Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma | Hype Thread

Release Date: June 28, 2016 (3DS/Vita)

----------------- June 29, 2016 (Steam)

Genres: Puzzle, Thriller, Visual Novel

Developer: Chime

Publisher: Aksys Games (3DS/Vita)

------------ Spike Chunsoft (Steam)

Number of Players: 1

The Zero Escape games are a very story driven series and I know many people have not played the previous two because they are very niche. I would advise anyone who might be interested in the series even a little to play the previous two installments, which are 9 hours 9 persons 9 doors (NDS/IOS/Steam [potentially]) and Virtue's Last Reward (3DS/Vita/Steam [potentially]). They are pretty necessary to get the full appreciation out of the latest game and they are still awesome games!

The Second point one should be wary of is spoilers. I am trying to keep the amount of spoilers to a minimum, but tread with caution, since this is a story based game. Anyone who is posting about the previous games should use the Spoiler Block because not everyone has played the previous titles. Also if you are going to be giving theories about Zero Time Dilemma, they should also be Spoiler Blocked and it should be clearly a theory as I know some people like to discuss this (even if the theory is silly like Nanako is Zero and the facility is the basement of a Junes). DON'T post a real spoiler about Zero Time Dilemma, if Uncharted 4 was threatening bans, this should be much much worse.

The third and final entry in the zero escape series has nine participants awaken in an underground facility, imprisoned with a strange black bracelet on their wrists. To escape, they must play a game with deadly consequences. The rules are simple--after six people are killed, the escape hatch will open. Who will live, and who will die? The choice is yours. Let the Decision Game begin…

• Full 3D puzzle rooms return that will test your mind as you try to escape
• Fully cinematic cutscenes replace the visual novel style of the previous two games that are voice acted in both English and Japanese
• Various decisions that could be life or death for your favorite characters and will change the path you follow in this non-linear narrative
• Returning characters from 999 and VLR are joined by new faces in this return to 999's atmospheric horror, who will you save?
• Play as multiple characters for the first time in the series

Participant 1

Carlos

The leader of Team C. An honorable man, he has a strong sense of justice. He has a serious reason for joining the experiment.

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Participant 6

Akane

She appears to be the graceful, ideal Japanese woman, but behind her guileless eyes she hides secrets.

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Participant 5

Junpei

A childhood friend of Akane's, he turned cynical after spending a year searching for her.

Participant 4

Q

The leader of Team Q. A curious and smart boy who lost his memories. He has no idea why he wears a helmet.

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Participant 2

Eric

A unassuming young man who tends to panic quickly when surprised.

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Participant 8

Mira

Bold and attractive, she likes to show off her body and always speaks her mind.

Participant 7

Diana

The leader of Team D. A cheerful and kind young woman, she just wants everyone to get along.

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Participant 3

Phi

Blunt to a fault, her cool attitude can be off-putting. She joined the experiment to try to save the world.

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Participant 9

Sigma

A member of Team D. Although only 22 years old, he seems to have led a long and complicated life. Occasionally called "old man" by Phi.

Zero

An unknown person hiding their identity behind a mask and disguise, who seems to be controlling the deadly games. Their goal is unknown.

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Gab

An old dog able to fit through air vents too small for humans, making him able to travel between sections of the facility. Participants attach messages to his collar to try and communicate with other Teams.

Trailer 1

Trailer 2

Gameplay *Spoilers*

Game Overview

Gallery

Sources: Zero Time Dilemma Steam Page, Zero Time Dilemma Wiki

~Hype~

AAAA (10):

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AAA (9):

Aigis

Ant_17

HowlingLotus

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AA (8):

Charizard1605

Kruiz_Bathory

adsparky

Legend002

Zlurodirom

The_Hellblazer

Heil68

Jag85

A-new-Guardian

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A (7):

DaVillain-

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6 or Below (People who haven't seen the light yet):

Blabadon

Gamerno6666

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~Reviews~

Metacritic: 3ds, Vita, PC

Destructoid - 9.5/10

Famtisu - 8/10 (32/40)

Gameinformer - 8.75/10

Gamingbolt (Charizard's Review) - 8/10

IGN - 9.2/10

Polygon - 8/10

Gamespot - 6/10

I am playing this right now, so please feel free to ask me any questions any of you may have!

As for the hype: I say 9, but I think GS scores it an 8

Personally I think its 10, but I feel like its going to get a 9 here. Im sad Gamespot has had next to nothing on it...

@HowlingLotus its up!

Nice, what do you think about the fragment and the random chance systems? Thats really what im most curious about how well they work

@aigis: Really like it. At first I kind of thought it made the entire game feel choppy and disoriented and rushed in a way, before I realized that's the point. As stoytelling gimmicks go, it's really cool. I'll have to wait till I finish the game to tell you whether it amounts to anything, of course, but it makes a strong first impression.

Wtf is this? Looks like trash. 6 at best

@Blabadon: The previous games both got 8.5 here and I remember VLR being Gamespot's best handheld game of 2012

@aigis: He's probably the biggest Zero Escape fan on this board

@aigis: still looks like weeaboo trash

@charizard1605: If thats the case, hes good at hiding it

@Blabadon: Whats weeaboo about it?

Wow, asshole, way to give it away.

I haven't played the first one but I might soon...as for the score or hype, people aren't really interested on vns and I guess it'll get an 8?

I'll go with an 8.

<3

Who gives a crap. 0/10

I'm feeling a 8/10. Not much hype beyond the semi-superfans.

Saying a 9.

I don't think it's as much of a threat as Uncharted 4 was, just due to the niche appeal of this series, but yes, malicious spoilers will still be met with a ban.

8 probably. I don't think it will stand up to the hype from it's predecessors. 999 was amazing, while VLR kinda had too many similar themes that didn't make it as unique. I see this as a similar outcome as VLR.

@charizard1605: how did you get a copy so early?? :P. Anyways, how similar is this game in terms of 999 for the ds?? Is the atmosphere more similar to 999 or virtues last reward??

And IYO, is this game better than the last 2 games?? (On an individual basis??)

Saw: Anime Edition. Just kidding, it looks... interesting to say the least.

Nice hype thread!

I have a feeling it'll get an 8...my only worry is whether the conclusion will be satisfying or not...but if it is, I could see this game getting a 9 no problem

Also, I have a bet going that Q=Quark....MAKE IT HAPPEN DAMMIT...I NEED MORE HEARTFELT STORIES ABOUT ROOTBEER FLOATS

Cool, I'll be traveling for a few days right after this releases, could use something of a distraction, might try this.

@charizard1605: Question, are these game stand alone? I know they're part of a series but will anybody just be able to jump in or is it imperative that play 999 and Virtues Last Reward first?

@lamprey263: They are kinda self contained, but you will be missing the overarching plot points and references. I suggest you play the previous two first which are very good. I dont really know how ZTD stacks up in terms of a self contained story as it is supposed to answer questions raised in the previous games. They are amazing games though and they should be heading to steam if that helps any

@lamprey263: Think of it as jumping right to Return of the King. Sure you kind of have a self contained story, but having that extra understanding is basically necessary to fully enjoy things.

I'll go with an 8.

As a fan of the series I want to say it will get a 9, regardless of it being niche and little media around it. At the same time I fear it will score 7-8 on average if the people reviewing it aren't fans of the genre/series in general.

I'm actually thinking of sucking it up and waiting the extra day to play it on PC first after the comparison video. Everyone is going in blind so I don't care about competing for the fastest 100% (Steam Achievements and PSN Trophies). It also depends on whether my handheld versions get here on time or not. I'm taking June 27-30 off as I have holiday time built up and July 1 is Canada Day. That gives me June 25-July 3 to completely immerse myself (if I'm lucky and get my copies early as a Amazon Prime member). As soon as I start playing one of the versions I won't be going on gaming sites or anywhere in general to help avoid spoilers. If I play the Steam version I will ignore my feed and the community page. I'm hoping for a 40-50 hour experience as I won't be rushing through and I can see getting stuck on puzzles as well (hopefully walkthroughs don't go up ASAP so that everyone has to use their brains).

I'm going to stick with 9 as the score, but I'm curious to see how the different versions score overall (PC vs. Vita vs. 3DS). How does that work in the System Wars meta?

*Edit*

I'm also one of the people willing to give the art style a chance and to not immediately shoot it down. At first I was completely turned away by Hotel Dusk's presentation, but that is one of my favourite games of any system. I'm here for the story first and foremost. As fans we cannot forget that one of the reasons this game even entered development was due to the cult following the series has. Sales were never anything to cheer about and due to it's genre it was easily overlooked by the average consumer. You bet I'll appreciate the risks they willingly took on to honour the respect of their fanbase and complete the trilogy.

Review copy!

In terms of atmosphere, the game is far more similar to 999 than VLR (which I appreciate, I didn't like the dumbing down of the horror movie atmosphere from the first game in VLR)

I have not played enough of ZTD yet to make an assessment of whether or not I like it more than the previous two games. So far, I find it more compelling than VLR, for whatever it's worth.

You absolutely cannot and must not play this first. The game makes no explanations or concessions to new players at all, concepts and characters are just casually name dropped without any concession given to whether or not new players might be keeping up.

At the very least, VLR is required reading for this game- but I'd say go the whole hog and do 999 as well.

Since the previous two got 8.5 each, I think the most likely score for this would be 8, so I'll go with that.

FFFFFFFF It's on a platform I actually want to play games on!!!!

I need to go play VLR. Maybe I'll do another 999 playthrough, freshen up.

Hype AAA. Sooooo glad this is on PC. I really hope they'll port the first 2 games over at some point.

First of all how'd you get an early copy and how do I get in on it?

And second how's the English voice acting? In VLR it was only okay, it had some pretty weak stuff but then some good moments as well. I'm hoping it'll be better overall, but the previews haven't left me very confident on that.

@Vaasman: It's a review copy for the site I am working with. The voice acting is eh. Not too better or worse than VLR's imo.

I'll give Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma a 7/10. Nice hype thread BTW.

Also I got news for the PC port. For those who are wondering about Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma PC, Steam has this Info regarding the PC version. I was considering buying the 3DS version but I'll probably go for the PC on this one. 1080p/60fps with borderless screen? This is far from the cheap remake I thought we would get! Now I'm really tempted. If you don't have a dedicated GPU, chances are that your PC/laptop wouldn't be enough.

The minimum recommendations for the game on Steam includes: Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX650 1GB or AMD HD 7700 1GB(DirectX 11 graphic card required)

Now that's way above both 3DS/Vita specs but nevertheless, this might just mean it's not that great a port, but then again, if the minimum specs hold true, the game would be unplayable for few PC gamers.

Is there a video we can watch to catch up on the story?

I tried finding one but no luck

Really, owing to the games' ergodic structure, the most effectual way of catching up with the story is to actually play the games.

@charizard1605: as a mathematician I'm fairly sure you're not using that word right man.

Uh, I think (I might be wrong?) that in literary terms, it generally means form reflects content, and vice versa.

I may be entirely wrong here, though, but in that case, this post should clear it up anyway lol

EDIT: I think I've greatly simplified it in my understanding, but I am on the right track, if Wikipedia(lol) has anything to say about it.

@charizard1605: interesting, I've only heard it in mathematical context.

@Blabadon: Yeah, i just updated the older post with a link to the literary meaning. My understanding is simplified, but it seems to be right, I think.

Form reflects content and vice versa is one form of ergodic literature, but there seem to be more types, too.

@charizard1605: Ah well, if it's unbearable I can just ignore the V/O mostly.

Also, I'd like to know how long it took to beat, once you're finished. I'll be on vacation a few days after launch, I'm wondering if it's worth plowing through or if I should just wait.

I've only played the first and I haven't even finished it and junpie looks so different and has spoilers under his character description, and Akane too How nice lol.

I'll finish this series someday.

For now I say AA.

SAW meets the Breakfast Club.

@a-new-guardian: To be fair, he points out specifically in the OP that there will be some spoilers that are unavoidable.

@charizard1605: oh I know. I was just making fun of myself for not being up to date on the series. OP is not at fault here at all. :D

Haha. But yes, you should catch up! 999 is great, VLR is alright, and so far, ZTD is great also ^_^

@charizard1605: I loved what I played of 999 last summer. Since then it's been on hiatus lol. This releasing soon and me having the previous two is the perfect opportunity to start the series again. I will in a month or so hehe.

@a-new-guardian: Ya sry, I was trying to minimize it as much as possible so whats up there is the translation of the official Japanese site for ZTD. The English site is pretty much the same.

*edit*

I changed most of them to the english site, but even the english site has 999 and VLR spoilers if you know what you're looking for

I've never heard of this, so have zero hype but it does look very interesting indeed

Honestly, I dont blame you for not knowing. Its a very niche title and has had literally zero news articles about it on Gamespot (cause making sure everyone was up to date with finding dory had priority ahead of this apparently). The game was cancelled for a while after the 2nd game (2012) was left on a cliffhanger of sorts, so having the game coming out in a week or so is pretty amazing after the fanbase started campaigning to get it made (resulting in the official confirmation that it was back in development last year). The games are some of my favorite ever and really only have lower sales because of underexposure by media sites and its not a mainstream type of game since it is very story driven. They are amazing games and I highly recommend that you try them out if you are even slightly interested.