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My Year of Gaming: ‘Steins;Gate 0’

My Year of Gaming: Steins;Gate 0

I purchased a Playstation 4 at the beginning of 2017 and it is the first time I have had a console since Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword came out on the Wii. Naturally, I have a lot of catching up to do and my backlog is incredibly massive. During the course of a year, I played my way through 23 games, and I figured I would take the time to share a little bit about each game. Perhaps you’ve played them and want to hear another opinion, or maybe you’ve been holding off on investing in a particular game. Either way, it’s never a bad time to spread your love of gaming.

My Year of Gaming: 'Steins;Gate 0'
Image: Spike Chunsoft

A sequel to the 2009 game Steins;Gate, this 2017 release once more follows the time traveling antics of Rintaro Okabe. It is really hard to explain Steins;Gate 0 without spoiling the original series. And you have to have knowledge of the original in order to fully understand this one. However, it is definitely worth it. Luckily, there’s an anime adaptation of Steins;Gate that does an incredible job of adapting the game. The anime is within my top 5 favorite anime of all time, it is that good. Steins;Gate 0 continues to deliver the same emotional storytelling as the original.

Because the game is based upon a visual novel, you are going to be doing nothing but reading. There are a couple of opportunities for you to make decisions that will impact the overall story, but you mostly just follow along with the dialogue. Steins;Gate 0 has six different endings, one being a true ending and one being the ultimate bad ending. I definitely used a guide to figure out where all the divergences happen and saved accordingly so I could experience all six. Each really packed a punch, with the true and bad ending sucker-punching you with emotion.

My Year of Gaming: 'Steins;Gate 0'
Image: Spike Chunsoft

If you enjoy an engaging plot, intriguing characters, twists and turns, and occasionally being emotionally distressed, then these games are for you. I watched the anime and then played Steins;Gate 0 and was able to understand everything that was going on. Perhaps reading isn’t your thing, but I would still suggest finding a way to experience this series. The good news is that there is an anime adaptation of Steins;Gate 0 coming out in 2018.