True End-of-Life Syndrome -World end, eve- (Free Visual Novel) Introduction and Review

This article is about the visual novel game "True End Syndrome -World end, eve-," which features a wealth of illustrations and graphics that are sure to catch your eye.
I became interested in the work after seeing it several times on free game websites and reading comments about it on Twitter.
moreover,Winner of the "Indie Game of the Year 2019" award.However, that changed my mind and made me want to play it.
I didn't time it precisely, but I think it was around three hours.

Due to the nature of visual novels, there isn't much to write in the spoiler-free section, so please be aware that this review is rather lackluster.
I've written quite a bit about my impressions, including spoilers.

Game Overview

As a game, it's a linear visual novel with no choices to make.
This type of display shows character portraits or single images in the background, with text appearing on top of them.
The text display speed and skip settings are also excellent, and I experience absolutely no stress regarding the system.

The story begins by depicting the daily lives of the protagonist, Mutsuki, her childhood friend Kanata, the transfer student Haruka, and her friend Asaichi.
After a certain event, Mutsuki is forced to make a decision about how she and her friends should interact with the world.
I think the highlight is the way each character thinks and lives their life.

Review (no spoilers)

The first thing that will surprise you is the sheer number of still images and the beautiful graphics.
Although it's not a particularly long work, it uses nearly 200 single illustrations, which suggests a considerable amount of effort went into it.
They use single illustrations so casually and without any sense of normalcy that it's easy to become desensitized to it.
Even in scenes where it would only be used for a brief moment, it's used extensively, which makes it feel luxurious.

Regarding the story's content, this work doesn't feature intense battles or cleverly constructed tricks.
As the title suggests, the story gives the impression of eloquently describing the characters' perspectives, thoughts, and feelings about the "end of the world."
I think it leans more towards literary fiction than pure entertainment.

Therefore, I felt that players who actively immerse themselves in the game's world and engage in self-reflection, rather than passively enjoying the entertainment, would enjoy it more.
If the title or graphics catch your eye, why not give it a try?

Review (contains spoilers)

The following review contains spoilers.
Therefore, please be aware if you haven't played it yet.

After playing a visual novel, I try to think about things like, "What was the theme of this game?" or "What did the creators want to convey to the player?"
In novels like mysteries and survival horrors, where the story itself incorporates puzzle-like elements, finishing the book itself is like clearing a game, providing a sense of accomplishment.

However, in a linear visual novel, you simply read through the story, and eventually the game ends.
But is simply finishing reading it enough to truly understand the situation?
Even if my interpretation is wrong, I only feel like I've truly understood something after I've thought about it myself and been able to express my own thoughts (this is just my personal opinion).
Therefore, in the following article, I would like to discuss the story's content and themes as interpreted in my own way.

In a world with a structure where the world repeatedly loops through its end, the protagonist, Mutsuki, chooses to destroy that world.
If you've been stuck in a loop multiple times and have accumulated memories from those loops, it's understandable that you'd want to end it.
However, Mutsuki does not carry over those recurring memories.
To destroy a world that embodies everyone's happiness, without having personally experienced the repeated suffering and loneliness, is quite an act of madness.(As it is also written in the "Afterword").

Normally, you'd think that Haruka, who has gone through this process so many times, would be the one to want to destroy this world, but instead, Haruka wishes for the world to survive.
Perhaps they really don't want to go back to the outside world.
Even though it's the life she wanted, Haruka, who chooses to wander forever while retaining her memories, is just as, if not more, eccentric than Mutsuki.

I can sympathize with Mutsuki's reasons for wanting to end the world.
In the latter half of the story, Mutsuki explicitly states the following in a conversation with Kanata:

I think this is a perfectly valid reason.
From our perspective as players, staying in a world where the same things are repeated endlessly feels incredibly boring.
However, Mutsuki is not experiencing the repetition from her own subjective perspective, nor does she have a clear memory of it.
As mentioned earlier, I can understand if Haruka chooses to end the world, but Mutsuki chooses to destroy it without any personal experience.
We make big decisions based on our intellect about things we haven't personally experienced.
This seems to me to be evidence that Mutsuki has a very strong sense of self and is determined to stick to her own beliefs.

Mutsuki calls this repetition "meaningless eternity," but for the other characters, it's certainly not meaningless.
However, even if it means making enemies of everyone, Mutsuki believes in the answer she has come up with and pushes forward.
Shindo Mitsuki, who created this world, simply acted on her own belief that it would bring happiness.
In that sense, I understood why Mutsuki and Mangetsu are so similar.

There is another quote from Mutsuki that goes like this:
"In this one and only life, and because it's a once-in-a-lifetime choice, it has meaning. That choice represents the one and only life you earnestly seize."

These were words I could relate to.
Certainly, if it's an option that can be replayed multiple times by saving and loading, then that choice doesn't carry much weight.
If you made a mistake, just do it again.
However, in life, there are many choices that you can only make once and can't redo.
That's why I have to be careful with every choice I make, and I need to be prepared to take responsibility for whatever the outcome may be.

Personally, I think that even in this endlessly repeating world, if the people involved don't recognize it as a chance to start over, the weight of their choices remains the same.
Subjectively, if it's a "once-in-a-lifetime choice," I feel it should be respected. That being said, Mutsuki has the strength to push forward with an idea if she believes it's even slightly right.
Furthermore, if he has the means to put his ideas into action, no one will be able to stop him.

Based on the above, I tried to think about what the theme of this work might have been.
Mutsuki, Kanata, Haruka, Asaichi, and Ariko all have their own ways of thinking.
There is no right or wrong way of thinking,I think the theme was the protagonist Mutsuki's "way of being."
In other words,Even if it seems arrogant, it's about living strongly in the way you believe is right.is.
To assert your own opinion means excluding the opinions of others, but that's precisely why it's important to make choices with resolve and responsibility.

Whether online or in real life, if you express your opinion, you will hear both voices of agreement and voices of disagreement.
I'm not as strong or as young as Mutsuki, but I intend to continue writing reviews of the games I play, sometimes even if it means being a bit arrogant.