It's Pretty Crazy Without Thinking Hard About It.
I've finished AI: The Somnium Files: nirvanA Initiative! These notes were written as I played, which is why at points I seem confused by things that are explained later. (I mean, the explanations are also frequently confusing, but at least they're explanations.)
Why does Shoma still look and sound twelve six years later?
The goal of the Nirvana Initiative is 'to cause a worldwide, simultaneous bug', so I suppose the characters in this game want to... crash the game?
what the fuck is going on, Komeji was murdered six years ago, why is everyone talking like he was alive three days ago
Date??
I'm so confused! I was wondering if I was mistaken about which Ryuki branch this was following on from, but Mizuki's still missing her eye, which she lost in the explosion that killed Date on the branch where Komeji was killed! Plus Ryuki learnt six years ago that Komeji had something to blackmail Tearer with; that doesn't make a great deal of sense if Komeji found his blackmail material three days ago.
I got two 9s for one of the three-digit codes in Tearer's Somnium and didn't even bother attempting the puzzle for the third number; I just went 'well, it's Uchikoshi, he loves the number 9' and entered 999. It worked.
I suppose we were playing as Ryuki six years ago, and Ryuki's probably not the most reliable narrator; maybe he just imagined all the deaths.
There are two Gens? I wonder if Date has seen both of their buttholes.
There are two Gens and one of the Gens is Date??
And now Mizuki's shocked because Date apparently died six years ago, even though she didn't seem at all surprised to see him in the other timeline? Are our actions in the present somehow changing what happened in the past?
I very much question the fact that Uru apparently lived to adulthood after having the entire right half of his body transplanted into someone else. Also, given that this is the explanation for how Jin apparently died both six years ago and a few days ago, did Komeji somehow transplant half of himself into someone else too?
The scene where Lien and Kizzy danced together was actually pretty cute, and both Tem and I are furious about this. The worst betrayal of this game: making Lien/Kizzy seem marginally less terrible.
If I were Riichi, I would not send this many armed gangsters to the orphanage I run.
I knew from the moment we met the masked woman that she'd be Mizuki! (Unless she's Mizuki's mother? Or her daughter, somehow? Who the fuck knows.)
WHAT IS THIS TIMELINE NONSENSE
HOW DID MIZUKI PSYNC INTO MULTIPLE PEOPLE BEFORE SHE LOST HER EYE
WHY DID MIZUKI HAVE HER SIX-YEARS-LATER DESIGN WHEN WE WERE PLAYING AS HER IN THE PAST
Oh, we're clones! Of course we're clones. I don't know why cloning didn't occur to me. That answers one of my SEVERAL BILLION QUESTIONS.
OH GODDAMMIT WE MUST HAVE BEEN PLAYING AS THE MASKED WOMAN SIX YEARS AGO
The answer to 'why was Mizuki one-eyed and apparently eighteen six years ago' is 'we were playing as a genetically identical one-eyed person who's six years older and also called Mizuki'. Jesus Christ.
Ryuki's not that interesting a character to me, but I appreciate what a wreck he is.
I'm increasingly feeling that this game is going to end with the characters coming out of the screen and killing us.
Oh, wow, I feel awful for Amame.
Kizzy's 'come get some, motherfuckers' as she gunned down the enemies made me laugh aloud. Delightful.
To be honest, I'm a little disappointed that the characters didn't break out of the game. I was fascinated to see how it was going to handle that. (Later I did get the 'nil number' ending, but sadly we didn't actually manage to break everyone out!)
Who the fuck was Dahlia Boat?
They actually killed Ryuki? That was very abrupt!
Tama must be devastated. I hope we can follow up with her. Or, as Tem points out, put her in Date; they'd get on like a house on fire.
Look at us, reminiscing with Riichi! It's almost like he never paid armed gangsters to murder a guy.
DON'T LET US THINK OUR COLLEAGUE IS DEAD AND THEN SEND US ON A SCAVENGER HUNT TO FIND HIM IN A BIG PRESENT BOX
WHY CAN'T ANYONE IN THIS GAME DO ANYTHING NORMAL
I'm delighted that this game also ended with a big stupid dance sequence.
I'm not clear on whether Ryuki and his eyeball are romantically involved. That's pretty weird, but I wish them the best.
Tem: Who among us has not wanted to fuck their own eyeball? (pause) ...The things I say sometimes.
Why does Shoma still look and sound twelve six years later?
The goal of the Nirvana Initiative is 'to cause a worldwide, simultaneous bug', so I suppose the characters in this game want to... crash the game?
what the fuck is going on, Komeji was murdered six years ago, why is everyone talking like he was alive three days ago
Date??
I'm so confused! I was wondering if I was mistaken about which Ryuki branch this was following on from, but Mizuki's still missing her eye, which she lost in the explosion that killed Date on the branch where Komeji was killed! Plus Ryuki learnt six years ago that Komeji had something to blackmail Tearer with; that doesn't make a great deal of sense if Komeji found his blackmail material three days ago.
I got two 9s for one of the three-digit codes in Tearer's Somnium and didn't even bother attempting the puzzle for the third number; I just went 'well, it's Uchikoshi, he loves the number 9' and entered 999. It worked.
I suppose we were playing as Ryuki six years ago, and Ryuki's probably not the most reliable narrator; maybe he just imagined all the deaths.
There are two Gens? I wonder if Date has seen both of their buttholes.
There are two Gens and one of the Gens is Date??
And now Mizuki's shocked because Date apparently died six years ago, even though she didn't seem at all surprised to see him in the other timeline? Are our actions in the present somehow changing what happened in the past?
I very much question the fact that Uru apparently lived to adulthood after having the entire right half of his body transplanted into someone else. Also, given that this is the explanation for how Jin apparently died both six years ago and a few days ago, did Komeji somehow transplant half of himself into someone else too?
The scene where Lien and Kizzy danced together was actually pretty cute, and both Tem and I are furious about this. The worst betrayal of this game: making Lien/Kizzy seem marginally less terrible.
If I were Riichi, I would not send this many armed gangsters to the orphanage I run.
I knew from the moment we met the masked woman that she'd be Mizuki! (Unless she's Mizuki's mother? Or her daughter, somehow? Who the fuck knows.)
WHAT IS THIS TIMELINE NONSENSE
HOW DID MIZUKI PSYNC INTO MULTIPLE PEOPLE BEFORE SHE LOST HER EYE
WHY DID MIZUKI HAVE HER SIX-YEARS-LATER DESIGN WHEN WE WERE PLAYING AS HER IN THE PAST
Oh, we're clones! Of course we're clones. I don't know why cloning didn't occur to me. That answers one of my SEVERAL BILLION QUESTIONS.
OH GODDAMMIT WE MUST HAVE BEEN PLAYING AS THE MASKED WOMAN SIX YEARS AGO
The answer to 'why was Mizuki one-eyed and apparently eighteen six years ago' is 'we were playing as a genetically identical one-eyed person who's six years older and also called Mizuki'. Jesus Christ.
Ryuki's not that interesting a character to me, but I appreciate what a wreck he is.
I'm increasingly feeling that this game is going to end with the characters coming out of the screen and killing us.
Oh, wow, I feel awful for Amame.
Kizzy's 'come get some, motherfuckers' as she gunned down the enemies made me laugh aloud. Delightful.
To be honest, I'm a little disappointed that the characters didn't break out of the game. I was fascinated to see how it was going to handle that. (Later I did get the 'nil number' ending, but sadly we didn't actually manage to break everyone out!)
Who the fuck was Dahlia Boat?
They actually killed Ryuki? That was very abrupt!
Tama must be devastated. I hope we can follow up with her. Or, as Tem points out, put her in Date; they'd get on like a house on fire.
Look at us, reminiscing with Riichi! It's almost like he never paid armed gangsters to murder a guy.
DON'T LET US THINK OUR COLLEAGUE IS DEAD AND THEN SEND US ON A SCAVENGER HUNT TO FIND HIM IN A BIG PRESENT BOX
WHY CAN'T ANYONE IN THIS GAME DO ANYTHING NORMAL
I'm delighted that this game also ended with a big stupid dance sequence.
I'm not clear on whether Ryuki and his eyeball are romantically involved. That's pretty weird, but I wish them the best.
Tem: Who among us has not wanted to fuck their own eyeball? (pause) ...The things I say sometimes.