Visible novels are one the odder genres of video games. True to their title, they’ve lengthy (very lengthy) passages of textual content the place the story is laid out with out interplay from the participant till it comes to some extent the place a call could be made. This alternative may trigger the story to department (extremely popular in relationship VNs) or deliver the sport to an finish should you make the mistaken decisions too many occasions.
Means of Elimination is certainly one of these video games. It’s a homicide thriller that takes place on the island headquarters of a cadre of super-detectives who’re being picked off by a sadistic legal mastermind. You, as a rookie detective whom no person trusts, should assist the investigation, uncover moles inside the group, and determine how seemingly inconceivable deaths have occurred.
Let’s get one factor out of the way in which proper now—the plot of this story is totally bonkers. Every of the detectives has a code title based mostly on their character, which could be, let’s say, excessive. One detective is a super-smart child in a robotic wheelchair. One other is, himself, a serial killer who’s been dragooned into working with the legislation. One other wears a swimsuit of medieval armor consistently. After which there’s the one detective who really believes in you. She’s useless and is a ghost solely you’ll be able to see.
You wander across the mansion headquarters of this motley group—which is in some way full of ridiculous dying traps and hidden passages—resulting in an much more weird plot about secret experiments on youngsters and killer robotic sentinels.
I liked it.
As a result of it’s a VN, there’s no want for you, the participant, to attempt to perceive this world, as a result of it performs out in entrance of you and also you simply need to click on “subsequent.” There are resolution factors the place it’s good to exhibit your detective abilities (like who’s betraying the group). Should you mess that up too many occasions, the sport ends, however you’ll be able to restart from a save level.
The opposite methodology of interplay is a turn-based technique mini-game. In it, you’re offered with a grid map the place you’ll be able to transfer the detectives round to discover and uncover clues that may lead you to breakthroughs in your investigation.
Within the mini-game, you’ll begin with restricted management of all of the out there detectives, however as you clear up the preliminary factors, you’ll achieve the flexibility to direct others. Each has totally different strengths, and by supporting one another they will clear up high-level issues. However the mini-game has a flip restrict! Fail to get all of the solutions earlier than you run out of turns, and it’s again to the save file.
Means of Elimination is a enjoyable recreation within the visible novel style that requires the endurance to take a seat by way of lengthy stretches of textual content and a nonsensical world. Should you’re on the lookout for any sense of actuality or interactivity, keep away. However, if you need a singular expertise in a world you gained’t discover wherever else, right here it’s.