.Virtue's Last Reward (VLR) is the second installment in the Zero Escape series. The first game, 999*, was released roughly seven years ago, and it has to be one of the most engrossing visual novels ever created. Following up on the relative success of 999, publisher Chunsoft decided that they needed to come out with another visual novel. In order to continue shaking up the world of visual novels, Chunsoft brought back writer/director Kotaro Ushikoshi and asked him to create something that could be more accessible to a wider range of gamers and readers alike. Enter Virtue's Last Reward, a game that blends together challenging puzzle solving gameplay with a deep and involving mystery in a glorious narrative that leaves nothing to be desired. Virtue's Last Reward is wholly enthralling in its capacity and carries with it a sinister sort of charm that just draws players back for more.
The question that Virtue's Last Reward frequently asks is a simple one, but the consequences of answering this question comes with its own stressing complexities. Betray? Or Ally? Over the course of playing Virtue's Last Reward, this question is posed to players time and time again as the game's narrative seeks to uncover the mysteries of the warehouse that the game takes place in. By solving a host of puzzles and choosing whether to Betray or Ally with their compatriots, players advance the story down a variety of routes, each with its own unique and startling revelations.
As was the case in 999, Virtue's Last Reward follows the unique circumstances of nine people, each of whom vaguely recalls being knocked out before arriving at the facility. Upon regaining consciousness and meeting up, the characters are once more introduced to a new version of the Nonary Game. Much like the Nonary Game from 999, this particular rendition of the game follows a very similar premise. In essence the characters must work as a cohesive team in order to problem solve and gain access to other segments of the facility. Exploration is integral to escaping the Nonary Game, as finding a door marked with the number nine is the only means by which players can safely escape. However, in this version, opening the number nine door is much more challenging.
Throughout the course of Virtue's Last Reward it becomes increasingly evident that the story provides much of the backbone from which the puzzles and characters then play off of. As any novel should be, VLR is deeply engrossing and the like any good mystery is filled to brimming with red herrings and complex characters, with both working to simultaneously answer and confound players over the course of the game. In order to further facilitate this interaction between the player and character, a strong focus has been placed on exploration. When combined with Shinji Hosoe's score, these exploration segments become far more sinister and menacing, further propagating the tension that often characterized the music in 999.
In a contemporary age where many gamers and readers want to quickly push through a story, Virtue's Last Reward might be considered a little slow in terms of pacing. While the dialogue can be accelerated to a certain degree, gamers will likely have to practice patience while reading the visual novel. During a replay, players will be able to skip through dialogue they have already seen as was the case in 999. However, for those of you who are not big fans of reading, all of the characters in Virtue's Last Reward are voice acted and their dialogue is read out for the player. The only exception to this being the main character who, while being a male, is meant to allow the gamer to "inhabit" his body so as to further integrate the player into the story.
There aren't a lot of games that can be considered "perfect". Virtue's Last Reward does come pretty close to being one such game, despite the enormous amount of reading and comprehension one must have while playing the game. The puzzles are all fairly challenging and immensely satisfying to solve, both on hard and easy difficulty modes. All of the characters are, to varying degrees, mysterious and charming, and leave lots of room for speculation about their individual circumstances both before and after play. As was intended by Ushikoshi, Virtue's Last Reward is primarily focused on the narrative, and as such the script is gorgeous and overflowing with complex thoughts and ideas. These factors all work together to create the gem that is Virtue's Last Reward, and in their wake there it is clear why the game stands head and shoulders above many of today's titles.
If you haven't had the chance to play Virtue's Last Reward then it is strongly recommended that you do so. With the next installment in the series being released in 2016, there is only so much time before players will be thrown back into another Ushikoshi masterpiece!
*For information about 999, the predecessor to Virtue's Last Reward, check out this LINK.
The question that Virtue's Last Reward frequently asks is a simple one, but the consequences of answering this question comes with its own stressing complexities. Betray? Or Ally? Over the course of playing Virtue's Last Reward, this question is posed to players time and time again as the game's narrative seeks to uncover the mysteries of the warehouse that the game takes place in. By solving a host of puzzles and choosing whether to Betray or Ally with their compatriots, players advance the story down a variety of routes, each with its own unique and startling revelations.
As was the case in 999, Virtue's Last Reward follows the unique circumstances of nine people, each of whom vaguely recalls being knocked out before arriving at the facility. Upon regaining consciousness and meeting up, the characters are once more introduced to a new version of the Nonary Game. Much like the Nonary Game from 999, this particular rendition of the game follows a very similar premise. In essence the characters must work as a cohesive team in order to problem solve and gain access to other segments of the facility. Exploration is integral to escaping the Nonary Game, as finding a door marked with the number nine is the only means by which players can safely escape. However, in this version, opening the number nine door is much more challenging.
Throughout the course of Virtue's Last Reward it becomes increasingly evident that the story provides much of the backbone from which the puzzles and characters then play off of. As any novel should be, VLR is deeply engrossing and the like any good mystery is filled to brimming with red herrings and complex characters, with both working to simultaneously answer and confound players over the course of the game. In order to further facilitate this interaction between the player and character, a strong focus has been placed on exploration. When combined with Shinji Hosoe's score, these exploration segments become far more sinister and menacing, further propagating the tension that often characterized the music in 999.
In a contemporary age where many gamers and readers want to quickly push through a story, Virtue's Last Reward might be considered a little slow in terms of pacing. While the dialogue can be accelerated to a certain degree, gamers will likely have to practice patience while reading the visual novel. During a replay, players will be able to skip through dialogue they have already seen as was the case in 999. However, for those of you who are not big fans of reading, all of the characters in Virtue's Last Reward are voice acted and their dialogue is read out for the player. The only exception to this being the main character who, while being a male, is meant to allow the gamer to "inhabit" his body so as to further integrate the player into the story.
There aren't a lot of games that can be considered "perfect". Virtue's Last Reward does come pretty close to being one such game, despite the enormous amount of reading and comprehension one must have while playing the game. The puzzles are all fairly challenging and immensely satisfying to solve, both on hard and easy difficulty modes. All of the characters are, to varying degrees, mysterious and charming, and leave lots of room for speculation about their individual circumstances both before and after play. As was intended by Ushikoshi, Virtue's Last Reward is primarily focused on the narrative, and as such the script is gorgeous and overflowing with complex thoughts and ideas. These factors all work together to create the gem that is Virtue's Last Reward, and in their wake there it is clear why the game stands head and shoulders above many of today's titles.
If you haven't had the chance to play Virtue's Last Reward then it is strongly recommended that you do so. With the next installment in the series being released in 2016, there is only so much time before players will be thrown back into another Ushikoshi masterpiece!
*For information about 999, the predecessor to Virtue's Last Reward, check out this LINK.