999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors. New DS Visual Novel From The Writer Of Ever 17

[Hiroi Sekai]

Kyaaa~ *is jealous*

I've been looking for this game since the day it came out, with no luck. Today, they said they got one copy in the morning, and somebody instantly bought it.

Well, at least I know it's out here now.

[Blue-kun]

@LyricalAura

I'll try to give my view on things, but I'm also still somewhat confused after reading a few of those questions, hah.

Spoiler:

Uh, I'll try to adress what I'm sure or have a very nice idea.

1. I honestly don't know. Actually, I didn't really remember this at all until you mentioned it, haha.

2. I've got no clue about the "ALL-ICE"/Alice notebook. Actually, Allice, as a whole, is something I don't get. Apparently Uchikoshi said in an interview (I was told this, don't have a source) that her apparition in the end had some meaning, it wasn't just a random joke. If this is true, however, I'm afraid I'm clueless about what he meant.

3. Now that you mention it, he said his reason for wanting to visit Door 1, but I don't think he's explained what exactly he was so afraid that Clover might've found. I don't suppose it'd be the camera, seeing as she had plenty of time to see it when they were investigating the room. Maybe there was another one of those notes there? Or something that gave away his identity.

4.. This one is a bit of a controversial topic. Someone correct me in case I'm wrong, but it's not only Snake (and Clover). Seven also claims that he saw Akane die. You could explain this in two different ways, I suppose.

One is, as usual in Uchikoshi's stories, that there's a glaring paradox. For her to be alive, supposedly the events 9 years later had to take place. But if she was alive then and pulling the strings as Zero, then it would've been impossible for the game to happen, seeing as Akane Kurashiki would have died. That said, and, of course, I'm going way too much into ever17 mode here, maybe there is a reality where Akane Kurashiki actually died and one where she lived. For the latter to exist, the Nonary Game must take place and it must end the way it did, with Junpei getting through to the Akane Kurashiki of 9 years into the past.

The other one, and I'm not sure if it's more plausible or not, is that Seven was faking his amnesia the whole time and was acting as an accomplice with Santa and June. While it'd explain everything nicely, it still strikes me as odd, seeing as Snake was also sure that he'd seen Akari die nine years ago. It'd have to mean that Snake too was aware of their plan and lied to keep the identity of Akane hidden. This is the point that makes me a bit eh about the whole thing, because I think while inside the incinerator it looked like Seven was actually clueless about what was happening, and it was Snake who first realized what Junpei was trying to do, when he frantically started shouting Akane's name. He, of course, would have the easiest time out of them all for this, seeing as he took place of the experiment years prior to that, and knew what they were trying to achieve. So maybe he just connected the dots and realized that Junpei was trying to get in touch with Akane.

I'll probably read the ending again, seeing as it was very late last night when I finished, but that's how I'm looking at the whole thing right now. If you do disagree and/or see something wrong, I'd be delighted to hear your opinion on this matter.

5. That... well, I guess Santa needed to play his role? He was very determined to make things go well until the very end.

6. Maybe just one step ahead, again? They clearly knew how Ace would act all the way to the end.

[LyricalAura]

@Blue-kun:

I poked around on a Japanese wiki and found a little more information.

Spoiler for Everything:

2. According to Uchikoshi, Alice exists and is alive, having defrosted and escaped from her coffin sometime between when Gordain bought the coffin and when Ace opened it. She deliberately came out to the Nevada desert to hitchhike with a specific purpose in mind. There wasn't any info from the interview regarding the ALL-ICE notebook, but maybe it's something Alice wanted to recover.

4. Uchikoshi stated outright that he refused to confirm or deny whether Seven was faking his amnesia. He did say that Snake didn't observe Akane's last moments directly, so Seven was definitely the only one claiming she had died. ...Is that consistent with the scene where she escaped the incinerator? I can't remember whether she reunited with the whole group or just with Santa.

6. Hm, maybe. The whole sequence of manipulations involving Ace is so well-tuned that it's probably a result of either a) several rounds of feedback and refinement with Past Akane or b) paradoxes suppressing the timelines where the plan doesn't work.

[Blue-kun]

Regarding the fourth point:

Spoiler:

4. Uchikoshi stated outright that he refused to confirm or deny whether Seven was faking his amnesia. He did say that Snake didn't observe Akane's last moments directly, so Seven was definitely the only one claiming she had died. ...Is that consistent with the scene where she escaped the incinerator? I can't remember whether she reunited with the whole group or just with Santa.

When she left the incinerator 9 years ago she's reunited with Santa, Seven and Snake. Or, at least, that's what the CG seems to imply. She's hugging Santa, while Seven is looking somewhat dumbfounded at that scene and Snake's standing there on the background. Now, what to do of it, haha.

[yangxu]

This game is fantastic. If you enjoy mystery, thriller and philosophical stuff, then this is the game for you... actually, if you have the slightest interest in VN, pick this one up, not only is it worth every penny you spend, your contribution will also encourage Aksys to bring over Umineko for the PS3 and maybe the Infinity series for the PSP in the near future.

I picked up this game and couldn't put it down until my DS' battery's dead. The story is very easy to follow, and the logic is clear and concise to the point. After getting mind raped by Umineko and Remember11, this is a breath of fresh air. And like most of the Infinity series games, this game encourages you to explore every possible flag/branching point in order to unlock the true ending.

[Coruja]

This game is AMAZING, I haven't been able to put down my DS since I got it! I love the Infinity series, so I knew I would love this as well... This game is up to par with both Ever17 and Remember11, in my opinion.
The puzzles are a wee bit too easy but they're such a cool addition, I wish more VNs had puzzles like that, it makes the story easier to follow.

[Poetic Justice]

My only complaint is the fact that i have to replay the puzzles after getting an ending all over again, Its a real deterrent for me to start it again.

[4as]

Oh man, Ive just finished playing 999 and it is truly an excellent game - gets 9/10 from me.
However, for someone who already played Ever17 like me, it is also rather disappointing. If I wouldnt know the story is written by the same person, Id say its a flat out rip-off. Plot wise, Ever17 players will find nothing new here (except for a tiny gem at the very end of the game) as most revelations are just very, VERY similar - basically its like having two identical paintings with just different colors. Furthermore 999 is also shorter and thus the whole mystery isint as deep as it was in Ever17 - not to mention, most of those ~25hours it takes to complete 999 are composed of puzzle solving and story by itself would probably take only around (dare I say) 9 hours to complete.
To sum it up, for Ever17 players 999 is just a same old game in new colors.
For everyone else its a great game with excellent writing, great graphics, pleasant sound and of course clever plot - must-play for every DS owner.

[Sides]

The fact that this game is a adventure game by Chunsoft is a must get. Now people, start bugging publishers for 428 and Imabikisou localisation.

[AvianWing]

I'm a little creeped out...

Spoiler for True Ending:

by Akane. So she kidnapped people to play her nonary game, where she knew that the risk of people dying was very real, despite having duds on the innocent people. The different ends illustrated the risk involved perfectly well, and so many things had to come just perfectly for a happy ending...

all this to save herself.

Heck, even the incinerator was real, as shown by the safe end. So unless Junpei figured out the that it was q instead of 9, they were toast.

The whole not having to dirty her own hands to kill 3 of the members of the former nonary project only made it worse. It wasn't an emotional outburst-- it was a cold, calculated move to get Ace to murder his former partners.

Geez. Good thing Junpei didn't piss her off.

[Sciel]

Originally Posted by LyricalAura

Very much an Uchikoshi game, and the ending was awesome.

Spoiler for True ending:

I was left with a couple of questions...

1. What was the odd sound that Snake heard in the First Class Cabin?
2. What was the purpose of the ALL-ICE notebook full of hieroglyphics that Junpei found in the Captain's Cabin?
3. In the Safe ending, Ace was afraid that one of the others had found something behind Door 1. Was he just talking about the camera he was supposed to confess to, or did he mean the notebook?
4. If Akane didn't really die in the experiment nine years ago, why does Clover think she did? Did Snake lie to her?
5. Also if Akane survived, why does Santa still have something against four-leaf clovers?
6. The voice of Zero that addressed everyone at the beginning responded directly to one of Ace's questions (which is one of the reasons I initially suspected him). How was this possible when Akane was together with everyone?

Spoiler for For 3:

Correct me if i am wrong but if you choose to go through door 1 , Ace was the one who axed the captain. In the true end , he confessed to doing so and apparently the captain (Cap) was the witness. He mentioned a note that was slipped into his pocket when he woke in deck D mentioning to confess to his sins to the world alongside a witness. I would assume that he was afraid that the witness might have told them about his identity or something about the Nonary Project 9 years ago.

[Tyabann]

Finally finished this game. After reading other people's impressions, I only have one question:

Spoiler:

How does June disappear in the True and Safe endings? Was she never actually there to begin with and disappeared due to PIME TARADOX, or is there something else that I'm missing?

I mean, she seems to be in the other car with Santa in the ending (Lotus refers to her as 'Six'), so...

Anyway, kind of a disappointing game for me, even if it's better than the Infinity series.

Spoiler for Ever17:

Blick Winkel was NEVER an intelligent twist and seeing it reused here kind of pisses me off. In addition, the minute they mentioned there was two buildings I knew what the final twist would be, which kind of lessens its impact. In fact, most of the twists had so much foreshadowing and setup that their impact was basically nil, with the exception of the reveal in the Safe Ending.

At least they didn't use that beyond retarded (in retrospect) mirror twist. In fact I think seeing Junpei's reflection in the prologue is a very direct way of referencing that.

[Von Himmel]

Seriously---what's wrong with the game that I got ? I played it for just a few minutes and then experiencing unlimited crash work here and there ;_; I'm in the part where I must to escape the room for the first time....can't get pass it because the game always freeze when I played it.

A question though....is the puzzle hard compared to other games ?

[Kaos!]

AFAIK, only *cough*rom*cough* version of the game had this problem, and they pretty much fixed it. So you might want to take yours back for an exchange since I haven't seen anyone else had this problem.

[Nihokon]

Might consider playing this game on emulator since I don't have DS.. I honestly prefer playing it on the real thing, though.

On second thought, after reading everyone's comments about the game, I'll definitely play it.

[Sides]

Originally Posted by Kaisos Erranon

Finally finished this game. After reading other people's impressions, I only have one question:

Spoiler:

How does June disappear in the True and Safe endings? Was she never actually there to begin with and disappeared due to PIME TARADOX, or is there something else that I'm missing?

I mean, she seems to be in the other car with Santa in the ending (Lotus refers to her as 'Six'), so...

The US publisher managed to get in touch with chunsoft, and are hosting an event where fans can submit question to the devs. You can read more on siliconera.
And questions can be submitted on the official NA hp

[Von Himmel]

AFAIK, only *cough*rom*cough* version of the game had this problem, and they pretty much fixed it. So you might want to take yours back for an exchange since I haven't seen anyone else had this problem.

Sssh! xD;

---To put things short, I manage to get this game working now

After playing it for a few hours....seriously, this game managed to give me goosebumps. Probably because I always play it at night and alone in my apartment. But still, all this stuff about curses...I can't just keep up with it

[Eab1990]

Oh, good, there's a topic on this.

Yeah, I recently finished the game too. Like I said in the Ever17 topic, I think it's a more compact infinity game with equally good twists and revelations like the ones in Coco's route. The ending left a lot more cliffhangers though, so that brings it down a bit. 9/10 still seems appropriate, and not just for the pun. Although there are a ton of puns in the game...

Clover is obviously my favorite, though June got major support from me after the true end, particularly due to some Ever17 parallels. For the person who didn't get the bad ends, I do suggest checking out the axe and sub end, though the knife end is pretty much a waste of time.

Originally Posted by AvianWing

I'm a little creeped out...

Spoiler for True Ending:

by Akane. So she kidnapped people to play her nonary game, where she knew that the risk of people dying was very real, despite having duds on the innocent people. The different ends illustrated the risk involved perfectly well, and so many things had to come just perfectly for a happy ending...

all this to save herself.

Heck, even the incinerator was real, as shown by the safe end. So unless Junpei figured out the that it was q instead of 9, they were toast.

The whole not having to dirty her own hands to kill 3 of the members of the former nonary project only made it worse. It wasn't an emotional outburst-- it was a cold, calculated move to get Ace to murder his former partners.

Geez. Good thing Junpei didn't piss her off.

Spoiler:

To be fair, the bad ends never actually happened anyway, they were mainly there to serve as Akane/the player's exploration of all the possible outcomes to achieve the best possible ending.

[ramengud]

Just finished this today. I find Ever 17 to be better but this one is also very good. It is alot better than Uchikoshi's other work 12 riven. I'd probably give it a 9 since its 999. I have a question about the end though?

Spoilers: (Sorry I don't know how to use spoiler tags)
Does anyone know what Alice's role in the game is? Is she there just to give the game a horror feel or is it because of the plant needed to make soporil? Does she have any other importance in the story? I'm also curious about seven, did he fake his memory loss or was he really having amnesia and changing memories because the past was currently affected by the events at the present time?

[Von Himmel]

Okay...I've finished this game just now.
Seriously, 999...you've tried REALLY HARD to troll me..

and you've succeeded fffffff--

So...correct me if I'm wrong, but I asssumed that in true ending

Spoiler:

Although Akane stated that she's going to be 'Zero' in later future,Junpei's monologue in the end seems to imply that all of this was fabricated by...seven ? I assume that Akane thought that she was Zero because when she's connected with Junpei in the future, she seemed to accept the main assumption of Junpei that Zero could only be Akane when she's connected to him. Or perhaps because she thought that, regarding the future, it can only happen if she tried to act as Zero.

....oh well, Seven could also perhaps act as an assistant to Zero, claiming that he lost his memories and fabricated Akane's death....but then what's the deal with Snake? I thought he didn't know that Akane is actually still alive...but then how can it be when he could 'see' how relieved Aoi was when Akane survived---

...shi- I don't get this at all xD;

What the hell happened here D:

Don't tell me that all the 9 kids were all trying to fabricate her death in the Gigantic 9 years ago just to make Junpei saved her 9 years later.....

I still don't get why they need to hide her death though. Can someone explain it to me ?

Oh, and I'm glad that Alice is actually real. I mean, I feel like at loss if I realized that all my shock, curiosity, and all the time I've spent trying to figure out what she has to do with the plot while I played it means nothing at all

On second thought...all the alice thing did means nothing at all ;_;