One of those sequels that’s technically an improvement in several ways (more creative + fun Somniums, VR investigations are a neat addition, improved animations, more consistently solid performances from the English cast) but fails to offer much of a justification for itself beyond being more AI and in a couple ways, actively damages what the first game went for, resulting in a weaker product. It’s got all the Neat Ideas(tm) that Uchikoshi is known for but this puzzle box doesn’t really offer much new for him, just a differing configuration of familiar twists and turns for him. There’s even a couple bits that tease the similarities between this and his previous games but the meta angle just feels a bit sloppy and incongruous to the rest of the game, more an excuse than something actually interesting in the context of Uchikoshi’s writing career.
In general the game’s a lot of “wow cool ideas” that just doesn’t really gel together or feel like they’re really getting at a thesis statement, like the first game’s repeated musings on love and family. The game’s central twist sounds incredibly neat when you first learn, but it really doesn’t hold up to scrutiny because of the massive amount of contrivances that would have to occur to make it work, and the twist basically necessitates that Mizuki’s half of the game is a disjointed mess of loose parts for the sake of disguising it as much as possible in Ryoki’s tightly-paced half, which is admittedly very entertaining.
Still, I can’t say I disliked it… I guess it’s more just a sense of underwhelmed disillusionment. AINI’s still got plenty of the sharp, witty writing from the first game, provided you forgive Uchikoshi for being horny on main, and I like a lot of the new characters, especially Tama. Still, I’ve hardly had many lasting feelings on the game, positive or negative, and some parts are already starting to feel like foggy memories only a couple weeks later. This doesn’t come anywhere close to the ways ZTD is a disappointment but it ultimately just leaves me yearning for Uchikoshi to learn a few more tricks more than anything else.
In general the game’s a lot of “wow cool ideas” that just doesn’t really gel together or feel like they’re really getting at a thesis statement, like the first game’s repeated musings on love and family. The game’s central twist sounds incredibly neat when you first learn, but it really doesn’t hold up to scrutiny because of the massive amount of contrivances that would have to occur to make it work, and the twist basically necessitates that Mizuki’s half of the game is a disjointed mess of loose parts for the sake of disguising it as much as possible in Ryoki’s tightly-paced half, which is admittedly very entertaining.
Still, I can’t say I disliked it… I guess it’s more just a sense of underwhelmed disillusionment. AINI’s still got plenty of the sharp, witty writing from the first game, provided you forgive Uchikoshi for being horny on main, and I like a lot of the new characters, especially Tama. Still, I’ve hardly had many lasting feelings on the game, positive or negative, and some parts are already starting to feel like foggy memories only a couple weeks later. This doesn’t come anywhere close to the ways ZTD is a disappointment but it ultimately just leaves me yearning for Uchikoshi to learn a few more tricks more than anything else.