The ChunSoft Thread: Zero Escape Series & Banshee's Last Cry

[LivewiresXe]

Oh yeah, the game lets you jump back to any previous point you've already been at so that you can decide if you want to go another way or not. It REALLY is quite a useful thing to have.

 

[The Real Gamer]

I kinda wish I would wipe my memory clean and experience both 999 and VLR all over again.

 

[LivewiresXe]

I kinda wish I would wipe my memory clean and experience both 999 and VLR all over again.

I have to agree to. Even though the VLR stuff was just a week ago (actually less in some cases) it was just, wow. And going through 999 having no idea what it was or how to handle it, getting THAT ending (you guys know exactly which one I'm talking about) when I got that first feeling of "what...the...f---". Not to mention the first time you get the True Ending in 999, it's just all kinds of mind-blowing.

 

[tekkie]

Edit: I just found out about the flowchart, I am more than okay with just one save file now.

That's what I meant XD would have been a sexy addition to 999 too.

 

[Rutger]

And with that I finish 999, at the cost of time I really should have spent on that essay, tomorrow is going to suck.

Guess I might as well get my thoughts out now.

Spoiler

I called Akane being Zero very early on, she seemed like the character I would normally least suspect so I suspected her first. Though I never would have called how it all went down, time traveling thoughts?

I'm also left with the same questions Junpei had, what does this all mean for what really happened nine years ago? Maybe I'll get some answers in VLR.

Santa's past was a cool reveal, as was Ace's way back when I finished the Safe ending. As for Alice at the end, well, she's in VLR so...

Plenty of sequel bait, but I'm okay with this.

I'm kind of glad I waited so long to complete the true ending, it left me wanting more at just the right time. If everything works out then I will hopfully be able to start VLR tomorrow night.

 

[tekkie]

i'm... confused. [ONLY READ IF YOUVE 100%ED VLR]

Spoiler

i just got up to the point at least where you play as Kyle and Akane tells you you're about to go to the past and save the world and figure out what happens between Christmas/New Years. but, i don't see any missing timeline stuff. is that really it? it can't really be that anticlimactic, can it?

 

[The Real Gamer]

i'm... confused. [ONLY READ IF YOUVE 100%ED VLR]

Spoiler

i just got up to the point at least where you play as Kyle and Akane tells you you're about to go to the past and save the world and figure out what happens between Christmas/New Years. but, i don't see any missing timeline stuff. is that really it? it can't really be that anticlimactic, can it?

Spoiler

It's the setup for Zero Escape 3 dude! Don't get mad. Get hyped.

 

[tekkie]

thoughts on the last ending:

Spoiler

i'm gonna be honest, i was really really disappointed with how they finished actually ending the game. the first one was amazing because realizing what was actually going on kinda crept up on you bit by bit until it totally blew up during the real ending. also, everyone loved having the final boss be a sudoku puzzle. it was a crazy-*** climax, since suddenly instead of playing a higurashi/saw crossover it turns out you've been implementing the meta nature of playing through different endings and scenarios.

instead of that, VLR is pretty upfront about the multiple decision tree thing, hinting at it immediately by telling you there are different timelines and then pretty quickly hinting at information from other histories. anyone who's played the first game knows what's going on. over the course of what could be called the "real" ending akane being alive and tenmyouji being junpei are pretty big reveals, but the buildup didn't pay off at all. earth's environment being destroyed and being on the moon were big reveals too, of course, but then it turned into "you're a terminator being sent into the past to stop this future" and then didn't really follow through. it really felt like it was trying super hard to outdo the meta aspect of 999 and it really overextended.

i enjoyed Luna's ending more than any other section of the game. the murders explained and finding out about Luna being a robot was pretty intense, especially because her 'death' was easily the most human moment in an otherwise pretty robotic game (ironically).

it really was fun and all, but it didn't leave the same awesome impression that 999 did.

 

[The Real Gamer]

In response to your thoughts...

Spoiler

How come you didn't like the Junpei reveal? Just curious because that was probably my favorite moment in the game to be honest. And then his whole story with Quark made it even better in my opinion. I liked it because it showed that although Junpei never had his happy ending with Akane, he was at least able to find some sort of happiness in life thanks to Quark. I dunno I just thought that whole segment was really sad and sweet at the same time. It gave a lot of depth and appreciation for Junpei's character; he is the embodiment of a tragic hero.

 

[tekkie]

Spoiler

it definitely wasn't the fact that tenmyouji was junpei; it was just the deliverance. as i recall, it was sort of mentioned in passing and not really talked about after that, so retrospectively yes the quark thing was super cool and it makes the "grandpa videos" thing a million times awesomer, but it would have been cooler if they had made a big deal about it.

 

[Raziek]

Just got my copy of VLR today, planning on starting it as soon as I finish with Persona 3 and Pokemon.

 

[Rutger]

I just got through the Crew Quarters, I enjoyed the slight boost in difficulty compared to 999.

Spoiler

The 6 and the 9 being upside down had stumped for a while, and I liked having to call my own phone for the archive password. It was all worth it for the story of Sigma and the magic cat. :3

 

[LivewiresXe]

In response to your thoughts...

Spoiler

How come you didn't like the Junpei reveal? Just curious because that was probably my favorite moment in the game to be honest. And then his whole story with Quark made it even better in my opinion. I liked it because it showed that although Junpei never had his happy ending with Akane, he was at least able to find some sort of happiness in life thanks to Quark. I dunno I just thought that whole segment was really sad and sweet at the same time. It gave a lot of depth and appreciation for Junpei's character; he is the embodiment of a tragic hero.

Just to give my thoughts on the whole thing:

[COLLAPSE="Yar, Spoilers"]I liked the scene itself and found it pretty emotional, but the stuff after it does tend to feel "un-Junpei-like". Like suddenly throwing away the very thing he'd been living for for 40 years when all she did this time was no worse than what she did in 999. Plus I'll always insist that his "Biker Analogy" is not only flat out wrong, especially in the sense of the Zero Escape universe, but that he of all people should have known it was incorrect before he even said it.[/COLLAPSE]

 

[jamlosingthegame]

So many spoiler tags. It makes me feel sad that I don't have this game yet.

 

[Lythium]

That is basically how I feel, except I do own the game. I haven't got around to play it yet though.

 

[LivewiresXe]

That is basically how I feel, except I do own the game. I haven't got around to play it yet though.

What? What are you waiting for, Lythi? Go, play it, naaaoooww. It's SO GOOD.

 

[Lythium]

I need to finish Miracle Mask first. D:

edit: Also, I have a tournament this weekend, and I need to practice.

 

[LivewiresXe]

Well, I SUPPOSE I can let that slide this time, ya whippersnapper.

And good luck too, by the way.

 

[Raziek]

I am gonna be SUPER free at the tournament this weekend.

Time to see how far solid fundamentals and a few basic BnB's can get me.

I don't have pink throws in Persona! T-T

 

[The Real Gamer]

Some official Zero Escape vol. 3 teasers/spoilers to get you guys hyped (DONT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T BEATEN VLR):

Spoiler

- ZE3 will fully reveal Radical-6 and its mysteries
- We'll get to see the girl that was the inspiration for Luna
- Dio will be present, but not the way we know it
- Junpei will be a participant (I'm guessing the adult version... Younger than VLR Junpei but older than 999 Junpei... Overall I'm excited to see that he'll still play a big part in the story)

 

[sakuraZaKi]

^Where'd you get this info? I wanna look too, lol

Anyway, I totally forgot about this thread. I finished VLR... maybe two weeks ago? Well, anyway, I'm hyped for the next one, lol. I kinda hate how I finished it so quickly.

 

[Rutger]

Clover - End...

Oh, hey, I finally got a real ending, after so many To Be Continues and Game Overs and about a week long brake! :3

Spoiler

And everyone kills themselves, because they all got Hinamizawa Syndrome Radical-6, cool!

Time to go back to ignoring everything about this series until I finish VLR.

 

[The Real Gamer]

^Where'd you get this info? I wanna look too, lol

Anyway, I totally forgot about this thread. I finished VLR... maybe two weeks ago? Well, anyway, I'm hyped for the next one, lol. I kinda hate how I finished it so quickly.

https://twitter.com/uchikoshi/status/273474472332386304

Ripped it off of a NeoGaf member who ripped it off of Uchikoshi's Twitter. :D

I haven't clicked on the link though cause apparently he's going to be posting a lot of spoilery stuff about the upcoming game.

 

[sakuraZaKi]

My body is ready... Very ready.

I like how he uses a picture of Clover. I should get around to using that too.

I kinda like Phi more though, iono.

 

[The Real Gamer]

Clover was probably the most "meh" character to me in VLR... I wasn't sure if it was her voice or something but for me she lost a lot of the appeal that I think she had in 999 (I missed the relationship between her and Snake).

Phi was freaking awesome though probably a top 3 favorite from the series overall. I love how mysterious she is. VLR is done and we STILL don't know who she really is. XD

But she's not Superman, that's for sure. And she's not Batman, or Spiderman, or Aquaman, or a merman, or a wolfman. She's not a brahman, or common, or ramen. She's not a caiman either, so you don't really need to worry about anything. But one thing is for sure...

She is no man.

 

[LivewiresXe]

Those teasers are cool and stuff, but I think I'll be avoiding future ones because I want to go into Zero Escape 3 as blind as possible. Being totally blind for 999 and VLR made me enjoy them so much more than if I'd read some things.

 

[jamlosingthegame]

I really want VLR now and I also accidentally hovered over a spoiler here... Hopefully my mom ordered it, since she promised to do so for me.

 

[Raziek]

Finally updated the OP a bit, including the thread title.

Gonna be replaying 999's Safe and True endings, then starting VLR soon.

 

[The Real Gamer]

Exactly what I did before I started VLR.

Tell us what you think when you finish it! And enjoy the ride.

 

[LivewiresXe]

Finally updated the OP a bit, including the thread title.

Gonna be replaying 999's Safe and True endings, then starting VLR soon.

Enjoy VLR man, and prepare to have your mind blown. Also, piece of advice. Use the notepad function thing that the game has to write stuff down that might seem important. And don't use an FAQ and cheat to get passed things. I did that once, and was not better off for it. I also applaud you for replaying those 2 routes to prepare for VLR...namely considering my preparation was playing through the Axe route.

 

[sakuraZaKi]

The only time I used the notepad was for the crews quarters

In a general sense, though, yeah, use it, lol.

 

[jamlosingthegame]

My copy of VLR is waiting for me at home after finals. Can't wait. :D

 

[LivewiresXe]

I don't want to sound like a total wuss, but as a guy I can safely say that the Zero Escape games (oddly enough this one even more than 999) were the first two video games ever to make me shed a tear.

 

[Raziek]

Finished my replay of Safe ending.

Still think it's the most powerful ending in 999. Will see if that holds true on replaying True end.

Just... so intense.

 

[The Real Gamer]

The safe ending also had my 2nd favorite moment in the game, which is when Junpei pieces all of the evidence together to expose the killer. THAT was awesome.

 

[LivewiresXe]

The safe ending also had my 2nd favorite moment in the game, which is when Junpei pieces all of the evidence together to expose the killer. THAT was awesome.

Okay, that WAS awesome, I'll say. I still felt the True ending to be more moving.

 

[The Real Gamer]

More juicy info about Zero Escape Vol. 3 from Uchikoshi's Twitter:

Spoiler

-Uchikoshi personally wants Snake and Lotus to appear in Vol. 3
-Akane is wearing the Free the Soul robes for a reason
-Tenmyouji is Junpei's family name
-Akane is Uchikoshi's favorite character
-The name Dio came from Dionysus of Greek mythology
-Axelavir doesn't cure all the symptoms of Radical 6 at the same time, hence why Quark and Alice still functioned at the same speed of the other people still infected after getting the injection
-Only Akane knows Aoi's whereabouts
-Akane would check on Junpei from afar during their years apart
-Uchikoshi is being noncommittal to the idea of the player being in Kyle's body ("up to your imagination")
-Quark is not part of Free the Soul, though it hasn't been denied that he might be a clone
-More characters from 999 will probably appear in Vol. 3
-Ace is currently in jail during Vol. 3
-RE: Phi, Vol. 3 is "a tale for her"
-Possibly the most interesting bit of info, Vol. 3's nonary game seems like it will possibly feature 9 people divided into three groups.

 

[sakuraZaKi]

Dionysus of wine and debauchery, huh? Interesting.

 

[Raziek]

Ok so I finished my replay of 999's True End.

Even better than the first time I played it, probably because the first time was at 4 AM and I was deliriously hooked on the game and couldn't put it down. Much easier to soak up all the info the second time around.

Spoiler

One thing that always stuck out in my mind, is why the **** Lotus was there? Like, what was her PURPOSE?

I noticed it the second time but not the first, but does anyone think the girl in the green dress looks like Lotus?

[collapse=HERE BE 999 TRUE END SPOILERS]

[/collapse]
The resemblance seems uncanny, but then the ages make no sense and there's way too many plot holes on why she doesn't remember anything.

God, it just bugs the **** out of me that her character is so unspeakably insignificant compared to everyone else.

 

[Rutger]

About Lotus.

Spoiler

Isn't that girl Lotus' daughter?

She had twins that were in the first game I believe.