Steins;Gate

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Steins;Gate, Chaos;Head, Robotics;Notes: to many western fans these three would be known more for their anime adaptations (Localized and published internationally by Funimation Entertainment) than their visual novel source material. While all three are competent adaptations that are well worth the watch, it is a complete shame that it has taken so long for even one of the original visual novels to hit the English market. Fortunately, thanks to JAST USA we finally have the opportunity to sample what could easily be considered the most well known of the currently released Nitroplus x 5pb science fiction collaborations – Steins;Gate.

Steins;Gate follows eccentric “mad scientist” Rintarou “Okarin” Okabe, a paranoid college student who spends his days rambling about conspiracy theories all the while working on producing the very first time machine out of a microwave. It turns out that after witnessing the murder of female protagonist Kurisu Makise and sending a text “D-Mail” message about it, he finds himself transported to an alternate time line where the murder does not occur. The microwave, which had previously only produced gelified food products, had managed to send that message through time and altered the course of history which deviated it from the time line he came from. From there, he and the other members of the Future Gadget Laboratory begin experimenting and working with other forms of other time machines, all the while coming to the attention of other figures not too welcome to the idea of their flawless means of time travel.

Steins;Gate is a fairly long visual novel, and with multiple routes can take you several dozen hours to complete all the different routes in. This title, in addition to others in the “science fiction” collaboration series is best suited for those who like “thinking” stories, with it being fairly wordy and rife with heavy dialogue and scientific jargon (Although as someone who dropped Physics in Grade 10, I cannot really say much on the accuracy of what they claim). There is also much on offer for those who just want to skip the jargon and enjoy a decent storyline – with an interesting character cast who each contribute to the overarching storyline in some small way, many enjoyable concepts that I will let you discover for yourself and successful delivery of the plot that doesn’t just involve clicking the “Enter” button for hours on end. Plus, they thankfully throw in an 188 section glossary that provides more information on the scientific and Japan-specific references that were included in the English localization. This certainly is a helpful tool if, for example, you have no idea what ‘Hund’s Rule’ or ‘The Principle of Causality’ relates to.

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One of the more distinct features of Steins;Gate which sets it apart from other visual novels is that hovering your mouse over the right side of the screen pulls up Okabe’s mobile phone. Occasionally during the plot you will be called up by another character and given the option to answer or not, or sent a D-mail from other characters which you can reply to be clicking on key terms from their message. Using the example above, clicking on Upa, Gero or Froggy would send different messages to Mayuri. Not all of these messages or phone calls may have a direct impact on the plot progression, and can lead to unlockables or achievements, but some can lead to a specific character route ending or failing to meet the requirements of the true ending. If there is one thing that is frustrating, it is that the D-Mails are often vague in their role, and upon clicking a key word it is not possible to backtrack and see the different responses that can be made.

The storyline is competently done and has plenty to offer those new to the series or familiar with the adaptation but want to know more about the characters, events and the deeper details that would not have been possible to approach in the anime. Despite it being a complex title, the localization is of a very strong quality with no noticeable issues that I could find, thankfully as without it the visual novel could have ended up a complete disaster.

The Steins;Gate experience is boosted by a few other elements – the fantastic character and environment designs by Huke which sets the Science Fiction set of visual novels apart from pretty much every other visual novel to date, full Japanese voice acting by a very competent cast (JAST USA chose not to reprise the newer English voice cast for an alternate dub) and some fantastic music.

With an English visual novel market which is heavily dominated by 18+ eroge titles, it is refreshing that JAST USA have managed to negotiate and publish what I would easily consider their greatest release to date. Featuring an enticing and unique storyline that manages to hook you in for hours at a time, memorable characters and to put it simply – high quality across the board, Steins;Gate is one title that everyone should consider adding to their visual novel collection. Let’s hope that JAST USA continues their relationship with 5pb and Nitroplus, maybe even taking it to the next level and diving into the console releases.

Sam
Sam
Founder of The Otaku's Study. I have been exploring this labyrinth of fandom these last fifteen years, and still nowhere close to the exit yet. Probably searching for a long time to come.
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