Analogue: A Hate Story review

Exceptional

by Mia Blais-Côté

Visual Novel is a Genre I could never put myself in (Apart from Phoenix Wright, of course!). Especially since most of the Games I have seen and can be integrated into this Genre belong to the Dating-Sim Subgenre, which I don't really belong to my Profession either. But, as they say so beautifully: There are always exceptions! Analogue: A Hate Story is a Visual Novel with Dating Sim approaches. And in a Visual Novel, you read a lot. Honestly, you could actually compare this Adventure to a Book. However, the Game offers more than a Book could do. The Plot revolves around the Fact that as a Player you are commissioned to uncover the secrets of the colliery spacecraft "Mugunghwa," which has been considered lost for a long Time. This is done by reading the Logs (or rather, the "Diaries") of the residents based there at the time and downloading them all. However, it quickly turns out that because of technical Problems you can't just search for the Logs like that, but you have to filter them out and make them available to the Player. Accordingly, you will read a lot of Diary Entries in this Game. But you will also talk to the AIs very often. On what Happened on the Ship ... As well as their Opinions and Personalities. It may sound quite weird that a dating sim involves 2 female Artificial Intelligences. But this Circumstance was built very appropriately into History. You never Feel like the AI you're dealing with, because players are gratuitously fond of. You have to work out this State of affairs in the Course of the Game (literally)! Or you can also ignore this completely and just focus on the "real Work." And depending on the Personality of the AI, it will also react accordingly. And I like that! In The end, it all leads to the greatest Strength of the Game: Authenticity! Everything the Game presents feels right. The Lyrics are incredibly well written, the Story is engaging (in Some cases even shocking and ... Specifically), the Decisions you have to make feel justified and The Immersion is maintained by the (admittedly) simple Presentation. Oh, and it includes multiple Endings! I also like the Soundtrack very much. He is positively inconspicuous, soothing and very apt. The only possible Negative Points are based on the subjective View of each Player. Anyone who, in Terms of Books, just wants to read brutal Thrillers, won't be able to do much with this Game. After all, this is about interpersonal Relations, Acceptance and Tolerance. Likewise, it is precisely these Players who expect a Voiceover at Story related Games. After All, they do not exist in this Game. And who generally doesn't like to read ... Should change this as quickly as you do! In Summary, I can recommend it to anyone who likes to read very well written Stories, enjoys sweet and thoughtful Romances and welcomes a suitable Breeze Of Interactivity while Reading!