Snake's Life (Free Mystery Adventure) Introduction, Impressions, and Strategy Notes

I played "Hebi no Inochi" (Snake's Life), a game created by MIDORIKAWA using RPG Maker MV (currently only playable as an app).
It was a mystery adventure game where the scenario progressed mainly through exploration and conversation, and it was an innovative work that incorporated many unique RPG-like elements.
Like "Ace Attorney" and "Danganronpa," this game centers around defeating opponents by presenting evidence that contradicts their claims.
What's most interesting is the eloquent exchanges between the characters.
The fast-paced exchange of nonsensical arguments and witty retorts draws you deeper and deeper into their unique world.

The game has a replayability element, allowing you to start with a strong initial state and enjoy the new options that can be chosen.
It took me about six hours to complete the game, including clearing the second playthrough on HARD mode and achieving a full completion.

Game Overview

The story begins with the protagonist, a snake detective, solving a series of incidents that occur at the inn where he is staying.
Many options appear, and each elicits an interesting reaction, making you want to try out a variety of them.

However, if you make a mistake in your reasoning during the discussion, you will take damage to your HP.
When your HP reaches 0, it's game over. After you've earned your score up to that point, you'll start playing again from the beginning.
(There's a looping element where you can start stronger by spending points to gain bonuses.)
Successfully refuting an argument earns you experience points, and accumulating experience points levels you up.

As your level increases, you can use your level to enhance your abilities.
Increasing your ability scores can broaden the range of choices you can make.

As shown in the image above, there are many options that require certain conditions to be met before you can make a selection.
In the first playthrough, it's difficult to choose anything other than the standard options.
However, in the second playthrough, you'll have more leeway in your stats, allowing you to choose from a wider range of options.

Review (no spoilers)

Despite the fast-paced, humorous dialogue, the game was fantastic in its meticulous plot twists and how the foreshadowing was cleverly resolved.
It's not uncommon for seemingly insignificant lines of dialogue during exploration, or remarks that initially appear to be jokes, to actually be important plot points.
I got so engrossed in it that I finished it in one go.

However, this isn't the kind of game where you need to play with a lot of tension or seriousness, so I think it's best to play it in a relaxed manner.
It's a world where snakes and insects speak like ordinary humans and coexist with them, and strangely enough, you find yourself believing that this is how that world truly is.
Snakes, insects, and humans alike interject detailed objections during the deduction process, and it's astonishing how many counterarguments they can offer.
The plot often unfolded in a way that made it seem like the deduction was progressing, but in reality, the culprit was just misleading the audience. I found this novel and enjoyable.

The puzzles didn't have complex prerequisite rules; they were a reasonable level of difficulty, and I thought it was good that they could be solved by thinking on the spot.
While there are some challenging parts, you can save frequently and there are plenty of hints, so I don't think you'll get stuck.

It seems there's a way to play HARD mode from the start, but HARD mode is designed for players who have already seen the normal ending.
Therefore, I think the best way to enjoy the game is to see the normal ending on your first playthrough and then play on HARD mode on your second playthrough.

Strategy Notes (Contains Spoilers)

This isn't exactly a walkthrough, but I'd like to write down a few points that might be helpful while playing.
If you check for walkthroughs and information via the in-game phone call, you probably won't get stuck most of the time.
There's no need to be overly afraid of choices that can lead to unexpected and misleading situations, as they can actually give you valuable experience points.

- For the first playthrough, HP is the recommended ability to develop.
In your first playthrough, you'll be playing without knowing the tricks, so you'll likely make many mistakes in your choices.
Therefore, if you increase your maximum HP, you are less likely to get a game over even if you make the wrong choice in the deduction part.

- For the second playthrough, I recommend developing your reasoning ability and HP.
In HARD mode, since you've already played through the game once, you should know what the correct strategy is.
Therefore, in the early stages, it might be less stressful to prioritize increasing your reasoning ability, which allows you to skip scenes, over your HP.

Of course, HARD mode unfolds quite differently from the normal mode, so you'll need to do some extra deduction to figure that out.
Especially in the later stages, you'll encounter a lot of objections from the enemy, so it's a good idea to raise your HP to a certain level.

Review (contains spoilers)

From here on, the review contains spoilers.
Please be aware that reading this before seeing the final ending in HARD mode may spoil the enjoyment.

In short, it was a game I became completely engrossed in playing.
It took me about six hours to clear HARD mode, but it's been a long time since I've been so engrossed in a game that I played through it all in one day.

The detectives, the hunters, and their assistants—everyone—is quick to offer counterarguments, always finding a way to argue back at every point.
I'm truly impressed by how many counterarguments can be come up with from such trivial matters.
I was even moved by the assistant's desperate, relentless counterarguments towards the end, where he threw caution to the wind.
That said, it was fun to track down the culprit who was making a last-ditch effort, as it provided the catharsis unique to mystery games.

The title, "The Life of a Snake," didn't immediately resonate with me.
However, after completing the game, I was so moved that I felt "there could be no other title for this game."

From the very beginning, there were several scenes that made me aware of the title, "The Life of a Snake."
I was struck by the condescending remarks of the employees and detectives, such as how fortunate it was that a snake and not a person were killed.
That's why I think the assistant's final scene was so ironically effective.
I think the fact that he himself died because of the difference of just one snake's life, which he had underestimated, showed that the life of a snake and a human life were of equal value.

The response to the other person's statement, "A snake's life is lighter than air," with "That's why it revives above the clouds," was like a verbal argument unrelated to the main plot, but I felt it was the most exciting moment in terms of fulfilling the title's theme.

In HARD mode, it was interesting and meta how all the characters were subtly aware that they were on their second playthrough.
In particular, since the Hunter's misdeeds are revealed in the first playthrough, he becomes a comedic character in the second playthrough, making him a character that's hard to hate.
I couldn't help but laugh when he persistently tried to glorify his own crime, claiming that his self-inflicted arson was "a fairly rational method."

Another scene that left a strong impression on me was the final scene of the normal ending.
The snake employee was a lazy worker who often slacked off, but the fact that he ultimately sacrificed himself, following the chef's example, was quite touching.
Although it's a normal ending, it had a bad ending-like atmosphere that left me feeling disheartened (and I mean that as a compliment).

The final scene in HARD mode where everyone is revived might be considered a bit of a plot convenience.
However, a happy ending leaves a good feeling, so I think it's a fitting way to conclude this lighthearted story.
Even though it was somewhat contrived, the reasoning behind his resurrection was well-developed with foreshadowing and made sense to some extent, so I was able to accept it.
The part where they used earthworms soaked in artificial hot spring water as rope, effectively canceling out life and death, just made me laugh out loud.

It was a unique work that combined seemingly difficult themes—mystery, comedy, and the value of life—into a single dish.