Board 8 > Zero Escape people...

(+) Yeah! (+)

I'm thinking of buying this for later because people recommended it after I played Phoenix Wright and Danganronpa. The steam sale has two different bundles, one with "Zero Escape: The Nonary Games" and "Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma," and the other with those plus "AI: The Somnium Files." Is that third game really a Zero Escape game? Because it's just listed as part of Team Zero Escape.

Basically, if I want the Zero Escape experience, do I need AI: The Somnium Files?

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Nonary games is a compilation of 999 and Virtue's Last Reward, the first two games. ZTD would be the third.

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AI has no connection to the Zero Escape series.
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AI is a separate game made by the same people.

Zero Escape is 3 games with the first 2 bundled as The Nonary Games.

AI is also good, but not connected to Zero Escape.

Get Nonary Games first. If you like it, get Zero Time Dilemma.

Ai: The Somnium Files is a standalone title by the same writer.

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Thank you, everyone.

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I got the Zero Escape games as a bundle. I played 999 and thought it was okay, but then had zero (heh) desire to progress into VLR, which didn't feel very compelling and seemed like it was really poorly done between the clunky 3-D and the terrible dialogue. Haven't touched ZTD yet. So...

a) Should I bother with ZTD?
b) Will I enjoy AI?

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azuarc posted...

I got the Zero Escape games as a bundle. I played 999 and thought it was okay, but then had zero (heh) desire to progress into VLR, which didn't feel very compelling and seemed like it was really poorly done between the clunky 3-D and the terrible dialogue. Haven't touched ZTD yet. So...

a) Should I bother with ZTD?
b) Will I enjoy AI?

A) Probably not. It doesn't seem like the series is your thing overall.
B) Try the demo. It's available on PS4 and Switch.

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Clunky 3-D and terrible dialogue definitely sounds more like ZTD than VLR.

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VLR is much better than 999 or ZTD

ZTD is very ugly graphics
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Rango posted...

It doesn't seem like the series is your thing overall.

I was fine with 999. The 3-D of VLR is a distinct downgrade and maybe it gets better, but the characters at the beginning seemed too stupid to live.

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VLR is arguably the best game in the trilogy

azuarc posted...

I got the Zero Escape games as a bundle. I played 999 and thought it was okay, but then had zero (heh) desire to progress into VLR, which didn't feel very compelling and seemed like it was really poorly done between the clunky 3-D and the terrible dialogue. Haven't touched ZTD yet. So...

a) Should I bother with ZTD?

Never played AI, but for this question I'm gonna go with no. ZTD is generally considered the worst in the worst in the series from the people I've talked to, and it takes more after VLR than it does after 999 for sure. I still enjoyed ZTD personally, but if you aren't that into the series to begin with I can't really recommend it.
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Also if you didn't finish VLR, which it sounds like you didn't, the real question you should be asking is "should I finish VLR"? (And if you already know the answer to that is no than basically by default the answer to the question you asked is also no.) I do think VLR shines most in the latter half of the game, but I'm not sure it would change your impression much regardless. But as far as ZTD goes:

--Directly follows up on plot threads left unfinished in VLR (or at least tries to anyway...?)

--Almost universally considered an inferior experience to VLR

--My personal impression is that any issues I have with VLR are also present in ZTD but more severely (the two you mentioned are both applicable here imo)
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AI is a fantastic game. Would highly recommend.

I personally think Zero Escape in itself is a package series, too. If you're not gonna play all three of them then no reason to even really start it.

I would honestly say that AI is the best starting point just so you can get a feel for whether or not you enjoy Uchikoshi's work and themes, and from there you can determine if you want to take the plunge on 3 other games.

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ZTD gets more hate than it deserves
Was it disappointing? yes
Did it leave some plot threads unfinished? yes
Was the ending a complete piece of shit? yes

But the journey itself was enjoyable. It has some good moments

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tcaz2 posted...

VLR is arguably the best game in the trilogy

I disagree with the "arguably" part.
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Whoops, meant to edit.

Also, the weird graphics for VLR is because it's a 3DS game and therefore looks like in the worst way.

ZTD, otoh, looks like a shittier version of a Telltale game.
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Nanis23 posted...

But the journey itself was enjoyable. It has some good moments

Yeah it definitely does

Its really just a shame it completely shit the bed in a few key areas that were really important important areas. The actual character and situation writing is fairly strong overall. It's just the overarching stuff that was a let down, which unfortunately is what most people were largely there for (for good reason). It's still worth playing.

The beginning 10% of ZTD is solid and the middle 80% of ZTD is the best part of the series. The last 10% is the worst, unfortunately.

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999 is Good
VLR is absolutely incredible
ZTD has some really really confusing design choices. Some parts were great and some (Like needing to reenter passcodes that were put on screen one screen ago) were truely mind bogglingly bad

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azuarc posted...

was fine with 999. The 3-D of VLR is a distinct downgrade and maybe it gets better, but the characters at the beginning seemed too stupid to live.

I don't mind the 3D although I will say I did prefer the spritework of 999. The writing is still amazing through all three games.

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VLR > 999 > ZTD definitely. I thought ZTD was still pretty decent though.

I actually was somehow unaware of AI: The Somnium Files. Definitely thankful for this topic for that.

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Oh, how long are these games? AA/Danganronpa length?

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Anagram posted...

Oh, how long are these games? AA/Danganronpa length?

Yeah, in that range.

It does have route trees, so you'll have to repeat things to get all the endings unless you follow a guide, but the text skip speed is really fast.

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If you've played AA and DR, playing the Zero Escape trilogy next is basically just assumed at that point

Go ahead and get the Nonary Games and Zero Time Dilemma, you will probably enjoy the first two enough to want to play the third. AI the Somnium Files is a totally different game like people said - I actually didn't like it at all but maybe you will.

Thanks.

I went into AA and Danganronpa unspoiled, but I actually do have one about Zero Escape (I don't know how big a spoiler this is, maybe it's minor and maybe it's huge, and I don't know what game it applies to, but I know that some girl whose name starts with A is evil), but I assume the games are worth playing anyway. Other than that, I know nothing about Zero Escape, including the premise.

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Just started NNN, the main character's name is Junpei, eh?

I'll give this game 999 points right now if it's the same Junpei from P3.

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Anagram posted...

Thanks.

I went into AA and Danganronpa unspoiled, but I actually do have one about Zero Escape (I don't know how big a spoiler this is, maybe it's minor and maybe it's huge, and I don't know what game it applies to, but I know that some girl whose name starts with A is evil), but I assume the games are worth playing anyway. Other than that, I know nothing about Zero Escape, including the premise.

I for the life of me cant remember what this is referring to.

So I would say that really doesnt matter.

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I will just say that I guarantee that your spoiler is not what you think it is, so you're fine.

For what it's worth, I consider Somnium Files to be better than any individual Zero Escape game (And I do quite like all three of those), even though being a self-contained thing inherently means it doesn't have the big satisfying payoff of finishing a trilogy.

This isn't a playthrough topic, but I had to post this:

"In 1892, 14 years before the Titanic sank..."

Am I insane for thinking that's 1906, and not 1912?

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I definitely never noticed that before, but your math is right.

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You should make a playthrough topic!

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masterplum posted...

I for the life of me cant remember what this is referring to.

So I would say that really doesnt matter.

Alice (spacers) maybe?

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azuarc posted...

Alice (spacers) maybe?

That's likely referring to Akane as the mastermind of 999's Nonary Game.

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Oh. Duh.

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SSBM_Guy posted...

You should make a playthrough topic!

I thought about it, but playthrough topics make things take three times longer, and I'm already procrastinating on my other topic, so I'm just going to play these and maybe do a thoughts topic later.

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He knows it's Akane, he confirmed it to me in DMs. But like I said, it's definitely not quite what he thinks

Question about NNN

I got the bad end (maybe there are more than one bad endings, I don't know) where Clover murders everyone with an axe. I can go back to the flowchart and click to go back to different story moments. Some moments are listed with a lock or a key, and others are listed with a lock or a key with a stripe through them. When I click one with a stripe at a branching point, I never get the option to change anything, so I just get the same ending. How do I unlock the stripe ones? Do I go back to when there's a non-stripe key mark and try to do something different?

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I'm a weirdo who liked ZTD a lot, though my biggest problem with the game is how most of the story is presented as disconnected story tidbits. It makes sense in the context of the story but it makes for a less compelling overarching narrative. Definitely a step down from the first two games no matter how you slice it though.

AI I think is....good I guess. Takes a while to pick up. The gameplay is also like, almost objectively bad in certain ways. Thought it was kinda disappointing given the praise I had saw and the pedigree of the people working on it. By the end I was in love with the cast though.

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Anagram posted...

Question about NNN

I got the bad end (maybe there are more than one bad endings, I don't know) where Clover murders everyone with an axe. I can go back to the flowchart and click to go back to different story moments. Some moments are listed with a lock or a key, and others are listed with a lock or a key with a stripe through them. When I click one with a stripe at a branching point, I never get the option to change anything, so I just get the same ending. How do I unlock the stripe ones? Do I go back to when there's a non-stripe key mark and try to do something different?

Edit: I looked up the flow chart and will just describe it in a less spoilery way

Keys represent missable scenes that are required. If there's a line over the key it means you missed it. For the lock, I believe you need all the keys to unlock it.


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For the flow chart, there's only really any point in going back to the decision points unless you want to rewatch something. However, what you have to realize is that to get to certain endings, you need particular combinations of paths and not just reach that particular intersection. Why that is, precisely, makes more sense when you see those endings, but until that point it's very difficult to reason out what you should do. Unfortunately, that means sometimes you have to back up more than you thought or test a lot of different possibilities until your Plinko chip gets to the bottom.

There are no-spoiler guides that can point you in the right direction if you decide you don't want to watch everything for the 800th time. Though at least you can make already-watched dialogue zip by...sometimes. However, the nice thing about the skipping is that it will highlight the moments when you're seeing something you didn't see on this path before because of sequencing. For a very minor starter, I will tell you that for the first ending you're seeking, you want to start off forcing your way into the other door.

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Thank you. Currently finished two endings, have a bunch of keys to unlock and I'm not really sure how to do it, but eh, I'll figure it out later.

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Oh man, went back to do the 4 door, and it erased my obtained keys from the 5 door path. Ugh, now I need to redo them. This is not the best system.

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It doesn't erase them. You just have to replay up to the point that you're firmly back on the 5 Door path. At that point you can just go to a later point.

I remember thinking the same thing as you at the time. It's bad, but not as bad as it appears.

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Oh, good, thank you. But sometimes I don't want the keys unlocked, right? Like, I'd want to switch onto the path that doesn't have the keys, and then that would enable me to get later keys that I couldn't get with the earlier keys?

I may just look up the walkthrough people mentioned.

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Yeah, a spoiler free walk-through after you've unlocked a couple of endings will make your life a lot easier. The first game is the toughest one to figure out. VLR and ZTD are a little more intuitive.

But just be glad you aren't playing the original DS version of 999 because there was no flow chart!

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Yeah, I played the DS version of 999 that doesn't have a flow chart, so I didn't know about all this stuff when Anagram asked me. I don't actually remember having a hard time with 999 at all though.

Why would you need a chart
Just replay the game and pick the options you didn't pick before, easy

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