Flawless Story, Decent Port
In 2010, the 999 came out for DS. I consider myself to be a fairly experienced gamer, so you can trust me when I say that when I first played that game, I was utterly and completely blown away. 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors combined masterful puzzles and fantastically inventive storytelling to produce what is, my opinion, the best video game narrative of all time.
-STORY-
The plot at first seems like what wouldve resulted had Michael Crichten written Saw, but starts to become one of the most complex and intriguing stories I have ever seen, heard, or read in any medium. The story is written in such a way that draws you in and never lets you out. You will quickly become attatched to the characters and you will want to know their motivations. Who is Zero? Why are you trapped on this ship? Why is Lotus wearing so little clothing, and why dont I mind? The mystery is so compelling that you will keep telling yourself that you will stop after after a few more minutes, only to realize that it is suddenly 2 A.M. and you should really finish that important research essay.
-GAMEPLAY-
Similar to most visual novels, the gamelpay of 999 consists mainly of making decisions. Nearly every decision you make (whether it is choosing which door to go through, what to say to a specific character, etc.) will impact the ending of your current playthrough. However, just because it is called an "ending," it does not by any means give you an excuse to stop playing. In fact, this games story revolves around the fact that you must learn from your mistakes to choose the right path. Only when you have learned exactly what is required of you (which includes playing through at least once), you can finally get the "true" ending, in which you will be bombarded with constant mindf*ckery, but in a good way. Once you do get to that final revelation, trust me - your jaw will hit the floor. And it will be worth the multiple playthroughs.
-VISUALS-
As this is a visual novel, there are quite a lot of them. Visuals, I mean. Every character has a set of pictures dedicated to them, and whenever they speak, a speech bubble will show next to their face. Each character looks great, and the fact that this is now in HD is really appreciated, as someone who played the somewhat pixelated DS version. There are also backgrounds and visual and audio cues for the lines of text you read, which really add to the immersion. It should also be mentioned that the games soundtrack is quite decent. Each track adds something to the overall experience. Some are quite good, too. I listen to a couple of tracks quite frequently on my iPod. Good homework music.
-PORT-
This is an iOS port of the original DS game. Some things have been improved, such as the aforementioned HD textures, while some things have been taken away completely. I will now address the elephant in the room; yes, the puzzles are compeltely missing. However, this game is only $5, and the DS game is around $20. So, anyone complaining about the lack of puzzles really shouldnt be, though I can see where they are coming from. Also, every important bit of dialogue that takes place during the puzzles in the DS version are still present in this port. However, some less important but character-building moments are missing. This is a shame, but once again, acceptable, as this port is very cheap and still retains pretty much the entire story.
Oddly enough, this version of the game has quite a few typos. Upon starting the game, you are greeted with "crusie ship" and "LolInside," as well as some missing puncuation. They are distracting, but occur rarely and dont hinder the story in any way.
On the bright side, there is an added flowchart system. This allows players to easily hop back to important decisions and moments in the game. This is a very welcome addition, as the DS version had players starting the story from the beginning every single time they wanted to get a different ending.
If you are a fan of science-fiction, horror, or good storytelling in general, you owe it to yourself to buy this game. The story is fantastic, the gameplay works great (thanks to the added flowchart), and while the puzzles are missing from this port, I wouldnt worry too much about it. I have given this game five stars, because I have faith that Aksys will update the game and fix the typos.
Thanks for reading my really long review and I hope I have helped you to make your decision. Also, I you should know that there is a sequel to 999 called Virtues Last Reward. It is available for the Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation Vita systems, and is equally mind blowing and compelling. I highly recommend it. Also, you should like Operation Bluebird on Facebook so that Zero Escape 3 can be made!
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999: The Novel