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| Tough Decisions. |
After high demand from fans the Zero Escape series is back for one last outing with Zero Time Dilemma. After playing 999: Nine People, Nine Hours, Nine Doors and Virtue's Last Reward, I've been anticipating Zero Time Dilemma ever since its announcement. Promising to clear loose ends from previous games and packing an engaging story (as expected from series writer and director, Kotaro Uchikoshi) it seems like its going to be one of the year's most engaging games. 2016 has been a great year for video games so far, we've got hits such as Overwatch, Uncharted 4, and so on. Zero Time Dilemma is no different. So Without further delay, let's get to it.
STORY- Zero Time Dilemma is both a sequel and prequel. The game takes place after and before the events of Nine Hours, Nine people, Nine Doors and Virtue's Last Reward, respectively. We follow nine characters, four reprising their roles from the previous games, trapped in an underground bomb shelter. Their captor, Zero, orders them to play the "Decision Game", a deadly game that will decide mankind's fate. The nine participants are split into three teams: C-Team, Q-Team, and D-Team. C-Team includes Carlos, a firefighter with a sense of justice; Akane, a previous participant of the Nonary Game; and Junpei, a detective searching for Akane and the protagonist of 999. Q-Team includes the mysterious Q, a young boy wearing an odd helmet; Eric, a man who works in an ice cream shop with a tendency to panic frequently; and Mira, an attractive woman and Eric's girlfriend. D-Team has Diana, a kind and peaceful nurse; Phi, a cold and calculating young woman and previous participant of the Nonary Game: Ambidex Edition; and lastly Sigma, whose body is 22 years old but his mind is 67, he's also the protagonist of VLR.
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| Who is Zero? |
The writing is great and just as unsettling as the other games. As a matter of fact, it's more bloody and disturbing. I ended up loving newcomers Carlos, Diana, Q as well as veterans Junpei, Akane, Phi, and Sigma. As for Eric and Mira, I'm not too fond of them. While the story answers many questions from previous games, it opens a doors for new ones. It's great and all but it also drops some crucial plot-points from Virtue's Last Reward. A shame really since it's been said to be the last game in the series.
GAMEPLAY- ZTD is a puzzle game similar to 999 and VLR. The game is split into two: narrative and escape sequences. The narrative sequence are now presented in full 3D as opposed to the 2D ones of 999 and VLR. In the story part the game, you'll learn about the game's story and will have to make a decision at the end that will impact the ending.
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| What choice will it be? |
The escape sequences has you trapped in a room and must find various clues to help you get out. The puzzles this time around are slightly more challenging than VLR but you can get hints from the characters via conversations during the investigation. Some can be pretty hit-and-miss, but despite that, they're fun and rewarding to solve. In the select screen, you can choose to play each team's story "fragments". There will be few locked ones at first, but as you progress in each team's fragments, they will be unlocked.
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| Some of the puzzles are pretty neat and it feels rewarding when you complete them. |
PRESENTATION- ZTD looks great for a game on a handheld system. The 3D models are more detailed compared to Virtue's Last Reward, the same can be said to the backgrounds as well. Still, things tend to look rough around the edges upon a closer look with some clipping here and there. The voice- work is okay, though it's substandard for the most part. As for the soundtrack, series composer Shinji Hosoe returns once again. It's good but not as thrilling like 999 and VLR. It re-uses some tracks from those games and adds some of it's own. But if you listened to 999 and VLR's soundtracks, I think you understand where I'm getting at. Some of the tracks in those games nails the mysterious and unsettling nature of the moment, which doubles the immersion factor.
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| The presentation is quite good despite some setbacks. |
OVERALL- I had a great time with Zero Time Dilemma. The story is engaging and the puzzles are mostly fun to solve. Despite some of the issues it carries, it remains a fun game in its own right. I don't know if there will ever be a Zero Escape 4 due to the new questions the game raises, the series sadly isn't a bestseller. But if Zero Time Dilemma is truly the last game then I have to say it ended on a good note.
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