles it has, the game gives you a handy button to automatically resolve them. Yes, I say this as a negative. I don’t like the almost non-existent gameplay it has, for the first few hours I felt a bit bored ‘cause I was reading on and on, getting interrupted at every step I made to explain the one or two important mechanics, and it didn’t felt like anything was going on with the plot. I also say this as a negative, the start of the game is a bit slow and as a tutorial it’s not that great either. It doesn’t even has a choice-making system, so your role as a player is rather tiny. For the first hours, I thought I wasn’t gonna like it, and had it been any other game, it could have been that way. The fact that the game doesn’t seems to do any real effort to involve the player as part of the world (although it does some stuff I won’t tell), means that all the effort is carried by the narrative, and turns out that this is one of best narrative I’ve had the pleasure to experience in a video game.

The beginning, and here I refer to the first one or two hours, is rather slow and at first it doesn’t seem to add much to the overarching narrative. To not be that boring, the game presents the narrative in a more dynamic way than most VNs, with different pictures, colours and scenery, and from time to time, it lets us walk and interact with the world in a very limited way. It looks like the beginning is setting up the ground for a typical crime thriller about catching a serial killer, but as it goes on, things are not what they seem and a more sinister reality is hidden beneath the surface. I don’t want to start spoiling the plot, so let’s talk about characters. Their characterization is excellent. They’re pretty much just text attached to static images, but their personalities and how they’re written makes them differentiable from one another. So differentiable that I ended up giving most of them a unique voice while reading. Even the Barman (yes, that’s how they name him), which has a minor role, is an interesting character. Kusabi must be, without a doubt, the best character in the game, alongside Tokio Morishima. Both are great characters to me, each in their own way. Kusabi is the typical cop that is always bitter and never smiles; Morishima is a nobody that gets involved in all this mess without knowing why or what are his objectives. Kusabi, although not the protagonist, he might as well be, but Morishima is actually the main character of his own story. Because yeah, the story is split in two. There’s Transmitter, where you follow the investigation carried out by the HC Unit (Kusabi & Co.), but there’s also Placebo, where Morishima investigates whatever the HC Unit puts their noses in. Transmitter has us in the most Noir side of the story while Placebo has us in the most personal, day to day life of a dude who apparently doesn’t have anything to do with all this crap besides being paid to dig on it.

As the story goes on, it’s not entirely clear what is actually going on or where is it leading to. The narrative is deliberately obtuse to evoke the feeling of mystery, and makes everything feel like a big puzzle to solve although it’s extremely linear. It’s true that by the end, everything seems to be more or less resolved with some loose ends, but before getting there, all is shrouded in an aura of mystery and you never exactly know what is real and what is not, what is true and what not, or how much truth there is in what we’re being told. Once the second third is over, the game takes a wild turn really hard to predict and it’s then when you start to realize what this is all about. The game turns from a simple crime investigation to what I can best describe as surreal existentialism. It’s then when the game seems to ask itself almost philosophical questions about fate, what it is to be a human being, the meaning of life, and probably more stuff I might have overlooked. All of this is left in the background as secondary ideas as they don’t get much development, but they don’t need to, because The Silver Case is not about (just) those ideas. What The Silver Case is actually about, is truth. Not about the importance of truth or something similar, at least not just that, but truth in more general terms, as a concept in a philosophical sense I’d say. Crime thrillers have always been about truth after all. In this case, the truth is much more crude than the hidden intentions of a serial killer. Truth might take you to places and to see stuff you wouldn’t think possible, and in the end, it may turn out that it was best to not know it. Truth would have ended showing up sooner or later with no prior warning anyways, and by then you need to be prepared to face it. It’s here where the “Kill The Past” thing originates from. As I stated early in the review, the beginning of the game is rather slow and seemingly uneventful, but there’s a moment in the game where everything sort of clicks and starts making sense. The more you search for truth, the harder it gets to draw where it starts and ends and how far things are gonna go. There are more things in this world that it’s better not to know, and you’ll understand at some point. They say ignorance is bliss. It may be true after all.

ESP:

The stars know everything. I remember
a song like that. But the fact that they
know everything is a sad thing. There are
more things in this world that it’s
better not to know.

The Silver Case es una novela visual. Novela visual de las que no tienen jugabilidad ninguna. De hecho, a duras penas se puede decir que tenga mecánicas, y encima, los pocos puzzles que tiene ni siquiera hace falta que los resuelvas tú, ya que el juego pone un botón bastante cómodo para resolverlos por ti y que no tengas mucho que hacer. Sí, esto que comento es algo negativo. No me gusta la casi nula jugabilidad que tiene, durante las primeras horas llegué a estar un tanto aburrido ya que solo leía y leía, además me cortaban constantemente a cada paso que daba para explicar las una o dos mecánicas importantes, y tampoco sentía que estuviese pasando nada. Esto también es un comentario negativo, considero el inicio del juego un tanto lento, y como tutorial tampoco es nada del otro mundo y puede llegar a aburrir. Por no tener, no tiene siquiera un sistema de toma de decisiones, con lo que tu papel como jugador es bastante minúsculo. Durante las primeras horas pensaba que no me iba a gustar, y si hubiese sido cualquier otro juego, seguramente así hubiese sido. El hecho de que el juego no parezca hacer ni el más mínimo esfuerzo en involucrar al jugador como parte del mundo (aunque sí que tiene algunas cosas que prefiero no desvelar), significa que todo el trabajo lo va a tener que hacer la narrativa, y se ha dado que es una de las mejores narrativas que he tenido el placer de vivir en un videojuego.

El comienzo, y aquí me refiero a las primeras horas, resulta un tanto lento y en principio no parece añadir mucho a la narrativa principal. Para no aburrir tanto, el juego presenta su narrativa de una manera más dinámica que en la mayoría de NV, con diferentes planos, colores y escenarios, y de vez en cuando nos deja caminar e interactuar de manera muy limitada con el entorno. El inicio parece sentar las bases de lo que sería el típico thriller de atrapar a un asesino en serie, pero según avanza la trama, las cosas no son lo que aparentan y cosas más siniestras se esconden bajo la superficie. No quiero adentrarme mucho en spoilers, con lo que voy a hablar un poco de los personajes. Me parece excelente la caracterización de cada personaje. Pese a que no sean más que texto adjunto a imágenes estáticas, sus personalidades y la manera en la que están escritos hace que sean muy diferenciables unos de otros. Tan diferenciables son que yo mismo acabé poniendo voces específicas a casi todo el elenco mientras leía. Hasta el Barman (sí, se llama así) es un personaje interesante, y eso que lo ves poco. Kusabi tiene que ser, con diferencia, el mejor personaje de todo el juego, junto a Tokio Morishima. Ambos me parecen personajes excelentes, cada uno a su manera. Kusabi es el poli que está siempre amargado y que no sonríe nunca; Morishima es un cualquiera que se ha visto envuelto en todo esto por azares del destino sin tener del todo claro cuál es su objetivo. Kusabi, si bien no es el protagonista, bien podría serlo, y Morishima si que es el protagonista de su propia trama, porque sí, la historia está dividida en dos. Por una parte tienes Transmitter, donde sigues los quehaceres de la HCU (Kusabi y compañia), y por otra está Placebo, donde Morishima investiga en paralelo y por cuenta propia todo lo que tiene algo que ver con lo que la HCU investiga. Transmitter nos lleva a la parte más policíaca de la historia mientras que Placebo nos acerca, de manera muy personal, al día a día de una persona que en principio no parece tener razones personales para estar involucrado.

Conforme la historia sigue adelante, no queda del todo claro qué es lo que está pasando o a dónde va a parar todo esto. La narrativa es deliberadamente obtusa en según que aspectos para evocar la sensación de misterio, y hace que se sienta todo como un gran puzle a resolver pese a que sea extremadamente lineal. Ya por el final, es cierto que todo queda más o menos resuelto, aunque sí que deja algunos cabos sueltos, pero hasta llegar ahí todo está envuelto en un aura de misterio y nunca termina de quedar claro que es cierto y que no, que es real y que no, o cuanta verdad hay en lo que nos cuentan. Ya terminado el segundo tercio, la historia da un cambio radical que es muy difícil ver venir y es entonces cuando empiezas a entender de lo que va en realidad. Da un giro que pasa al juego de una simple resolución de un caso criminal a lo que mejor puedo describir como existencialismo surrealista. Es ahí cuando empieza a hacerse preguntas cuasi filosóficas sobre el destino, lo que es ser humano, el sentido de la vida y algunas cosas más que seguramente habré pasado por alto. Todo esto queda en un plano secundario ya que no se desarrolla lo suficiente, pero no lo necesita, ya que The Silver Case no va de (solo) esos temas. De lo que en realidad trata The Silver Case es de la verdad. No de la importancia de la verdad o algo así, al menos no solo de eso, sino de la verdad más a rasgos generales, como concepto en un sentido filosófico diría yo. Los thrillers criminales siempre han sido sobre la verdad, después de todo. Y en este caso, la verdad es mucho más cruda que las intenciones secretas de un asesino en serie. La verdad puede llevarte a lugares y hacer ver cosas que no creerías posibles, y puede que al final resulte que lo mejor era no saberla. De todas formas, la verdad acabará llegando tarde o temprano y sin previo aviso, y para entonces hay que estar preparado para saber cómo afrontarla. Es de ahí de donde viene lo de “Kill The Past”. Si bien, como al principio dije, el comienzo del juego resulta un poco lento y no parece aportar mucho, hay un momento en el juego en el que todo hace clic y empieza a tener sentido. Cuanto más buscas por la verdad, más difícil es dibujar dónde empieza y dónde termina y cómo de lejos va a llegar todo esto. Hay cosas en este mundo que sería mejor no saber, y en algún momento lo acabarás entendiendo. Dicen que la ignorancia es una bendición, quizás sea cierto después de todo.

the silver case is difficult to discuss. your knowledge of suda51's work, enjoyment of visual novels, and how much you can tolerate arbitrary ass writing will make or break your experience with this game.

personally, i am absolutely in love with this game, and it's my favorite visual novel of all time. it has an incredibly unique presentation that creates an atmosphere i've never experienced in any other game, let alone suda51's other work, through the incredible artwork and soundtrack. objectively this game has fantastic character writing, with the transmitter route featuring an amazing cast and the placebo route having one of the best protagonists ive ever seen in media.

the story is hit or miss. its admittedly word dumpy at times, and there are some plot beats that can breeze by you but suddenly be super relevant later. characters can be hard to remember across chapters, hell, theyre usually drawn completely differently depending on the chapter. i took alot of time to process this game, but i understand that not everyone is willing to OR able to make that time. these aspects don't bother me enough to dock points, but it's worth considering

the gameplay is Fine. just Fine. it's weird to get used to, but you'll have it down after the first 2 chapters. this is TECHNICALLY an adventure game, so there are puzzles and interactables strewn about- but usually it's super easy to figure out, and the game even autosolves puzzles for you if you can't be fucked. as expected of a vn, the gameplay is just there to present the story (insane)

the silver case, again, is my favorite vn of all time. it has incredible depth for grasshopper manufacture's first release and still holds up today with its themes of criminal psychology, individuality, and wooowowaha government conspirarcy woaowow. but its true the game isnt very approachable and can be hard to sit through for some people. i think it is very, very worth it though, as a gateway to "kill the past" and especially in relation to its sequels, FSR and the 25th ward: the silver case

The Silver Case, ultimately, begs the player to be critical. To be critical of government, police, and most importantly of one's self. What does it mean to commit a crime, when the governments that define "crime" are themselves criminal? Since completing this game, I've been constantly thinking about the case Lifecut. About how the masks of the Heinous Crimes Unit slowly slip away, revealing that despite their apparent individuality, they are nothing but pawns to be used for the higher powers surrounding the story. They side with the law, and die for it. They die to protect the truth of their master's misdeeds, and commit criminal acts without being labeled "criminal". It's only by embracing that which is deemed "wrong" by society that one is able to kill their past.

The Silver Case lauds individuality, but also depicts how dire the need for community is in a world shaped by the Internet. Tokio Morishima starts his half of the game as a person who is largely squandering his potential to be great. He sits in his shabby apartment, checking his email, chain smoking and talking to his turtle. It is only through his connections with Erika and the bartender at Jack Hammer that he is able to reach his true potential. He transforms from a slimy tabloid reporter into an almost sagely presence in Lifecut. He rejects the Internet, and finds what really matters in the real world.

It’s really hard to wrap my head around the insane amount of themes and images invoked in this game. This game has my utmost recommendation to anyone with the patience to keep up with a visual novel created in 1999.

“I feel weird. Someone died in my building, but I didn’t see it. I didn’t hear the sound, I wasn’t told by someone else living here: I first knew of it via my computer. It doesn’t feel real.”

- Tokio Morishima, Hana

quitando el hecho de que el "interpretador" se paso por los huevos el tono y la manera de actuar de los personajes e hizo fanfics autoincertandose en los personajes a la hora de traducir (confirmado por el mismo...), en si the Silver Case es una obra que me genera diferentes sentimientos, pero el principal es nostalgia... su ost es hermoso y sumado a la ambientación hace que me traigan recuerdos y sentimientos de una época pasada, de una época hace 15 años atrás la cual me atormento y fue el inicio de la peor etapa que he tenido en mi vida, pero que, por otra parte, fue responsable de que terminara siendo la persona que soy ahora mismo...

tampoco es que me persiga al día de hoy, pude superar y dejar de prestarle atencion hace ya casi 1 década las cosas que sucedieron en ese tiempo, y tampoco me mal interpretes, no hice la estupuidez de "Perdonar" mis sentimientos por las cosas que sucedieron y las personas responsables de que todo eso sucederían siguen iguales, no perdone ni justifique a esos pedazos de mierda, pero pude "Matar el pasado" y empezar una nueva vida dejando ese pasado, mi pasado atrás... y si, nunca antes me había sentido tan identificado con esta frase a pesar de que he jugado a otras obras de Suda51, pero no fue hasta ahora que he sabido entender el mensaje de "Kill the past" y el cual estoy seguro de que aparte de mí, muchas otras personas al leer esta obra lograron sentirse identificado, no en sí con la trama sino con el mensaje que este ofrece.

unbelievably dense and actually schizophrenic. maybe the worst controls in any game I've ever played paired with some of the best style and dialogue. the back and forth between Transmission and Placebo is incredible as well, especially with how they intertwine later on. you can kind of tell the two paths are written by different people, but I actually think it benefits the game a lot, especially since Akira and Tokio's narratives are so different. very much so looking forward to the next games, beyond kino

edit 3/14
actually goated 5/5

KILL THE PAST

Because even someone worthless has
at least part of a soul.
That is how people live.
That's what I've finally learned
after living "everyday life"
in this world.
Even without hope, even in
great fear,
even when continuing to drag along
that which no longer has any value,
one can go on living.
Specifically because of our
imperfections, life has meaning.

truth has only one face: that of a violent contradiction.
I feel passionate by this matrix, slowly treading the path of a cold hearted format. At the end of the day, I wanted to be Kamui. Feel that psyche, sharp as a silver knife, an immortal god of destruction in form of Zeitgeist. After all that, who the hell is Akira?

"I thought I heard your words
Now how do I feel?
I still find it so hard.
I'm quite sure that you'll tell me,
Just how I should feel today."

or

"Do you find this happens all the time?
Crucial point one day becomes a crime."

I recently got two friends to play through this game. One loved Suda games and visual novels, the other hated Suda's writing and visual novels. One thing we all have in common is that voicing our opinions on this game is hard.

Finding something to say about something you love is actually quite an undertaking. It's easy to love something without explaining why. It's even easier to hate. It all comes down to being able to formulate your thoughts in a cohesive manner, which believe it or not, is actually pretty fuckin' hard. I actually have a really bad habit of not collecting my thoughts before they get brought up. "Why'd you like this part of the game?" "I dunno, I just liked it." "Yeah, but it's poorly designed." "It didn't bother me cause I liked everything around it."

Hating is easy cause it's a strong and simple emotion and it can be used to zero in on any particular thing. Love is more of an 'all over' kinda feeling. It's not channeled into a singular point, it's 'all over'.

'The character portraits are inconsistent' - Yeah
'The pacing is awful' - Yeah
'The story is constantly fighting the way it's presented' - Yeah
'Plot details are hard to follow' - Yeah
'So, it's bad, right?' - No, I love it actually. A lot.

Next time you watch someone review a game they hate and hear them give detailed explanations on what parts they individually hate, watch them review a game they adore. They'll get into specifics, but at the end of the day they all say the same thing. "I just love it, and I can't fully articulate why."

Well, they won't literally say that, but an approximation... Sometimes.

"Like how you feel when a cool breeze flows by. It's a pleasant feeling."

The stars know everything. But if I were
a star, I don't think I'd know anything at
all, to be honest.
Guilt? That's not something you should
feel with only a halfhearted understanding
of a situation.
We aren't stars.