MOOZ (Free Short Adventure Novel) Introduction and Review

Preface

The game I played this time is a free game called "MOOZ".
In terms of genre, it's a novel format where you choose options and read the text.
I was intrigued by the interesting premise, and since it was a short story, I thought it would be easy to play, so I decided to give it a try.

It took me about 30 minutes to complete the game, and it was very fun.

Game Overview

The game itself is a short visual novel where the story branches depending on the choices you make.
Choosing the wrong option will lead to a bad ending, but new options will be added.
The goal is to aim for the true ending while experiencing the bad endings.

The story begins with the protagonist, Komiya, having a "MOOZ drinking session" with his friend, Murata.
"MOOZ drinking" refers to an online drinking party held using a web conferencing app.
(Although there are many web conferencing software options available now, there was a time when "ZOOM" was practically synonymous with web conferencing software.)
After Murata leaves his seat to go to the restroom, a woman with a knife appears in the room, which should have been empty, and hides in the closet just before Murata returns.
Let's choose our actions and topics of conversation carefully, keeping our friend's safety in mind, and get to the bottom of the truth.

When restarting a game, you can choose to begin from a different scene.
To reach the true ending, you'll need to see some bad endings as well, so keep choosing options even if they seem incorrect.

This short piece is packed with multiple surprises and is very well put together.
This is the kind of game you'd want to recommend to others and watch them play, so I think it's very well-suited for game streaming.

Review (contains spoilers)

I have viewed all the endings and also the EXTRA scenarios.
Although it's a short game, I think it's a game that you can enjoy all at once thanks to its tense setting and unexpected storyline.

The basic gameplay involves choosing an option, watching the ending, and then starting over. However, even bad endings offer more choices, so I didn't feel particularly stressed by having to restart.
The game makes excellent use of screen effects and unique graphics, which I think effectively conveys the game's distinctive atmosphere.

(Please be aware that the following contains spoilers about the scenario.)

I also thought the scenario was interesting.
The premise alone—a mysterious figure lurking behind a friend talking via webcam—is catchy, but what I liked was the unexpected twist and turn in the story and its ending.

The normal ending showcased Murata's madness, and then the true ending completely overturned that, which surprised and entertained me twice.
I found it strange that Murata was having an online drinking party while holding someone captive, but that actually highlighted Murata's abnormality, and the trick he pulled at the end of the normal ending was very creepy.

However, in the true ending, it was revealed that Murata was just a harmless person after all, which brought both relief and a chilling sense of dread.
Finally, the scene where a hand suddenly appears from the side and ends the call might be the most thrilling moment in the entire game.