I was extremely skeptical towards AI: The Somnium Files, expecting it to be the worst thing he ever did, especially after one POSITIVE review that PRAISED it for being very cringey, like it's a good thing or smthn. Yet, i still played it because of me very late uncovering of the ARG. It did hook me up, and my seething hatred wasn't active anymore unless VLR was actively mentioned, so i gave it a go. And that guy was right, it did start extremely cringey, and there was a lot of cringe through the first half.

But it didn't matter in the end, because AI turned out to be Uchikoshi's best work and one of my all-time favorite games, usurping the throne 999 sat on for the last decade. It was such a rollercoaster of emotions, by far his most emotional work, with the characters start start off really bad in my eyes (except for Mizuki) which i then came to love as my own family no less (especially Mizuki) (and the last "Cry" Choice was the only right choice if you get what i mean). And outside of characters, the detective side of it was amazing, such great foreshadowing, so many nigh perfect clues dropped around every route, piecing the truth together felt same as it feels for Ota to be fed by mermaids. And the story as is, even without detective component, is simply wonderful. And of course, the beautiful, finally polished anime visuals are just precious to look at, and faces are as expressive as Ace Attorney ones were at their best. AI singlehandedly put the trust in Uchikoshi back in me.