Steins; Gate is a stellar anime and with the amazing anime game, players gain access to an 8-bit adventure. The cool thing about this bonus is that is a Nintendo Switch exclusive This adventure is stand alone but plays so nicely. In this 8 bit adventure, Kyouma must solve a few mysteries that get even more interesting as the game progresses.
In Steins; Gate 8 Bit, players will walk the streets of Akihabara. The streets are bare except for the sprite of Kyouma walking about. There are instances where other things will be seen on the map but they are strictly story related.
When players walk into a building or area they are greeted with an 8-bit version of the locale. There is often a character for the player to talk to. The player has a small menu to use, including investigate, use, and talk button among other things. This simple menu works for this game and allows players to easily understand how this game plays. It also makes it easy to play on the go because it is always easily accessible.
It is great that Kyouma is joined by different characters as the game progresses. Each character has different thoughts and allows the player to see how they view the world. Players will often be told that they are in the wrong place and it is a good marker of where the player has to go next. Sometimes it is possible to miss something in the text so having this failsafe is helpful.
Players need to also be aware that the game doesn’t save. If they exit the game they will be forced to play through it again. This can be quite annoying because there is actually a lot the player must take care of. While the story might be interesting, it’s not fun having to retread the whole thing simply because of a player error. Though the fact that it is an 8-bit style game does allow for this idea to make sense.
This game isn’t hard but players need to be wary of Kyouma’s life. There are parts of the story where players can die and if they do will be forced to start the game over. This actually happened to me twice and while the game might not be overly long, it is tedious going through the story again simply because you have to play through the whole thing. In the long run, this just added more play time to a free add on so I’m not complaining.
There are nods and callbacks to the show that are scattered through out. Players learn interesting information that guides there case and is joined by characters from the series. It is great to use time travel to adjust things as it is instantaneous. The game does work rather robotically and once the player figures out the pattern it won’t be terribly hard to replay. There are even a few 8-bit scenes thrown in to help tell the story better and they look great.
Steins; Gate 8 Bit Adventure is a great bonus for players who have bought the Steins; Gate game. The story works in the universe and clearly, the creators put a lot of love into making this detective story work. It’s great to see the characters animated in 8 bit with the words telling the story. For a simple visual novel, if the player is a fan of the series they will enjoy delving into 8 bit Akihabara.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided