Eternal (Free Sci-Fi Visual Novel) Review

Preface

I read an article about it on Mogura Games' website and became interested, so I decided to play it.
This is the sci-fi visual novel "Eternal".
I had just finished a major game, so I was looking forward to playing a short game.
I found it very interesting, so I'd like to write a review.
For a game introduction, I think the following page is very easy to understand.

Game Overview

This is a standard visual novel where you read the text and choose options.
It took me less than an hour to complete the game.
For some people, it might take a little longer.
With all the basic features like message display speed, skip function, and ample save file slots, you can enjoy a comfortable gaming experience.

The story unfolds through the perspectives of two characters: the protagonist, "Haru," and "Terra," the artificial intelligence of the spaceship Amrita.
The objective is to complete a mission to collect samples from a planet 30 days' distance from Earth, write a report, and return to Earth.
On the way home, you'll notice a sense of unease lurking in your monotonous, repetitive daily life, and the game will guide you in uncovering the full story.
Going into detail would spoil the story, so I recommend that those who are interested play the game.
It's a short story, so you should be able to read it quickly.

Review (contains spoilers)

It was fascinating to watch how an unsettling atmosphere gradually emerged as they carried out their initially mundane objective.
Even if you get a game over early on, the fact that you can return to day one again serves as a clue to the story.
Furthermore, the word "Hazuse," which was added after "Kubiwa," remains in the next cycle, so I realized that I wasn't going back in time, but rather that the timeline was a continuous one.

It was terrifying to see Haru's pained expression as the collar tightened.
That expression might be intended to make us think that Haru has died.
In reality, it seems they were being kept asleep with drugs.

Even so, I never imagined that so many years had passed.
The ending can be chosen by the player, but the choice is ultimately a matter of personal preference.
The ending is divided into "Accept," "Blind," and "Connect," and the order of the initial letters is A, B, C.

Option A is to accept what has been repeated so far and return to the original loop.
This is the outcome Terra desired, a return to an endless cycle.
Although it is eternal, Amrita also undergoes natural degradation, so this choice can be considered stagnation, or even a slow death.
Even though it's titled "Accept," I think it's an ending that you choose precisely because you can't accept the reality.
It's not a bad choice, but it would take considerable courage to return to the loop of your own accord.

Option B is to ignore the bleak prediction and return to Earth.
As Terra said, there are many uncertainties, and it's definitely not a recommended choice.
And that ending will probably end in failure, with memories fading away in the darkness.
In a sense, this could also be considered a form of intellectual laziness, similar to option A.
It almost seems like the only difference is whether it's a suicide that takes a long time or one that doesn't take long at all.
If humanity were to become extinct, I can understand the feeling of wanting to share that fate as a part of it.

Option C is the choice to go into outer space.
The story follows a character who is used as a test subject in an inhumane project called the Eternal Project, but who takes over the project and embarks on a journey to another galaxy.
It felt like the most positive choice, and the encounter with someone at the end was good because it evoked both anticipation and anxiety.

The miscellaneous notes of "Kobayashi," the official mentioned in the document, describe a method of sacrificing people for the sake of a greater cause, which cannot be condoned.
However, if this is the decision Hal made after reading that document, then as a player, I have nothing to say.
I believe it's absolutely true that this plan was carried out not for personal gain, but out of concern for humanity.

Does "Connect" indicate that the last thing received was a radio signal, and that it connected with someone?
Taking over this plan may be implying that he is carrying on his parents' wishes and regaining connections with others.
In any case, I personally felt that this C ending was the true ending.