Quantum Suicide is an interesting visual novel on Kickstarter. Leaning heavily on very similar games like Virtues Last Reward and Danganronpa it is a murder mystery novel with added love interest. Something that seems like an odd combination to me but who takes dating advice from a dried out old mummy? The premise is interesting, AI goes rogue and starts forcing people to kill each other; I suppose facing the inevitable end would be a good aphrodisiac. What confuses me though is how an AI without a body or means of creating life or death scenarios makes sense. In Virtues Last Reward the creator of the games had decades to work but playing the demo of Quantum Suicide it sounded like this virus was a very recent occurrence. There is also the matter of the body double in the demo, that doesn’t really seem to fit with the rogue AI theme but it is interesting. However, if it’s just a twist that has been wedged into the plot that could easily destroy the entire story. The demo itself, while interesting, didn’t reveal a lot about the game at large and seemed to jump around a pre-chosen path. More confused than anything it dropped a lot of information with little context on how to use it.
While the background art and game interface look superb I kind of have to question the design of the characters. Something about them just doesn’t jive with me if I may be so hip. While designing characters is hard there is such a thing as trying to make them too unique at which point they tend to become indistinguishable from most other characters. Maybe it’s just because I’ve played way to many games in my day but I can just really feel out each character is trying to play some standard role and it’s kind of brings down any interest I have in the game. The steadfast and serious female captain who has a tender side, the big breasted one who wants to get it on and probably has some kind of alternative motive or the free spirit who does what she wants when she wants; just a little too close to cookie cutter characters. It seems like there isn’t a ton of character art or sprites either. To be fair I’m not really sure what is standard for games likes this but considering it makes up a majority of the game you would think there would be plenty.
I am somewhat impressed they were able to find Japanese voice actors for this, which is always preferable to me but I don’t find reading to be such a chore. Again, the game is an interesting twist on genre rarely seen outside of Japan on a kind of topic that has only recently started to develop into its own. The problem with making an original concept is that everything has been done before, without mixing up the concept in some major way there is little difference from any other game. Of course the flood of indie games through Greenlight and Kickstarter recently has opened some interesting avenues but has made originality that much harder a goal. What will really set this game apart and what we have yet to see is the puzzles that will decide life and death. Virtues Last Reward blew fans away with this because it had a great concept and complicated puzzles based on quantum mechanics theories. The chances of finding that level of depth again is slim but you never know. There is also the issue that the developers are a small team and this is a first project. Kudos to someone wanting to follow their dream; if I didn’t have a career and could actually draw I’d be right out there as well. From my time in game development I know how complicated and how many issues can suddenly pop up and it is no easy task. I have misgivings but I am still interested in Quantum Suicide which is already something I suppose; although I do wonder where the name ‘Quantum Suicide’ came from.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfkLD5pfnJI
