Kyokugen dasshutsu: 9-jikan 9-nin 9 no tobira

999, or Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors to give it it's full title is the first chapter in the Nonary Games Trilogy.

It is a visual novel game, based around Nine people who have Nine hours to get through Nine doors.... pretty obvious really when you think about it.

The main story of the game is that you are stranded upon the famously sinkable Titanic, having to work your way through several numbered doors and puzzle rooms in order to reach the final 9th door before the ship sinks. However, much like the iceberg the Titanic rudely bumped into, this story element is only the upper layer of a much deeper story narrative.

There is a recurring theme about learning knowledge from an unseen ether, that, should the characters be able to tap into, will provide them with insight they never previously had.

Without going into spoilers just yet, this theme helps to not only encourage multiple play throughs - but also justifies them.

You see, the game is not linear, and allows you to choose your own route through the game as it periodically gives you the choice of which door to enter next. This means that there are multiple endings, and each escape attempt gives you the knowledge of how to proceed differently next time you play the game and to hopefully find the best route. In a quasi-New Game +, the game remembers the outcome from previous playthroughs which helps to unlock the true final ending and what a whopper that is - something I'm sure the iceberg itself must have thought when it saw the renegade Titanic recklessly heading towards it.

Much like all visual novel games, there is a ton of reading to be done, as story is the main focus here.

The game spends a lot of time explaining the rules to this scenario, and these rules are predominately based around maths - something which will not be to everyones taste I'm sure.

Each character is assigned a number, and in order to enter any of the numbered rooms, the group have to split themselves up so that the combined total of their individual numbers adds up to the same number as that on the door that they wish to enter. This is done by creating a "digital root". A digital root is created by adding together all of the characters numbers, and if this total is 10 or more, then these two numbers are also added together, so that the final digit is always a single digit between 1 and 9. Additionally, only 3 - 5 characters can enter a room at once.

So, for example, if the characters want to enter room 7, then only the 3 - 5 characters who's digital route totals 7 can enter. For example, characters with the numbers 4,2 and 1 or 9, 8, 6 and 2. This is what leads to the game having multiple routes and endings.

What I will say, is the game spends a lot of time repeating this same information about the rules of the game, so you do spend a lot of the early parts of the game reading the same information just spoken in a different way.

It also spends a lot of time in describing why the characters have met up in the same area of the ship, which is kind of unnecessary, having an understanding that ships are kinda built with rooms branching off of corridors.... it just seemed a bit unnecessary is all, and I felt slowed the game down at times, constantly explaining the same easy to understand concepts over and over.

In terms of gamepley, the main gameplay element is having to solve your way out of different rooms that you become locked within on your journey. Each of these rooms is a mini escape room, having to find items to solve puzzles, and ultimately escape from each room. Most of these are basic escape room tropes of finding items to use in places to find keys to progress etc, but there are also some maths related puzzles utilising the digital root rules I mentioned earlier. Later, the game also introduces the numerical hexidecimal system. You don't have to be John w Nystrom, but suffice to say, if maths isn't your thing, then some of these puzzles could be quite daunting.

However, the game is quite understanding of this, and if you spend too long on any particular puzzle, the charaters will give you hints, and eventually the solution, in order to help you progress. It's clear that the developers wanted you to experience the story in it's entirety, rather than spending hours bogged down by a puzzle you could not solve... and again, what a plot it is!

Finally, the game provides you with a flowchart, showing where the narrative branches onto a different path, so you can easily go back to different points in the game, change your decision, and see a new story arc.

Personally, I did really enjoy this game. My first play through ended quite abruptly with one of the bad endings, and I was left with pretty much no resolution as to why the characters had found themselves in this situation, and what the greater story was.

I'll be honest that I had to use a guide to reach the games "true ending" as I initially went down the correct route, but because I hadn't unlocked part of the knowledge needed to complete this timeline in a different timeline, I wasn't able to see the true ending first time. Now again, and sorry to repeat myself, but this actually does make sense once you understand the greater plot - a plot that goes full Anime in it's final bonkers revelations.

My point being, this game does require some decent commitment to get the full experience, unlike a similar visual novel games such as Danganronpa, which provides you with the full story first time.

The game didn't initially sell well, but thanks to word of mouth, and reputation, this has gone on to become a cult classic, and I can see why.

Like any other visual novel game, it's the plot your here for, and despite some clunky dialogue, and some puzzles that are more like a maths exam than an actual escape room, 999's plot is as brilliant as you could want, and I cant wait to play the sequel.