Wrapping the entire conceit of a game, its themes, motifs, and character names around wordplay with "ai" and its variants sure is a choice.

Being a Uchikoshi game, the usual warnings apply: crass sexual humor in abundance, sexualization of women (including teenagers), and eyebrow-rasing representation of queer folk. With that established:

I am continuously impressed by Uchikoshi's ability to write the most convoluted sci-fi murder mysteries imaginable, as well as by his ability to switch tones between comedy and horror on a whim without shattering the scene and characters in the process. Compared to the Nonary Games trilogy, the narrative here feels more grounded, at least early on and mainly due to its noir roots. The investigation is divided between conversation sequences, point-and-click interactions, and the titular somnium segments: memories that operate on dream logic, reenacted in the mind of a suspect. In them, a 6-minute timer advances as you move your character or interact with objects to unveil the truth the suspect might be hiding. These provide a nice change of pace from the VN segments, and are better integrated in the story than some of the escape sequences in the Nonary Games ever were. A few of these also act as the points in which the narrative bifurcates, since solving them in one of two ways provides Date, the main man, with different information and clues to follow.

Just like in the Nonary Games, there's a hierarchy of mysteries and hints, which means some endings need to be reached so their information can then be carried into other branches of the narrative. Unlike those other games, however, AI loads the early endings not with mysteries, but with fairly definitive resolutions for some secondary characters, to the detriment of the game's pacing. Simply put: the early endings are the most affective and showcase the strongest character writing to be found here, but this emotional core is then swallowed by the technobabble and exposition needed to keep up with the convoluted plot. As intrigue ramps up, the weaker characters take the spotlight, and the game loses itself for a bit. Fortunately, it manages to course-correct in time to stick the landing decently enough, with the bleaker route and the very final credits sequence as highlights. All-in-all, it's a return to form from Zero Time Dilemma, and it does manage to reach the heights of 999 and VLR, just not as often.

Now, where's the Mizuki-led sequel?

Incredibly happy with this one. An expertly written detective story about brain-jumpin' and shit. I've never felt as much anxiety as I have playing this game, and that is entirely because of how well it is designed and how well it intersects the gameplay and the narrative. The story is unpredictable, with me thinking I had it so many times, but never quite having it down - the story changes and twists so dramatically that I was always questioning what I knew, and when it all came together, I was sat there seeing it all make perfect sense. But I was still shocked! Every character is great, and the game really loves to get into this grounded noir aesthetic, especially early on, that makes the game just a blast to play. My biggest problem with the game is unfortunately when it just teeters on the edge of being too anime for it's own good - idols, excessive jokes about porno mags and really fucking strong 12 year old girls are everywhere! It's a minor complaint, but I like the more grounded noir stuff more. My favorite route was Ota's, had me crying in the fucking club! Add a fantastic soundtrack on top, and you've got an instant classic. Give this one a go whenever it's on sale.